Modbus system having actual and virtual slave addresses and slave sensors

A networked system comprising:

• a plurality of slave devices each comprising:
• a slave processor;
• a sensor interface operably coupled to the slave processor and to a sensor device;
• a slave network interface operably coupled to the slave processor and configured to operably couple to a master device over a network;
• and,
• a non-transitory slave computer-readable medium operably coupled to the slave processor and storing data comprising:
• a unique slave address;
• a non-unique slave address;
• and,
• a slave device state comprising at least one of an active state and an idle state,
• wherein a given non-transitory slave computer-readable medium stores a program of instructions that, when executed by an associated slave processor, causes the associated slave processor to perform slave operations comprising:
• in response to receiving, over the network, a request signal from the master device directed to a specific non-unique slave address, transmitting a response signal to the master device over the network, if:
• (1) the specific non-unique slave address matches the non-unique slave address stored in the given non-transitory slave computer-readable medium, and (2) the slave device state stored in the given non-transitory slave computer-readable medium is in the active state when the request signal is received at the slave device.

A networked system comprising:

• a plurality of slave devices each comprising:
• a slave processor;
• a sensor interface operably coupled to the slave processor and to a sensor device;
• a slave network interface operably coupled to the slave processor;
• and,
• a non-transitory slave computer-readable medium operably coupled to the slave processor and storing data comprising:
• a unique slave address;
• a non-unique slave address;
• and,
• a slave device state comprising at least one of an active state and an idle state;
• a master device comprising:
• a master processor;
• a non-transitory master computer-readable medium operably coupled with the master processor;
• and,
• a master network interface operably coupled to the master processor;
• and,
• a network operably coupled to each of the slave network interfaces and the master network interface, to operably couple the master device to each slave device in the plurality of slave devices,
• wherein the non-transitory master computer-readable medium stores a program of instructions that, when executed by the master processor, cause the master processor to perform master operations to communicate with the plurality of slave devices over the network, the master operations comprising:
• transmitting, over the network, a request signal addressed to a specific non-unique slave address,
• wherein a given non-transitory slave computer-readable medium stores a program of instructions that, when executed by an associated slave processor, causes the associated slave processor to perform slave operations comprising:
• in response to receiving, over the network, the request signal from the master device directed to the specific non-unique slave address, transmitting a response signal to the master device over the network, if:
• (1) the specific non-unique slave address matches the non-unique slave address stored in the given non-transitory slave computer-readable medium, and (2) the slave device state stored in the given non-transitory slave computer-readable medium is in the active state when the request signal is received at the slave device.