US 12,445,525 B2
Connecting a group of industrial tools to a plurality of controllers using shared single virtual IP address and identifiers
Erik Olof Johansson, Älta (SE); and Robert Mikael Andersson, Solna (SE)
Assigned to ATLAS COPCO INDUSTRIAL TECHNIQUE AB, Stockholm (SE)
Appl. No. 18/881,887
Filed by ATLAS COPCO INDUSTRIAL TECHNIQUE AB, Stockholm (SE)
PCT Filed Jun. 2, 2023, PCT No. PCT/EP2023/064775
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jan. 7, 2025,
PCT Pub. No. WO2024/017532, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 25, 2024.
Claims priority of application No. 2230242-6 (SE), filed on Jul. 18, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2025/0267194 A1, Aug. 21, 2025
Int. Cl. H04L 67/125 (2022.01); B25B 21/00 (2006.01); H04L 45/74 (2022.01); H04L 61/5007 (2022.01)
CPC H04L 67/125 (2013.01) [B25B 21/00 (2013.01); H04L 45/74 (2013.01); H04L 61/5007 (2022.05)] 12 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of a network device of connecting a group of industrial tools to a plurality of controllers, comprising:
assigning a single virtual IP address to be shared among the industrial tools in said group of industrial tools;
assigning the single virtual IP address to be shared among the plurality of controllers;
routing, through the network device, data between the industrial tools and the controllers via the assigned single virtual IP address;
assigning to each industrial tool in the group of industrial tools a unique identifier being utilized to address an individual industrial tool in the group via the assigned single virtual IP address;
assigning to each controller a unique identifier being utilized to address an individual controller among the plurality of controllers via the assigned single virtual IP address, the unique identifier being included in a data packet to be communicated to a selected individual industrial tool or selected individual controller via the assigned single virtual IP address;
performing data packet inspection to extract the unique identifier; and
determining, based on the extracted unique identifier, to which individual industrial tool or controller the data packet is to be routed through the network device via the assigned single virtual IP address.