JP7446734B2 - Wireless communication device and its control method, terminal device and its control method, program and storage medium - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a wireless communication device and its control method, a terminal device and its control method, a program , and a storage medium , and particularly relates to a communication technology that enables short-range wireless communication.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there have been devices that have an NFC communication function and an access point function that functions as a wireless LAN access point.

Patent Document 1 discloses that a wireless communication device that receives a request through NFC communication activates as an access point.

JP2008-283590A

However, even if NFC communication is possible as a communication partner of a wireless communication device such as the one disclosed in Patent Document 1, it only has an NFC tag information reading function, and for example, activates an access point for the wireless communication function. There are also devices that do not have a writing function for prompting requests, and it is conceivable that there are devices that have a writing function and devices that do not have a writing function.

In this case, if the wireless communication device with the access point function performs NFC communication but fails to receive the above request, the wireless communication device with the above request writing function may be asked whether it communicated with a device that does not have the above request writing function. It is possible that it is not possible to determine whether the request was not written even though the request was communicated with. Therefore, in a case where activation of the access point is required, the access point may not be activated.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a technology that can appropriately activate the function as an access point.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to the present invention
a first communication means for communicating with an external device by short-range wireless communication;
a second communication means for communicating with an external device via wireless LAN;
detection means for detecting that communication with a terminal device that is an external device is performed by the first communication means ;
After the detection means detects that communication has been performed by the first communication means , no instruction is received from the terminal device via the first communication means even after a predetermined period of time has elapsed. control means for controlling to activate an access point function for making a direct connection with the terminal device using the second communication means, based on the above ;
It is characterized by having the following.

According to the present invention, even if the device does not have a write function in short-range wireless communication, the access point function of the wireless communication device can be appropriately activated.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of a printer. 1 is a diagram showing a mobile terminal and a hardware configuration of the mobile terminal. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the operation of the printer. It is a flowchart of the operation of a mobile terminal. It is a flowchart of the operation of a mobile terminal that does not have a writing function.

Hereinafter, a wireless communication device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

It should be noted that the following embodiments do not limit the present invention according to the claims, and all combinations of features described in the present embodiments are not essential to the solution of the present invention. Not exclusively.

(Embodiment 1)
In this embodiment, a printer 100 is used as a wireless communication device having an access point, a mobile terminal 200 is used as a device with an NFC writing function, and a mobile terminal 300 is used as an example of a device without an NFC writing function. . Examples of mobile terminals include personal information terminals such as PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), mobile phones, and smartphones.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of the printer 100.

The printer 100 includes a CPU 101, an operation unit 102, a memory 103, a storage unit 104, a wireless LAN control unit 105, and an NFC control unit 106, each of which is connected via a system bus. The CPU 101 performs overall control of the printer 100. The operation unit 102 is an operation unit for a user to give instructions to the printer 100, and includes, for example, buttons, a touch panel, and the like.

The memory 103 is a random access memory (RAM) that serves as a work area for the CPU 101, and is used as a temporary storage area for various received data and stores various setting data. The storage unit 104 is, for example, a flash memory or the like, and stores various control programs such as applications and operating systems. The printer 100 is connectable to a network via a wireless LAN control unit 105, and is configured to be connectable to external devices such as a mobile terminal and the Internet via the network. The NFC control unit 106 can detect connections with other NFC devices and perform data communication with other NFC devices.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the hardware configurations of the mobile terminal 200 and the mobile terminal 300.

The mobile terminal 200 includes a CPU 201, an operation section 202, a memory 203, a storage section 204, a wireless LAN control section 205, and an NFC control section 206, each of which is connected via a system bus. CPU 201 performs overall control of mobile terminal 200 . The operation unit 202 is an operation unit for a user to give instructions to the mobile terminal 200, and includes, for example, buttons, a touch panel, and the like.

The memory 203 is a random access memory (RAM) that serves as a work area for the CPU 201, and is used as a temporary storage area for various received data and stores various setting data. The storage unit 204 is, for example, a flash memory or the like, and stores various control programs such as applications and an operating system. The mobile terminal 200 can be connected to a network via a wireless LAN control unit 205, and is configured to be connectable to external devices such as a printer and the Internet via the network.

The NFC control unit 206 and the NFC control unit 207 can detect connections with other NFC devices and perform data communication with other NFC devices. Data communication performed by the NFC control unit 206 of the mobile terminal 200 is reading and writing of NFC data. The data communication performed by the NFC control unit 207 of the mobile terminal 300 is only to read NFC data, and cannot write it.

First, the operation of the printer 100 will be explained.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the operation of the printer 100.

In S301, the printer 100 detects the start of NFC communication by a touch operation on the mobile terminal 200 or 300.

In S302, the printer 100 determines, through NFC data communication, whether an instruction to activate or not to activate the access point function has been written, and whether no instruction has been written. Wait for an instruction for a certain period of time to determine that no instruction is written. This fixed period of time for waiting for an instruction is defined as an instruction waiting time 301.

If an instruction to activate the access point function is written , or if no instruction is given even after the instruction standby time 301 has elapsed , it is determined in S303 whether the access point has already been activated. If the access point function has not been activated yet, the access point function is activated in S304. If the access point function has already been activated, no network settings will be changed. If an instruction not to activate the access point function is written, no network settings will be changed.

In S305, it is determined whether an access point function termination instruction has been detected. If not detected, the end instruction detection determination process of S305 is repeated at S306 until a certain period of time has elapsed.

If an end instruction is detected in S305 or a certain period of time has elapsed in S306, it is determined in S307 whether the access point function was activated in S304.

If the access point function has been activated in S304, the access point function is terminated in S308. This returns the network settings to those before the activation of the access point function.

Next, the operation of the mobile terminal 200 having a writing function will be explained.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the operation of the mobile terminal 200.

In S401, NFC communication is started by touching the printer 100 with the mobile terminal 200.

In S402, connection information 401 of the access point function of the printer 100 is acquired using NFC data communication. The connection information 401 is, for example, the SSID and password of the access point function of the printer 100.

In S403, it is confirmed whether communication with the printer 100 via wireless LAN is possible.

If communication is not possible, in step S404, the printer 100 is instructed to activate the access point function using NFC data communication.

In step S405, the printer 100 is connected to the wireless LAN using the connection information 401. At this time, it may take a certain period of time for the printer to activate the access point function, so if the mobile terminal 200 fails to connect to the access point with the printer 100, it may be retried for a certain period of time.

If it is determined in step S403 that communication with the printer 100 is possible, the printer 100 is instructed not to activate the access point function using NFC data communication in step S409.

In S406, it is determined whether communication with the printer 100 can be ended. For example, this may be such that communication may be terminated after the printing process has been executed once, or the user may be asked to perform an operation to terminate communication.

If it is determined that it is OK to end the communication, it is determined in S407 whether activation of the access point function was instructed in S404.

If activation of the access point function has been instructed, the printer 100 is instructed to terminate the access point function in step S408. When an instruction to terminate the access point function is given, the connection information 401 may be deleted in order to keep as little security-related information as possible in the mobile terminal. Further, when an instruction to terminate the access point function is given, the network settings of the mobile terminal 200 may be returned to the state before connecting to the access point function.

The operation flow of the combination of the above-described printer 100 and mobile terminal 200 will be explained using the steps of FIGS. 3 and 4.

By performing a touch operation on the printer 100 with the mobile terminal 200, the printer 100 detects the start of NFC communication in S301, and the mobile terminal 200 detects the start of NFC communication in S401.

Next, the mobile terminal 200 acquires connection information 401 of the access point function from the printer 100 in S402.

Next, in step S403, the mobile terminal 200 checks whether it can communicate with the printer in the current network environment.

If communication is not possible, activation of the access point function is instructed in S404. The printer detects the access point activation instruction in S302, and activates the access point function as necessary in S303 and S304.

The mobile terminal 200 connects to the printer 100 whose access point function has been activated in S405.

After that, for example, print processing is executed, and if it is determined in S406 that communication with the printer 100 can be terminated, an instruction to start the access point function is issued in S404. , instructs to terminate the access point function in S408.

Here, the printer 100 detects an instruction to terminate the access point function in S305, and if the access point function has been activated in S304, terminates the access point function in S308.

As mentioned above, when an NFC touch is performed using the mobile terminal 200 that has an NFC writing function, the mobile terminal 200 instructs the next operation of the printer 100 in S404 and S409, regardless of whether the access point function is activated or not. Therefore, the printer does not need to wait for the instruction standby time 301 to determine whether to activate the access point function in S302, and the processing speed can be improved.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, after the mobile terminal obtains the access point connection information from the printer, the network environment is checked and the access point is started and written. However, these orders are not limited to those in the embodiment. The access point connection information may be acquired after checking the network environment, or the access point connection information may be acquired after checking the network environment and writing to activate the access point.

The embodiment described above is also realized by performing the following processing. That is, the software (program) that realizes the functions of the embodiments described above is supplied to a system or device via a network or various storage media, and the computer (CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or device reads and executes the program. This is the process of Further, the program may be executed on one computer or may be executed on multiple computers in conjunction with each other.

Furthermore, it is not necessary to implement all of the above-described processing using software, and some or all of the processing may be implemented using hardware such as an ASIC. Moreover, the CPU is not limited to one CPU that performs all processing, but may be a plurality of CPUs that perform processing while working together as appropriate.

(Embodiment 2)
In this embodiment, the operation of the mobile terminal 300 without a writing function will be explained with reference to FIG. The configuration of the printer 100 is similar to that of the first embodiment.

In step S501, when NFC data communication is started by touching the printer 100 with the mobile terminal 300, the mobile terminal 300 acquires connection information 401 of the access point function of the printer 100 from the printer 100 in step S502.

In S503, it is confirmed whether communication with the printer 100 is possible using the wireless LAN. If communication is not possible, a wireless LAN connection is made to the printer 100 using the connection information 401 in step S504.

Since the mobile terminal 300 cannot instruct the printer 100 to activate or not activate the access point function, the printer 100 does not activate the access point function until the instruction standby time 301 has elapsed. Therefore, even if a wireless LAN connection is attempted immediately after the determination in S503, the connection may not be possible. Therefore, in S504, wireless LAN connection may be attempted after the instruction standby time 301 has elapsed. Alternatively, if the wireless LAN connection fails, the wireless LAN connection may be retried until the instruction standby time 301 elapses. In any case, if the wireless LAN connection with the printer 100 is successful, it is determined in step S505 whether communication with the printer 100 can be ended. This determination is similar to S406.

If it is determined that the access point function can be terminated, an instruction to terminate the access point function is issued in S506. At this time, if the printer was connected to the wireless LAN in S504, the network settings of the mobile terminal 300 may be returned to the state before the wireless LAN connection to the printer.

An example of an operation flow in a combination of the above-described printer 100 and mobile terminal 300 will be described using the steps of FIGS. 3 and 5.

By performing a touch operation on the printer 100 with the mobile terminal 300, the printer 100 detects the start of NFC communication in S301, and the mobile terminal 300 detects the start of NFC communication in S501.

Next, the mobile terminal 300 acquires connection information 401 of the access point function from the printer 100 in step S502.

Next, in step S503, the mobile terminal 300 checks whether it can communicate with the printer in the current network environment. If communication is not possible, the mobile terminal 300 attempts a wireless LAN connection to the printer 100 after the instruction standby time 301 has elapsed. Since no instructions have been issued from the mobile terminal 300, the printer 100 will not receive any instructions until the instruction standby time 301 has elapsed in S302, and therefore activates the access point function as necessary in S303 and S304. .

At this point, the access point function of the printer 100 is activated, so the wireless LAN connection in S504 is successful. Thereafter, for example, printing processing is executed, and when the printing processing is completed normally, if it is determined in S505 that communication with the printer 100 can be ended, an instruction is given to end the access point function in S506. Here, the printer 100 detects an instruction to terminate the access point function in S305, and if the access point function has been activated in S304, terminates the access point function in S308.

In this embodiment, if there is no instruction to activate the access point function in S302, the access point function is activated as necessary in S303 and S304, but the printer In contrast to 100, if another command such as a print execution instruction is issued via the wireless LAN, the access point function may not be activated.

As mentioned above, if you use an NFC touch with a mobile terminal that does not have a writing function, even if you cannot instruct the printer to activate the access point function, you can activate the access point function appropriately depending on the situation, so the writing function Even if you do not have a printer, it is possible to communicate with the printer via the printer's access point connection.

(Embodiment 3)
In this embodiment, another embodiment will be described in which a mobile terminal 300 that does not have a writing function and a printer 100 are combined.

When determining the instruction to activate the access point function in S302, the printer 100 determines that the instruction is to activate by detecting the NFC touch operation on the mobile terminal 300 again. If the mobile terminal 300 determines in S503 that communication is not possible, it displays a message on the screen of the mobile terminal prompting the NFC touch again. When the user performs an NFC touch in accordance with the message, the printer 100 detects the NFC touch operation again, determines that this is an instruction to activate the access point function, and activates the access point function. As a result, even if the mobile terminal does not have an NFC writing function, it is possible to activate the access point function without waiting for the instruction standby time 301 to elapse, and it is expected that the connection process will be made more efficient.

301 Instruction standby time of printer 100;
401 Connection information for the access point function of the printer 100

Claims (18)

a first communication means for communicating with an external device by short-range wireless communication;
a second communication means for communicating with an external device via wireless LAN;
detection means for detecting that communication with a terminal device that is an external device is performed by the first communication means ;
After the detection means detects that communication has been performed by the first communication means , no instruction is received from the terminal device via the first communication means even after a predetermined period of time has elapsed. control means for controlling to activate an access point function for making a direct connection with the terminal device using the second communication means, based on the above ;
A wireless communication device comprising : causing the terminal device to acquire connection information for the terminal device to connect to the wireless communication device using the access point function via the second communication means through communication with the first communication means; The wireless communication device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The wireless communication device according to claim 2, wherein the connection information includes an SSID and a password of the access point function. The control means is configured to prevent any communication from the terminal device via the first communication means even after the predetermined period of time has elapsed after the detection means detects that communication has been performed by the first communication means. According to any one of claims 1 to 3, the access point function is controlled to be activated when the access point function is not received and the access point function is not already activated. wireless communication equipment. The control means causes the detection means to activate the access point function via the first communication means before the predetermined time period elapses after the detection means detects that communication has been performed using the first communication means. 5. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein the access point function is controlled to be activated even when an activation instruction is received from the terminal device. The control means causes the detection means to activate the access point function via the first communication means before the predetermined time period elapses after the detection means detects that communication has been performed using the first communication means. The wireless communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the wireless communication device controls the access point function so as not to activate it when an instruction not to activate it is received from the terminal device. The control means receives a print execution instruction via the second communication means before the predetermined time period elapses after the detection means detects that communication is performed by the first communication means. 7. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication device controls the access point function so as not to activate the access point function when the access point function is activated. 8. The printing process according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the access point function is activated and the printing process is executed in a state where a direct connection with the terminal device is established through the second communication means. The wireless communication device described. a first communication means for communicating with an external device by short-range wireless communication;
a second communication means for communicating with an external device via wireless LAN;
A method for controlling a wireless communication device, the method comprising:
a detection step of detecting that communication with a terminal device that is an external device is performed by the first communication means;
In the detection step, after detecting that communication has been performed by the first communication means, no instruction is received from the terminal device via the first communication means even after a predetermined period of time has elapsed. a control step of controlling to activate an access point function for making a direct connection with the terminal device using the second communication means based on the above;
A method for controlling a wireless communication device, comprising : A program for causing at least one computer to function as each means of the wireless communication device according to claim 1. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing at least one computer to function as each means of the wireless communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 8. A third communication means that cannot write information to the short-range wireless communication means of an external device in short-range wireless communication, but can read information from the short-range wireless communication means of the external device. and,
a fourth communication means for communicating with an external device via wireless LAN;
After a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the third communication means reads connection information for direct connection to the wireless communication device using the wireless communication device as an access point from the wireless communication device that is an external device. A control means for controlling to perform a wireless LAN connection using the connection information;
A terminal device comprising: After the wireless communication device detects that communication has been performed with the terminal device via near field wireless communication, the wireless communication device does not receive any instruction from the terminal device via near field wireless communication even after the predetermined period of time has elapsed. 13. The terminal device according to claim 12, wherein the terminal device activates an access point function for establishing a direct connection with the terminal device via a wireless LAN based on the fact that the terminal device has not received the message. After reading the connection information from the wireless communication device by the third communication device, the control means may control the connection information for the predetermined period of time if the fourth communication device cannot communicate with the wireless communication device in the current network environment. 14. The terminal device according to claim 12, wherein the terminal device is controlled to perform a wireless LAN connection using the connection information after a period of time has elapsed. After reading the connection information from the wireless communication device by the third communication device, the control device is configured to perform wireless communication using the connection information if the fourth communication device can communicate with the wireless communication device. 15. The terminal device according to claim 14, wherein the terminal device is controlled not to make a LAN connection. A third communication means that cannot write information to the short-range wireless communication means of an external device in short-range wireless communication, but can read information from the short-range wireless communication means of the external device. and,
a fourth communication means for communicating with an external device via wireless LAN;
A method for controlling a terminal device having:
After a predetermined period of time has elapsed after the third communication means reads connection information for direct connection to the wireless communication device using the wireless communication device as an access point from the wireless communication device that is an external device. a control step of controlling to perform a wireless LAN connection using connection information;
A method for controlling a terminal device, comprising: A program for causing at least one computer to function as each means of the terminal device according to any one of claims 12 to 15. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing at least one computer to function as each means of the terminal device according to any one of claims 12 to 15.