JPH10214140A - Information processor with radio communicating function, and communication control method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently attain the transmission and reception of data in a state that antenna sensitivity is satisfactory in a PDA (portable information terminal) equipment incorporating a communicating function. SOLUTION: This device is provided with a rotating mechanism 18 for supporting an RF antenna 17 for operating the transmission and reception of data at two positions, that is, a horizontal position and a vertical position to the display screen of a device main body 11. Also, a position detection switch 19 is set in the neighborhood of a rotating part, and the antenna position is detected. When it is detected that the RF antenna 17 is present at the vertical position to the display screen, a mode for enabling the transmission/reception of data is set, and when it is detected that the RF antenna 17 is present at the horizontal position, a mode for disabling the transmission/reception of data is set. Thus, only when the RF antenna 17 is present at the vertical position, the data communication can be executed, and it is possible to avoide the execution of the data communication in a state that the RF antenna 17 is present at the horizontal position, and antenna sensitivity is deteriorated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a portable telephone and a PHS
(Personal handyphone system
The present invention relates to a portable information processing apparatus having a wireless communication function such as em), and more particularly to an information processing apparatus with a wireless communication function and a communication control method characterized in communication control according to an antenna position.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, the use of personal digital assistants (PDAs) having a function as an electronic organizer has become popular. On the other hand, written PDA information can be stored in a PH via a modem.
By connecting to S and mobile phones, it is increasingly used as a wireless data communication device such as a facsimile.

In addition, a PDA (Portable Dig)
For those who use italian Assistance as a data communication device, it may be easier to use a built-in communication function of a modem, PHS, or mobile phone in advance. We are promoting.

If the PDA does not have a built-in communication function, the part related to the data transmission / reception performance should be left to the externally connected PHS or mobile phone. In the PDA, it is necessary to satisfy the performance relating to the data transmission / reception performance by itself.

[0005]

A P with a built-in communication function
In a DA device, data transmission / reception performance greatly changes depending on the position of the RF antenna. Usually, when the RF antenna is in a vertical state, data transmission / reception performance is high. However, the direction of the device is different between the case where the device is placed on a desk or the like to send and receive data and the case where the user makes (receives) a call while carrying the device. Each time, the position of the RF antenna has to be adjusted, and it is often problematic to satisfy compatibility with portability.

In particular, in the PHS, the transmission output of the terminal is 10
mW, and the transmission output of an outdoor public base station is usually 20 mW, and the upper limit is 500 mW, which is very small as compared with a mobile phone. It largely depends on performance. In addition, in terms of data transfer speed, the PHS can perform bearer transmission at 32 kbps, while the mobile phone (PDC) is limited to 9600 bps.
PHS is more advantageous.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and in a PDA device having a built-in communication function, information processing with a wireless communication function capable of efficiently transmitting and receiving data with a good antenna sensitivity. An object is to provide an apparatus and a communication control method.

[0008]

According to the present invention, in a PDA device having a built-in communication function, an antenna for transmitting and receiving data is provided at two positions, that is, a horizontal position and a vertical position with respect to a display screen of a device main body. A rotation mechanism for supporting is provided, and a position detection switch for detecting the position of the antenna is provided near the rotating portion.

In such a configuration, when it is detected that the antenna is located at a position perpendicular to the display screen, a mode for enabling transmission or reception of data is set, and the antenna is positioned with respect to the display screen. A mode is set in which data transmission or reception is disabled when the horizontal position is detected. As a result, data communication is performed only when the antenna is at a position perpendicular to the display screen, and data communication is performed while the antenna is at a horizontal position and the antenna sensitivity is reduced. Can be avoided.

When it is detected that the antenna is at a position perpendicular to the display screen, the antenna is connected to a communication circuit for transmitting or receiving data. By disconnecting the connection with the communication circuit when it is detected that the antenna is at a horizontal position, the data communication is performed only when the antenna is at a position perpendicular to the display screen, as described above. Become
Data communication can be avoided while the antenna is in the horizontal position and the antenna sensitivity is reduced.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of an information processing apparatus with a wireless communication function according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 11 denotes an apparatus main body. An LCD (Liquid Cry) is provided on the upper surface of the device body 11.
A display screen of an input / output device including a stall display 12 and a tablet 13 and an operation button unit 14 are provided.

In this input / output device, the LCD 12 is used as an information display device for displaying various information such as a schedule and an address book.
The tablet 13 superimposed on the upper part is used as an information input device for inputting various information. The operation button section 14 includes a power button 14a for turning on / off the device power, a PHS button 14b for operating when receiving a telephone call, and a communication button 1 for operating when performing data communication.
4c and the like are provided.

On both sides of the input / output devices (12, 13), a speaker 15 used as a receiver and a microphone 16 used as a transmitter are provided. In such a configuration, when the device is used as a mobile phone,
Hold the device body 11 upright like a mobile phone, touch the display screen to the cheek, and place the speaker 1
The user places his / her ear on the receiver 5 and speaks through the microphone 16 (transmitter) located at the lower part of the apparatus main body 11. On the other hand, when this device is used as a data communication device, the device main body 11
Is used on the table with the display screen of (1) facing up (the state of FIG. 1).

Here, the RF antenna 17 which directly affects the data communication performance is provided on the side surface of the apparatus main body 11. FIG. 2 shows a mounting structure of the RF antenna 17.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view seen from the direction of arrow A in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the RF antenna 17 is mounted on a side surface of the apparatus main body 11 via a rotating mechanism 18. The rotation mechanism 18 supports the RF antenna 17 at two positions: a horizontal position and a vertical position with respect to the display screen of the apparatus main body 11. In this case, it is supposed to move manually, and is fixed with a click feeling at two positions, a horizontal position and a vertical position.

A position detecting switch 19 is provided near the rotating mechanism 18 of the RF antenna 17. The position detection switch 19 detects the position of the RF antenna 17, and is specifically turned on / off by a movable piece 19a.
It is configured by an on / off switch that turns off.

Here, when the RF antenna 17 is at a horizontal position with respect to the display screen, the movable piece 19a is urged in the direction of P1, and the position detection switch 19 is turned off.
In this state, when the RF antenna 17 is rotated to a position perpendicular to the display screen, the end 17a is moved to the movable piece 19a.
And the movable piece 19a moves in the direction of P2. As a result, the position detection switch 19 is turned on, and the signal indicates that the RF antenna 17 is at the vertical position. At this time, the output signal of the position detection switch 19 is output to the RF unit 21 provided inside the apparatus main body 11.
(FIG. 3).

FIG. 3 shows a circuit configuration of the present apparatus. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the present apparatus in the same embodiment. This device is composed of a battery-driven PDA with a built-in wireless communication function such as a mobile phone or a PHS, and has a PIM function for managing personal information such as a memo function, a schedule function, and an address function.

In FIG. 3, an RF unit 21, a baseband LSI 22, and an ADPCM codec 23 are for realizing a wireless communication function of the present apparatus. The RF unit 21 is a part that performs amplification and frequency conversion of a wireless signal. The baseband LSI 22 includes a demodulator 22
a, modulator 22b, TDMA / TDD block 2
2c, which performs communication processing. ADPCM
The codec 23 is a part that performs audio processing. The codec 23 converts a received signal into an analog audio signal and outputs it from the speaker 15, and converts an analog audio signal input from the microphone 16 into a digital signal to the baseband LSI 22. give.

On the other hand, the CPU 24 controls the entire apparatus and executes various processes by activating a program in accordance with an input instruction. In this case, the CPU 24 responds to an antenna position as shown in FIG. Execute communication control processing. ECC (Error Correction Co
The controller 25 performs data error correction.

The display controller 26 controls display of the LCD 12. The tablet controller 27 controls input of the tablet 13. Here, the LCD 1
2 and the tablet 13 are integrated, and are configured to perform both display and input (pen input) on the same screen.

The RAM 28 stores various data necessary for the apparatus. Here, a PI for storing PIM data such as schedule data and address book data is stored.
An M data storage area 28a and a communication data storage area 28b for storing communication data are provided. The position detection switch 19 detects the position (horizontal position / vertical position) of the RF antenna 17 rotating via the rotation mechanism 18 as described with reference to FIG.
Give to 4.

In such a configuration, taking the time of reception as an example, the 1.9 GHz R received by the RF antenna 17 is used.
The F signal is converted into a baseband signal by the RF unit 21 and input to the baseband LSI 22. In the baseband LSI 22, after QPSK demodulation of the input signal,
The TDMA / TDD block 22c selects only the slot where the input signal is present and cuts out the signal.

If the input signal is an audio signal, ADPC
It is encoded by the M codec 23 and output from the speaker 15. On the other hand, when the input signal is a signal for digital communication, after the error is corrected by the ECC 25 which is a data link control LSI with PHS error correction control,
24. The CPU 24 displays the data after the error correction on the LCD 12 via the display controller 26.

Here, whether the signal is a voice signal or a digital communication signal, the matching of the impedance of the antenna 17 and the RF unit 21 has a great influence on the overall reception sensitivity. The same is true for transmission.

In particular, when data communication is performed (when the present apparatus is used for data transmission / reception), the apparatus main body 11 is turned upside down on a table from a usage mode of performing pen input. It is common to use by putting. 4 and 5 show the relationship between the antenna and the table surface when the apparatus main body 11 is used on a table. FIG. 4 shows a state when the RF antenna 17 is at a horizontal position, and FIG. 5 shows a state when the RF antenna 17 is at a vertical position.

In FIG. 4, the RF antenna 17 of the PDA
The distance h between the antenna and the table surface 10 affects the impedance of the antenna, and thus greatly affects the sensitivity of the PDA. In particular, when the material of the table is made of metal, the influence becomes large.

Here, if the distance h between the RF antenna 17 of the PDA and the table surface 10 is not more than λ / 4 with respect to the wavelength λ of the radio wave used for transmission and reception, the sensitivity of the antenna is significantly deteriorated. It is known. Considering the case of a PDA with a built-in PHS, λ / 4 is as follows.

C = fλ Here, c: speed of light, f: frequency of PHS λ = c / f = 3 × 1010 / (1.9 × 109) = 15.79 [cm] Therefore, λ / 4 = 3. 95 [cm]. That is,
Unless h> 3.95 [cm], the sensitivity of the antenna is greatly reduced, and even if the PDA is used on a table, the data transmission / reception performance is reduced, meaning that the PDA has a built-in PHS function. Will be gone.

Vertically polarized waves are transmitted from an antenna of a base station such as a PHS or a mobile phone. In order to receive this vertically polarized wave, it is necessary that the antenna on the terminal side also stands vertically. That is, the state of FIG. 5 is more desirable than the state of FIG.

Further, when the terminal is used in close contact with the head as in a call state, the height of the terminal from the ground is lower than when the terminal is used on a desk. As described above, when used in a low place, the influence of the surroundings increases.

Generally, it is desirable that the terminal be in line-of-sight from the antenna of the base station. The higher the terminal, the higher the probability of line of sight, and the lower the terminal, the higher the probability of line of sight. This is because the higher the position of the terminal, the less the obstruction between the base station antenna and the terminal.

Further, in the call state, the antenna state can be secured by changing the head position or direction by the caller himself. However, when used on a desk, it is difficult to move the direction and position of the terminal. That is, it is difficult to secure the antenna state on the desk. For this reason, when used on a desk (during data communication), it is required that the antenna performance be higher than when the head is worn (during a call). However, it must be said that it is difficult to ensure that the user properly sets up the antenna by using the instruction manual or verbally.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the mounting location of the RF antenna 17, which directly affects the data communication performance, is located on the side surface of the apparatus main body 11, and the rotating mechanism 18 is provided in the mounting portion, and is provided near the rotating portion. Position detection switch 19 for detecting the position of RF antenna 17
, The RF antenna 1 as shown in FIG.
Data transmission and reception are performed only when 7 is at a position perpendicular to the display surface.

In the state shown in FIG. 5, the distance H between the RF antenna 17 and the table surface 10 is certainly larger than λ / 4 for PHS of 1.9 GHz. Because, in FIG. 5, the length L of the RF antenna 17 is λ / 4,
This is because the dimension t in the thickness direction of A is usually about 20 mm depending on the thickness of the liquid crystal, tablet, board, and other components.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, a position detection switch 19 is provided in the apparatus main body 11 to detect whether the RF antenna 17 is horizontal or vertical with respect to the display screen. Thereby, the operation mode of the PDA is switched. The position detection signal of the position detection switch 19 is output to a microcomputer (CPU 24 in FIG. 3) which controls the operation of the PDA. The microcomputer sets a mode in which data transmission / reception is disabled when the RF antenna 17 is horizontal with respect to the display screen, while the microcomputer sets the data transmission mode when the RF antenna 17 is vertical with respect to the display screen. Set the mode that enables transmission and reception of data. Thereby, it is possible to avoid performing data communication in a state where the antenna sensitivity is lowered.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the data communication control process in the embodiment. An RF antenna 17 that greatly affects data transmission / reception performance is attached to a side surface of the apparatus main body 11 via a rotation mechanism 18. When transmitting data, this RF antenna 1
7 must be moved to a position perpendicular to the display screen as shown in FIG.

Here, it is assumed that the user instructs data transmission by pressing the communication button 14c when the apparatus power is turned on by operating the power button 14a provided on the operation button section 14 (step S11). .

In response to this data transmission instruction, first, the CPU
24 checks whether the PHS button 14b is on (step S12). Note that this PHS button 1
Reference numeral 4b denotes a button for activating the PHS function (communication function) of the apparatus. As a result, if the PHS button 14b is not in the ON state (No in step S12), the CPU 24
Sends a message such as "Press the PHS button" to the LCD through the display controller 26.
12 to notify the user (step S13).

On the other hand, if the PHS button 14b is on (Yes in step S12), the CPU 24 checks whether the position detection switch 19 is on (step S14). This position detection switch 19
As described in FIG. 2, the rotation mechanism 18 of the RF antenna 17
And turns on when the RF antenna 17 is at a position perpendicular to the display screen, and outputs a position detection signal to the CPU 24.

If the position detection switch 19 is ON (Yes in step S14), the CPU 24 determines that the RF antenna 17 is at the vertical position and sets a mode for enabling data communication (step S14). S1
5). As a result, the CPU 24 reads the communication data to be transmitted from the communication data storage area 28b of the RAM 28, passes the data to the baseband LSI 22, and starts the data transmission process (step S16).

On the other hand, if the position detection switch 19 is not on (No in step S14), the CPU 24
It is determined that the antenna 17 is at the horizontal position, and a mode for disabling data communication is set (step S17). In the state in which the communication disabled mode is set, data communication cannot be performed. At this time, the CPU 24 displays a message such as, for example, "Please raise the antenna because the radio wave reception state is bad."
Is displayed on the LCD 12 to notify the user (step S18).

As described above, data transmission is performed when the user moves the RF antenna 17 to the vertical position.
Therefore, it is possible to avoid performing data communication while the RF antenna 17 is in the horizontal position and the antenna sensitivity is reduced.

Although the above embodiment has been described assuming the case of transmitting data, the same applies to the case of receiving data. That is, data can be received only when the RF antenna 17 is at the vertical position, and when the RF antenna 17 is at the horizontal position, a message indicating that data cannot be received at this antenna position is displayed.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the data communication is controlled by software by switching the mode according to the antenna position. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Can be controlled. In this case, when it is detected that the RF antenna 17 is at a position perpendicular to the display screen, connection with the baseband LSI 22 as a communication circuit is performed, and
The hardware may be configured to cut off the connection with the baseband LSI 22 when it is detected that the antenna 17 is at a position horizontal to the display screen.

[0046]

As described above, according to the present invention, in a PDA device having a built-in communication function, data communication is executed only when the antenna is at a position perpendicular to the display screen. Data can be transmitted and received efficiently in a state where electrical interference between the table and the PDA is prevented. In this case, since rotating the antenna also serves as a mode switch at the same time,
There is an advantage that it can be easily distinguished from other use states, and is easy to understand even for beginners.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of an information processing apparatus with a wireless communication function according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary view showing a mounting structure of the RF antenna according to the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the device in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary view showing a state when the RF antenna in the embodiment is at a horizontal position.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state when the RF antenna in the embodiment is at a vertical position.

FIG. 6 is an exemplary flowchart showing the operation of data communication control processing in the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Device main body 12 ... LCD 13 ... Tablet 14 ... Operation button part 15 ... Speaker 16 ... Microphone 17 ... RF antenna 18 ... Rotation mechanism 19 ... Position detection switch 21 ... RF unit 22 ... Baseband LSI 23 ... ADPCM codec 24 ... CPU 25 ECC 26 Display controller 27 Tablet controller 28 RAM

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Yasuo Suzuki 1 Tokoba, Komukai Toshiba-cho, Saiwai-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa

Claims (5)

[Claims] An antenna for transmitting and receiving data, a rotation mechanism for supporting the antenna at two positions, a horizontal position and a vertical position, with respect to a display screen of an apparatus body, and detecting the position of the antenna A wireless communication system comprising: a position detecting unit; and a communication control unit that executes data communication only when the position detecting unit detects that the antenna is at a position perpendicular to the display screen. Information processing device with communication function. 2. The communication control means sets a mode for enabling transmission or reception of data when the position detection means detects that the antenna is at a position perpendicular to a display screen, 2. The information processing apparatus with a wireless communication function according to claim 1, wherein a mode for disabling data transmission or reception is set when the antenna is detected to be at a horizontal position with respect to the display screen. . 3. A communication circuit for transmitting or receiving data, wherein said communication control means detects that said antenna is at a position perpendicular to a display screen by said position detection means. 2. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, further comprising: establishing a connection with the communication circuit, and disconnecting the connection with the communication circuit when the antenna is detected to be at a horizontal position with respect to a display screen. Information processing device with communication function. 4. A communication control of an information processing apparatus with a wireless communication function having a rotation mechanism for supporting an antenna for transmitting and receiving data at two positions, that is, a horizontal position and a vertical position with respect to a display screen of the device main body. A method comprising: detecting a position of the antenna; setting a mode enabling transmission or reception of data when the antenna is detected to be at a position perpendicular to a display screen; A mode is set to disable transmission or reception of data when it is detected that the antenna is located horizontally with respect to the display screen, and it is detected that the antenna is located vertically with respect to the display screen A communication control method, wherein data communication is executed only in a case. 5. The communication control of an information processing apparatus having a wireless communication function, comprising a rotation mechanism for supporting an antenna for transmitting and receiving data at two positions, a horizontal position and a vertical position, with respect to a display screen of the device main body. A method of detecting the position of the antenna, and connecting to a communication circuit for transmitting or receiving data when the antenna is detected to be at a position perpendicular to the display screen, When it is detected that the antenna is at a horizontal position with respect to the display screen, the connection to the communication circuit is interrupted, and when it is detected that the antenna is at a position perpendicular to the display screen. Communication control method, wherein data communication is executed only in the communication control method.