JP2010097603A - Communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a communication system for switching methods for checking a communication operation between a method by external communication using a communication cable and a virtual method without performing the external communication. <P>SOLUTION: The communication system 1 includes a virtual communication checking means and an external communication checking means, and further has a selecting means for selecting either the virtual communication checking means or the external communication checking means. The virtual communication checking means includes a communication port allocating means and a virtual transmitting and receiving means. When the selecting means selects the virtual communication checking means, the virtual transmitting and receiving means virtually transmits and receives data from one application program to another application program and checks a communication operation of the data on the basis of the transmission and reception results. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication system.

  Currently, information communication using applications is widely performed in information processing apparatuses such as personal computers. In this type of information processing apparatus, in order to smoothly perform information communication when necessary, a configuration capable of confirming a communication operation at a desired timing is required. Conventionally, information processing to be confirmed is required. A method has been adopted in which a communication cable is connected to the apparatus and communication operation is confirmed by trying communication with an external apparatus (for example, another personal computer) via the communication cable. In addition, there exists a thing like patent document 1 as a technique relevant to this invention.

JP 2006-195954 A

  In the case of the conventional configuration as described above, when a communication operation is confirmed, a communication cable or other personal computer is essential, and it is necessary to prepare these communication cable and other personal computer separately. However, in such a configuration (that is, a configuration in which the preparation of an external device such as a communication cable or another personal computer is essential), there is a problem that it is difficult to confirm the communication operation quickly or easily.

  Further, in a conventional information processing apparatus, when a communication port with any application program is used, the communication port is occupied by the application program, and control is performed so as to exclude the use of other application programs. It was. Therefore, multiple application programs cannot use the same communication port at the same time to perform operation confirmation and other communications at the same time, which is very restrictive for operation confirmation and other communications. .

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problem, and includes a method for performing a communication operation confirmation method by external communication using a communication cable and a method for performing virtual communication without external communication. A first object is to provide a switchable communication system.
A second object is to provide a communication system in which a plurality of application programs can use the same communication port at the same time.

To achieve the above object, a first aspect of the present invention is a communication system having a computer having a plurality of communication ports to which communication devices can be connected and a memory, and communicating with an external device through the communication ports. The computer includes a plurality of application programs, and a communication operation confirmation unit that confirms a communication operation for data generated by the application program, and the communication operation confirmation unit includes the plurality of applications. Virtual communication confirmation means for confirming the communication operation of the data by virtually trying communication between one application program and another application program in the program;
When the communication device is connected to the communication port, the data generated by the application program is transmitted to the outside of the computer via the communication port, thereby confirming the data communication operation. External communication confirmation means, and as means for confirming the communication operation of the data, selection means for selecting either the virtual communication confirmation means or the external communication confirmation means, the virtual communication confirmation means, A first communication port in the plurality of communication ports is assigned to the one application program, and a second communication port is assigned to the other application program, and the first communication port and the second communication are assigned. Communication port assigning means for storing port information for identifying a port in the memory, and the port information. The second communication port corresponding to the first communication port based on the first communication port, and the second communication port transmits the data to be sent from the one application program to the first communication port. Virtual transmission / reception means for storing in the memory as the received data and giving to the other application program, and when the virtual communication confirmation means is selected by the selection means, the virtual transmission / reception means, The virtual transmission / reception of the data is performed from one application program to the other application program, and the communication operation of the data is confirmed based on the transmission / reception result.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the first aspect, the communication device includes a detection unit that detects whether or not the communication device is connected to the communication port, and the selection unit uses the detection unit to perform the communication. The external communication confirmation unit is selected on condition that a device is detected.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the second aspect, the detection unit detects whether or not a specific type of the communication device is connected to the communication port, and the selection unit includes the detection unit. The external communication confirmation unit is selected only when the communication device of the specific type is detected by the unit.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to the second or third aspect, is the detection unit configured such that the communication device is connected to the first communication port allocated by the communication port allocation unit. The selection means selects the external communication confirmation means when the communication device is connected to the first communication port.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the communication port allocating means changes a setting from a higher-level program that gives a command to the virtual communication confirmation means. A setting change unit configured to change the setting of the second communication port to be assigned to the other application program based on the command, and when the setting change command is made during the virtual transmission / reception by the virtual transmission / reception unit, The setting change of the second communication port by the setting change unit is stopped until a complete transmission / reception is completed.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the communication system according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the communication port allocating means includes the first communication port allocated to the one application program, and the other The second communication port assigned to the application program is different from the communication port.

The invention of claim 7 is a communication system having a computer having a communication port to which a communication device can be connected and a memory, and communicating with an external device via the communication port,
The computer counts the number of calls of the communication port by each application program and a plurality of application programs, and reduces the number of calls by decreasing the number of calls at the end of communication processing using the communication port by each application program Means, when the application program calls the communication port, a determination means for determining whether the number of calls by the call number increase / decrease means is a predetermined value or less, and the number of calls of the communication port by the determination means Is determined to be less than or equal to the predetermined value, handle storage means for storing a handle for performing communication at the communication port called by the application program, and each application program Virtual handle setting means for setting a virtual handle corresponding to the handle saved by the handle saving means for each application program when the communication port is called, and the handle saved by the handle saving means; A correspondence data storage means for storing correspondence data with each virtual handle set in each application program by the virtual handle setting means, and the correspondence processing when each application program communicates using the communication port. And a communication control unit that uses the handle associated with the virtual handle set in each application program in accordance with the correspondence data stored in the data storage unit.

  The invention according to claim 8 is the communication system according to claim 7, wherein the communication control means determines whether to perform communication using the virtual handle when the application program executes a specific communication-related command. Virtual handle use confirmation means for confirming the communication, and when the virtual handle use confirmation means confirms the communication using the virtual handle, the virtual handle use confirmation means is associated with the virtual handle set in the application program. The handle is used.

The invention of claim 9 is the communication system according to claim 7 or claim 8, wherein
When the communication process using the communication port by the application program ends, the virtual handle and the handle for the application program for which the communication process has ended in the corresponding data stored by the corresponding data storage unit The correspondence value discarding means for discarding the corresponding value is provided.

The invention of claim 10 is the communication system according to any one of claims 7 to 9,
The external device is a mobile terminal provided with a plurality of programs for transmitting or receiving data to and from the computer,
When the communication control unit communicates with one program of the mobile terminal using the communication port, any one of the plurality of application programs of the computer uses the communication data storage unit. According to the stored correspondence data, use the handle corresponding to the virtual handle set in the one application program,
When another application program of the plurality of application programs communicates with another program of the mobile terminal using the communication port while communication processing using the communication port by the one application program is continued The handle corresponding to the communication port is used based on the virtual handle set in the other application program and the corresponding data.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, virtual communication confirmation means for virtually trying communication between one application program and another application program, and data generated by the application program are transmitted outside the computer via a communication port. Since there is an external communication confirmation means that transmits and confirms the data communication operation, the virtual communication confirmation means and the external communication confirmation means can be used properly according to the situation, and the communication operation can be performed in a more appropriate manner. It becomes possible to confirm. For example, even if it is difficult to prepare a communication cable or external device, the communication operation can be confirmed by the virtual communication confirmation means without using the external communication confirmation means. Is envisioned.
Also, a first communication port is assigned to one application program, a second communication port is assigned to another application program, and port information for specifying the first communication port and the second communication port is stored in the memory. Since it is stored, it is possible to clarify the correspondence between the transmission port corresponding to one application program and the reception port corresponding to another application program.
Furthermore, since the data to be sent from the one application program to the first communication port is stored in the memory as the data received by the second communication port and is provided to the other application program, Even if the communication cable is not actually connected to the communication port, confirmation of the transmission state in which data from one application program is given to the first communication port, and data for other application programs are sent to the second communication port. The confirmation of the reception state of reception can be virtually realized, and even if the external communication confirmation means is not used, the communication operation can be confirmed satisfactorily.

  In the second aspect of the invention, there is provided detection means for detecting whether or not the communication device is connected to the communication port, and the external communication confirmation means is selected on condition that the communication device is detected by the detection means. It is comprised so that. In this way, the external communication confirmation unit is selected only when the communication operation can be confirmed by the external communication confirmation unit, and a more appropriate selection is possible.

  The invention of claim 3 is configured to select the external communication confirmation unit only when a specific type of communication device is detected by the detection unit. In this way, the external communication confirmation unit is not selected except when a specific type of communication device that is a target of communication operation confirmation is connected, and a more appropriate selection is possible.

  The invention according to claim 4 detects whether or not a communication device is connected to the first communication port assigned by the communication port assignment means, and externally when the communication device is connected to the first communication port. The communication confirmation unit is selected. In this way, in a state where communication from one application system to the outside is possible, more accurate communication operation confirmation can be performed using the external communication confirmation unit.

  The invention of claim 5 is provided with setting change means for changing the setting of the second communication port to be assigned to another application program based on the setting change command from the higher-level program, so that the communication port to be assigned to the other application program Can be changed as needed. Furthermore, when a setting change command is issued during virtual transmission / reception by the virtual transmission / reception means, the setting change of the second communication port by the setting change means is suspended until the virtual transmission / reception is completed. In this way, it is possible to effectively prevent the virtual operation check from being forcibly interrupted due to the setting change while allowing the second communication port to be changed as necessary.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the first communication port assigned to one application program and the second communication port assigned to another application program are set to be different communication ports. In this way, when the communication operation is confirmed by the virtual communication confirmation unit, it is possible to distinguish between the first communication port and the second communication port and perform appropriate operation confirmation.

In the invention of claim 7, the number of calls of the communication port by the application program is managed by the call number increase / decrease means, and when the application program calls the communication port, the number of calls managed by the call number increase / decrease means is a predetermined value. It is determined whether or not: When it is determined that the number of calls of the communication port is equal to or less than a predetermined value, a handle for performing communication at the communication port called by the application program is stored.
In this way, it can be confirmed how much the calling of the application program to the communication port is duplicated. Then, when the number of calls is small, the handle can be stored in advance for communication with the communication port.
Further, when each application program calls the communication port, a virtual handle corresponding to the handle stored by the handle storage unit is set for each application program, and the set virtual handle and the stored virtual handle are already stored. Data corresponding to the handle is saved. When each application program communicates using the communication port, a handle associated with the virtual handle set in each application program is used according to the stored correspondence data.
In this way, when multiple application programs call the same communication port, a virtual handle can be assigned to each application program, and each application program uses the actual handle corresponding to the virtual handle based on the corresponding data. Then, communication can be performed at the communication port. Therefore, there is no need to take measures such as occupying the communication port only to the application program that called the communication port first to eliminate access to the communication port by other application programs, and multiple application programs can share the same communication. The port can be used at the same time.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the virtual handle utilization confirmation means is provided for confirming whether or not to perform communication using the virtual handle when the application program executes a specific communication-related command. When the communication using the handle is confirmed, the handle associated with the virtual handle set in the application program is used.
In this way, it becomes possible to perform communication using the virtual handle triggered by the execution of a specific communication-related command. At this time, after confirming whether or not to perform communication using the virtual handle, since the process has shifted to the communication process, when another process is executed with a specific communication-related command (that is, the virtual handle is Exception cases that do not use communication) can be handled easily.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, when the communication process using the communication port by the application program is completed, in the correspondence data saved by the correspondence data saving means, the virtual handle and the handle for the application program for which the communication process is finished Corresponding value discarding means for discarding the corresponding value is provided. In this way, it is possible to delete virtual handles that are no longer needed after the completion of communication processing, and it is possible to always maintain corresponding data in an appropriate state.

According to the invention of claim 10, the external device is configured as a portable terminal provided with a plurality of programs for transmitting and receiving data to and from the computer. Then, when any one of the plurality of application programs of the computer communicates with one program of the mobile terminal using the communication port, according to the corresponding data stored in the corresponding data storage means, A handle corresponding to the virtual handle set in the application program is used. Also, when communication processing using a communication port by one application program is continued, another application program of the plurality of application programs communicates with another program of the mobile terminal using the communication port. The handle corresponding to the communication port is used based on the virtual handle set in the application program and the corresponding data.
In this way, when any application program stored in the computer is communicating with any program of the mobile terminal via the communication port, the other application program of the computer uses the same communication port. Thus, communication processing with other programs of the mobile terminal can be performed. Accordingly, even when communication is performed with a portable terminal whose communication port is likely to be restricted, a plurality of application programs can communicate at the same time using the same communication port, and as a result, the computer and the portable terminal. A variety of processing can be realized.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating the communication system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the electrical configuration of the communication system of FIG. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating a configuration in the OS when hardware is connected. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the driver loading process. FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the communication port open process. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the data transmission process. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of data reception processing. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating a communication system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a flowchart schematically illustrating the flow of communication processing executed by the application program. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when the communication port is open. FIG. 11A is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when a transmission-related API is called. FIG. 11B is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when a reception-related API is called. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when the communication port is closed. FIG. 13A is an explanatory diagram for conceptually explaining correspondence data between each virtual handle and a regular handle, and FIG. 13B conceptually shows a state in which a virtual handle is assigned to each application program. It is explanatory drawing demonstrated to.

[First embodiment]
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of a communication system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating the communication system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the electrical configuration of the communication system of FIG. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating a configuration in the OS when hardware is connected to the communication port. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the driver loading process. FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the communication port open process. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the data transmission process. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of data reception processing.

(Outline of the communication system of the first embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 1, a communication system 1 according to the present embodiment is configured by a computer 2, and an application program (hereinafter also referred to as an application) and an operating system (hereinafter also referred to as an OS) are provided inside the computer 2. ) 20 is stored. The computer 2 is configured to perform various processes by executing these application programs under the control of the OS 20. 1 illustrates some application programs A and B (abbreviated as applications A and B in FIG. 1) used in the computer 2, and illustration of other application programs is omitted. .

  The computer 2 is configured as a personal computer, for example, and includes a CPU 3, a ROM 4, a RAM 5, and a hard disk drive (hereinafter also referred to as HDD) 6 as shown in FIG. Further, an output unit 7, an input unit 8, and a communication unit 9 are connected to the CPU 3 via the bus 11. Although not shown, an input / output controller that performs input / output control between each circuit connected to the bus 11 and the CPU 3 is also provided.

  The output unit 7 includes a display device, a speaker, and the like, and outputs various images and sounds based on commands from the CPU 3. The input unit 8 includes a keyboard, a mouse, and the like, and inputs various signals according to user operations.

  The communication unit 9 functions to transmit data generated by an application program or the like to the outside, or to receive data from an external device, and includes a communication interface 13 and a plurality of communication ports 14a to 14c. It has a configuration with. Each of the communication ports 14a to 14c is configured as a serial connector or a parallel connector, and various communication devices (for example, other computers, external storage devices, and other information processing devices) via a communication cable such as an RS232C cable or a USB cable. Etc.) are connected. The communication interface 13 is configured to perform data input / output control via the communication ports 14a to 14c.

  The CPU 3 acquires information input from the input unit 8, performs output control on the output unit 7, controls reading or writing on the ROM 4, RAM 5, and HDD 6, or controls the communication unit 9 as necessary. Further, the CPU 3 has a function of loading a program stored in the HDD 6, a program installed in the HDD 6, and the like into the RAM 5 and executing the program.

  The OS 20 used in the computer 2 has a configuration as shown in FIG. FIG. 1 shows a state in which a virtual driver described later is loaded. As the OS 20, for example, Unix (registered trademark), Linux, Windows (registered trademark) of Microsoft Corporation, or any other OS can be employed. As an example, FIG. 1 shows a configuration example when a Windows (registered trademark) NT-based OS is employed.

  An OS 20 that is an NT-based OS of Windows (registered trademark) is based on a microkernel technology and an object-oriented technology, and each service is implemented by a subsystem. The Win32 subsystem 21 is one of the subsystems, and provides various APIs (functions) to the application programs A and B. For example, memory management, process management, graphics drawing, etc. Do. For example, when an input / output related API function is called from the application programs A and B, the Win32 subsystem 21 outputs an input / output request corresponding to the API function to the IO manager 22.

  Further, a device driver is incorporated in the OS 20, and FIG. 1 shows a hierarchical structure when a virtual driver described later is loaded. FIG. 3 shows a hierarchical structure when hardware is connected and a device driver for the hardware is loaded.

(Characteristic configuration of the first embodiment)
Next, a characteristic configuration of the present embodiment will be described.
The communication system 1 according to the present embodiment includes “communication operation confirmation means” for confirming the communication operation for data generated by an application program. Hereinafter, the communication operation confirmation process will be specifically described.

  First, the flow of the driver loading process will be described with reference to FIG. This driver loading process is a process of loading a driver for performing a communication operation confirmation process into the RAM 5, and is executed, for example, when a predetermined operation is performed by the user or when the computer 2 is activated. When the process is started, first, a setting value acquisition process is performed (S1). In this setting value acquisition process, a communication port to be used is assigned to each application program with which communication is performed. For example, when applications A and B exist as applications for serial communication as shown in FIG. 1, one of the communication ports is assigned to one application program A, and the other application program B is A communication port different from the communication port assigned to the application program A is assigned.

  Hereinafter, an example in which the communication port 14a is assigned to the application program A and the communication port 14b is assigned to the application program B will be described. Note that the communication port 14a assigned to the application program A corresponds to the “first communication port”, and the communication port 14b assigned to the application program B corresponds to the “second communication port”. The communication port 14a is also referred to as a first communication port, and the communication port 14b is also referred to as a second communication port.

  In S1, processing for setting the port number of the communication partner is also performed. This process is a process of setting a port number of a communication partner when performing a virtual communication operation check. For example, when data is transmitted from the application program A to the application program B to perform a virtual communication operation check Then, the port number of the communication port 14b assigned to the application program B is set as the port number of the communication partner of the application program A. Note that it is possible to arbitrarily select which communication port is assigned to which application program, or which communication port and which communication port perform virtual communication.

  The port number of the communication port 14a assigned to the application program A in the processing of S1 (port number of the first communication port) and the port number of the communication port 14b assigned to the application program B (the port number of the second communication port) ) Is stored in the registry, and correspondence information for designating the communication port 14b as the communication partner of the communication port 14a is also stored in the registry.

  The CPU 3 corresponds to an example of “communication port assignment means”, and assigns the communication port 14a (first communication port) to the application program A (one application program) and also applies the application program B (other application program). The communication port 14b (second communication port) is assigned to the program), and port information for specifying the first communication port and the second communication port is stored in the memory. Further, the first communication port assigned to the application program A (one application program) and the second communication port assigned to the application program B (other application program) function to be different communication ports. .

  Thereafter, the hardware connection status is confirmed (S2). The process of S2 is a process of confirming whether or not hardware (communication device) is connected to the communication port assigned to the application program for which the communication operation confirmation is to be performed. On the other hand, when the communication port 14a is assigned, it is confirmed whether or not a communication device capable of communicating with the computer 2 is connected to the communication port 14a.

  If the hardware (communication device) is not connected to the communication port 14a assigned to the application program A, the process proceeds to No in S3 and loads the virtual driver (S4). The virtual driver is a driver for virtually confirming the communication operation, and is stored in advance in a storage unit such as the HDD 6 and read and executed by the CPU 3.

  When the virtual driver is loaded, the internal configuration of the OS is as shown in FIG. In this configuration, transmission data generated by the application program A is passed to the device driver upper 23 through the Win32 subsystem 21 and the IO manager 22, and the virtual driver is configured as the device driver lower 25. And functions to acquire the transmission data from the device driver 23.

  The CPU 3 corresponds to an example of “virtual communication confirmation unit”, and confirms the data communication operation by virtually trying communication between one application program stored in the computer 2 and another application program. To function.

  On the other hand, if hardware (communication device) is connected to the communication port 14a assigned to the application program A, the process proceeds to Yes in S3, and the driver of the connected hardware is loaded (S5).

  When the hardware driver is loaded, the internal configuration of the OS is, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, and the transmission data generated by the application program A is sent to the upper device driver 23 via the Win32 subsystem 21 and the IO manager 22. The hardware driver configured as the device driver lower 25 obtains this transmission data. Then, communication control for the hardware 27 (communication device) is performed by the device driver lower 26.

  The CPU 3 that executes the hardware driver corresponds to an example of the “external communication confirmation unit”. When a communication device is connected to the communication port 14a, the data generated by the application program A is communicated. By transmitting to the outside of the computer 2 via the port 14a, it functions to confirm the data communication operation (for example, the data generated by the application program A is transferred to another personal computer via the communication port 14a). , Function to send data to an external communication device such as a portable information terminal and check the data communication operation). Note that a configuration for loading a hardware driver to communicate with the hardware, or a configuration for performing debugging or the like for the communication operation is well known, and details thereof are omitted.

  In the present embodiment, the CPU 3 corresponds to an example of “detection means” and functions to detect whether or not a communication device is connected to the communication port 14a. Further, the CPU 3 that executes the process of S5 corresponds to an example of “selection means”, and functions to select “external communication confirmation means” on condition that the connection of the communication device is detected in the communication port 14a. .

  Next, the communication port open process will be described with reference to FIG. The communication port open process is a process of opening the communication port 14a assigned to the application program A and the communication port 14b assigned to the application program B, and is performed based on the above virtual driver.

  In this process, first, a setting value acquisition process is performed (S10). In the processing of S10, the port number of the communication port 14a assigned to the application program (application program A) to be checked for communication operation is read from the registry, and the communication port 14b set as the communication partner of the communication port 14a is read. Read the port number from the registry. Then, a process of associating these communication port numbers with the buffer is performed (S11). In S11, the memory address of the buffer (reception buffer) used on the receiving side is acquired and stored in the RAM 5 in association with the communication port 14b. Further, the reception buffer and the transmission buffer (the buffer associated with the communication port 14a on the transmission side (the transmission buffer can be omitted)) are cleared (S12), and the internal state is set to open (S13). In the process of S13, for example, a flag indicating that the communication port 14a and the communication port 14b are in an open state is set.

  Next, data transmission processing performed by the virtual driver will be described. The process in FIG. 6 is a process that is started based on an instruction to transmit data during execution of the application program A. First, whether or not the communication port 14a assigned to the application program A is in an open state. (S20). When the communication port 14a is in the open state, the transmission data from the application program A is passed to the device driver lower 25 (virtual driver) via the Win32 subsystem 21, the IO manager 22, and the device driver 23 (S21). ). The virtual driver transfers the acquired transmission data to the reception buffer of the application program B that is the communication partner of the application program A (that is, the reception buffer associated with the communication port 14b set as the communication partner of the communication port 14a). Write (S22), a reception notification is sent to the communication port 14b of the communication partner (S23).

  On the other hand, data reception processing as shown in FIG. 7 is performed on the application program B side. In this data reception process, it is confirmed whether or not the communication port 14b assigned to the application program B is in an open state (S30). When the communication port 14b is in an open state, the process proceeds to Yes in S30 to confirm reception notification ( S31). In S31, it is confirmed whether or not a reception notification has been made to the communication port 14b assigned to the application program B. If the reception notification in S23 (FIG. 6) has been made, the process proceeds to Yes in S31. The reception event is notified to the host, and the application program B acquires data (transmission data from the application program A) written in the reception buffer in response to the notification (S32). After the application program B acquires the transmission data stored in the reception buffer, the data in the reception buffer is deleted.

  The open state of the communication port set by the processing of FIG. 5 is a closed state at a predetermined operation by the user or at the end of the computer startup.

  As described above, when the virtual driver is loaded (that is, when the virtual communication confirmation unit is selected), virtual data is transferred from the application program A (one application program) to the application program B (other application program). The data communication operation is confirmed based on the transmission / reception result. The confirmation of the communication operation can be performed in various confirmations used in a known debugging process, such as whether or not the data of the application program A has been successfully acquired by the application program B.

  The CPU 3 corresponds to an example of “virtual transmission / reception means”, specifies the second communication port corresponding to the first communication port based on the port information, and changes from the one application program to the first communication port. The data to be sent is stored in memory as data received by the second communication port and serves to provide to other application programs.

(Main effects of the first embodiment)
According to the configuration of the present embodiment, for example, the following effects can be obtained.
In the above embodiment, the “virtual communication confirmation unit” that virtually attempts to communicate between the application program A and the application program B, and the data generated by the application program are transmitted to the outside of the computer via the communication port. Since there is an `` external communication confirmation means '' that confirms the data communication operation, the virtual communication confirmation means and the external communication confirmation means can be used properly according to the situation, and the communication operation can be performed in a more appropriate way. It becomes possible to confirm. For example, even if it is difficult to prepare a communication cable or external device, the communication operation can be confirmed by the virtual communication confirmation means without using the external communication confirmation means. Is envisioned.

  In addition, a first communication port is assigned to the application program A, a second communication port is assigned to the application program B, and port information for specifying the first communication port and the second communication port is stored in the memory. Therefore, the correspondence relationship between the transmission port corresponding to the application program A and the reception port corresponding to the application program B can be clarified.

  Furthermore, data to be sent from the application program A to the first communication port is stored in the memory as data received by the second communication port, and is further provided to other application programs. Even if the communication cable is not actually connected to the communication port, confirmation of the transmission state in which data from the application program A is transmitted via the first communication port and data for the application program B are transmitted to the second communication port. It is possible to virtually confirm the reception state of reception via the network, and even if the external communication confirmation unit is not used, the communication operation can be confirmed satisfactorily.

  In addition, a “detection unit” that detects whether or not a communication device is connected to a communication port is provided, and “external communication confirmation unit” is selected on the condition that the communication device is detected by the “detection unit”. It is configured to be. In this way, the “external communication confirmation unit” is selected only when the communication operation can be confirmed by the “external communication confirmation unit”, and a more appropriate selection is possible.

  Further, it is detected whether or not a communication device is connected to the first communication port assigned by the “communication port assigning means”, and when the communication device is connected to the first communication port, “external communication confirmation” is performed. The “means” is selected. In this way, in a state where communication from one application system to the outside is possible, it is possible to check communication operation with higher accuracy using the “external communication confirmation unit”.

  In addition, the first communication port assigned to the application program A and the second communication port assigned to the application program B are set to be different communication ports. In this way, when the communication operation is confirmed by the “virtual communication confirmation unit”, it is possible to distinguish between the first communication port and the second communication port and perform an appropriate operation confirmation.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment of the communication system of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating a communication system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is a flowchart schematically illustrating the flow of communication processing executed by the application program. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when the communication port is open. FIG. 11A is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when a transmission-related API is called, and FIG. 11B is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when a reception-related API is called. is there. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an API hook process when the communication port is closed. FIG. 13A is an explanatory diagram for conceptually explaining correspondence data between each virtual handle and a regular handle. FIG. 13B shows a state in which a virtual handle is assigned to each application program in the computer. It is explanatory drawing which illustrates this conceptually. In FIG. 13, the handle Z is used as the regular handle of the communication port 14a (FIG. 2), the virtual handle Z-1 is assigned to the application A as the virtual handle of the communication port 14a, and the virtual handle Z− is assigned to the application B. An example in which 2 is assigned is shown.

  The computer 202 used in the communication system 200 according to the second embodiment has the same hardware configuration as the computer 2 used in the first embodiment. Therefore, the hardware of the computer 202 (CPU 3, ROM 4, RAM 5, hard disk drive 6, output unit 7, input unit 8, communication unit 9, bus 11, communication interface 13, communication ports 14a to 14c, etc.) is appropriately shown in FIG. The detailed description will be omitted.

(Outline of Communication System of Second Embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 8, the communication system 200 according to the present embodiment includes a computer 202 that includes a communication port to which a communication device can be connected and a memory (RAM or the like). Also in this embodiment, the communication part 9 (FIG. 2) similar to 1st Embodiment is provided, and the communication interface 13 and several communication ports 14a-14c are provided. Also in this computer 202, each communication port 14a-14c (FIG. 2) is comprised as a serial connector or a parallel connector, and various communication apparatuses (for example, other computers, etc.) via communication cables, such as RS232C cable and USB cable, are comprised. An external storage device, other information processing device, etc.) can be connected. And it can communicate with these communication apparatuses (external device) via each communication port 14a-14c (FIG. 2). In FIG. 8, a portable terminal 300 is shown as an example of an external device.

  As shown in FIG. 8, a plurality of application programs (hereinafter also referred to as applications) and an operating system (hereinafter also referred to as OS) 220 are stored inside the computer 202, and the computer 202 controls the OS 220. Below, various processes are performed by executing these application programs. FIG. 8 illustrates some application programs A and B (abbreviated as applications A and B in FIG. 8) used in the computer 202, and illustration of other application programs is omitted. .

  Examples of the OS 220 used in the computer 202 include Unix (registered trademark), Linux, Windows (registered trademark) of Microsoft Corporation, and any other OS. In the following, a configuration in which a Windows (registered trademark) NT-based OS is employed, and each service is implemented by a subsystem based on a microkernel technology and an object-oriented technology will be described as a representative example.

  In the OS 220, the subsystem provides various APIs (functions) to the application programs A and B, and performs, for example, memory management, process management, graphics drawing, and the like. In this subsystem, when an API function related to input / output is called from the application programs A and B, for example, an input / output request corresponding to the API function is output to an IO manager (not shown). Various device drivers are incorporated in the OS 220. In FIG. 8, when hardware (communication cable connected to a portable terminal) is connected and the device driver of this hardware is loaded. The structure is shown conceptually.

(Characteristic configuration of the second embodiment)
Next, a characteristic configuration of the communication system 200 according to the present embodiment will be described.
First, communication processing by an application program will be described. Each application program executes a communication process as shown in FIG. 9 in response to the establishment of a predetermined communication start condition (for example, a predetermined operation by the user). In this communication process, first, the communication port Open processing is performed (S1). In S1, processing for calling an API function for the application program to open the communication port is performed. For example, an API function used in Windows (registered trademark) uses a “CreateFile” function. In S1, this “CreateFile” function is called in association with a communication port used for communication.

  In the present embodiment, when an API function (for example, “CreateFile” function) for opening a communication port is called from an application program, the API function is not executed by the subsystem as it is, but as shown in FIG. Processing to hook the function is performed. The process of FIG. 10 is a process started when an API function for opening a communication port is called by an application program. First, in S11, the communication port to be used in the communication process is called for the first time. Judgment whether or not.

  In the present embodiment, the “number of calls” by the application program is counted for each communication port. This “number of calls” is a value indicating the number of applications that are continuing communication processing (communication port is being opened) at each communication port. For example, when communication port 14a (COM1) is taken as an example, each application program Each time the opening of the communication port 14a is requested (that is, every time the processing of FIG. 10 is performed for the communication port 14a), the “number of calls” of the communication port 14a is incremented. Each time each application program requests the communication port 14a to be closed (that is, every time the processing of FIG. 12 is performed for the communication port 14a), the “number of calls” of the communication port 14a is decremented. It has become.

  Assuming that the number of calls is counted for each communication port in this way, in S11, is the current number of calls (when executing the process of S11) of the communication port designated by the process of S1 “0”? Judging whether or not. For example, when the API function for opening the communication port 14a (COM1) is called by specifying the communication port 14a (hereinafter, also referred to as COM1) in the process of S1 in FIG. In the process of S11 to be executed, it is determined whether or not the “number of calls” of the communication port 14a (COM1) is currently “0”.

  When the “number of calls” for the communication port specified in S1 is “0” in the processing of S11, and this call is the first call for the communication port, the process proceeds to Yes in S11, and S1 The API function (for example, the “CreateFile” function) called in (2) is executed by the OS 220, and the communication port specified in S1 is opened (S12). In this open process, the handle (regular handle) of the communication port designated in S1 is acquired by a known method, and the acquired handle (regular handle) is stored in a memory such as a RAM (S13).

  The “regular handle” is a known handle that is actually used for communication at the communication port when communication is performed via the communication port by an API function. Only one is set. On the other hand, a “virtual handle” described later is a virtual handle that is set for each application program for the communication port. Even if the application program acquires a “virtual handle” for the communication port, the virtual handle This “virtual handle” is converted into a corresponding “regular handle”, and communication is performed at the communication port using the “regular handle”. Details of communication will be described later.

In the present embodiment, the CPU 3 (FIG. 2) that executes the processing of FIG. 10 and the processing of FIG. 12 to be described later corresponds to an example of “calling number increasing / decreasing means”, and counts the number of calls of the communication port by each application program. At the same time, each application program functions to reduce the number of calls each time communication processing using the communication port is completed.
The CPU 3 executing the processing of S11 (FIG. 10) corresponds to an example of “determination means”, and when the application program calls the communication port, the number of calls by the “call number increase / decrease means” is equal to or less than a predetermined value. It functions to determine whether or not.
Further, the CPU 3 and the memory (RAM 5 or the like) correspond to an example of “handle storing means”, and are called by the application program when the above-mentioned “determining means” determines that the number of calls of the communication port is equal to or less than a predetermined value. It functions to store a handle for performing communication at the communication port.

  On the other hand, in the determination process of S11, when it is determined that it is not the first call of the communication port specified in S1 (that is, the current call count of the communication port specified in the process of S1 (when the process of S11 is executed) If it is “1” or more), the process proceeds to No in S11, and a process of generating a virtual handle to be allocated to the application program is performed (S14).

  Conventionally, when a communication port has already been called and opened by a previous application program, use of the communication port by other application programs accessed later is prohibited, and the other application program handles the handle of the communication port. There was a problem that it could not be used. However, in the present embodiment, even when the communication port is already opened by the previous application program, the open processing of the communication port by another application program is not excluded, and the virtual port is not applied to the other application program. A special handle can be assigned.

  The same applies to the case where the process proceeds to Yes in S11. After the handle (regular handle) is stored in S13, the application program that performed the process of S1 (in this case, the application program that made the first call to the communication port) is stored. A process of generating a virtual handle to be allocated is performed (S14).

As described above, in this embodiment, the virtual handle is set in both the application program that first calls the communication port and the application program that calls the communication port after that.
In the present embodiment, the CPU 3 that executes the process of S14 (FIG. 10) corresponds to an example of a “virtual handle setting unit”. When each application program calls a communication port, It functions to set a virtual handle corresponding to the handle (regular handle) stored by the “handle storing means”.

  Then, data (corresponding data) indicating the correspondence between the virtual handle generated in S14 and the handle (regular handle) stored in S13 is stored (S15). FIG. 13A shows an example of correspondence data generated and stored in S15. For example, a handle Z (regular handle) is generated in S13 when the communication port 14a (COM1) is first called. When the virtual handle Z-1 is generated in S14 for the application program that has been saved and made the first call to the communication port 14a (COM1), as shown in FIG. 13A, the virtual handle Z-1 Is generated and saved. By doing so, the virtual handle Z-1 can be assigned to the application program that has made the first call, and the regular handle (handle Z) corresponding to the virtual handle Z-1 can be specified. become.

  The same applies to the second and subsequent calls. When the communication port 14a is opened by the previous application program, another application program calls (second call) the communication port 14a (COM1). In the process of S15, the process proceeds to No in S11 and the virtual handle Z-2 (FIG. 13A) generated in S14 and the regular handle already generated in the process of S13 for the communication port 14a. Data associated with Z is generated and stored. By doing so, the virtual handle Z-2 can be assigned to the application program that has made the second call, and the regular handle (handle Z) corresponding to the virtual handle Z-2 can be specified.

  In the present embodiment, the CPU 3 and the memory (such as the RAM 5) that execute the processing of S15 correspond to an example of “corresponding data storage unit”. The handle stored by the “handle storage unit” and the “virtual handle setting” It functions to store data corresponding to each virtual handle set in each application program by means.

  After the process of S15, a process of updating the number of calls is performed (S16). In this processing, “1” is added to the “number of calls” for the communication port focused on in the API hook processing (that is, the communication port specified in S1), and the value is added to the new communication port. This is stored as the “number of calls”. For example, the API hook processing of FIG. 10 is performed based on an API function that requests opening of the communication port 14a (COM1), and the “number of calls” of the communication port 14a is “0” at the start of the API hook processing. In this case, “1” counted up as a new “number of calls” is stored in the processing of S16.

  After S16, a process of returning the virtual handle obtained in S14 is performed for the application program that made the open request in S1 (S17). By performing such processing, the application program that made the communication port open request in S1 can acquire the virtual handle for the communication port specified in S1, and this application program is connected to the communication port. It can be stored in memory as a unique virtual handle for communication.

  FIG. 13B illustrates a case where the API hook processing for the open request as described above is executed for each of the applications A and B. In the example of FIG. 13B, the application A first performs the processing of FIG. 9 and makes an API request for opening the communication port 14a (COM1) in S1, and the API A hook processing of FIG. A virtual handle Z-1 is assigned. Then, while the application A is open, the application B performs the process of FIG. 9 and makes an API request for opening the communication port 14a (COM1) in S1, and the API hook process of FIG. A virtual handle Z-1 is assigned. In this way, both applications A and B that open the communication port 14a at the same time can grasp the virtual handle assigned to them, and the API hook program side further A regular handle corresponding to each virtual handle can be specified based on the correspondence data of 13 (a).

Next, the communication process of S2 in FIG. 9 will be described.
As described above, after the virtual handle corresponding to the communication port is allocated by the API hook program of FIG. 10 in response to the communication port open request in S1, the communication is performed by the application program that executes the processing of FIG. Communication processing using the port is performed (S2). In this communication process, a process of calling a communication-related API function is performed by an application program that executes the process of FIG. For example, in the API function used in Windows (registered trademark), the “WriteFile” function is used as the API function for transmitting data from the communication port. When data is transmitted from the communication port opened in S1, this is performed in S2. The “WriteFile” function is called. When the “WriteFile” function is called, the virtual handle associated with the communication port requested to open in S1 (the virtual handle returned in S17 in response to the S1 open request) is specified. For example, when the application A as shown in FIG. 13B performs data transmission using the communication port 14a (COM1) described above, the virtual handle Z-1 unique to the application A set for the communication port 14a, The application A calls the “WriteFile” function in association with data (transmission data) to be transmitted.

  In this embodiment, when a predetermined API function related to transmission at the communication port is called in S2 (in the above example, the “WriteFile” function), an API hook process as shown in FIG. It has come to be. In this process, the specific contents of the called transmission-related API function (for example, “WriteFile” function) are confirmed (S21), and it is determined whether or not transmission using a virtual handle is instructed (S22). Specifically, in S21, it is confirmed whether or not a virtual handle is specified in association with the transmission-related API function (for example, “WriteFile” function) called in S2, and the virtual handle is not specified. In step S22, the process proceeds to No, and other processing (for example, writing to a file) designated by the API function is performed (S23).

  On the other hand, if a virtual handle is specified corresponding to the transmission-related API function called in S2, the process proceeds to Yes in S22, and transmission processing is performed using a regular handle corresponding to the specified virtual handle. Do. In this transmission process, first, with reference to the corresponding data (eg, FIG. 13A) stored in S15 (FIG. 10) prior to the transmission process, a normal handle corresponding to the virtual handle specified in S2 is obtained. Reading out. Then, the read normal handle is used in place of the virtual handle specified in S2, and the transmission related API function called in S2 (FIG. 9) is executed. As a result, the application program that executes the process of S2 can execute the transmission-related API function (for example, “WriteFile” function) using the regular handle, and the external device (the portable terminal 300) from the communication port specified in S1. Etc.) can be transmitted.

  In this configuration, for example, when the portable terminal 300 (external device) is configured as a portable code reader capable of reading an information code such as a two-dimensional code, or the portable terminal 300 can read an RFID tag or the like. When configured as a simple wireless tag reader, a plurality of programs of the portable terminal 300 and the computer 2 can communicate at the same time using the same communication port.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, when the application A (one application program) of the computer 2 communicates with the application program (one program) of the mobile terminal 300 using the communication port 14a (COM1), as shown in FIG. According to the correspondence data as in a), API communication can be performed using the handle Z (regular handle) corresponding to the virtual handle Z-1 set in the application A as shown in FIG. 13B. In addition, while the communication process using the communication port 14a (COM1) by the application A (one application program) is being continued (the communication port 14a is being opened by the application A), the application B (another application program) is When communicating with the service program (other program) of the portable terminal 300 using the communication port 14a (COM1), the virtual handle Z-2 set in the application B and the corresponding data (FIG. 13 (a)) Based on this, communication can be performed using the handle Z (regular handle) corresponding to the communication port 14a.

  In such a configuration, when the transmission process as shown in FIGS. 9 and 11A is performed from the application A to the predetermined application program of the mobile terminal 300, the transmission related API function called in S2 of FIG. For example, destination data for specifying a predetermined application program of the mobile terminal 300 may be included in the transmission data associated with (for example, the “WriteFile” function). Similarly, when the transmission process as shown in FIGS. 9 and 11A is performed from the application B to the predetermined service program of the portable terminal 300, the transmission related API function (for example, “WriteFile” is called in S2 of FIG. For example, destination data for specifying a predetermined service program of the mobile terminal 300 may be included in the transmission data associated with the “function”. Then, the driver of the mobile terminal 300 may read the destination data from such transmission data and distribute the transmission data to a program corresponding to the destination data.

  In the above description, an example in which data transmission is performed in S2 is shown, but data reception using the communication port opened in S1 is performed in the same manner. Hereinafter, a case where the data reception process is performed in S2 will be described.

  Even when data reception processing is performed in S2, processing for calling a communication-related API function is performed by the application program. For example, an API function used in Windows (registered trademark) uses a “ReadFile” function as an API function for receiving data from a communication port. When receiving data from a communication port opened in S1, this “ The “ReadFile” function is called. When calling the “ReadFile” function, the virtual handle associated with the communication port opened in S1 (the virtual handle returned in S17 in response to the open request in S1) is specified. For example, when the application A as shown in FIG. 13B receives data using the communication port 14a (COM1) described above, it corresponds to the virtual handle Z-1 unique to the application A set for the communication port 14a. Then call the “ReadFile” function.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, when a predetermined API function related to reception at the communication port (for example, ReadFile) function is called, API hook processing as shown in FIG. 11B is performed. It is like that. In this process, the specific content of the called reception-related API function (for example, “ReadFile” function) is confirmed (S31), and it is determined whether or not reception using a virtual handle is instructed (S32). Specifically, in S31, it is confirmed whether or not a virtual handle is specified in association with the reception-related API function (for example, “ReadFile” function) called in S2, and the virtual handle is not specified. In step S32, the process proceeds to No and performs other processing (for example, reading of a file) designated by the API function.

  On the other hand, if the virtual handle is designated, the process proceeds to Yes in S32, and the reception process is performed using the regular handle corresponding to the virtual handle (S34). In this process, first, it is designated by the reception related API function called in S2 (FIG. 9) based on the correspondence data (FIG. 13A) stored in S15 (FIG. 10) prior to the reception process. The regular handle corresponding to the virtual handle is read. Then, the read normal API function called in S2 (FIG. 9) is executed using the read regular handle in place of the virtual handle specified in S2. As a result, the application program that executes the process of S2 can execute the reception-related API function (for example, the “ReadFile” function) using the regular handle, and the external device (mobile phone) via the communication port specified in S1. Data can be received from the terminal 300 or the like.

  In this case, destination data indicating an application program that is a transmission destination of the transmission data is included in transmission data transmitted from each program of the external device (for example, the mobile terminal 300) to each application of the computer 2. do it. Then, on the computer 2 side, if the application program to be received by the reception process (S2: FIG. 9) reads only data including destination data specifying the application program as valid, Each reception data addressed to each application program received from the same communication port can be appropriately distributed to each application program.

In this embodiment, the CPU 3 (FIG. 3) that executes the processing of S22 or S32 corresponds to an example of “virtual handle use confirmation unit”, and the virtual handle is executed when the application program executes a specific communication-related command. It functions to confirm whether or not to perform communication using.
The CPU 3 that executes the processes of S24 and S34 corresponds to an example of a “communication control unit”. When each application program communicates using a communication port, the correspondence stored in the “corresponding data storage unit”. According to the data, it functions to use a handle (regular handle) associated with a virtual handle set in each application program, and communication using a virtual handle is performed by the “virtual handle use confirmation unit”. When it is confirmed, it functions to use a handle (regular handle) associated with a virtual handle set in the application program.

Next, the communication port closing process in S3 of FIG. 9 will be described.
The application program that executes the process of FIG. 9 performs a process of closing the communication port opened in S1 after the communication process of S2 is completed (S3). In S3, processing for calling an API function for the application program to close the communication port is performed. For example, in the API function used in Windows (registered trademark), the “CloseHandle” function is used. In S3, the “CloseHandle” function is the communication port to be closed (the communication port opened in S1). And the virtual handle (virtual handle returned in S17 in response to the open request in S1).

  In the present embodiment, when an API function (for example, “CloseHandle” function) for opening a communication port is called from an application program, processing for hooking the API function is performed as shown in FIG. The process of FIG. 12 is a process started when an API function (for example, “CloseHandle” function) that closes the communication port is called by the application program. First, the virtual handle specified by the close request in S3 And the correspondence data between the regular handle and the regular handle are discarded (S41). In this process, the data about the virtual handle specified in S3 is deleted from the corresponding data as shown in FIG. 13A. For example, application A shown in FIG. ) Designates the virtual handle Z-1 and makes a close request (calls a close-related API function), the virtual handle Z-1 and the normal handle are selected from the corresponding data in FIG. Data associated with the handle Z is deleted.

  After the process of S41, the “number of calls” of the communication port of interest (that is, the communication port for which a close request is made in S3) is decremented. For example, when the processing of FIG. 12 is performed in response to the request for closing the communication port 14a by the application A, and the “number of calls” of the communication port 14a is “3” at the time of starting the API hook processing of FIG. Then, this value is decremented and the “number of calls” is changed to “2”.

  Then, it is determined whether or not the virtual port from which the corresponding value has been deleted in S41 is the last virtual handle of the focused communication port (that is, the communication port for which the close request is made in S3) (S43). Specifically, after the process of S42, it is determined whether or not the “number of calls” of the communication port is “0”. If it is not “0”, the communication port of interest is called. This means that there is still an application program, and since the virtual port from which the corresponding value is deleted in S41 is not the last virtual handle of the communication port, the process proceeds to No in S43, and the process ends.

  On the other hand, when the “number of calls” of the communication port is “0” after the processing of S42, there is no application program calling the communication port of interest, and the corresponding value is deleted in S41. Since the virtual port is the last virtual handle of the communication port, the process proceeds to Yes in S43. When the process proceeds to Yes in S43, the normal handle of the communication port is designated and a close-related API (for example, “CloseHandle” function) is executed, and the normal handle of the communication port is deleted (S44).

  In the present embodiment, the CPU 3 that executes the process of S41 corresponds to an example of “corresponding value discarding means”, and when the communication process using the communication port by the application program ends, the above “corresponding data saving means” saves it. In the corresponding data, the function of destroying the correspondence value between the virtual handle and the handle (regular handle) for the application program for which the communication process has been completed.

(Main effects of the second embodiment)
In the communication system 200 according to the second embodiment, the number of calls of the communication port by the application program is managed by the “calling number increasing / decreasing unit”, and when the application program calls the communication port, the “calling number increasing / decreasing unit” is used. It is determined whether the number of managed calls is equal to or less than a predetermined value. When it is determined that the number of calls of the communication port is equal to or less than a predetermined value, a handle (regular handle) for performing communication at the communication port called by the application program is stored.
In this way, it can be confirmed how much the calling of the application program to the communication port is duplicated. Further, when the number of calls is small, a handle (regular handle) can be stored in advance to perform communication at the communication port.
Further, when each application program calls the communication port, a virtual handle corresponding to the handle stored by the “handle storing means” is set for each application program, and the set virtual handle and the already stored virtual handle are stored. Data corresponding to the handle (regular handle) is stored. When each application program communicates using the communication port, a handle (regular handle) associated with the virtual handle set in each application program is used according to the stored correspondence data.
In this way, when multiple application programs call the same communication port, a virtual handle can be assigned to each application program, and each application program uses the actual handle corresponding to the virtual handle based on the corresponding data. Then, communication can be performed at the communication port. Therefore, there is no need to take measures such as occupying the communication port only to the application program that called the communication port first to eliminate access to the communication port by other application programs, and multiple application programs can share the same communication. The port can be used at the same time.

The communication system 200 according to the second embodiment includes a “virtual handle use confirmation unit” that confirms whether or not to perform communication using a virtual handle when an application program executes a specific communication-related command. When it is confirmed by the “virtual handle use confirmation means” that the communication using the virtual handle is confirmed, the handle (regular handle) associated with the virtual handle set in the application program is used.
In this way, it becomes possible to perform communication using the virtual handle triggered by the execution of a specific communication-related command. At this time, after confirming whether or not to perform communication using the virtual handle, since the process has shifted to the communication process, when another process is executed with a specific communication-related command (that is, the virtual handle is Exception cases that do not use communication) can be handled easily.

  In the communication system 200 according to the second embodiment, when the communication process using the communication port by the application program is completed, the application whose communication process has been completed in the corresponding data stored by the “corresponding data storage unit”. A “corresponding value discarding unit” that discards the corresponding value between the virtual handle and the handle (regular handle) for the program is provided. In this way, it is possible to delete virtual handles that are no longer needed after the completion of communication processing, and it is possible to always maintain corresponding data in an appropriate state.

Furthermore, in the communication system 200 according to the second embodiment, the external device is configured as a mobile terminal 300 including a plurality of programs that transmit or receive data to and from the computer 2. When the application A (one application program) among the plurality of application programs of the computer 2 communicates with the application program (one program) of the portable terminal 300 using the communication port, the “corresponding data storage unit” The handle Z corresponding to the virtual handle Z-1 set in the application A (one application program) is used in accordance with the correspondence data stored in "." Further, while communication processing using the communication port by application A (one application program) is continuing (when the communication port is being opened by application A), application B (another application program) is carried by using the communication port. When communicating with the service program (other program) of the terminal 300, the handle Z corresponding to the communication port is used based on the virtual handle Z-2 set in the application B (other application program) and the corresponding data. is doing.
In this way, when any application program stored in the computer 2 performs communication processing with any program of the portable terminal 300 via the communication port, the other application programs of the computer 2 communicate with each other. Communication processing with other programs of the portable terminal 300 can be performed using the port. Accordingly, even with communication with the portable terminal 300 whose communication port is likely to be restricted, a plurality of application programs can communicate at the same time using the same communication port. Various processes can be realized with the mobile terminal 300.

[Other Embodiments]
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  In the first embodiment, the “external communication confirmation unit” is selected when any communication device is connected to the communication port 14a (first communication port) assigned to the application program A. A configuration may be adopted in which it is detected whether or not a specific type of communication device is connected to 14a, and “external communication confirmation means” is selected only when a specific type of communication device is detected. For example, only when a personal computer is connected to the communication port 14a or only when a specific type of portable information terminal is connected to the communication port 14a, the process proceeds to Yes in S3 (FIG. 4) and performs the process of S5. You may do it. In this way, the external communication confirmation unit is not selected except when a specific type of communication device that is a target of communication operation confirmation is connected, and a more appropriate selection is possible.

In the configuration of the first embodiment, a “setting change unit” that changes the setting of the second communication port to be assigned to the application program B based on a setting change command from a higher-level program that gives a command to the “virtual communication confirmation unit”. It may be added. For example, the communication port 14b assigned to the application program B in S1 (FIG. 4) may be configured to be changed based on a setting change command from a higher-level program (any program above the virtual driver). .
If it does in this way, the communication port allocated to the application program B can be changed as needed. Note that examples of the “setting change command” include a command that causes the setting value acquisition process like S1 to be performed again based on an instruction from the user.
Further, in such a configuration, when the above-described setting change instruction is issued from a higher-level program during virtual transmission / reception by the “virtual transmission / reception means” (for example, when the processing in FIGS. 6 and 7 is performed) Until the virtual transmission / reception is completed, the setting change of the second communication port by the “setting changing unit” can be stopped. In this way, it is possible to effectively prevent the virtual operation check from being forcibly interrupted due to the setting change while allowing the second communication port to be changed as necessary.

  In the first embodiment, the hardware driver is forcibly loaded when the hardware is connected to the communication port assigned to the application program to be checked for communication operation. In such a case, Confirm to the user which one to use (that is, whether to perform virtual communication operation confirmation without using hardware, or to perform external communication operation confirmation using hardware). A corresponding communication operation confirmation method may be used.

  In the first embodiment, an example in which data is transmitted from the application program A to the application program B to perform virtual operation confirmation has been described. However, not only data but also a control signal may be transmitted. For example, each control signal from the application program A may be stored in the reception buffer of the application program B so that the change state of the control signal can be detected on the application program B side.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Communication system 2 ... Computer 3 ... CPU (Communication operation confirmation means, virtual communication confirmation means, external communication confirmation means, selection means, communication port allocation means, virtual transmission / reception means, detection means, setting change means, call frequency increase / decrease means, Determination means, handle storage means, virtual handle setting means, communication control means, virtual handle use confirmation means, corresponding value discard means)
5 ... RAM (memory, handle storage means, corresponding data storage means)
14a, 14b, 14c ... communication port 300 ... portable terminal (external device, communication device)

Claims (10)

A computer having a plurality of communication ports to which communication devices can be connected and a memory;
A communication system for communicating with an external device via the communication port,
The computer
Multiple application programs,
Communication operation confirmation means for confirming communication operation for data generated by the application program;
With
The communication operation confirmation means includes
Virtual communication confirmation means for confirming the communication operation of the data by virtually trying communication between one application program and another application program in the plurality of application programs;
When the communication device is connected to the communication port, the data generated by the application program is transmitted to the outside of the computer via the communication port, thereby confirming the data communication operation. External communication confirmation means,
As means for confirming the data communication operation, selection means for selecting one of the virtual communication confirmation means and the external communication confirmation means,
Have
The virtual communication confirmation means
A first communication port in the plurality of communication ports is assigned to the one application program, and a second communication port is assigned to the other application program, and the first communication port and the second communication are assigned. Communication port assigning means for storing port information for specifying a port in the memory;
The second communication port corresponding to the first communication port is specified based on the port information, and the data to be sent from the one application program to the first communication port is the second communication port. Virtual transmission / reception means for storing in the memory as the data received by the communication port and giving to the other application program;
With
When the virtual communication confirmation unit is selected by the selection unit, the virtual transmission / reception unit performs virtual transmission / reception of the data from the one application program to the other application program, and based on the transmission / reception result. And confirming the communication operation of the data. Detecting means for detecting whether or not the communication device is connected to the communication port;
The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the selection unit selects the external communication confirmation unit on condition that the communication device is detected by the detection unit. The detecting means detects whether or not the communication device of a specific type is connected to the communication port;
The communication system according to claim 2, wherein the selection unit selects the external communication confirmation unit only when the communication device of the specific type is detected by the detection unit. The detecting means detects whether or not the communication device is connected to the first communication port assigned by the communication port assigning means;
4. The communication system according to claim 2, wherein the selection unit selects the external communication confirmation unit when the communication device is connected to the first communication port. The communication port assigning means includes
Setting changing means for changing the setting of the second communication port to be assigned to the other application program based on a setting changing instruction from a higher-level program that gives an instruction to the virtual communication confirmation means;
If the setting change instruction is made during the virtual transmission / reception by the virtual transmission / reception means, the setting change of the second communication port by the setting change means is stopped until the virtual transmission / reception is completed. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the communication system is characterized.   The communication port allocating means sets the first communication port allocated to the one application program and the second communication port allocated to the other application program as the different communication ports. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 5. A computer having a communication port to which a communication device can be connected and a memory;
A communication system for communicating with an external device via the communication port,
The computer
Multiple application programs,
The number of calls of the communication port by each application program is counted, and the number-of-calls increase / decrease means for reducing the number of calls each time communication processing using the communication port by each application program is completed,
Determining means for determining whether the number of calls by the number-of-calls increase / decrease means is equal to or less than a predetermined value when the application program calls the communication port;
A handle storing unit that stores a handle for performing communication in the communication port called by the application program when the number of calls of the communication port is determined to be equal to or less than the predetermined value by the determining unit;
Virtual handle setting means for setting a virtual handle corresponding to the handle stored by the handle storage means for each application program when each application program calls the communication port;
Corresponding data storage means for storing correspondence data between the handle stored by the handle storage means and each virtual handle set in each application program by the virtual handle setting means;
When each application program communicates using the communication port, the handle associated with the virtual handle set in each application program is set according to the correspondence data stored in the corresponding data storage unit. Communication control means to be used;
A communication system comprising: The communication control means includes
When the application program executes a specific communication related command, virtual handle use confirmation means for confirming whether to perform communication using the virtual handle,
The use of the handle associated with the virtual handle set in the application program when the virtual handle use confirmation unit confirms that the communication is using the virtual handle. Item 8. The communication system according to Item 7.   When the communication process using the communication port by the application program ends, the virtual handle and the handle for the application program for which the communication process has ended in the corresponding data stored by the corresponding data storage unit 9. The communication system according to claim 7, further comprising correspondence value discarding means for discarding the corresponding value. The external device is a portable terminal provided with a plurality of programs for transmitting or receiving data with the computer,
The communication control means includes
The correspondence data stored in the correspondence data storage means when any one of the plurality of application programs of the computer communicates with one program of the portable terminal using the communication port. And using the handle corresponding to the virtual handle set in the one application program,
When another application program of the plurality of application programs communicates with another program of the mobile terminal using the communication port while communication processing using the communication port by the one application program is continued The handle corresponding to the communication port is used based on the virtual handle set in the other application program and the corresponding data. The communication system described.

Images