JP5345902B2 - Data transmission apparatus, data transmission method, and data transmission program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a data transmission device, and more particularly to a data transmission device including a plurality of transmission units.

  Some data transmission apparatuses that perform data transmission via a network or the like use a plurality of transmission units and perform data transmission by switching the transmission unit used for each transmission data.

  Furthermore, some data transmission apparatuses using such a plurality of transmission units consider transmission priority of transmission data. For example, transmission control is performed such that a large number of transmission units are allocated to data with high priority for early transmission, and conversely, a small number of transmission units are allocated to data with low priority.

  In addition, an electric circuit such as a transmission unit consumes standby power even when it is not operating. For this reason, some data transmission apparatuses attempt to reduce power consumption by shifting unused transmission units to a power saving standby state or by stopping the power supply itself to the transmission units.

Note that the power saving standby state referred to here is a state in which standby power is reduced by stopping power supply to a part of the circuit of the transmission unit or slowing down the operation speed. In the power saving standby state, transmission is not possible as it is, and it takes time to start transmission, but the power consumption can be reduced compared to the standby state in which transmission is immediately possible. Multiple combinations of transmission start time and standby power, such as a power saving standby state with a short time to start transmission but a large standby power, and a power saving standby state with a long time to start transmission but low standby power Some have a power-saving standby state. (For example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2)
As described above, in a data transmission apparatus using a plurality of transmission units, control of power consumption according to the usage status of the transmission units and transmission unit allocation control according to the priority of transmission data are performed.

  However, in general, transmission data is generated asynchronously. For this reason, if the transmission unit is simply assigned with priority, for example, if data transmission requests with high priority are temporarily overlapped, the transmission unit is assigned to data with low priority over a long period of time. May not be possible. For this reason, even if a transmission deadline is set for data with low priority, a transmission unit is not assigned to data with low priority, and a situation in which the transmission deadline cannot be observed will occur. .

  In order to avoid such a situation, time monitoring is performed for transmission data with a transmission time limit set, and when the transmission time limit is approached, transmission processing that is temporarily not related to priority (hereinafter referred to as priority change transmission). There is also a data transmission device that performs processing). In such an apparatus, the time monitoring is performed, for example, by an interrupt process set for each data for which a transmission time limit is set. (For example, see Patent Document 3)

JP 2009-033691 A JP 2008-112293 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 05-120199

  However, in the data transmission apparatus that performs control according to the data priority as described above, the number of transmission units allocated to transmission of data with low priority is the number of transmission units allocated to transmission of data with high priority. Fewer. For this reason, the processing time of the priority change transmission processing for data with low priority becomes long.

  As a result, if priority change transmission processing is performed for low-priority data transmission whose transmission deadline is approaching, the waiting time for subsequent high-priority data transmission increases, and system performance deteriorates.

  In order to deal with this, the monitoring interval of the transmission deadline is shortened and the number of monitoring is increased. That is, by shortening the monitoring interval, the priority change transmission process found in each monitor is reduced, and the average priority change transmission process time to be processed by each monitor can be shortened.

  However, in this case, the number of times of the monitoring process is increased, and another problem that the system performance is deteriorated by the increase of the monitoring process is caused.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to reduce the waiting time due to priority change transmission processing of low priority data without increasing the number of monitoring processes, a data transmission device, a data transmission method, and data To provide a transmission program.

  A data transmission apparatus according to the present invention includes a plurality of transmission units that transmit data, and at least one of the plurality of transmission units for transmitting the data at the start of data transmission. When a predetermined condition is satisfied after allocation and data transmission start, a larger number of transmission units than the number of transmission units allocated for transmission of the data at the start of transmission are used for transmission of the data. And a control unit to be assigned.

According to the present invention, there is provided a data transmission method of a data transmission device including a plurality of transmission units for transmitting data, wherein at least one of the plurality of transmission units is transmitted to the data at the start of data transmission And a number of transmitters larger than the number of transmitters allocated for transmitting the data when the transmission is started when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the data transmission is started. Is assigned for transmission of the data.
A data transmission program of a data transmission apparatus to be executed by a computer having a plurality of transmission units for transmitting data according to the present invention is provided at least one of the plurality of transmission units for transmitting the data at the start of data transmission. More than the number of transmitters allocated for transmitting the data at the start of the transmission when the predetermined condition is satisfied after the data transmission is started The present invention is characterized by comprising a process of assigning the number of transmission units for transmission of the data.

  According to the present invention, in the priority change transmission process of low priority data, the transmission time can be shortened by temporarily increasing the number of transmission units used for transmission, and therefore, the priority change transmission process is followed. The effect of reducing the waiting time for data transmission with high priority is obtained.

  Furthermore, according to the present invention, since the transmission time required for the priority change transmission process is shortened, the timing for starting the priority change transmission process with respect to the transmission time limit can be delayed. Normal transmission processing is performed for the delayed time. As a result, the number of times of priority change transmission processing is reduced, and the effect of further reducing the waiting time for transmission of high priority data can be obtained.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the switching state of the transmission part of this invention The figure which shows the data and data management table which are used in embodiment of this invention The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows a modification in the 1st Embodiment of this invention The block diagram which shows the structure of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows the structure of the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement of the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows the structure of the 4th Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement of the 4th Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement of the 4th Embodiment of this invention.

Next, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
(First embodiment)
First, the configuration and operation of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a data transmission device 1 according to the first embodiment.

  In FIG. 1, a data transmission device 1 includes a transmission control unit 2 that controls each unit of the data transmission device 1, a transmission storage unit 3 that stores transmission data 4, and transmission units 51 to 53 that transmit data. ing.

  The transmission control unit 2 can control the three transmission units (transmission units 51 to 53) to change the number of transmission units used for transmission as shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, a two-dot chain line indicates a transmitter that is not used, that is, a transmitter in a power saving standby state.

  2A shows a case where three transmitters (transmitters 51 to 53) are used, and FIG. 2B shows a case where two transmitters (transmitters 51 to 52) are used. ) Shows a case where one transmission unit (transmission unit 51) is used.

  Here, when there are a plurality of power saving standby states and there are a plurality of transmission units in the standby state, it is possible to set different power saving standby states in consideration of the restart time when the next transmission is resumed. For example, the transmitter that is restarted first may be in a standby state with a large standby power but a fast recovery time, and the other transmitters may be in a standby state with a long recovery time but a low standby power.

  For example, in the state of FIG. 2C, the transmission unit 52 may be set in a standby state with a short recovery time, and the transmission unit 53 may be set in a standby state with low standby power.

  In the present embodiment. Although the total number of transmission units has been described as three, the present invention is not limited to this, and the number of transmission units may be two or four or more.

  In addition, for convenience of explanation, as the transmission units to be used, the transmission units 51 to 53 in the case of three, the transmission units 51 to 52 in the case of two, and the allocation of the transmission unit 51 and the transmission unit in the case of one are fixed. Although described, this is an example of allocation of transmission units. The allocation in the case of two may be the transmission units 52 to 53, or the transmission unit 52 or the transmission unit 53 may be used in the case of one. Further, the assignment when two transmitters are used or when one transmitter is used may be dynamically assigned instead of being fixed. For example, a transmitter to be used may be allocated according to a known round robin method or the like in order to distribute the load.

  As described above, the transmission control unit 2 transmits the transmission data 4 stored in the transmission storage unit 3 using any one, two, or all of the transmission units 51 to 53.

  As illustrated in FIG. 3A, a plurality of transmission data 4 a to 4 d are stored in a predetermined storage area of the transmission storage unit 3.

  In these transmission data, as shown in the management table shown as an example in FIG. 3B, a transmission deadline, a priority, and the number of transmission units are set.

  The transmission deadline is a time (time etc.) at which transmission of transmission data should be completed. In the example of FIG. 3B, a transmission time limit is set for the transmission data 4d, and no transmission time limit is set for the other transmission data 4a to 4c. Transmission data for which no transmission time limit is set is transmitted by a normal transmission method such as best effort. The transmission data in which the transmission time limit is set will be described in detail later. However, priority change transmission processing is performed to protect the transmission time limit even for data with low priority.

  The priority indicates the priority with which the transmission control unit 2 assigns transmission data to the transmission unit. In this embodiment, the priority 1 indicates the highest priority, and the priority 3 indicates the lowest priority. The priority processing will be described later. In the present embodiment, a case where the priority has three levels will be described, but the number of levels is not limited to this.

  The number of transmission units indicates the number of transmission units used for transmission of transmission data.

  In general, a communication circuit such as a transmission unit can reduce power consumption by setting a power saving standby state when communication is not performed.

  In the present embodiment, the number of transmission units to be used for each priority is determined in consideration of transmission speed and power consumption. Priority 1 has three transmitters to be used in consideration of high speed, Priority 2 has two transmitters in consideration of the balance between high speed and power consumption, and priority 3 takes into account power consumption rather than speed One transmitter is used.

  Here, when there is data of priority 2 and data of priority 3, considering the transmission time, both data may be transmitted simultaneously using three transmission units, and power consumption is taken into consideration. The data of priority 3 may be transmitted after the data of priority 2 is transmitted.

  Note that the transmission deadline, priority, and number of transmissions may be set individually by the user, or may be set by the application software that created the transmission data according to the transmission data. Further, when receiving data from a host device (not shown), it may be received together with the data, or may be set by using a known setting method such as setting by a management server that manages the entire transmission data. Is omitted.

  Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described in more detail.

  First, priority processing will be described.

  In the case of transmission in which processing such as priority change transmission processing, which will be described in detail later, does not occur, the transmission control unit 2 performs transmission from data with high priority. Further, in the present embodiment, in the case of data having the same priority, transmission is performed from the smaller number in the management table. In the case of FIG. 3, first, transmission data 4a and transmission data 4c with priority 1 are sequentially transmitted, then transmission data 4b with priority 2 is transmitted, and finally transmission data 4d with priority 3 is transmitted. It becomes.

  When data transmission is started from the state shown in FIG. 3 and no transmission data is added, the transmission data transmission processing is completed in the order described above. However, if a request for transmission of new transmission data is generated before transmission is completed, the transmission control unit 2 performs processing based on priority.

  As described above, an example of priority processing by generation of new transmission data is as follows. First, the transmission control unit 2 compares the priorities of transmission data being transmitted and newly generated transmission data. When the priority of newly generated transmission data is the same as or lower than the priority of transmission data currently being transmitted, transmission is continued as it is. On the other hand, when the priority of newly generated transmission data is higher, for example, when transmission data of priority 2 is generated while transmitting transmission data of priority 3, transmission of transmission data with low priority during transmission is performed. And the transmission of newly generated transmission data with high priority is performed. After transmission of newly generated transmission data with high priority is completed, transmission of transmission data with low priority that has been interrupted is resumed.

  Note that when transmission data having a higher priority than newly generated transmission data occurs, transmission data having the highest priority is similarly preferentially transmitted.

  For this reason, as described above, if transmission processing of transmission data with high priority occurs frequently, transmission data with low priority may not be transmitted. The priority change transmission process is performed.

  In the above description, for convenience of explanation, it has been described that transmission of the next transmission data is started after one transmission data is finished sequentially, but transmission time may be allocated in time division according to priority. Good. For example, in the case of the three priorities shown in FIG. 3B, it is assumed that priority 1 is assigned a weight of 4, priority 2 is assigned 2, and priority 3 is assigned 1. Since there are two data of priority 1 and one of data of priority 2 and priority 3, the total of the total weight is 11. As a result, the allocation ratio by weighting the transmission time of each data is 4/11 for transmission data 4a and transmission data 4c of priority 1, 2/11 for transmission data 4b of priority 2, and transmission data of priority 3, respectively. 4d becomes 1/11. In this case, for example, when the transmission of the transmission data 4a is finished, the weight 4 of the transmission data 4a is lost, and the total weight becomes 7. As a result, the ratio of each data is 4/7 for transmission data 4c, 2/7 for transmission data 4b, and 1/7 for transmission data 4d. Similarly, when the new transmission data is added, the priority ratio is changed.

  Even when switching is performed sequentially, the switching process is usually performed for a predetermined time by a watchdog timer or the like for illegal processing or bug countermeasures.

  When the switching process is performed in this way, the transmission process of transmission data with a low priority can be started within an effective time range by setting the cycle of switching according to the priority within a predetermined time. However, the processing time allocated to the transmission processing of transmission data with low priority is often short. For this reason, logical processing that can be executed in a relatively short processing time, such as processing in the determination part of priority change transmission processing described later, is operable, but processing that requires a lot of time, such as data transmission processing, depends on priority. There is a case where the execution time cannot be secured because the allocation is not in time.

  A more detailed operation in the present embodiment of the priority change transmission process required therefor will be further described with reference to FIG. Since the priority change transmission process is performed on transmission data with low priority, the priority change transmission process for transmission data 4d with low priority in FIG. 3 will be described below as an example.

  In the processing of transmission data with low priority that has started transmission processing, the transmission control unit 2 performs initial setting for starting transmission of transmission data 4d with low priority (step 401). In the present embodiment, in the case of priority 3, since one transmission unit is used, that is, transmission is performed in the state of FIG. 2C, the transmission unit is set. For example, if two or more transmitters are used in the previous transmission, the transmitters used at that time are not used except for one transmitter used at priority 3. A state where no transmission is performed such as a power standby state. This process is also required when the low priority transmission process is started, the process then shifts to the high priority transmission process, and then the low priority transmission process is resumed.

  Next, the current time is acquired from a timer (not shown) or the like (step 402). Subsequently, the remaining transmission data amount is acquired (step 403). Next, it is determined whether there is remaining transmission data (step 404). Here, if it is determined that there is no remaining transmission data, that is, that transmission has ended, end processing is performed (branch from step 404 to step 408). On the other hand, if there is remaining transmission data, it is determined whether transmission of transmission data ends by the transmission deadline (step 405). This determination can be made using, for example, the following mathematical formula.

  This mathematical expression determines whether or not the transmission ends by the transmission deadline when the remaining transmission data is transmitted in the state of the currently assigned transmission unit.

  When this inequality holds, transmission is possible with the currently assigned transmitter.

  If transmission is possible in the current allocation state of the transmission unit, data transmission is continued as it is (step 407), and the above processing is repeated until the data transmission is completed. Here, the reason why the determination process is repeated is that there is a possibility that the situation will change due to an interrupt process of data transmission having a high priority in the middle.

  On the other hand, when the above inequality is not satisfied, that is, when it is determined that transmission of transmission data cannot be completed by the transmission time limit, priority change transmission processing is started. First, the number of allocated transmission units is increased (step 406). For example, the state of FIG. 2C using one transmission unit is changed to the state of FIG. 2A using three transmission units.

  Thus, the transmission time of the remaining data is shortened by increasing the number of transmission units. For example, in this example, the number of transmission units to be used is tripled, and the transmission time is one third.

Thereafter, the transmission control unit 2 transmits the remaining data (step 407), and performs a termination process after the transmission is completed. (Step 408)
In this embodiment, when the priority change transmission process is started, the transmission control unit 2 stops switching to other processes including a high priority process in order to keep the transmission deadline, and performs this priority change transmission process. I am trying to do it.

  Thus, in this embodiment, the effect that the time which waits for the data transmission with high priority following priority change transmission processing can also be shortened is acquired.

  The reason for this is that the data transmission device 1 according to the present embodiment increases the number of transmission units in the priority change transmission process from the number assigned by the priority, thereby giving priority to transmission data with a low priority with a transmission time limit set. This is because the change transmission process can be performed in a short time.

  In this embodiment, in order to give priority to the reduction of the transmission time, all the transmission units are used in one priority change transmission process. However, a part (for example, FIG. )) May be used.

  Further, if the change in the number of transmission units is divided into a plurality of times, for example, a small number of transmission units set according to priority are used in the initial state (for example, FIG. 2C), and it is determined that the time until the transmission deadline is insufficient First, use of some transmission units is added (for example, FIG. 2B). Then, if it is determined that there is not enough time until the transmission deadline after a part is increased, a transmission unit may be added and used (for example, FIG. 2A).

  As described above, the data transmission device 1 according to the present embodiment uses the minimum necessary transmission unit and suppresses an increase in power consumption by finely switching the transmission unit in the priority change transmission process by the transmission control unit 2. Thus, the effect of performing the priority change transmission process in a short time can be obtained.

  The reason is that the data transmission device 1 of the present embodiment increases the number of transmission units used in the priority change transmission process by the number necessary for keeping the transmission deadline, and performs the priority change transmission process for transmission data with low priority. This is because it can be carried out in a short time.

  In the present embodiment, as the determination of switching, a determination is made as to whether or not transmission by the transmission unit assigned according to the priority of transmission data is in time for the transmission deadline. Can also be used.

  For example, it can also be determined using the following mathematical formula.

  This formula determines whether or not the end time when changing to the priority change transmission process at the current time exceeds the set transmission time limit.

  In the determination according to Equation 1, when the transmission state before the change is not in time, the priority change transmission process is switched. Since the transmission after the change is earlier than before the change, the transmission ends earlier than the transmission deadline by the earlier time. (In the example of the above-described embodiment, the process ends in 1/3 of the remaining time until the transmission deadline.) On the other hand, whether the determination by Equation 2 is completed by the transmission deadline in the transmission state after switching. Since it is determined, switching is performed at the latest time when the transmission deadline can be observed.

  For this reason, when switching based on the determination of Expression 2 is employed, the priority change transmission process occurs later than in the case of determination based on Expression 1. During this delayed time, normal transmission processing is additionally executed.

  In this added transmission process, transmission of low-priority transmission data is performed only for the time allocated according to the priority. Therefore, the amount of data to be transmitted is reduced by the priority change transmission process, and the priority change transmission process is performed. The required time is shortened.

  In addition, data having a high priority is also transmitted in the added transmission process. Since data with high priority has a long allocation time, a lot of data with high priority is transmitted in the added transmission process. As a result, some data transmission itself is completed. For this reason, the number and data amount of transmission data with high priority affected by the priority change transmission process are reduced.

  In this way, by setting the start timing of the priority change transmission process as the latest time for keeping the transmission deadline, the time required for the priority change transmission process is further shortened. In addition, it is possible to realize an effect of reducing the amount of transmission data with high priority that is affected by the priority change transmission process.

  The reason is that, in the data transmission apparatus 1, the use of Equation 2 as a determination condition delays the timing for starting the priority change transmission process as compared with the case where Equation 1 is used. The normal transmission is performed more by the amount of the delayed time until the priority change transmission process is started. The amount of transmission data that is affected by the higher priority data is less affected by the amount of transmission data that has been transmitted by the increased number of transmission processes, and the data that is subject to the priority change transmission process is less for data that has a lower priority. Because.

  The description so far has been made for the embodiment in which there is one transmission data with a transmission time limit for convenience, but the same can be realized when there are a plurality of transmission data with a transmission time limit. For example, it can be realized by performing the following determination and processing.

  First, the time required for the priority change transmission process of the transmission data with the closest transmission time limit is obtained, and in addition to the current time (this value is set to T1), the priority change transmission process is required from T1 and the transmission time limit of this transmission data. Judge whether or not. If priority change transmission processing is necessary, priority change transmission processing of the transmission data is performed.

  If the above transmission data priority change process is not necessary, the next transmission data is determined.

  For this determination, the time for the priority change transmission process for the transmission data with the next nearest transmission deadline is obtained and added to T1 (this value is set to T2), and the priority change transmission process is required from T2 and the transmission deadline for this transmission data. Judge whether there is. If priority change transmission processing is necessary, both the first transmission data and the priority change transmission processing of this transmission data are performed.

  If it is determined that the priority change transmission process is not necessary for this transmission data, the same determination process is repeated.

  In other words, the transmission data with the next transmission deadline is selected, the time calculated by the previous transmission data (equivalent to T1 or T2), and the transmission data prioritization transmission processing time plus the transmission data transmission deadline. To determine whether or not priority change transmission processing is necessary. When priority change transmission processing is necessary, priority change transmission processing from the first transmission data to the transmission data is performed.

  This process is repeated until transmission data requiring priority change transmission processing is found, and if found, priority change transmission processing from the first transmission data to the transmission data is performed.

  When the priority change transmission process is performed, the above process is repeated from the beginning in a new state.

  On the other hand, if no transmission data requiring priority change transmission processing is found, the priority change transmission processing is not necessary at present, and the normal processing is continued.

  By performing such processing in the data transmission device 1, even if there are a plurality of transmission data with a transmission time limit, it is possible to realize transmission that observes the transmission time limit.

As shown in FIG. 5, an embodiment in which the data transmission device 1 does not include the transmission storage unit 3 and receives and transmits data from a host device (not shown) is also possible.
(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the data transmission device 6 according to the second embodiment.

  In the data transmission device 6 of FIG. 6, parts that are the same as those of the data transmission device 1 according to the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted.

  The data transmission device 6 according to the present embodiment includes a transmission power supply unit 7 that supplies power to each of the three transmission units (transmission unit 81, transmission unit 82, and transmission unit 83) independently of the first embodiment. This is different from the data transmission device 1 in FIG. The transmission power supply unit 7 can individually stop and restart the power supply to the transmission units 81 to 83 according to an instruction from the transmission control unit 2.

  With this configuration, the transmission control unit 2 can issue an instruction to the transmission power supply unit 7 and stop the power supply of the unused transmission units among the transmission units 81 to 83. Also, when the use is resumed, the transmission control unit 2 issues an instruction to the transmission power supply unit 7 to resume the supply of power to the transmission unit that resumes the use among the transmission units 81 to 83, Can be possible.

  Thus, the configuration for controlling the power supplied to the transmission unit eliminates power consumption in the unused transmission unit, and further consumption compared to the case of the first embodiment in which the transmission operation of the transmission unit is set in a standby state. The power reduction effect can be realized.

  The reason is that the data transmission device 6 of the present embodiment can reduce the standby power of the unused transmission unit to zero by stopping the power supply of the transmission unit.

(Third embodiment)
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating configurations of the data transmission device 8 and the data reception device 9 according to the third embodiment.

  In the data transmission device 8 of FIG. 7, the same parts as those of the data transmission device 6 according to the second embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  The data transmission device 8 receives transmission data and priority information from the transmission host 18 and sends the transmission data to the data reception device 9 by the same processing as the processing in the first and second embodiments. The data receiving device 9 passes the data received from the data transmitting device 8 to the receiving host 19.

  The data transmission device 8 in the present embodiment is different from the data transmission device 6 in the second embodiment in that the data transmission device 8 is connected to the transmission host 18 and includes a communication unit 15 that exchanges information with the data reception device 9. Different.

  Next, the configuration of the data receiving device 9 will be described. The data reception device 9 includes three reception units (reception unit 91, reception unit 92, and reception unit 93) corresponding to the transmission units 81 to 83. Furthermore, the data transmission device 9 includes a reception control unit 12 that controls the entire data reception device 9, a reception storage unit 17 that primarily stores received data, a reception power supply unit 14 that supplies power to the reception units 91 to 93, and a communication A communication unit 16 corresponding to the unit 15 is provided. The reception control unit 12 controls the reception power supply unit 14 based on an instruction received from the data transmission device 8 via the communication unit 16 and stops supplying power to the reception units 91 to 93 that are not used for data reception. Or the supply of power to the receiving units 91 to 93 that start use is resumed. Data received by the reception units 91 to 93 is temporarily stored in the reception storage unit 17 and then transferred to the reception host 19.

  Next, operations of the data transmission device 8 and the data reception device 9 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  Hereinafter, the priority change transmission process will be mainly described.

  First, as described in relation to the first embodiment, the transmission control unit 2 of the data transmission device 8 according to the present embodiment determines whether or not the priority change transmission process is necessary during the data transmission process. (Step 701). If priority change transmission processing is not required, data transmission is continued as it is (step 705).

  On the other hand, when it is necessary to increase the number of transmission units to be used, the transmission control unit 2 sends out an instruction to the transmission power supply unit 7 to use the necessary transmission unit among the transmission units 81 to 83, and uses the transmission unit. The supply of power to the network is resumed so that necessary transmission units can operate (step 702). Subsequently, the transmission control unit 2 notifies the data receiving device 9 of information specifying the receiving unit to be resumed via the communication unit 15 and the communication unit 16 (step 703). In this embodiment, the communication unit 15 and the communication unit 16 are provided separately from the transmission unit and the reception unit for exchanging information of the reception unit to be used, but the transmission unit used for data transmission. It is also possible to configure the receiving unit to be used for exchanging information.

  The reception control unit 12 of the data reception device 9 determines whether or not there is a notification from the data transmission device 8 (step 711). If there is no notification, data reception is continued (step 714).

  On the other hand, if there is a notification, the reception control unit 12 issues an instruction to the reception power supply unit 14, resumes the supply of power to the reception unit specified by the notification, and receives data by the reception unit. (Step 712). After confirming that reception is possible at the reception unit, the reception control unit 12 returns a completion notification from the communication unit 16 to the data transmission device 8 via the communication unit 15 (step 713), and continues data reception (step 714). .

  When the transmission control unit 2 of the data transmission device 8 receives the completion notification from the data reception device 9 (step 704), the transmission control unit 2 transmits data to the data reception device 9 also using the newly available transmission unit. (Step 705).

  This process is repeated until the end of data (steps 706 and 715).

  As described above, the present embodiment is configured such that the data transmission device 8 can notify the data reception device 9 of the necessary reception unit and resume the use of the reception unit. With this configuration, the data reception device 9 also performs the priority change transmission process for low priority data without increasing the waiting time for high priority data transmission subsequent to the priority change transmission process while reducing power consumption. The effect can be realized.

  The reason is that the data transmission device 8 of the present embodiment instructs the reception unit not used for the data reception device 9 to stop the power supply of the reception unit not used by the data reception device 9, thereby reducing the power consumption. It is because it can do.

  Further, the data transmission device 8 may be configured to set a transmission unit to be used according to an instruction from the transmission host 18. In this case, the transmission host 18 may be configured so that the transmission unit to be used is designated by a command to the data transmission device 8 and the data transmission device 8 operates according to the command.

  With this configuration, it is possible to achieve an effect that the transmission host 18 can perform finer power consumption management of the entire system including the transmission host 18.

  This is because the transmission host 18 can manage the transmission unit of the data transmission device 8 and the reception unit of the data reception device 9 that are used in consideration of the processing status of the entire system.

  Further, the transmission host 18 increases the number of transmission units to be used when the power cost is low, such as time management, for example, at midnight, and reduces the number of transmission units to be used during the daytime when the power cost is high and the network is easily connected. Management may be performed.

  The transmission unit to be used can be set not only from the transmission host 18 as described above, but also can be set by the user directly operating the data transmission device 8.

  Further, it is also possible to configure so that the priority changing transmission process can be started by the data transmission device 8 in accordance with an instruction from the transmission host 18. With such a configuration, the transmission host 18 can also manage the transmission time limit using a management item different from that of the data transmission device 8 and can also manage the influence on the transmission data with high priority.

  The reason is that the transmission host 18 executes the priority change transmission process in advance when, for example, schedule management or the like is expected to generate high-priority transmission data that does not want to be affected by the priority change transmission process. It is because it can be kept.

(Fourth embodiment)
Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating configurations of the data transmission device 20 and the data reception device 40 according to the fourth embodiment.

  Referring to FIG. 9, the data transmission device 20 includes a transmission control unit 21, a transmission unit 251, a transmission unit 252, and a transmission power supply unit 26.

  The transmission control unit 21 includes a time monitoring unit 22 that monitors time. Further, the transmission control unit 21 sends a transmission command interrupt unit 23 that issues a command to the transmission command control unit 24 as needed, and transmits the transmission units 251 and 252 and the transmission power supply unit 26 in response to a command from the transmission command interrupt unit 23. The transmission command control unit 24 is controlled.

  The monitoring time (Twatch) set in the time monitoring unit 22 can be calculated as, for example, the following Equation 3.

  Here, the transmission time limit (Tout) may be obtained as a difference between the current time and the transmission time limit illustrated in FIG. 3, and is not limited thereto, and the data transmission device 20 sets a time-out time by a predetermined process. May be.

  For example, when there is a device that sets a timeout time among devices related to data transmission such as a host device, the determination may be made with reference to the timeout time of the device.

  The time required for data transmission (Tsend) is the time required for normal data transmission, and the transmission data amount is divided by the transmission performance (transmission data amount per unit time) of the transmitter allocated according to the priority of the data. Can be obtained.

  The transmission set time (Tcom) is a processing time required for the data transmission device 20 to perform transmission. In addition to the processing of the data transmission device 20 alone, information exchange processing with the data reception device 40 is performed. And the total processing time required for communication with other devices such as the host device.

  In addition to the processing described above, the transmission command control unit 24 sends a command received from the transmission command interrupt unit 23 or a notification that the command has been received (hereinafter referred to as command notification) to the data receiving device 40, thereby The state of the receiving unit of the receiving device 40 is also changed.

  The transmission unit 251 and the transmission unit 252 are instructed by the transmission command control unit 24 to transmit transmission data. Further, in the present embodiment, it is assumed that the transmission unit 251 is always energized, and the transmission power supply unit 26 performs power supply control so that power supply to the transmission unit 252 is stopped and restarted.

  The transmission power supply unit 26 includes a transmission power supply confirmation unit 27, a transmission power supply control unit 28, and a transmission power supply unit 29.

  The transmission power supply confirmation unit 27 confirms the power state of the transmission unit 252 according to an instruction from the transmission command control unit 24 and reports the result to the transmission command control unit 24. The transmission power supply unit 29 supplies power to the transmission unit 251 and the transmission unit 252, and stops or restarts the supply of power to the transmission unit 252 according to an instruction from the transmission power supply control unit 28. The transmission power control unit 28 controls the power supplied from the transmission power supply unit 29 to the transmission unit 242 according to an instruction from the transmission command control unit 24.

  Here, although the transmission power supply confirmation unit 27 confirms the power state of the transmission unit 252, the state of the transmission power supply unit 29 and the instruction state of the transmission power supply control unit 28 may be confirmed.

  In addition, since the transmission unit 251 of the present embodiment is always energized and does not change the power state, the power supply line is indicated by a broken line in FIG. Furthermore, since the transmission unit 251 performs command notification to the data reception device 40 by the transmission command control unit 24 and reception of the state of the reception unit of the data reception device 40 (hereinafter referred to as reception notification), bidirectional communication is possible. It has become.

  On the other hand, the data receiving device 40 includes a reception control unit 41, a reception unit 451 and a reception unit 452, and a reception power supply unit 46.

  Transmission data from the data transmission device 20 is received by the reception unit 451 and the reception unit 452. In addition, since the receiving unit 451 receives a command notification from the data transmitting device 20 or reports a reception notification from the data receiving device 40, two-way communication is possible.

  The reception control unit 41 receives a command notification sent from the data transmission device 20 from the data received by the reception unit 451, analyzes the received command notification, and supplies power to the transmission unit 452. And a reception command control unit 44 for controlling supply stop / restart.

  The reception power supply unit 46 confirms the power supply state of the reception unit 452 and reports the result, a reception power supply control unit 48 that instructs the reception power supply unit 49 to stop and restart power supply, A reception power supply unit 49 that supplies power to the unit 451 and the reception unit 452. These operations are performed according to instructions from the reception command control unit 44. The confirmation of the power supply in the reception power supply unit 46 may be configured to check the reception power supply control unit 48 and the power supply unit 49 as in the transmission power supply unit 26 of the data transmission device 20.

  Further, since the receiving unit 451 is always energized, the power supply line is shown by a broken line in FIG.

  In addition to the above processing, the reception command control unit 44 confirms the state of the reception unit 452 and then reports a reception notification to the data transmission device 20.

  Next, the operation in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11 focusing on the transmission command control unit 24 and the reception command control unit 44. FIG.

  First, the process up to the start of transmission of low priority data will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the following, low-priority data transmission uses a pair of the transmission unit 251 and the reception unit 451 first, and in addition to the priority change transmission process, a pair of the transmission unit 252 and the reception unit 452 is also used. Will be described.

  In the case of transmission of low-priority transmission data, after setting the monitoring time in the time monitoring unit 22, the transmission command interrupt unit 23 issues a low priority command 231 to the transmission command control unit 24 (step 901). The transmission command control unit 24 that has received the low priority command 231 stops the power supply to the transmission unit 252 because the transmission command control unit 24 uses only the transmission unit 251 for transmission. Therefore, the transmission command control unit 24 confirms the power state of the transmission unit 252 using the transmission power supply confirmation unit 27 (step 902). If power is being supplied to the transmission unit 252 (step 903), the transmission command control unit 24 instructs the transmission power control unit 28 to stop power supply from the transmission power supply unit 29 to the transmission unit 252. (Step 904).

  Further, the transmission command control unit 24 sends a command notification to the data reception device 40 via the transmission unit 251 indicating that the transmission of data with low priority is performed (step 905).

  In the data receiving device 40, the command notification is received via the receiving unit 451, the command notification is extracted by the reception command recognizing unit 43, and is passed to the reception command control unit 44 (step 906). The reception command control unit 44 recognizes that the reception unit 452 is not used because the content of the command notification is transmission of low priority data, and stops the power supply to the reception unit 452. Specifically, first, the power state of the reception unit 452 is confirmed using the reception power confirmation unit 47 (step 907). If power is supplied (step 908), the reception power control unit 48 is instructed. The power supply from the reception power supply unit 49 to the reception unit 452 is stopped (step 909).

  In the present embodiment, low-priority data transmission is always performed using a pair of the transmission unit 251 and the reception unit 451 to which power is supplied. Therefore, in the data transmission start by the data transmission device 20, The confirmation process of the receiving unit of the data receiving device 40 is not necessary. Therefore, in the description of the present embodiment, the reception notification from the data receiving device 40 is omitted, but it is of course possible to start transmission after confirming the reception notification.

  Thereafter, the data transmission device 20 and the data reception device 40 perform data transmission using the transmission unit 251 and the reception unit 451 until the time monitoring unit 22 detects that the time has run out (step 910).

  Next, an operation when the time monitoring unit 22 detects that the transmission time has run out will be described with reference to FIG.

  When the time monitoring unit 22 detects that the time has run out, the time monitoring unit 22 notifies the transmission command interrupt unit 23 accordingly. Receiving the notification that time has run out, the transmission command interrupt unit 23 notifies the transmission command control unit 24 of the priority change command 232 (step 1001). The transmission command control unit 24 that has received the priority change command 232 starts the priority change transmission process. First, the transmission command control unit 24 uses the transmission power supply confirmation unit 27 to confirm the power state of the transmission unit 252 (step 1002). If the power supply to the transmission unit 252 is stopped (step 1003), the transmission power supply control unit 28 is instructed to restart the power supply from the transmission power supply unit 29 to the transmission unit 252 (step 1004). . Thereafter, the transmission command control unit 24 sets the transmission unit 252 if necessary.

  Further, the transmission command control unit 24 notifies the data reception device 40 of a command notification of priority change transmission processing (step 1005).

  The reception command control unit 44 of the data receiving device 40 that has received this priority change transmission process command notification (step 1006) uses the reception power supply confirmation unit 47 to confirm the power state of the reception unit 452 (step 1007). If the power is not supplied (step 1008), an instruction is issued to the reception power controller 48 to restart the power supply from the reception power supply 49 to the receiver 452 (step 1009). Further, the reception command control unit 44 sets the reception unit 452 as necessary. (In the present embodiment, this setting is performed via the reception command recognition unit 43, but a configuration in which the reception unit 452 is set directly from the reception command control unit 44 is also possible.) The reception command control unit 44 is a reception unit 452. Is received, the reception notification indicating that reception is possible is returned to the data transmission device 20 (step 1010).

  The data transmission device 20 that has received the reception notification from the data reception device 40 transmits transmission data using a pair of the transmission unit 252 and the reception unit 452 as well as a pair of the transmission unit 251 and the reception unit 451 (step 1011).

  As described above, in this embodiment, the priority change transmission process can be realized by a simple configuration that uses a command and instruction notification linked with time monitoring, and transmission of transmission data with high priority following the priority change transmission process. The effect of suppressing the waiting time is obtained.

  This is because the command control unit 24 can change the operation of the data transmission device 20 of the present embodiment in accordance with a command from the command interrupt unit 23. Furthermore, this is because the data transmission device 20 and the data reception device 40 can perform a coordinated operation based on a command notification from the data transmission device 20 and a reception notification from the data reception device 40.

  In the present description, each unit is described as a functional block. However, it is of course possible to configure these as programs incorporated in the data transmission device 20 and the data reception device 40.

1, 6, 8 Data transmission device 2 Transmission control unit 3 Transmission storage unit 4 Transmission data 51, 52, 53 Transmission unit 7 Transmission power supply units 81, 82, 83 Transmission unit 15, 16 Communication unit 9 Data reception devices 91, 92, 93 reception unit 12 reception control unit 14 reception power supply unit 17 reception storage unit 18 transmission host 19 reception host 20 data transmission device 21 transmission control unit 22 time monitoring unit 23 transmission command interrupt unit 24 transmission command control unit 251, 252 transmission unit 26 transmission Power supply unit 27 Transmission power supply confirmation unit 28 Transmission power supply control unit 29 Transmission power supply unit 40 Data reception device 41 Reception control unit 43 Reception command recognition unit 44 Reception command control units 451 and 452 Reception unit 46 Reception power supply unit 47 Reception power supply confirmation unit 48 Reception power supply control unit 49 Reception power supply unit

Claims (22)

A plurality of transmission units for transmitting data;
When transmitting data, at least one of the plurality of transmitting units is allocated for transmitting the data in order to transmit the data, and when a predetermined condition is satisfied after the data transmission starts, A control unit that allocates a larger number of transmission units for transmission of the data than the number of transmission units allocated for transmission of the data at the start of transmission ,
A priority is set for the data, and the number of transmission units to be allocated for transmission of the data is determined according to the priority value,
When a transmission completion time limit is set for the data, if it is predicted that the transmission of the data will not be completed by the transmission completion time limit, the transmission unit assigned according to the priority set for the data A data transmission apparatus , wherein a larger number of transmission units than the number are allocated to the data. The timing of assigning a larger number of transmission units to the data than the number of transmission units allocated according to the priority,
The data transmission device according to claim 1 , wherein the data transmission device is determined based on a total transmission speed of transmission units allocated in accordance with a priority of the transmission data and a remaining transmission amount of the data. The timing of assigning a larger number of transmission units to the data than the number of transmission units allocated according to the priority,
The data transmission device according to claim 1 , wherein the data transmission device is determined based on a total transmission speed of the transmission unit after increasing the number of allocations and a remaining transmission amount of the data. A power control unit that controls stop and restart of power supply to at least one of the plurality of transmission units;
The power control unit, said at least one period during which transmission is not assigned the data to the transmission section of claim 1 to claim 3, characterized in that stops the power supply to the at least one transmission unit The data transmission device according to any one of the above. A power controller for supplying power to the transmitter;
A power instruction unit for controlling power supply by the power control unit;
A power supply confirmation unit for confirming a power state of the transmission unit;
The data transmission device according to claim 1, further comprising: A time monitoring unit for monitoring time;
Based on the monitoring result of the time monitoring unit, an instruction interrupt unit that issues a priority change command that instructs to increase the number of transmission units allocated for data transmission;
The data transmission device according to claim 1, further comprising: an instruction control unit that increases an allocation number of the transmission units according to the priority change command. 7. The data transmission device according to claim 1, wherein the data transmission device receives data from a higher-level device and determines the number of transmission units used for transmission of the data according to a command from the higher-level device. . 8. The data transmitting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a user can set or change the number of transmission units to be allocated in accordance with the priority. Allocating at least one of the plurality of transmission units for transmission of the data to transmit the data at the start of data transmission of a data transmission device including a plurality of transmission units for transmitting data; ,
When a predetermined condition is satisfied after data transmission starts, a larger number of transmission units are allocated for transmission of the data than the number of transmission units allocated for transmission of the data at the start of the transmission. and a step seen including,
A priority is set for the data, and the number of transmission units to be allocated for transmission of the data is determined according to the priority value,
When a transmission completion time limit is set for the data, when it is predicted that transmission of the data will not be completed by the transmission completion time limit, a transmission unit assigned according to the priority set for the data A data transmission method characterized by assigning a larger number of transmission units to the data . The timing of assigning a larger number of transmission units to the data than the number of transmission units allocated according to the priority,
The data transmission method according to claim 9 , wherein the data transmission method is determined based on a total transmission speed of the transmission units allocated in accordance with the priority of the transmission data and a remaining transmission amount of the data. The timing of assigning a larger number of transmission units to the data than the number of transmission units allocated according to the priority,
The data transmission method according to claim 9 , wherein the data transmission method is determined based on a total transmission speed of the transmission unit after increasing the number to be allocated and a remaining transmission amount of the data. The period during which transmission in at least one is not assigned among the plurality of transmission portions, one of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that stops the power supply to the at least one transmission unit The data transmission method described in 1. Issuing a priority change instruction instructing to increase the number of transmission units allocated for data transmission based on the result of time monitoring;
The data transmission method according to claim 9 , further comprising a step of increasing the number of transmission units allocated by the priority change command. Receiving data from the host device;
14. The data transmission method according to claim 9 , further comprising: determining a number of transmission units to be used for transmitting the data in accordance with a command from the host device. 15. The data transmission method according to claim 9 , wherein a user can set or change the number of transmission units to be allocated in accordance with the priority. A process of allocating at least one of the plurality of transmission units for transmission of the data at the start of data transmission of a data transmission device including a plurality of transmission units for transmitting data; ,
When a predetermined condition is satisfied after data transmission starts, a larger number of transmission units are allocated for transmission of the data than the number of transmission units allocated for transmission of the data at the start of the transmission. Let the computer execute the process and
A priority is set for the data, and the number of transmission units to be allocated for transmission of the data is determined according to the priority value,
When a transmission completion time limit is set for the data, when it is predicted that transmission of the data will not be completed by the transmission completion time limit, a transmission unit assigned according to the priority set for the data A data transmission program for a data transmission apparatus, wherein a larger number of transmission units than the number of transmission units are allocated to the data. The timing of assigning a larger number of transmission units to the data than the number of transmission units allocated according to the priority,
The data transmission program according to claim 16 , wherein the data transmission program is determined based on a total transmission speed of transmission units allocated in accordance with a priority of the transmission data and a remaining transmission amount of the data. The timing of assigning a larger number of transmission units to the data than the number of transmission units allocated according to the priority,
17. The data transmission program according to claim 16 , wherein the data transmission program is determined based on a total transmission speed of the transmission unit after increasing the number to be allocated and a remaining transmission amount of the data. Wherein the period of non least one in transmission is allocated among the plurality of transmission portions, according to claim 16 or claims, characterized in that stops the power supply from the power supply control unit to the at least one transmission unit Item 19. A data transmission program according to any one of Items 18 . Based on the result of time monitoring, a process of issuing a priority change instruction that instructs to increase the number of transmission units allocated for data transmission;
20. The data transmission program according to claim 16 , further comprising: a process of increasing the number of transmission units allocated by the priority change instruction. A process of receiving data from the host device;
21. The data transmission program according to claim 16 , further comprising: a process of determining the number of transmission units used for transmission of the data in accordance with a command from the host device. The data transmission program according to any one of claims 16 to 21, wherein a user can set or change the number of transmission units to be allocated in accordance with the priority.

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