Patent ID: 7941230
Filing Date: 2011-05-10
Classification: G05B,H04L

Abstract:
1. A network system including one or more apparatuses to be controlled and one or more control apparatuses, at the time of controlling operation of any of the apparatuses to be controlled from any of the control apparatuses, the operation being controlled in such a manner that the apparatus to be controlled whose operation is controlled and the control apparatus for controlling the operation are associated one-to-one while excluding the other control apparatuses, the control apparatus included in the network comprising an exclusive control information storing device which stores, for each of the apparatuses to be controlled, exclusive control information indicating correspondence between operation of each of the apparatuses to be controlled and a control apparatus which controls the operation, and the control apparatus being for controlling the operation in any of the apparatuses to be controlled on the basis of the stored exclusive control information, wherein one of the control apparatuses included in the network system is set as a master control apparatus, and the master control apparatus comprises: a first updating device, when request information indicative of a request to make the master control apparatus control the operation of any of the apparatuses to be controlled included in the network system is entered, which updates the exclusive control information stored in the master control apparatus in correspondence with the apparatus to be controlled which is shown in the request information to information indicating that the master control apparatus exclusively controls the operation of the apparatus to be controlled which is shown in the request information; and a second updating device, when the request information is entered, which outputs update request information to slave control apparatuses, the slave control apparatuses being the control apparatuses other than the master control apparatus, the update request information being for updating the exclusive control information stored in the slave control apparatuses in correspondence with the apparatus to be controlled which is shown in the request information to information indicating that the master control apparatus exclusively controls the operation of the apparatus to be controlled which is shown in the request information, wherein at least one of the slave control apparatuses comprises: an updating device that, only when the update request information is entered from the master control apparatus, updates the exclusive control information stored in the slave control apparatus in correspondence with the apparatus to be controlled which is indicated by the request information to information indicating that the master control apparatus exclusively controls the operation of the apparatus to be controlled indicated by the request information on the basis of the update request information, a third updating device that, when second request information indicative of a request to make the slave control apparatus controls the operation of any of the apparatuses to be controlled included in the network system is entered, updates the exclusive control information stored in the master control apparatus to information indicating that the slave control apparatus exclusively controls the operation of the apparatus to be controlled indicated by the second request information in correspondence with the apparatus to be controlled indicated by the second request information; and wherein the second updating device of the master control apparatus, when the second request information is entered to the slave control apparatus and the exclusive control information stored in the master control apparatus in correspondence with the apparatus to be controlled which is shown in the second request information is updated, outputs the update request information to the slave control apparatus, the update request information being for updating the exclusive control information stored in the slave control apparatus in correspondence with the apparatus to be controlled which is shown in the second request information to information indicating that the slave control apparatus exclusively controls the operation of the apparatus to be controlled which is shown in the second request information; and wherein the updating device of the slave control apparatus, when the update request information is entered from the master control apparatus, updates the exclusive control information stored in the slave control apparatus in correspondence with the apparatus to be controlled which is indicated by the second request information to information indicating that the slave control apparatus exclusively controls the operation of the apparatus to be controlled indicated by the second request information only on the basis of the update request information.