JP6200783B2 - Wireless communication apparatus and movement control method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for improving reception strength of wireless communication.

  There is a technique for improving the reception strength of wireless communication. For example, in Patent Document 1, when a mobile camera performs radio wave intensity monitoring and command operation history storage and detects that wireless communication quality has deteriorated, communication is performed retroactively from the command operation history. A technique for returning to a position where quality can be secured is described.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-260641

For example, when wireless communication conforming to the wireless LAN (Local Area Network) standard is performed between wireless communication devices such as an access point installed at home and a smartphone used by the user, the user moves around the house while carrying the smartphone. As a result, the reception strength in the wireless communication may be reduced. In this case, since the user who carried the smartphone is the user, in the method of improving the reception intensity by returning the carried smartphone to the original position as in the technique of Patent Document 1, the user does not move. It is inconvenient.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to improve the reception strength of wireless communication without moving a wireless communication device carried by a user.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a first communication unit that performs first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user, a detection unit that detects a position of the first external device, and an own device. A moving control means for controlling the moving means for moving the mobile device based on the position detected by the detecting means , a second communication means for performing second wireless communication with the second external device, and the second (2) Second measurement means for measuring the reception intensity of the communication means, and reception intensity information representing the reception intensity measured by the second measurement means for each position where the own apparatus can move under the control of the movement control means And generating means for acquiring factor information indicating a state of a factor that changes the reception intensity measured by the second measuring means, and the movement control means is located at a position detected by the detecting means. In addition, Based on the reception strength information generated by the generation means, the device moves, and the generation means generates the reception strength information from the state of the factor indicated by the factor information acquired by the acquisition means. A radio that newly generates the reception strength information when the difference between the reception strength measured by the second measurement means and the reception strength currently measured by the second measurement means is greater than or equal to a threshold value. A communication device is provided.

The present invention also includes a first communication unit that performs first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user, a detection unit that detects a position of the first external device, and a moving unit that moves the device. A movement control means for controlling and moving the own apparatus based on the position detected by the detection means; a second communication means for performing second wireless communication with the second external device; and a reception intensity of the second communication means. Second generation means for measuring the reception intensity, generation means for generating reception intensity information representing reception intensity measured by the second measurement means for each position where the own apparatus can move under the control of the movement control means, Acquisition means for acquiring factor information indicating a state of a factor that changes the reception intensity measured by the second measurement means, and the generation means includes a plurality of the reception intensities corresponding to each of the plurality of states of the factor Raw information The movement control unit performs the control based on the reception intensity information generated by the generation unit when the factor information indicating the current state of the factor is acquired by the acquisition unit in the past. A wireless communication device is provided .

In addition, the present invention provides a first communication unit that performs first wireless communication with a plurality of first external devices carried by a user, a detection unit that detects a position of each of the plurality of first external devices, The plurality of positions when the plurality of positions detected by the detection means are weighted according to the unique information of the first external device from which the position is detected. Provided is a wireless communication device comprising movement control means for moving the own device based on a central position .

In addition, the present invention provides a first communication unit that performs first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user, a detection unit that detects a position of the first external device, and a self-device provided in the self-device. There is relatively little first wireless communication based on the history of the first wireless communication performed by the storage means that stores energy that can be converted into electric power to supply power to the moving means that moves the device. A specifying means for specifying a time zone; and a movement control means for controlling the moving means to move the own apparatus based on the position detected by the detecting means, the time zone specified by the specifying means being And a movement control means for moving the own apparatus to a position where the storage means can store the energy .

According to the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication apparatus comprising: a first communication unit that performs first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user; and a second communication unit that performs second wireless communication with a second external device. A detecting step for detecting a position of the first external device, and a movement control step for moving the own device based on the position detected in the detecting step by controlling a moving means for moving the own device by the wireless communication device. A second measurement step in which the wireless communication device measures the reception strength of the second communication means; and the second position is determined for each position where the wireless communication device can move by the control in the movement control step. A generation step for generating reception strength information representing the reception strength measured in the measurement step; and a reception strength measured by the wireless communication apparatus in the second measurement step. An acquisition step of acquiring factor information indicating a state of the factor to be changed, and the wireless communication device is configured to generate the generation step in the generation step in addition to the position detected in the detection step in the movement control step. When the wireless communication device generates the reception strength information from the state of the factor indicated by the factor information acquired in the acquisition step in the generation step, based on reception strength information. Movement control for newly generating the reception strength information when the difference between the reception strength measured in the second measurement step and the reception strength currently measured in the second measurement step is greater than or equal to a threshold value. Provide a method .

According to the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication apparatus comprising: a first communication unit that performs first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user; and a second communication unit that performs second wireless communication with a second external device. A detecting step for detecting a position of the first external device, and a movement control step for moving the own device based on the position detected in the detecting step by controlling a moving means for moving the own device by the wireless communication device. A second measurement step in which the wireless communication device measures the reception strength of the second communication means; and the second position is determined for each position where the wireless communication device can move by the control in the movement control step. A generation step for generating reception strength information representing the reception strength measured in the measurement step; and a reception strength measured by the wireless communication apparatus in the second measurement step. An acquisition step of acquiring factor information indicating a state of the factor to be changed, wherein the wireless communication device generates a plurality of reception intensity information corresponding to each of the plurality of states of the factor in the generation step. In the movement control step, the wireless communication device is based on the reception strength information generated in the generation step when the factor information indicating the current state of the factor is acquired in the past in the acquisition step. Thus, a movement control method for performing the control is provided .

Further, the present invention provides a detection in which a wireless communication device including first communication means for performing first wireless communication with a plurality of first external devices carried by a user detects the position of each of the plurality of first external devices. And the wireless communication device controls moving means for moving the device itself , and each of the plurality of positions detected in the detection step includes the unique information of the first external device from which the position is detected. There is provided a movement control method including a movement control step of moving the own apparatus based on a central position of the plurality of positions when a corresponding weight is applied .
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a detection step in which a wireless communication device including first communication means for performing first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user detects the position of the first external device; and the wireless communication An accumulation step of accumulating energy that can be converted into electric power to supply power to a moving means that is provided in the own apparatus and that moves the apparatus; and the wireless communication apparatus is performed by the first communication means. A step of specifying a time zone in which the first wireless communication is relatively small from the history of the first wireless communication, and the wireless communication device controls the moving means and is based on the position detected in the detection step. A movement control step of moving the device itself, wherein the energy can be stored in the storage step in the time zone specified in the specific step. It provides a mobile control method and a movement controlling step for moving the radar device to location.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the reception strength of wireless communication without moving the wireless communication device carried by the user.

The figure which shows an example of the whole structure of the radio | wireless communications system of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of a user apparatus The figure which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of a radio | wireless communication apparatus The figure which shows an example of a function structure of a radio | wireless communication apparatus The figure which shows an example of the reception strength information produced | generated by the production | generation means The figure which shows an example of the relationship between the distance between apparatuses and receiving intensity Diagram for explaining the destination to be decided Flow chart showing an example of the operation of the wireless communication device in the generation process Flow chart showing an example of operation of the wireless communication device in the control processing The figure which shows an example of a function structure of the radio | wireless communication apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of a function structure of the radio | wireless communication apparatus of a modification. The figure which shows an example of the measured communication volume and measurement time The figure which shows an example of a function structure of the radio | wireless communication apparatus of a modification. The figure which shows an example of the notified improvement information The figure which shows an example of the notified improvement information The figure which shows an example of the whole structure of the radio | wireless communications system of a modification. The figure which shows an example of the whole structure of the radio | wireless communications system of a modification. The figure which shows an example of a function structure of a radio | wireless communication apparatus The figure for demonstrating the direction which a radio | wireless communication apparatus moves Flow chart showing an example of operation of the wireless communication device in the control processing

[1] First Embodiment [1-1] Overall Configuration FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a wireless communication system according to a first embodiment. In the example of FIG. 1, a wireless communication system 1 including a wireless communication device 10, a user device 20, and a base station 30 is illustrated. The base station 30 is connected to a mobile communication network (not shown), and is also connected to the Internet through the mobile communication network. The base station 30 performs wireless communication (hereinafter referred to as “mobile communication”) based on the standard for mobile communication with the wireless communication device 10. The user device 20 is a device that is carried by the user, and is, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a mobile phone, a notebook computer, or a wearable terminal. The user device 20 performs wireless communication (hereinafter referred to as “wireless LAN communication”) in conformity with the wireless LAN standard with the wireless communication device 10.

  The wireless communication device 10 is a device that performs wireless communication with an external device. In the present embodiment, the wireless communication device 10 performs wireless LAN communication that is first wireless communication with the user device 20 that is the first external device, and performs base wireless communication with the base station 30 that is the second external device. Perform some mobile communication. The wireless communication device 10 transmits data received by mobile communication with the base station 30 to the user device 20 by wireless LAN communication. That is, the wireless communication device 10 relays data transmitted from the base station 30 to the user device 20. In addition, the wireless communication device 10 is installed in the building 2 and moves as indicated by an arrow in the drawing, for example, by a moving unit that moves the device itself.

[1-2] Hardware Configuration FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the user device 20. The user device 20 is a computer that includes a control unit 21, a storage unit 22, a communication unit 23, and a UI (User Interface) unit 24. The control unit 21 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and a real-time clock. The CPU is stored in the ROM or the storage unit 22 using the RAM as a work area. The operation of each part is controlled by executing a program. The real time clock calculates the current date and time and notifies the CPU.

  The storage unit 22 includes a flash memory and the like, and stores data and programs used by the control unit 21 for control. The communication unit 23 includes a communication circuit for performing wireless LAN communication, and transmits and receives data to and from the wireless communication device 10. The UI unit 24 includes a display surface and a touch panel overlaid on the display surface, and receives an operation from the user and displays an image. The UI unit 24 supplies operation data corresponding to the received user operation to the control unit 21, and the control unit 21 performs processing according to the operation data.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the wireless communication device 10. The wireless communication device 10 includes a control unit 11, a storage unit 12, a first communication unit 13, a first measurement unit 14, a second communication unit 15, a second measurement unit 16, a traveling unit 17, and an accumulation. The computer includes a unit 18 and a detection unit 19. The control unit 11 and the storage unit 12 are hardware having the same function as each unit of the same name provided in the user device 20.

  The first communication unit 13 includes an antenna and a communication circuit for performing wireless LAN communication, and is a first communication unit that performs wireless LAN communication with the user device 20. The first communication unit 13 includes a directional antenna having directivity, and can receive only a radio signal from a range designated by the control unit 11. The first measurement unit 14 includes a measurement circuit that measures the reception strength of the radio signal, and is a first measurement unit that measures the reception strength of the first communication unit 13. The reception strength of the first communication unit 13 is the reception strength of a radio signal received when the first communication unit 13 performs wireless LAN communication. Hereinafter, the reception strength of the first communication unit 13 is also referred to as reception strength of wireless LAN communication. The first measuring unit 14 supplies reception intensity data indicating the measured reception intensity of the wireless LAN communication to the control unit 11.

  The second communication unit 15 includes a communication circuit for performing mobile communication, and is a second communication unit that performs mobile communication with the base station 30. The second measurement unit 16 includes a measurement circuit that measures the reception strength of the radio signal, and is a second measurement unit that measures the reception strength of the second communication unit 15. The reception strength of the second communication unit 15 is the reception strength of a radio signal received when the second communication unit 15 performs mobile communication. Hereinafter, the reception strength of the second communication unit 15 is also referred to as reception strength of mobile communication. The second measurement unit 16 supplies reception intensity data indicating the measured reception intensity of mobile communication to the control unit 11.

  The traveling unit 17 is the above-described moving means (means for moving the device itself) having driving means for driving wheels such as a wheel and a motor, and adjusting means for adjusting the direction of the wheels. The traveling unit 17 rotates the wheel by the driving means to advance the own apparatus, adjusts the direction of the wheel by the adjusting means, and moves the own apparatus to a target place. The accumulating unit 18 is, for example, a battery, and is an accumulating unit that accumulates energy that can be converted into electric power (for example, energy generated by a chemical reaction) to supply electric power to the traveling unit 17. The storage unit 18 includes a charging unit such as a connector or wireless power feeding that can be connected to a supply unit that supplies power from a household power source, for example, and stores energy that can be converted into electric power by connecting to the charging unit. . The wireless communication device 10 includes the storage unit 18 so that the movable position is not limited by a power cord or the like. The storage unit 18 also supplies power to each unit other than the traveling unit 17.

  The detection unit 19 is detection means for detecting obstacles such as walls and furniture around the device itself. The detection unit 19 includes a proximity sensor that detects that an object is closer than a predetermined distance, for example. Proximity sensors are provided at a plurality of locations outside the housing of the device so that an object can be detected in any direction of the device. When detecting the proximity of the object, the detection unit 19 supplies detection data indicating the location where the detected proximity sensor is provided and the detection of the proximity to the control unit 11.

[1-3] Functional Configuration The wireless communication device 10 performs a movement process for moving the own device to adjust the strength of wireless communication based on the hardware configuration described above. In this embodiment, the strength of wireless communication here is the received electric field strength of wireless LAN communication and the received electric field strength of mobile communication. The movement process is executed by the following functions realized by the control unit 11 executing a program stored in the storage unit 12 to control each unit.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the wireless communication device 10. The wireless communication device 10 includes a detection unit 101, a generation unit 102, and a movement control unit 103.

[1-3-1] Detection unit 101
The detection unit 101 is an example of a unit that detects the position of the user device 20. For example, the detection unit 101 divides an area around the own apparatus using a range in which the directional antenna of the first communication unit 13 can receive, and among the divided areas, an area for receiving a radio signal is determined as a user. It is specified as a location area where the device 20 is located. For example, if the range in which the directional antenna can be received is 10 °, the detection unit 101 divides the periphery into 36 regions and specifies the location region. When the location unit is identified, the detection unit 101 calculates the distance between the own device and the user device 20 based on the time until the wireless communication is received from the location region in response to the transmitted radio signal. The detection unit 101 detects the position of the user device 20 based on the location area thus identified and the calculated distance, and supplies position data indicating the detected position to the movement control unit 103.

[1-3-2] Generation unit 102
The generation means 102 receives information (hereinafter referred to as “reception strength information”) representing the reception strength measured by the second measurement unit 16 at each movable position of the device, that is, the reception strength of mobile communication at each position. It is an example of the means to produce | generate. In the present embodiment, the reception intensity measured by the second measurement unit 16 is shown in four stages of Lv0, Lv1, Lv2, and Lv3. Lv0 indicates that the reception strength is the lowest, and Lv3 indicates that the reception strength is the highest.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the reception intensity information generated by the generation unit 102. The reception strength information shown in FIG. 5 represents the reception strength of mobile communication at each position where the wireless communication apparatus 10 can move inside the building 2 shown in FIG. In this example, for the sake of brevity, the movable position is the center of 25 square areas consisting of 5 columns A to E and 5 rows 1 to 5 shown in FIG. And In the following, each movable position shown in FIG. 5 is called a movable position A-1, A-2,..., E-4, E-5 in combination with a column alphabet and a row number.

  When the generation unit 102 starts generating reception intensity information, the generation unit 102 starts from the position where the apparatus itself is located, and based on the direction and distance the apparatus moves, the generation unit 102 shows the position where the apparatus can move. Create a map like this. At that time, the generation unit 102 identifies the position of the obstacle based on the position of the own device when the detection unit 19 detects the obstacle and the detected location of the casing, and connects the identified position. The appearing outline (T1 indicated by a thick line in the example of FIG. 5) is reflected on the map. The generation unit 102 continues to create a map until the outline T1 is completed and there are no unreachable positions in the region surrounded by the outline T1.

  For example, the generation unit 102 determines that the contour T1 is completed when all of the distances along the contour T1 between adjacent positions of the specified obstacle positions are equal to or less than a threshold value. If this threshold value is determined to be the shortest width value among the horizontal widths of the casing of the wireless communication device 10, for example, any part of the completed contour T1 may be caused by an obstacle regardless of which portion the wireless communication device 10 tries to pass through. You will be blocked. Further, for example, the generation unit 102 draws a circle with a predetermined radius centered on the position where the own device has moved, on the map, and has not yet reached a portion where the circle is not drawn in the region surrounded by the outline T1. Judge as position.

  The generation unit 102 creates the map as described above, and associates the reception intensity measured by the second measurement unit 16 when located at each movable position with the position information indicating the movable position. Remember. The position information is represented by, for example, an XY coordinate system with the origin as the origin. In the example of FIG. 5, the description will be made using the names of movable positions such as A-1 and E-5 as position information. For example, the generation unit 102 stores the reception intensity of Lv1 in association with the position information A-1, and stores the reception intensity of Lv3 in association with the position information E-1. The generation unit 102 generates reception intensity information represented by the stored position information and reception information. The generation unit 102 supplies the generated reception intensity information to the movement control unit 103.

[1-3-3] Movement control means 103
The movement control means 103 is an example of a means for moving the own apparatus by controlling the movement means (the traveling unit 17 in the present embodiment). The position where the own apparatus can move is a position where the own apparatus can move under the control of the movement control means 103. In more detail, the movement control means 103 is based on the position detected by the detection means 101, the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14, and the reception intensity information generated by the generation means 102. Move the device.

  In the present embodiment, the movement control unit 103 moves the own apparatus to a position where the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14, that is, the reception intensity of wireless LAN communication is equal to or higher than a threshold (hereinafter referred to as “first threshold”). An example to be performed will be described. In this example, the first measurement unit 14 measures the reception strength of wireless LAN communication in five stages from the lowest level 0 to the highest level 5, and level 2 of them is defined as the first threshold value. To do. For easy understanding, it is assumed that the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication changes according to the distance between the wireless communication device 10 and the user device 20.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the relationship between the inter-device distance and the reception intensity. FIG. 6 shows a graph in which the distance between devices is represented on the horizontal axis and the reception strength of wireless LAN communication is represented on the vertical axis. In the example of FIG. 6, the inter-device distance when the distance between the movable positions adjacent in the column direction or the row direction in FIG. In the present embodiment, the vertical distance is not considered. The reception strength of the wireless LAN communication becomes the maximum level 5 when the inter-device distance is 0, and becomes a level 2 when the inter-device distance is 2.5 as the inter-device distance increases and decreases as the inter-device distance increases. It has become. That is, in this example, when the inter-device distance exceeds 2.5, the reception intensity of wireless LAN communication becomes less than the first threshold value.

In the example of FIG. 5, for example, the distance from the movable position A-1 is 1 up to A-2, 2 up to A-3, and 3 up to A-4. In other words, if the user apparatus 20 is located at a movable position that is two distances away in the column direction or the row direction, the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication is greater than the first threshold value, and the reception strength is greater than three movable positions away from each other. Becomes less than the first threshold. Further, since the distance between the oblique movable positions is represented by the length of the hypotenuse of the right triangle, for example, the distance from the movable position A-1 is 2 (1 ² +1 ² ) square root until B-2. About 1.4, up to B-3 up to about 2.2 with a square root of 5 (1 ² +2 ² ), up to about B-4 up to about 3.2 with a square root of 10 (1 ² +3 ² ) up to C-3 Is approximately 2.8 with a square root of 8 (2 ² +2 ² ). That is, for example, if the movable position is two positions away in the column direction and one position away in the row direction (for example, B-3 for A-1), the reception intensity is larger than the first threshold value, but three positions apart in the column direction. A movable position one distance away in the row direction (for example, B-4 for A-1), or a movable position two positions away in the column direction and two distances away in the row direction (for example, C- for A-1). 3), the received intensity is less than the first threshold.

  The movement control unit 103 stores in advance relationship data representing the relationship between the distance between devices and the reception strength of wireless LAN communication as shown in FIG. 6, and the reception strength at each position represented by this relationship data is It is used as the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14. Of course, the first measurement unit 14 may sequentially measure the intensity of radio waves in real time and use it as related data. The relational data is created based on, for example, the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication measured by the first measuring unit 14 by changing the distance between the wireless communication device 10 and the user device 20 in several ways and measuring the distance between the devices. The In addition, in order to further improve the accuracy, relational data when the user device 20 is located at a plurality of positions in the building 2 are respectively created and created at positions closest to the positions detected by the detecting unit 101. The relationship data may be used by the movement control means 103.

Further, even if the wireless communication device 10 and the user device 20 are not related data created by performing wireless LAN communication, other wireless communication devices that are close to both devices, such as the strength of the output radio wave and the sensitivity of the antenna, are wireless. Relational data created by performing LAN communication may be used.
The movement control means 103 determines the movement destination of its own apparatus based on the following four rules, for example, using the stored relational data and reception intensity information. In the following, the respective movable positions are classified according to the reception strength of mobile communication, and the movable positions of the mobile communication reception strengths Lv3, Lv2, Lv1, and Lv0 are represented as “Lv3 position”, “Lv2 position”, “Lv1”. "Position" and "Lv0 position". The movable position where the user device 20 is located is referred to as a “user position”.

Rule 1: When the user apparatus 20 is located at the Lv3 position and the own apparatus is not located at the Lv3 position, the Lv3 position closest to the own apparatus is determined as the movement destination.
Rule 2: When the user device 20 is located at the Lv0 to Lv2 position, the Lv3 position closest to the user position is determined as the movement destination.
Rule 3: If the wireless LAN communication reception intensity is less than the first threshold when moved according to rule 2, the Lv2 position closest to the user position is determined as the movement destination.
Rule 4: If the wireless LAN communication reception intensity is less than the first threshold when moved according to rule 3, the Lv1 position closest to the user position is determined as the movement destination.
How the destination is determined based on the above rules will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the determined destination. FIG. 7 shows the groups α, β, γ, and δ that have the same destinations when the movable positions become user positions when the reception intensity information shown in FIG. 5 is generated. . Since the group α is an Lv3 position, the group α is a movable position where the user position is determined as a movement destination by the rule 1. All the groups β are at the Lv1 position or the Lv2 position, and the distance between the devices with the closest Lv3 position of any movable position is less than 2.5, that is, the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication is equal to or higher than the first threshold. Since it is a position, the Lv3 position closest to the user position is a movable position determined by rule 2 as the movement destination.

  The group γ is either the Lv0 position or the Lv1 position, and the distance between devices with the closest Lv3 position of any movable position is 2.5 or more, that is, the wireless LAN communication reception strength is less than the first threshold. Since it is a position, the Lv2 position closest to the user position is a movable position determined by rule 3 as the movement destination. Since the group δ is an Lv0 position and the distance between the devices with the closest Lv2 position is 2.5 or more, the movement in which the Lv1 position closest to the user position is determined as the movement destination by the rule 4 It is a possible position. As described above, the movement control means 103 determines whether or not to move the own apparatus and the movement destination in the case of movement.

  In the example of FIG. 7, there is a position where the reception strength of wireless LAN communication is equal to or higher than the first threshold and the reception strength of mobile communication is equal to or higher than Lv1 regardless of the user position. When the range in which the reception intensity is Lv0 is widened, such a position may not exist depending on the user position. In such a case, the movement control means 103 decides which of the wireless LAN communication and the mobile communication is prioritized, and if the wireless LAN communication is prioritized, the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication in the Lv0 position is determined. Is determined as the destination, that is, the priority is given to the reception strength of mobile communication, the Lv1 position closest to the user position may be determined as the destination. That is, the movement control unit 103 may move the own apparatus to a position where the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication is less than the first threshold value.

  When the movement control means 103 determines the destination according to the rules, the movement control means 103 calculates the adjustment amount of the wheel direction and the rotation speed of the wheel necessary for moving the own device to the determined movement destination, and the calculated adjustment amount and Data indicating the rotation speed is supplied to the traveling unit 17 as movement control data used for controlling movement of the own apparatus. The traveling unit 17 adjusts the direction of the wheel by the adjustment amount indicated by the supplied movement control data, and rotates the wheel by the number of rotations indicated by the movement control data. In this way, the movement control means 103 moves the own apparatus to the determined movement destination. When the own apparatus is located at the determined movement destination, the movement control unit 103 calculates both the adjustment amount and the rotation speed as 0, and as a result, does not move the own apparatus.

  The movement control unit 103 also supplies movement control data to the generation unit 102. The generation unit 102 determines the direction and distance that the device has moved based on the adjustment amount and the rotation speed indicated by the supplied movement control data, and creates the map described above. Accordingly, the generation unit 102 generates reception intensity information representing the reception intensity measured by the second measurement unit 16 for each position where the own apparatus can move under the control of the movement control unit 103.

[1-4] Operation The wireless communication system 1 performs the above-described movement process based on the above configuration. The movement process includes a generation process for generating the reception intensity information and a control process for controlling the moving unit to move the wireless communication apparatus 10. The operation of the wireless communication apparatus 10 in these processes will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the wireless communication device 10 in the generation process. The generation process is started, for example, when the user places the wireless communication device 10 on the floor of the building 2 and activates it by turning on the power.

  First, the wireless communication apparatus 10 stores the position information (for example, coordinates of (0, 0)) of the starting point and the reception strength of mobile communication in association with each other, starting from the position where the own apparatus is located at the time of starting ( Step S11). Next, the wireless communication device 10 determines whether there is a position that is movable and has not yet reached (hereinafter referred to as “unreachable position”) (step S12). In the example of FIG. 5, the wireless communication device 10 has an unreachable position until the contour T1 is completed and there is no unreachable position in the region surrounded by the contour T1, as described above. to decide.

  If it is determined in step S12 that there is an unreachable position (YES), the wireless communication apparatus 10 moves to the unreachable position (step S13), and determines the position information and the reception strength of mobile communication at that position. The data is stored in association with each other (step S14). After step S14, the wireless communication device 10 returns to step S12 and operates. If the wireless communication device 10 determines in step S12 that there is no unreached position (NO), the generation processing ends. Steps S11 to S14 are operations performed by the generation unit 102. In this way, the position information and the mobile communication reception intensity are continuously stored until there is no unreached position, and reception intensity information is generated.

  Note that the wireless communication device 10 does not return to step S12 and cannot be reached if a non-reached position remains and a predetermined time (for example, 1 hour) has passed without reaching the unreached position. The user device 20 may be notified that a non-reachable position remains. In that case, the radio | wireless communication apparatus 10 may notify the user apparatus 20 together with the map which shows the remaining unreachable position. The remaining unreached position is, for example, a position ahead of a position that can be passed once but cannot be passed thereafter, and is a position that cannot be reached by opening or closing a door or the like. By performing this notification, the user can open the door so that the wireless communication device 10 can reach the unreached position.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the wireless communication device 10 in the control process. The control process includes, for example, the start of data exchange with the user device 20, the change in the position of the user device 20 detected by the detection unit 101, and the wireless LAN communication measured by the first measurement unit 14. It is triggered by the fact that the reception intensity has changed more than a certain level, the reception intensity of wireless LAN communication has become less than the first threshold, and the like. First, the wireless communication device 10 detects the position of the user device 20 (step S21). Step S21 is an operation performed by the detection means 101. Next, the wireless communication device 10 determines the destination of its own device based on the position detected in step S21 and the reception intensity information generated in the generation process shown in FIG. 8 (step S22), and the determined movement Move forward (step S23). Step S22 is performed by the movement control unit 103, and step S23 is an operation performed by the movement control unit 103 and the traveling unit 17 in cooperation.

  In the example of FIG. 5, for example, when the wireless communication device 10 is located at the movable position D-2 and the user device 20 is located at the movable position C-3, the reception strength of mobile communication is Lv3, wireless LAN communication Is a level corresponding to 1.4 which is the distance between devices (about 3 in the example of FIG. 6). When the user apparatus 20 moves to the movable position A-3, the reception intensity of the wireless LAN communication decreases to a level corresponding to 3.2 that is the distance between apparatuses (in the example of FIG. 6, about 1.5). In this case, as described with reference to FIG. 7, the wireless communication device 10 moves by determining C-3 that is the closest Lv2 position as the movement destination. As a result, it is possible to improve the reception strength of wireless LAN communication to a level corresponding to 2.0, which is the distance between devices after movement (about 2.3 in the example of FIG. 6), compared to before movement. Such an improvement in reception intensity is realized without moving the user device 20 carried to the movable position A-3 by the user. Thus, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to improve the reception strength of wireless communication without moving the wireless communication device carried by the user.

  In the above example, if the wireless communication device 10 is moved to the user position A-3, the wireless LAN communication reception strength is level 5, but the mobile communication reception strength is Lv0. End up. Then, even if the speed of wireless LAN communication becomes faster than before movement, the speed of mobile communication becomes slow. For example, even if the user device 20 tries to acquire data from the Internet, it can be acquired per unit time. In some cases, the amount of data is smaller than before the movement. On the other hand, in this embodiment, by using the reception strength information, the wireless communication device 10 is moved to a position that considers not only the reception strength of wireless LAN communication but also the reception strength of mobile communication.

  Thus, for example, by using the rule as described in the example of FIG. 7, the reception strength of wireless LAN communication and the reception strength of mobile communication are not maximized and reduced to the other as much as possible. The wireless communication device 10 can be moved to a position where the size is increased. As a result, when the wireless communication device 10 performs the above two wireless communication and relays the exchange of data between the base station 30 and the user device 20, rather than moving the wireless communication device 10 without being based on the received intensity information, By reducing the speed difference between the mobile communication and the wireless LAN communication, it is possible to increase the amount of data that the user apparatus 20 can acquire per unit time.

[2] Second Embodiment Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described focusing on differences from the first embodiment. The reception strength of mobile communication does not change as much as the reception strength of wireless LAN communication because the position of the base station 30 does not change, but for example, a rainy day may be weaker than a clear day. It may also change under the influence of lightning. In the second embodiment, reception intensity information corresponding to the state of the factor that changes the reception intensity of such mobile communication is used. Such a factor is hereinafter referred to as “reception strength change factor”.

[2-1] Acquisition Unit FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the wireless communication apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 10 shows a wireless communication device 10a including an acquisition unit 104 in addition to the units shown in FIG. The acquisition unit 104 is an example of a unit that acquires factor information indicating the reception intensity measured by the second measurement unit 16, that is, the state of a reception intensity change factor that changes the reception intensity of mobile communication. For example, the acquisition unit 104 identifies the area where the own device is located from the global IP address assigned to the own device. For example, if the acquisition unit 104 acquires rainfall, lightning, and thundercloud information as factor information, the acquisition unit 104 obtains current rainfall, lightning, and thunderclouds from the site that provides weather information on the Internet. The weather information shown is acquired as factor information. The acquisition unit 104 supplies the acquired factor information to the generation unit 102.

[2-2] Generation Unit Based on the factor information supplied from the acquisition unit 104, the generation unit 102 generates reception intensity information using the first and second generation methods described below.
[2-2-1] First Generation Method In the first generation method, when the generation unit 102 generates reception intensity information from the state of the reception intensity change factor indicated by the factor information acquired by the acquisition unit 104. Is received when the difference between the reception intensity measured by the second measurement unit 16 and the reception intensity currently measured by the second measurement unit 16 is equal to or greater than a threshold (hereinafter referred to as “second threshold”). Strength information is newly generated.

  The generation means 102 stores a value or level at which the difference in reception intensity is greater than or equal to the second threshold for each reception intensity change factor. For example, if the amount of rain is 2 mm / hour or more, or if it is a lightning strike, the local device is located. If there are two or more lightning strikes within 10 minutes in the area, and if it is a thundercloud, its strength is expressed as “strong”, “weak”, “strong”, “medium”, “weak”, etc. When the strength of the thundercloud in the area where the device is located is stronger than “weak”, it is determined that the difference in reception strength is equal to or greater than the second threshold. When this determination is made, the generation unit 102 performs the generation process shown in FIG. 8 and generates new reception intensity information.

  For example, even if the wireless communication device 10 moves to the closest Lv3 position or Lv2 position determined as the destination using the reception intensity information and rules described in the example of FIG. If it changes to Lv2 or Lv1 due to rain or the like, the speed of mobile communication becomes slower than the state before the reception intensity changes. Therefore, even if the communication speed of the wireless LAN communication is high, the communication speed of the mobile communication is slow, and as a result, the amount of data that the user device 20 can acquire per unit time by the wireless LAN communication may decrease. When the first generation method is used, reception strength information is newly generated when the reception strength of mobile communication changes in this way, so that a movable position corresponding to the current situation of the reception strength is determined as the destination. It is possible to prevent a decrease in the amount of data that can be acquired per unit time by the user apparatus 20 due to a change in reception intensity.

[2-2-2] Second Generation Method In the second generation method, the generation unit 102 generates a plurality of pieces of reception intensity information corresponding to each of a plurality of states of the reception intensity change factor. For example, if the reception intensity change factor is rain, the plurality of reception intensity change factors are 2 to 5 mm, 5 to 10 mm, 10 mm or more, and the reception intensity change factor is a lightning strike. Then, there are 2 to 4 lightning strikes within 5 minutes, 5 to 9 states, 10 or more states, etc. in the area where the device is located. When the factor information indicating these states is acquired by the acquisition unit 104, the generation unit 102 performs generation processing to generate reception intensity information, and associates the generated reception intensity information with the acquired factor information. This is supplied to the movement control means 103.

  When the second generation method is used, the acquisition unit 104 also supplies the acquired factor information to the movement control unit 103. The supplied factor information indicates the current state of the reception strength change factor at the time of supply. When the factor information is supplied, the movement control unit 103 identifies the factor information supplied in the past indicating the same reception strength change factor state as the factor information, that is, the same state as the current reception strength change factor state. To do. Then, the movement control unit 103 controls the traveling unit 17 based on the reception intensity information supplied from the generation unit 102 in association with the identified factor information. That is, the movement control unit 103 determines whether the traveling unit 17 is based on the reception intensity information generated by the generation unit 102 when the acquisition unit 104 previously acquired factor information indicating the state of the current reception intensity change factor. Take control.

  When the second generation method is used, reception intensity information according to the current state of the reception intensity change factor can be used from those generated in the past. This makes it possible to determine the destination based on the current reception strength information earlier than when generating reception strength information after the state of the current reception strength change factor is known. It is possible to shorten the period during which the amount of data that can be acquired by the user device 20 per unit time after the change occurs.

[3] Third Embodiment Hereinafter, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described focusing on differences from the first and second embodiments. In the above embodiment, the case where there is one user device 20 has been described. In the third embodiment, a case where there are a plurality of user devices 20 will be described. In this case, the first communication unit 13 performs wireless LAN communication with the plurality of user devices 20, and the detection unit 101 detects each position of the plurality of user devices 20, that is, a plurality of user positions.

[3-1] Center Position of User Positions In this embodiment, for example, the movement control unit 103 replaces the plurality of user positions detected by the detection unit 101 with the center position of the plurality of user positions (hereinafter referred to as “the user position”). The traveling unit 17 is controlled based on “center position”). The center position is, for example, the center of gravity of a plurality of user positions. In addition, if there are three user positions, the center, the outer center, and the centroid of the user positions may be set as the central position. Even when there are four or more user positions, if there are inner centers, outer centers, and vertices, they may be used as the center position, and the center of the smallest circle including those user positions may be used. It is good also as a center position.

  The central position is preferably a position where the distances between the wireless communication device 10 and the user devices 20 are not biased as much as possible. If some of the user devices 20 are far away from the central position due to this deviation in the distance, the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication of the user devices 20 becomes significantly weaker than other user devices 20. Can happen. In the present embodiment, the use of the center position as described above makes it difficult for the wireless communication device 10 and the user device 20 to be biased in distance compared to the case where the center position is not used. It is also possible to make it difficult for the bias to occur.

[3-2] Weighting of User Position Furthermore, the movement control means 103 provides information specific to the user device 20 from which the user position is detected (hereinafter referred to as “unique information”) for each of the detected user positions. The traveling unit 17 is controlled based on the center position when the weights corresponding to are applied. The unique information is, for example, information on the type of processing performed using data exchanged by the user device 20 through wireless LAN communication, information on the time elapsed since each user device 20 started wireless LAN communication, or wireless communication in the past. Information on the total amount of data exchanged with the wireless communication device 10 by LAN communication, information on the priority of each user device 20 determined by the user, and the like.

  The greater the weight of the user position, the closer the user position is to the center position. That is, the user device 20 (the former) located at the user position having a large weight is likely to be closer to the center position than the user device 20 (the latter) located at the user position having a small weight. It is difficult for the reception intensity of wireless LAN communication to be extremely small. In other words, the wireless communication device 10 can stabilize the reception strength of wireless LAN communication of the former user device 20 compared to the latter user device 20.

  Specific examples are (1) <Processing for posting to SNS (Social Networking Service), (2) Processing for displaying a website, and (3) Processing for playing a video by streaming: (1) < (2) The weight of the user position of the user device 20 performing the process (3) in the order of <(3) is maximized. This order of weighting is also an order in which user dissatisfaction is likely to increase when the reception strength decreases and communication is interrupted or slowed down. In this embodiment, by performing such weighting, the reception intensity of wireless LAN communication can be stabilized as the user device 20 is performing processing in which a decrease in reception intensity is likely to lead to user dissatisfaction.

[4] Modifications Each of the above-described embodiments is merely an example of an embodiment of the present invention, and may be modified as follows. Moreover, you may implement each embodiment mentioned above and each modification shown below, combining each as needed.

[4-1] Automatic Charging of Storage Unit When the energy stored in the storage unit 18 shown in FIG. 1 is reduced, the wireless communication device may charge the storage unit 18 by newly storing energy. Charging may be performed automatically by moving to a possible position (hereinafter referred to as “charging position”).
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the wireless communication apparatus according to the present modification. FIG. 11 shows a wireless communication device 10b including a first communication unit (first communication unit 13) and a specifying unit 105 in addition to the units shown in FIG. The specifying unit 105 is an example of a unit that specifies a time zone in which the wireless LAN communication is relatively small from the history of the wireless LAN communication performed by the first communication unit 13.

For example, the specifying unit 105 measures the amount of data transmitted and received by the first communication unit 13 through wireless LAN communication. This amount represents the communication amount of wireless LAN communication. The specifying unit 105 stores communication amount data indicating the measured communication amount and time data indicating the measured measurement time in association with each other. An example of the communication amount and measurement time indicated by these data is shown in FIG.
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of measured communication volume and measurement time. In the example of FIG. 12, the communication amount is 0 from 1 o'clock to 6 o'clock and from 16:00 to 18 o'clock. In this example, the specifying unit 105 specifies the time zone from 1 o'clock to 6 o'clock and the time zone from 16 o'clock to 18 o'clock as time zones in which wireless LAN communication is relatively small. The specifying unit 105 supplies time zone data indicating the specified time zone to the movement control unit 103.

  The specifying unit 105 may specify the time zone from the traffic data and time data for one day, or may specify the time zone based on the average traffic of each time for several days or weeks. . The specifying unit 105 may specify a time zone for each day of the week. Further, the specifying unit 105 may respecify the time zone every day, or may respecify the time zone when a certain period has elapsed. In short, the specifying unit 105 may specify the time zone so that it is more certain that the wireless LAN communication is relatively small.

  The movement control unit 103 moves the own device to a position where the storage unit 18 can store energy (the charging position described above) during the time period specified by the specifying unit 105. For example, if the wireless communication device 10b generates reception intensity information based on the charging position, the movement control unit 103 sets a flag indicating the charging position in the position information of the base point in the reception intensity information, When the specified time zone is reached, the own apparatus is moved using the position indicated by the position information with the flag set as the movement destination.

  In addition, the movement control means 103 also has shape data indicating the shape of the supply means for supplying power from the household power supply to the storage unit 18 when the own apparatus is provided with a photographing means for photographing an image. The supply unit may be recognized from the image captured by the photographing unit, the direction and the distance to the supply unit may be calculated, and the own apparatus may be moved to the supply unit based on the calculation result. Further, when the supply means has a communication means for performing wireless LAN communication, the detection means 101 detects the position of the supply means in the same manner as the user apparatus 20 and the own apparatus up to the position where the movement control means 103 is detected. May be moved. Further, as wireless communication when detecting a position, for example, infrared communication or sound wave communication may be used instead of wireless LAN communication.

  When a plurality of time zones are specified as in the example of FIG. 12, the movement control unit 103 moves the own device to the charging position, for example, in a longer time zone. In addition, the movement control means 103 may move the own device to the charging position in a time zone where the electricity charge is cheaper, and the storage unit 18 determines which of the time zone length and the electricity charge is prioritized. You may judge according to the remaining amount of energy. For example, if the remaining amount is large, priority is given to the electricity charge, and if the remaining amount is small, priority is given to the length of the time zone.

  According to this modification, when the energy stored in the storage unit 18 decreases, the wireless communication device can move to the charging position and automatically charge. Even when the mobile communication reception strength or the wireless LAN communication reception strength is low and the movable position is the charging position, the wireless communication device is set to the charging position in a time period when the wireless LAN communication is relatively small. Since it moves, when charging automatically, it can suppress that the user apparatus 20 is used by the user in the state with few data amount which the user apparatus 20 can acquire per unit time.

[4-2] Notification Unit The wireless communication device may notify the user who uses the user device 20 of improvement information for improving the reception strength of wireless LAN communication or mobile communication.
FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the wireless communication apparatus according to the present modification. In FIG. 13, a wireless communication device 10 c including a notification unit 106 in addition to the units illustrated in FIG. 4 is illustrated. The notification unit 106 is an example of a unit that notifies the user device 20 of improvement information for improving the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14. For example, the notification unit 106 transmits the improvement information data indicating the improvement information to the user apparatus 20 by wireless LAN communication, and displays the improvement information indicated by the improvement information data received by the user apparatus 20 on the UI unit 24 illustrated in FIG. Thus, the improvement information is notified.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of the notified improvement information. In FIG. 14, improvement information F <b> 1 representing the contour T <b> 1 illustrated in FIG. 5, a position image G <b> 1 indicating the position of the wireless communication device 10 c, and a position image G <b> 2 indicating the position of the user device 20 is illustrated. The user can know the distance between the wireless communication device 10c and the user device 20 that he / she uses and the respective positions in the building 2 by notifying the improvement information F1. In order to shorten the distance, that is, to improve the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication, it is possible to determine where to move around the building 2.

Further, the notification unit 106 may notify the user device 20 of improvement information for improving the reception intensity measured by the second measurement unit 16.
FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of the notified improvement information. In FIG. 15, each image shown in FIG. 14 and the improvement images representing the range images F11, F12, and F13 indicating the respective ranges of the groups α, β, and γ with the same destination as described in the example of FIG. Information F2 is shown. The range images F11, F12, and F13 represent ranges in which the wireless communication device 10c uses the user position, the closest Lv3 position, and the closest Lv2 position as destinations when the user device 20 is located in each range. In this example, it is shown that the user device 20 is located in the range image F13 indicating the range of the group γ, and the wireless communication device 10c is located at the Lv2 position closest to the user device 20. In this case, the user can move the wireless communication device 10c to the Lv3 position closest to the user device 20 by moving the user device 20 to the range indicated by the range image F12 to improve the reception strength of mobile communication. it can.

  In addition, when the wireless communication apparatus includes the acquisition unit 104 illustrated in FIG. 11, the notification unit 106 greatly changes the reception strength of mobile communication due to factors such as rainfall and lightning indicated by the factor information acquired by the acquisition unit 104. In this case, the user device 20 may be notified as improvement information. For example, when the acquired rainfall is equal to or greater than the threshold value, the notification unit 106 transmits to the user device 20 improvement information data indicating that the mobile communication reception strength is greatly reduced. When the user who notices a decrease in the reception strength of mobile communication by this notification carries the user device 20 close to a position where the reception strength of mobile communication is strong (for example, a position on the window side), the wireless communication device 10 also moves. It becomes possible to move to a position where the reception strength of mobile communication is stronger, and as a result, the reception strength of mobile communication can be improved.

  In addition to the above, for example, a position where the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication becomes a predetermined level (for example, level 2, 3, 4, etc.) relative to the current position of the wireless communication device 10c, or simply the wireless LAN communication Improvement information indicating that the received intensity of the received signal is less than the first threshold value may be notified. Further, the notification unit 106 may transmit not only the improvement information data representing the improvement information as an image but also the improvement information data represented as a voice. In short, the notification means 106 may notify the improvement information by any method as long as it can be recognized by the user.

[4-3] Reception Strength Information Reception strength information is not limited to that described in the embodiment. For example, the movable positions may not be arranged at regular intervals as in the example of FIG. 5, or the distance between adjacent movable positions may be made longer or shorter. Further, in the embodiment, the reception strength information is generated by storing the reception strength of mobile communication in association with the position information. However, for example, the floor plan information of the building is stored in advance in the wireless communication device and can be moved. Numbers and symbols assigned to positions may be generated as reception strength information in which reception strength is stored in association with the numbers and symbols. In short, the reception strength information only needs to represent the reception strength of mobile communication at each movable position of the wireless communication device.

[4-4] Measuring Received Intensity at Movement Destination In the embodiment, the movement control means 103 is represented by relational data representing the relationship between the distance between devices and the received intensity of wireless LAN communication as shown in FIG. Although the reception strength of the position is used as the reception strength measured by the first measurement unit 14, the reception strength actually measured by the first measurement unit 14 may be used. For example, the movement control means 103 determines the destination as in the embodiment, moves the own apparatus to the determined destination, and the received intensity of the wireless LAN communication measured by the first measuring unit 14 is the own apparatus. It is determined whether or not a condition (hereinafter referred to as “stop condition”) for stopping is satisfied. If the movement control means 103 determines that the stop condition is satisfied, the movement control means 103 stops the device itself. If the movement control means 103 determines that the stop condition is not satisfied, the movement control means 103 determines another movement destination, and again A determination is made as to whether to move the own device and whether to stop the own device.

  For example, in the example illustrated in FIG. 7, the movement control unit 103 determines, as the movement destination, a position where the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication is equal to or higher than the first threshold based on the four rules described in the embodiment. When moved, the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication may be less than the first threshold due to the influence of an object such as a wall existing between the user apparatus 20 and the user apparatus 20. In such a case, for example, the movement control means 103 determines a movement destination when there is no position based on the above-described rules, and moves the own apparatus to the movement destination. In this way, by determining the movement destination of the wireless communication device 10 based on the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication actually measured at the movement destination, the wireless communication device 10 is located at a position where the wireless LAN communication can be performed with the intended reception strength. Can be moved.

  Note that the movement control means 103 may move the own apparatus based on the reception strength of mobile communication measured at the destination. For example, when actually moving to the destination determined based on the reception strength information, the reception strength of the mobile communication measured by the second measurement unit 16 may be different from the reception strength indicated by the reception strength information. is there. The movement control means 103 determines that the stop condition is not satisfied, for example, if the difference between the received strengths is equal to or greater than the threshold, determines another movement destination as described above, and again determines the movement of the own apparatus. It is determined whether or not to stop the own device. Thereby, the radio | wireless communication apparatus 10 can be moved to the position which can perform mobile communication with the intended receiving intensity.

[4-5] Measuring Reception Strength During Movement The movement control unit 103 may measure the reception intensity during movement and stop the own apparatus when the measured reception intensity satisfies a stop condition. In this case, for example, the movement control means 103 determines the movement direction in which the own apparatus is moved, and the reception intensity of the wireless LAN communication measured by the first measurement unit 14 is determined while moving the own apparatus in the determined movement direction. When the stop condition (for example, the first threshold value or more) is reached, the own apparatus is stopped. Further, the movement control means 103 may perform the same control using the reception strength of mobile communication measured by the second measurement unit 16. In this modification, the own device is stopped when the measured reception strength satisfies the stop condition, so the position where the wireless communication device is stopped is more intended than when the reception strength is not measured during movement. Can approach.

[4-6] When there are a plurality of movement destination candidates When there are a plurality of Lv1, Lv2 and Lv3 positions closest to the user position described in the embodiment, the movement control unit 103 moves the movement destination as follows. May be determined. For example, when a plurality of Lv2 positions closest to the user position are candidates for the movement destination, the movement control unit 103 moves the Lv2 positions in order, and the wireless LAN measured by the first measurement unit 14 at each position. The received intensity of communication is compared, and the Lv2 position having the highest received intensity is determined as the destination. Even if the distance between the devices is the same, the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication may be different due to the influence of an object such as a wall existing between the wireless communication device and the user device 20. According to this modification, when a location where both the distance to the user position and the reception strength of mobile communication are the same is a destination candidate, a location where the reception strength of wireless LAN communication is stronger is determined as the destination. Therefore, the amount of data that can be acquired by the user device 20 per unit time can be increased as compared with the case where the moving means is controlled without using the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication.

[4-7] Moving Means In the embodiment, the wireless communication apparatus includes the moving means (running unit 17). However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the wireless communication apparatus moves its own apparatus by controlling external moving means. You may let them.
FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of the wireless communication system according to the present modification. In FIG. 16, a wireless communication system 1d including a wireless communication device 10d, a user device 20, a rail 4, a moving device 5, and a support member 6 is shown. The rail 4 is fixed to the ceiling of the building 2. The moving device 5 has wheels that ride on the rails 4 and driving means for rotating the wheels, and moves along the rails 4. The support member 6 is a member that connects the mobile device 5 and the wireless communication device 10d and supports the wireless communication device 10d. The support member 6 electrically connects the control unit 11 of the wireless communication device 10d and the drive unit of the moving device 5 so that the control unit 11 can control the drive unit.

  The moving device 5 is controlled by the control unit 11 and moves on the rail 4. The rail 4 may be linear, wavy or spiral. If it is straight, the wireless communication device moving by the moving device 5 can move linearly, and if it is wavy or spiral, the wireless communication device can move planarly. The moving means is not limited to the above example, and may be means for moving the wireless communication apparatus by fixing the wireless communication apparatus to an endless belt and rotating the belt in the circumferential direction. Furthermore, the moving means may be movable in the vertical direction, for example, by providing a rail along the undulation of the ceiling. In that case, the wireless communication device can move three-dimensionally. In short, the moving means may be any means as long as the wireless communication apparatus can be moved.

[4-8] First Wireless Communication In the embodiment, the wireless LAN communication is performed as the first wireless communication. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The first wireless communication may be wireless communication based on a standard different from a wireless LAN such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), or wireless communication using light or sound such as infrared communication or acoustic communication. May be. In short, the first wireless communication may be any communication that allows the wireless communication device to exchange data wirelessly with a first external device such as a user device.

[4-9] Second Wireless Communication In the embodiment, mobile communication is performed as the second wireless communication. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The second wireless communication may be, for example, wireless communication using a broadcast wave such as television or radio, or may be wireless communication such as amateur wireless or business wireless. In short, the second wireless communication may be any communication that allows the wireless communication device to exchange data wirelessly with a second external device such as a television tower.

[4-10] Wired Communication Substituting for Second Wireless Communication In a wireless communication system, wired communication may be performed instead of the second wireless communication.
FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of the wireless communication system according to the present modification. FIG. 17 shows a wireless communication system 1e including a wireless communication device 10e, a user device 20, a rail 4e, a moving device 5e, and a support member 6e. The rail 4e is connected to the network 7. The network 7 is a system that performs communication including the Internet and a mobile communication network, and mediates exchange of data between devices connected to the system. Each of the rail 4e, the moving device 5e, and the support member 6e has wiring, and functions as a line that connects the wireless communication device 10e and the network 7. Similarly to the embodiment, the wireless communication device 10e relays data when the user device 20 acquires data from the Internet or the like.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the wireless communication device 10e. The wireless communication device 10e includes a detection unit 101 and a movement control unit 103e. Since the wireless communication device 10e does not perform mobile communication, the wireless communication device 10e does not include the generation unit 102 that generates reception intensity information. The movement control means 103e moves the own apparatus based on the position detected by the detection means 101 (that is, the user position) and the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14. For example, when the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14 is less than the first threshold, the movement control unit 103e is located at a position closest to the detected user position among positions where the own apparatus can move. The own device is moved with the direction of heading as the moving direction.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining the direction in which the wireless communication device 10e moves. FIG. 19 shows a building 2 viewed downward in the vertical direction and a range H1 in which the wireless communication device 10e can move. The range H1 is a linear range along the rail 4e shown in FIG. FIG. 19 also shows a position G3 where the wireless communication device 10e is located and a user position G4 where the user device 20 is located. The movement control means 103e determines the direction toward the position G5 closest to the user position G4 in the range H1 as the movement direction of the own apparatus, and moves the own apparatus in the determined movement direction. After starting the movement of the own device, the movement control means 103e stops the own device when the above-described stop condition (condition for stopping the own device) is satisfied. For example, when the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14 reaches the first threshold value, the movement control unit 103e determines that the stop condition is satisfied and stops the own apparatus.

  FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the wireless communication device 10e in the control process of the present modification. First, the wireless communication device 10e performs an operation of step S21 (detection of the position of the user device) shown in FIG. 9, and then determines a direction (movement direction) in which the wireless communication device 10e is moved based on the detected position ( Step S31). Subsequently, the wireless communication device 10e starts moving in the determined moving direction (step S32), and determines whether the stop condition is satisfied (step S33). The wireless communication device 10e repeats the operation of step S33 while determining that the stop condition is not satisfied (NO), and stops its own device when determining that the stop condition is satisfied (YES). (Step S34), and the control process ends. Steps S31 to S34 are operations performed by the movement control means 103e.

Note that, even when the wireless communication device is moved by the moving means (running unit 17) included in the wireless communication device as in the embodiment, wired communication may be performed instead of the second wireless communication. In this case, since the wireless communication device moves while pulling the wired cord, it is desirable that the movement control means 103 moves the device so that the cord does not get tangled with the device or furniture or other objects. .
According to this modification, even when wired communication is performed instead of the second wireless communication, the reception strength of wireless communication can be improved without moving the wireless communication device carried by the user, as in the embodiment. it can.

[4-11] Transmission of data The wireless communication apparatus is not limited to relaying data as in the embodiment, and may transmit data by itself. For example, the wireless communication device stores data used by the user device, and when there is a predetermined timing or a request from the user device, the stored data is transmitted to the user device by the first wireless communication. Send. In this case, the wireless communication apparatus may include the movement control unit 103e illustrated in FIG. 18 and move based on the user position and the reception intensity measured by the first measurement unit 14.

[4-12] Detection Unit The detection unit 101 may detect the position of the user device using the positioning result obtained by the positioning unit when the user device includes a positioning unit that measures the position of the own device. . As a technique for measuring the position of the user device, for example, GPS (Global Positioning System), IMES (Indoor MEssaging System), or the like may be used. In this case, own device position data indicating the position of the own device measured by the user device is transmitted to the wireless communication device, and the detecting unit 101 detects the position indicated by the received own device position data as the position of the user device.

[4-13] Control Based on User Position The movement control unit 103 does not use the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication measured by the first measurement unit 14, but only based on the user position detected by the detection unit 101. The device may be moved. That is, in this modification, the first measurement unit 14 may not be provided in the wireless communication device. For example, when the distance between the detected user position and the position of the own device is equal to or greater than a threshold value (hereinafter referred to as “third threshold value”), the movement control unit 103 moves the user device closer to the user position. The position is moved until the distance between the position and the position of the own apparatus becomes less than the third threshold. Also in this case, similarly to the embodiment, it is possible to improve the reception strength of wireless communication without moving the wireless communication device carried by the user.

  In addition, even when the reception strength information described in the embodiment is used, the movement control unit 103 does not use the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication, but based on the user position detected by the detection unit 101 and the reception strength information. You may move your own device. For example, instead of determining whether or not the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication is less than the first threshold, the movement control unit 103 determines that the distance between the detected user position and the position of the own device is the first. It is determined whether or not the threshold value is 3 or more. In short, in the present modification, the movement control means 103 is based only on the user position by utilizing the property that the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication is likely to decrease as the distance between the detected user position and the position of the own apparatus increases. Move your device.

[4-14] Recording User Position The movement control means 103 may record the user position and move the own apparatus based on the recorded user position. Specifically, the movement control unit 103 records the user position detected by the detection unit 101 by causing the storage unit 12 to store the user position regularly or whenever the user position changes. The movement control means 103 predicts a position where the user device 20 tends to stay for a long time (hereinafter referred to as “long-term stay position”) from a plurality of recorded user positions. As a prediction method, for example, the movement control unit 103 predicts a position having the largest number of recorded user positions as a long-term stay position. The movement control means 103 moves the own apparatus using the predicted long-term stay position in place of the position detected by the detection means 101. Thus, after the user position is recorded to some extent, the wireless communication apparatus can move toward a position where the user is likely to be detected without detecting the user position.

  The movement control means 103 may predict a plurality of long-term stay positions. In that case, for example, the movement control unit 103 first moves the apparatus to the long-term stay position where the recorded user positions are the largest, and if the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication there is less than the first threshold, the movement control means 103 is recorded. The device is moved to the long-term stay position with the next highest user position. Then, the movement control means 103 moves the own apparatus until a position where the reception strength of the wireless LAN communication is equal to or higher than the first threshold is found. There may be no user at the predicted long-term stay position, but by predicting a plurality of long-term stay positions in this way, the position where the user stays can be easily found.

[4-15] Category of Invention The present invention can be understood as a wireless communication device and a wireless communication system including the wireless communication device. In addition to the above, the present invention can also be understood as a movement control method for realizing processing performed by the wireless communication apparatus. The processing here is, for example, the generation processing shown in FIG. 8 and the control processing shown in FIG. The present invention can also be understood as a program for causing a computer such as a wireless communication device to function as each unit shown in FIG. This program may be provided in the form of a recording medium such as an optical disk storing the program, or may be provided in the form of being downloaded to a computer via a network such as the Internet, and making it available for installation. You may do.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Wireless communication system, 10 ... Wireless communication apparatus, 20 ... User apparatus, 30 ... Base station, 11, 21 ... Control part, 12, 22 ... Memory | storage part, 13 ... 1st communication part, 14 ... 1st measurement part, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 15 ... 2nd communication part, 16 ... 2nd measurement part, 17 ... Traveling part, 18 ... Accumulation part, 19 ... Detection part, 23 ... Communication part, 24 ... UI part, 101 ... Detection means, 102 ... Generation means, 103 ... Movement control means 104 ... Acquisition means 105 ... Identification means 106 ... Notification means

Claims (8)

First communication means for performing first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user;
Detecting means for detecting a position of the first external device;
A movement control means for controlling the moving means for moving the own apparatus, and for moving the own apparatus based on the position detected by the detecting means ;
Second communication means for performing second wireless communication with the second external device;
Second measuring means for measuring the reception intensity of the second communication means;
Generating means for generating reception intensity information representing the reception intensity measured by the second measurement means for each position where the own apparatus can move under the control of the movement control means;
Obtaining means for obtaining factor information indicating a state of a factor for changing the reception intensity measured by the second measuring means;
With
The movement control means moves the own apparatus based on the reception intensity information generated by the generation means in addition to the position detected by the detection means,
The generation means is configured to measure the reception intensity measured by the second measurement means when the reception intensity information is generated from the factor state indicated by the factor information acquired by the acquisition means and the current measurement by the second measurement means. A wireless communication device that newly generates the reception strength information when it is indicated that the difference from the received reception strength is equal to or greater than a threshold value . First communication means for performing first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user;
Detecting means for detecting a position of the first external device;
A movement control means for controlling the moving means for moving the own apparatus, and for moving the own apparatus based on the position detected by the detecting means;
Second communication means for performing second wireless communication with the second external device;
Second measuring means for measuring the reception intensity of the second communication means;
Generating means for generating reception intensity information representing the reception intensity measured by the second measurement means for each position where the own apparatus can move under the control of the movement control means;
Obtaining means for obtaining factor information indicating a state of a factor for changing the reception intensity measured by the second measuring means;
With
The generation means generates a plurality of the reception intensity information corresponding to each of the plurality of states of the factor,
The movement control unit performs the control based on the reception intensity information generated by the generation unit when the factor information indicating the current state of the factor is acquired by the acquisition unit in the past.
Wireless communication device. First communication means for performing first wireless communication with a plurality of first external devices carried by a user;
Detecting means for detecting the position of each of the plurality of first external devices;
When the moving means for moving the own apparatus is controlled, and each of the plurality of positions detected by the detecting means is weighted according to the unique information of the first external apparatus from which the position is detected. Movement control means for moving the device based on a central position of the plurality of positions;
A wireless communication device comprising: First communication means for performing first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user;
Detecting means for detecting a position of the first external device;
Storage means for storing energy that can be converted into electric power in order to supply electric power to a moving means that is provided in the own apparatus and moves the own apparatus;
Identifying means for identifying a time zone in which the first wireless communication is relatively small from a history of the first wireless communication performed by the first communication means;
A movement control means for controlling the movement means to move the apparatus based on the position detected by the detection means, wherein the storage means accumulates the energy in a time zone specified by the specification means. Movement control means for moving the device to a position where it can be performed;
A wireless communication device comprising: A wireless communication device comprising a first communication means for performing first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user and a second communication means for performing second wireless communication with a second external device is the position of the first external device. A detecting step for detecting
The wireless communication device controls a moving means for moving the device itself, and a movement control step for moving the device based on the position detected in the detection step;
A second measuring step in which the wireless communication device measures the reception strength of the second communication means;
The wireless communication device generates reception strength information representing the reception strength measured in the second measurement step for each position where the device can move by the control in the movement control step;
An acquisition step in which the wireless communication device acquires factor information indicating a state of a factor that changes the reception intensity measured in the second measurement step;
With
In the movement control step, the wireless communication device moves the own device based on the reception intensity information generated in the generation step in addition to the position detected in the detection step,
In the generation step, the wireless communication device generates the reception intensity information from the factor state indicated by the factor information acquired in the acquisition step, and the reception intensity measured in the second measurement step When the second measurement step indicates that the difference from the currently measured reception strength is greater than or equal to a threshold value, the reception strength information is newly generated.
Movement control method. A wireless communication device comprising a first communication means for performing first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user and a second communication means for performing second wireless communication with a second external device is the position of the first external device. A detecting step for detecting
The wireless communication device controls a moving means for moving the device itself, and a movement control step for moving the device based on the position detected in the detection step;
A second measuring step in which the wireless communication device measures the reception strength of the second communication means;
The wireless communication device generates reception strength information representing the reception strength measured in the second measurement step for each position where the device can move by the control in the movement control step;
An acquisition step in which the wireless communication device acquires factor information indicating a state of a factor that changes the reception intensity measured in the second measurement step;
With
In the generation step, the wireless communication device generates a plurality of reception intensity information corresponding to each of the plurality of states of the factor,
In the movement control step, the wireless communication device is based on the reception strength information generated in the generation step when the factor information indicating the current state of the factor is acquired in the past in the acquisition step. , Do the control
Movement control method. A detection step in which a wireless communication device comprising first communication means for performing first wireless communication with a plurality of first external devices carried by a user detects the position of each of the plurality of first external devices;
The wireless communication device controls moving means for moving the device itself, and each of the plurality of positions detected in the detection step has a weight corresponding to the unique information of the first external device from which the position is detected. A movement control step for moving the device based on the center position of the plurality of positions when
A movement control method comprising: A detection step in which a wireless communication device comprising first communication means for performing first wireless communication with a first external device carried by a user detects a position of the first external device;
An accumulation step of accumulating energy that can be converted into electric power in order for the wireless communication device to supply electric power to a moving means that is provided in the own device and moves the own device;
A specifying step in which the wireless communication device specifies a time zone in which the first wireless communication is relatively small from a history of the first wireless communication performed by the first communication unit;
The wireless communication apparatus is a movement control step for controlling the moving means to move the apparatus based on the position detected in the detection step, and the accumulation is performed in the time zone specified in the specification step. A movement control step for moving the device to a position where the energy can be stored in the step;
A movement control method comprising:

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