JP6127100B2 - Communication terminal device and system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication terminal device capable of communicating via a wireless LAN relay device and a system for managing communication policy information.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, mobile phones and smartphones that can communicate by switching between a first communication path via a base station of a mobile communication network and a second communication path via a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) relay device (access point) Such communication terminal devices are known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In the conventional communication terminal apparatus, switching between the first communication path and the second communication path is appropriately performed according to the communication quality of the first communication path for each communication area of the base station without increasing the load on the communication terminal apparatus. There is a problem of wanting to control it.

A system according to an aspect of the present invention provides a communication policy for a communication terminal device capable of switching between a first communication path via a base station of a mobile communication network and a second communication path via a wireless LAN relay device. A system for managing information, wherein the communication quality data of the first communication path is acquired for each of a plurality of communication areas that can communicate by switching the first communication path and the second communication path; For each of a plurality of communication areas, a priority route that designates a communication route that is preferentially used by the communication terminal device among the first communication route and the second communication route, based on the communication quality data of the first communication route. Means for setting information, means for storing communication quality data of the first communication path and the priority path information of each of the plurality of communication areas, and the communication terminal device When the identification information capable communication area received from the communication terminal apparatus that area, and means for transmitting the priority route information corresponding to the communication area to the communication terminal apparatus.
In the system, for each of the plurality of communication areas, a value obtained by multiplying the communication quality data by a weighting factor may be compared with a preset threshold value, and the priority route information may be set based on the comparison result. .
In the system, the priority route information may be set to be different from each other for each of a plurality of time zones.
Moreover, in the said system, you may set so that the said priority route information may differ according to the presence or absence of event holding in the said communication area.
In the system, the priority route information may be set to be different for each of a plurality of types of communication contract plans for communication by the communication terminal device.
In the system, the priority route information may be set for each area identification information for identifying each of a plurality of communication areas in the mobile communication network.
In the system, communication quality data of the first communication path may be acquired from a communication management database of the mobile communication network.

A communication terminal apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention is a communication terminal apparatus capable of switching and communicating between a first communication path via a base station of a mobile communication network and a second communication path via a wireless LAN relay apparatus. And means for transmitting area identification information capable of identifying a communication area in which the communication terminal device is located to any one of the systems, and the communication terminal of the first communication path and the second communication path. Based on the priority route information received from the system, the first route information specifying the communication route set to be used preferentially for the communication area where the device is located, and the first route information received from the system, the first Means for performing communication by selecting a communication path or the second communication path.
In the communication terminal device, means for calculating a measured value of communication quality when communication of the second communication path is performed in association with transmission of the area identification information and reception of the priority path information, and the second communication path And a means for controlling connection with the relay device of the wireless LAN based on the measured value of communication quality.
In addition, after the connection process with the wireless LAN relay device is completed in the communication terminal device, the communication of the second communication path via the wireless LAN relay device is performed using a WISPr (Wireless Internet Service Provider Roaming) authentication method. Means for performing user authentication processing; means for calculating a measurement value of communication quality when communication is performed on the second communication path along with authentication processing by the WISPr authentication method; and communication quality of the second communication path Means for controlling connection with the relay device of the wireless LAN based on the measured value.

  According to the present invention, the first communication path via the base station of the mobile communication network and the second via the relay device of the wireless LAN for each communication area of the base station without increasing the load of the communication terminal device. Switching to the communication path can be appropriately controlled according to the communication quality of the first communication path.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an example of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The block diagram which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of the communication terminal device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The sequence diagram which shows an example of connection control of wireless LAN communication when the connection of a communication terminal device and an access point is successful in the communication system of this embodiment. The sequence diagram which shows an example of the connection control of wireless LAN communication in the case of canceling the connection of a communication terminal device and an access point in the communication system of this embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the communication system of the present embodiment, the communication terminal device 10 is a communication terminal device such as a mobile phone or a smartphone having a cellular communication function and a wireless LAN communication function. The communication terminal apparatus 10 includes a first communication path (hereinafter referred to as “cellular communication path”) via a base station 60 of a cellular mobile communication network and a wireless LAN relay apparatus (hereinafter referred to as “access point”). The second communication path (hereinafter referred to as “wireless LAN path”) via 20 can be switched for communication. For example, the communication terminal device 10 can be connected to a communication network via the access point 20 when located in the wireless communication area 20A of the access point 20 provided in a fast food restaurant or a station premises.

  The access point 20 is a wireless LAN relay device such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark) that can wirelessly communicate with the communication terminal device 10, and authenticates as an authentication processing device via the backbone network 30 and the gateway (GW) 35. The server 40 is connected to a policy server 50 as a policy management apparatus, the Internet 90 as an external communication network, and the like.

  In addition, the access point 20 wirelessly communicates with the communication terminal device 10 in the wireless communicable area 20A by a wireless LAN wireless communication method such as Wi-Fi conforming to the IEEE 802.11 standard, for example. Communication with a communication network can be relayed.

  When the communication terminal apparatus 10 is located in a communication area 60A of mobile communication (hereinafter also referred to as “cellular communication”) such as a macro cell or a small cell, the third generation (3G), LTE (Long Term Evolution), It is possible to connect to a communication network via a base station 60 such as a macro cell base station or a small cell base station for cellular communication conforming to standards such as LTE-Advanced, 4th generation (4G), and 5th generation (5G). . The base station 60 is a relay device that can wirelessly communicate with the communication terminal device 10, and is connected to various servers, the Internet 90, and the like via a core network 70 and a gateway (GW) 75.

  In FIG. 1, one communication terminal apparatus 10 is illustrated, but two or more communication terminal apparatuses 10 may be provided. Further, the communication terminal device 10 of the present embodiment can be a personal computer device such as a notebook computer, a game machine, a tablet terminal, a digital camera, as long as the communication terminal device 10 can communicate by switching between the first communication path and the second communication path. A device having a communication function such as a printer or a book browsing terminal may be used. In addition, the communication terminal device 10 according to the present embodiment is a home appliance (for example, a TV, a refrigerator, a recording device) capable of network cooperation, a wearable device such as a watch or glasses, a weight scale, a blood pressure monitor, other medical devices, a robot, A device having a communication function may be used.

  The authentication server 40 is, for example, a RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial In User Service) server to which a subscriber database (DB) 45 storing various information of subscribers who subscribe to the communication service is connected. The authentication server 40 refers to the information stored in the subscriber database 45, WISPr (Wireless Internet Service Provider Roaming) authentication, EAP (Extensible Authentication Protocol) authentication, etc. when connecting from the communication terminal device 10 to the communication network. It is the server which performs the user authentication processing by. The authentication server 40 has a function of communicating with the policy server 50 via the gateway (GW) 35. The authentication server 40 has a function of communicating with the access point 20 via the backbone network 30 and the gateway (GW) 35 and a function of communicating with the communication terminal device 10 via the access point 20. The authentication server 40 refers to information on the communication contract plan of the subscriber stored in the subscriber database 45 or the subscriber information server, and communicates from the communication terminal device 10 via the access point 20 of the wireless LAN. You may perform the authentication process when connecting to.

  The information stored in the subscriber database 45 includes, for example, user identification information (user ID), password, subscriber identification information, user information such as name and address, information on available services, communication contract plan Information on the communication terminal device used, and the like.

  The policy server 50 is a server that manages communication policy information of the plurality of communication terminal devices 10. The communication policy information includes, for example, flag information (0/1) of an offload priority area, which will be described later, and setting values (connection threshold, disconnection threshold, authentication timeout value, etc.) of an application having a communication control function in the communication terminal device 10 ) Etc. The policy server 50 is connected to a policy database (DB) 55 in which communication policy information related to wireless LAN communication between the communication terminal device 10 and the communication network via the access point 20 is stored. A policy management system is configured using the policy server 50 and the policy database 55. The policy server 50 has a function of communicating with the authentication server 40 via the gateway (GW) 35. Further, the policy server 50 has a function of communicating with the access point 20 via the backbone network 30 and the gateway (GW) 35 and a function of communicating with the communication terminal device 10 via the access point 20.

  The policy server 50 is connected to a policy database 55 that stores data of communication quality (for example, throughput) of the cellular communication path acquired for each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A of the mobile communication network. For example, for each area identification information for identifying each of a plurality of communication areas in a mobile communication network, the policy database 55 aggregates and stores data of communication quality (for example, throughput) of the cellular communication path periodically (for example, every day). To do. Here, the area identification information is, for example, a cell ID for identifying a cell that is a communication area in a cellular mobile communication network. The policy database 55 may acquire and store communication quality data such as throughput of each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) from the communication management database 65 of the mobile communication network. Further, data of communication quality such as throughput of each of a plurality of communication areas may be acquired by the policy server 50 and stored in the policy database 55.

  The communication management database 65 is a database of a network division of a mobile communication carrier, and each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A in cellular communication via the communication base station 60, area identification information (for example, cell ID), It stores location information (latitude and longitude), communication quality such as cellular communication throughput, and the like. The communication management database 65 and the policy database 55 are connected to each other via, for example, a wired communication line, and are configured to be able to transmit and receive data to each other regularly or at an arbitrary timing.

  Further, the policy server 50 performs communication for each area identification information based on the communication quality (for example, throughput) data of cellular communication that is aggregated and stored in the policy database 55 and a predetermined threshold value or an arbitrary policy. The terminal device 10 also has a function of setting priority route information for designating a communication route to be used preferentially among the cellular communication route and the wireless LAN route, and storing it in the policy database 55. Does this priority route information correspond to, for example, an area where each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A preferentially performs wireless LAN communication via the access point 20 (hereinafter referred to as “offload priority area”)? It may be flag information (1: applicable to an offload priority area, 0: not applicable to an offload priority area).

  The priority route information, for example, compares a value obtained by multiplying data of cellular communication quality (for example, throughput) by a weighting factor with a preset threshold value for each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A, and compares the values. You may set based on a result. For example, when the value obtained by multiplying the throughput [Mbps] of the cellular communication path by a preset weighting factor (weight: w) is smaller than a predetermined threshold, the priority path information ( Off-load priority area). Note that the setting value and threshold value of the weight coefficient (w) may be changed by the operator or administrator of the policy server 50 according to various conditions.

  The priority route information may be set so as to be different from each other for each of a plurality of time zones (for example, a day time zone and a night time zone). Further, the priority route information may be set differently depending on whether or not an event is held in each of the plurality of communication areas (for example, cells). For example, for communication areas and time zones where events are held, priority route information (offload priority area) is set so that wireless LAN routes are used preferentially, and communication areas and time zones where events are not held The priority route information may be set so that the cellular communication route is preferentially used. Further, the priority route information may be set so as to be different for a specific area in the communication area. For example, the priority route information corresponding to a region where the communication quality is locally high or low in the communication area may be different from the priority route information corresponding to another region in the cell.

  In addition, the priority route information is set to be different for each of a plurality of types of communication contract plans for communication by the communication terminal device 10, and a communication contract (for example, a cell) in which the communication terminal device 10 is located and a communication contract of the communication terminal device. The priority route information corresponding to the combination of plans may be transmitted to the communication terminal device 10. For example, when there is a communication contract plan in which the upper limit value of the data communication capacity of monthly internet communication that can be used for a fixed amount for a cellular communication path is set to 5 GB and 10 GB, the priority path information is set as follows. . For the 5 GB / month communication contract plan, priority route information (offload priority area) is set so that the wireless LAN route is preferentially used, while for the 10 GB / month communication contract plan, the cellular communication path is given priority. Set the priority route information to be used for

  The policy server 50 also has a function of providing requested communication policy information in response to an inquiry from an external device such as the authentication server 40 or the communication terminal device 10. The communication policy information to be provided is, for example, priority route information such as flag information (1, 0) for identifying whether or not it corresponds to the offload priority area.

  In addition to the communication policy information, the policy server 50 manages communication quality measurement conditions, which are measurement conditions when measuring communication quality (for example, throughput) of wireless LAN path communication via the access point 20 in the communication terminal device 10. It also has a function as a measurement condition management device. Further, the policy server 50 changes the communication policy information such as the priority route information and the communication quality measurement condition based on the measurement result of the communication quality (for example, throughput) of the wireless LAN route received from the communication terminal device 10, and the change The communication policy information such as the prioritized route information and the communication quality measurement condition of the wireless LAN route may be transmitted to the communication terminal device 10 via the access point 20 or the base station 60.

  The communication terminal device 10 downloads the communication policy information such as the priority route information stored in the policy database 55 and the communication quality measurement condition of the wireless LAN route at a predetermined timing, and the communication stored in the communication terminal device 10. Policy information and wireless LAN route communication quality measurement conditions may be updated.

  The communication quality measurement condition is, for example, when the measurement history including the identification information of the measured access point 20 where the communication quality of the wireless LAN path is measured and the measurement date and time of the communication quality is held in the communication terminal device 10. , The maximum number or retention period of the measurement history to be retained. Further, the communication quality measurement condition may include the size of data uploaded from the communication terminal apparatus 10 at the time of communication quality measurement and the size of data downloaded to the communication terminal apparatus 10 at the time of communication quality measurement. In addition, the communication quality measurement condition may include a timeout value when a response to the data is received by the communication terminal device 10 after the communication quality measurement data is uploaded from the communication terminal device 10.

  The communication policy information includes, for example, access point identification information (for example, BSSID: Basic Service Set Identifier) uniquely set for each access point 20 to which connection is permitted or prohibited, or the type of the access point 20. Identifiable access point type information (for example, ESSID: Extended Service Set Identifier) may be included. In addition, the communication policy information includes a time zone during which connection from the communication terminal device 10 to the access point 20 is permitted or prohibited, a timeout time during processing for establishing a communication route via the access point 20, and communication via the access point 20. A threshold (lower limit) of throughput (communication speed) as required communication quality may be included.

  Each of the authentication server 40, the subscriber database 45, the policy server 50, the policy database 55, and the communication management database 65 can be configured by, for example, a single computer device or a combination of a plurality of computer devices. Various processes and controls can be executed by executing the incorporated predetermined program. Further, the authentication server 40 and the subscriber database 45 may be configured by one computer device, and the policy server 50 and the policy database 55 may be configured by one computer device. Further, the authentication server 40, the subscriber database 45, the policy server 50, and the policy database 55 may be configured by one computer device.

  In the present embodiment, each of the policy server 50 and the policy database 55 can implement the following functions as means by executing a predetermined program.

For example, the policy server 50 functions as the following units (A501) to (A502) by executing a predetermined program.
(A501) For each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A, the communication terminal apparatus 10 preferentially uses the cellular communication path and the wireless LAN path based on the data of the communication quality (for example, throughput) of the cellular communication path. Means for setting priority route information for specifying a communication route.
(A502) When information capable of identifying the communication area (for example, cell) 60A in which the communication terminal device 10 is located is received from the communication terminal device 10, the priority route information corresponding to the communication area (for example, cell) 60A is transmitted to the communication terminal. Means for transmitting to the device 10;

The policy database 55 functions as each of the following means (A510) to (A512) by executing a predetermined program.
(A510) Means for acquiring data on the communication quality (for example, throughput) of the cellular communication path for each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A that can communicate by switching between the cellular communication path and the wireless LAN path.
(A511) Means for storing data of communication quality (for example, throughput) of the cellular communication path for each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A.
(A512) Means for storing priority route information set based on data of communication quality (eg, throughput) of a cellular communication route for each of a plurality of communication areas (eg, cells) 60A.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the communication terminal device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The communication terminal apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment includes a main control unit 110, a wireless communication unit 111, a baseband processing unit 112, a sound input / output unit 113, a display unit 114, and an operation unit 115 as an operation unit. The communication terminal device 10 is equipped with a USIM 15 as an IC module, which is a subscriber information storage medium that can be attached to and detached from the device body.

  The main control unit 110 includes a storage device including an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and controls each unit such as the baseband processing unit 112 by executing a program such as a predetermined basic OS or middleware. Or build a native platform environment or application execution environment on the software configuration, or execute various processes.

  The storage device stores storage policy information, storage means for storing a measurement history including identification information of a measured access point 20 whose communication quality has been measured and measurement date and time of communication quality, and communication policy It has a function as each storage means of the storage means for storing the communication quality measurement conditions when measuring the communication quality of the wireless LAN path used for changing the information.

  The storage device of the main control unit 110 includes, for example, at least one of a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk device, and an optical disk device. The storage device stores a driver program, an operating system program, an application program, data, and the like used for processing in each unit. For example, the storage device includes, as a driver program, a communication driver program that executes a wireless communication method of IEEE802.11 standard and a wireless communication method of mobile communication (cellular communication), an input device driver program that controls the operation unit 115, and a display unit An output device driver program for controlling 114 is stored. In addition, the storage device has, as an operating system program, for example, a basic OS such as Android (registered trademark) OS or iOS (registered trademark), a wireless communication method of IEEE 802.11 standard, or wireless communication of mobile communication (cellular communication). A connection control program for performing authentication and the like in the system is stored. In addition, the storage device includes, as application programs, an authentication program that performs web authentication, a time measurement program that measures time, a web browser program that acquires and displays a web page, an e-mail program that transmits and receives e-mail, and access to a wireless LAN A communication quality measurement program for measuring communication quality with the point 20 is stored. The storage device may store various text data, video data, image data, and the like, or temporarily store temporary data related to a predetermined process. The storage device stores various information for connecting to the access point 20 of the wireless LAN, communication quality measurement conditions, and the like.

  The wireless communication unit 111 functions as a wireless LAN communication unit that communicates via a wireless LAN access point 20 and a mobile communication unit that communicates via a base station 60 for cellular communication. For example, a synthesizer, a frequency converter, and a high frequency amplifier It is composed of an antenna and the like. The wireless communication unit 111 executes high-frequency signal processing for wireless communication with the access point 20 using a predetermined communication method such as IEEE 802.11, or performs predetermined communication with the base station 60 such as 3G or LTE. For example, high-frequency signal processing for wireless communication is performed by a communication method.

  The baseband processing unit 112 performs digital processing for performing voice communication and data transmission / reception communication with communication terminal devices such as other mobile phones and various servers. The baseband processing unit 112 and the wireless communication unit 111 are connected via a D / A converter or an A / D converter.

  The sound input / output unit 113 includes a microphone, a speaker, a sound signal processing unit, and the like. The analog audio signal output from the microphone is converted into a digital signal by the sound signal processing unit and sent to the main control unit 110, the baseband processing unit 112, and the like. The speaker receives an analog signal converted from a digital signal by the sound signal processing unit, and outputs a voice during a call, or outputs a ringtone for a mail, a ringing tone for a telephone, music, or the like. The speaker may be configured by separately providing a receiver speaker (receiver) for listening to voice during a call and an external output speaker for outputting ringtones, music, etc. You may comprise with one speaker so that a speaker and an external output speaker may be combined.

  The display unit 114 is configured by an LCD (liquid crystal display), an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, or the like, and displays various images based on commands from the main control unit 110. For example, the display unit 114 may display an image indicating the state of wireless LAN connection such as Wi-Fi.

  The operation unit 115 includes a touch panel incorporated in the display unit 114, various operation keys and buttons, a power switch as a power ON / OFF unit, and the like. This operation unit 115 is used when the user turns on / off the main body power supply of the communication terminal device 10, instructs a call start / end, menu selection, screen switching, etc., or inputs information. It is done.

  Further, the communication terminal apparatus 10 includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) unit 117 as a position information acquisition unit, a camera unit 118 as an imaging unit, a sensor unit 119, a power supply unit 120 as a power supply unit, a clock unit (not shown), and the like. It also has.

  The GPS unit 117 includes a GPS receiving module, a GPS antenna, and the like, receives radio waves from a plurality of GPS satellites arranged around the earth, and the latitude and longitude at which the communication terminal device 10 is located based on the reception result And altitude data.

  The camera unit 118 includes a lens, an imaging device, and the like, and is used when shooting a person, a landscape, and the like. As the imaging device, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) camera or a CMOS camera can be used.

  The sensor unit 119 includes an acceleration sensor and / or a geomagnetic sensor. The acceleration sensor may be a uniaxial acceleration sensor or a multi-axis acceleration sensor such as a biaxial or triaxial acceleration sensor. Further, the geomagnetic sensor may be a uniaxial geomagnetic sensor, or may be a multiaxial geomagnetic sensor such as a biaxial or a triaxial. Based on the output of the sensor unit 119, data indicating the position, orientation, posture, and movement of the communication terminal device 10 can be calculated. Further, based on the output of the sensor unit 119, the communication terminal device 10 determines whether or not the communication terminal device 10 is based on history information that is information on temporal changes in acceleration data and geomagnetic data when the user's communication terminal device 10 moves from a reference position at a predetermined altitude. Data indicating the altitude, angle, and the like that are located can be calculated.

  The power supply unit 120 includes a rechargeable battery, a power supply circuit that supplies power of a predetermined voltage from the battery to each unit, a charging circuit that charges the battery, and the like. The clock unit includes a clock circuit and the like, counts accurate date and time, and generates time information for various information update processing and the like.

In the present embodiment, the main control unit 110 of the communication terminal apparatus 10 can implement the following functions as each means in cooperation with other wireless communication units 111 and the like by executing a predetermined program. It is.
For example, the main control unit 110 of the communication terminal apparatus 10 can function as the following units (A101) to (A105) by executing a predetermined program.
(A101) Means for transmitting to the policy server 50 of the policy management system 5 area identification information (for example, cell ID), which is information capable of identifying the communication area (for example, cell) 60A in which the communication terminal device 10 is located.
(A102) Priority route information (for example, off) that designates a communication route that is set to be used preferentially for the communication area (for example, cell) 60A in which the communication terminal device 10 is located in the cellular communication route and the wireless LAN route. Means for receiving, from the policy server 50 of the policy management system 5, information as to whether or not the load priority area is applicable.
(A103) Means for performing communication by selecting a cellular communication path or a wireless LAN path based on the priority path information received from the policy server 50 of the policy management system 5.
(A104) Means for performing user authentication processing of the WISPr authentication method for communication on the wireless LAN path via the access point 20 after the connection processing with the access point 20 is completed.
(A105) Means for measuring communication quality (for example, throughput) when wireless LAN path communication is performed in accordance with authentication processing by the WISPr authentication method.

  In (A101) above, the policy server 50 of the policy management system 5 includes the current identification of the communication terminal device 10 together with the area identification information (for example, cell ID) of the communication area (for example, cell) 60A in which the communication terminal device 10 is located. Position information (for example, GPS latitude / longitude information) and communication contract plan information may be transmitted. In this case, the policy server 50 of the policy management system 5 converts the communication quality data into various combinations of area identification information (for example, cell ID), a specific area in the communication area (for example, cell) and a communication contract plan. Based on this, the priority route information is set and stored in the policy database 55. And the policy server 50 respond | corresponds to those combinations based on the area identification information (for example, cell ID) received from the communication terminal device 10, the current position information (for example, latitude / longitude information of GPS), and the communication contract plan information. The priority route information to be acquired is acquired from the policy database 55 and transmitted to the communication terminal device 10.

  The access point 20 includes, for example, various servers 40 and 50 via a control unit, a first communication unit that performs wireless LAN communication with the communication terminal device 10 using a predetermined communication method, and a core network 30 and a gateway (GW) 35. And a second communication unit that communicates with various servers on the Internet 90. The control unit includes a storage device including, for example, an MPU, a RAM, and a ROM, and can control each unit such as the communication unit by executing a program such as a predetermined basic OS or middleware.

In the present embodiment, the control unit of the access point 20 can implement the following functions as means in cooperation with other communication units and the like by executing a predetermined program.
For example, the control unit of the access point 20 functions as the following units (A201) to (A213) by executing a predetermined program.
(A201) Means for receiving a probe request, an authentication request, and an association request from the communication terminal device 10.
(A202) Means for transmitting a policy confirmation request including access point identification information capable of identifying the access point 20 (self) to the policy server 50 based on the association request.
(A203) Means for receiving, from the policy server 50, a policy confirmation response including communication policy information for the access point 20 (self) or information indicating whether or not the access point 20 (self) can be connected based on the communication policy information.
(A204) Means for transmitting an association response including communication policy information or connection permission information included in the policy confirmation response to the communication terminal device 10.
(A205) A means for transmitting a probe response and an authentication response to the communication terminal device 10.
(A206) Means for storing communication policy information.
(A207) Means for receiving communication policy information to be updated from the policy server 50 and updating the stored communication policy information.
(A208) Means for searching and acquiring communication policy information for the access point 20 (self) based on the association request received from the communication terminal device 10.
(A209) Means for determining whether or not to connect to the access point 20 (self) based on communication policy information for the access point 20 (self).
(A210) Means for transmitting, to the communication terminal device 10, an association response including communication policy information for the access point 20 (self) or connection permission / inhibition information to the access point 20 (self) determined based on the communication policy information.
(A211) Means for measuring communication quality between the communication terminal device 10 and the access point 20 in cooperation with the communication terminal device 10.
(A212) Means for receiving area identification information (for example, a cell ID) of a communication area (for example, a cell) where the communication terminal apparatus 10 is located from the communication terminal apparatus 10 and transmitting it to the policy server 50.
(A213) Policy on priority route information (for example, information on whether or not it corresponds to an offload priority area) corresponding to area identification information (for example, cell ID) of a communication area (for example, cell) in which communication terminal apparatus 10 is located Means for receiving from the server 50 and transmitting to the communication terminal device 10;

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of connection control of wireless LAN communication when the connection between the communication terminal device 10 and the access point 20 is successful in the communication system of the present embodiment.
Note that the operation sequences in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 to be described later are based on a program stored in the storage device of the main control unit 110, mainly by the main control unit 110, and the wireless communication unit 111, baseband. It is executed in cooperation with the processing unit 112, the access point 20, the gateway 35, and the authentication server 40.

  In FIG. 3, in the policy database 55, throughput data for each area identification information (for example, cell ID) in the cellular mobile communication network is periodically collected (for example, every day) and stored (step S001). For each area identification information (for example, cell ID), the policy server 50 sets priority route information (for example, information on whether or not it corresponds to an offload priority area) based on the throughput data stored in the database 55. (Step S002), it is stored in the policy database 55 (Step S003).

  In the example of FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 to be described later, throughput data is periodically aggregated and stored for each area identification information (for example, cell ID), and priority route information is set based on the throughput data. However, data of other communication quality may be used instead of the throughput data.

  When the wireless LAN access point 20 is detected in the communication terminal device 10, the main control unit 110 refers to the list stored in the storage device, and sets the ESSID that is the access point type information of the network to be connected. And obtains a probe request including the ESSID (step S101).

  When the probe request is received from the communication terminal apparatus 10, the access point 20 returns a probe response to the communication terminal apparatus 10 if the ESSID included in the probe request is the same as its own ESSID (step S102). The probe response includes parameters such as BSSID, which is access point identification information of the access point 20, an encryption method, an authentication method, and a communication speed.

  If the probe response is not received from the access point 20, the communication terminal apparatus 10 acquires one other ESSID from the storage device and broadcasts a probe request including the ESSID. On the other hand, when receiving the probe response from the access point 20, the communication terminal device 10 stores the BSSID, which is the access point identification information included in the probe response, and the corresponding ESSID in the storage device.

  Next, after receiving the probe response, the communication terminal device 10 transmits an authentication request including information on its own MAC (Media Access Control) address to the access point 20 (step S103). The access point 20 determines whether or not to authenticate the communication terminal apparatus 10 using a predetermined algorithm, and returns an authentication response including the result of the authentication (step S104). This authentication is performed using, for example, the MAC address of the communication terminal device 10 as an identifier.

  Next, after confirming that the access terminal 20 has authenticated, the communication terminal apparatus 10 transmits an association (connection) request to the access point 20 (step S105). The association request includes parameters such as the ESSID of the access point 20, the support rate, and the necessity of polling use. The access point 20 confirms that the MAC address of the communication terminal device 10 is the authenticated MAC address, and all the parameters included in the association request received from the communication terminal device 10 correspond to itself, and then permits the connection. An association response including information to that effect is transmitted to communication terminal device 10 (step S106).

  Through the processes in S101 to S106 described above, a communication path for network connection by wireless LAN communication from the communication terminal apparatus 10 via access point connection is established at the communication network level. In this state, the communication terminal device 10 can transmit and receive data frames with the authentication server 40 and the policy server 50 via the backbone network 30. However, at this point in time, the user has not been authenticated by the authentication server 40, and the connection has not been completed at the application level. Therefore, the user cannot connect to the Internet 90 or the like via the gateway 35.

  Next, the communication terminal device 10 performs user authentication by communicating with the authentication server 40 via the access point 20 (step S107). For example, an authentication request including a user ID, a password, and a BSSID is transmitted to the access point 20 via a login page having a predetermined URL by HTTP communication. The BSSID may be added to the authentication request transferred from the access point 20 to the authentication server 40 without being included in the authentication request transmitted from the communication terminal device 10. When receiving the authentication request from the communication terminal device 10, the access point 20 transmits the authentication request to the authentication server 40 via the gateway 35. When receiving the authentication request from the access point 20, the authentication server 40 refers to the subscriber database 45 for user ID and password included in the authentication request and performs user authentication. In this user authentication, whether the user of the communication terminal apparatus 10 that has transmitted the authentication request is a user registered in advance as a user who can use the wireless LAN communication via the access point corresponding to the ESSID. Authentication to be confirmed. If the user authentication is successful, the authentication server 40 transmits an authentication response to the access point 20 via the gateway 35 based on the user authentication result. For example, when the user authentication is successful, the authentication server 40 transmits an authentication response indicating that the authentication process is successful to the access point 20 via the gateway 35. Then, the access point 20 transmits the authentication response received from the authentication server 40 to the communication terminal device 10.

  When the communication terminal apparatus 10 receives the authentication response from the access point 20, the communication terminal apparatus 10 issues an acquisition request including area identification information (for example, cell ID) of the communication area (for example, cell) in which the communication terminal apparatus 10 is located to the access point 20. To the policy server 50 (step S108). Hereinafter, a communication area in which the communication terminal device 10 is located is appropriately referred to as a “visited area”, and area identification information of the located area is appropriately referred to as “visited area identification information”. Further, the acquisition request transmitted to the policy server 50 may include information on at least one of the current position information (longitude and latitude) and the communication contract plan of the communication terminal device 10.

  In the policy server 50 that has received the acquisition request including the above-mentioned area-of-service area identification information, the policy database for the priority route information (for example, information indicating whether or not the area corresponds to the offload priority area) corresponding to the received area-of-service area identification information. 55, the reference result is transmitted to the communication terminal device 10 via the access point 20 (step S109). In the example of FIG. 3, as priority route information corresponding to the in-service area identification information received from the communication terminal device 10, flag information 1 indicating that the in-service area corresponds to the offload priority area is transmitted to the communication terminal device 10. doing.

  When receiving the priority route information corresponding to the area identification information from the policy server 50 (flag information indicating that it corresponds to the offload priority area: 1), the communication terminal apparatus 10 communicates with the policy server 50 during communication. And a measured value of communication quality (for example, throughput (communication speed)) of wireless LAN communication via the access point 20 is calculated and stored based on the predetermined measurement conditions set in advance (step S110). Then, based on the measured value of the communication quality of the wireless LAN communication and the above-described communication quality threshold value which is the communication policy information, it is determined whether or not to continue the connection process to the access point 20 (step S111). For example, when the measured value of throughput as communication quality is equal to or higher than a predetermined throughput threshold (in the case of high throughput AP), the connection processing to the access point 20 is continued, and the measured value of throughput is smaller than the throughput threshold (high If it is not a throughput AP, connection processing to the access point 20 is stopped.

  Note that the measurement result of the communication quality (for example, throughput) of the wireless LAN communication is stored in a storage device in the communication terminal device 10 and can be used to change communication policy information stored in the storage device. In addition, the measurement result of the communication quality (for example, throughput) of the wireless LAN communication stored in the storage device in the communication terminal device 10 is uploaded from the communication terminal device 10 to the policy server 50 in step S109 and managed by the policy server 50. It can be used to change communication policy information such as preferential route information.

  Next, when the communication terminal apparatus 10 determines to continue the connection process to the access point 20 based on the measurement value of the communication quality and a predetermined threshold value, the communication terminal apparatus 10 preferentially connects to the Internet 90 at the application level. A communication path to be used (hereinafter referred to as “default communication path for network connection”) is changed from a cellular communication path (first communication path) via the base station 60 to a wireless LAN path (second communication) via the access point 20. (Route) (step S112). Thereby, the communication terminal apparatus 10 starts communication with the Internet 90 preferentially using the communication path of wireless LAN communication via the access point 20 (step S113).

  FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of connection control of wireless LAN communication when the connection between the communication terminal device 10 and the access point 20 is stopped in the communication system according to the present embodiment. In this operation sequence, steps S001 to S003 and S201 to S209 are the same as steps S001 to S003 and S101 to S109 shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 4, the serving cell is set to the offload priority area as priority route information corresponding to the area identification information of the area where the communication terminal apparatus 10 is located from the policy server 50 to the communication terminal apparatus 10. Flag information indicating not applicable: 0 is transmitted.

  When receiving the priority route information indicating that it does not correspond to the offload priority area, the communication terminal apparatus 10 does not calculate and store the measurement value of the communication quality (for example, throughput) of the wireless LAN communication via the access point 20, and accesses The connection process to the point 20 is stopped (step S210). And the communication terminal device 10 transmits the disconnection request | requirement for canceling the connection process to the access point 20 to the access point 20 (step S211). Then, the default communication path of the network connection is maintained as a communication path of cellular communication via the base station 60 and cannot be switched to wireless LAN communication via the access point 20. Therefore, when viewed from the user operating the communication terminal device 10, the network connection at the application level is not disconnected and the network connection can be used continuously. And convenience are improved.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the communication quality data of the cellular communication path is acquired for each of a plurality of communication areas (for example, cells) 60A of the mobile communication network, and the communication quality data is preferentially based on the data of the communication quality. Whether or not it corresponds to an offload priority area for performing wireless LAN communication is evaluated, and priority route information for designating a communication route to be preferentially used by the communication terminal device 10 is set. The communication terminal device 10 downloads and uses the priority route information, thereby improving communication quality (for example, throughput) when the communication terminal device 10 is connected to the communication network and communicating, and reducing communication traffic on each communication route. As can be done, switching between the cellular communication path and the wireless LAN path can be appropriately controlled according to the communication quality for each communication area (for example, cell). In addition, since the policy server 50 performs the acquisition of the communication quality data of the cellular communication path, the evaluation as to whether or not it corresponds to the offload priority area, and the setting of the priority path information, the load on the communication terminal apparatus 10 Does not increase.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, when the communication area (for example, cell) 60A in which the communication terminal device 10 is located corresponds to the offload priority area, that is, the communication path used preferentially by the communication terminal device 10 is wireless. In the case of the LAN path, a measured value of communication quality (for example, throughput) of wireless LAN communication via the access point 20 is further calculated. The connection control to the access point 20 can be optimized by determining the continuation / cancellation of the connection process to the access point 20 based on the measurement value of the communication quality and the predetermined threshold value. Thereby, communication quality (for example, throughput) when the communication terminal apparatus 10 is connected to the communication network for communication can be further improved, and communication traffic can be further reduced.

  In particular, according to the present embodiment, since the communication quality data of the cellular communication path is acquired from the network information of the communication management database 65 of the mobile communication network, the network information is connected to the access point of the wireless LAN. It can be used as AP connection control information used for control. Further, compared to the case where the policy server 50 acquires data on the communication quality of the cellular communication path measured by the communication terminal device 10, the increase in the load on the communication terminal device 10 is suppressed and the network resources on the cellular communication side are wasted. Without this, the policy server 50 can acquire the communication quality data of the cellular communication.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the communication quality data of the cellular communication used for setting the priority route information is multiplied by a weight coefficient (weight), the threshold value to be compared with the communication quality data is changed, or the priority route information The priority route information can be dynamically and arbitrarily changed by changing the communication policy information used for the setting.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, measurement of communication quality (for example, throughput) when wireless LAN communication is performed between the communication terminal device 10 and the authentication server 40 via the access point 20 is performed with the access point 20. This is performed after the connection process is completed and before the use of the communication service via the access point 20 is started. As a result, there is no need to separately measure the communication quality of the wireless LAN communication after the use of the communication service via the access point 20 is started, so that the influence on the use of the communication service via the access point 20 is suppressed. Can do. Therefore, there is no change in the user experience and operability of the communication terminal device 10, and the communication service via the access point 20 can be used with the same experience and operability as before.

  In the above embodiment, the communication terminal device 10 uploads the area identification information (for example, cell ID) and downloads the priority route information with the policy server 50 based on the communication data during communication. Although the measurement value of the communication quality of the wireless LAN communication is calculated, the measurement value of the communication quality of the wireless LAN communication is calculated based on the communication data at the time of other communication before the use of the communication service is started. Good. For example, based on communication data during communication when wireless LAN path communication is performed with the authentication server 40 in association with user authentication processing of the WISPr authentication method in which the amount of data transmitted and received by the communication terminal device 10 is relatively large. Thus, the communication quality of the wireless LAN path may be measured.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, since the communication path of cellular communication is maintained until an authentication response is received from the authentication server 40, even if an authentication error authentication response indicating that the authentication process has failed is received, the network The connection is not broken.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Communication terminal device 20 Wireless LAN access point 20A Wireless communication area of access point 30 Backbone network 35 Gateway 40 Authentication server 45 Subscriber database 50 Policy server 55 Policy database 60 Base station 60A Communication area (cell)
65 Communication management database of mobile communication network 70 Core network 75 Gateway 90 Internet

JP 2009-088946 A

Claims (9)

A system for managing communication policy information of a communication terminal device capable of switching between a first communication path via a base station of a mobile communication network and a second communication path via a wireless LAN relay device,
For each of a plurality of communication areas that can communicate by switching between the first communication path and the second communication path, communication quality data of the first communication path via a base station of the mobile communication network is used as the mobile communication. Means for obtaining from a network communication management database ;
For each of the plurality of communication areas, based on the communication quality of the data of the first communication path acquired from the communication management database of the mobile communication network, a second communication path than the first communication path in front Symbol communication terminal device Means for setting offload priority area identification information for identifying whether it corresponds to an offload priority area to be used preferentially ;
Area identification information that can identify a communication area in which the communication terminal device is located , from a communication terminal device that is located in any of the plurality of communication areas and detects a wireless LAN relay device in the communication area , Means for receiving via the wireless LAN relay device ;
When receiving the area identification information from the communication terminal device via the relay device of the wireless LAN, the offload priority area identification information which the communication terminal device corresponding to the communication area of the serving relay of the wireless LAN Means for transmitting to the communication terminal device via a device. The system of claim 1, wherein
For each of the plurality of communication areas, the communication quality data multiplied by a weighting factor is compared with a preset threshold value, and the offload priority area identification information is set based on the comparison result. System. The system of claim 1 or 2,
A system characterized in that the offload priority area identification information is set to be different from each other for each of a plurality of time zones. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The system is characterized in that the offload priority area identification information is set to be different depending on whether or not an event is held in the communication area. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A system characterized in that the offload priority area identification information is set to be different for each of a plurality of types of communication contract plans for communication by the communication terminal device. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A system characterized in that the offload priority area identification information is set for each area identification information for identifying each of a plurality of communication areas in a mobile communication network. The system according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
A system characterized in that communication quality data of the first communication path is periodically acquired from a communication management database of the mobile communication network. A communication terminal apparatus capable of switching and communicating between a first communication path via a base station of a mobile communication network and a second communication path via a wireless LAN relay device,
Means for transmitting area identification information capable of identifying a communication area in which the communication terminal device is located to a system for managing communication policy information of the communication terminal device via the wireless LAN relay device ;
Of the first communication path and the second communication path, off-road priority area identification information for designating a communication path set to be used preferentially for a communication area in which the communication terminal device is located, Means for receiving from the system via a relay device of :
Means for calculating a measurement value of communication quality when transmitting the area identification information and receiving the offload priority area identification information with the system via the wireless LAN relay device ;
When the second communication path is selected based on offload priority area identification information received from the system, the area identification information is transmitted and the offload priority area identification information is received via the wireless LAN relay device. A communication terminal device comprising: means for controlling connection with the relay device of the wireless LAN based on a measured value of communication quality when performing the communication. A communication terminal apparatus capable of switching and communicating between a first communication path via a base station of a mobile communication network and a second communication path via a wireless LAN relay device,
Means for transmitting area identification information capable of identifying a communication area in which the communication terminal device is located to a system for managing communication policy information of the communication terminal device via the wireless LAN relay device;
Of the first communication path and the second communication path, off-road priority area identification information for designating a communication path set to be used preferentially for a communication area in which the communication terminal device is located, Means for receiving from the system via a relay device of:
Means for performing user authentication processing of a WISPr (Wireless Internet Service Provider Roaming) authentication method for communication via the wireless LAN relay device after the connection processing with the wireless LAN relay device is completed;
Means for calculating a measurement value of communication quality when performing communication via the wireless LAN relay device for user authentication processing by the WISPr authentication method;
When selecting the second communication path based on offload priority area identification information received from the system, communication is performed via the wireless LAN relay device for user authentication processing by the WISPr authentication method. And a means for controlling connection with the relay device of the wireless LAN based on a measured value of communication quality at that time .

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