JP2015159382A - Radio communication device and buffer control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a radio communication device and a buffer control method thereof that are able to efficiently obtain external data by radio communication with an external terminal if interference occurs by a radio wave used in a road-side device.SOLUTION: A radio communication device includes: an auxiliary storage device 11 for storing an installation position of a road-side device performing communication using a radio wave in a prescribed frequency band; a radio interface 102 for performing radio communication with a mobile terminal device 19 by using a radio wave in a frequency band mutually interfering with the prescribed frequency band; a data acquisition unit 109 for acquiring external data from the mobile terminal device 19; a memory 108 for temporarily storing the acquired external data; a present location determination unit 104 for determining the present location of the device; and a buffer control unit 111 for increasing a storage region secured in the memory 108 when the present location is within a prescribed range from the installation position of the road-side device.

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus that performs various processes by acquiring external data from a wirelessly connected portable terminal or the like, and a buffer control method thereof.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an in-vehicle communication system is known in which a mobile terminal such as a smartphone and an in-vehicle device are connected using a wireless communication method compliant with a wireless LAN or Bluetooth (registered trademark) standard and perform data communication with each other. For example, a smartphone and an in-vehicle navigation device are wirelessly connected by a wireless LAN, and music data stored in the smartphone can be reproduced by the in-vehicle navigation device. Such wireless communication methods using a wireless LAN or Bluetooth that are used to connect a portable terminal to an in-vehicle device mainly perform data communication using radio waves in the 2.4 GHz band.

  In recent in-vehicle navigation devices, traffic congestion and traffic regulation information called VICS (registered trademark) is acquired and used for displaying traffic congestion on a map and searching for an optimum route. To provide this VICS, VICS information is acquired by performing wireless communication with roadside devices such as FM multiplex broadcasting, radio wave beacons and optical beacons installed on the roadside. In particular, for radio communication using radio wave beacons, radio waves in the 2.4 GHz band are used as in the case of wireless LAN and Bluetooth. Therefore, in the radio beacon communication area, radio communication radio waves performed by the mobile terminal and the vehicle-mounted device interfere with radio beacon radio waves, and there is a concern about influence on communication quality such as a decrease in communication speed.

  Therefore, a proposal has been made for a mobile communication device that performs wireless communication in consideration of interference generated by in-vehicle wireless communication and wireless beacon wireless communication (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ). This mobile communication device prohibits communication by low-priority wireless communication devices, so that radio interference between the in-vehicle wireless communication and the radio communication of the radio beacon does not occur, and the high-priority wireless communication The opportunity is secured.

JP 2003-318809 A

  Incidentally, some conventional in-vehicle communication systems perform buffering when content data is acquired from a portable terminal and played back. By this buffering, it is possible to prevent image disturbance and sound interruption caused by intermittent transfer of content data from the mobile terminal or a low transfer speed. In other words, it is conceivable to secure a large buffer area in consideration of interference between a wireless LAN or Bluetooth and a radio beacon. However, securing a large buffer area may reduce the operation response of the CPU or use resources. There is concern about the increase. Therefore, it is necessary to keep the buffer area as a minimum area.

  Moreover, in the said patent document 1, the buffering is not considered and transfer of the content data using the radio | wireless communication from a portable terminal to a vehicle-mounted apparatus is restrict | limited in the area where interference may arise. In other words, in areas where there is a possibility of interference, data is not exchanged between the mobile terminal and the in-vehicle device, but data is received again when the user goes out of the area, and the in-vehicle device acquires external data. The process to do was inefficient.

  The present invention was created in view of the above points, and the purpose of the present invention is to obtain external data through wireless communication with an external terminal even when interference occurs due to radio waves used in roadside devices. An object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication apparatus and a buffer control method thereof that can be acquired efficiently.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a wireless communication apparatus according to the present invention mutually interferes with a predetermined frequency band, an installation storage unit that stores an installation position of a roadside device that communicates using radio waves of a predetermined frequency band. A wireless communication unit that wirelessly communicates with an external terminal using radio waves in a frequency band, an acquisition unit that acquires external data from the external terminal via the wireless communication unit, and a buffer that temporarily stores external data acquired by the acquisition unit A storage unit, a current position specifying unit that specifies the current position of the device itself, and a buffer control unit that increases the storage area of the buffer storage unit when the current position falls within a predetermined range from the installation position. As a result, even if interference occurs due to radio waves used by roadside equipment, even if the communication state becomes unstable due to a decrease in communication speed by increasing the storage area of the buffer memory, it is ensured that external data By importing, external data can be efficiently acquired.

  Furthermore, a movement speed detection unit that detects the movement speed of the device itself may be provided, and the buffer control unit may change the predetermined range according to the movement speed. Thereby, it becomes possible to acquire external data more reliably and efficiently.

  Here, as described above, when the predetermined range is changed according to the moving speed, the predetermined range is reduced as the moving speed is increased, while the predetermined range is increased as the moving speed is decreased. Accordingly, since the period during which interference occurs due to the high moving speed is shortened, the influence is reduced, and external data can be acquired more efficiently. Alternatively, as described above, when the predetermined range is changed according to the moving speed, the predetermined range is increased as the moving speed is increased, while the predetermined range is decreased as the moving speed is decreased. As a result, the time required to enter the range where interference occurs due to the high moving speed is shortened, so that more buffers can be stored in advance, and external data can be acquired more efficiently.

  In addition, a specifying unit that specifies the type of external data acquired from the external terminal via the wireless communication unit may be further provided, and the buffer control unit may change the predetermined range according to the type of external data. Accordingly, it is possible to acquire the external data more efficiently by changing the predetermined range in consideration of the fact that the data size varies depending on the type of external data acquired from the external terminal.

  Furthermore, an interference detection unit that detects whether or not the wireless communication by the wireless communication unit interferes with the wireless communication of the roadside device by monitoring the communication state by the wireless communication unit, the storage area of the buffer storage unit increase. As a result, the storage area of the buffer storage unit can be increased only when interference occurs, and an increase in the storage area of the buffer storage unit at an unnecessary timing can be suppressed.

  Desirably, it further includes an application processing unit that reads external data from the buffer storage unit and performs predetermined processing based on the read external data, and the buffer control unit is configured to perform predetermined processing. As long as the storage area of the buffer storage unit is increased. Thereby, since interference with a roadside device does not occur when communication is not performed using wireless communication from an external terminal, an increase in the storage area of the buffer storage unit at an unnecessary timing can be suppressed.

  The roadside device described above is a radio beacon that is installed on a highway and provides traffic jam information, and a wireless communication unit performs wireless communication with an external device using wireless communication conforming to at least one of a wireless LAN and Bluetooth. Do.

  Here, the predetermined range is a range determined based on a predetermined distance or a predetermined time with respect to the installation position of the roadside machine. In addition, when the distance is a predetermined distance, it is determined by a linear distance from the installation position of the roadside machine or a road distance. The external data is any one of music content, video content, and telephone audio data.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the vehicle-mounted system which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the portable terminal device of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the memory of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of the buffer control method of the vehicle-mounted system which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the specific example of Example 1 of this invention. It is an example of the buffer area increase range-speed variable table in the modification of Example 1 of this invention. It is an example of the buffer area increase range-data type variable table in the modification of Example 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the vehicle-mounted system which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of the buffer control method of the vehicle-mounted system which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the vehicle-mounted system which concerns on Example 3 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of the buffer control method of the vehicle-mounted system which concerns on Example 3 of this invention.

  Hereinafter, an in-vehicle system according to an embodiment to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings. As a preferred embodiment, an in-vehicle system provided in a vehicle will be described as an example.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an in-vehicle system 1 according to Example 1 of an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the in-vehicle system 1 is roughly divided into a navigation unit 10, an auxiliary storage device 11, a position information acquisition device 12, a VICS receiver 13, an input device 14, a display connected to the navigation unit 10. The device 15, the audio output device 16, and the mobile terminal device 19 are configured.

  The auxiliary storage device 11 includes a hard disk device, a flash memory, and the like, and stores map data, content data, and various program data for controlling the navigation unit. The map data includes road data that is road network information, background data for drawing a map, route calculation data that includes route calculation cost information for performing a route search, and facility data that is POI (Point Of Interest) information. It is configured. The location of the radio beacon that provides the VICS is stored in this map data. These map data are managed in a rectangular unit called a leaf for each predetermined geographical area, and each leaf has a plurality of levels corresponding to the degree of detail of the map, for example, the lowest level indicating the most detailed map ( It is managed in a hierarchical state for each of a plurality of levels from level 0) to the highest level (level 2) indicating the simplest map.

  The content data is composed of music data (for example, data created based on the MP3 audio file format) or moving image data (for example, data created based on the file format such as AVI or MP4), and management data for managing these. Is done. The program data is a set of programs necessary for operating each function of the navigation unit 10.

  The position information acquisition device 12 includes a GPS receiver and an autonomous navigation sensor (not shown). The GPS receiver receives GPS information (information on time and orbit) distributed from GPS satellites, and the autonomous navigation sensor generates a pulse at every angle sensor such as a gyro that detects a rotation angle or at a certain travel distance. It consists of a distance sensor or the like, and detects information such as the vehicle speed, acceleration (angular velocity), and vehicle direction of the vehicle. Then, the position information acquisition device 12 outputs these pieces of information to the current position specifying unit 104 described later.

  The VICS receiver 13 includes an FM multiplex broadcast receiver, a radio beacon receiver, and an optical beacon receiver, receives traffic information transmitted from a traffic information transmission source (provider), and outputs the traffic information to the navigation unit 10. . The radio beacon receiver receives traffic information by performing wireless communication with radio beacons installed on the road and radio waves in the 2.4 GHz frequency band. The traffic information is information such as the current congestion condition (congestion condition), traffic prohibition information due to construction, and traffic accident information, and is used when displaying the congestion information or searching for a route.

  The input device 14 is for accepting various instruction operations in the navigation unit 10, and is configured by various buttons, a touch panel attached to the display device 15, and the like, and an input control unit 101, which will be described later, according to operation contents. Output to.

  The display device 15 is configured by an LCD (liquid crystal display device) or the like, and displays a screen corresponding to a video signal input from the display output control unit 112 described later.

  The audio output device 16 includes a speaker or the like, and converts an audio signal input from an audio output control unit 113 described later into sound and notifies the sound.

  The mobile terminal device 19 is generally called a smartphone and has functions of a mobile phone and a mobile information terminal. As shown in FIG. 2, the mobile terminal device 19 includes a system bus 200, a communication interface 201, a control unit 202, an operation unit 204, a touch panel 205, a display unit 206, an input processing unit 207, a display processing unit 208, and a telephone processing unit 209. , Antenna 210 and memory 211.

  A communication interface (hereinafter referred to as communication I / F) 201 is a communication device (wireless LAN module) that performs wireless connection with the navigation unit 10 and transmits / receives various data by wireless communication complying with wireless LAN and Bluetooth standards. Or Bluetooth module).

  The control unit 202 is for controlling the entire mobile terminal device 19, is configured to include a CPU, and includes an application execution unit 203 that executes an application program stored in the memory 211. Further, the control unit 202 transmits the content data stored in the memory 211 to the navigation unit 10 via the communication I / F 201 in accordance with an instruction from the navigation unit 10.

  The operation unit 204 includes a numeric keypad, other keys, and various switches. The touch panel 205 detects the indicated position when a part of the screen of the display unit 206 is pointed by the user. Various operation instructions and various inputs can be performed using the operation unit 204 or the touch panel 205. The input processing unit 207 monitors the operation content of the operation unit 204 and the touch panel 205 and detects the operation content by the user.

  The display unit 206 is configured by an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or the like. The display processing unit 208 displays an operation screen including a plurality of operation icons and a screen created by the control unit 202 on the display unit 206.

  The telephone processing unit 209 performs processing as a mobile phone. For example, the telephone processing unit 209 performs call processing and Internet connection processing by performing outgoing / incoming processing with the base station via the antenna 210.

  The memory 211 stores content data such as a control program executed by the control unit 202, various application programs 212, music data, and moving image data. For example, a music playback application, a video playback application, a data transmission application, and the like are stored as the plurality of application programs 212.

  Returning to FIG. 1, the navigation unit 10 includes an input control unit 101, a communication interface 102, an auxiliary storage control unit 103, a current position specifying unit 104, a VICS interface 105, a navigation control unit 106, and application control connected to the system bus 100. Unit 107, buffer control unit 111, display output control unit 112, and audio output control unit 113.

  The input control unit 101 outputs an operation signal input from the input device 14 to each unit connected to the system bus 100.

  A communication interface (hereinafter referred to as communication I / F) 102 is a communication device (wireless LAN) that performs wireless connection with the mobile terminal device 19 and transmits / receives various data by wireless communication conforming to a wireless LAN or Bluetooth standard. Module or Bluetooth module).

  The auxiliary storage control unit 103 includes, for example, a hard disk driver or a card reader, and controls reading / writing with respect to the auxiliary storage device 11. Specifically, the auxiliary storage control unit 103 reads map data stored in the auxiliary storage device 11 and outputs the map data to the navigation control unit 106 and the buffer control unit 111 or reads content data and outputs it to the application control unit 107. To do. In addition, the auxiliary storage control unit 103 writes content data in the auxiliary storage device 11 in accordance with an instruction from the application control unit 107.

  Based on the position information input from the position information acquisition device 12, the current position specifying unit 104 uses the map data stored in the auxiliary storage device 11 as necessary, and performs position correction such as map matching. Identify the current position of the vehicle. Then, the specified current position is output to each unit connected to the system bus 100. For example, the current position specifying unit 104 outputs the specified current position to the navigation control unit 106 and the buffer control unit 111. Further, the current position specifying unit 104 outputs vehicle speed information input from the position information acquisition device 12 to the buffer control unit 111 as necessary.

  A VICS interface unit (hereinafter referred to as VICS I / F) 105 is an interface for connecting the VICS receiver 13 and outputs data received by the VICS receiver 13 to the navigation control unit 106.

  The navigation control unit 106 controls the entire navigation function of the navigation unit 10 by executing a predetermined program stored in the ROM, the RAM, and the auxiliary storage device 11 by the CPU. For example, various navigations of the navigation unit 10 such as a map display function, a route search function, a route guidance function, and a search function using the current position input from the current position specifying unit 104 and the map data stored in the auxiliary storage device 11. Perform the function.

  The application control unit 107 controls the entire application function of the navigation unit 10 by executing a predetermined program stored in the ROM, the RAM, and the auxiliary storage device 11 by the CPU. For example, using the content data stored in the auxiliary storage device 11 and various data acquired from the mobile terminal device 19, various applications of the navigation unit 10 such as a music playback function, a video playback function, an image display function, a hands-free telephone function, etc. Perform the function. As shown in FIG. 1, the application control unit 107 is divided into functional elements, and includes a memory 108, a data acquisition unit 109, and an application execution unit 110.

The memory 108 has a processing area for storing program data and a buffer area for buffering. Usually, a predetermined amount of buffer area for storing buffer data when buffering is secured for the entire storage capacity of the memory 108 (FIG. 3A). Then, in response to an instruction from the buffer control unit 111 described later, the buffer area is increased, and the processing area is reduced by the increased amount (FIG. 3B).
The data acquisition unit 109 acquires content data from the portable terminal device 19 via the auxiliary storage device 11 or the communication I / F 102 and sequentially writes the content data in the buffer area of the memory 108.

  Then, the application execution unit 110 extracts the content data stored in the buffer area of the memory 108 in the stored order, executes processing using the extracted content data, generates a video signal and an audio signal, and performs display output control. Output to the unit 112 and the audio output control unit 113. At this time, the extracted content data is deleted from the buffer area of the memory 108 as needed.

  The buffer control unit 111 controls increase / decrease of the buffer area of the memory 108 based on the position of the radio beacon stored in the map data and the current position information input from the current position specifying unit 104. Specifically, the buffer control unit 111 determines that the current position input from the current position specifying unit 104 is within a predetermined range from the installation position of the radio beacon (for example, a range having a radius of 50 m centered on the installation position of the radio beacon). Then, the buffer area of the memory 108 is increased. Thereafter, when the current position is out of the predetermined range from the installation position of the radio beacon, the buffer control unit 111 returns the increased buffer area of the memory 108 to the normal state (the state before the increase).

  The display output control unit 112 displays the image data input from the navigation control unit 106 or the application control unit 107 on the display device 15.

  The audio output control unit 113 performs D / A conversion processing on the audio data input from the navigation control unit 106 or the application control unit 107 and outputs the audio data to the audio output device 16.

  The auxiliary storage device 11 described above is an installation storage unit, the communication interface 102 is a wireless communication unit, the data acquisition unit 109 is an acquisition unit, the memory 108 is a buffer storage unit, the mobile terminal device 19 is an external terminal, and an application execution unit. 110 corresponds to each application processing unit.

  Next, a buffer control method for the in-vehicle system 1 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. Based on the various position information acquired by the current position acquisition device 12, the current position specifying unit 104 calculates the current position (step S101). Then, the current position specifying unit 104 outputs the calculated current position information to the buffer control unit 111. The current position specifying unit 104 always calculates and outputs the current position.

  Then, when the current position information is input, the buffer control unit 111 acquires the installation position of the radio beacon from the map data, and the current position is within a predetermined range (for example, the installation position of the radio beacon with respect to the installation position of the radio beacon. It is determined whether or not it is within a radius of 50 m centering on (step S103). If the buffer control unit 111 determines that it is not included (NO in step S103), the process returns to step S101. That is, the processes in steps S101 and S103 are repeated until the current position falls within a predetermined range with respect to the installation position of the radio wave beacon. On the other hand, if the buffer control unit 111 determines that it has entered (YES in step S103), the buffer control unit 111 increases the buffer area of the memory 108 of the application control unit 107 (step S105).

  Thereafter, the current position specifying unit 104 continues to calculate the current position even after the buffer control unit 111 increases the buffer area of the memory 108, and outputs the calculated current position information to the buffer control unit 111 (step S107). . The buffer control unit 111 determines whether or not the input current position information is away from a predetermined range with respect to the installation position of the radio beacon (step S109). If it is determined that the buffer control unit 111 is not separated (NO in step S109), the process returns to step S107. That is, the processes in steps S107 and S109 are repeated until the current position is away from the predetermined range with respect to the installation position of the radio beacon.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the buffer control unit 111 has been separated (YES in step S109), the buffer area of the memory 108 increased in step S105 is decreased and returned to the state before the increase (step S111).

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5 (a), while the vehicle equipped with the in-vehicle system 1 is traveling at the position of VP1, it is at least 50m away from the installation position of the radio beacon, and the buffer area of the memory 108 is set in advance. After the vehicle has traveled in the direction of the arrow and moved to the position of VP2, the buffer control unit 111 approaches within 50 m from the installation position of the radio beacon. The buffer control unit 111 increases the buffer area of the memory 108. Here, the buffer control unit 111 continues the state in which the buffer area is increased while the vehicle travels within a range within 50 m from the installation position of the radio beacon surrounded by the line C1. On the other hand, when the vehicle travels to the position of VP3 and moves away from the installation position of the radio beacon by more than 50 m (out of the range surrounded by the line C1), the buffer control unit 111 sets the buffer area of the increased memory 108 to the normal area. Return to the state (the state before the increase). FIG. 5B shows an image when the same situation as FIG. 5A is viewed from an oblique direction.

  In this way, the buffer area can be increased when the vehicle is within a predetermined range with respect to the installation position of the radio beacon. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently capture external data by reliably capturing external data. It can be acquired.

  Next, a modification of the first embodiment will be described. In the description of the first embodiment, the range in which the buffer area is increased (buffer area increase range) has been described as 50 m from the installation position of the radio beacon. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the radio beacon communication area (for example, the dotted line C2 in FIG. 5). As long as it is a wider range, any range may be set without departing from the effects of the present invention. For example, the distance of 50 m may be set to 70 m, or the distance from the installation position of the radio beacon may be set to 50 m. Further, the buffer area increase range may be dynamically changed according to the traveling speed of the vehicle (the movement speed of the own device). For example, a buffer area increase range-speed variable table as shown in FIG. 6 may be provided in the buffer control unit 111 in advance so that the buffer area increase range decreases as the traveling speed increases (a). Conversely, the buffer area increase range may be increased as the traveling speed increases (b). It is also possible for the application control unit 107 to acquire from the mobile terminal device 19 via the communication I / F 102 and dynamically change depending on the type of content data being processed. For example, a buffer area increase range-data type variable table as shown in FIG. 7 is provided in the buffer control unit 111 in advance. Generally, video data having a large data size has a large buffer area increase range. For free telephone voice data, the buffer increase range may be set small. In this way, the buffer area increase range can be set to be variable according to the situation. Note that the vehicle traveling speed is detected based on the vehicle position at each time specified by the current position specifying unit 104, or based on vehicle speed pulses output at regular intervals from a vehicle speed sensor (not shown). It may be possible to detect them. In this case, the current position specifying unit 104 and the vehicle speed sensor correspond to the movement speed detecting unit.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the in-vehicle system 2 according to Example 2 of the embodiment. In addition, about the same structure as Example 1, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and the description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the in-vehicle system 2 is roughly divided into a navigation unit 20, an auxiliary storage device 11, a position information acquisition device 12, a VICS receiver 13, an input device 14, and a display connected to the navigation unit 20, respectively. The device 15, the audio output device 16, and the mobile terminal device 19 are configured.

  The navigation unit 20 includes an input control unit 101, a communication interface 102, an auxiliary storage control unit 103, a current position specifying unit 104, a VICS interface 105, a navigation control unit 106, an application control unit 107, and a buffer control connected to the system bus 100, respectively. 311, a display output control unit 112, an audio output control unit 113, and an interference detection unit 301.

  The interference detection unit 301 monitors the transfer speed of various data acquired via the communication I / F 102 and determines whether or not interference has occurred by determining whether or not the transfer speed has dropped. Then, the interference detection unit 301 outputs the result to the buffer control unit 311. Specifically, the interference detection unit 301 determines that interference has occurred when the transfer rate of various data to be acquired has dropped (slowed), and outputs the result to the buffer control unit 311.

  Based on the position of the radio beacon stored in the map data and the current position information input from the current position specifying unit 104, the buffer control unit 311 determines whether the radio beacon is within a predetermined range. If it is determined that the predetermined range is reached, the buffer control unit 311 subsequently controls increase / decrease of the buffer area of the memory 108 according to the result of whether or not there is interference input from the interference detection unit 301. . Specifically, when the current position input from the current position specifying unit 104 falls within a predetermined range from the installation position of the radio beacon and the interference detection unit 301 detects interference, the buffer control unit 311 The buffer area of 108 is increased. Thereafter, when the current position is outside the predetermined range from the installation position of the radio beacon and the interference detection unit 301 detects that no interference has been detected, the buffer control unit 311 sets the increased buffer area of the memory 108 to the normal state. Return to the state before increasing. Alternatively, the buffer control unit 311 increases the current position when it is out of a predetermined range from the installation position of the radio beacon or when the interference detection unit 301 detects that no interference has occurred. The buffer area of the memory 108 is returned to the normal state (the state before the increase).

  Next, a buffer control method for the in-vehicle system 2 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  Based on the various position information acquired by the current position acquisition device 12, the current position specifying unit 104 calculates the current position (step S201). Then, the current position specifying unit 104 outputs the calculated current position information to the buffer control unit 311. The current position specifying unit 104 always calculates and outputs the current position.

  When the current position information is input, the buffer control unit 311 acquires the installation position of the radio beacon from the map data, and the current position is within a predetermined range (for example, the intention to install the radio beacon with respect to the installation position of the radio beacon. It is determined whether or not it is within a range of a radius of 50 m centering on (step S203). If the buffer control unit 311 determines that it is not included (NO in step S203), the process returns to step S201. That is, the processes in steps S201 and S203 are repeated until the current position falls within a predetermined range with respect to the installation position of the radio wave beacon. On the other hand, if the buffer control unit 311 determines that it has entered (YES in step S203), the buffer control unit 311 subsequently determines whether interference has occurred based on the detection result of interference input from the interference detection unit 301. Is determined (step S205). If the buffer control unit 311 determines that interference has not occurred (NO in step S205), the interference generation determination in step S205 is repeatedly performed until it is determined that interference occurs. On the other hand, when the buffer control unit 311 determines that interference has occurred (YES in step S205), the buffer control unit 311 increases the buffer area of the memory 108 of the application control unit 107 (step S207).

  After that, the current position specifying unit 104 continues to calculate the current position even after the buffer control unit 311 increases the buffer area of the memory 108, and outputs the calculated current position information to the buffer control unit 311 (step S209). . The buffer control unit 311 is based on the interference detection result input from the interference detection unit 301 until the interference disappears or the input current position information is away from a predetermined range with respect to the installation position of the radio wave beacon. The state where the buffer area is increased is continued (step S211).

  When the buffer control unit 311 determines that the interference has disappeared or that the current position is away from the predetermined range (YES in step S211), the state before the buffer area of the memory 108 increased in step S207 is decreased and increased. (Step S213).

  By doing so, the unnecessary buffer area is increased when there is no radio wave interference due to some influence even though the vehicle is within the predetermined range with respect to the installation location of the radio beacon. Therefore, external data can be acquired more efficiently.

  Here, in step S211 of the second embodiment, the buffer control unit 311 returns to the state before the buffer area of the memory 108 is increased when it is determined that there is no interference or the current position is away from the predetermined range. Although the example of returning has been described, when it is determined that there is no interference and the current position is away from the predetermined range, the buffer area of the memory 108 may be returned to the state before the increase.

  Also in the second embodiment, as shown in the modification of the first embodiment, the predetermined range is changed in the same manner as in the first embodiment, such as changing according to the speed or changing according to the data type. It is possible.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the in-vehicle system 3 according to Example 3 of the embodiment. In addition, about the same structure as Example 1 and Example 2, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and the description is abbreviate | omitted. In the first embodiment or the second embodiment, the buffer area increase range has been described based on a predetermined distance from the installation position of the radio beacon. In the third embodiment, the buffer area increase range is set as the radio beacon installation. An example of a predetermined time until reaching the position will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the in-vehicle system 3 is roughly divided into a navigation unit 30, an auxiliary storage device 11, a position information acquisition device 12, a VICS receiver 13, an input device 14, a display connected to the navigation unit 30. The device 15, the audio output device 16, and the mobile terminal device 19 are configured.

  The navigation unit 30 includes an input control unit 101, a communication interface 102, an auxiliary storage control unit 103, a current position specifying unit 104, a VICS interface 105, a navigation control unit 406, an application control unit 107, and a buffer control connected to the system bus 100. Unit 411, display output control unit 112, and audio output control unit 113.

  The navigation control unit 406 performs the current position based on the current position input from the current position specifying unit 104 and the map data stored in the auxiliary storage device 11 in addition to the various processes of the navigation control unit 106 described in the first embodiment. To calculate the required time from the location to the installation location of the radio beacon closest to the current location. Then, the navigation control unit 406 outputs the calculated required time to the buffer control unit 411.

  The buffer control unit 411 controls increase / decrease of the buffer area of the memory 108 based on the required time input from the navigation control unit 406 and the buffer increase start time preset in the buffer control unit 411. Specifically, the buffer control unit 411 sets the buffer area of the memory 108 when the required time input from the navigation control unit 406 falls within a preset buffer increase start time (for example, 10 seconds). increase. Thereafter, when the current position reaches the installation position of the radio beacon, the buffer control unit 411 starts a timer, determines whether or not the buffer increase end time (for example, 10 seconds) has elapsed, and determines that it has elapsed. The increased buffer area of the memory 108 is returned to the normal state (the state before the increase).

  Next, a buffer control method for the in-vehicle system 3 according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  Based on the various position information acquired by the current position acquisition device 12, the current position specifying unit 104 calculates the current position (step S301). Then, the current position specifying unit 104 outputs the calculated current position information to the buffer control unit 411 and also outputs it to the navigation control unit 106.

  Then, the navigation control unit 406 calculates the time required to reach the radio beacon installation position closest to the current position from the current position based on the current radio wave beacon installation position closest to the current position stored in the map data. (Step S303). Then, the navigation control unit 406 outputs the result to the buffer control unit 411.

  The buffer control unit 411 determines whether the required time input from the navigation control unit 406 is within a preset buffer increase start time (step S305). If the buffer control unit 411 determines that it is not within the buffer increase start time (NO in step S305), the process returns to step S301. That is, the processes in steps S301 and S303 are repeated until the input required time is within the buffer increase start time. On the other hand, when the buffer control unit 411 determines that the buffer increase start time is within the buffer increase start time (YES in step S305), the buffer control unit 411 increases the buffer area of the memory 108 of the application control unit 107 (step S307).

  After that, the current position specifying unit 104 continues to calculate the current position even after the buffer control unit 411 increases the buffer area of the memory 108, and outputs the calculated current position information to the buffer control unit 411 (step S309). . Then, when the current position reaches the installation position of the radio wave beacon stored in the map data (YES in step S311), the buffer control unit 411 starts a timer (step S313), and the timer is increased by a preset buffer increase. It is determined whether the end time has elapsed (step S315). If the buffer control unit 411 determines that this timer has not elapsed the buffer increase end time (NO in step S315), the buffer control unit 411 returns to step S315. That is, the determination in step S315 is repeated until the timer has elapsed the buffer increase end time. On the other hand, if the buffer control unit 411 determines that the buffer increase end time has elapsed (YES in step S315), the buffer area of the memory 108 increased in step S309 is decreased and returned to the state before the increase (step S317).

  In this way, it is possible to set the buffer area increase range not to a predetermined distance from the radio beacon installation position but to a predetermined time until the radio beacon installation position is reached.

  In the third embodiment, by adding the interference control unit 301 shown in the second embodiment, it is possible to control the increase in the buffer area in consideration of the presence or absence of interference.

  In the first to third embodiments, the example in which the buffer area is provided in the memory constituting the application control unit 107 of the navigation unit has been described. It is.

  Moreover, although the said Example 1-3 demonstrated the vehicle-mounted system which has a VICS receiver as an example, it is applicable also to the vehicle-mounted system which has not connected the VICS receiver.

  Further, in the first to third embodiments, the example in which the mobile terminal device is used as a smartphone has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the navigation unit and the data of the data are transmitted using wireless communication complying with a standard such as a wireless LAN or Bluetooth. It may be capable of transmission / reception. For example, even in a mobile phone that is not a portable music player or a smartphone, various devices that can acquire content by wireless communication such as wireless LAN and Bluetooth are possible. And in the said Examples 1-3, although the increase control of the buffer area | region was demonstrated with respect to the installation position of a radio wave beacon, it is not restricted to this radio wave beacon but the radio wave of the zone | band which produces interference with in-vehicle wireless communication. All applications can be applied to roadside devices that use and communicate wirelessly. For example, when in-vehicle wireless communication is performed using 2.4 GHz band radio waves, in addition to the above radio wave beacon, the location of an Internet communication access point that communicates using 2.4 GHz band radio waves is also considered. When the in-vehicle wireless communication is performed using radio waves in the 5 GHz band, the position of the roadside device that performs communication using the radio waves in the 5 GHz band can be similarly determined. Considering this, the buffer area can be increased.

  As described above, according to the present invention, external data can be efficiently acquired in a wireless communication apparatus that acquires external data from a wirelessly connected mobile terminal or the like and performs various processes.

1, 2, 3 In-vehicle system 10, 20, 30 Navigation unit 11 Auxiliary storage device 12 Location information acquisition device 13 VICS receiver 100 System bus 102 Communication I / F
103 Auxiliary storage control unit 104 Current position specifying unit 105 VICS I / F
106, 406 Navigation control unit 107 Application control unit 108 Memory 109 Data acquisition unit 110 Application execution unit 111, 311, 411 Buffer control unit 301 Interference control unit VP1, VP2, VP3 Vehicle position

Claims (13)

An installation storage unit that stores an installation position of a roadside device that communicates using radio waves of a predetermined frequency band;
A wireless communication unit that wirelessly communicates with an external terminal using radio waves in a frequency band that mutually interferes with the predetermined frequency band;
An acquisition unit for acquiring external data from the external terminal via the wireless communication unit;

A buffer storage unit for temporarily storing the external data acquired by the acquisition unit;
A current position specifying unit for specifying the current position of the own device;
A buffer control unit that increases a storage area of the buffer storage unit when the current position is within a predetermined range from the installation position;
A wireless communication apparatus comprising: In claim 1,
The wireless communication apparatus, wherein the predetermined range is a predetermined distance or a predetermined time. In claim 1 or 2,
It further comprises a moving speed detector that detects the moving speed of the device itself,
The said buffer control part changes the said predetermined range according to the said moving speed, The radio | wireless communication apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. In claim 3,
The buffer control unit reduces the predetermined range as the moving speed increases, and increases the predetermined range as the moving speed decreases. In claim 3,
The said buffer control part enlarges the said predetermined range as the said moving speed becomes fast, On the other hand, the said predetermined range is made small as the said moving speed becomes slow, The radio | wireless communication apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. In claim 1 or 2,
A specifying unit that specifies the type of the external data acquired from the external terminal via the wireless communication unit;
The wireless communication apparatus, wherein the buffer control unit changes the predetermined range according to a type of the external data. In any one of Claim 1 to 6,
An interference detection unit that detects whether or not wireless communication by the wireless communication unit interferes with wireless communication of the roadside device by monitoring a communication state by the wireless communication unit,
The said buffer control part increases the memory area of the said buffer memory | storage part, when interference is detected by the said interference detection part, The radio | wireless communication apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. In any one of Claims 1-7,
The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined range is a range determined by a linear distance or a distance from a roadside machine installation position. In any one of Claims 1 to 8,
The wireless communication apparatus further comprising: an application processing unit that reads the external data from the buffer storage unit and performs a predetermined process based on the read external data. In claim 9,
The wireless communication apparatus, wherein the buffer control unit increases a storage area of the buffer storage unit only when the application processing unit is performing the predetermined process. In any one of Claims 1 to 10,
The wireless communication apparatus, wherein the external data is any one of music content, video content, and telephone audio data. In any one of Claims 1-11,
The roadside device is a radio beacon that is installed on a highway and provides traffic jam information.
The wireless communication apparatus, wherein the wireless communication unit performs wireless communication with the external device using a wireless communication method that complies with at least one of a wireless LAN standard and a Bluetooth standard. A buffer control method for a wireless communication device having an installation position storage unit that stores an installation position of a roadside device that communicates using radio waves of a predetermined frequency band,
Wirelessly communicating with an external terminal by a wireless communication unit using radio waves in a frequency band that mutually interferes with the predetermined frequency band;
Acquiring external data from the external terminal by the acquisition unit via the wireless communication unit;
Temporarily storing external data acquired by the acquisition unit by a buffer storage unit;
Identifying the current position of the device by the current position identifying unit;
Increasing the storage area of the buffer storage unit by the buffer control unit when the current position is within a predetermined range from the installation position;
A buffer control method for a wireless communication apparatus, comprising:

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