JP2008211361A - Radio communication method and reception device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a radio communication method and a reception device that present communication quality associated with transmission of content data, such as video and audio, to a user of the reception device when the content data are transmitted from a transmission device such as a computer to the reception device such as a mobile phone. <P>SOLUTION: The transmission device 1 transmits the content data on which measurement data as an object of measurement of communication quality are superposed (S103). The reception device 2 receives the content data having the superposed measurement data (S202), and separates the measurement data from the received content data (S203). Then the reception device 2 records (S204) or reproduces the received content data. Further, the reception device 2 measures the communication quality based upon the measurement data (S205), compares a numeral associated with the measurement result with a reference value (S206), and outputs the measurement result and comparison result (S207). <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication method for transmitting data from a transmission device to a reception device, and a reception device to which the wireless communication method is applied, and more particularly to a communication method and a reception device for presenting quality related to wireless communication to a user.

  Wireless communication methods that distribute content data such as video and audio to receiving devices used by users by methods such as broadcasting and wireless communication have become widespread. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for distributing content data from a content server and collecting content data desired by a user from the distributed content data at a mobile terminal.

  As a technology that has already been implemented as a business, a pull-type wireless device in which a user operates a receiving device such as a mobile phone and downloads (distributes) content data such as music and video from a transmitting device using a server computer. There is a communication method.

There is also a push-type wireless communication method in which content data is distributed to a receiving device by activation from a transmitting device using a time zone such as night when communication is relatively free.
JP 2002-176403 A

  However, in the case of distributing content data, particularly in broadcasting for distributing content data by wireless communication, a receiving device such as a mobile terminal does not necessarily succeed in receiving the distributed content data. Further, the communication quality indicating the reception status of the content data is not understood until the content data is received. For example, in the case of a push-type wireless communication method, the user may recognize that reception has failed at the stage of processing such as video display on the receiving device.

  Various methods have been proposed for measuring communication quality, but since communication quality is measured by an entity that provides or assists with delivery services, it is used and used for quality control at the entity. It is not generally done that measurement results are provided to the person.

  Cellular phones generally have a function to classify and display the radio wave intensity in about three levels. However, even if the radio wave intensity is sufficient, the received data may be affected by factors such as multipath interference, transmission delay, and external noise. In some cases, reception errors such as errors (bit errors) and defects may occur. That is, the radio wave intensity presented to the user does not necessarily match the communication quality.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the receiving apparatus measures the communication quality based on the received data and outputs the measured result to present the communication quality to the user. It is an object of the present invention to provide a wireless communication method capable of performing communication and a receiving apparatus to which the wireless communication method is applied.

  A wireless communication method according to a first aspect of the present invention is a wireless communication method for transmitting data from a transmission device to a reception device, wherein the reception device measures communication quality based on the received data and outputs the measured result. Features.

  A receiving apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention is a receiving apparatus that receives data transmitted from a transmitting apparatus, and includes a measuring unit that measures communication quality based on the received data, and an output unit that outputs the measured result. It is characterized by that.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a receiving apparatus according to the second aspect, further comprising means for comparing the reference value and the measured result, wherein the output means is configured to output the compared result. .

  A receiving apparatus according to a fourth invention further comprises processing means for executing processing different from measurement of communication quality based on received data in the second or third invention, wherein the output means is a processing result by the processing means. It is configured to output video and / or audio.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect, the data is obtained by superimposing the measurement data to be measured by the measurement unit on the processing data to be processed by the processing unit. The apparatus further includes means for separating the processing data and the measurement data.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth or fifth aspect, the processing result output by the processing means is a video display, and the output means is a processing result by the processing means and a measurement result by the measurement means. Are arranged to be displayed side by side.

  In the first invention and the second invention, it is possible to present the communication quality to the user.

  In the third invention, by comparing the measurement result of the communication quality with the reference value, for example, it can be presented to the user as a comparison result such as good or bad.

  In the fourth aspect of the invention, it is possible to present to the user a measurement result of communication quality that affects sound skipping, video disturbance, and the like for processing executed by processing means such as audio and video output processing.

  In the fifth invention, for example, processing data and measurement data transmitted using a part of the communication band are separated, processing such as video output and execution of communication quality are measured, and the actual video output The communication quality can be presented to the user.

  In the sixth aspect of the invention, for example, by displaying the measurement result along with the displayed video, it is possible to present the communication quality related to the displayed video to the user.

  A wireless communication method and a receiving device according to the present invention transmit data from a transmitting device to a receiving device, and the receiving device measures communication quality such as an error rate and a loss rate of data based on the received data, and measures By outputting the result, it is possible to present the communication quality to the user, and so on. And by checking the communication quality, for example, when the communication quality is bad, the user changes the conditions such as the place to receive data, the time, etc., and receives the data in a better communication environment. Measures can be taken.

  In addition, the receiving device according to the present invention, for example, when transmitting loss compensation data that enables loss compensation as data to be transmitted from the transmission device to the receiving device, the reference value determined based on whether or not loss compensation is possible, Compare the measured results with each other.For example, when the loss compensation is possible, the communication quality is good. When the loss compensation is impossible, the communication quality is poor. Output that indicates

  With this configuration, the present invention provides excellent effects such as being able to present measurement results of communication quality in a form useful for the user.

  Furthermore, the receiving device according to the present invention receives, for example, data received by superimposing measurement data on processing data to be processed such as video data and audio data transmitted using a part of the communication band. The processing data and the measurement data are separated from the processed data, and output processing such as video display and audio output is executed based on the separated processing data, and the communication quality is measured based on the measurement data. With this configuration, the present invention provides excellent effects such as being able to present the communication quality of the output actual video and audio to the user.

  In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to present the communication quality related to the displayed video to the user in real time by displaying the processing result of the video based on the processing data and the measurement result based on the measurement data side by side. There are excellent effects.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments thereof. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram conceptually showing a configuration example of a communication system to which a wireless communication method of the present invention is applied. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a transmission device such as a server computer that transmits content data (processing data) such as video data and audio data. The transmission device 1 is a mobile telephone network, a communication network such as the Internet, or terrestrial digital broadcasting. Various data are transmitted to the receiving device 2 such as a mobile phone used by the user by various wireless communication methods such as satellite broadcasting.

  The receiving device 2 executes output processing such as output based on the received content data, for example, video display based on video data, audio output based on audio data, and the like. The receiving device 2 has a function of measuring communication quality, which is a feature of the present invention described later, and presents the measurement result to the user by outputting the measurement result of the communication quality by a method such as display.

  The content data is generated by compressing and encoding the original data related to video and audio in an encoding format such as MPEG (Motion Picture Expert Group), and making the generated transmission data redundant. Thus, the data is transmitted from the transmission device 1 as data subjected to loss compensation encoding that enables loss compensation. Then, the receiving device 2 that has received the content data that has been subjected to compression coding and loss compensation coding compensates for the missing portion of the received content data, generates the original data by decompression decoding, and based on the generated original data Output video and audio.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of various apparatuses included in a communication system to which the wireless communication method of the present invention is applied. The transmission apparatus 1 using a server computer includes a control means 10 such as a CPU for controlling the entire apparatus, and a recording means 11 such as a hard disk for recording various computer programs and various data such as video data and audio data. ing.

  Further, the transmission apparatus 1 can compensate for loss by compressing and encoding video data and audio data in an encoding format such as MPEG, and redundancy of the compressed and encoded video data and audio data. And FEC (Forward Error Correction) encoding means 13 for performing loss compensation encoding. Then, the transmission device 1 records the content data subjected to various processes such as compression coding and loss compensation coding in the recording unit 11 and distributes it from the communication unit 14.

  The FEC encoding means 13 included in the transmission apparatus 1 generates missing compensation data based on the result of logical operation between element data forming data targeted for missing compensation. By increasing redundant data, As a result, the data length becomes longer, but the tolerance to defects becomes stronger. As a specific loss compensation encoding method, for example, the method described in US Pat. No. 6,320,520B1 is used.

  Further, the transmission device 1 includes superimposing means 15 that superimposes measurement data to be measured for communication quality when content data is transmitted, and time measuring means 16 that functions as a clock and a timer. The measurement data is data having a predetermined bit length and bit pattern. Measurement data is superimposed by, for example, including measurement data in a part of a packet serving as a transmission unit of content data. However, a part of a communication band for transmitting content data may be used as a communication band for measurement data. In addition, it is possible to use various methods such as transmitting content data and measurement data alternately in a time division manner.

  The transmission apparatus 1 is not provided with the compression encoding unit 12 and the FEC encoding unit 13, but is configured to record and transmit the content data that has already been subjected to compression encoding and loss compensation encoding to the recording unit 11. You may do it.

  The receiving device 2 using a mobile phone includes a control unit 20 such as a CPU for controlling various processes such as various communication processes, voice input / output processes, and image display processes, a ROM that records various information such as computer programs and data, And a recording means 21 such as a RAM.

  The receiving device 2 includes a communication means 22 such as an antenna for performing communication such as telephone communication and reception of data transmitted from the transmitting device 1 and a communication control circuit. In the present embodiment, the communication means 22 is shared for telephone communication and various data communication. However, a different communication means 22 may be provided for each communication.

  Further, the receiving device 2 is an FEC decoding means 23 such as an integrated circuit that compensates for a missing portion of the missing compensation data, and when the video data and the audio data are data that is compression-coded in an encoding format such as MPEG, There are provided decompression decoding means 24 such as an integrated circuit that generates original data of video data and audio data by decompression decoding, and measurement means 25 such as an integrated circuit that performs communication quality measurement processing. Instead of mounting an integrated circuit as the FEC decoding means 23, the decompression decoding means 24, and the measurement means 25, these various processes may be executed by executing a computer program recorded in the recording means 21. good.

  Furthermore, the receiving apparatus 2 includes an audio input means 26 such as a microphone and an audio processing circuit, an audio output means 27 such as a speaker and an audio processing circuit, and an operation means 28 such as a push button that accepts key inputs such as alphanumeric characters and various commands. And display means 29 such as a liquid crystal display for displaying various information such as information input by key and information to be transmitted / received. The audio output unit 27 outputs audio as output processing based on audio data, and the display unit 29 outputs (displays) video as output processing based on video data.

  Next, processing of various devices included in the communication system to which the wireless communication method of the present invention is applied will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the first measurement process of the transmission device 1 and the reception device 2 according to the wireless communication method of the present invention. The first measurement process is a process executed in a push-type communication process in which content data is transmitted to the receiving device 2 by multicast when activated from the transmitting device 1.

  The transmission apparatus 1 determines whether or not the preset scheduled transmission time of the content data has been reached with reference to the time measuring means 16 under the control of the control means 10 that executes the computer program recorded in the recording means 11. (S101).

  When it is determined in step S101 that the scheduled transmission time of content data has been reached (S101: YES), the transmission device 1 sends a transmission start signal indicating the start of transmission of content data from the communication unit 14 under the control of the control unit 10. Transmit (S102).

  After transmitting the transmission start signal, the transmission device 1 transmits content data superimposed with measurement data to be measured for communication quality from the communication unit 14 under the control of the control unit 10 (S103), and ends the process. . The content data transmitted from the communication unit 14 is transmitted as a packet having a predetermined length such as 128 kB, and each packet includes header information indicating the attribute of the content data. As the header information, for example, a transmission device ID for identifying the transmission device 1 as a transmission source, a transmission start time, a content data ID for identifying content data, an identification data ID for identifying measurement data, a data size of content data, the number of packets, Various information such as information indicating the type and content of FEC encoding, information indicating the type and content of compression encoding, and a reference value used for determining communication quality is included.

  If it is determined in step S101 that the scheduled transmission time of content data has not been reached (S101: NO), the transmission apparatus 1 returns to step S101 after waiting for a predetermined time under the control of the control means 10, and the subsequent processing repeat.

  The receiving device 2 determines whether or not the communication unit 22 has received a transmission start signal under the control of the control unit 20 that executes the computer program recorded in the recording unit 21 (S201).

  If it is determined in step S201 that a transmission start signal has been received (S201: YES), the receiving device 2 receives content data on which measurement data is superimposed by the communication unit 22 under the control of the control unit 20 ( (S202), the measurement data is separated from the received content data (S203).

  The receiving device 2 performs decoding to compensate for the loss of the received content data by the FEC decoding unit 23 based on the control of the control unit 20, and records the decoded content data in the recording unit 21 (S204). When the user performs a predetermined operation, the receiving device 2 decompresses and decodes the content data recorded in step S204 by the decompression decoding unit 24, and starts output processing based on the decompressed and decoded content data. The output process based on the content data is a process of outputting audio from the audio output unit 27 based on the audio data included in the content data and a process of outputting video from the display unit 29 based on the video data included in the content data. is there.

  The receiving device 2 measures the communication quality based on the measurement data by the processing of the measuring unit 25 based on the control of the control unit 20 (S205), and further includes the numerical value related to the measurement result and the header information in the packet. Is compared with the reference value (S206), the measurement result and the comparison result are output from the display means 29 (S207), and the process is terminated.

  The communication quality measured in step S205 is an index such as a bit error rate or a packet loss rate. The bit error rate is measured as a numerical value indicating the ratio of the number of error bits in the received measurement data. The packet loss rate is measured as a numerical value indicating the ratio of the number of normal packets excluding abnormal packets received with a missing packet and an error remaining to the number of transmitted packets. For example, 200 packets of measurement data are transmitted from the transmission device 1, 20 packets are lost during transmission, 180 packets are received by the reception device 2, and 10 of the received 180 packets are abnormal packets. In this case, the number of normal packets is 170, and the packet loss rate is 15%. Note that the communication quality may be measured as the normal packet reception rate instead of the packet loss rate. In this case, in the above-described example, the normal packet reception rate is 85%.

  If it is determined in step S201 that the transmission start signal has not been received (S201: NO), the receiving apparatus 2 returns to step S201 after waiting for a predetermined time under the control of the control means 20, and repeats the subsequent processing.

  Here, as the first measurement process, the form in which the content data on which the measurement data is superimposed is transmitted from the transmission device 1 to the reception device 2 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this, and only the content data or only the measurement data is transmitted. You may do it. When only content data is transmitted, communication quality such as a bit error rate and a packet loss rate is measured based on the reception state of the content data. When measuring the communication quality based on the reception status of the content data, the FEC decoding means 23 does not measure the communication quality based on the content data in the received state, but from the viewpoint of the communication quality for the user. It is desirable to measure the communication quality after performing loss compensation. In this case, the reference value to be compared with the measurement result may be determined on the receiving device 2 side based on the type and content of the FEC encoding.

  FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of an image output from the display unit 29 included in the receiving device 2 of the present invention. FIG. 4A shows an example of an image that is output after processing relating to measurement of communication quality is performed. As a result of comparison of the measurement result of the communication quality and the reference value, characters “download status: good” It is shown. In addition, an image in which “detail” is shown, an image in which “play” is shown, and a “close” character are displayed. When the user inputs to the receiving device 2 instructing the displayed “detailed” image, the image shown in FIG. FIG. 4B shows the details of the measurement result of the communication quality, such as the measurement execution date, the measurement execution time, the data size of the measurement data, the number of transmitted packets, the number of normal packets, the normal packet reception rate, the reference value, and the determination result. Has been. The determination result is a comparison result between the communication quality measurement result and the reference value, and the normal packet reception rate that is the measurement result is 92%, which exceeds the reference value of 80%. Indicates that a determination has been made. In addition, when only content data is transmitted from the transmission device 1 to the reception device 2 and the reference value is determined based on the type and content of the FEC encoding, the reference value is not determined as a numerical value, for example, loss compensation is possible When it is, it may be determined that the communication quality is good, and when the loss compensation is impossible, it may be determined that the communication quality is poor. In FIG. 4A, when the user inputs to the receiving apparatus 2 an instruction to indicate the displayed “playback” image, video and audio output processing based on the content data is started. When the input indicating the image indicated as “close” is performed, the output of the communication quality measurement result is completed.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of an image output from the display unit 29 included in the receiving device 2 of the present invention. FIG. 5A shows an image in which video based on video data as content data and a result of quality measurement are displayed side by side. An image based on the content data is displayed on almost the entire surface of the display unit 29, and an image of an icon 29a indicating the measurement result of the communication quality is displayed on the upper part of the display unit 29. FIG. 5B and FIG. 5C are images of an icon 29a indicating the communication quality measurement result. FIG. 5B shows the communication when the communication quality measurement result exceeds the reference value. The icon 29a indicates that the quality is good, and FIG. 5C is an icon 29a that indicates that the communication quality is poor when the measurement result of the communication quality is below the reference value. In the receiving device 2 of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 5A, the video based on the content data is displayed, and the communication quality related to the content data is displayed as the icon 29a.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the second measurement process of the transmission device 1 and the reception device 2 according to the wireless communication method of the present invention. The second measurement process is a process executed in a pull-type communication process in which content data is downloaded from the transmission apparatus 1 by unicast in response to a request from the reception apparatus 2. The receiving device 2 receives the user's operation requesting download by the operating device 28 under the control of the control device 20 that executes the computer program recorded in the recording device 21 (S301), and the content data is transmitted to the transmitting device 1. A transmission request for requesting download of the data is transmitted from the communication means 22 (S302).

  The transmission device 1 determines whether or not the communication unit 14 has received a transmission request under the control of the control unit 10 that executes the computer program recorded in the recording unit 11 (S401).

  If it is determined in step S401 that a transmission request has been received (S401: YES), the transmission device 1 transmits a transmission start signal indicating the start of transmission of content data from the communication unit 14 under the control of the control unit 10 ( After transmitting the transmission start signal (S402), the content data on which the measurement data to be measured for communication quality is superimposed is transmitted from the communication means 14 (S403), and the process is terminated.

  If it is determined in step S401 that a transmission request has not been received (S401: NO), the transmission apparatus 1 returns to step S401 after waiting for a predetermined time under the control of the control means 10, and repeats the subsequent processing.

  The receiving device 2 determines whether or not the communication unit 22 has received a transmission start signal under the control of the control unit 20 (S303).

  If it is determined in step S303 that the transmission start signal has been received (S303: YES), the receiving device 2 receives the content data on which the measurement data is superimposed by the communication unit 22 under the control of the control unit 20 ( (S304), the measurement data is separated from the received content data (S305).

  The receiving device 2 performs decoding to compensate for the loss of the received content data from the FEC decoding unit 23 based on the control of the control unit 20, and records the decoded content data in the recording unit 21 (S306). In pull-type communication in which content data is downloaded from the transmission device 1 by unicast, the content data may be distributed as streaming data. In such a case, in step S306, in parallel with the reception of the content data, decoding by the FEC decoding unit 23 and decompression decoding by the decompression decoding unit 24 are performed, and output processing is started based on the decoded and decompressed content data. . The output process based on the content data is a process of outputting audio from the audio output unit 27 based on the audio data included in the content data and a process of outputting video from the display unit 29 based on the video data included in the content data. is there.

  Further, the receiving device 2 measures the communication quality based on the measurement data by the processing of the measurement unit 25 based on the control of the control unit 20 (S307), and further compares the numerical value related to the measurement result with the reference value (S308). ), The measurement result and the comparison result are output from the display means 29 (S309), and the process is terminated.

  If it is determined in step S303 that a transmission start signal has not been received (S303: NO), the receiving apparatus 2 returns to step S303 after waiting for a predetermined time under the control of the control means 20, and repeats the subsequent processing.

  As described above, when content data is distributed as streaming data, the measurement result output method, as shown in FIG. 5, displays a video based on the content data and uses the communication quality related to the content data as an icon 29a. It is desirable to display.

  Also in the second measurement process, the content data on which the measurement data is superimposed may not be transmitted from the transmission device 1 to the reception device 2, but only the content data or only the measurement data may be transmitted. In addition, when distributing content data as streaming data, communication quality is not always measured, but communication quality may be measured and measurement results output only when a user performs a predetermined operation. .

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the third measurement process of the transmission device 1 and the reception device 2 according to the wireless communication method of the present invention. The third measurement process is a process executed when measurement data is always transmitted by multicast using a part of the communication band that can be used by the transmission apparatus 1. The transmission device 1 transmits a transmission start signal indicating the start of transmission of measurement data from the communication unit 14 under the control of the control unit 10 that executes the computer program recorded in the recording unit 11 (S501). After the transmission, measurement data to be measured for communication quality is transmitted (S502). The transmission of the transmission start signal and the transmission of measurement data are repeated at a constant cycle.

  When the user performs a predetermined operation for measuring the communication quality, the receiving device 2 always starts measurement processing based on the measurement data being transmitted. The receiving device 2 determines whether or not the communication unit 22 has received a transmission start signal under the control of the control unit 20 that executes the computer program recorded in the recording unit 21 (S601).

  If it is determined in step S601 that the transmission start signal has been received (S601: YES), the receiving device 2 receives the measurement data at the communication unit 22 by the processing of the measurement unit 25 based on the control of the control unit 20. (S602) The communication quality is measured based on the received measurement data (S603), the numerical value related to the measurement result is compared with the reference value (S604), and the measurement result and the comparison result are output from the display means 29. (S605), the process ends.

  If it is determined in step S601 that the transmission start signal has not been received (S601: NO), the receiving device 2 returns to step S601 after waiting for a predetermined time under the control of the control means 20, and repeats the subsequent processing.

  In the above-described embodiment, a mobile phone is used as a receiving device. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various forms such as a wireless communication device other than a mobile phone and a wired communication device can be used. It is possible to deploy.

It is explanatory drawing which shows notionally the structural example of the communication system to which the radio | wireless communication method of this invention is applied. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of the various apparatuses with which the communication system to which the radio | wireless communication method of this invention is applied is provided. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the 1st measurement process of the transmitter which concerns on the radio | wireless communication method of this invention, and a receiver. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of the image output from the display means with which the receiver of this invention is provided. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of the image output from the display means with which the receiver of this invention is provided. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the 2nd measurement process of the transmitter which concerns on the radio | wireless communication method of this invention, and a receiver. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the 3rd measurement process of the transmitter which concerns on the radio | wireless communication method of this invention, and a receiver.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Transmission apparatus 10 Control means 11 Recording means 12 Compression encoding means 14 Communication means 2 Reception apparatus 20 Control means 21 Recording means 22 Communication means 23 FEC decoding means 24 Decompression decoding means 25 Measuring means 26 Audio input means 27 Audio output means 28 Operation Means 29 Display means

Claims (6)

In a wireless communication method for transmitting data from a transmission device to a reception device,
The receiving device
Measure communication quality based on received data,
A wireless communication method characterized by outputting the measured result. In the receiving device that receives data transmitted from the transmitting device,
Measuring means for measuring communication quality based on received data;
An output device that outputs an output of a measurement result. A means for comparing the reference value and the measured result;
The receiving apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the output unit is configured to output a result of comparison. Processing means for executing processing different from measurement of communication quality based on the received data;
The receiving device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the output unit is configured to output video and / or audio as a processing result of the processing unit. In the data, the measurement data to be measured by the measuring means is superimposed on the processing data to be processed by the processing means,
5. The receiving apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising means for separating processing data and measurement data from the received data. The output of the processing result by the processing means is a video display,
The receiving device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the output unit is configured to display the processing result by the processing unit and the measurement result by the measuring unit side by side.

Images