Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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A SERVICE SYSTEM FOR A BUILDING
The invention relates to a services system for large buildings, particularly
to such a
system which can provide and control the delivery of information packets
including
data, voice and media packets over a common network infrastructure.
Large buildings such as hospitals, hotels, apartments, office buildings,
prisons, schools,
colleges and universities have multiple services systems including voice,
data, TV,
radio, HVAC controls and energy management systems, fire and intruder alarms,
access
control and CCTV. Traditionally each service system requires its own
individual
network and transmission protocol. Such systems are expensive to install. They
are also
expensive and inefficient to maintain and support.
It is an object of the invention to seek to mitigate these disadvantages.
A unit and a system incorporating same are hereinafter described, by way of
example,
with reference to the accompanying drawing, which shows schematically a high
speed
Ethernet system for providing data and the like services to a room or zone of
a building.
According to the first aspect of the invention there is provided a unit for
use in a single
network structure, comprising a first connector for supporting an in-bound
feed from a
source external to the unit and a second connector adapted for data
distribution to a data
recipient element.
This provides a self-contained or integral unit adapted for connection to a
similar unit
e.g. when the external source may comprise another similar unit.
Alternatively the external source may comprise a third party Ethernet switch.
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The first and second connectors may be autosense and connected by Ethernet
cables,
which may be crossed, or straight through.
The connectors may each comprise an RJ45 connector.
There may be a series of layer 2 protocols including IGMP v 2 and IGMP*
snooping
within firmware of the unit.
The unit may comprise wireless Ethernet.
Suitably, the unit may comprise UPS (uninterruptible power supply), and may be
mountable to a substrate. Suitably the unit may be a self-contained wall
mountable box.
The unit may comprise part of a modular system including a plurality of units,
each of
which may have pre-defined number locked into each unit. The cables referred
to may
be copper cables, or fibre cables.
It will be understood that a unit may be adapted to service up to at least 80
data, voice
or TV outlets, and also may be adapted to be connected in-line to a plurality
of identical
units per gigabit feed from a core switch.
The unit may be adapted for modular connectivity to multi-protocol serial I/O
devices.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a service and
control
system adapted to provide an IT structure for a building, comprising a
plurality of
interconnectible units each including Ethernet capability with I/O serial
connections, a
head end unit, and a room unit, the units being connected in series and being
modular
whereby to provide an IT system for a whole building.
The system may be adapted to be coupled to remote PCs whereby to operate and
support building management(s).
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The system may be incorporated into the fabric of a building, for example
during
refurbishment thereof.
In the system, the head-end unit may comprise one or more of an IP TV server,
Data
servers, IP voice system, Ethernet layer 3 core switch, a Firewall, UPS and
KVM, in
any combination. The system may further include a media server adapted for
video
provision. Moreover, the IP TV server may be connectible to a digital TV
source'such
as a satellite source.
The Firewall may be connectible to an ADSL line to allow remote support or
delivery
of content. In the system the interconnectible units may comprise IP-zone(s),
which
may each comprise a 16-port layer 2 switch including an RS485 serial 1/0
distribution
unit.
Each zone unit may comprise a dedicated UPS and may suitably be an integral
unit
adapted for modular connection into the system.
The individual integral units may be connectible with a plurality of
substantially
identical units per gigabit feed from,a core switch.
There may be a plurality -of room units, each associated with a particular
room of a
building. Each room unit may be an IP-room unit which may comprise a multi-
port
Ethernet switch in a standard electrical 2-gang wall switch, suitably a 7-port
Ethernet
switch.
The IP-room unit may comprise a box mountable on a substrate, suitably a wall,
(of a
building).
The IP-room unit may comprise a plurality of outlets some of which may be
adapted to
be powered over the Ethernet for use with IP telephones and TV outlets.
There may be a maximum of six outlets, a maximum of two of which are adapted
for
power over the Ethernet for use with a maximum of two IP telephones and TV
outlets.
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The IP-room unit may be connectible to at least one of the IP-TV unit and
voice and
data services, particularly the IP-room unit being connectible to an IP-TV
unit and a
unit providing voice and data services.
The TV unit may comprise a miniature, low energy PC board or set top box at
each TV
connection point.
The PC board may be mounted on a wall mountable box at each TV outlet point.
Each TV unit may provide wireless capability, and may be supplied with multi-
cast and
application software and an infrared remote control handset.
Suitably the telephone and data outlets may comprise standard RJ45 outlets,
which may
be provided with power over Ethernet (POE).
Suitably, the said outlet may comp-rise two outlets per ]P-room unit whereby
to supply
IP telephone handsets.
In one embodiment, the system may be adapted to accommodate analogue telephone
handsets, for example for use in bathrooms. The IP-core head end unit may
comprise a
19" rack.
According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a building
including a unit
or system substantially as hereinbefore defined.
Referring to the drawing, there is shown an Ethernet system which is modular,
and
comprises a head-end unit connected to a plurality of IP zone units or
elements in series
and which in turn connect with a room unit.
The system is based on a high speed copper or fibre back bone, and each IP-
zone unit
may be supplied by UPS and be connected by a single cable, in the embodiment
herein,
of copper. The system provides a fully convergent, industry standard IT system
adapted
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to deliver data, voice, TV and video services over a common Ethernet network
using
standard TCP/IP controls. The system is fully modular, its.components being
built into
the fabric of the building in which it is installed, either during 'new'
building or as part
of a refurbishment project. Thus a system embodying the invention provides an
IT
infrastructure for a building, and is adapted to be shared with other
operating systems 'or
applications providing they are designed to work on Ethernet. This provides
flexibility
to an occupant of a building as that occupant can provide its own IT servers,
software
and devices, or provide specialist services such as in-room entertainment or
property
management over the network provided by a system embodying the invention.
The system provides services which can include
Multicast Digital TV
Multicast Digital Radio
Multimedia Content (Films etc)
Voice over IP
PC Data Services
Secure Broadband Services
Connectivity to back office systems
Connectivity to Building Management system
Connectivity to 3rd Party Proprietary I/O devices including Fire Alarms,
security
systems, emergency lighting, nurse call systems.
Maintenance of the system can be carried out remotely, thereby reducing
maintenance
overheads. Moreover, the system embodying the invention can have the ability
to
capture and store all events occurring in the system, and report, thereby, for
example,
enabling faults to be quickly remedied.
The system 1 comprises an IPiN system including an IP head-end unit 2, an IP-
zone
unit 3, an IP-room unit 4, an IP-TV unit 5 and telephone and data outlets 6.
The items
4, 5 and 6 are located in a room, the item 5 providing TV and radio services
and the
item 6 voice and data services via RJ45 outlets. Generally there will be six
outlets per
room, two TV, two data and 2 IP telephones.
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Referrirzg to items of the system, there are the following in a system 1
configuration:-
The IPiN Head-End 2:
A 19" rack containing IPTV servers (connected to satellite or other digital TV
source), IP voice system, Ethernet Layer 3 Core Switch, Firewall (connected to
appropriate ADSL line), UPS and KVM. An optional media server can also be
included
for video if required.
IP-Zone Unit 3:
Combines a 16-port layer 2 switch with an RS485 serial I/O distribution unit
with its own UPS. The Zone Unit is designed to service up to 80 data, voice or
TV
outlets through a maximum of 13 Room Units. Zone units can be connect in-line
with
up to 3 Zone units per gigabit feed from the core switch. This configuration
greatly
reduces cabling requirements over normal IT systems where each outlet is
individually
cabled to a port at the edge switch.
IP-Room Unit 4:
The Room Unit is a 7-port ethernet switch mounted in the wall behind a twin
RJ45 outlet in a standard electrical 2-gang wall box. It can provide 6
outlets, a
maximum of 2 of which can have power over ethernet for use with a maximum of
two
IP telephones and TV outlets.
IP-TV Unit 5:
The TV Unit comprises a miniature, low energy PC board or set top box
mounted in a wall box at each TV point. The cover plate has a TV outlet
facilitating the
use of any commercially available television. LCD televisions with stereo
speakers are
strongly recommended to take full advantage of the quality of fully digital
IPTV and
radio. Each TV Unit has wireless capability and is supplied with multicast and
application software and an infra red remote control handset.
Telephone & Data Outlet 6:
Standard RJ45 outlets are finished to match the Room and TV units. They can
also be matched to light switches and power sockets. Power over ethernet (POE)
can be
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supplied to two outlets per Room Unit to supply IP telephone handsets. In a
further
embodiment, analogue telephone handsets can be accommodated, for example in
bathroom applications.
The head-end unit 2 provides as modules
Multicast IP Digital TV
Multicast Digital Radio
Interactive Media content
Voice over IP (VOP)
Fast Ethernet/Fibre Distribution
Power Protection
Serial I/O Device Control
3rd Party Modules including:
Site Specific Media Content
Building Management Services
Hotel, Hospital or the like Back Office Systems.
The zone units 3 are each a self contained wall mounted box designed to offer
a fully
integrated Ethernet Switch and connectivity to 3d Party devices, using a
series of
modular attachments and software language protocols.
Each Zone Unit 3 presents RJ45 sockets for Data distribution and modular and
static
connectors that will be for additional serial 1/0 devices. Power is 24V DC
Power
Supply designed to be pluggable to assist prompt repair.
Two RJ 45 connectors are provided one supporting the in-bound feed from an
external
source which could be another Zone Unit or from a third party Ethernet switch.
The
second will be an output port which can be used to connect fiuther Zone Units.
The in-
bound and Out-bound ports need to auto-sense and use crossed or straight
through
Ethernet cables (MDI/MDIX).
The unit will incorporate a series of Layer 2-protocols including IGMP v2
(Internet
Group Management Protocol) and IGMP snooping within the firmware. Software
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management will be required for unique addressing the switch (IP Protocol),
reporting,
VLAN (Virtual Local Area Network), QOS and specific site configurations as
required.
A provision for Wireless Ethernet may be added to the Zone Unit.
These low voltage units 3 may also be equipped with a UPS (Uninterruptible
Power
Supply) for added power protection.
It will be understood that the IP Zone units 3 are interconnected in a modular
manner.
Thus the relevant software will be programmed in such a way as to permit
simple
addition and subtraction of other Zone units 3. There also is the ability to
configure and
amend the I/O serial ports. By adding software control to devices such a Zone
Units 3
and Room Units 4 the stock management of sites 2 enhanced as all of the items
have a
unique address, therefore it will always be known which items are in use and
where
they are located.
= Zone Units 3 will have a pre-defined number locked into each unit and stored
into the site database (Zone Unit 1, Zone Unit 2 etc).
= Zone Units 3 will use a unique address and have an assigned IP address.
= A configuration file will be generated for each site for use on the Zone
Units; the
file contains all information relevant to the location as well as a detailed
list of
all devices attached by port. The configuration file will be amended and setup
via the "Zone Unit configuration Utility", which can be used remotely, from an
Engineers computer or from any Windows XP based workstation.
= An identical configuration file will be saved to all Zone Units and can be
applied
immediately or automatically at an agreed scheduled time.
= When amending a site the current configuration will be loaded, as a part of
the
"Zone Configuration Utility" from the highest available Zone Unit (Zone 1,
Zone Unit 2), this will avoid an earlier version being applied accidentally.
= Replacement Zone Units when installed will load the configuration file from
the
site automatically from the highest available Zone Unit (Zone Unit 1, Zone
Unit
2).
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= New Units can be added to any site and an updates configuration, including
the
new unit, can be added remotely or on site.
= The "Zone Unit Configuration Utility" will have the ability to add, amend
and
remove additional input/output devices running directly from the Zone Unit.
= The "Zone Unit Configuration Utility" will have the ability to assign ports
to
specific Room Units.
To achieve this simply a database and configuration tool will be produced and
are used
to enable the user to configure a Zone Unit and set up all peripheral
assignments.
The configuration utility will be accessed via a XP based terminal attached to
the
network or using an engineers network. This device will have a simple
programme
which loads automatically the latest configuration file from Zone Unit 1, if
not available
Zone Unit 2 and so on.
It will be understood that each room unit 4 is a self contained 6 port switch,
mounted
into the profile of a conventional flush mounted electrical dual gang socket.
It has been
designed to handle local distribution of Data, Multimedia Services, and Voice.
Each Room Unit 4 supports Power over Ethernet and offers power to connected
Power
over Ethernet connected'devices, such as IP Phones for Voice over IP.
Other ports offer local distribution of services such as:
Multimedia Services; IP Multicast Digital TV, Digital Radio, and Multimedia
Content;
Data: Broadband, Local Area Network, 3d Party Services and Applications.
The TV unit is designed to deliver Multicast Digital TV to the majority of
available TV
sets (analogue or digital).
It has compact electronics and is secured into a flush mounted chassis in a
convenient,
secure and discreet area, usually behind the TV set. The unit is connected via
Ethernet,
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Wireless Ethernet, or Power over Ethernet back to the Room Unit, Zone Unit or
3ra
Party Ethernet Switch.
The unit captures a requested Multicast Stream for the required Digital TV
Channel. It
assembles the IP packets back to the original raw MPEG 2 Digital output and
delivers it
to the TV Set.
A remote control is provided for ease of use.
To summarise, a system embodying the invention and described with reference to
the
drawings has
= Voice, data & video over same IP Ethernet network, now with TV and radio at
no extra cost compared with conventional TV systems. Saves the use of
multiple discrete networks. Ideal for all new buildings such as hospitals,
hotels,
apartments, office buildings, prison, schools, colleges, universities etc
= System is built into the fabric of the building for durability and
reliability.
= System uses specially designed Zone Units and Room Units to simplify cabling
and to reduce costs.
= The Zone Unit has connections for both simple I/O devices and ethern.et
connections. *
= The Room Unit is an ethernet switch built into the wall in each room
providing
connectivity for up to 6 data, telephone or TV outlets.
= The TV Unit is a miniature, low energy PC or set top box built into the wall
of
the room at each TV location providing outputs for any CRT, LCD or Plasma
TV.
= The TV Unit can also include a wireless receiver/transmitter for laptops and
other portable devices.
= System can be managed remotely from any PC over the internet with built-in
access control and management systems.
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= Ability for network to also carry Building Management Systems - energy
management (HVAC and lighting), security (access control, CCTV and intruder
alarm systems), fire (fire alann systems, smoke alarms, emergency liighting).
= These can either be compatible systems based upon industry standard, global
IP
protocols or incompatible systems using protocols such as Lonworks, EIBA and
BACNet via translator gateways.
= Network can be used by service providers (in-room entertainment, property
management systems, fire and intruder alarm systems etc) as long as they use
Microsoft based operating software systems.
= Applicability to Nurse Call System in hospitals.
