JP3856427B2 - Connection method between terminals - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method of connecting terminals, and more particularly, IP a method of connecting terminals using a global IP address which is defined by the (Internet Protocol), a suitable device applied to a particular dynamic IP address It is related with the connection method between .
[0002]
[Prior art]
In general, all terminals connected to the Internet are identified by unique information called IP addresses. IP addresses are permitted to be used in "global IP addresses" that are strictly managed by organizations such as InterNIC and JPNIC (Japan Network Information Center), and in closed network environments (LAN: Local Area Network, etc.) There are two types of “private IP addresses”. In order to connect to the Internet, a global IP address that is unique (one and only) on a global scale must be used. Hereinafter, the simple IP address refers to this global IP address.
[0003]
The address space of the IP address is 32 bits (in the case of the current IPv4). This means that approximately 4.3 billion terminals can be identified on the Internet by simple calculation. However, when IP addresses are fixedly assigned to all terminals (also called static assignments), considering the current explosive increase in the Internet population, address space depletion is also said to be a time issue. In order to effectively use such IP address resources, IP address lending (lease), that is, dynamic IP address allocation using DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is performed.
[0004]
FIG. 3A is a conceptual diagram of lending dynamic IP addresses. A server group 2 to which IP addresses are fixedly assigned is connected to the Internet 1. The server group 2 is, for example, a web server for browsing a homepage of a company or the like.
[0005]
Considering now that a user's terminal 3 is connected to the Internet 1 and an arbitrary server in the server group 2 is accessed. (1) First, the terminal 3 sends an IP address to the DHCP server 4 via the Internet 1. Make a request. (2) The DHCP server 4 extracts an unused IP address from the IP address range managed by the DHCP server 4 and assigns the IP address to the terminal 3. (3) Next, the terminal 3 that has been assigned an IP address sets the IP address as the source address of the IP packet, and sets the IP address of an arbitrary server in the server group 2 as the destination address of the IP packet. Then, by sending the IP packet to the Internet 1, (4) it is possible to receive a required service such as content such as a home page from the arbitrary server.
[0006]
As described above, in the Internet world, one-to-one packet exchange can be performed between terminals identified by IP addresses, and various digital data including the above-mentioned homepage browsing can be transmitted and received. Can do.
[0007]
Here, a technology called VoIP (Voice over IP) is a technology that converts a voice signal into a digital signal and converts it into an IP packet, and can use an IP network such as the Internet for a communication line.
[0008]
FIG. 3B is a conceptual diagram of a voice call system (so-called IP telephone system) using VoIP. An IP address is assigned to each of the IP telephone terminals 5 and 6 connected to the Internet 1. For example, when calling the IP phone terminal 6 on the left side (hereinafter referred to as the call destination terminal) from the IP phone terminal 5 on the right side (hereinafter referred to as the call source terminal), the IP of the call destination terminal 6 is displayed on the operation panel of the call source terminal 5. Enter an address.
[0009]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, in the IP telephone system, if the IP address of the call destination terminal 6 is not known, the telephone cannot be called. Therefore, the IP address of the call destination terminal 6 is set in advance on the caller side (caller terminal 5). Side)). However, since the IP address is not familiar unlike the telephone number of a general subscriber telephone, it is confusing which information should be transmitted (or received), especially when the above-mentioned dynamic IP address is used. Since the IP address once transmitted has already expired (cannot be used), there is a problem that sufficient reliability cannot be obtained in such an artificially performed IP address notification method. is there.
[0010]
This problem is not unique to the IP telephone system, but can be applied to all terminals that can be connected to each other via the Internet. For example, video teleconference systems and monitor systems that connect remote terminals and exchange images, remote control systems that operate remote computers, etc. have similar problems (IP address reliability problems). I have it.
[0011]
Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is that it is possible to notify an IP address without using human hands by using a public telephone line together, thereby improving the reliability of the IP address notification. An object of the present invention is to provide a connection method between terminals suitable for application to dynamic IP address assignment.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The invention of claim 1 wherein is a connection between connectable terminal to each other by selectively using the Internet and the public telephone line,
Storing an association table of the phone number and IP address of the terminal in a server on the Internet;
Regarding the data update of the association table, the server is accessed from the terminal via the Internet periodically or when a new IP address is acquired at the terminal, and the server's IP address and telephone number are notified to the server. Update the data of the terminal in the association table stored in the server,
When connecting from the calling terminal to the called terminal,
Taking out the IP address of the call destination terminal from the association table using the telephone number of the call destination terminal as a clue,
If the IP address can be extracted, the IP address is used to connect to the called terminal via the Internet. If the IP address cannot be extracted, the telephone number can be used via the public telephone line. Connect to the called terminal ,
For new registration of data in the association table, when registering the new data, dial the server using a public telephone line by operating a data registration button provided on the terminal,
The dial-destination server uses the caller ID notification function to acquire the telephone number of the terminal on which the data registration button is operated, acquires the IP address transmitted from the terminal to the server, and acquires these acquired telephones. A number and an IP address are newly registered in the association table as new data of the terminal .
[0015]
The invention according to claim 2 is a connection method between terminals that can be connected to each other selectively using the Internet and a public telephone line,
Storing an association table between the phone number of the terminal and the IP address in a server on the Internet;
For updating the data in the association table , a predetermined tone signal or a combination thereof is transmitted from the calling terminal to the called terminal via a public telephone line, and the calling terminal responds to the tone signal or the combination to the server. To access and notify the server of the IP address and telephone number of the terminal and update the data of the terminal in the association table stored in the server;
When connecting from the calling terminal to the called terminal,
Taking out the IP address of the call destination terminal from the association table using the telephone number of the call destination terminal as a clue,
If the IP address can be extracted, the IP address is used to connect to the called terminal via the Internet. If the IP address cannot be extracted, the telephone number can be used via the public telephone line. Connect to the called terminal ,
For new registration of data in the association table, when registering the new data, dial the server using a public telephone line by operating a data registration button provided on the terminal,
The dial-destination server uses the caller ID notification function to acquire the telephone number of the terminal on which the data registration button is operated, acquires the IP address transmitted from the terminal to the server, and acquires these acquired telephones. A number and an IP address are newly registered in the association table as new data of the terminal .
[0020]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the specific details or examples in the following description and the illustrations of numerical values, character strings, and other symbols are only for reference in order to clarify the idea of the present invention, and the present invention may be used in whole or in part. Obviously, the idea of the invention is not limited. In addition, a well-known method, a well-known procedure, a well-known architecture, a well-known circuit configuration, and the like (hereinafter, “well-known matter”) are not described in detail, but this is also to simplify the description. Not all or part of the matter is intentionally excluded. Such well-known matters are known to those skilled in the art at the time of filing of the present invention, and are naturally included in the following description.
[0021]
<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an IP telephone system as an example of the first embodiment of the present invention. IP telephone terminals 11 and 12 to which the technical idea of the present invention is applied are connected to the Internet 10, and these IP telephone terminals 11 and 12 are also connected to a public telephone line 13. Here, the IP telephone terminals 11 and 12 can perform a voice call via the Internet 10 using the VoIP technology, and can also perform a normal voice call via the public telephone line 13. And the public telephone line 13 are equivalent to terminals that can be connected to each other selectively.
[0022]
Hereinafter, for convenience, it is assumed that the IP telephone terminal 11 on the right side of the drawing is called “calling terminal”, its telephone number is “03-111-2222”, and its IP address is “192.168.1.1”. At the same time, the IP telephone terminal 12 on the left side of the drawing is referred to as a “call destination terminal”, its telephone number is “03-3333-4444”, and its IP address is “192.168.1.2”. .
[0023]
The example IP address is included in the range of a so-called class C private IP address. This is because, when a global IP address is exemplified, the owner of the IP address is specified. As described at the beginning, since it must be a global IP address in order to connect to the Internet, the example IP address (192.168.1. *) Is assumed to be a global IP.
[0024]
The Internet 10 is a global network that supports the Internet protocol, and various user terminals such as a caller terminal 11 and a callee terminal 12 are connected to the network, and various servers (not shown) are connected. It is a wide area network constructed by connecting groups. The connection form of the user terminal may be either a dial-up connection or a constant connection made via an Internet service provider (ISP) access server (not shown). Hereinafter, a constant connection is taken as an example for simplification of explanation.
[0025]
The public telephone line 13 is a general subscriber analog telephone line, a digital telephone line, a mobile telephone line (including a PHS: Personal Handy-Phon System line), or a private telephone line (cordless line or local area). Phone line, etc.).
[0026]
The caller terminal 11 and the callee terminal 12 in the first embodiment execute the following characteristic procedure when calling the terminal.
(A) IP address notification of caller terminal 11 First, the caller terminal 11 calls the telephone number (03-3333-4444) of the callee terminal 12 via the public telephone line 13, and the caller terminal 11 The IP address (192.168.1.1) is notified to the called terminal 12.
[0027]
(B) IP address notification of the callee terminal 12 When the callee terminal 12 receives the call and receives the IP address (192.168.1.1) of the caller terminal 11, it connects to the Internet 10, The IP address (192.168.1.1) of the caller terminal 11 is set as the destination address of the IP packet, and the own IP address (192.168.1.2) is set as the source address of the IP packet. Is set and sent to the Internet 10.
[0028]
When the caller terminal 11 monitors a packet of the Internet 10 and detects a packet in which its own IP address (192.168.1.1) is set as a transmission destination address, the caller terminal 11 captures the packet and transmits the packet. The IP address (192.168.1.2) set in the address is received.
[0029]
(C) Interconnection between both terminals 11 and 12 By executing these procedures (A) and (B), the caller terminal 11 sets the IP address (192.168.1.2) of the callee terminal 12. The call destination terminal 12 can also know the IP address (192.168.1.1) of the call source terminal 11, so that both terminals 11 and 12 can communicate with each other via the Internet 10 thereafter. Connection can be made without any trouble.
[0030]
Therefore, in the IP telephone system according to the first embodiment, a voice call using the VoIP technology can be realized on the Internet 10 without performing artificial IP address notification, or remotely. These functions can be realized on the Internet 10 without any trouble even in a video teleconference system or a monitor system for connecting images between local terminals and a remote control system for operating a remote computer. be able to.
[0031]
In addition, since the IP address notification to the other party in both terminals 11 and 12 is performed when calling the call destination terminal (call destination terminal 12) from the call source terminal (call source terminal 11), it is assigned at the time of the call. The latest IP addresses can be notified to each other, and in particular, a suitable technique can be provided by applying to a dynamic IP address in which the lending period of the IP address is determined.
[0032]
<Second Embodiment>
FIG. 2A is a system conceptual diagram of an IP telephone system as an example as in the first embodiment, as a second embodiment of the present invention. IP telephone terminals 21 and 22 and a server 23 to which the technical idea of the present invention is applied are connected to the Internet 20, and the IP telephone terminals 21 and 22 are also connected to a public telephone line 24. Here, the IP telephone terminals 21 and 22 can perform a voice call via the Internet 20 using the VoIP technology, and can also perform a normal voice call via the public telephone line 24. In short, the Internet 20 And the public telephone line 24 are equivalent to terminals that can be connected to each other selectively.
[0033]
Hereinafter, for convenience, it is assumed that the IP telephone terminal 21 on the right side of the drawing is referred to as “calling terminal”, the telephone number is “03-111-2222”, and the IP address is “192.168.1.1”. At the same time, the IP telephone terminal 22 on the left side of the drawing is referred to as a “call destination terminal”, its telephone number is assumed to be “03-3333-4444”, and its IP address is assumed to be “192.168.1.2”. . The example IP address is assumed to be a global IP for the same reason as in the first embodiment.
[0034]
The Internet 20 is a global network that supports the Internet protocol, and various user terminals such as a caller terminal 21 and a callee terminal 22 are connected to the network, and various servers (not shown) are connected. It is a wide area network constructed by connecting groups. The connection form of the user terminal may be either dial-up connection or constant connection performed via an access server of an Internet service provider (not shown). Hereinafter, a constant connection is taken as an example for simplification of explanation.
[0035]
The public telephone line 24 is a general subscriber analog telephone line, a digital telephone line, a cellular phone line (including a PHS line), or a private telephone line (such as a cordless line or a private telephone line). You may go out.
[0036]
The server 23 holds the association table shown in FIG. In FIG. 2B, the association table 25 is provided with a record composed of a telephone number field 25a and an IP address field 25b for the number of registered user terminals. For example, the user terminal is defined as the two IP telephone terminals. Assuming that (caller terminal 21 and callee terminal 22), “03-11111-2222” is stored in the telephone number field 25a of the first record, and “192.168.8.1” is stored in the IP address field 25b of the same record. .1 ”,“ 03-3333-4444 ”is stored in the telephone number field 25a of the second record, and“ 192.168.1.2 ”is stored in the IP address field 25b of the same record. is doing.
[0037]
In this association table 25, records are extracted by using the stored contents (telephone number) of the telephone number field 25a as a clue (keyword). If there is a corresponding record, the IP address field of the extracted record is extracted. The stored content (IP address) of 25b is returned, or when there is no corresponding record, information indicating that (for convenience, a character string “no corresponding record”) is returned. ing.
[0038]
The caller terminal 21 and the callee terminal 22 in the second embodiment execute the following characteristic procedure when calling the terminal.
(A) The reference caller terminal 21 in the association table 25 first accesses the server 21 via the Internet 20 and passes the telephone number (03-3333-4444) of the callee terminal 22 to the server 23 (b-1). .
[0039]
The server 23 searches the association table 25 for records using this telephone number (03-3333-4444) as a clue (keyword), and finds a record whose stored content in the telephone number field 25a is “03-3333-4444”. In this case, the stored contents (192.168.1.2) of the IP address field 25b of the record are extracted, and the IP address “192.168.1.2” is transmitted to the calling terminal 21 via the Internet 10. (I-2).
[0040]
Alternatively, as a result of the record search, if a record whose stored content in the telephone number field 25 a is “03-3333-4444” is not found, the character string “no corresponding record” is transmitted to the caller terminal 21 via the Internet 10. (I-2).
[0041]
(B) Connection to Called Terminal 22 When an IP address is returned from the server 23, the caller terminal 21 connects to the called terminal 22 via the Internet 20 with the IP address as the destination (B-1). On the other hand, when the character string “no corresponding record” is returned from the server 23, connection to the call destination terminal 22 is made via the public telephone line 24 with the telephone number (03-3333-4444) as the destination (B). -2).
[0042]
Therefore, according to the procedures (a) and (b), when the identification information (phone number and IP address) of the called terminal 22 is registered in the association table 25 of the server 23, both terminals ( If the call source terminal 21 and the call destination terminal 22) can be interconnected, but the identification information of the call destination terminal 22 is not registered in the association table 25 of the server 23, for example, the call destination terminal 22 If only the telephone function is provided, the two terminals (caller terminal 21 and callee terminal 22) can be interconnected via the public telephone line 24. Accordingly, since it is not necessary to consider the function of the call destination terminal 22 (the presence or absence of the IP telephone terminal function), it is possible to freely connect the terminals without performing work such as registering the destination terminal in advance. A user-friendly system can be constructed.
[0043]
(C) Updating the data in the association table 25 When applying a dynamic IP address, there is a possibility that the IP address held in the association table 25 has expired. In this case, the following can be considered.
[0044]
First countermeasure: When an IP address update event (new acquisition of a dynamic IP address) is performed at each user terminal connected to the Internet 20 (calling terminal 21 and calling terminal 22 in the figure), The information (telephone number and newly acquired IP address) is sent to the server 23, and the server 23 updates the corresponding record in the association table 25 (c-1).
[0045]
Alternatively, instead of every IP address update event, a telephone number and an IP address are periodically sent from each user terminal (in the drawing, the caller terminal 21 and the callee terminal 22) to the server 23, and the server 23 uses the association table 25. The corresponding record is updated (C-1).
[0046]
Third countermeasure: When calling the callee terminal 22 from the caller terminal 21, the callee terminal 22 is called via the public telephone line 24 and a predetermined tone signal (DTMF: Dial Tone Multi Frequency signal) or a combination thereof In response to the tone signal or a combination thereof, the update event of the first countermeasure is forcibly generated (C-2).
[0047]
If any one of these measures is adopted, the data in the association table 25 is maintained in the latest state, so that the inconvenience (IP address expiration) when the dynamic IP address is applied can be solved.
[0048]
(D) New data registration of association table 25 New data registration (new registration of telephone number and IP address) to the association table 25 can be performed as follows. For example, the IP telephone terminal (21 or 22) is provided with an initial setting button or a data registration button, and when this button is pressed, the server 23 is dialed via the public telephone line 24. . The dial-destination server 23 uses the caller ID notification function (so-called number display function) to obtain the dial source telephone number (the telephone number of the user to which the IP telephone terminal itself is connected), and the association table 25. A new record is added to the telephone number, and the acquired telephone number is registered in the record. At the same time, the IP address transmitted from the IP telephone terminal to the server 23 is recorded in the record. By this method, it is possible to prevent an erroneous call of the other party due to a mistaken input of a telephone number or a human error, and it is possible to use without requiring complicated registration work.
[0049]
That is, a user who has purchased or obtained an IP phone terminal connects the IP phone terminal to the Internet 20 and the public telephone line 24, and simply presses the button to set the IP phone terminal phone number. An IP address can be newly registered in the association table 25.
[0050]
According to this procedure, the data (telephone number and IP address) of the IP telephone terminal to which the technical idea of the present invention is applied can be newly registered in the association table 25 with one touch, so that the IP number whose partner's telephone number is known can be registered. Of course, it is possible to make a voice call between VoIP terminals, as long as it is a party registered in the association table 25, even if it is a third party who does not know at all, it is possible to make a VoIP call A voice call can be performed.
[0051]
Note that the description of the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above uses the IP telephone system as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can be applied to all systems that are connected to the Internet and need to know the IP address of the partner terminal. For example, it may be a video teleconference system or a monitor system for connecting images between remote terminals and exchanging images, a remote control system for operating a remote computer, or the like.
[0052]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, the IP address can be notified without manpower, the reliability of the IP address notification can be improved, and in particular, the IP address notification suitable for application to dynamic IP address allocation. A method can be provided.
In addition, for example, an IP telephone system that can cope with both a case where the destination terminal has an IP telephone terminal function and a case where only the general subscriber telephone function is available and which can coexist with the general subscriber telephone system is realized. be able to.
In addition, since the data in the association table is updated periodically, when a new IP address is acquired, or when a terminal is called, it is possible to deal with an IP address expiration problem when a dynamic IP address is applied.
Then, a user who has purchased or obtained an IP phone terminal while achieving the above-described effect can connect the IP phone terminal to the Internet and a public telephone line, and simply perform a simple operation of pressing a data registration button. The telephone number and IP address of the telephone terminal can be newly registered in the association table. Therefore, it is possible to prevent an erroneous call of the other party due to an incorrect input of a telephone number or a human error, and it can be used without requiring complicated registration work.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a system conceptual diagram according to a first embodiment of this invention.
FIG. 2 is a system conceptual diagram and a table conceptual diagram of an association table 25 according to the second embodiment of this invention.
FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of lending dynamic IP addresses and a conceptual diagram of an IP telephone system.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 Internet 11 IP phone terminal (caller terminal)
12 IP phone terminal (calling terminal)
13 Public telephone line 20 Internet 21 IP telephone terminal (caller terminal)
22 IP phone terminal (calling terminal)
23 Server 24 Public telephone line 25 Association table

Claims (2)

A connection method between terminals that can be connected to each other selectively using the Internet and a public telephone line,
Storing an association table of the phone number and IP address of the terminal in a server on the Internet;
Regarding the data update of the association table, the server is accessed from the terminal via the Internet periodically or when a new IP address is acquired at the terminal, and the server's IP address and telephone number are notified to the server. Update the data of the terminal in the association table stored in the server,
When connecting from the calling terminal to the called terminal,
Taking out the IP address of the call destination terminal from the association table using the telephone number of the call destination terminal as a clue,
If the IP address can be extracted, the IP address is used to connect to the called terminal via the Internet. If the IP address cannot be extracted, the telephone number can be used via the public telephone line. Connect to the called terminal ,
For new registration of data in the association table, when registering the new data, dial the server using a public telephone line by operating a data registration button provided on the terminal,
The dial-destination server uses the caller ID notification function to acquire the telephone number of the terminal on which the data registration button is operated, acquires the IP address transmitted from the terminal to the server, and acquires these acquired telephones. A connection method between terminals , wherein a number and an IP address are newly registered in the association table as new data of the terminal. A connection method between terminals that can be connected to each other selectively using the Internet and a public telephone line,
Storing an association table between the phone number of the terminal and the IP address in a server on the Internet;
For updating the data in the association table , a predetermined tone signal or a combination thereof is transmitted from the calling terminal to the called terminal via a public telephone line, and the calling terminal responds to the tone signal or the combination to the server. To access and notify the server of the IP address and telephone number of the terminal and update the data of the terminal in the association table stored in the server;
When connecting from the calling terminal to the called terminal,
Taking out the IP address of the call destination terminal from the association table using the telephone number of the call destination terminal as a clue,
If the IP address can be extracted, the IP address is used to connect to the called terminal via the Internet. If the IP address cannot be extracted, the telephone number can be used via the public telephone line. Connect to the called terminal ,
For new registration of data in the association table, when registering the new data, dial the server using a public telephone line by operating a data registration button provided on the terminal,
The dial-destination server uses the caller ID notification function to acquire the telephone number of the terminal on which the data registration button is operated, acquires the IP address transmitted from the terminal to the server, and acquires these acquired telephones. A connection method between terminals , wherein a number and an IP address are newly registered in the association table as new data of the terminal.

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