JPH10107918A - Network connection method and network management method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce opportunity of connection failure by allowing an information processing unit that manages the network to receive connection information to an access point from each mobile communication terminal, to send a collected result to each mobile communication terminal, allowing a terminal user to select an access point based on the collected information and to try the connection thereto. SOLUTION: A mobile communication terminal equipment 107 accesses an internal network 105 consisting of a network management system 101, an access object machine 104, access points 102, 108, 109 and a router 103 or the like via a public line 106. When the mobile communication terminal 107 connects to the internal network 105, the network management system 101 acquires connection information such as an access point number including connection failure before the connection, an access object machine name, and time and collects the information and sends the collection result of each access point and relational information such as a traffic status and a machine load factor to the mobile communication terminal equipment 107 every time when the mobile communication terminal 107 is connected to the internal network 105. The terminal user selects an access point based on the information and tries to make connection to the network via the selected access point.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a network connection method for connecting a mobile communication terminal to a network and a network management method for managing the network. The present invention relates to a technology effective when applied to a network connection method for making a connection according to a usage form of the present invention and a network management method for managing a state of a network regarding connection of a mobile communication terminal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the development of communication technology and standardization of various communication standards, mobile communication devices and terminals, such as mobile phones and terminals with a PHS function, have been widely used. One of the usage modes of these mobile communication terminals is that a user of a certain network uses the network when accessing the network from a destination. Access from a destination by the mobile communication terminal is performed by connecting to the network via an access point provided by the network.

[0003] The above-mentioned access point is a device which can accept a connection from the outside via a telephone line or the like, is mainly set in a computer device, and generally exists in a plurality in a network. The access point number is an ID of an access point represented by a telephone number.

[0004] By accessing in this way, it can be used via a network in the same manner as in the conventional internal connection. However, an information processing apparatus to be used (hereinafter referred to as a machine)
Depending on the logical connection position, operation status, and traffic status in the network, there may be a problem in processing and transfer speed.

[0005] Conventionally, only keeping the connection status of the machines connected in the network optimal has been considered, and no optimization regarding the connection between the mobile communication terminal and the network has been considered. The following is an example of the method.

(1) “Network system automatic construction / reconstruction method” in JP-A-4-114532 (2) “Network management support system” in JP-A-5-250296 (1) Network system automatic construction / reconstruction The reconstructing method is to reconstruct the network system group once constructed according to the node operation status and the network system operation status so that the network system can be maintained in an optimal configuration.

The network management support system of (2) makes it possible to maintain the network in an optimum configuration by making a connection change proposal of the machine based on the transmission data amount and transmission destination data of the machine connected to the network. It is.

[0008]

However, in the prior arts described above, all of the prior arts perform optimization construction for information processing apparatuses directly connected to a network, and are not suitable for network connection using a mobile communication terminal. When applied, the following problems arise.

(1) Failure to connect to access point: Depending on the settings and the type of line contract, there are access points that cannot accept a plurality of accesses at the same time. When connecting to a network using such an access point from a mobile communication terminal, if the access point is already connected to another mobile communication terminal, new access cannot be accepted and the mobile communication terminal Will fail to connect to the network. In order to save the trouble of reconnection and the waiting time for connection, means for avoiding connection failure due to occupation of another terminal access point is required. However, there is no such means in the prior art, and there is a problem that the retry must be performed until the connection is successful.

(2) Variation in transfer rate and connection amount due to movement of mobile communication terminal: In a usage mode in which a mobile communication terminal is used to connect to a network from a destination,
Since the physical distance between the access target machine in the network and the mobile communication terminal changes due to the movement, a difference occurs in the transfer speed and the connection amount depending on which access point is used. When connecting to the network from the mobile communication terminal in such a situation, if the distance between the mobile communication terminal and the access point is short and the connection status between the access point and the access target machine is appropriate,
Transfer rates and connection costs are reasonable. Here, if there is a distance between the mobile communication terminal and the access target machine,
If you use an access point near the mobile communication terminal, the connection route in the network will be inappropriate and the transfer speed may be slow.If you use an access point near the access target machine, the connection fee will be high. Become. Therefore, means for determining an appropriate access point according to the destination of the mobile communication terminal and the needs of the user is required. However, the prior art has no such means, and has a problem that an appropriate access point must be selected based on experience.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve these problems, and an object of the present invention is to reduce the number of connection failures from a mobile communication terminal and to provide mobile communication according to a user's usage pattern. It is an object of the present invention to provide a technology capable of establishing a connection between a terminal and a machine to be accessed.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Among the inventions disclosed in the present application, the outline of a representative one will be briefly described.
It is as follows.

A plurality of information processing apparatuses, network devices,
And a network connection method for connecting a mobile communication terminal on a network to which an access point is connected, wherein the mobile communication terminal is connected to a network,
The connection information including whether or not the connection to the connected access point was successfully established and the connection status at the time of connection is stored, and the connection information is transmitted to the information processing apparatus that manages the network each time the connection to the network is performed. In the information processing apparatus that manages the information, the connection information of each mobile communication terminal is totaled, and each time the mobile communication terminal is connected to the network, the total of the connection information is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal, The user of the mobile communication terminal selects an access point based on the total of the connection information, and connects to the network via the access point.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a network connection method according to an embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a network used to explain a network connection method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 101 denotes a network management system, one or more of which exist in a network.
Reference numeral 102 denotes a machine that provides an access point, and a connection from outside the network is made via this access point. Reference numeral 103 denotes a computer or network device having a router function, and connects between buildings and between segments. Reference numeral 104 denotes a machine such as a personal computer to be accessed from the mobile communication terminal. Reference numeral 105 denotes an internal network managed by the network management system 101. 106 is a public line. 10
Reference numeral 7 denotes a mobile communication terminal, which is a connection target machine 1 via a public line 106 and an access point providing machine 102.
04 is accessed. 108 and 109 are machines that provide the same access point as 102. Also, 1
02, 108, and 109 are respectively located at remote locations.

The network management system 10 shown in FIG.
1 collects and accumulates physical connection information and logical connection information of the internal network 105, detailed information of network components, installation position information of network components, floor drawings, and monitoring information, and collects and accumulates them. Performs network failure management, configuration management, performance management, etc. based on this information.

The mobile communication terminal 1 accessing the internal network 105 using an access point.
07, receive and accumulate connection information related to access,
The aggregation result and the calculated data are displayed, and the mobile communication terminal 10
7 and a threshold check of the calculated data.

Each time the mobile communication terminal 107 accesses the internal network 105, the mobile communication terminal 107 accumulates connection information such as the connected access point number, time, connection time, transfer speed, and location information of the mobile communication terminal. When the access is successful, the information is transmitted to the network management system 101, and from the network management system 101, calculation data regarding the access of the mobile communication terminal 107 tallied by the network management system 101 is received.

The above-described network management system 101
2 and FIG. 3 shows connection information collected by the mobile communication terminal 107, and FIG.
FIG. 4 shows the results of the aggregation.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of information stored in the network management system 101 described above.

In FIG. 2, a floor drawing 201 is a physical network configuration drawing showing the floor on which a network exists and the arrangement of network components such as computers and cables. The installation position information of the components 202 indicates information on the installation positions of the network components, and includes items such as the floor name where each component is installed, the position coordinates on the floor drawing, and the location. The detailed information of the component 203 represents detailed information of the network component, and includes the name, manufacturer name, model number, hard disk capacity, memory capacity,
There are items such as service names provided to the network. The logical connection information 204 indicates information for each network segment, and includes items such as a segment name, a machine name in a segment, and an adjacent segment name.

The network management system 101 also stores various information necessary for network management, such as monitoring information such as the traffic status of machines in the network and the load on each machine.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of connection information collected by the mobile communication terminal 107.

Reference numeral 301 shown in FIG. 3 denotes an access point number, which is a number (indicated by a telephone number here) of an access point that the mobile communication terminal 107 tried to use for accessing the network. The success or failure of the connection at 302 is information indicating whether the connection from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the access point has succeeded or failed. 303
The connection time is information indicating the time at which the mobile communication terminal 107 attempted to access the network. The connection time 304 is information indicating the connection time from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the internal network 105. The transfer speed 305 is information indicating the transfer speed between the mobile communication terminal 107 and the access target machine. The usage amount 306 is the amount required for connection from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the internal network 105. The access target machine name 307 is transmitted from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the internal network 10.
5 is the name of the machine accessed via 5. The access user name 308 is an access user name used when the mobile communication terminal 107 accesses the access target machine 104 indicated by 307. The current location 309 is the current location of the mobile communication terminal 107 at the time of connection to the internal network 105.

If the connection fails, the connection time 30
4, the transfer speed 305, and the usage amount 306 are each empty information.

FIG. 4 shows a network management system 101.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the counting result in FIG.

The mobile communication terminal number 401 indicates that the mobile communication terminal 1 tried to access the internal network 105.
07. The access point number of 402 is
Similar to 301 in FIG. 3 described above, the mobile communication terminal 107
Is the number of the access point used to access the internal network 105. The access point location 403 is the location of the access point used for access from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the internal network 105. The success or failure of the connection in 404 is information indicating whether the connection has succeeded or failed as in the case of 302 in FIG. 3 described above. The connection time of 405 is the same as that of FIG.
Similarly to 03, this is information indicating the time at which the mobile communication terminal 107 tried to access the internal network 105. The connection time of 406 is the same as that of 304 in FIG.
This is information indicating the connection time to the server, and this information is empty when the connection fails. 407 transfer amount / yen is connection time 304,
This is the transfer amount per yen calculated from the transfer speed 305 and the usage amount 306. The access target machine name of 408 is
Similar to 307 in FIG. 3 described above, the mobile communication terminal 107
Is a machine accessed from the Internet via the internal network 105. The access user name 409 is the access user name used when the mobile communication terminal 107 accesses the access target machine 104, similarly to 308 in FIG. 3 described above. The current location of 410 is indicated by 3 in FIG.
As in 09, the current location of the mobile communication terminal 107 at the time of connection to the internal network 105 is made.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the connection fails, the connection time 406 and the transfer amount / circle 407 become empty information.

The network management system 101
Holds a priority order designation table designated by each mobile communication terminal 107 as shown in FIG. The priority designation table is a priority when accessing the network, and a priority list is designated in advance for each combination of the mobile communication terminal 107 and a user who uses the terminal.

As shown in FIG. 5, for example, the priority designation table contains a mobile communication terminal number 501 which is an ID of the mobile communication terminal 107 attempting to access the network.
And a user name 502 using the mobile communication terminal, and a priority list 503 which is a condition group that is prioritized when accessing the network. Examples of a group of conditions that are prioritized when accessing this network include, for example, a high connection success rate and a short distance between the mobile communication terminal and the access point.

Each mobile communication terminal 107 holds a priority order table of a portion related to the terminal.
For example, in FIG. 5, there are two types of information related to the 16-D mobile communication terminal 107, one related to the user name “user161” and the other related to the user name “user162”. These information are stored in the mobile communication terminal 16-D. Is held.

Further, the network management system 101
Holds calculated data and the like calculated based on the above-described totalized result in FIG. 4 and the accumulated information in FIG.

FIG. 6 is based on the totaling result (FIG. 4) from each mobile communication terminal 107, the accumulated information of the network management system 101 (FIG. 2), and the above-mentioned priority designation table (FIG. 5). This is an example of data calculated by the network management system 101, and is information used for selecting a connection destination in each mobile communication terminal.

As shown in FIG. 6, the connection success rate 601 is
This is a result of calculating a connection success rate for each combination of the mobile communication terminal 107 and the access point number, and includes items such as a mobile communication terminal number, an access point number, and a monthly average connection success rate. The usage amount 602 is a calculation result for each user of the amount used for accessing the network using the mobile communication terminal 107, and includes items such as a user name and a total usage amount for each month. Usage rate by time zone 603
Is a result of calculating the usage rate for each access point for each time zone, and includes items such as an access point number and a usage rate. In addition to these, the network management system 101 calculates and holds information such as the total connection time for each access point and the total connection time for each mobile communication terminal.

Next, a processing procedure at the time of connection from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the internal network 105 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the mobile communication terminal 107 collects connection information as shown in FIG. 3 every time a connection is attempted.
Further, the network management system 101 stores information as shown in FIG. 2, and based on the information and the data of the connection information from each mobile communication terminal 107, a totaling result as shown in FIG. The calculation data as shown in FIG.

For connection from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the internal network 105, first, the user of the mobile communication terminal 107 makes a call from the mobile communication terminal 107 to an access point (step 701). Next, the success or failure of the connection to the access point is obtained (step 702). If the connection is successful, the process from step 703 is performed, and if the connection is unsuccessful, the processes from step 708 are performed.

In step 703, the mobile communication terminal 107 transmits the collected connection information (FIG. 3) to the network management system 101.

Thereafter, the mobile communication terminal 107 extracts, from the network management system 101, information requested by each mobile communication terminal 107 from the calculation data shown in FIG. 6 based on the priority designation table shown in FIG. The calculation data (a specific example is shown in FIG. 8) is received (step 70).
4). As described above, in the network management system 101, in this step 704, the stored information (FIG. 2) and the calculated data (FIG. 6) according to the priority order designation table (FIG. 5) designated in advance by each mobile communication terminal 107. The calculation data (FIG. 8) obtained by extracting the information requested by the connected mobile communication terminal 107 from
Send to

Thereafter, the user performs a normal process on the access target machine 104 from the mobile communication terminal 107 (step 705). After the normal process on the access target machine 104 is completed, the mobile communication terminal 107 switches to the internal network 1
The connection to the H.05 is terminated (step 706).

Then, the mobile communication terminal 107 determines the access point number 301 used for connection, the connection success / failure 30
2, connection time 303, connection time 304, transfer speed 30
5. Money 306 used for connection, machine name 307 to be accessed, access user name 308, mobile communication terminal 10
Then, the current location 309 of No. 7 is stored (step 707), and the process is terminated.

In step 708, the mobile communication terminal 10
7 is an access point number 301 to be connected,
The connection success / failure 302, connection attempt time 303, access target machine name 307, access user name 308, and current location 309 of the mobile communication terminal 107 are stored, and the process is terminated.

FIG. 8 shows a specific example of the above-mentioned calculated data. In this case, the mobile communication terminal number 16-
13 is a display example of calculation data displayed in step 703 when the user name of D is “user161” and the current location of the mobile communication terminal is Kawasaki.

In this example, mobile communication terminal number 1
Although the case of the 6-D user name “user161” has been described, if the same mobile communication terminal has a different user (user name “user162”), the distance between the mobile communication terminal and the access point is short. Since the high connection success rate is given priority over the above, the display order is different from that in FIG.

Further, if the user of the mobile communication terminal number 23-C has the user name "user238" and the access target machine is W
In the case of S1, the access point existing in the same segment as or adjacent to the access target machine WS1 is searched from the logical connection information received from the network management system 101, and the result (in this case, WS2) is displayed.

Next, a procedure for supporting the selection of an appropriate access point when the mobile communication terminal 107 connects to the internal network 105 using the calculation data (FIG. 8) received from the network management system 101 will be described.

FIG. 9 shows a network management system 101.
10 is a flowchart for explaining a process of selecting an access point by using calculation data received from a computer.

First, the user of the mobile communication terminal 107 inputs the current location 309, the access target machine name 307, and the user name 308 to the mobile communication terminal 107 (step 90).
1).

Next, the mobile communication terminal 107 stores a priority order designation table (FIG. 5) relating to connection conditions such as the success / failure of connection and the amount of connection required in advance and various data received from the network management system 101. Based on the data, data that satisfies the conditions specified by the user is searched (step 902). For example, mobile communication terminal number 16
In the case of the user name “user161” of −D, since the connection success rate and the short distance between the mobile communication terminal and the access point are specified in the priority specification table shown in FIG. The calculation data whose specified item matches the condition is searched from the calculation data class.

Thereafter, the calculated data retrieved in step 902 is displayed on the display device of the mobile communication terminal (step 903).

The user selects an access point with reference to the calculated data retrieved and displayed in step 903. Alternatively, a connection request is automatically made from the mobile communication terminal 107 to the access point that matches the condition most among the calculated data displayed in step 903 (step 904).

As a result, it is possible to select an access point having a high connection success rate, so that connection failure can be avoided and labor and time loss associated with reconnection can be saved.

Further, since the priority order can be specified, it is possible to select not only an access point having a high connection success rate but also an access point which is suitable for a user's usage mode such as emphasis on cost and transfer speed.

The network management system 101
Holds a threshold table having thresholds of calculated data for keeping the network optimal, and checks the calculated data to detect a decrease in the transfer speed or connection success rate at each access point on the network. By holding a cause / measure determination table indicating the cause and the measure, the cause can be investigated and the measure can be taken.

FIG. 10 is a threshold value table for designating which threshold value should be checked for each of the items of the tables 601 to 603 shown in the calculation data of FIG. This is set in advance by the user of the network management system 101.

A table name 1001 shown in FIG. 10 indicates a table to be subjected to a threshold check in the data calculated by the network management system 101 (FIG. 6). As shown in FIG.
Indicates which item of the data specified by the table name 1001 is to be subjected to the threshold check. Threshold 1
003 indicates a threshold value for the item specified by the item name 1002. The process 1004 indicates what process is to be performed when it is determined that the threshold value 1003 has been exceeded as a result of checking the item specified by the item name 1002 with the threshold value 1003. Yes, processing such as display on the display device of the network management system, notification to the administrator, and notification to the user is specified.

According to FIG. 10, in the connection success rate table, when the average connection success rate is less than 60%, the success rate is displayed on the display device of the network management system 101, and when the average connection success rate is less than 40%, the administrator is displayed. A mail is sent to inform the administrator of the decrease in the success rate, and if it falls below 20%, a cause and countermeasure is searched from a cause / countermeasure determination table in FIG. Specified.

FIG. 11 shows a cause / measures determination table when the threshold value is exceeded. This is the network management system 10
1 is set in advance.

An item name 1101 shown in FIG. 11 indicates which item of data in the network management system 101 is to be processed when the threshold is exceeded. Criteria 1102
Is a condition item for determining the cause and countermeasure when the threshold value is exceeded. The cause 1103 indicates what seems to be the cause of exceeding the threshold. The countermeasure 1104 indicates a countermeasure method for not exceeding the threshold.

Next, the processing procedure for detecting the state of performance degradation at the access point using the calculation result (FIG. 4) and the calculated data (FIG. 6) in the network management system 101 and supporting the countermeasures will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. explain.

First, the network management system according to the threshold table (FIG. 10)
A threshold value check is performed on various calculation data (FIG. 6) stored in the storage unit 01 (step 1201).

Next, the result of the threshold check performed in step 1201 is checked, and if there is data exceeding the threshold, the process proceeds to step 1203 (step 1202).

The data exceeding the threshold value whose existence has been confirmed is specified in the processing item 1004 of the threshold value table (FIG. 10), such as display on the network management system 101 and notification to the administrator by mail. Perform the processing that When a measure search is instructed in the process item 1004, the cause 1103 of the performance degradation and the measure 1104 are determined using the cause / measure determination table (FIG. 11), and a measure is taken (step 1203).

Thus, by performing a threshold check on the data calculated by the network management system, it is possible to support the connection to the optimal access point for the user at the time of connection, and to detect the performance degradation at the access point and take measures against it. Support can be provided, and network optimization can be achieved.

As described above, the invention made by the present inventor is:
Although specifically described based on the embodiment, the present invention
It is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be variously modified without departing from the scope of the invention.

[0067]

The effects obtained by the representative ones of the inventions disclosed in the present application will be briefly described as follows.

(1) Since an access point having a high connection success rate can be selected, connection failure can be avoided, and labor and time loss associated with reconnection can be saved.

(2) Since the priority order can be specified, it is possible to select not only an access point having a high connection success rate, but also an access point suitable for a user's use mode such as emphasis on cost and transfer speed.

(3) It is possible to support the detection and countermeasure of the performance degradation at the access point, and to optimize the network.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a network used to describe a network connection method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of accumulated information of a network management system 101.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of connection information collected by a mobile communication terminal 107;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a tally result in the network management system 101.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a priority order designation table.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of data calculated by the network management system 101.

FIG. 7 shows an internal network 1 from a mobile communication terminal 107.
12 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure when connecting to the H.05.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a specific example of calculation data.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a process of selecting an access point.

FIG. 10 is a threshold table for the calculated data in FIG. 6;

FIG. 11 is a cause / measures determination table when a threshold value is exceeded.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of detecting a performance degradation state and supporting measures in an access point.

[Explanation of symbols]

101: Network management system, 102, 108,
109: access point providing machine, 103: network device, 104: access target machine, 105: internal network, 106: public line, 107: mobile communication terminal.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI H04M 15/00

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A network connection method for connecting a mobile communication terminal on a network to which a plurality of information processing apparatuses, network devices, and access points are connected, wherein the mobile communication terminal is connected to a network. The connection information including whether or not the connection to the connected access point has been established or not and the connection status at the time of connection are stored, and the connection information is transmitted to the information processing device that manages the network each time the connection to the network is performed. In the information processing device that manages the information, the connection information of each mobile communication terminal is totaled, and each time the mobile communication terminal is connected to the network, the total of the connection information is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal, The user of the mobile communication terminal selects an access point based on the aggregation of the connection information, and accesses the network via the access point. Network connection method characterized by connecting to the workpiece. 2. The network connection method according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus for managing the network and the mobile communication terminal respectively hold usage form information of a user of the mobile communication terminal, In the information processing device that manages, after totaling the connection information of each mobile communication terminal, transmits only the total of the connection information of the portion according to the usage pattern information to the mobile communication terminal, the mobile communication terminal A network connection method characterized in that an access point is selected on the basis of connection information totalization and usage form information to connect to a network. 3. A network management method for monitoring connection states at a plurality of access points in a network and managing the network, wherein the information processing apparatus for managing the network includes a connection from a mobile communication terminal to a network access point. Receives the information, collects and holds the information, threshold information in the connection information to determine whether the performance at the access point is degraded, and the cause of the performance degradation at the access point and its countermeasures Holding the indicated cause and countermeasure information, and when there is information exceeding the threshold information in the aggregation of the connection information, based on the cause and countermeasure information, perform a countermeasure on the information, and manage the network. Network management method characterized by going