Communication system, communication device, and communication method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9326259-B2
Application number	US-201214125825-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 13, 2012
Priority date	Jun 17, 2011
Publication date	Apr 26, 2016
Grant date	Apr 26, 2016

Abstract

A communication system comprising first and second master stations configured to perform synchronous wireless communication with a slave station via a first network, and a control station configured to be connected to the first and second master stations via a second network, wherein the control station transmits time information used to synchronize times of the first and second master stations to each of the first and second master stations via the second network, wherein one of the first and second master stations performs timing based on the time information from the control station, and wherein the other of the first and second master stations performs the timing based on announcement information announcing the time information transmitted from the one of the first and second master stations via the first network.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A communication system, comprising:
first and second master stations configured to perform synchronous wireless communication with a slave station via a first network; and
a control station configured to be connected to the first and second master stations via a second network,
wherein the control station transmits time information used to synchronize times of the first and second master stations to each of the first and second master stations via the second network,
wherein one of the first and second master stations that is instructed to serve as a master by the control station performs timing based on the time information from the control station, and
wherein the other of the first and second master stations that is instructed to serve as a slave by the control station performs the timing based on announcement information announcing the time information transmitted from the one of the first and second master stations, which is instructed to serve as the master by the control station, via the first network.

2. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein, when the first and second master stations receive the time information from the control station, the first and second master stations transmit the announcement information to the second and first master stations via the first network, respectively, and receive the announcement information transmitted from the second and first master stations via the first network, respectively.

3. The communication system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the first and second master stations transmit reception quality information indicating reception quality of the announcement information transmitted from the second and first master stations via the first network, respectively, to the control station via the second network, and
wherein, based on the reception quality information from the first and second master stations, the control station instructs the first and second master stations to serve as a master that performs the timing based on the time information from the control station or to serve as a slave performing the timing based on the announcement information.

4. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein, when the other of the first and second master stations does not receive the announcement information from one of the first and second master stations, the other of the first and second master stations performs the timing based on the time information from the control station.

5. The communication system according to claim 4 , wherein, when the other of the first and second master stations is not able to receive the announcement information from the one of the first and second master stations during a time determined according to a time error occurring when the timing is not performed and time accuracy obtained in advance, the other of the first and second master stations performs the timing based on the time information from the control station.

6. The communication system according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a relay device configured to relay communication performed via the first network between the first and second master stations.

7. A communication device that is instructed to serve as one of a master and a slave by a control station, comprising:
a first communication unit configured to be connected to a first network in which synchronous wireless communication is enabled;
a second communication unit configured to be connected to a second network in which asynchronous communication is enabled;
a clock device configured to regulate a time of the own communication device; and
a synchronization-processing unit, wherein, when the communication device is instructed to serve as the master, the synchronization-processing unit performs a first process of performing timing of the clock device based on time information received by the second communication unit and when the communication device is instructed to serve as the slave, the synchronization-processing unit performs a second process of performing the timing of the clock device based on announcement information of the time information received by the first communication unit, the announcement information being information announced by another communication device via the first network.

8. The communication device according to claim 7 , wherein the synchronization-processing unit performs one of the first and second processes based on instruction information received by the second communication unit.

9. The communication device according to claim 8 , wherein, when the instruction information received by the second communication unit is information for instruction of the second process and the first communication unit is not able to receive the announcement information, the synchronization-processing unit performs the first process instead of the second process.

10. A communication method in a communication system including first and second master stations configured to perform synchronous wireless communication with a slave station via a first network, and a control station configured to be connected to the first and second master stations via a second network, the communication method comprising:
transmitting time information used to synchronize times of the first and second master stations from the control station to each of the first and second master stations via the second network,
performing, by one of the first and second master stations that is instructed to serve as a master by the control station, timing based on the time information from the control station, and
performing, by the other of the first and second master stations that is instructed to serve as a slave by the control station, the timing based on announcement information announcing the time information transmitted from the one of the first and second master stations, which is instructed to serve as the master by the control station, via the first network.

11. The communication method according to claim 10 , further comprising:
transmitting the announcement information to the second and first master stations via the first network, respectively, and receiving the announcement information transmitted to the second and first master stations via the first network, respectively, when the time information is received from the control station.

12. The communication method according to claim 11 , further comprising:
transmitting reception quality information indicating reception quality of the announcement information transmitted from the second and first master stations via the first network, respectively, to the control station via the second network; and
instructing, based on the reception quality information from the first and second master stations, the first and second master stations to serve as a master that performs the timing based on the time information from the control station or to serve as a slave performing the timing based on the announcement information.

13. The communication method according to claim 10 , further comprising:
performing, by the other of the first and second master stations, the timing based on the time information from the control station when the other of the first and second master stations does not receive the announcement information from one of the first and second master stations.

14. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein the first and second master stations perform, based on instruction information from the control station, one of the timing based on the time information from the control station and the timing based on the announcement information.

Assignees

• Toda Hideyuki
• Yokogawa Electric Corp

Inventors

• Toda Hideyuki

Classifications

• H04J3/0667

  Bidirectional timestamps, e.g. NTP or PTP for compensation of clock drift and for compensation of propagation delays (arrangements for monitoring round trip delays in packet switching networks H04L43/0864) · CPC title

• H04J3/0641

  Change of the master or reference, e.g. take-over or failure of the master · CPC title

• H04W56/001 Primary

  Synchronization between nodes · CPC title

• H04J3/0673

  using intermediate nodes, e.g. modification of a received timestamp before further transmission to the next packet node, e.g. including internal delay time or residence time into the packet · CPC title

• H04W56/0015

  one node acting as a reference for the others · CPC title