JP2002252869A - Information-providing system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide narrow regional information as local information to users simply and surely by carrying out wireless transmission to a base station or to a wireless transmission system automatically, without access from the user to the information control center. SOLUTION: The information providing system includes a base station for transmitting through the wireless transmission terminal, the information control center connected to the base station via the transmission network, a position detecting system for detecting the position of the wireless transmission terminal, and a transmission command system for command the wireless transmission terminal or the base station to start wireless transmission, when the wireless communication terminal is determined to be within a transmission enabling range from the base station, on the basis of the positional information from the position detecting system.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information providing system which uses a wireless communication device such as a portable telephone to provide highly localized narrow-area information such as sightseeing information, weather information and event information. is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an example of an information providing system,
As shown in FIG. 4, there is a system for obtaining necessary information from a service provider that provides local information such as sightseeing information, weather information, and event information using a mobile phone.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 1 denotes an information providing device for providing local information such as sightseeing information, weather information and event information, 2 denotes a transmitting device for transmitting information provided by the information providing device 1, and 3 denotes a transmitting device. An information storage device for storing regional information, 4 an information management center for managing the regional information, 14 an exchange for transmitting information for the information management center to exchange information, and 15 a telephone for transmitting information. Circuit network, 17 is a mobile phone receiving local information service, 8
Is a base station device that performs wireless communication with a mobile phone,
6 is an exchange for the base station device 8 to exchange information;
Reference numeral 18 denotes area information provided by the information providing apparatus 1.

[0004] In the information providing system shown in FIG. 4, a user who wants to receive a service for providing regional information or the like uses a mobile phone 17 via a base station device 8, an exchange 16, a telephone network 15 and an exchange 14. When a call is made to the information management center 4, the information management center 4 provides the regional information stored in the information storage device 3 in response to a request from a user.

[0005] Incidentally, the information storage device 3 usually acquires the latest regional information 18 from the information providing device 1 via the transmission device 2 and updates the stored information to the acquired latest regional information 18. ing.

Further, in recent years, means for transmitting data, such as the Internet, have been diversified, and transmission by means other than the telephone line network has become possible. Regardless of the line, various communication networks have become available.

FIG. 5 shows an information providing system using a communication network 6 such as the Internet instead of the telephone line network 15 shown in FIG. 4, and with the use of the communication network 6, an exchange 14 shown in FIG. , 16 are provided with transmission devices 5,7.

The information providing device 1 exchanges data with the information management center 4 via the communication network 6. In this case, an address called an access point address defined in a communication network is used instead of the telephone number.

Further, instead of the portable telephone 17, a radio communication device 9 such as a PHSPC card for a personal computer and an information processing device 10 such as a notebook personal computer are increasingly used. In recent years, a device in which the wireless communication device 9 and the information processing device 10 are integrated is commercially available.
Further, a car navigation system mounted on a vehicle can be used as the information processing device 10. In recent years, navigation systems have been used for pedestrians besides vehicles.
It has begun to be used in various fields such as for ships.

In such an information providing system, for example, even if a traveler who has come to a sightseeing spot or a business traveler who has come to a remote place is unfamiliar with the land, it is possible to use a mobile phone, a notebook personal computer, or a car navigation system. , Landmarks, landmarks,
It is possible to know the contact method and the like, and to obtain necessary information at a necessary place when it becomes necessary without having to check it in advance.

[0011]

However, in the conventional information providing system, although there is an advantage that the user can obtain necessary information regardless of place and time,
In order to obtain the information, the telephone number or address of the information management center 4 must be known, and if the telephone number or the address is not known, there is a problem that useful information at all cannot be used.

Further, even if the information management center 4 has useful information, the information cannot be transmitted unless a user accesses the information management center 4 and the telephone number or address of the information management center 4 However, it is difficult to efficiently inform the unspecified majority of users when necessary using information magazines and mass media.

In particular, the information management center 4 uses local information such as event information having high locality (hereinafter referred to as narrow area information).
When providing information, it is often sufficient to provide information only to users in the area at the time of providing the information, whether long-term or short-term. There is no need to tell users the phone number or address.

Further, if the user remembers all the telephone numbers and addresses of the information management center 4 in the area where the user is not required, an enormous amount of storage is required. Further, it takes time and effort to search for a necessary telephone number from an enormous amount of telephone numbers and addresses, and in fact, only when the user goes to the area on a business trip or a trip, the telephone number of the information management center 4 in the area. Or the address.

[0015] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and does not require a user to access an information management center as in a conventional information providing system, but to use a base station apparatus or a wireless communication system. An object of the present invention is to allow a device to automatically perform wireless communication to provide narrow-area information, which is local information, to a user simply and reliably.

[0016]

An information providing system according to the present invention detects a base station communicating with a wireless communication terminal, an information management center connected to the base station via a communication network, and a position of the wireless communication terminal. A communication device for instructing the wireless communication terminal or the base station to start wireless communication when the wireless communication terminal determines that the wireless communication terminal is within a communicable range with the base station based on the position information from the position detection device. And a command device.

Further, the communication command device is configured to command the wireless communication terminal to start communication with the base station.

[0018] Further, the communication command device is configured to command the base station to start communication with the radio communication terminal.

Further, the information management center transmits its own address information to the wireless communication terminal.

[0020]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 shows an information providing system according to the first embodiment. The information providing system according to the first embodiment includes a position detecting device 11 that detects the position of the wireless communication device 9 and a command to start the wireless communication to the wireless communication device 9 based on the position information detected by the position detecting device 11. It has the same configuration as the conventional information providing system shown in FIG. 5 except that a communication command device 12 is newly provided.

In the information providing system according to the present embodiment, the position detecting device 11 is carried together with the wireless communication device 9.
1 detects the position where the wireless communication device 9 is located by detecting the position where the wireless communication device 9 is located.

Incidentally, it is not necessary for the position detecting device 11 to directly detect the position of the wireless communication device 9, and the information processing device 1
Alternatively, the position of the housing housing the wireless communication device 9 or the information processing device 10 or the position of another device may be detected.

Here, the position detecting device 11 is a GPS (Glo
The position information is acquired from the bal positioning system, and the acquired position information is transmitted to the communication command device 12. For example, in a case where the wireless communication device 9 and the information processing device 10 are mounted on a vehicle or the like, the GPS mounted on the vehicle is used.

The communication command device 12 has a determining function of determining whether the base station device 8 and the wireless communication device 9 can communicate with each other. When it is determined that the wireless communication device 9 is in a range in which the wireless communication device 9 can communicate with the base station device 8 based on the position information received from the position detection device 11, a command to start wireless communication (hereinafter referred to as a communication command) is issued. Transmit to the wireless communication device 9.

Next, upon receiving the position information and the communication command from the communication command device 12, the radio communication device 9 starts communication with the base station device 8 within the communicable range based on the communication command, and The position information is transmitted to the device 8.

In this case, the radio communication device 9 does not need to communicate with the base station device 8 until it receives a communication command from the communication command device 12, and it is necessary to reduce power consumption for portable use as much as possible. Is effective.

Then, the base station device 8 transmits the position information to the information management center 4 via the transmission devices 7 and 5 connected to the communication network 6 as in the prior art.

Therefore, based on the position information received from the base station device 8, the information management center 4 reads the narrow area information related to the position information from the information storage device 3 such as a hard disk or the like, and reads the read narrow area information. Is transmitted to the wireless communication device 9 via the transmission devices 5 and 7 connected to the communication network 6 and the base station device 8. Subsequently, the wireless communication device 9
The narrow area information received from the base station device 8 is transmitted to the information processing device 10
Send to

Here, the narrow area information is obtained from a mobile phone or PHS (Per
The service area (area) of a single base station such as a sonal handy phone system is classified in more detail, and is information on the divided area.

Thus, in the information providing system of the present embodiment, narrow-area information, which is more detailed information, can be transmitted to the radio communication device 9 without fail.

Hereinafter, an actual use example using this information providing system will be described in consideration of a conventional example.

For example, the present invention can be used in a situation where tsunami intrusion information due to an earthquake is provided to vehicles traveling on a coastline road. In this case, it is necessary to provide information to the user from the base station device 8 installed on the coastline according to the instruction of the information management center 4 at the timing when the information of the tsunami attack is obtained, not at the timing when the vehicle is detected, In such a case, the information providing system of the present embodiment exerts a great effect.

In the information providing system according to the present embodiment, the case where the position detecting device 11 uses the position information from the GPS has been described, but a magnetic marker embedded in a road is used instead of the GPS. You may do it.

In this case, the magnetic marker provides the narrow area information if it is installed at a position close to the base station apparatus 8 in consideration of the provided narrow area information in the communication range of the base station apparatus 8. It is effective in doing.

That is, in this information providing system, when the position detecting device 11 detects the magnetism generated by the magnetic marker, it sends the detection result to the communication commanding device 12.
Subsequently, upon obtaining a detection result from the position detection device 11, the communication command device 12 transmits a communication command to the wireless communication device 9. Subsequently, the wireless communication device 9 communicates with the communication command device 12
Wireless communication with the base station device 8 based on the communication command received from. Then, the base station device 8 accesses the information management center 4 via the transmission devices 7 and 5 connected to the communication network 6.

Next, when the information management center 4 confirms the base station device 8 that has accessed, the information management center 4 reads out the narrow area information corresponding to the base station device 8 from the information storage device 3 based on the confirmation result, and reads out the read information. The short-range information is transmitted to the wireless communication device 9 via the transmission devices 5 and 7 connected to the communication network 6 and the base station device 8.

Thus, the information providing system can provide the wireless communication device 9 with the narrow area information from the information management center 4 as described above, triggered by the position detecting device 11 detecting the magnetic marker. .

In this information providing system, the position detecting device 11 detects the magnetism of the magnetic marker.
Either light or ultrasonic waves may be detected.

Note that in an information providing system in which the position detecting device 11 provides narrow-range information upon detecting the magnetism or the like of a magnetic marker, a magnetic field, a radio wave,
The position information may be included in infrared rays, light, ultrasonic waves, or the like, and the position detection device 11 may receive the position information. This is effective when using radio waves or infrared rays.

Incidentally, in recent years, spot-type wireless communication called narrow-area communication and having high frequency reuse efficiency has been put to practical use as the base station device 8 and the wireless communication device 9 for performing wireless communication. In the information providing system described in the present embodiment, wireless communication with high locality is performed, and thus the use of such short-range communication is suitable for realizing this information providing system.

Therefore, in the information providing system according to the present embodiment, instead of providing the narrow area information triggered by the detection of the magnetism of the magnetic marker by the position detecting device 11 as described above, the position detecting device 11 The detection of the radio wave of the base station device 8 for the short range communication may be used to provide the short range information.

That is, in this information providing system, when the position detecting device 11 detects a radio wave emitted by the base station device 8 for short-range communication, the position detecting device 11 transmits the detection result to the communication commanding device 1.
Send to 2. Subsequently, upon obtaining the detection result from the position detection device 11, the communication command device 12 transmits a communication command to the wireless communication device 9 for short-range communication. Subsequently, the wireless communication device 9 communicates with the base station device 8 for short-range communication based on the communication command received from the communication command device 12. Then, the base station device 8 accesses the information management center 4 via the transmission devices 7 and 5 connected to the communication network 6.

Accordingly, when the information management center 4 confirms the accessed narrow-area communication base station apparatus 8, the information management center 4 transmits the narrow-area information corresponding to the base station apparatus 8 from the information storage apparatus 3 based on the confirmation result. The transmission devices 5 and 7 connected to the communication network 6 and the base station device 8
To the wireless communication device 9 that is performing short-range communication.

Here, the communication range of the narrow area communication is 10
m to several tens of meters, the information management center 4
It is possible to provide the wireless communication device 9 with narrow area information on an area within the 0 m range.

Hereinafter, a specific example of the information providing system using the short-range communication will be described in consideration of the actual situation in the related art. First, in a system that uses a wide area communication network such as a mobile phone, like a conventional information providing system, a single base station covers a wide area such as several hundred meters to several kilometers, so that the location of the user is accurate. For example, it has been difficult to provide detailed information to a user who has passed a ticket gate of a railway, such as providing information at the timing of passing through the ticket gate.

By the way, in the information providing system of the present embodiment, by using the narrow area communication device, it is possible to perform spot-like communication in a narrow area within a range of 10 m to several tens of meters, which is suitable for the purpose. Because communication is possible when a customer enters a spot in a narrow area, for example,
Providing information on the departure time of the next train or bus to passengers entering railway ticket gates and bus centers, and providing addresses of local road information centers to users entering expressways Thus, it is possible to provide information according to the position and time of the user.

Further, the information provider efficiently provides information on the contents of the event of the day and information on the time and place where the event is held, without inefficiently providing information to an unspecified number of people. It becomes possible. For example, when a popular singer's concert is held, where is the end of the admission queue, and where to go from the station after leaving the station? And can provide extremely effective information.

Incidentally, in the information providing system of the present embodiment, a great effect is obtained when a narrow area communication device capable of performing spot-like wireless communication in a narrow area suitable for the purpose within a range of 10 m to several tens of meters is used. However, even if a wide area communication network is used as in the conventional information provision system, users can receive information at a desired timing for information that is less immediate and highly immediate, such as a celebrity obituary. Therefore, a similar effect can be obtained.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 2 shows an information providing system according to the second embodiment. The information providing system according to the second embodiment is different from the information providing system according to the first embodiment in that the communication command device 12 described above in the first embodiment is installed on the base station device 8 side and instructs the base station device 8 to start communication. , Embodiment 1
Has the same configuration as the information providing system. The same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals.

That is, in the information providing system according to the second embodiment, when the communication command device 12 determines that the base station device 8 and the wireless communication device 9 can communicate with each other, the position command supplied from the position detecting device 11 The information and the communication command are transmitted to the base station device 8.

Subsequently, the base station device 8 transmits the given location information to the information management center 4 via the transmission devices 7 and 5 connected to the communication network 6. The information management center 4 reads out the narrow area information corresponding to the given position information from the information storage device 3 and transmits it to the base station device 8 via the transmission devices 5 and 7 connected to the communication network 6.

Then, upon receiving the narrow area information transmitted from the information management center 4, the base station apparatus 8
Wireless communication with the wireless communication device 9 in accordance with the communication command given from the communication device 2, and transmits the narrow area information to the wireless communication device 9.

Thus, even in the information providing system of the second embodiment, the narrow area information can be transmitted to the wireless communication device 9 without fail.

As shown in the second embodiment, advantages of providing the position detecting device 11 and the communication command device 12 on the base station device 8 side include the following.

First, usually, the number of base station devices 8 is smaller than the number of wireless communication devices 9, and mounting constraints such as size and weight are small, so that the degree of freedom in installing the position detecting device 11 is large. Also, there is an advantage that the total cost can be reduced.

When the wireless communication device 9 is a vehicle-mounted type, such as an automobile, it is sufficient that the vehicle on which the wireless communication device 9 is mounted can be detected instead of the wireless communication device 9 itself. However, there is an advantage that a vehicle detector for detecting a vehicle on a road on which various types of vehicles are already put into practical use can be substituted.

Embodiment 3 FIG. 3 shows an information providing system according to the third embodiment. The information providing system according to the third embodiment is similar to the information providing system according to the first embodiment except that the information management center 4 described in the first embodiment is provided with an information center address storage device 13 that stores its own address information. Has the same configuration as the information providing system.

That is, in the information providing system shown in the second embodiment, when the position information is given as described above, the information management center 4 reads out its own address information from the information center address storage device 13 and The information is transmitted to the wireless communication device 9 as described above.

Therefore, according to the information providing system of the third embodiment, when the data amount of the narrow area information is large or the number of users is large, only the address information of the information management center 4 is transmitted to the wireless communication device 9. Accordingly, the amount of data to be transmitted becomes extremely small, and it is possible to provide narrow-area information without increasing the transmission capacity of the base station device 8 or increasing the number of stations.

Further, if the user knows the address information of the information management center 4, the user can obtain the desired information or select from the provided information by the same method as the conventional information providing system shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. It is also possible to obtain information that selects only what is necessary.

When there are a plurality of information management centers 4 in the area, only the address information of the representative information management center may be provided to the user, and the address information of the plurality of information management centers 4 in the area may be provided. All may be provided to the user. Even if there are a plurality of pieces of address information, the data capacity is extremely small and does not impair the effect of the present system.

In the above-described embodiment, a case has been described in which the wireless communication device 9 and the information processing device 10 are used as the wireless communication terminals, but a mobile phone may be used instead.

[0063]

As described above, according to the present invention, a base station for communicating with a radio communication terminal, an information management center connected to the base station via a communication network, and a position of the radio communication terminal are detected. A communication command for instructing the wireless communication terminal or the base station to start wireless communication when the wireless communication terminal determines that the wireless communication terminal is in a communicable range with the base station based on the position information from the position detection device and the position information; The provision of the device makes it possible to easily and reliably transmit narrow-area information to the wireless communication terminal without receiving access from a user.

Further, the communication command device instructs the wireless communication terminal to start communication with the base station, so that the user can operate the information providing device without operating the wireless communication terminal by himself / herself. Can be accessed.

Further, since the communication command device instructs the base station to start communication with the wireless communication terminal, it is necessary to carry the position detecting device and the communication command device together with the wireless communication terminal. Therefore, the degree of freedom regarding the installation of the position detection device and the communication command device can be increased.

Further, by transmitting its own address information to the wireless communication terminal, the information management center can provide the wireless communication terminal with a large amount of narrow area information.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an information providing system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an information providing system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an information providing system according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a conventional information providing system.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing another conventional information providing system.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 information providing device, 2 transmission device, 3 information storage device,
4 information management center, 5 transmission equipment, 6 communication network, 7
Transmission device, 8 base station device, 9 wireless communication device, 10
Information processing device, 11 position detection device, 12 communication command device, 13 information center address storage device.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An information providing system for providing information to a wireless communication terminal, comprising: a base station communicating with the wireless communication terminal; an information management center connected to the base station via a communication network; A position detection device that detects the position of the wireless communication terminal, based on the position information from the position detection device, determines that the wireless communication terminal is in a communicable range with the base station; And a communication command device for commanding the start of wireless communication. 2. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the communication command device instructs the wireless communication terminal to start communication with the base station. 3. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the communication command device commands the base station to start communication with the wireless communication terminal. 4. The information providing system according to claim 1, wherein the information management center transmits its own address information to a wireless communication terminal.