JP2010028728A - Radio communication system, management apparatus, relay apparatus, data processing method for the management apparatus and monitoring method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a radio communication system having proper maintenability and high reliability, a management apparatus, a relay apparatus, a data processing method of the management apparatus and a monitoring method. <P>SOLUTION: In the radio communication system, a management server 100 manages a plurality of access points for relaying radio communication of a radio communication terminal to a network 3 and includes a signal reception unit 110 for monitoring a mutual radio wave state at the plurality of access points; a determination unit 130 for detecting change in the mutual radio wave state to be monitored and determining that the positional relation of the mutual access points with the change detected has fluctuated; and a broadcasting unit 132 for broadcasting the mutual access points where it is determined that the positional relation has fluctuated. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication system, a management device, a relay device, a data processing method for the management device, and a monitoring method, and more particularly, a wireless communication system having a plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication of a wireless communication terminal, a management device, The present invention relates to a data processing method and a monitoring method for a relay device and a management device.

  In recent years, a ubiquitous network for connecting various terminals using various communication means such as telephone, electronic mail, and remote conference has been developed for practical use. A wireless LAN system is an indispensable technology for practical use of a ubiquitous network because it can be connected to terminals anywhere and can accommodate a number of terminals with a high degree of freedom without being limited to the number of connection points.

An example of a wireless LAN access point that avoids mutual interference in a wireless LAN system is described in Patent Document 1. Further, Patent Literature 2 discloses an air conditioning management system capable of improving the degree of freedom of the installation location of a sensor device having a wireless communication function and performing appropriate control according to the environment.
JP 2004-180037 A JP-A-6-265191 JP 2000-32069 A Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications General Communications Base Station, “Handling Policy Regarding Radio Law and Telecommunications Business Law Related Laws for Utilization of Femtocell Base Station”, [online], April 17, 2008, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Internet < URL: http://www.soumu.go.jp/s-news/2008/pdf/080417_2_bs1.pdf>

  By the way, for example, things that occur on a daily basis in the company, such as changes in the layout of offices and work sites, and movement of people, change system conditions such as radio wave propagation environment and traffic conditions, and communication performance of wireless communication systems such as wireless LANs. To affect. Further, the relay device such as a wireless LAN access point is downsized, and the relay device itself can be easily moved. For this reason, there is a high possibility that the system condition of the wireless LAN will continue to change with the operation, and the communication quality may not be ensured or the communication efficiency may vary with the change.

  A change in the radio wave propagation environment accompanying the movement of the relay device and the layout change can be considered as a change in the positional relationship of the relay device from the viewpoint of radio wave propagation. When the relay device moves, a change in radio wave propagation loss that depends on the physical distance between the relay devices occurs. In addition, changes in the radio wave propagation environment such as layout changes do not involve physical movement of the relay device, but there are changes in the received signal level between relay stations, and the positional relationship between the relay devices is equivalent. Equivalent to having changed.

  As described above, in a wireless communication system such as a wireless LAN, it is desired to be managed so as to maintain connectivity that can maintain communication quality in an optimum state while supporting various system conditions that are constantly changing. Also, if the relay device has been moved artificially, it takes time to find it during maintenance and inspection, and the response is delayed, so notification at the time when the movement has occurred is desired. For example, when remotely monitoring a large number of relay devices, there is a problem in that changes in the positional relationship cannot be quickly grasped when the monitoring location and the installation location of the relay device are separated. .

  In recent years, small wireless base stations such as mobile phones called so-called femtocell base stations have been developed for practical use. This small radio base station has been studied under a policy that allows an individual user to purchase a device and install it freely indoors in a location where the user has previously reported, so that the radio base station can be opened (non- Patent Document 1). As a result, a mobile phone can be used by using a small radio base station even in the basement where conventional radio waves did not reach.

  When an emergency call such as 110 is made from a wireless communication terminal, a small wireless base is used to identify the location of the base station where the wireless communication terminal is registered so that the location of the emergency call is clear. The station may need to register with the mobile phone carrier for the location address before use. However, when an individual user purchases and installs a small wireless base station, there is a problem that it may be assumed that the address change notification is not surely performed when moving in the future. For this reason, it is desired that the movement of the base station can be detected.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication system, a management device, a relay device, a data processing method for the management device, and a monitoring method that solve the above-described problems.

A wireless communication system of the present invention includes a plurality of relay devices (base stations, access points) that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals (mobile phone, wireless LAN terminal, PC, game machine, etc.)
A management device for managing a plurality of the relay devices on the network,
Monitoring means for monitoring the mutual radio wave condition of the plurality of relay devices;
A determination unit that detects a change in the radio wave state to be monitored and determines that a positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change is detected has changed;
Notification means for notifying the relay devices of which the positional relationship has been determined to have changed.

The management device of the present invention is a management device that manages a plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
Monitoring means for monitoring the mutual radio wave status of the plurality of relay devices;
A determination unit that detects a change in the radio wave state to be monitored and determines that a positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change is detected has changed;
An informing means for informing the relay devices of which the positional relationship has been determined to have changed.

The relay device of the present invention is a relay device that relays wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
Obtaining means for obtaining a radio wave state with a plurality of other relay devices on the network;
Transmitting means for transmitting the acquired mutual radio wave state to the network management device.

A data processing method for a management apparatus according to the present invention is a data processing method for a management apparatus that manages a plurality of relay apparatuses that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
The management device is
Monitoring the mutual radio wave condition of the plurality of relay devices,
Detecting a change in the state of the radio waves to be monitored, and determining that the positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change has been detected has changed;
The relay devices that have been determined that the positional relationship has changed are notified.

In the monitoring method of the present invention, a plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals monitor mutual radio wave conditions,
Detecting a change in the state of the radio waves to be monitored, and determining that the positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change has been detected has changed;
The relay devices that have been determined that the positional relationship has changed are notified.

A first computer program of the present invention is a computer program for causing a computer to realize a management device that manages a plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals.
Computer
Monitoring means for monitoring the mutual radio wave status of the plurality of relay devices;
A determination unit that detects a change in the radio wave state to be monitored and determines that a positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change is detected has changed;
A computer program for functioning as notifying means for notifying each other of the relay devices determined that the positional relationship has changed.

A second computer program of the present invention is a computer program for causing a computer to realize a relay device that relays wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
Computer
Obtaining means for obtaining a radio wave state with a plurality of other relay devices on the network;
A computer program for functioning as transmission means for transmitting the acquired radio wave states to the network management device.

  It should be noted that any combination of the above-described constituent elements and a conversion of the expression of the present invention between a method, an apparatus, a system, a recording medium, a computer program, etc. are also effective as an aspect of the present invention.

  The various components of the present invention do not necessarily have to be independent of each other. A plurality of components are formed as a single member, and a single component is formed of a plurality of members. It may be that a certain component is a part of another component, a part of a certain component overlaps with a part of another component, or the like.

  In addition, although a plurality of procedures are described in order in the data processing method and the computer program of the present invention, the described order does not limit the order in which the plurality of procedures are executed. For this reason, when implementing the data processing method and computer program of this invention, the order of the several procedure can be changed in the range which does not interfere in content.

  Furthermore, the plurality of procedures of the data processing method and the computer program of the present invention are not limited to being executed at different timings. For this reason, another procedure may occur during the execution of a certain procedure, or some or all of the execution timing of a certain procedure and the execution timing of another procedure may overlap.

  According to the present invention, there are provided a wireless communication system, a management device, a relay device, a data processing method for the management device, and a monitoring method with good maintainability and high reliability.

(First embodiment)
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In all the drawings, the same reference numerals are given to the same components, and the description will be omitted as appropriate.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a radio communication system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wireless communication system 1 of this embodiment manages a plurality of relay devices (access points 200) that relay wireless communication to a network 3 of a wireless communication terminal (not shown) and a plurality of access points 200 on the network 3. A management apparatus (management server 100).

  The network monitoring method in the wireless communication system 1 according to the present embodiment is such that a plurality of access points 200 that relay wireless communication to the network 3 of wireless communication terminals monitor mutual radio wave conditions and are monitored. , And it is determined that the positional relationship of the mutual access points 200 from which the change has been detected has changed, and the mutual access point 200 from which the positional relationship has been determined to have changed, for example, to the administrator of the network 3 Inform.

  Here, the mutual radio wave state can include, for example, the level of radio waves received from the partner access point 200, delay distortion, and the like. Delay distortion is distortion that occurs when radio wave propagation paths differ due to reflection or the like and radio waves that have arrival time differences are combined and received. For example, as shown in Patent Document 3, the distortion estimated value can be obtained from a channel impulse response estimated from a cross-correlation between a known preamble signal and an actual received signal. In the present embodiment, a case will be described in which a change in radio wave state is detected based on a received signal level such as a received radio wave level.

  Specifically, the wireless communication system 1 includes a plurality of access points 200 (indicated as “AP1”, “AP2”, and “AP3” in the figure), a management server 100, a storage device 102, and a management terminal 104. And comprising.

In the following drawings, the configuration of parts not related to the essence of the present invention is omitted and is not shown.
Each component of the wireless communication system 1 includes an arbitrary computer CPU, memory, a program for realizing the components shown in the figure loaded in the memory, a storage unit such as a hard disk for storing the program, and a network connection interface. It is realized by any combination of hardware and software. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that there are various modifications to the implementation method and apparatus. Each figure described below shows functional unit blocks, not hardware unit configurations.

  In the present invention, the wireless communication terminal is, for example, a mobile phone, a PHS (Personal Handyphone System), a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) terminal, a PC (Personal Computer), a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), or a television receiver that can be connected to the Internet. There is no particular limitation as long as the terminal is a machine, a game machine, or the like and can perform wireless communication and be connected to various networks. Examples of the network include a LAN, a WAN (Wide Area Network), the Internet, and a mobile communication network. The wireless communication terminal of the present invention can wirelessly communicate with a relay device in a use area, such as a wireless LAN access point or a mobile phone base station, and can be connected to a network via the relay device.

  The relay device of the present invention can be a relay device corresponding to each of various networks to which various wireless communication terminals are connected. For example, when the wireless communication terminal is a wireless LAN terminal and is connected to a wireless LAN, the relay apparatus is a wireless LAN access point, and when the wireless communication terminal is a mobile phone and is connected to a mobile communication network, the relay apparatus is movable. It can be a small wireless base station, for example, a so-called femtocell base station or a base station installed outdoors.

  In the present embodiment, the access point 200 is a relay device that relays wireless communication to the network 3 of a wireless communication terminal, and an acquisition unit (acquisition unit) that acquires a radio wave state with a plurality of other access points 200 on the network 3 (Not shown) and a transmission unit (not shown) for transmitting the acquired mutual radio wave state to the management server 100 of the network 3.

  The access point 200 according to the present embodiment executes various processing operations by a control unit (not shown) corresponding to a computer program installed in a memory (not shown), thereby causing various units as described above to be various. Realized as a function.

  The computer program of this embodiment is a computer program for causing a computer (not shown) to implement the access point 200 that relays wireless communication to the network 3 of a wireless communication terminal. It is described to function as an acquisition unit that acquires a radio wave state with another access point 200 and a transmission unit that transmits the acquired mutual radio wave state to the management server 100 of the network 3.

  The management server 100 is a server computer and includes a control unit, a storage unit, a display unit, an operation unit, a communication unit, a voice input / output unit, a print output unit, and the like (not shown). The storage device 102 is connected to the management server 100. The management server 100 stores various data in the storage device 102 and operates by accessing the stored data. Various storage units of the management server 100 described later can be included in the storage device 102.

  The management terminal 104 is not particularly limited. For example, the management terminal 104 is a PC and is a user terminal used by a user such as an administrator of the network 3. The management terminal 104 includes a control unit, a storage unit, a display unit, an operation unit, a communication unit, a voice input / output unit, a print output unit, and the like (not shown). Various settings such as determination criteria in the management server 100 to be described later can be changed by a user such as a system administrator using the management terminal 104.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the management server 100 of the wireless communication system 1 of FIG.
The management server 100 according to the present embodiment detects a monitoring unit (signal receiving unit 110, received data distribution unit 112) that monitors the mutual radio wave state of the plurality of access points 200, and changes in the monitored mutual radio wave state. A determination unit (access point data processing unit 120, determination unit 130) that determines that the positional relationship between the mutual access points 200 in which changes have been detected has changed, and a mutual access point 200 that has been determined that the positional relationship has changed. An informing unit 132 for informing the user.

  Here, the change in the positional relationship between the access points 200 is due to, for example, movement of the installation location of the access point 200 or change of layout due to installation of a partition in the location where the access point 200 is installed. is there.

  Specifically, the management server 100 includes a signal reception unit 110, a reception data distribution unit 112, a plurality of access point data processing units 120 ("AP1 data processing unit" for the access point 200 (AP1) in the figure), access A point 200 (AP2) “AP2 data processing unit” and an access point 200 (APn) “APn data processing unit”), a determination unit 130, and a notification unit 132.

  The signal receiving unit 110 receives information indicating a mutual radio wave state from a plurality of access points 200 on the network 3. In this embodiment, each access point 200 transmits data D1 shown in FIG. 3 as information indicating the mutual radio wave state. FIG. 3 shows an example of the structure of data transmitted from the access point 200 (AP1).

  This data includes AP1ID, which is identification information of the access point 200 (AP1), identification information of the other access points 200 (AP2 to APn) received by the access point 200 (AP1), and each of the other access points 200. And a received signal level associated with the identification information.

  Returning to FIG. 2, the reception data distribution unit 112 divides the mutual reception signal level data D1 (FIG. 3) received by the signal reception unit 110 for each access point 200 (AP1, AP2,..., APn). And distributed to the access point data processing unit 120 corresponding to each access point 200.

  Each access point data processing unit 120 calculates data to be used for determining the positional relationship variation based on the received signal level of each access point 200 and outputs the data to the determination unit 130. Each access point data processing unit 120 includes an access point data distribution unit (shown as “AP1 data distribution unit” for the access point 200 (AP1) in the figure) 122, and an access point reception level for each other access point 200. Processing unit ("AP2 reception level processing unit" for access point 200 (AP2 in the figure), "AP3 reception level processing unit" for access point 200 (AP3), and "APn reception level for access point 200 (APn)" And an access point detection unit (shown as “AP1 detection unit” for the access point 200 (AP1) in the figure) 126.

  The access point data distribution unit 122 distributes the received signal level of the other access points 200 for each access point 200 and distributes it to the access point reception level processing unit 124 corresponding to each other access point 200.

  Each access point reception level processing unit 124 calculates data used for determining the positional relationship variation based on the reception signal level of each access point 200 and outputs the data to the access point detection unit 126. The access point reception level processing unit 124 includes, for example, a reference storage unit (not shown) that stores predetermined determination criteria used by the determination unit 130. Then, the access point reception level processing unit 124 detects the access point 200 in which the change in the received signal level to be monitored is outside the range of the determination criterion, and outputs the detection result to the notification unit 132.

  Here, the predetermined determination criterion can be a range of a received signal level in a state optimal for the system, for example, a normal received signal level ± α dBm. The arrangement reference can be set for each mutual access point 200, can be set for each predetermined group, can be unified by the system, and can be handled by an optimum method for each system.

  Furthermore, the access point reception level processing unit 124 stores a history storage unit (not shown) that stores the history of the reception signal levels of the plurality of access points 200 received by the signal reception unit 110, and the history storage unit. A calculation unit (not shown) that refers to the history, calculates a determination criterion based on past changes in the received signal level of the access points 200, and stores the determination criterion in a reference storage unit;

  Further, the access point reception level processing unit 124 refers to the history stored in the history storage unit, and calculates a moving average calculation unit (each of which calculates a moving average value over a predetermined period of the mutual reception signal level of the plurality of access points 200 ( (Not shown).

  As an example, the access point reception level processing unit 124 includes a plurality of shift registers connected in series with each other, and sequentially inputs the reception signal level from the target access point 200 to the plurality of shift registers. The access point reception level processing unit 124 includes a current data calculation unit (not shown) that calculates an average value of the current reception signal level, a tendency of the past reception signal level, for example, an average value (M data) and a standard A past data calculation unit (not shown) for calculating the deviation (σ).

  The current data calculation unit calculates an average value (average value of M data) of the current received signal level from the output data of M shift register groups (for example, for one hour) from the input side. The past data calculation unit inputs from the M shift register groups that output the received signal level in a predetermined period, for example, a predetermined time zone of the past one week, and inputs the past received signal level average value (M data (Average value) and a standard deviation are calculated. The access point reception level processing unit 124 sets an average value ± 2σ of past received signal levels as a determination criterion, and stores it in the reference storage unit.

  The access point detection unit 126 integrates the outputs from the access point reception level processing units 124 and outputs them to the determination unit 130. In the present embodiment, the access point detection unit 126 detects a change in the mutual radio wave state based on the calculated moving average value of the mutual reception signal levels.

  That is, the access point detection unit 126 determines that the average value of the current reception signal level calculated by the current data calculation unit calculated from the access point reception level processing unit 124 corresponding to each other access point 200 is set. It is determined whether it is within the reference range, and another access point 200 outside the determination reference range is detected.

  If it is within the range of the criterion, it is determined that there is no change in the received signal level, and the flag of the other access point 200 is set to 0. If it is outside the range of the criterion, it is determined that the received signal level has changed, and 1 is set in the flag of the other access point 200.

  The determination unit 130 determines that the positional relationship of the mutual access points 200 has changed with respect to the mutual access points 200 detected as being out of the range of the determination criteria, and only one of the mutual access point 200 relay devices Regarding the mutual access points 200 detected as being out of the range of the determination criteria, it is determined that the positional relationship of the mutual access points 200 has not changed.

  In the present embodiment, the determination unit 130 calculates the logical product of the flags of the mutual access points 200 and determines that the positional relationship has changed when the result is 1, and the positional relationship has changed when the result is 0. Judge that there is no. Then, the determination unit 130 outputs information on the mutual access points 200 for which it has been determined that the positional relationship has changed to the notification unit 132. The notification unit 132 notifies the access point 200 whose mutual positional relationship has changed based on information from the determination unit 130.

  The notification unit 132 can notify the administrator of the network 3 of changes in the positional relationship of the access point 200 by various means. For example, the notification unit 132 displays a notification message, a status list of each access point 200 on the display unit such as a monitor (not shown) of the management server 100 or the management terminal 104, and an icon of an access point whose positional relationship has changed on the installation floor drawing. A change or the like may be displayed, or an LED display (not shown) or the like may be lit or blinked. Alternatively, a voice message or an alarm sound may be output from a voice output unit (not shown) connected to the management server 100 or the management terminal 104, or a message or each alarm message may be output to a print output unit such as a printer (not shown). A status list of the access point 200 or the like may be printed out, or a notification message or a message describing the status of each access point 200 may be transmitted to a predetermined mail address or terminal (not shown).

  The management server 100 according to the present embodiment executes various processing operations corresponding to a computer program mounted on a memory (not shown), so that the various units 110 to 132 as described above have various functions. It has been realized.

  The computer program of the present embodiment is a computer program for causing a computer (not shown) to realize the management server 100 that manages a plurality of access points 200 that relay wireless communication to the network 3 of wireless communication terminals. The computer detects the mutual radio wave condition of the plurality of access points 200 and the monitoring means (the signal receiving unit 110 and the reception data distributing unit 112), and the change of the monitored radio wave condition is detected, and the change is detected. Determination means (access point data processing unit 120, determination unit 130) that determines that the positional relationship of the mutual access points 200 has changed, and notification means (notification means) that notifies the mutual access points 200 that have been determined that the positional relationship has changed. It is described so as to function as a notification unit 132).

  The operation of the wireless communication system 1 of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described below. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation of the management server 100 of the wireless communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Hereinafter, description will be given with reference to FIGS.

  The data processing method of the management apparatus (management server 100) of this embodiment is a data processing method of the management server 100 that manages a plurality of access points 200 that relay wireless communication to the network 3 of wireless communication terminals. The server 100 monitors the mutual radio wave conditions of the plurality of access points 200 (step S101), detects a change in the monitored radio wave condition (step S107), and detects the mutual access point 200 from which the change is detected. It is determined that the positional relationship has changed (step S113), and the mutual access points 200 that have been determined that the positional relationship has changed are reported (step S115).

  Specifically, first, in the management server 100, the signal receiving unit 110 receives information indicating a mutual radio wave state from a plurality of access points 200 on the network 3. In the present embodiment, data D1 (FIG. 3) is received from each access point 200 (step S101). As described above, the data D1 includes the AP1ID that is the identification information of the access point 200 (AP1), the identification information of the other access points 200 (AP2 to APn) received by the access point 200 (AP1), and the others. And the received signal level associated with the identification information of the access point 200.

  The reception data distribution unit 112 divides the data D1 (FIG. 3) of the reception signal level received by the signal reception unit 110 for each access point 200 (AP1, AP2,..., APn), 200 is distributed to the access point data processing unit 120 corresponding to 200 (step S103).

  Then, each access point data processing unit 120 calculates data used for determining the positional relationship variation based on the received signal level of each access point 200, and outputs the data to the determination unit 130 (step S105). Specifically, as described above, in each access point data processing unit 120, the access point data distribution unit 122 distributes the reception signal level of the other access point 200 for each access point 200, and each other access point 200. Are distributed to the access point reception level processing unit 124 corresponding to.

  Each access point reception level processing unit 124 stores the history of the reception signal levels of the plurality of access points 200 received by the signal reception unit 110 in the history storage unit. Furthermore, for example, an average value (average value of M pieces of data) of the received signal level in a predetermined time zone in the past week is calculated, and further, a standard deviation is calculated. Then, an average value ± 2σ of past received signal levels is set as a criterion and stored in the criterion storage unit. Also, the average value of the current received signal level (average value of M pieces of data) is calculated. These data are output to the access point detection unit 126. Note that the time zone for calculating the past average value and the time zone for calculating the current average value are preferably the same time zone, that is, the conditions that are considered to affect the received signal level are the same. It is preferable.

  Then, the access point detection unit 126 determines that the average value of the current reception signal level calculated by the current data calculation unit calculated from the access point reception level processing unit 124 corresponding to each other access point 200 is set. It is determined whether or not it is within the reference range, and the access point 200 outside the determination reference range is detected (step S107). If it is within the range of the criterion (YES in step S107), the flag of the other access point 200 is set to 0 (step S109), and the process proceeds to step S113. If it is outside the range of the criterion (NO in step S107), 1 is set in the flag of the other access point 200 (step S111), and the process proceeds to step S113.

  The determination unit 130 obtains a logical product of flags indicating whether or not the received signal levels of the mutual access points 200 have changed (step S113). When the flag of the mutual access point 200 is 1, that is, when it is determined that the received signal level of the mutual access point 200 is outside the range of the criterion, the logical product is 1 (YES in step S113). It is determined that the positional relationship between the mutual access points 200 determined to be out of range has changed. And it progresses to step S115, notifies the mutual access point 200 from which the positional relationship changed to the alerting | reporting part 132, and complete | finishes a process. On the other hand, if at least one of the flags of the mutual access points 200 is 0, that is, if it is determined that one of the received signal levels of the mutual access points 200 is within the criterion, the logical product is 0 (step Step S115 is bypassed, and the process ends.

  For example, in FIG. 5, it is assumed that the results detected by the access point detection unit 126 are exemplified in a list. As shown in the figure, since the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2) are “changed” with each other, the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2) have a mutual positional relationship. It is judged that there was a change in On the other hand, looking at the access point 200 (APn) of the access point 200 (AP1), there is a change in the received signal level received by the access point 200 (APn) from the access point 200 (AP1). There is no change in the received signal level received by AP1) from access point 200 (APn). In such a case, the determination unit 130 determines that there is no change in the positional relationship between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (APn).

  Thus, only when there is a change in the received signal level, it is determined that there is a change in the mutual positional relationship. On the other hand, if there is no change in the received signal level, the received signal level is Considering that there is a possibility that the measurement is wrong, it is determined that there is no change in the mutual positional relationship.

  For example, in the office, as shown in FIG. 6A, from the state where three access points 200 (AP1, AP2, AP3) are connected on the network 3, as shown in FIG. When the office layout is changed and the partition 5 is provided between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2), reception between the access point 200 (AP2) and the access point 200 (AP3) Although the signal level is not expected to change, reception by the partition 5 between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2) and between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP3) The signal level is thought to decrease. Therefore, by monitoring the reception signal level of the mutual access points 200, it is possible to detect a change in the positional relationship between the mutual access points 200.

  For example, in the case of FIG. 6B, the trend of the past received signal level at the access point 200 (AP1) is −75 ± 5 dBm and −85 ± at the access point 200 (AP2) and the access point 200 (AP3), respectively. The trend of the received signal level in the past at 6 dBm and at the access point 200 (AP2) is −75 ± 5 dBm and −70 ± 3 dBm at the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP3), respectively, and the access point 200 (AP1). Further, it is assumed that the trend of the received signal level in the past at the access point 200 (AP3) is −88 ± 4 dBm and −72 ± 2 dBm at the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2), respectively.

  The current received signal level at the access point 200 (AP1) is -86 dBm and -96 dBm at the access point 200 (AP2) and the access point 200 (AP3), respectively, and the current received signal level at the access point 200 (AP2). Are the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP3), respectively, -85 dBm and -68 dBm, and the current received signal level at the access point 200 (AP3) is the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2). ) And −71 dBm, respectively.

  In the above case, the variation in the received signal level between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2), and between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP3) is a judgment criterion, that is, a past received signal. Since it is out of the range of the level trend, the change in the positional relationship between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP2) and between the access point 200 (AP1) and the access point 200 (AP3) is detected. It will be.

  As described above, the wireless communication system 1 according to the present embodiment can be realized with a simple configuration at a low cost, and can detect and notify a change in the positional relationship between the access points 200. Therefore, it is possible to respond quickly when a change in the wireless communication environment occurs due to movement of the installation location or change of the layout of the site where the access point 200 is installed, and the reliability of the network is improved.

  Furthermore, since the movement of the installation location of the access point 200 at the site can be grasped by the network management side, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the installation location of the access point 200 becomes unknown during maintenance inspections.

(Second embodiment)
FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram showing a part of the configuration of the management server of the wireless communication system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The management server of this embodiment is different from the above-described embodiment in that a determination criterion is automatically selected according to a predetermined condition. In addition to the configuration of the management server 100 of the above-described embodiment, the management server of the present embodiment is stored in a condition-specific reference storage unit 172 that stores a plurality of determination criteria for each predetermined condition and a condition-specific reference storage unit 172. A selection unit 174 that automatically selects a determination criterion from a plurality of determination criteria according to a condition, and the determination unit (access point data processing unit 120 and determination unit 130 in FIG. 2) is selected. The change in the positional relationship is determined using the determination criterion.

  In the present embodiment, a control unit (processing control unit 180) that controls the monitoring unit to stop monitoring the received signal level under a predetermined condition may be further provided.

  Specifically, the management server of the present embodiment further includes a clock 170, a condition-specific reference storage unit 172, a selection unit 174, and a processing control unit 180.

  The clock 170 notifies the current time. The condition-specific reference storage unit 172 stores in advance a plurality of determination criteria for a predetermined condition, for example, for each predetermined time period. For example, on weekdays, which are normal working hours, the first time condition is from 8:00 to 20:00, and the second time condition is from 20:00 to 8:00 the next day on weekdays when there are fewer people. Basically, holidays such as Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays where there is no person can be set as the third time condition by changing the criterion for each condition and stored in the criterion-based criterion storage unit 172.

  Since the radio wave propagation environment is also affected by the surrounding situation such as the movement of a person and the movement of a car, the estimation accuracy can be improved by estimating the variation in the positional relationship between the access points 200 in a similar situation. Go up. Therefore, as described above, in order to classify the surrounding situation, it is possible to improve the estimation accuracy by operating by changing the judgment criterion according to the time zone or the like.

  Note that the conditions and determination criteria stored in the condition-specific reference storage unit 172 can be appropriately changed by the administrator using the operation unit of the management server 100.

  In the present embodiment, the selection unit 174 acquires the current time from the clock 170 in accordance with the conditions, automatically selects a determination criterion from the current time, and outputs it to the access point data processing unit 120 (FIG. 2). The access point data processing unit 120 makes a determination using the determination criteria acquired from the selection unit 174.

  The processing control unit 180 controls the access point data processing unit 120 to stop monitoring the received signal level under a predetermined condition. The processing control unit 180 may stop the operation of the signal reception unit 110, the reception data distribution unit 112, the determination unit 130, or the notification unit 132 of FIG. In the present embodiment, for example, in a daytime office environment, there are many people and there is a possibility that the radio wave condition may be affected. It is possible to detect fluctuations in the above.

  According to the wireless communication system of the present embodiment configured as described above, it is possible to automatically select a determination criterion according to a condition and estimate a positional relationship variation under an optimum condition, thereby improving estimation accuracy. Can improve reliability.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described with reference to drawings, these are the illustrations of this invention, Various structures other than the above are also employable.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the moving average processing of the received signal level is performed by the access point reception level processing unit 124 of the management server 100. A history storage unit (not shown) that stores the acquired radio wave state history and a calculation unit (not shown) that obtains a tendency of mutual radio wave state changes based on the radio wave state history can be provided. The transmitting unit can transmit the obtained tendency of changes in the radio wave state to the management server 100.

  In another embodiment, the calculation unit that obtains the tendency of the mutual radio wave state change refers to the history stored in the history storage unit and moves the received signal levels of the other access points 200 over a predetermined period. Each average value can be calculated.

  Moreover, although the said embodiment demonstrated the structure which memorize | stores the judgment reference | standard in the memory | storage part 172 according to conditions beforehand according to a time slot | zone, in other embodiment, based on the result of having monitored the radio wave state, the radio wave state of the access point 200 It is possible to further include a setting unit (not shown) that automatically sets the optimal time zone and conditions for detecting the change in the above. That is, it is possible to automatically obtain and set a time zone and a condition in which the fluctuation of the radio wave state is small.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the radio | wireless communications system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of the management server of the radio | wireless communications system of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the structure of the data which the management server of FIG. 2 receives from an access point. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of a management server of the wireless communication system in FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows an example of the list of the detection result of the change of the received signal level in the management server of the radio | wireless communications system of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect | action of the radio | wireless communications system of FIG. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of a part of management server of the radio | wireless communications system which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wireless communication system 3 Network 5 Partition 100 Management server 102 Storage device 104 Management terminal 110 Signal receiving part 112 Reception data distribution part 120 Access point data processing part 122 Access point data distribution part 124 Access point reception level processing part 126 Access point detection part 130 Determination Unit 132 Notification Unit 170 Clock 172 Condition-Based Reference Storage Unit 174 Selection Unit 180 Processing Control Unit 200 Access Point

Claims (24)

A plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals;
A management device for managing a plurality of the relay devices on the network,
Monitoring means for monitoring the mutual radio wave status of the plurality of relay devices;
A determination unit that detects a change in the radio wave state to be monitored and determines that a positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change is detected has changed;
A radio communication system comprising: an informing means for informing the mutual relay devices determined to have changed the positional relationship. The wireless communication system according to claim 1, wherein
Comprising reference storage means for storing predetermined determination criteria used by the determination means;
The monitoring means monitors mutual received signal levels in the plurality of relay devices,
The determination unit detects a relay device whose change in the received signal level to be monitored is outside the range of the determination criterion, and mutually detects the relay devices that are detected to be out of the determination criterion. It is determined that the positional relationship of the relay devices has changed and only one of the mutual relay devices is detected to be out of the range of the determination criterion. A wireless communication system that determines that the positional relationship has not changed. The wireless communication system according to claim 2,
History storage means for storing a history of the reception signal levels of the plurality of relay devices monitored by the monitoring means;
A calculation unit that refers to the history stored in the history storage unit, calculates the determination criterion based on past changes in the reception signal level of the relay devices, and stores the determination criterion in the reference storage unit; A wireless communication system provided. The wireless communication system according to claim 3,
A criterion-specific storage means for preliminarily storing a plurality of the determination criteria for each predetermined condition;
A selection unit that automatically selects the determination criterion according to a condition from the plurality of determination criteria stored in the criterion-based storage unit;
The determination unit is a wireless communication system that determines a change in the positional relationship using the selected determination criterion. The wireless communication system according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
A wireless communication system further comprising control means for controlling the monitoring means so as to stop monitoring the received signal level under a predetermined condition. The wireless communication system according to claim 3,
A moving average calculating means for referring to the history stored in the history storage means and calculating a moving average value over a predetermined period of the received signal level of each of the plurality of relay devices;
The said determination means is a radio | wireless communications system which detects the said change of the said electromagnetic wave state based on the said moving average value of the mutually calculated said received signal level. A management device that manages a plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
Monitoring means for monitoring the mutual radio wave status of the plurality of relay devices;
A determination unit that detects a change in the radio wave state to be monitored and determines that a positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change is detected has changed;
A management device comprising: notification means for reporting the relay devices that have been determined that the positional relationship has changed. The management apparatus according to claim 7,
Comprising reference storage means for storing predetermined determination criteria used by the determination means;
The monitoring means monitors mutual received signal levels in the plurality of relay devices,
The determination means detects a relay device whose change in the received signal level to be monitored is outside the range of the determination criterion, and mutually detects the relay devices that are detected to be out of the determination criterion. It is determined that the positional relationship of the relay devices has changed and only one of the mutual relay devices is detected to be out of the range of the determination criterion. A management device that determines that the positional relationship has not changed. The management device according to claim 8, wherein
History storage means for storing a history of the reception signal levels of the plurality of relay devices monitored by the monitoring means;
A calculation unit that refers to the history stored in the history storage unit, calculates the determination criterion based on past changes in the reception signal level of the relay devices, and stores the determination criterion in the reference storage unit; Management device provided. The management device according to claim 9, wherein
A criterion-specific criterion storage means for previously storing a plurality of the determination criteria for each predetermined condition;
A selection unit that automatically selects the determination criterion according to a condition from the plurality of determination criteria stored in the criterion-specific storage unit;
The determination unit is a management device that determines a change in the positional relationship using the selected determination criterion. The management device according to claim 8,
A management apparatus comprising control means for controlling the monitoring means to stop monitoring the received signal level under a predetermined condition. The management device according to claim 9, wherein
A moving average calculating unit that refers to the history stored in the history storing unit and calculates a moving average value over a predetermined period of the received signal level of each of the plurality of relay devices;
The determination unit is a management device that detects a change in the radio wave state of the mutual based on the moving average value of the calculated mutual received signal levels. A relay device that relays wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
Obtaining means for obtaining a radio wave state with a plurality of other relay devices on the network;
A relay unit comprising: a transmission unit configured to transmit the acquired mutual radio wave state to a management device of the network. The relay device according to claim 13,
History storage means for storing history of the radio wave status acquired from the plurality of other relay devices by the acquisition means;
Means for determining a tendency of a change in the radio wave state based on the history of the radio wave state,
The transmission unit is a relay device that transmits the obtained tendency of changes in the radio wave state to the management device. The relay device according to claim 14,
The means for obtaining the tendency of the change of the radio wave state with respect to each other refers to the history stored in the history storage means, and calculates a moving average value over a predetermined period of the received signal level of the plurality of other relay devices, respectively. Relay device to calculate. A data processing method of a management device that manages a plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
The management device is
Monitoring the mutual radio wave condition of the plurality of relay devices,
Detecting a change in the state of the radio waves to be monitored, and determining that the positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change has been detected has changed;
A data processing method of a management apparatus for notifying each other of the relay apparatuses determined that the positional relationship has changed. The data processing method of the management device according to claim 16,
The management device includes a reference storage device that stores a predetermined determination criterion;
The management device is
Monitoring the mutual received signal level in the plurality of relay devices,
A relay device in which a change in the received signal level to be monitored is outside the range of the determination criterion is detected, and the mutual relay devices that are detected to be outside the range of the determination criterion are mutually determined. Regarding the mutual relay devices that are determined that the positional relationship has changed and only one of the mutual relay devices is detected to be outside the range of the determination criteria, the positional relationship of the mutual relay devices varies. The data processing method of the management apparatus which judges that it is not doing. The data processing method of the management device according to claim 17,
The management device includes a history storage device that stores a history of the reception signal levels of the plurality of monitored relay devices.
The management device refers to the history stored in the history storage device, calculates the determination criterion based on a past change in the reception signal level of the relay device, and stores the determination criterion in the reference storage device Data processing method of management device. The data processing method of the management device according to claim 18,
The management device has a criterion-specific storage device that stores a plurality of the determination criteria in advance for each predetermined condition,
The management device automatically selects the determination criterion according to a condition from the plurality of determination criteria stored in the condition-specific reference storage device, and the positional relationship is changed using the selected determination criterion. A data processing method of the management device for determining The data processing method of the management device according to any one of claims 17 to 19,
A data processing method for a management apparatus, wherein the management apparatus controls to stop monitoring the fluctuation of the received signal level under a predetermined condition. The data processing method of the management device according to claim 18,
The management device is
Referencing the history stored in the history storage device, respectively, calculating a moving average value over a predetermined period of the reception signal level of the plurality of relay devices,
A data processing method of a management apparatus that detects a change in the radio wave state between the mutual based on the calculated moving average value of the mutual received signal levels. Multiple relay devices that relay wireless communication to the network of wireless communication terminals monitor each other's radio wave conditions,
Detecting a change in the state of the radio waves to be monitored, and determining that the positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change has been detected has changed;
A monitoring method for notifying each other of the relay devices determined that the positional relationship has changed. A computer program for causing a computer to realize a management device that manages a plurality of relay devices that relay wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
Computer
Monitoring means for monitoring the mutual radio wave status of the plurality of relay devices;
A determination unit that detects a change in the radio wave state to be monitored and determines that a positional relationship between the relay devices in which the change is detected has changed;
A computer program for functioning as notifying means for notifying each other of the relay devices determined that the positional relationship has changed. A computer program for causing a computer to implement a relay device that relays wireless communication to a network of wireless communication terminals,
Computer
Obtaining means for obtaining a radio wave state with a plurality of other relay devices on the network;
A computer program for functioning as transmission means for transmitting the acquired radio wave states to the network management device.

Images