JPH11146087A - Mobile telephone and medium applicable to internet - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To conduct Internet communication by automatically selecting a least cost routing in response to a current position of a mobile telephone set and connecting to an access point of an Internet provider. SOLUTION: A location of a base station is identified based on a base station identification information sent from a radio base station by a base station area identification section 3, a toll station number of a base station is extracted based on a toll station number database 4, a telephone number of an access point of an Internet provider at a shortest communication distance from the toll station number is selected from an access point database 5 by a telephone number selection section 6, and a dial signal generating section 7 generates a dial signal of the telephone number. Thus, the least cost routing is automatically selected based on a current position of a mobile telephone set to connect to an access point of the Internet provider to conduct Internet communication.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wireless mobile telephone using radio such as a digital portable telephone or a PHS (Personal Handy Phone) which is a simple digital portable telephone.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, wireless communication devices represented by digital portable telephones (RCR-STD27) and PHSs (RCR-STD28) have rapidly become widespread. In recent years, access to the Internet has rapidly spread, and the opportunity to use the Internet by wireless communication by connecting the portable telephone or PHS to a portable personal computer has been increasing.

A conventional example of connecting to the Internet using a PHS and a personal computer will be described below.

FIG. 2 shows a configuration in which a conventional PHS is connected to a personal computer to make an Internet connection.
13 is a personal computer, 14 is an access point of an Internet provider, 15 is an access point of an Internet provider in a different area code from the access point 14, 17 is a PHS base station in the same area code area as the access point 14, 18 Is access point 1
5 is a PHS base station in the same area code area.

[0005] In the above configuration, P
The operation when accessing the Internet through the HS will be described.

First, a case where the location of the PHS 11 and the personal computer 13 is close to the base station 17 and the PHS 11 is performing standby reception at the base station 17 will be described. In this case, the personal computer 13 has registered the telephone number of the access point 14 having the same area code as the current area of the personal computer 13, and sends a command to the PHS 11 to call the telephone number of the access point 14, The PHS 11 is a base station 17
When a call is made to the access point 14 via the Internet, and a call arrives at the access point 14, communication between the PHS 11 and the access point 14 is started. Next, the personal computer 13
The data such as the ID and the password is sent to the access point 14, and the connection with the Internet provider is completed and the connection to the Internet is made. In this case, since the base station 17 and the access point 14 are in the same area code area,
Communicating over the shortest communication distance.

Next, a case where the PHS 11 and the personal computer 13 move near the base station 18 and the PHS 11 is waiting for reception at the base station 18 will be described. Even in that case, since the telephone number of the access point 14 is registered in the personal computer 13, the personal computer 13 sends a command to call the telephone number of the access point 14 to the PHS 11,
The PHS 11 accesses the access point 14 through the base station 18.
To the access point 14 and
Communication between S11 and the access point 14 is started. Thereafter, by the same operation as described above, the personal computer 13
Completes the connection with the Internet provider via the access point 14 and connects to the Internet. In this case, base station 18 and access point 14 are in different area code areas.

[0008]

In the above conventional example, P
Even when the HS 11 and the personal computer 13 move from the vicinity of the base station 17 to the vicinity of the base station 18 and the PHS 11 is waiting at the base station 18, the telephone number of the access point 14 is still registered in the personal computer 13. Therefore, the PHS 11 makes a telephone call to the access point 14 to perform Internet communication. In this case, since the base station 18 and the access point 14 have different area codes, an area call fee is charged. In order to perform communication at a low-cost local call, the PHS 11 needs to call the telephone number of the access point 15 having the same area code as the base station 18, but in the above-described conventional example, Since the PHS 11 makes a call only to the telephone number of the access point 14 inputted from the personal computer 13, there is a problem that the PHS 11 cannot communicate on the communication path with the lowest communication cost.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and automatically selects a communication path having the lowest communication cost according to the current position of a mobile telephone, connects to an access point of an Internet provider, and connects to the Internet. The purpose is to communicate.

[0010]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an Internet-compatible mobile telephone according to the present invention comprises: (1) The first invention stores an area code of a place where a base station is located. Area code database, access point database storing telephone numbers of access points of Internet providers, base station area identifying means for identifying the location of the base station, and location information from the base station area identifying means Determine the location of the base station from, using the area code database, determine the area code corresponding to the location, the telephone number of the access point in the shortest communication distance from the area code, Generating a dial signal of a telephone number selected by using the access point database and a telephone number selected by the telephone number selecting means; Dial signal generating means,
Is provided. As a result, the communication path with the lowest communication cost is automatically selected according to the current position of the mobile telephone, connected to the access point of the Internet provider, and Internet communication can be performed.

(2) In the first aspect of the present invention, there is further provided an input means for allowing a user to input an area code, and the telephone number selecting means includes an arbitrary area code input from the input means and the area code. A communication distance determining means for determining a direct communication distance between an area code of a place where a base station is located and a shorter communication distance among the direct communication distance and the shortest communication distance. And select the shorter telephone number. Thus, when an Internet telephone user dials the telephone number of the communication partner to the mobile telephone, the user can use the Internet telephone via the access point with the lowest communication cost or can communicate directly without using the Internet telephone After dialing the other party or selecting the communication path with the lower communication cost, and making a determination for automatic connection, the dial signal generating means generates a dial signal of the telephone number. Therefore, the user can always make a call using the method with the lowest communication cost without being conscious of whether it is an Internet telephone or a normal telephone.

(3) In the first aspect of the present invention, the base station area identification means determines an area of the base station based on base station identification information transmitted from a radio base station. Thus, when the PHS is used, the base station area can be identified with a simple system.

(4) In the first aspect of the present invention, the base station area identification means determines a base station area by a receiving circuit of a GPS (global positioning system). Thus, even in the case of a mobile telephone system having a large base station coverage area, such as a mobile phone, the current location of the mobile telephone terminal can be accurately identified, so that the area code of the current location of the mobile telephone can be accurately known.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, the outline of the present invention will be described.

(1) The present invention relates to a mobile telephone for performing Internet communication by connecting to a personal computer. The present invention identifies a current location of the mobile phone, and has a communication distance closest to the area code of the current location, that is, a communication cost. The cheapest internet service provider's access point automatically selects and calls.

[0016] A mobile telephone performs standby reception for a base station located in the vicinity of a strong reception electric field value in order to wait for a telephone call. When the mobile telephone moves and another base station becomes shorter in distance, the mobile telephone becomes closer. The base station performs an operation of performing standby reception with respect to the base station. Therefore, if the location of the base station where the mobile telephone is receiving standby is known, the current location of the mobile telephone can be known. In the case of the PHS, the terminal is located within a distance of about 300 meters or less from the base station on which the terminal is on standby.

An Internet-compatible mobile telephone according to the present invention comprises:
A base station area identification unit is provided for extracting base station identification information including information on the location of the base station from among the control channel information transmitted by the base station that is currently waiting for reception.

The area code database is an area code database corresponding to the extracted base station identification number, and the area code of the location of the base station can be known.

The access point database stores telephone numbers of a plurality of access points of an Internet provider used by a user.

[0020] The telephone number selection unit determines the telephone number of an access point of an Internet provider having an area code having the shortest communication distance from the area code of the location of the base station, that is, having an area code capable of performing communication with the lowest communication cost. Select from the database and transmit to dial signal generator. The dial signal generating unit generates a dial signal of the telephone number, transmits the dial signal to the modem, and communicates with the access point.

According to the operation described above, the Internet-compatible mobile telephone of the present invention can automatically select an access point of an Internet provider with the lowest communication cost according to the current position of the mobile telephone and establish a connection. .

(2) One of the uses of the Internet is an Internet telephone. This can reduce communication costs by dividing the long-distance telephone communication path into the short-distance telephone communication path to the provider's access point and the Internet line by relaying the telephone via the Internet by the Internet provider. Is the purpose. However, when using an Internet phone using a mobile phone, the access point of the provider may be far away depending on the current location of the terminal, and if the communication cost is cheaper to call the other party directly than to use the Internet phone There is.

In the Internet-compatible mobile telephone according to the present invention, the communication distance determination unit is provided so that when a user of the Internet telephone dials the telephone number of the communication partner to the mobile telephone, the communication via the access point having the lowest communication cost is performed. After using the Internet telephone or dialing directly to the other party without using the Internet telephone, the communication path with the lower communication cost is determined. A dial signal is generated. The communication distance determination unit has a communication distance table for all area codes in Japan and determines which communication partner has the lowest communication cost.

By the operation described above, the user can always make a call by the method with the lowest communication cost without being conscious of the Internet telephone or the ordinary telephone.

(3) In the case of a portable telephone, the coverage area of one base station (the range in which a terminal can receive and receive) is wider than that of a PHS, and is about 2 km. For this reason, the location of the terminal cannot be accurately identified, and the above-described configuration of the base station area identification unit may not accurately identify the area code of the current location of the mobile phone.

Therefore, in (3), the location of the base station is identified based on the base station identification information transmitted from the radio base station as the configuration of the base station area identification section for identifying the current location of the mobile telephone. Instead of using a GPS receiver circuit.

The description of the GPS is omitted because it is well known, but the current location can be specified with an error of about 100 m. By referring to the area code database based on the position information obtained by the GPS receiving circuit, the present location of the mobile telephone terminal can be accurately identified even in the case of a mobile telephone system having a large base station coverage area such as a mobile phone.

Next, a more detailed configuration of the present invention will be described together with its operation.

First, a first embodiment will be described. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an RF unit, and 2 denotes a modulation / demodulation unit connected to the RF unit 1. Upon reception, a signal input from the RF unit 1 is demodulated into a baseband signal, and a control channel information signal and voice of a base station are transmitted. Extract signals and data signals. At the time of transmission, the modulation / demodulation unit 2 modulates a voice signal or a data signal into an RF signal and outputs the RF signal to the RF unit 1. Reference numeral 3 denotes a base station area identification unit, which extracts base station identification information from the control channel information of the base station output from the modem unit 2. Reference numeral 4 denotes an area code database which extracts the area code corresponding to the base station identification information output from the base station area identification unit 3. An access point database 5 stores telephone numbers of a plurality of access points of an Internet provider. Reference numeral 6 denotes a telephone number selection unit which selects the telephone number of the access point having the shortest communication distance from the current location, that is, the area code database 4. Reference numeral 7 denotes a dial signal generation unit which generates a dial signal of the telephone number input from the telephone number selection unit 6. A data IF unit 8 exchanges data with a connected personal computer. An antenna 9 transmits and receives radio waves to and from the base station.

Next, a second embodiment will be described.
The input unit 61 is an input unit for a user to input a telephone number as a communication partner. Further, the telephone number selection section 6 includes a communication distance determination section 10. This communication distance determination unit 10
When used as an Internet telephone, the communication distance up to the telephone number of the access point selected by the telephone number selection unit 6 as described above, and the direct communication up to the telephone number input from the input unit 61 by the user as a communication partner It determines which of the distances the communication distance is shorter, and outputs the telephone number of the shorter communication distance to the dial signal generator 7. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

Next, a third embodiment will be described.
In this embodiment, the base station area identification unit 3 does not determine the area of the base station based on the base station identification information transmitted from the radio base station as described above, but includes a GPS receiving circuit. The location of the base station is determined based on the latitude and longitude information obtained by the GPS receiving circuit.
Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

It should be noted that the present invention relates to an FD, which stores a program for realizing all or a part of the functions of each means of the above-described various Internet-compatible mobile phones by a computer.
It is also a medium such as an HDD and an optical disk.

[0033]

The present invention is embodied in the form described above and has the following effects. (1) Internet communication can be performed by automatically selecting the communication path with the lowest communication cost according to the current position of the mobile phone and connecting to the access point of the Internet provider. (2) When a user of an Internet telephone dials the telephone number of a communication partner directly to a mobile telephone, the user always makes a telephone call with the lowest communication cost without being aware of whether the telephone is an Internet telephone or a normal telephone. Can be. (3) It can easily cope with a mobile telephone system having a large coverage area of a base station such as a mobile phone.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a conventional PHS connected to a personal computer to establish an Internet connection.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 RF section 2 Modulation / demodulation section 3 Base station area identification section 4 Area code database 5 Access point database 6 Phone number selection section 7 Dial signal generation section 8 Data IF section 9 Antenna 10 Communication distance determination section 11 PHS 13 Personal computer 14, 15 Access point 17, 18 PHS base station 61 Input section

Claims (5)

[Claims] An area code database storing an area code of a location of a base station, an access point database storing a telephone number of an access point of an Internet provider, a location of the base station, Base station area identifying means for identifying, determining the location of the base station from location information from the base station area identifying means, and determining the area code corresponding to the location using the area code database A telephone number selecting means for selecting a telephone number of an access point located at the shortest communication distance from the area code using the access point database; and generating a dial signal of the telephone number selected by the telephone number selecting means. And a dial signal generating means. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an input means for allowing a user to input an area code, wherein said telephone number selecting means includes an arbitrary area code input from said input means and an area code of a place where said base station is located. Determine the direct communication distance between the station number, and, of the direct communication distance and the shortest communication distance, one of the communication distance determination means for determining the shorter communication distance,
2. The Internet-enabled mobile telephone according to claim 1, wherein the shorter telephone number is selected. 3. The Internet-compatible mobile telephone according to claim 1, wherein said base station area identification means determines an area of the base station based on base station identification information transmitted from a radio base station. . 4. The Internet-compatible mobile telephone according to claim 1, wherein said base station area identification means determines a base station area by a receiving circuit of a GPS (global positioning system). 5. A medium storing a program for realizing, with a computer, all or a part of the functions of each means of the Internet-compatible mobile telephone according to claim 1.