JP2007110273A - Unit and method for controlling communication, and information providing system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a communication control unit and a data control method capable of continuing and disconnecting the connection of a data communication line according to the situation of data communication, and to provide an information providing system. <P>SOLUTION: When the disconnection of a voice communication line 21 is detected while communication via the voice communication line 21 is being made concurrently with communication via a data communication line 22; the situation of the data communication via the data communication line 22 is determined, and it is determined whether the connection of the data communication line 22 is continued based on the determined data communication situation. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a control device for a communication device capable of simultaneously performing voice communication and data communication, and an information providing system including the communication control device.

  In a communication device capable of performing voice communication and data communication at the same time, a technique for stopping data communication when receiving voice information indicating that data communication is unnecessary from the other party is known (see Patent Document 1). .

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-187239

  However, in the conventional technology, when the data communication line is in a normal state and the voice communication line is disconnected for some reason, only the data communication is continuously performed regardless of the data communication status. was there.

(1) A communication control device and a communication control method according to the present invention control communication of a communication device capable of simultaneously performing communication via a voice communication line and communication via a data communication line. Thus, when disconnection of the voice communication line is detected, it is determined whether to continue the connection of the data communication line based on the status of the data communication performed through the data communication line.
(2) The information providing system according to the present invention determines whether or not to continue the connection of the data communication line based on the status of the data communication performed via the data communication line when the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected. A communication control device for determining is provided.

  According to the communication control device, the communication control method, and the information providing system according to the present invention, the connection of the data communication line based on the status of the data communication performed through the data communication line when the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected. Therefore, it is possible to continue and disconnect the data communication line according to the data communication status.

-First embodiment-
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an information providing system including a communication control device according to the first embodiment. The information providing system includes an information center 100 and an in-vehicle device 200. The information that the user desires to download to the in-vehicle device 200 is transmitted to an operator who is waiting in the information center 100, and the operator receives an information search terminal (not The information searched using (shown) is transmitted from the information center 100 to the vehicle-mounted device 200. In FIG. 1, only one in-vehicle device 200 is shown, but the information center 100 can communicate with a plurality of in-vehicle devices 200.

  The information center 100 includes a voice line return determination device 1, a data transmission continuation determination device 2, a line monitoring device 3, a manned service telematics device 4, and a communication terminal 5. The communication terminal 5 is, for example, a mobile phone that can simultaneously perform voice communication and data communication. The voice line return determination device 1 determines whether or not the voice communication line 21 should be reconnected when the voice communication line 21 between the information center 100 and the vehicle-mounted device 200 is disconnected due to some abnormality. A detailed determination method will be described later.

  The data transmission continuation determination device 2 determines whether or not the connection of the data communication line 22 should be maintained when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected due to some abnormality. A detailed determination method will be described later. The line monitoring device 3 monitors whether or not the voice communication line 21 is abnormally disconnected. The manned service telematics device 4 is a device that performs two-way communication with the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12 included in the vehicle-mounted device 200, and transmits information (data) according to a user request via the communication terminal 5. To the mobile telematics device 12. Also, when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected and the voice line return determination device 1 determines that the voice communication line 21 should be reconnected, the voice communication line 21 is reconnected. If the data communication continuation determination device 2 determines that the data communication line 22 should be disconnected when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected, the data communication line 22 is disconnected.

  The in-vehicle device 200 includes a communication terminal 11 and an in-vehicle device telematics device 12. The in-vehicle device telematics device 12 is a device that performs two-way communication with the manned service telematics device 4 provided in the information center 100, and receives information (data) transmitted from the in-vehicle device telematics device 12 via the communication terminal 11. To do. The communication terminal 11 is, for example, a mobile phone that can simultaneously perform voice communication and data communication.

  The voice communication line 21 is a line used when voice conversation is performed between the user and the operator, and the data communication line 22 exchanges data between the information center 100 and the vehicle-mounted device 200. It is a line that is used at the time.

  FIG. 2 shows information when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected due to some abnormality while the voice communication line 21 and the data communication line 22 are connected between the information center 100 and the vehicle-mounted device 200. It is a flowchart which shows the processing content performed by the center 100 side. When the line monitoring device 3 detects an abnormal disconnection of the voice communication line 21, the data transmission continuation determination device 2 starts the process of step S10.

  In step S10, it is determined whether or not to continue data communication. The data transmission continuation determination device 2 acquires data indicating the data communication status with the in-vehicle device telematics device 12 from the manned service telematics device 4 and determines whether to continue the data communication based on the acquired data. Judgment is made. Specifically, when there is no data being transmitted through the data communication line 22, and when there is no data scheduled to be transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12, it is determined that there is no need to continue data communication. Then, the process proceeds to step S50. In step S50, the data communication line 22 is disconnected.

  On the other hand, in step S10, when data is being transmitted through the data communication line 22, or when there is data scheduled to be transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12, it is determined that it is necessary to continue data communication. . The telematics device 4 for manned service has a data list scheduled to be transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12, whether or not there is data being transmitted, and there is data to be transmitted from now on. Whether or not to do so can be determined with reference to the data list. If it is determined that it is necessary to continue data communication, the process proceeds to step S20.

  In step S20, the voice line return judgment device 1 performs a judgment process as to whether or not the voice communication line 21 should be reconnected. The details of the process for determining whether or not to reconnect the voice communication line 21 performed by the voice line return determination device 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

In step S100 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, the voice line return determination device 1 determines whether or not the voice communication line 21 should be reconnected. Here, if the following two conditions (a) and (b) are satisfied, it is determined that the voice communication line 21 should be reconnected.
(A) The voice communication line is in a recoverable state (b) Information necessary for the operator's information retrieval operation is not obtained through conversation with the user.

  For example, the line monitoring device 3 determines whether or not the voice communication line 21 in the condition (a) is in a recoverable state, and transmits the determination result to the voice line return determination device 1. Further, the condition (b), that is, whether or not the information necessary for the operator's information search operation is obtained through conversation with the user is determined based on the connection time of the voice communication line 21. That is, if the time from when the voice communication line 21 is connected to when it is abnormally disconnected is shorter than the predetermined time T1, it is determined that the information necessary for the operator's information search operation is not obtained in the conversation with the user, If the connection time of the communication line 21 is equal to or longer than the predetermined time T1, it is determined that information necessary for the operator's information search operation is obtained through conversation with the user.

  If both of the conditions (a) and (b) are satisfied, it is determined that the voice communication line 21 should be reconnected, and the process proceeds to step S110. At least one of the conditions (a) and (b) If one condition is not satisfied, it is determined that the voice communication line 21 should not be reconnected, and the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 3 ends.

  In step S 110, a command for reconnecting the voice communication line 21 is issued to the manned service telematics device 4. The manned service telematics device 4 that has received this command performs reconnection processing of the voice communication line 21. When the reconnection process of the voice communication line 21 is performed, the process proceeds to step S120. In step S120, voice processing for establishing a voice conversation between the user and the operator is performed, and the process proceeds to step S130.

  In step S130, it is determined whether or not the conversation between the user and the operator has ended. For example, when the operator performs a button operation indicating the end of the conversation at the end of the conversation and the operator performs a button operation indicating the end of the conversation, it is determined that the conversation between the user and the operator has ended. If it is determined that the conversation between the user and the operator has not ended, the process returns to step S120. If it is determined that the conversation between the user and the operator has ended, the processing of the flowchart shown in FIG. It progresses to step S30 of the flowchart shown in FIG.

  In step S30, data communication on the data communication line 22 is continued. In step S40 following step S30, it is determined whether or not all the processes have been completed. Here, if the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 2, that is, the process related to the voice communication line 21 has been completed and the data communication has been completed, it is determined that all the processes have been completed. If it is determined that all processes have not been completed, the process returns to step S30. If it is determined that all processes have been completed, the process of the flowchart shown in FIG.

  According to the communication control apparatus in the first embodiment, in the apparatus for controlling the communication of the communication system capable of simultaneously performing communication via the voice communication line 21 and communication via the data communication line 22. When the disconnection of the voice communication line 21 is detected, the data communication state of the data communication line 22 is determined, and whether to continue the connection of the data communication line 22 is determined based on the determined data communication state. Thereby, the connection of the data communication line can be continued or disconnected according to the status of the data communication.

  In particular, according to the communication control apparatus in the first embodiment, when there is no data during data communication when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected, the data communication line 22 is disconnected, so that the data communication line 22 is unnecessary. Communication efficiency can be improved by preventing the connected state from being continued. Further, according to the communication control apparatus in the first embodiment, when there is no untransmitted data when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected, the data communication line 22 is disconnected, so that the data communication line 22 is unnecessary. The communication efficiency can be improved by preventing the connection.

  Furthermore, according to the communication control apparatus in the first embodiment, when disconnection of the voice communication line 21 is detected, data information to be transmitted via the data communication line 22 is acquired via the in-vehicle device 200. If it is determined that the voice communication line 21 has not yet been acquired, the voice communication line 21 is reconnected. Accordingly, the voice communication line 21 can be automatically connected without the operator of the information center 100 or the user performing an operation of reconnecting the voice communication line 21, and the information desired by the user can be transferred to the operator. Can tell.

-Second Embodiment-
In the communication control apparatus according to the first embodiment, when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected, when data is being transmitted through the data communication line 22 or when there is data scheduled to be transmitted to the in-vehicle device telematics apparatus 12 from now on. Therefore, it was determined that it was necessary to continue data communication. In the communication control device according to the second embodiment, when there is data scheduled to be transmitted in the in-vehicle device telematics device 12, is it necessary to continue data communication based on the data content of untransmitted data? Judge whether or not.

  In the communication control device in the second embodiment, it is necessary to continue data communication based on the type of data scheduled to be transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12 and the time required to complete the data transmission. Judge whether there is. Here, the importance of the data scheduled to be transmitted is calculated as a point PT based on the data type scheduled to be transmitted and the time required to complete the data transmission, and the point PT is greater than a predetermined threshold value. For example, it is determined that data communication needs to be continued.

The following equation (1) is an equation for calculating the point PT according to the data type scheduled to be transmitted and the time required to complete the data transmission. Α in the formula (1) is a predetermined value and is a value larger than 0 and smaller than 1.
PT = (point according to data type) × α + (point according to data transmission completion time) × (1−α) (1)

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating points according to data types. This point is set so that the value increases as the importance of the schedule data transmitted to the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12 increases. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the traffic information data is 90 points because the importance is high, and the weather information is 60 points because the importance is not so high. In addition, the facility information is assumed to be 30 points because the importance is low. Points according to the data type are determined in advance. The point data corresponding to the data type as shown in FIG. 4 is stored in advance in a memory (not shown) provided in the data transmission continuation determination device 2.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating points according to the data transmission completion time. As shown in FIG. 5, the point is set higher as the time required for completing data transmission is shorter. In the example shown in FIG. 5, if the time required for completing the data transmission is 0 second or more and less than 3 seconds, it is 90 points, if it is 3 seconds or more and less than 6 seconds, 60 points, if it is 6 seconds or more and less than 9 seconds, 30 points, 20 points if 9 seconds or more and less than 12 seconds, 5 points if 12 seconds or more and less than 60 seconds, 0 points if 60 seconds or more.

  The time required to complete the data transmission is calculated based on the amount of untransmitted data and the communication capability (data transmission capability) of the data communication line 22.

  Hereinafter, a method of calculating the point PT when an abnormal disconnection of a voice communication line occurs while traffic information data is being transmitted from the manned service telematics device 4 to the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12 will be described. Here, the size of the traffic information data (all data) to be transmitted to the in-vehicle device telematics device 12 is 1024 bytes, the size of the data transmitted before abnormal disconnection of the voice communication line is 992 bytes, and the communication capability of the data communication line 22 Is set to 32 bps.

Referring to FIG. 4, the points when the data type of the untransmitted data is traffic information are 90 points. Since the amount of untransmitted data is 1024-992 = 32 bytes (= 256 bits), the time Tx required to complete data transmission is 8 seconds according to the following equation (2). Therefore, referring to FIG. 5, the point corresponding to the data transmission completion time is 30 points.
Tx = 256/32 = 8 (2)

The data transmission continuation determination device 2 calculates a point PT according to the data type scheduled to be transmitted and the time required to complete the data transmission from the equation (1). When α = 0.5, the point PT is 60 from the following equation (3).
PT = 90 × 0.5 + 30 × (1-0.5) = 45 + 15 = 60 (3)

  Note that the value of α is determined in advance based on the data type to be transmitted and which element is important among the time required to complete the data transmission. If the data type scheduled for transmission is important, the value of α is set to a value close to 1, and if the time required to complete data transmission is important, the value of α is a value close to 0. Set to.

  The data transmission continuation determination device 2 compares the point PT calculated by the above-described method with a predetermined threshold, and if the point PT is larger than the predetermined threshold, it is necessary to continue data communication. If the point PT is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, it is determined that there is no need to continue data communication. Here, the predetermined threshold value is 10. Therefore, when the calculated point PT is 60, it is determined that it is necessary to continue data communication.

  According to the communication control apparatus in the second embodiment, it is determined whether or not to continue the connection of the data communication line 22 based on the content of the untransmitted data existing when the disconnection of the voice communication line 21 is detected. To do. Thus, for example, if it is determined that there is no need to transmit based on the contents of untransmitted data, the data communication line 22 can be disconnected, so unnecessary data transmission processing is prevented and communication efficiency is improved. Can be improved.

  In particular, according to the communication control apparatus in the second embodiment, the data communication line is based on at least one of the importance of untransmitted data and the time required to complete transmission of untransmitted data. Since it is determined whether or not the connection of 22 is to be continued, it is possible to accurately determine whether or not it is necessary to transmit untransmitted data and to determine whether or not the connection of the data communication line 22 should be maintained. it can.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. For example, when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected, it is possible to determine whether or not to continue the connection of the data communication line 22 on the in-vehicle device 200 side. In this case, among the information necessary for determining whether to continue the connection of the data communication line 22, information that the information center 100 has may be transmitted from the information center 100 to the in-vehicle device 200. . For example, when the vehicle-mounted device 200 receives information indicating that data transmission from the information center 100 to the vehicle-mounted device telematics device 12 is completed and no untransmitted data remains, the communication via the data communication line 22 is disconnected. In addition, when using the data communication line connection / disconnection determination method described in the second embodiment, the importance of unreceived data on the in-vehicle device 200 side and the time until reception of unreceived data is completed Based on the above, it may be determined whether or not to continue the connection of the data communication line 22.

Similarly, when the voice communication line 21 is disconnected, it is possible to determine whether or not to reconnect the voice communication line 21 on the in-vehicle device 200 side. Also in this case, the information that the information center 100 has among the information necessary for determining whether or not to reconnect the voice communication line 21 is transmitted from the information center 100 to the in-vehicle device 200. Good. When the determination is made on the in-vehicle device 200 side, for example, if the following two conditions (c) and (d) are satisfied, it can be determined that the voice communication line 21 should be reconnected. .
(C) The voice communication line is in a recoverable state (d) Information necessary for the operator's information retrieval operation has not been transmitted to the operator yet

  The condition (d) can be determined based on the connection time of the voice communication line 21 as described in the first embodiment. That is, if the time from when the voice communication line 21 is connected to when it is abnormally disconnected is shorter than the predetermined time T1, it is determined that the information necessary for the operator's information search operation has not been transmitted to the operator, and the voice communication line 21 If the connection time is equal to or longer than the predetermined time T1, it is determined that information necessary for the operator's information search operation has been transmitted to the operator.

  In the first embodiment, if the time from when the voice communication line 21 is connected to when it is abnormally disconnected is shorter than the predetermined time T1, information necessary for the operator's information retrieval operation is obtained through conversation with the user. If the connection time of the voice communication line 21 is equal to or longer than the predetermined time T1, it is determined that information necessary for the operator's information search operation is obtained through conversation with the user. For example, if the information necessary for the information search operation is obtained through a conversation with the user, the operator can input the information to the processing terminal (not shown) and the information search operation can be performed based on the operator's input operation. It is possible to reliably determine whether necessary information is obtained through conversation with the user.

  In each of the embodiments described above, an information providing system that issues a call to the information center 100 from the in-vehicle device 200 constituting the information terminal to request information provision, and transmits the requested information from the information center 100 to the in-vehicle device 200. An example in which the communication control apparatus is applied to the above has been described. However, this communication control device is not limited to the above-described information providing system as long as it is a system or device that can simultaneously perform communication via a voice communication line and communication via a data communication line. Can be applied.

  The correspondence between the constituent elements of the claims and the constituent elements of the first and second embodiments is as follows. That is, the line monitoring device 3 serves as a line disconnection detecting means, the manned service telematics device 4 or the in-vehicle device telematics device 12 serves as a data communication status judging means, the data transmission continuation judging device 2 and the manned service telematics device 4 or the vehicle-mounted. The machine telematics device 12 constitutes a communication control means, and the voice line return judgment device 1 and the manned service telematics device 4 or the vehicle-mounted equipment telematics device 12 constitutes a reconnection judgment means. In addition, the above description is an example to the last, and when interpreting invention, it is not limited to the correspondence of the component of said embodiment and the component of this invention at all.

The figure which shows the whole structure of the information provision system containing the communication control apparatus in 1st Embodiment. Flow chart showing the contents of processing performed on the information center side when disconnection due to some abnormality occurs in the voice communication line Flowchart showing contents of determination processing for determining whether or not to reconnect voice communication line Diagram showing points according to data type Diagram showing points according to data transmission completion time

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Voice line return judgment device, 2 ... Data transmission continuation judgment device, 3 ... Line monitoring device, 4 ... Telematics device for manned service, 5 ... Communication terminal, 11 ... Communication terminal, 12 ... In-vehicle device telematics device, 100 ... Information Center, 200 ... In-vehicle machine

Claims (14)

In a communication control device for performing communication control of a communication device capable of simultaneously performing communication via a voice communication line and communication via a data communication line,
Line disconnection detecting means for detecting disconnection of the voice communication line;
Data communication status determination means for determining the status of data communication performed via the data communication line;
When disconnection of the voice communication line is detected by the line disconnection detecting means, it is determined whether or not to continue the connection of the data communication line based on the data communication status determined by the data communication status determining means And a communication control means. The communication control device according to claim 1,
The communication control means, when the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected by the line disconnection detection means, and when the data communication status determination means determines that there is no data in data communication, the data communication line The communication control apparatus characterized by cutting communication by. In the communication control device according to claim 1 or 2,
The communication control means, when the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected by the line disconnection detection means, and when the data communication status determination means determines that there is no untransmitted data, the communication control means The communication control device characterized by cutting. In the communication control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The communication control means determines whether or not to continue the connection of the data communication line based on the content of untransmitted data existing when the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected. apparatus. The communication control device according to claim 4, wherein
Whether the communication control means continues the connection of the data communication line based on at least one of the importance of the untransmitted data and the time required to complete the transmission of the untransmitted data A communication control device that determines whether or not. In the communication control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
When the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected by the disconnection detection means, the reconnection determination means further determines whether to reconnect the voice communication line,
The communication control unit is configured to connect the disconnected voice communication line when the reconnection determination unit determines to reconnect the voice communication line. The communication control device according to claim 6,
When the reconnection determining unit determines that information related to data to be transmitted via the data communication line is not acquired by conversation via the voice communication line, the reconnection determination unit reconnects the voice communication line. A communication control device characterized by determining. In the communication control device according to claim 1 or 2,
The communication control means, when the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected by the disconnection detection means, and when the data communication status determination means determines that there is no unreceived data, the communication control means The communication control device characterized by cutting. The communication control device according to claim 8, wherein
The communication control means determines whether or not to continue the connection of the data communication line based on the contents of unreceived data existing when the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected. apparatus. The communication control device according to claim 9, wherein
Whether the communication control means continues the connection of the data communication line based on at least one of the importance of the unreceived data and the time required to complete reception of the unreceived data A communication control device that determines whether or not. In the communication control device according to any one of claims 8 to 10,
When the disconnection of the voice communication line is detected by the disconnection detection means, the reconnection determination means further determines whether to reconnect the voice communication line,
The communication control unit is configured to connect the disconnected voice communication line when the reconnection determination unit determines to reconnect the voice communication line. The communication control device according to claim 11, wherein
When the reconnection determining means determines that information related to data to be received via the data communication line is not transmitted to the other party through a conversation via the voice communication line, the reconnection determination unit reconnects the voice communication line. A communication control device that determines to connect. The communication control device according to any one of claims 1 to 12,
An information terminal that makes a call to an information center and requests provision of information;
An information providing system comprising: an information center that transmits information requested from the information terminal to the information terminal. In a communication control method for controlling communication of a communication device capable of simultaneously performing communication via a voice communication line and communication via a data communication line,
Detecting disconnection of the voice communication line;
Communication control, wherein when disconnection of the voice communication line is detected, it is determined whether to continue the connection of the data communication line based on a status of data communication performed via the data communication line Method.

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