KR20220088287A - Portable Radio Transceiver Having Functionality of Repeater and Method of Transmitting and Receiving Signal therein - Google Patents

Abstract

A radio device and its signal transmission/reception method that can transmit and receive signals to and from remote radios without operating a separate repeater, relay communication of other radios in real time, and do not have a high manufacturing cost. The signal transmission/reception method in the radio device according to the present invention transmits the transmission voice signal after transmitting the voice transmission start notification signal for notifying the transmission of the transmission voice signal when transmitting the transmission voice signal modulated by the user's voice signal to do; receiving, demodulating, and outputting a received voice signal from a first external terminal; receiving a relay request signal from a second external terminal; and demodulating and outputting the received voice signal from the first external terminal received after reception of the relay request signal in response to the relay request signal, and performing relay transmission by retransmitting the received voice signal; includes

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] Portable Radio Transceiver Having Functionality of Repeater and Method of Transmitting and Receiving Signal therein

The present invention relates to a portable communication device, and more particularly, to a repeater-combined radio device having a repeater function for repeating a signal received from another radio.

Although the radio has a limited communication distance, it is used for communication in relatively short distances because of the advantages of not charging a call charge and not requiring a base station or relay station for interconnection. In general, a plurality of radios communicate with each other in one system, and in order to perform smooth communication, the plurality of radios must be located within a radio transmission range. When the geographical range where the radios communicate is wide, or when some of the radios frequently perform communication outside the range, communication between devices may not be possible, so a separate repeater operation may be required. However, the communication range or movement range of the radios is often ambiguous to install a repeater at a high cost. In addition, even if a repeater is installed, there is a high possibility that a shadow area in which the repeater cannot function is generated when the radio holders move frequently.

In order to overcome the limitations of these existing radio technologies, technologies that can use radios as remote repeaters have been developed.

For example, Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-2019-0086262 (Title of the Invention: Repeater-integrated portable radio including a transmission/reception switch) proposes a repeater-integrated portable radio having a voice storage unit therein. This radio can serve as a repeater by storing the received voice and then reproducing and transmitting it. However, since this radio converts the received signal into a voice signal, stores it, reproduces it and transmits it, it cannot be regarded as performing signal reception, voice listening, and relaying at the same time. In addition, according to this radio, not only a separate storage device is required, but as the distance increases, the relay is repeatedly performed, so that as it passes through several radios, the delay time also increases proportionally, and as a result, the radio is spaced apart. There is a problem in that simultaneous communication between them is difficult.

Registered Patent No. 10-0865076 (Name of the invention: portable repeater radio) transmits and receives signals to and from an external radio in the general communication mode, and in the repeater mode, the microphone jack terminal and speaker jack terminal are the speaker jack terminals and microphone jacks of other radios A walkie-talkie that is electrically connected to each terminal and transmits and receives a radio frequency signal received from the connected radio to an external radio to be relayed is presented. However, according to this document, in order to use a walkie-talkie as a repeater, it is necessary to connect it to another walkie-talkie by wire, so portability and portability are greatly restricted, so it can be said to be inconvenient.

Registered Patent No. 10-1232095 (Name of the invention: radio having inter-channel relay function and relay processing method using the same) has a protocol processing unit that analyzes packets when receiving a signal from another radio and enables inter-channel relay processing A walkie-talkie that does this is presented. According to the radio described in this document, the necessity of relay processing is determined based on the destination information in the packet, and when relay processing is necessary, a packet to be relayed is generated and transmitted wirelessly. However, such a radio requires a sophisticated protocol stack and hardware for packet composition, transmission, and analysis. Accordingly, the price of the walkie-talkie rises significantly, and its use is limited to fields such as military radios, and it may be unsuitable for use as a general business radio or daily radio.

Patent Publication No. 10-2019-0086262 (2019.07.22.) Registered Patent Publication No. 10-0865076 (2008.10.24.) Registered Patent Publication No. 10-1232095 (2013.02.12)

The present invention provides a signal transmission/reception method in a radio capable of transmitting and receiving signals to and from a radio spaced apart at a distance without operating a separate repeater and relaying communication of other radios in real time.

The present invention provides a repeater-combined radio device capable of transmitting and receiving signals to and from a radio that is spaced apart from each other in real time without operating a separate repeater, and relaying communication of other radios in real time, and the manufacturing cost is not high.

The signal transmission/reception method according to an aspect of the present invention may be performed in a radio device for transmitting and receiving signals using radio waves of a predetermined frequency band. The signal transmission and reception method includes: when transmitting a transmission voice signal modulated by a user's voice signal, transmitting the transmission voice signal after transmitting a voice transmission start notification signal for notifying the transmission of the transmission voice signal; receiving, demodulating, and outputting a received voice signal from a first external terminal; receiving a relay request signal from a second external terminal; and demodulating and outputting the received voice signal from the first external terminal received after reception of the relay request signal in response to the relay request signal, and performing relay transmission by retransmitting the received voice signal; includes

The step of receiving, demodulating, and outputting the received voice signal from the first external terminal may include: receiving a voice transmission start notification signal from the first external terminal; attempting to detect the received voice signal from the first external terminal; transmitting a relay request signal when the received voice signal is not detected from the first external terminal after receiving the voice transmission start notification signal; and receiving, demodulating, and outputting the received voice signal relay-transmitted by a third external terminal.

The transmitting of the relay request signal may include: setting a first flag indicating the relay request status in a memory; and informing the user of the relay request status based on the first flag.

Receiving the relay request signal from the second external terminal may include: setting a second flag indicating that a relay transmission operation is in progress in the memory; and guiding the relay transmission based on the second flag.

The radio device may include a relay request button that allows the user to apply for a relay request. In this case, transmitting the relay request signal may be performed in response to pressing the relay request button.

The radio device may include a relay enable switch that allows the user to selectively allow the relay transmission. In this case, the relay transmission by retransmitting the received voice signal may be performed only when the relay enable switch is turned on.

The voice transmission start notification signal may include a signal pattern in which a periodic waveform obtained by synthesizing two or more of a plurality of types of frequencies within the frequency band continues for several periods.

The voice transmission start notification signal may include a pattern in which the signal pattern and the no-signal section are repeated several times.

The voice transmission start notification signal may be transmitted in a time period in which a channel for transmitting the transmission voice signal is empty.

A radio device according to another aspect of the present invention includes: a signal transmission circuit for modulating a user's voice signal into a transmission voice signal of a predetermined frequency band and transmitting; a signal receiving circuit for demodulating the received voice signal received in the frequency band and outputting it through a speaker; and a control device for controlling the signal transmitting circuit and the signal receiving circuit. The control device includes a memory for storing program instructions, and a processor for executing the program instructions stored in the memory. The program instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to: when transmitting a transmission voice signal modulated by the user's voice signal, after transmitting a voice transmission start notification signal for notifying the transmission of the transmission voice signal, the transmission voice transmit a signal; controlling the signal receiving circuit to receive, demodulate, and output the received voice signal from the first external terminal; detecting a relay request signal from a second external terminal; In response to the relay request signal, the signal receiving circuit is controlled to demodulate and output the received voice signal from the first external terminal received after detection of the relay request signal, and the signal receiving circuit is relayed by retransmitting the received voice signal. and control the signal transmitting circuit to transmit.

The commands for receiving, demodulating and outputting the received voice signal from the first external terminal include: detecting a voice transmission start notification signal from the first external terminal; attempt to detect the received voice signal from the first external terminal; transmitting a relay request signal when the received voice signal is not detected from the first external terminal after receiving the voice transmission start notification signal; controlling the signal receiving circuit to receive, demodulate, and output the received voice signal relayed by a third external terminal; It may contain instructions.

The commands for transmitting the relay request signal set a first flag indicating that the relay request state is in a memory; inform the user of the relay request status based on the first flag; It may contain commands to

The commands for receiving the relay request signal from the second external terminal include: setting a second flag indicating that a relay transmission operation is in progress in the memory; to guide performing the relay transmission based on the second flag; It may contain commands to

The radio device may further include a relay request button that allows the user to apply for a relay request. In this case, the commands for transmitting the relay request signal may be performed in response to pressing the relay request button.

The radio device may further include a relay enable switch that allows the user to selectively allow the relay transmission. In this case, commands for relay transmission by retransmitting the received voice signal can be performed only when the relay enable switch is turned on.

The voice transmission start notification signal may include a signal pattern in which a periodic waveform obtained by synthesizing two or more of a plurality of types of frequencies within the frequency band continues for several periods.

The voice transmission start notification signal may include a pattern in which the signal pattern and the no-signal section are repeated several times.

The voice transmission start notification signal may be transmitted in a time period in which a channel for transmitting the transmission voice signal is empty.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the radios can transmit and receive signals at the same time regardless of the distance without a separate repeater operation.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to significantly expand the actual coverage range of a signal in a system in which a plurality of radios are operated. That is, even when two radios that require signal transmission and reception are outside the signal transmission range, if there is a third radio that can communicate directly with the radios, the radios are transmitted through the third radio without a separate relay device. can send and receive Accordingly, when radio operation is performed in a very wide range, radio communication is possible regardless of distance with only radio between subscribers without needing to install or operate relay equipment.

The relay function of the transceiver according to an embodiment of the present invention can be realized by program instructions executed in a central processing unit such as a microcomputer or microprocessor, and since hardware changes such as a relay request button are limited, the cost is low. can be implemented Therefore, it can be effectively used as a work radio or a daily radio in various situations such as various disasters or leisure/leisure without a large economic burden. Specifically, the radio according to the present invention is a personal portable commercial radio that can be used in leisure/leisure/sports, a radio for operational command and communication that can be used in the police/fire department, a radio for operational command and tactical communication that can be used in the military during wartime or peacetime, etc. It can be applied to the field of application.

For example, at a construction site, a walkie-talkie can be effectively used to deliver notices to workers in a field office or to communicate between workers. In the process of work, even if some workers are located underground, on the roof, or in a space hidden by large objects, it is possible to communicate smoothly with the workers through the radio of other workers.

In leisure/sports that constitute a series of echelons/processes, such as bicycle riding, mountain competitions and rafting, if an athlete leaves the ranks, no communication can be performed with the athlete outside the radio range. In this case, if the radio to which the present invention is applied is used, radio communication is possible even with a player who is very far away, that is, a player who is out of the radio mastery range, if the distance between the players forming the umbilical cord is kept constant.

In addition, when performing individual missions scattered across rugged mountainous terrain, it is not only practically difficult to install a repeater, but also the radio transmission distance is drastically shortened due to radio wave shielding according to the terrain. In this case, if even one person operating the radio to which the present invention is applied is deployed nearby, radio communication can be smoothly performed even with personnel far away, and thus the operation can be performed very effectively. In particular, it can be effectively used in mountain rescue operations that are frequently performed in Korea.

In the case of individual operations in the depths of the enemy during wartime, it is practically very difficult to operate a relay station due to the nature of the operation. At this time, when communicating with the remote headquarters, if the operators with the corresponding radios are sequentially deployed or ambushed within the maximum radio mastery range, communication is possible without the operation of a separate repeater. In addition, they have the advantage of being able to communicate with remote operators very flexibly through their continuous movement.

1 is a schematic diagram showing a radio communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a front view of a radio device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a block diagram of a radio device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a program command executed by the central processing unit shown in FIG. 3 .
5 is a flowchart illustrating a signal transmission operation process of the radio device according to the present invention.
6 is a flowchart illustrating a signal reception process in a voice signal reception mode in a radio device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a flowchart illustrating a relay transmission process by a walkie-talkie device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a signal transfer process between radio devices located at remote locations in a radio communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a diagram illustrating another example of a signal transfer process between radio devices located at remote locations.

Since the present invention can have various changes and can have various embodiments, specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and described in detail. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to specific embodiments, and it should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Terms such as first, second, etc. may be used to describe various elements, but the elements should not be limited by the terms. The above terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, a first component may be referred to as a second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as a first component. The term “and/or” includes any combination of a plurality of related listed items or any of a plurality of related listed items.

In embodiments of the present application, “at least one of A and B” may mean “at least one of A or B” or “at least one of combinations of one or more of A and B”. Also, in the embodiments of the present application, “at least one of A and B” may mean “at least one of A or B” or “at least one of combinations of one or more of A and B”.

When an element is referred to as being “connected” or “connected” to another element, it is understood that it may be directly connected or connected to the other element, but other elements may exist in between. it should be On the other hand, when it is said that a certain element is "directly connected" or "directly connected" to another element, it should be understood that the other element does not exist in the middle.

The terms used in the present application are only used to describe specific embodiments, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The singular expression includes the plural expression unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In the present application, terms such as “comprise” or “have” are intended to designate that a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in the specification exists, but one or more other features It should be understood that this does not preclude the existence or addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical and scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning in the context of the related art, and should not be interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless explicitly defined in the present application. does not

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In describing the present invention, in order to facilitate the overall understanding, the same reference numerals are used for the same components in the drawings, and duplicate descriptions of the same components are omitted.

1 is a schematic diagram showing a radio communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention. The illustrated radio network includes a plurality of radio devices 10a - 10f located in a service area 20 . The service area 20 represents a geographic range in which signals are transmitted and received between the radio devices 10a - 10f. The service area 20 is not fixed by the technical specifications or performance of the walkie-talkie device 10a-10f, but an atypical one in which the boundary is not determined as indicating a movable range of the radio devices 10a-10f have.

A plurality of radio devices 10a - 10f within the service area 20 may transmit and receive signals to each other. That is, any radio user can simultaneously deliver a voice message to multiple other radio users. When the service area 20 is wide and the coverage range is exceeded, or when there are many obstacles, direct signal transmission and reception between some radio devices may be at least temporarily impossible. In this case, the third walkie-talkie device relays the signal so that devices that cannot directly transmit/receive a signal may communicate through the third walkie-talkie device.

For example, when the user of the radio device 10a transmits a voice message to all other users, the radio devices 10b-10e within the radio wave reach 20a of the radio device 10a have the radio device 10a. It is assumed that the voice signal is received, but the radio device 10f does not receive the voice signal. In this case, the first radio device 10a and the radio device 10b capable of communicating with both the radio device 10a and the radio device 10a in a non-receiving state relay the signals of the two radio devices 10a and 10f, 10f) allows communication.

2 is a front view of a radio device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The illustrated radio device includes a microphone 30 and a speaker 60 provided on the front side, a transmitting antenna 40 and a receiving antenna 50 for simultaneously transmitting and receiving signals, and the operation of the radio It includes a status display unit 72 for displaying the status in a simple form, and a liquid crystal display 74 for displaying the operating status of the radio in detail. The status display unit 72 includes a three-color light emitting diode (LED) that displays the communication status of the radio. When the radio is in the 'receiving' state, the red LED may be lit, and in the 'transmitting' state, the blue LED may be lit. On the other hand, when the radio is in the 'relay transmission' state, the green LED may be lit.

The radio device includes a PTT (Press-to-talk) button 80 allowing a user to switch between a transmission mode and a reception mode, a channel selection switch 82 allowing a user to select any one of a plurality of channels, and a relay and a relay switch 84 for selecting whether to enable the transmission function, and a relay request button 86 for requesting relay transmission to another nearby repeater when a voice signal to be received is not received. . The PTT button 80 is a button that the user presses whenever a voice transmission is performed. The channel selection switch 82 and the relay switch 84 may be implemented in the form of a knob.

3 is a block diagram of a radio device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The radio according to this embodiment includes a microphone 30, an analog-to-digital converter 32, a modulator 34, an amplifier 36, a transmission switch 38, a transmission antenna 40, a control signal generator 62, Receiving antenna 50, receiving switch 52, amplifier 54, demodulator 56, digital-to-analog converter 58, speaker 60, control signal detector 62, central processing unit 70, a status display unit 72 , and a display 74 .

In the signal transmission circuit, the microphone 30 converts the user's voice into an electrical signal. The analog-to-digital (A/D) converter 32 may convert a voice signal from the microphone 30 into digital voice data. The modulator 34 modulates digital voice data by a predetermined modulation technique adopted by the system. The amplifier 36 amplifies the modulated transmit signal. The transmission switch 38 connects the signal transmission circuit to the transmission antenna 40 only in a state in which the PTT button 80 is pressed, thereby enabling signal transmission. The transmission antenna 40 radiates the amplified transmission signal received through the transmission switch 38 as a radio wave.

In the signal receiving circuit, the receiving antenna 50 receives a signal from another radio device. The reception switch 52 connects the signal reception circuit to the reception antenna 50 only when the PTT button 80 is not pressed, so that the reception signal can be demodulated and reproduced. The amplifier 54 amplifies the received signal. The demodulator 56 demodulates the amplified received signal with a demodulation technique corresponding to the modulation technique of the modulator 34 . The digital-to-analog converter 58 converts the demodulated received voice data into an analog received voice signal. The speaker 60 converts the analog received voice signal into a sound form and outputs it.

Meanwhile, the control signal generator 42 generates a control signal to be transmitted to another device. An example of the control signal may include a transmission start notification signal that may be generated and transmitted immediately after the PTT button 80 is pressed. Another example of the control signal is a relay request signal that can be transmitted when the user of the radio device presses the relay request button 86 to perform relay transmission. The control signal generated by the control signal generator 42 may be loaded onto the transmitted signal modulated by the synthesizer 35 and transmitted to other devices. In this case, it is preferable to add the control signal when the level of the modulated transmission signal is 0, that is, in a time period in which the transmission channel is empty.

In one embodiment, the control signal may be generated in a manner similar to a DTMF (Dual Tone Multi Frequency) signal that has been traditionally used for signaling of a telephone. That is, in one embodiment, each of the control signals may be a signal pattern in which a periodic waveform synthesized by combining two or three of a plurality of types of frequencies in a frequency band used by the radio device continues for several periods. In particular, the control signal may include a pattern in which the signal pattern and the no-signal section are repeated several times to minimize the case of not being transmitted to other devices. Meanwhile, in one embodiment, it may be desirable to amplify and transmit the control signals with a higher gain compared to the voice signal, so that the transmission success rate of the control signals is high even if the transmission of the voice signal fails.

The control signal detector 62 detects a control signal received from another device. The control signal detector 62 may detect a control signal from the amplified received signal. Upon detecting the received control signal, the control signal detector 62 provides the detected control signal to the central processing unit 70 .

The central processing unit 70 controls the overall operation of the radio device. That is, the central processing unit 70 responds to the user's operation of various switches and buttons to control volume, change channels, change display contents, change operation modes, request relays to other radio devices, perform relay transmissions for other radio devices, etc. operation can be performed. As mentioned above, the status display unit 72 displays the operating status of the radio device in a simple form through the three-color LED. The display 74 visually indicates the specific operating state of the radio device. For example, the display 74 may include a liquid crystal panel.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the relay transmission related to the radio device may be selectively performed according to the user's button operation. The relay switch 84 makes it possible to select whether or not to enable the relay transmission function. Only when the relay switch 84 is turned on, the radio can perform relay transmission between other devices. When a relay request is received from another device while the relay switch 84 is turned on, the central processing unit 70 sets a second flag in the memory (not shown) and performs relay transmission with reference to the second flag. can

In addition, the user can request relay transmission from another device by pressing the relay request button 86 when a voice signal to be received is not received. In this case, the central processing unit 70 sets the first flag in the memory for a predetermined time when the relay request button 86 is pressed, and controls the signal receiving circuit to receive the relayed transmitted signal with reference to the first flag. can do. The setting of the first flag may be automatically made by a program command executed by the central processing unit 70 .

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a program command executed by the central processing unit 70 shown in FIG. 3 .

The central processing unit 70 may be implemented based on at least one processor, a memory, and a storage device. Specifically, the central processing unit 70 may be implemented based on program instructions executed by the processor. The processor may execute program instructions stored in memory and/or storage devices. The processor may include at least a microprocessor or microcontroller. The memory may include, for example, a volatile memory such as a random access memory (RAM) and a non-volatile memory such as a read only memory (ROM). The memory may load program instructions stored in the storage device and provide them to the processor so that the processor can execute them. A storage device is a recording medium suitable for storing program instructions and data, for example, a magnetic medium such as a hard disk, a floppy disk, and a magnetic tape, a compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), and a digital video disk (DVD). ), such as an optical recording medium, a magneto-optical medium such as a floppy disk, a flash memory or EPROM (Erasable Programmable ROM), or a semiconductor such as an SSD manufactured based on them. It may contain memory.

The program command includes a transmission/reception control unit 110 , a control signal generation control unit 112 , a control signal analysis unit 114 , and a relay transmission execution unit 116 . The transmission/reception control unit 110 controls a signal transmission circuit and a signal reception circuit. The control signal generation control unit 112 controls the control signal generation and insertion operation of the control signal generator 42 . The control signal analysis unit 114 analyzes the received control signal detected by the control signal detector 62 . The relay transmission performing unit 116 relays signal transmission between other devices.

Meanwhile, the program command may store and utilize the first flag 120 indicating the relay request status in the memory in order to smoothly perform the relay request to another device. For example, the first flag 120 is set ( can be set). In addition, the first flag 120 may be set by the control signal analysis unit 114 when there is no data to be received even though the transmission start notification signal has been received or the level is low by a predetermined standard or higher. The first flag 120 may be reset when a predetermined period of time has elapsed and timeout or when the user presses the relay request button 86 again.

In addition, the program command may store and utilize the second flag 122 indicating the necessity of relay transmission to other devices in the memory. The second flag 122 may be set when a relay request is received from another device while the relay transmission function is enabled by the user turning on the relay switch 84 . The second flag 122 may be released when a predetermined time has elapsed and a timeout has elapsed or when a relay cancellation request is received from a corresponding device. In addition, when a plurality of devices respond to a relay request and confusion is caused, release may be performed by a request of any one device.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a signal transmission operation process of the radio device according to the present invention.

The central processing unit 70 continuously monitors whether the PTT button 80 is pressed (step 200). In a state in which the PTT button 80 is pressed, the radio device operates in the voice signal transmission mode. At this time, the control signal generation control unit 112 of the central processing unit 70 causes the control signal generator 42 to generate a transmission start notification signal and transmit it to other devices. Accordingly, the control signal generator 42 transmits a transmission start notification signal to other devices before the voice signal is transmitted (step 202). Next, the walkie-talkie device converts the user's voice input through the microphone 30 into an electrical signal, modulates and amplifies it, and then transmits the amplified transmission signal (step 204). The transmission start notification signal enables other devices or users thereof to request relay transmission when a voice signal to be received is not received.

The signal transmission operation of steps 202 and 204 may be performed only when the PTT button 80 is pressed. When the PTT button 80 is pressed, the central processing unit 70 connects the transmit switch 38 so that the transmit signal can be radiated through the transmit antenna 40 . Meanwhile, the central processing unit 70 may open the reception switch 52 to prevent the reception signal from being transmitted to the amplifier 54 and the demodulator 56 .

In step 200, when it is determined that the PTT button 80 is not pressed, the radio apparatus may operate in a voice signal reception mode. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a signal reception process in a voice signal reception mode in the radio device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 6 illustrates a relay reception process by relay transmission of a third device as well as direct signal reception from the originating device.

Referring to FIG. 6 , in a state in which the PTT button 80 is not pressed, the control signal analysis unit 114 of the central processing unit 70 selects the control signals from other devices detected through the control signal detector 62 . It is monitored whether a transmission notification signal is included (step 220). When it is determined that the transmission notification signal has been received in step 220, the transmission/reception control unit 110 of the central processing unit 70 determines whether a voice signal is received from another device (step 222). After it is determined that the transmission notification signal has been received in step 220, when it is determined that the voice signal is received in step 222, the transmission/reception control unit 110 of the central processing unit 70 determines that the voice signal is normally received, , the signal receiving circuit under the control of the transmitting and receiving control unit 110 demodulates and outputs the received voice signal (step 224).

Thereafter, when a session termination event occurs (operation 226), the voice signal reception process may be terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined in step 226 that there is no session termination event, the process proceeds to step 222 to determine whether a voice signal is additionally received, and demodulates and outputs the additionally received voice signal. Here, the session termination event may be a case in which a predetermined time has elapsed without a received voice signal, or a case in which the user presses the PTT button 80 and the radio device enters a voice signal transmission mode.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step 220 that the transmission notification signal has been received and then the voice signal is not received in step 222 , the transmission/reception control unit 110 of the central processing unit 70 does not receive the voice signal to be received. judge to be Accordingly, the transmission/reception control unit 110 of the central processing unit 70 provides an alarm message for non-reception of the voice signal to the user through one or more of the speaker 60 , the status display unit 72 , and the liquid crystal display 74 . (Step 228). Accordingly, the user may press the relay request button 86 to request relay transmission from any other nearby device (step 230).

When the user presses the relay request button 86, the control signal generation control unit 112 of the central processing unit 70 causes the control signal generator 42 to generate a relay request signal and transmit it to other devices. Accordingly, the control signal generator 42 transmits a relay request signal to other devices (step 232). On the other hand, in a modified embodiment of the present embodiment, even if the user does not press the relay request button 86 , the transmission of the relay request signal is automatically performed by the control signal generation control unit 112 of the central processing unit 70 in step 232 . may be made of

When transmitting the relay request signal in step 232, the control signal generation control unit 112 of the central processing unit 70 sets a first flag indicating a relay request status or a status of receiving a voice signal through relay transmission. can do. The state in which the first flag is set may be notified to the user by, for example, blinking a red LED indicating a 'receiving' state in the status display unit 72 or displaying a predetermined message on the liquid crystal display 74 . The first flag and relay reception state may be terminated when a predetermined time elapses and timeout, when direct reception is determined to be possible, or when the user exits from the mode by pressing the relay request button 86 again .

After transmission of the relay request signal, when a voice signal is received (step 234) due to relay transmission of another device nearby or by direct reception from the originating device, the transmission/reception control unit 110 of the central processing unit 70 The signal receiving circuit demodulates and outputs the received voice signal under the control of (step 236). The reception process for the relayed voice signal may be continued until a separate session termination event occurs.

7 is a flowchart illustrating a relay transmission process by a walkie-talkie device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The control signal analysis unit 114 of the central processing unit 70 monitors whether a relay request signal is included among the control signals from other devices detected through the control signal detector 62 (step 240). When it is determined that the relay request signal has been received in step 240, the control signal analysis unit 114 of the central processing unit 70 may set a second flag indicating a state in which relay transmission is being performed ( step 242). The state in which the second flag is set may be notified to the user by, for example, turning on or blinking a green LED indicating a 'relay transmission' state in the state display unit 72 .

In this state, the transmission/reception control unit 110 determines whether a voice signal is received from another device (step 244). When it is determined that the voice signal is received in step 244 with the second flag set, the transmission/reception control unit 110 of the central processing unit 70 demodulates and outputs the received voice signal, and the received voice signal is retransmitted to other devices (step 246). Accordingly, the device that transmitted the relay request signal can demodulate and output the audio signal, or at least increase the possibility of demodulating and outputting the audio signal.

In one embodiment, the retransmission of the received voice signal is performed by re-inputting the amplified received signal output from the amplifier 54 of the signal receiving circuit to the input terminal, the output terminal, or the transmitting antenna 40 of the amplifier 36 of the signal transmitting circuit. can be done However, in other embodiments, the demodulated received voice data may be applied to the modulator 34 of the signal transmission circuit.

Thereafter, when a session termination event occurs (operation 248), the voice signal relay transmission process may be terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined in step 248 that there is no session termination event generated in step 248, the process proceeds to step 24 to check whether a voice signal is additionally received, and demodulates, outputs, and retransmits the additionally received voice signal. will repeat

8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a signal transfer process between radio devices located at remote locations in a radio communication network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Among the illustrated three devices 10a - 10c, the first device 10a and the second device 10b are located within the radio communication range of each other, and the second device 10b and the third device 10c are located within the radio communication range of each other. Although located within the range, it is assumed that the first device 10a and the third device 10c are located outside the total transmission range of each other. In this case, the first device 10a and the second device 10b may directly communicate with each other, and the second device 10b and the third device 10c may directly communicate with each other, but the first device (10a) and the third device (10c) cannot communicate directly. That is, the voice signal transmitted by the first device 10a may be demodulated and output by the second device 10b, but demodulation and output are impossible in the third device 10c.

However, the third device 10c may request relay transmission from all nearby devices. Upon receiving the relay transmission request from the third device 10c, the second device 10b may set a second flag and retransmit all externally received voice signals while the second flag is valid. Accordingly, the third device 10c can receive, demodulate, and output the voice signal retransmitted by the second device 10b. Therefore, the first device 10a and the third device 10c can communicate with each other through the second device 10b.

In the radio communication network, relay transmission of a signal is not performed only for one device, but may also be performed for a plurality of devices at the same time. In particular, the relay transmission may be chained over several steps. 9 shows an example of such relay transmission.

Referring to FIG. 9 , the second device 10b may relay-transmit the signal transmitted by the first device 10a in response to the relay transmission request of the third device 10c, and the third device 10c 2 The device 10b may receive a relay-transmitted signal. The fourth device 10d may relay-transmit the signal transmitted by the first device 10a in response to the relay transmission request of the fifth device 10e, and the fifth device 10e may transmit the signal transmitted by the fourth device 10d. The relayed transmission signal can be received. In addition, the fifth device 10e may relay-transmit the signal relayed by the fourth device 10d in response to the relay transmission request of the sixth device 10f, and the sixth device 10f may transmit the signal relayed by the fifth device 10e. . The third, fifth, and sixth devices 10c, 10d, and 10f may also receive the signal transmitted by the first device through relay transmission.

Although exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto and may be variously modified.

For example, in the embodiment described above, the antenna 40 for transmission and the antenna 50 for reception are separately provided, but in another embodiment, a single common antenna may be used for both signal transmission and reception. In this case, the duplexer may couple the transmit signal and the receive signal to the antenna.

On the other hand, in the above description, the radio device operates in a half duplex method that performs only one function of transmitting or receiving at any time depending on whether the PTT button 80 is pressed, but is implemented to operate in a full duplex method without a PTT button it might be Since such an embodiment can be easily implemented by those skilled in the art based on the description of the present specification, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

On the other hand, the control signal, particularly the relay request signal, may include the ID of the device transmitting the signal. In this case, it is possible to prevent excessive generation of relay transmission devices that perform a relay request in response to one relay request, and to prevent or minimize interference.

On the other hand, all or part of the relayed voice signal may be stored in the relay transmitting device and then transmitted.

On the other hand, relay transmission may be performed in both directions. That is, when the second device relay-transmits the signal transmitted by the first device to the third device, the second device may relay-transmit the signal transmitted by the third device to devices including the first device.

Therefore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains that various modifications and changes can be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims below.

Claims (18)

A radio device for transmitting and receiving signals using radio waves in a predetermined frequency band,
transmitting the transmission voice signal after transmitting a voice transmission start notification signal for notifying the transmission of the transmission voice signal when transmitting the transmission voice signal modulated by the user's voice signal;
receiving, demodulating, and outputting a received voice signal from a first external terminal;
receiving a relay request signal from a second external terminal; and
In response to the relay request signal, demodulating and outputting the received voice signal from the first external terminal received after the reception of the relay request signal, and relaying the received voice signal by retransmitting the received voice signal; A signal transmission/reception method in a radio device comprising: The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of receiving, demodulating and outputting the received voice signal from the first external terminal
receiving a voice transmission start notification signal from the first external terminal;
attempting to detect the received voice signal from the first external terminal;
transmitting a relay request signal when the received voice signal is not detected from the first external terminal after receiving the voice transmission start notification signal; and
receiving, demodulating, and outputting the received voice signal relayed by a third external terminal;
A signal transmission and reception method comprising a. The method of claim 2, wherein transmitting the relay request signal comprises:
setting a first flag indicating a relay request state in a memory; and
informing a user of the relay request status based on the first flag;
A signal transmission and reception method comprising a. The method of claim 3, wherein the receiving of the relay request signal from the second external terminal comprises:
setting a second flag indicating that a relay transmission operation is in progress in the memory; and
guiding the relay transmission based on the second flag;
A signal transmission and reception method comprising a. The method according to claim 2, wherein the radio device is provided with a relay request button that allows the user to apply for a relay request,
The transmitting of the relay request signal may be performed in response to a press of the relay request button. The method according to claim 2, wherein the radio device comprises a relay enable switch that allows the user to selectively allow the relay transmission,
The relay transmission by retransmitting the received voice signal may be performed only when the relay enable switch is turned on. 7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The voice transmission start notification signal includes a signal pattern in which a periodic waveform obtained by synthesizing two or more of a plurality of types of frequencies within the frequency band continues for several cycles. The method according to claim 7, wherein the voice transmission start notification signal includes a pattern in which the signal pattern and the non-signal section are repeated several times. The method according to claim 7, wherein the voice transmission start notification signal is transmitted in a time interval in which a channel for transmitting the transmission voice signal is empty. a signal transmission circuit which modulates the user's voice signal into a transmission voice signal of a predetermined frequency band and transmits;
a signal receiving circuit for demodulating the received voice signal received in the frequency band and outputting it through a speaker; and
a control device for controlling the signal transmitting circuit and the signal receiving circuit;
The control device includes a memory for storing program instructions, and a processor for executing the program instructions stored in the memory,
The program instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
when transmitting the transmission voice signal modulated by the user's voice signal, transmitting the transmission voice signal after transmitting a voice transmission start notification signal for notifying the transmission of the transmission voice signal;
controlling the signal receiving circuit to receive, demodulate, and output the received voice signal from the first external terminal;
detecting a relay request signal from a second external terminal;
In response to the relay request signal, the signal receiving circuit is controlled to demodulate and output the received voice signal from the first external terminal received after detection of the relay request signal, and the received voice signal is retransmitted A radio device for controlling the signal transmitting circuit to perform relay transmission by doing so. The method of claim 10, wherein the commands for receiving, demodulating and outputting the received voice signal from the first external terminal are
detecting a voice transmission start notification signal from the first external terminal;
attempt to detect the received voice signal from the first external terminal;
transmitting a relay request signal when the received voice signal is not detected from the first external terminal after receiving the voice transmission start notification signal;
controlling the signal receiving circuit to receive, demodulate, and output the received voice signal relayed by a third external terminal; A radio device containing instructions. The method of claim 11, wherein the commands for transmitting the relay request signal
setting a first flag indicating a relay request state in the memory;
inform the user of the relay request status based on the first flag; A radio device containing instructions to The method of claim 12, wherein the commands for receiving the relay request signal from the second external terminal
setting a second flag indicating that a relay transmission operation is in progress in the memory;
to guide performing the relay transmission based on the second flag; A radio device containing instructions to 12. The method of claim 11,
a relay request button allowing the user to apply for a relay request;
The radio device further comprising: a command for transmitting the relay request signal is performed in response to a press of the relay request button. 12. The method of claim 11,
a relay enable switch allowing the user to selectively allow the relay transmission;
The radio device further comprising a, wherein the commands for relay transmission by retransmitting the received voice signal are performed only when the relay enable switch is turned on. 16. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 15,
The voice transmission start notification signal includes a signal pattern in which a periodic waveform obtained by synthesizing two or more of a plurality of types of frequencies within the frequency band continues for several cycles. The radio apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the voice transmission start notification signal includes a pattern in which the signal pattern and the no-signal section are repeated several times. The radio apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the voice transmission start notification signal is transmitted in a time interval in which a channel for transmitting the transmission voice signal is empty.

Images