JP2001309079A - Data communication method, telephone line switching method, electronic device and network connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a data communication method capable of data communication, which is to be charged to a user, by only giving instruction to the connector of a provider through the Internet by the user when the user performs data communication between a portable personal computer and a personal computer at home while he/she is out. SOLUTION: A personal computer 2 commands the connector 41 of the provide 4 to connect to a personal computer 1 through the Internet. The connector 41 calls the personal computer 1 through a telephone line 6. Then, the personal computer 1 judges whether the calling source of telephone is the connector 41 by identification information of the calling source provided by a telephone line company. When the calling source of telephone is the connector 41, the user waits without answering to the call and after the finish of the call, connection between with the connector 41 is established by calling to the connector 41. After then, data communication is performed between the personal computer 1 and the personal computer 2 through the Internet.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of communicating data between electronic devices via a large-scale computer network such as the Internet, and a telephone line switching method, an electronic device, and a method suitable for implementing the communication method. Related to network connection devices.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, when a personal user connects a computer to the Internet, a so-called dial-up connection is made via a telephone line and a provider.
Therefore, when such an individual user is out of the office, a portable personal computer (hereinafter referred to as “PC”)
When performing data communication via the Internet with a PC installed at home, connect the portable PC to the Internet, connect the provider to the PC at home via a telephone line, and connect the PC at home. You need to be connected to the Internet.

[0003]

In such a case, since the user himself is not at home, in order to establish a connection between the Internet connection device of the provider and the personal computer at home, the connection device of the provider calls the personal computer at home. In such a case, the provider bears the telephone charge, and a system that allows the provider to charge the user for the telephone charge is required.

In order to avoid this, before the user connects the portable personal computer to the Internet, the user himself or herself remotely controls the personal computer at home and establishes a connection with the connection device of the provider. Therefore, even if remote control can be easily performed via a telephone line, two telephone lines are required, and there is also a problem that it takes time and effort.

The present invention has been made in view of this point. For example, in a case where a user performs data communication between a portable personal computer and a personal computer at home while out of the office, the user can use the Internet via the Internet. A data communication method capable of performing data communication with a telephone charge borne by a user only by giving an instruction to a connection device of a provider, a telephone line switching method, an electronic device, and a network required for performing the data communication method It is intended to provide a connection device.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic apparatus comprising: a first electronic device connected to a connection device to a large-scale computer network via a telephone line; A data communication method for performing data communication between a second electronic device connected to the large-scale computer network and the first electronic device, wherein the second electronic device is connected to the connection device; In response to the command, the connection to the first electronic device is instructed, and the connection device calls the first electronic device via the telephone line. Whether the device is a connection device or not is determined by a source identification notification provided by a telephone line company, and the first electronic device responds to the call when the call source is the connection device. Wait without The first electronic device, after the termination of the call, calls the connection device to establish a connection with the connection device, and establishes a connection with the second electronic device via the large-scale computer network. Data communication is performed between them.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a telephone line switching method for implementing the data communication method according to the first aspect, wherein the telephone line to which the first electronic device is connected is
When a telephone is connected via a switch, the first electronic device turns off the switch when the source of the call is the connection device, while the first electronic device is not the connection device. In some cases, the switch is turned on to connect the telephone to the telephone line.

[0008] The invention according to claim 3 relates to an electronic device required for carrying out the invention according to claim 1, and the present invention relates to connecting a telephone line to a connection device to a large-scale computer network. When a call is made via the telephone line in an electronic device connected via a telephone line, whether or not the caller of the telephone is the connection device is determined by a caller identification notification provided by a telephone line company. Determining, when the origin of the call is the connection device, waits without responding to the call, and after the completion of the call, calls the connection device to establish a connection with the connection device. And establishing data communication with other electronic devices via said large-scale computer network.

A fourth aspect of the present invention relates to a network connection device required for carrying out the first aspect of the present invention. The first aspect of the present invention relates to a first network connected via a telephone line. A network connection device for connecting an electronic device to a large-scale computer network, wherein the network connection device is configured to receive a connection command from the second electronic device connected to the large-scale computer network to the first electronic device. When the first electronic device is called via the telephone line, and when a call is made from the first electronic device immediately after the end of the call, the first electronic device is It is characterized in that it is connected to the second electronic device via the large-scale computer network.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a data communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which a personal computer 1 installed at the home of an individual user can be connected to a connection device 41 of a provider 4 via a telephone line 6. Have been. The connection device 41 of the provider 4 is the Internet 1
00, the personal computer 1 is connected to the connection device 41.
Can be dial-up connected to the Internet 100 via. The connection device 41 is connected to the Internet 10
The connection command to the personal computer 1 can be received from another electronic device such as a computer connected to the PC 0, and when such a connection command is issued, as described later, via the telephone line 6, The operation of calling the personal computer 1 is performed.

Here, when an individual user connects the portable personal computer 2 to the Internet 100 via the telephone line 7 and the connection device 51 of the provider 5, for example, and performs data communication with the personal computer 1 at home via the Internet 100. Will be described. The personal computers 1 and 2 have modems 11 and 21, respectively, for connecting to a telephone line. When the personal computer 1 receives a call via the telephone line 6, the personal computer 1 has an identifier 12 for identifying the source of the call. And telephone 3
And a switch 13 for connecting and disconnecting the telephone line 6.
The switch 13 is normally turned off, and is turned on when the discriminator 12 determines that the source is not the provider 4.

As a method of identifying the caller, there is a method of receiving the notification of the caller's telephone number from the number display service of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, a telephone line provider, and identifying the caller by the telephone number. When a call is made from a registered telephone number, there is a method in which the source of a specific telephone number is identified by a bellow service which has a different bell sound from other calls. The discriminator 12 performs the discrimination of the transmission source by one of the above two methods.
Note that, in the case of using the transposition service, the telephone number of the provider 4 is registered in advance.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing a procedure when data communication is performed by connecting the portable personal computer 2 to the personal computer 1 at home. First, the PC 2 is connected to the Internet 1
00 to access the connection device 41 of the provider 4 and instruct connection to the personal computer 1 (step S
1), the connection device 41 calls the personal computer 1 via the telephone line 6 (step S2).

When the personal computer 1 receives the telephone call, the personal computer 1 refers to the identification result by the identifier 12 to determine whether or not the transmission source is the provider 4 (step S3).
S4). If the call is from the provider 4, the personal computer 1 waits without responding to the call (step S5), and calls the provider 4 (calls back) after the call is completed (step S6).
Then, the connection device 41 of the provider 4 establishes a connection between the personal computer 1 and the personal computer 2 (step S7), and data communication between the personal computers 1 and 2 is started.

On the other hand, if the source is not the provider 4 at step S4, the switch 23 is turned on and the telephone 3 is connected to the telephone line 6 (step S8). This allows
Calls from other than the provider 4 are made to the telephone 3.

As described above, in this embodiment, the provider 4
, When a call is made to the personal computer 1 at home, the personal computer 1 identifies the caller by the discriminator 12, and if the call is from the provider 4, waits for the call to be completed, calls back after the call is completed, and dials up. In the case of transmitting from the personal computer 2 and connecting to the personal computer 1 via the Internet 100, only the instruction is given to the connection device 41 of the provider 4 and the data communication with the telephone charge borne by the user is performed. Can be performed. When the discriminator 12 identifies that the caller is other than the provider 4, the telephone 3 is connected to the telephone line 6, and
Since an incoming call is received by the telephone 3, a normal telephone can be received by the telephone 3 without any trouble. In this embodiment,
The personal computer 1 and the personal computer 2 correspond to the first electronic device and the second electronic device described in the claims, respectively.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which data communication is performed between personal computers has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a modem is mounted on a video tape recorder installed at home, and a provider is provided via a telephone line. To connect to a video tape recorder via the Internet and a telephone line to perform remote control by connecting a portable personal computer or a dedicated remote control device capable of connecting to the Internet from outside. Data communication is performed). That is, in this example, the video tape recorder corresponds to the first electronic device described in the claims, and the portable personal computer or the dedicated remote control device corresponds to the second electronic device. The first electronic device may be, for example, a home server mutually connected to home electronic devices via a network.

In the above embodiment, the providers 4 and 5 are described as being different providers. However, different access points of the same provider may be used. In the above-described embodiment, the personal computer 2 is connected to the Internet 100 by a dial-up connection. However, the personal computer 2 connects to the server that is always connected to the Internet 100 via a LAN (Local Area Network), thereby connecting to the Internet. You may do so.
In the above-described embodiment, the source is identified by the discriminator 12.
The second function may be realized.

[0019]

As described above in detail, in the data communication method according to the first aspect, when the first electronic device is connected to a connection device to a large-scale computer network via a telephone line, When data communication is performed between the second electronic device connected to the large-scale computer network and the first electronic device, the second electronic device communicates with the connection device with the second electronic device. A connection to the first electronic device, the connection device calls the first electronic device via the telephone line, and the first electronic device
Whether the source of the call is the connection device is determined by a source identification notification provided by a telephone line company,
When the caller is the connection device, the electronic device waits without responding to the call, and the first electronic device makes a call to the connection device after the call is completed. To establish a connection with the connection device, and perform data communication with the second electronic device via the large-scale computer network. It is possible to perform data communication via the Internet while paying a fee to the user.

Further, a telephone line switching method according to a second aspect is a telephone line switching method for implementing the data communication method according to the first aspect.
When a telephone is connected via a switch to the telephone line to which the electronic device is connected, the first electronic device turns off the switch when the source of the call is the connection device. On the other hand, when the caller is not the connection device, the switch is turned on to connect the telephone to the telephone line, so that ordinary telephones other than the telephone from the connection device can be received by the telephone 3 without any trouble. it can.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, when a call is made via a telephone line, it is determined whether or not the source of the call is a connection device to a large-scale computer network. Is determined by the source identification notification provided, when the source of the call is the connection device, waits without responding to the call, after the call, after the call to the connection device, the call Since the connection with the connection device is established and data communication is performed with another electronic device via the large-scale computer network, the connection device responds to an instruction from the other electronic device. By making a call to the electronic device, it becomes possible to perform data communication via the Internet while paying the telephone charge to the user.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a network connection device issues a connection command from a second electronic device connected to a large-scale network to a first electronic device connected to the connection device via a telephone line. When the connection command is received, the first electronic device is called via the telephone line, and when the first electronic device makes a call immediately after the call is completed, the first electronic device is called. The first electronic device is connected to the second electronic device via a large-scale computer network.
It is possible to perform data communication via the Internet by using telephone charges as a burden on the user.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a data communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a procedure at the start of communication in the system of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 personal computer (first electronic device) 2 personal computer (second electronic device) 3 telephone 4,5 provider 6,7 telephone line 11,21 modem 12 discriminator 13 switch 41 connection device (network connection device) 100 Internet

Claims (4)

[Claims] A first electronic device connected to the large-scale computer network, wherein the first electronic device is connected to a large-scale computer network connection device via a telephone line; In a data communication method for performing data communication with a first electronic device, the second electronic device transmits the first electronic device to the connection device.
The connection device calls the first electronic device via the telephone line, and the first electronic device determines whether a caller of the first electronic device is the connection device. The first electronic device, when the source of the call is the connection device, waits without responding to the call, The first electronic device, after the termination of the call, calls the connection device to establish a connection with the connection device, and establishes a connection with the second electronic device via the large-scale computer network. A data communication method, wherein data communication is performed by: 2. A telephone line switching method for implementing the data communication method according to claim 1, wherein a telephone is connected via a switch to a telephone line to which the first electronic device is connected. If so, the first electronic device turns off the switch when the caller is the connection device, and turns on the switch when the caller is not the connection device. A telephone line switching method, wherein the telephone is connected to the telephone line. 3. An electronic device connected to a connection device for a large-scale computer network via a telephone line, wherein when a call is made via the telephone line, the origin of the call is the connection device. Whether or not there is determined by a source identification notification provided by a telephone line company, when the source of the call is the connection device, waits without responding to the call, after the end of the call, An electronic device, comprising: establishing a connection with the connection device by calling the connection device, and performing data communication with another electronic device via the large-scale computer network. 4. A network connection device for connecting a first electronic device connected via a telephone line to a large-scale computer network, wherein the second electronic device is connected to the large-scale computer network.
Is configured to be able to receive a connection command from the electronic device to the first electronic device. When the connection command is received, the first electronic device is called via the telephone line, and immediately after the end of the calling. A network connection device for connecting the first electronic device to the second electronic device via the large-scale computer network when a call is made from the first electronic device.