An Event/Action Based Sensor Network Protocol for Real-time Distributed Control

The most obvious benefit from networked sensors in distributed control system is the reduction of cables, which means savings in cost and easiness in deployment and maintenance. Some current available sensor standards and protocols are complicate and cost for most industrial applications and low performance for real-time control systems. In this paper we propose a light-weight CAN-like sensor network protocol for real-time distributed control system with some unique features. Based on a novel event/action model, the protocol provides a resilient and scalable application layer that is independent with sensor developers and sensor users. The data link layer supports both event and master/slave communication mode, which greatly improves the real-time performance. An FPGA-based reference implementation of protocol stack is also validated on a Cyclone II development boards.