JP4476888B2 - Wireless communication system, parent device and wireless device of wireless communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To shorten the time to be needed for establishing a link between a master unit and a slave unit. <P>SOLUTION: In a wireless communication system for establishing the link between the master unit and the slave unit and for downloading content data to be requested by the slave unit from among content data held by the master unit, the master unit comprises means for performing broadcast transmission of a beacon including a table of content data held therein, means for receiving an association request including a content index indicating requested content data to be transmitted from the slave unit, means for transmitting an association response including its capacity, the number of data division, etc. when transmission of the requested content data is determined as possible after verification of the association request, and for transmitting association refusal when transmission of the requested content data is determined as impossible, and means for transmitting the content data to the slave unit after confirming establishment of the link with the slave unit after transmitting the association response. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication system that shortens the time required to establish a link between a parent device and a child device in a wireless LAN system that performs wireless communication between the parent device and the child device, and a parent device of the wireless communication system And related to the handset.

  In a conventional wireless communication system (for example, Patent Document 1), as a procedure for establishing a link between a parent device and a child device, setting of a communication channel between the parent device and the child device and connection between applications are performed. It is done in stages. The outline will be described with reference to FIG.

  When setting the communication channel with the child device, the parent device first broadcasts a beacon including the parent device ID. The slave unit receives the beacon and transmits an association request if it can connect to the master unit corresponding to the master unit ID of the beacon. The association request includes the parent device ID that is the destination (the parent device ID that transmitted the beacon) and the child device ID that is the transmission source.

  The parent device receives the association request from the child device, verifies whether the request is an association request addressed to the parent device itself, or whether the child device ID is already registered in the parent device, and transmits an association response. The association response includes the parent device ID that is the transmission source, the child device ID that is the destination (the child device ID that transmitted the association request), and information indicating whether connection is permitted or not possible. The parent device transmits an association response including connection permission, thereby setting a communication channel with the child device.

  The master unit transmits data information to the corresponding slave unit by setting the communication channel. The data information includes a child device ID as a destination, a parent device ID as a transmission source, and information (content table) of data held by the parent device. The slave unit receives the data information and transmits a corresponding data request. The data request includes a parent device ID as a destination, a child device ID as a transmission source, and data information (content index) requested by the child device.

The master unit receives the data request from the slave unit and transmits a corresponding data request response. The data request response includes a parent device ID that is a transmission source, a child device ID that is a destination, information indicating request permission or request disabling, and the data size and the number of data divisions in the case of request permission. The master unit transmits a request request data request response, completes the connection between the applications with the slave unit, and then starts transmitting a data frame.
JP 2000-236342 A

  By the way, services that can bring wireless LAN devices into the public wireless LAN service area and download content data such as newspaper articles, route search, English conversation learning software, electronic book software, etc. from access points in the public wireless LAN service area have become widespread. It's getting on. Furthermore, a service is also provided in which necessary content data can be automatically downloaded just by a user passing through a public wireless LAN service area. Here, in order to complete the reception of the content data in a short time while the user passes through the public wireless LAN service area, a high-speed link is established between the access point (master unit) and the mobile radio terminal (slave unit). Is indispensable.

  However, in the conventional wireless communication system, as shown in FIG. 19 (1), the communication channel is set in two steps, that is, the setting of the communication channel between the parent device and the child device and the connection between the applications. It takes time to establish a link between the master unit and the slave unit, and it is difficult to use. For example, the user may go out of the service area before communication is completed, and it is desired to speed up link establishment.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a radio communication system, a master unit of a radio communication system, and a slave unit that can shorten the time required for establishing a link between the master unit and the slave unit.

  The present invention relates to a wireless communication system that establishes a link between a parent device and a child device and downloads content data requested by the child device from content data held by the parent device. Means for broadcasting a beacon including a content data table, means for receiving an association request including a content index indicating the requested content data transmitted from the slave unit, and verifying the association request and requested content If the data transmission is possible, an association response including the capacity and the number of data divisions is transmitted, and if the requested content data cannot be transmitted, a means for transmitting an association rejection and the association response Confirm the link establishment with the slave unit after sending And means for transmitting the content data to.

When the slave unit verifies the beacon, and if there is content data to be requested in the content data table included in the beacon, it transmits an association request including the content index, and there is no content data to request. Means for shifting to reception of the next beacon, an association response transmitted from the parent device within a predetermined period Tresw after transmission of the association request, and an association response cannot be received within the period Tresw or A means for shifting to reception of the next beacon when an association rejection is received, and a means for confirming link establishment with the parent machine after receiving the association response and receiving content data transmitted from the parent machine. Prepare.

  In addition, the master unit and the slave unit of the wireless communication system of the present invention are configured to start data transmission / reception after transmitting / receiving an association response ACK corresponding to the association response.

  The base unit of the wireless communication system of the present invention sets an association request reception start time Treq and an association request reception window length Treqw for receiving an association request for a beacon, and transmits a beacon including Treq and Treqw to the slave unit. When the slave unit transmits an association request for a beacon, the slave unit sets an association request transmission adjustment time Treqs (Treq <Treqs <Treq + Treqw) for the association request to be received in the association request reception window of the master unit. It is configured to send an association request after receiving a beacon and Treks.

  At this time, the master unit is configured to stop the operation of the radio transmission / reception unit that transmits and receives radio signals to and from the slave unit from the transmission of the beacon until the association request reception start time Treq. It is good also as a structure which stops the operation | movement of the radio | wireless transmission / reception part which transmits / receives a radio signal between main | base_stations in request | requirement transmission adjustment time Treks.

  Further, the slave unit of the wireless communication system of the present invention sets an association response reception start time Tres and an association response reception window length Tresw for receiving an association response to the association request, and sends an association request including Tres and Tresw to the master unit. When the base unit transmits the association response to the association request, the association response transmission adjustment time Tress (Tres <Tress <Tres <Tress) is received so that the association response is received in the association response reception window of the slave unit. + Tresw), an association request is received, and an association response is transmitted after Tress.

  At this time, the slave unit is configured to stop the operation of the radio transmission / reception unit that transmits and receives radio signals to and from the master unit from the transmission of the association request to the association response reception start time Tres. It is good also as a structure which stops operation | movement of the radio | wireless transmission / reception part which transmits / receives a radio signal between the subunit | mobile_units in association response transmission adjustment time Tress.

  In addition, the base unit of the wireless communication system of the present invention starts transmitting content data when the time Td has elapsed since the association response was transmitted and the association response ACK is received during that time, and receives the association response ACK. The operation of the wireless transmission / reception unit that transmits and receives wireless signals to and from the slave unit is stopped between the transmission of the content data and the slave unit. The slave unit receives the content data after transmitting the association response ACK. The operation of the wireless transmission / reception unit that transmits / receives a wireless signal to / from the base unit is stopped until a reception window for opening is opened.

  The slave unit of the wireless communication system of the present invention sets a time equal to or greater than the beacon transmission interval Tb of the master unit as the beacon reception window length Tbw for receiving the beacon from the master unit, and receives the beacon within Tbw. If not, the operation of the wireless transmission / reception unit that transmits / receives a wireless signal to / from the base unit is stopped only for a predetermined period (Tpd), and the process of returning to beacon reception after that is repeated.

  As shown in FIG. 19 (2), the wireless communication system of the present invention includes data information, a data request, and a data request response in a beacon, an association request, and an association response transmitted and received between the parent device and the child device, respectively. By including the link, the link can be established simultaneously with the setting of the wireless channel between the parent device and the child device, and the content data can be downloaded from the parent device to the child device.

In the present invention, the frame length becomes long because data information and the like are added to the existing beacon, association request, and association response. However, considering the header length, the link is established in the conventional two-stage method. Compared to the case, it can be greatly shortened. For example, in the case of IEEE802.11b (bit rate 11Mbit / s) beacon,
Header length: approx. 170 μsec MAC frame body length: approx. 30 μsec FCS length: 3 μsec. Since the header occupies a large proportion, the number of frames sent and received between the master and slave units can be reduced. The effect is great.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the master unit in the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the slave unit in the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a time chart showing an operation example of the first embodiment of the present invention.

(Processing procedure of the main unit)
The processing procedure of the master unit will be described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. In FIG. 3, a frame indicated by a broken line is a reception window for beacons, association requests, association responses, data, ACKs, and the like.

The parent device broadcasts a beacon to the child device (S1). In this beacon,
(a-1) Master unit ID that is the sender,
(a-2) Includes a table of content data held by the base unit.

The parent device transitions to a waiting state for an association request transmitted from the child device after completion of the beacon transmission, and starts measuring the timer of the beacon transmission interval Tb (S2). This Tb is a constant value or a value set at random within a certain range. When the master unit does not receive the association request from the slave unit within Tb after transitioning to the association request wait state, it returns to beacon transmission (S3, S4, S1). On the other hand, if the master unit receives the association request from the slave unit within Tb after transitioning to the association request waiting state, the master unit verifies the association request (S4, S5). In the association request from the slave unit,
(b-1) Slave unit ID that is the sender,
(b-2) Base unit ID that is the destination (base unit ID that sent the beacon),
(b-3) The content index indicating the content data requested by the handset from the content data table of the beacon is included.

  In the verification of the association request in the parent device (S5), the following confirmation processing is performed on the contents (b-1) to (b-3) set in the association request from the child device. (1) Whether the parent device ID set as the destination is the ID of the parent device, (2) Whether the child device ID is already registered in the parent device, (3) The content index requested by the child device is the parent device Is held (whether it is included in the content data table notified by the beacon).

In the verification of the association request (S5), if there is a requirement that does not correspond to any of the above three requirements (determination: No), the base unit transmits an association rejection to the slave unit and returns to beacon transmission ( S6, S1). On the other hand, in the verification of the association request (S5), the base unit transmits an association response to the slave unit (S7) if all of the above three requirements are met (determination: Yes). The association response includes
(c-1) Master unit ID that is the sender,
(c-2) Slave device ID that is the destination (slave device ID that sent the association request),
(c-3) Content data capacity sent by the master unit,
(c-4) When the content data capacity is large, the number of data divisions for dividing the content data into multiple pieces for transmission is included.

  After the association response is transmitted, when an association response ACK is received from the slave unit within a specified time (S8), the link establishment between the master unit and the slave unit is confirmed, and the content from the master unit to the slave unit is confirmed. Data is transmitted (S9). Then, after the transmission of the content data is completed, the process returns to beacon transmission (S9, S1). If the association response ACK is not received from the slave unit within the specified time, the transmission of the content data is canceled and the process returns to the transmission of the beacon (S8, S1). However, the association response ACK from the slave unit to the master unit can be omitted. In this case, the master unit may start transmitting content data after a predetermined time after the transmission of the association response. FIG. 4 shows a state transition diagram of the above processing of the base unit.

(Processing procedure of the slave unit)
The processing procedure of the slave unit will be described with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG. The slave unit waits for a beacon broadcast from the master unit in the reception window (S11), and verifies the beacon when it receives the beacon (S12). In the beacon verification (S12), the slave unit performs the following confirmation process on the (a-1) master unit ID and (a-2) content data table set in the beacon. (1) Whether connection to the parent device corresponding to the parent device ID is possible, (2) Content data requested by the child device is in the content data table (whether it exists in the storage unit of the parent device).

  If there is a requirement that does not correspond to one of the two requirements in the beacon verification (S12) (determination: No), the slave unit returns to the beacon standby state (S11). On the other hand, in the beacon verification (S12), the slave unit transmits an association request to the master unit (S13) if all of the above two requirements are satisfied (determination: Yes). The association request includes the above (b-1) slave unit ID, (b-2) master unit ID, and (b-3) content index. Therefore, if there is no requested content data in the content data table of the beacon, the slave unit waits for the next beacon without making an association request for that beacon. Since the slave unit has selected the content index from the content data table for the association request, “(3) The content index requested by the slave unit in the verification of the association request of the master unit (S5) The verification of “whether or not is held” is redundant, but is performed to prevent erroneous confirmation due to an error or the like.

  After transmitting this association request, the slave unit transitions to a wait state for an association response from the master unit, and starts measuring the association response reception window length Tresw (S14). If the association response is not received within this Tresw or if the association rejection is received, the beacon standby state is returned (S15, S16, S17, S11).

  On the other hand, when the slave unit receives the association response from the master unit within Tresw after transitioning to the association response wait state, the slave unit verifies the association response (S17, S18). The association response from the parent device includes the above (c-1) parent device ID, (c-2) child device ID, (c-3) content data capacity, and (c-4) data division number. . In the verification of the association response (S18), the following confirmation processing is performed for the contents (c-1) to (c-4) set in the association response from the parent device. (1) Whether the parent device ID is the parent device ID that transmitted the beacon, (2) Whether the child device ID set as the destination is the child device's own ID, (3) Whether the content data capacity is within the specified range (4) Whether the number of data divisions is within a predetermined range.

  If there is a requirement that does not correspond to any of the above four requirements in the verification of the association response (S18) (determination: No), the slave unit returns to the beacon standby state (S11). On the other hand, the slave unit transmits an association response ACK to the master unit (S19) if all of the above four requirements are met in the verification of the association response (S18) (determination: Yes). The link establishment with the machine is confirmed, and the content data transmitted from the parent machine is received (S20). Then, after the reception of the content data is completed, the beacon standby state is restored (S20, S11). FIG. 5 shows a state transition diagram of the above processing of the slave unit.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the master unit in the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the slave unit in the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a time chart showing an operation example of the second embodiment of the present invention.

(Processing procedure of the main unit)
The processing procedure of the master unit will be described with reference to FIG. 6 and FIG. In FIG. 8, a frame indicated by a broken line is a reception window for beacons, association requests, association responses, data, ACKs, and the like.

The parent device broadcasts a beacon to the child device (S21). In this beacon,
(a-1) Master unit ID that is the sender,
(a-2) Content data table held by the master unit,
(a-3) Association request reception start time Treq based on beacon transmission,
(a-4) Association request reception window length Treqw
Is included.

After the completion of transmission of the beacon, the parent device transitions to a waiting state for starting the association request reception, starts measuring the timer for Treq, and after that time (S22), transitions to a waiting state for the association request transmitted from the child device, Treqw timer measurement is started (S23). The relationship between the beacon transmission interval Tb of the first embodiment and the Treq and Treqw of this embodiment is as follows:
Tb = Treq + Treqw
It is. However, Treqw is a constant value or a value set at random within a certain range.

If the base unit does not receive the association request from the slave unit within Treqw after transitioning to the association request waiting state, it returns to beacon transmission (S24, S25, S21). On the other hand, when the base unit receives the association request from the slave unit within Treqw after transitioning to the association request waiting state, the base unit verifies the association request (S25, S26). In the association request from the slave unit,
(b-1) Slave unit ID that is the sender,
(b-2) Base unit ID that is the destination (base unit ID that sent the beacon),
(b-3) Content index indicating the content data requested by the handset from the content data table of the beacon,
(b-4) Association response reception start time Tres, based on association request transmission
(b-5) Association response reception window length Tresw
Is included.

  In the verification of the association request in the parent device (S26), the following confirmation processing is performed for the contents (b-1) to (b-3) set in the association request from the child device. (1) Whether the parent device ID set as the destination is the ID of the parent device, (2) Whether the child device ID is already registered in the parent device, (3) The content index requested by the child device is the parent device Is held (whether it is included in the content data table notified by the beacon).

In the verification of the association request (S26), if there is a requirement that does not correspond to 1 among the above three requirements (determination: No), the base unit enters a process of transmitting an association rejection to the slave unit (S27). In the association rejection transmission process (S27), the timer measurement of the association response / rejection transmission adjustment time Tress is started, and after that time, the association rejection is transmitted and the beacon transmission is returned (S27, S21). On the other hand, if all of the above three requirements are met in the verification of the association request (S26) (determination: Yes), the parent device enters a process of transmitting an association response to the child device (S28). In the association response transmission process (S28), the timer measurement of the association response / rejection transmission adjustment time Tress is started, and the association response is transmitted after the time elapses. Here, the association response / rejection transmission adjustment time Tress depends on (b-4) Tres and (b-5) Tresw included in the association request transmitted from the slave unit.
Tres <Tress <Tres + Tresw
Is set to be In other words, the master unit transmits the association rejection or the association response so that the slave unit receives the association rejection or the association response during the association response reception window length Tresw.

The association response includes
(c-1) Master unit ID that is the sender,
(c-2) Slave device ID that is the destination (slave device ID that sent the association request),
(c-3) Content data capacity sent by the master unit,
(c-4) When the content data capacity is large, the number of data divisions for dividing the content data into multiple pieces for transmission,
(c-5) Content data transmission start time Td
Is included.

  The base unit transmits an association response after the lapse of Tres after receiving the association request, receives an association response ACK, confirms the link establishment between the base unit and the slave unit, and elapses of the transmission start time Td Later, content data is transmitted from the parent device to the child device (S29, S30). If the association response ACK is not received even after Td elapses after the association response is transmitted, the process returns to beacon transmission (S29, S21). Then, after transmission of the content data is completed, the process returns to beacon transmission (S30, S21). FIG. 9 shows a state transition diagram of the above processing of the base unit.

(Processing procedure of the slave unit)
The processing procedure of the slave unit will be described with reference to FIG. 7 and FIG. The slave unit waits for a beacon broadcast from the master unit in the reception window (S31), and verifies the beacon when the beacon is received (S32). In the verification of the beacon (S32), the slave unit performs the following confirmation process on the above (a-1) base unit ID and (a-2) content data table set in the beacon. (1) Whether connection to the parent device corresponding to the parent device ID is possible, (2) Content data requested by the child device is in the content data table (whether it exists in the storage unit of the parent device).

If there is a requirement that does not correspond to one of the above two requirements in the beacon verification (S32) (determination: No), the slave unit returns to the beacon standby state (S31). On the other hand, if all of the above two requirements are met in the beacon verification (S32) (determination: Yes), the slave unit enters a process of transmitting an association request to the master unit (S33). In the association request transmission process (S33), timer measurement of the association request transmission adjustment time Treqs is started, and an association request is transmitted after the lapse of time (S34). Here, the association request transmission adjustment time Treqs depends on (a-3) Treq and (a-4) Treqw included in the beacon transmitted from the parent device,
Treq <Treqs <Treq + Treqw
Is set to be That is, the slave unit is transmitted with time adjustment so that the association request is received by the master unit during the association request reception window length Treqw.

  The association request includes (b-1) slave unit ID, (b-2) master unit ID, (b-3) content index, (b-4) Tres, and (b-5) Tresw. After transmitting this association request, the slave unit transitions to a waiting state for starting the association response reception from the master unit, starts measuring the Tres timer, and after that time (S34), waits for the association response transmitted from the master unit. Transition to the state and start the Tresw timer measurement (S35). If an association response is not received within this Tresw or if an association rejection is received, the beacon standby state is returned (S36, S37, S38, S31).

  On the other hand, when the slave unit receives the association response from the master unit within Tresw after transitioning to the association response wait state, the slave unit verifies the association response (S38, S39). The association response from the master unit includes the above (c-1) master unit ID, (c-2) slave unit ID, (c-3) content data capacity, (c-4) number of data divisions, (c -5) Includes content data transmission start time Td. In the verification of the association response (S39), the following confirmation processing is performed on the contents (c-1) to (c-4) set in the association response from the parent device. (1) Whether the parent device ID is the parent device ID that transmitted the beacon, (2) Whether the child device ID set as the destination is the child device's own ID, (3) Whether the content data capacity is within the specified range (4) Whether the number of data divisions is within a predetermined range.

  If there is a requirement that does not correspond to one of the above four requirements in the verification of the association response (S39) (determination: No), the slave unit returns to the beacon standby state (S31). On the other hand, the slave unit transmits an association response ACK to the master unit (S40) if all of the above four requirements are met in the verification of the association response (S39) (S40). The link establishment with the machine is confirmed, and the content data transmitted from the parent machine is received (S41). Then, after the reception of the content data is completed, the beacon standby state is restored (S41, S31). FIG. 10 shows a state transition diagram of the processing of the above slave unit.

  In the second embodiment described above, as shown in the time chart of FIG. 8, the time when the slave unit receives the beacon transmitted by the master unit and the slave unit transmits an association request to the master unit is Treqs (> Treq ) Is set. Therefore, the base transceiver unit can power down the wireless transmission / reception unit for at least the time Treq after transmitting the beacon. On the other hand, since the slave unit also transmits the association request after Treks after receiving the beacon, the wireless transmission / reception unit can be powered down during that time. As a result, it is possible to reduce the power until the link is established in the parent device and the child device.

  Similarly, Tres (> Tres) is set as the time for the master unit to receive the association request transmitted by the slave unit and for the master unit to send an association response to the slave unit. Therefore, the slave unit can power down the radio transmission / reception unit for at least Tres after transmitting the association request. On the other hand, since the base unit also transmits the association response after Tress after receiving the association request, the wireless transmission / reception unit can be powered down during that period.

  Further, in the base unit, during the time Td from the transmission of the association response to the transmission of the content data, the wireless transmission / reception unit can be powered down during the period from the reception of the association response ACK to the transmission of the content data. Further, in the slave unit, the power of the radio transmission / reception unit can be reduced after the association response ACK is transmitted and before the reception window for receiving the content data is opened. As a result, it is possible to reduce the power until the link is established in the parent device and the child device. In FIG. 8, the period during which the power down is possible is indicated by a white arrow.

(Third embodiment)
FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the slave unit in the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12 is a time chart showing an operation example of the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a state transition diagram of the slave unit in the third embodiment of the present invention.

  The present embodiment is characterized in that a power-down time Tpd is provided during a beacon standby period in the processing of the slave unit corresponding to the first embodiment.

  The slave unit sets a time longer than the beacon transmission interval Tb of the master unit as the beacon reception window length Tbw. The slave unit starts Tbw timer measurement in a beacon standby state (S51), and powers down when no beacon is received within Tbw (S52, S31, S53). When the power is down without receiving a beacon, it wakes up after the elapse of Tpd, returns to the beacon standby state, and starts measuring the Tbw timer (S54, S55, S51). Other processes are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  As described above, if the beacon cannot be received in the beacon reception window when waiting for the beacon, the beacon reception is attempted again in the beacon reception window after the power-down time Tpd. As a result, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the slave unit when waiting for a beacon.

(Fourth embodiment)
FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the slave unit in the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 15 is a time chart showing an operation example of the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 16 is a state transition diagram of the slave unit in the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

  The present embodiment is characterized in that a power-down time Tpd is provided during a beacon standby period in the processing of the slave unit corresponding to the second embodiment.

  The slave unit sets a time longer than the beacon transmission interval Tb of the master unit as the beacon reception window length Tbw. The slave unit starts Tbw timer measurement in a beacon standby state (S61), and powers down when a beacon is not received within Tbw (S62, S31, S63). When the power is down without receiving a beacon, it wakes up after the elapse of Tpd, returns to the beacon standby state, and starts measuring the Tbw timer (S64, S65, S61). Other processes are the same as those in the second embodiment. As a result, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the slave unit when waiting for a beacon.

(Configuration example of main unit)
FIG. 17 shows a configuration example of the master unit. In the figure, the master unit includes a wireless transmission / reception unit 11, a signal processing hardware unit 12, a signal processing software unit 13, a memory unit 14, a display unit 15, and an operation unit 16.

  The wireless transmission / reception unit 11 receives a radio wave, converts it into a received radio signal, and outputs it to the signal processing hardware unit 12. The wireless transmission / reception unit 11 converts a transmission wireless signal input from the signal processing hardware unit 12 into a wireless radio wave and transmits the wireless radio wave.

  The signal processing hardware unit 12 performs radio control signal processing such as state transition determination of the master unit shown in each of the above embodiments, and wirelessly transmits a generated radio control signal such as a beacon, an association response, and an association rejection. Output to the transceiver 11. In addition, radio control signal processing is performed on an association request and an association response ACK among received radio signals input from the radio transceiver unit. Further, the wireless data signal processing is performed on the transmission data to the connected slave unit input from the signal processing software unit 13 and output to the wireless transmission / reception unit 11 as a transmission wireless signal.

  The signal processing software unit 13 divides the content data input from the memory unit 14 and outputs the divided content data to the signal processing hardware unit 12 as transmission data. In addition, various application functions are realized.

  The memory unit 14 holds one or more content data, a parent device ID, a connectable child device ID, and the like. Further, when a link is established with the slave unit, the content data requested by the slave unit among the stored content data is output to the signal processing software unit 13.

  The display unit 15 is a display or the like used when the user performs setting or operation of the device. The operation unit 16 is a keyboard or the like used when the user performs setting and operation of the apparatus.

(Example configuration of slave unit)
FIG. 18 shows a configuration example of the slave unit. In the figure, the slave unit includes a wireless transmission / reception unit 21, a signal processing hardware unit 22, a signal processing software unit 23, a memory unit 24, a display unit 25, and an operation unit 26.

  The wireless transmission / reception unit 21 receives a radio wave, converts it into a received radio signal, and outputs it to the signal processing hardware unit 22. Further, the wireless transmission / reception unit 21 converts a transmission wireless signal input from the signal processing hardware unit 22 into a radio wave and transmits it. Also, when a power-down signal instructing power-down is input, transmission / reception of radio waves is stopped, and power consumption of the radio transmission / reception unit is reduced.

  The signal processing hardware unit 22 performs radio control signal processing such as state transition determination of the slave unit shown in each of the above embodiments, and receives radio signals such as beacons, association responses, and association rejections input from the radio transmission / reception unit 21. Process control signals. In addition, an association request and an association response ACK of a transmission radio signal transmitted from the radio transmission / reception unit 21 are generated and output to the radio transmission / reception unit 21. In addition, among the received radio signals input from the radio transmitting / receiving unit 21, radio data signal processing is performed on the received data signal, and the received data is output to the signal processing software unit 23. Further, a power-down signal is generated according to the state of wireless communication, and power-down control of the wireless transmission / reception unit 21 is performed.

  The signal processing software unit 23 reconfigures the received data input from the signal processing hardware unit 22 and outputs the received data to the memory unit 24 as received content data. In addition, various application functions are realized.

  The memory unit 24 stores received content data input from the signal processing software unit 23. Further, it holds a slave unit ID, a connectable master unit ID, and the like.

  The display unit 25 is a display or the like used when the user performs setting or operation of the device. The operation unit 26 is a keyboard or the like used when the user performs setting and operation of the apparatus.

  Since the basic device configuration of the parent device and the child device is the same, it can be used as a parent device or a child device by setting in a common device configuration.

The flowchart which shows the process sequence of the main | base station in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the process sequence of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The time chart which shows the operation example of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the state transition of the main | base station in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the state transition of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the process sequence of the main | base station in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the process sequence of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The time chart which shows the operation example of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the state transition of the main | base station in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the state transition of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the process sequence of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The time chart which shows the operation example of the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the state transition of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The flowchart which shows the process sequence of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 4th Embodiment of this invention. The time chart which shows the operation example of the 4th Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the state transition of the subunit | mobile_unit in the 4th Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the structural example of a main | base station. The figure which shows the structural example of a subunit | mobile_unit. The time chart which shows the communication form until the link establishment between a main | base station and a subunit | mobile_unit.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Wireless transmission / reception part 12 Signal processing hardware part 13 Signal processing software part 14 Memory part 15 Display part 16 Operation part 21 Wireless transmission / reception part 22 Signal processing hardware part 23 Signal processing software part 24 Memory part 25 Display part 26 Operation part

Claims (10)

In a wireless communication system that establishes a link between a parent device and a child device and downloads content data requested by the child device from content data held by the parent device.
The base unit is
Means for broadcasting a beacon including a table of content data held;
Means for receiving an association request including a content index indicating requested content data transmitted from the slave unit;
When the association request is verified and if the requested content data can be transmitted, an association response including the capacity and the number of data divisions is transmitted, and the requested content data cannot be transmitted. Means to send an association rejection;
Means for confirming link establishment with the slave unit after transmitting the association response, and transmitting the content data to the slave unit,
The slave is
Means for receiving the beacon;
The beacon is verified, and if there is content data to be requested in the content data table included in the beacon, an association request including the content index is transmitted, and if there is no content data to be requested, the process proceeds to reception of the next beacon. Means to
When the association response transmitted from the base unit is received within a predetermined period Tresw after the association request is transmitted, and when the association response cannot be received within the period Tresw or when the association rejection is received Means to move on to receiving the next beacon;
A wireless communication system comprising: means for confirming link establishment with the parent device after receiving the association response and receiving content data transmitted from the parent device. The wireless communication system according to claim 1, wherein
The wireless communication system, wherein the master unit and the slave unit start transmitting / receiving the data after transmitting / receiving an association response ACK corresponding to the association response. The wireless communication system according to claim 1, wherein
The master unit is configured to set an association request reception start time Treq and an association request reception window length Treqw for receiving the association request for the beacon, and transmit a beacon including Treq and Treqw to the slave unit.
When the slave unit transmits the association request for the beacon, an association request transmission adjustment time Treqs (Treq <Treqs <Treq + Treqw) is received for the association request to be received in the association request reception window of the master unit. A wireless communication system, characterized in that the wireless communication system is configured to transmit the association request after receiving the beacon after Treks. The wireless communication system according to claim 3,
The base unit is configured to stop the operation of a radio transmission / reception unit that transmits and receives radio signals to and from the slave unit from the transmission of the beacon to the association request reception start time Treq.
The radio | wireless communications system characterized by the above-mentioned. The said subunit | mobile_unit is the structure which stops operation | movement of the radio | wireless transmission / reception part which transmits / receives a radio signal between the said main | base station in the said association request | requirement transmission adjustment time Treks. The wireless communication system according to claim 1, wherein
The slave unit sets an association response reception start time Tres and an association response reception window length Tresw for receiving the association response for the association request, and transmits an association request including Tres and Tresw to the master unit. Yes,
When the base unit transmits the association response to the association request, the association response transmission adjustment time Tress (Tres <Tress <Tres + Tresw) for receiving the association response in the association response reception window of the slave unit A wireless communication system, wherein the association request is received and an association response is transmitted after Tress. The wireless communication system according to claim 5, wherein
The slave unit is configured to stop the operation of a radio transmission / reception unit that transmits and receives radio signals to and from the master unit from the transmission of the association request to the association response reception start time Tres.
The base unit is configured to stop the operation of a radio transmission / reception unit that performs transmission / reception of radio signals to / from the slave unit during the association response transmission adjustment time Tress. The wireless communication system according to claim 2,
The base unit starts transmission of the content data when a time Td has elapsed from the transmission of the association response and the association response ACK is received during that time, and the content data is received from the reception of the association response ACK. Is configured to stop the operation of the wireless transmission / reception unit that transmits / receives a wireless signal to / from the slave unit before transmission of
The slave unit performs an operation of a radio transmission / reception unit that transmits / receives a radio signal to / from the master unit between the transmission of the association response ACK and the opening of a reception window for receiving the content data. A wireless communication system, characterized by being configured to be stopped. The wireless communication system according to claim 1, wherein
The slave unit sets a time equal to or greater than the beacon transmission interval Tb of the master unit as a beacon reception window length Tbw for receiving a beacon from the master unit, and is set to a predetermined value when the beacon is not received within Tbw. A wireless communication system, characterized in that the operation of the wireless transmission / reception unit that transmits / receives a wireless signal to / from the base unit is stopped for a period (Tpd), and the process of returning to beacon reception is repeated after the operation is completed. In the master unit of the wireless communication system that establishes a link between the master unit and the slave unit and downloads content data requested by the slave unit from the content data held by the master unit.
Means for broadcasting a beacon including a table of content data held;
Means for receiving an association request including a content index indicating requested content data transmitted from the slave unit;
When the association request is verified and if the requested content data can be transmitted, an association response including the capacity and the number of data divisions is transmitted, and the requested content data cannot be transmitted. Means to send an association rejection;
A master unit of a wireless communication system, comprising: means for confirming link establishment with the slave unit after transmitting the association response, and transmitting the content data to the slave unit. In a slave unit of a wireless communication system that establishes a link between a master unit and a slave unit and downloads content data requested by the slave unit from content data held by the master unit.
Means for receiving a beacon transmitted by the base unit;
The beacon is verified, and if there is content data to be requested in the content data table included in the beacon, an association request including the content index is transmitted, and if there is no content data to be requested, the process proceeds to reception of the next beacon. Means to
If the association response transmitted from the base unit is received within a predetermined period Tresw after the association request is transmitted, and if the association response cannot be received or the association rejection is received within the period Tresw, the next beacon Means to shift to receiving,
A slave unit of a radio communication system, comprising: means for confirming link establishment with the master unit after receiving the association response and receiving content data transmitted from the master unit.

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