TWI558245B - Method and system for searching nearby apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Method and system for searching for near-end devices

The present invention relates to a method of searching for a near-end device, and more particularly to a method and system for determining whether or not each other is a near-end device by comparing similarities of hotspot sets detected by the device.

With the development of technology and the advancement of the times, devices such as notebook computers, smart phones and tablets have become an indispensable part of people's lives. Due to the popularity of mobile devices, interactions between various devices and their applications have become increasingly important. At present, users are not only limited to operations on a single device, but more usage scenarios allow more than two devices to interact with each other. The interaction between devices is not limited to a single user device, but also extends to the user's friends, family, colleagues, and the like.

Before the devices can interact together, how to get two or more devices to find each other is the first step, and it is also an important part of many device interaction software. There are a lot of software that will use the global positioning system when searching. Positioning System, GPS) positioning information, Bluetooth or subnet information as a basis for pairing.

However, when using GPS positioning information or Bluetooth pairing, the device needs to be equipped with a corresponding chip, such as a GPS chip or a Bluetooth chip, to support the detection of the device. When using Bluetooth to pair, it is also necessary for the user to enable the Bluetooth to search, which is inconvenient to use. If the subnet information detecting device is used in a public place, a considerable number of devices may be searched for, and it is impossible to effectively filter out devices that are not nearby.

As can be seen from the above, there are certain drawbacks in the conventional practice, which may limit the pairing of the devices. In other words, how to develop another method of searching for a near-end device is one of the topics of interest to those skilled in the art.

In view of the above, the present invention provides a method for searching for a near-end device and a system thereof. The method is to upload a set of hotspots searched by the plurality of devices to a server, and the server calculates the similarity of the sets. It is judged whether or not these devices are near devices to each other.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a method of searching for a near-end device, which is adapted to search for a near-end device located around the first device. The method includes the following steps: the first device searches for at least one hotspot in the surrounding area by using a wireless communication technology, obtains an identification code of the hot spot to generate a first identification code set, and uploads the first identification code set to the server; at least one second device Use wireless communication technology to search for surrounding hotspots and get hot spots. Identifying a code to generate a second identification code set, and uploading a second identification code set to the server; the server calculates a similarity value between the first identification code set and each second identification code set; and the server determines the corresponding number according to the similarity value Whether the second device is a proximal device located around the first device and provides a determination result to the first device.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a system for searching for a near-end device. The system for searching for a near end device includes a first device, at least a second device, and a server. The first device searches for at least one hotspot in the surrounding area by using a wireless communication technology, and obtains an identification code of the hot spot to generate a first identification code set. The at least one second device uses the wireless communication technology to search for surrounding hotspots respectively, and obtains the identification code of the hotspot to generate a second identification code set. The server is coupled to the first device and the second device, and receives a first identification code set uploaded by the first device and the second identification code set uploaded by each second device, and calculates a first identification code set and each And identifying a similarity value of the set of identification codes, and determining whether the corresponding second device is a near-end device located around the first device according to the similarity value, and providing the determination result to the first device.

Based on the above, the method and system for searching for a near-end device of the present invention directly uses the wireless communication technology of the device to search for surrounding hotspots, obtains an identification code of the hotspot to generate an identification code set, and uploads it to the server. The server calculates whether the corresponding device is a near-end device and returns the determination result to the interrogating device by calculating similar values of the respective sets. According to this, the device located nearby can be correctly found through the wireless communication technology of the device without additional hardware equipment.

The above described features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.

100‧‧‧ system

110, 120_1~120_n‧‧‧ device

130‧‧‧Server

AP1~AP3‧‧‧ hot spot

S1~S6‧‧‧ signal intensity value

S210~S240, S310~S320, S510~S550‧‧‧Methods for searching for near-end devices

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for searching for a near-end device according to an embodiment of the invention.

2A is a flow chart of a method for searching for a near-end device according to an embodiment of the invention.

2B illustrates the execution device and the receiving device of each step of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method for determining whether a corresponding device is a near-end device according to a similar value according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a schematic diagram showing similar values of at least one second device and a first device according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5A is a flow chart of a method for searching for a near-end device according to another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5B illustrates the execution device and the receiving device of each step of FIG. 5A.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a proximal device according to an embodiment of the invention.

The present invention utilizes the characteristics of the same hotspot by the neighboring device, and the plurality of devices respectively search for the surrounding hotspots, and upload the set of the identified hotspots to the server for the server to determine whether it is a near-end device. . The server can calculate the similarity of the sets of identification codes and reuse the detected hotspots. The ordering of the signal strengths helps the user of the electronic device to correctly locate the nearby device for subsequent links or other interactions.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for searching for a near-end device according to an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 1, the system 100 of the present embodiment includes a first device 110 and at least one second device (this embodiment is described by taking the second devices 120_1~120_n as an example, but is not limited thereto) and the server 130. In the embodiment, the first device 110 and the second device 120_1~120_n are, for example, a smart phone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, or the like, and the present invention is not limited thereto. The server 130 is connected to the first device 110 and the second device 120_1~120_n through a network, for example, and may be a personal computer, a workstation, a server, or another type of computer or processing device disposed on the server. Limited to this.

2A is a flow chart of a method for searching for a near-end device according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2B is a diagram showing the execution device and the receiving device of each step of FIG. 2A. The first device 110, the second device 120_1, and the server 130 in FIG. 1 are taken as an example to illustrate the search for the near-end device according to the embodiment of the present invention. The various steps of the method.

Referring to FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B simultaneously, in step S210, the first device 110 searches for at least one hotspot in the surrounding area by using a wireless communication technology, obtains an identification code of the hot spot to generate a first identification code set, and sets the first identification code set. Uploaded to the server 130.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the first device 110 searches for a hotspot (Hotspot) through, for example, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi). It is worth noting that due to the media access control of the WiFi hotspot (Medium Access The control (MAC) address (ie, the basic service set identifier (BSSID)) is a unique identifier for each hotspot. The embodiment of the present invention searches for hotspots around the first device 110 through WiFi, and The hotspot MAC address is used as an identification code to distinguish the detected hotspots. After the first device 110 obtains the identification codes of the respective hotspots, the first identification code set can be generated and uploaded to the server 130.

In step S220, the second devices 120_1~120_n can respectively search for surrounding hotspots by using a wireless communication technology, obtain an identification code of the hotspot to generate a second identification code set, and upload the second identification code sets to the server 130.

In step S230, the server 130 calculates a similarity value of the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets. In this embodiment, the server 130 determines whether the two devices are determined by calculating a similarity value between the first identification code set searched by the first device 110 and the second identification code set searched by the second device 120_1. Nearby. In this embodiment, the similarity value between the first identification code set and the second identification code set is an intersection of the first identification code set and the second identification code set divided by the first identification code set and the second identification code set. The calculated value. Similar values can be expressed by the following equation: Wherein A represents a first identification code set, B represents one of the second identification code sets, and S represents a similar value of the first identification code set and each set of second identification code sets.

In step S240, the server 130 determines whether the corresponding second device 120_1~120_n is a near-end device located around the first device 110 according to the similarity value, and provides the determination result to the first device 110. Thereafter, the first device 110 can obtain the information of the near-end device, and then connect and interact with the near-end device. In order to explain step S240 in more detail, the embodiment of the present invention subdivides step S240 into steps S310-S320 in more detail.

Please refer to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method for determining whether a corresponding device is a near-end device according to a similar value according to an embodiment of the present invention. In step S310, the server 130 compares the similarity value with the first threshold value. The first threshold value can be set according to environmental requirements, for example, falling within the range of 0.01 to 0.1, but the invention is not limited thereto. When the server 130 determines that the similarity value exceeds the first threshold, it can be determined that the first device 110 and the second device 120_1 are near devices, and vice versa.

In step S320, if the similarity value exceeds the first threshold, the server 130 may determine the second device 120_1 corresponding to the similarity value as the near-end device located around the first device 110, and provide the determination result to the first Device 110. After that, the first device 110 can learn that the second device 120_1 is located nearby according to the judgment result returned by the server 130, and can interact with the second device 120_1.

In short, the device of the embodiment of the present invention can search for surrounding hotspots through WiFi, obtain an identification code of the hotspot to generate an identification code set, and upload the identification code set to the server. The server can determine whether the corresponding device is a near-end device and return it to the interrogating device by calculating similar values of the respective sets. Therefore, the present invention The method for searching for a near-end device of an embodiment can find a nearby device through the wireless communication technology existing in the device.

In addition, FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of similar values of the second device 120_1~120_4 and the first device 110 according to an embodiment of the invention. In another embodiment of the present invention, the server 130 can determine whether the first device 110 and the second device 120_1~120_4 are near-end devices according to whether the similarity value exceeds the threshold value, and the server 130 can also be similar according to the similarity. The magnitude of the value is used to rank the second devices 120_1~120_4 to obtain second devices 120_1~120_4 that are closest to the farthest from the first device 110.

For example, referring to FIG. 4, the similar values of the second devices 120_1~120_4 and the first device 110 are 80%, 70%, 30%, and 20%, respectively, so the server can determine that the second device 120_1 is the distance first. The device 110 is the closest device, and the second device 120_4 is the device that is furthest from the first device 110. In this way, the first device 110 can correctly find the device located nearby according to the result.

In another embodiment of the invention, the near-end device can also be discriminated in conjunction with the detected signal strength of the hotspot. Referring to FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B, FIG. 5A is a flowchart of a method for searching for a near-end device according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5B illustrates the execution device and the receiving device of each step of FIG. 5A. The method proposed in this embodiment can also be implemented by the first device 110, the second device 120_1, and the server 130 of FIG. 1. The following uses the first device 110, the second device 120_1, and the server 130 as an example to describe the method for searching for the near device. The various steps of Figures 5A and 5B.

Referring to FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B simultaneously, in step S510, the first device The signal intensity values of the searched hotspots are calculated and uploaded to the server 130. In step S520, the second devices 120_1~120_n respectively calculate the signal intensity values of the searched hotspots and upload them to the 130 server.

The first device 110 and the second device 120_1~120_n can also detect the signal intensity value of the surrounding hotspot through the WiFi. In this embodiment, the signal strength value is, for example, a WiFi Received Signal Strength Indicator (WiFi RSSI), but the present invention is not limited thereto. The WiFi RSSI can be used to indicate the signal strength value of the searched hotspot.

Different from the foregoing embodiment, the first device 110 and the second device 120_1~120_n obtain the identification code of each detected hot spot and generate the first identification code set and the second identification code respectively according to the searched identification code. In addition to the set, the signal strength values of the hotspots are also detected, and the first identifier set, the second identifier set, and the signal strength values corresponding to the hotspots are uploaded to the server 130.

In step S530, the server 130 first sorts the first identification code set and the identification code in each second identification code set according to the signal strength value, and takes the first identification code set and each second identification code set. Sorting the plurality of previous identification codes, and calculating similar values of the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets.

The distance between the device and the hotspot can be inferred by the signal strength value of the hot spot. If the detected signal strength of the hot spot is stronger, the representative device is likely to be closer to the hot spot. Therefore, in this embodiment, by detecting the signal strength value of the hotspot as an auxiliary, the server 130 first sorts the first identification code set and the identification code in each second identification code set according to the signal strength value, and takes First identification And a plurality of identification codes (for example, the first five identification codes) of the second identification code set are sorted to filter out hot spots with close distances, and the first identification is calculated based only on the identification codes. The similarity value of the code set and each of the second identification code sets determines the near-end device. The calculation method of the above similar value is the same as that of step S230 of the foregoing embodiment, and details are not described herein.

In step S540, the server 130 compares, for example, the signal strength values corresponding to the prior-identified identification codes in the first identification code set and the second identification code sets. In step S550, if the difference between the signal strength values corresponding to the at least two identification codes in the first identification code set and the corresponding identification codes in the second identification code set is less than the second threshold value, Then, it can be further confirmed that the second device 120_1 corresponding to the second identification code set is a near-end device located around the first device 110. In this embodiment, the second threshold value can also be set according to environmental requirements, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

In this embodiment, in addition to the similarity values of the first identification code set searched by the first device 110 and the second identification code set searched by the second device 120_1, it is determined whether the two devices are in the vicinity, and more The signal strength value is used to confirm whether it is a near-end device.

For example, FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a proximal device according to an embodiment of the invention. Please refer to FIG. 6 , which illustrates the first device 110 , the second device 120_1 , and the hotspots AP1 AP AP3 around it. The following table 1 indicates the first three identification codes and the signal strength values S1 to S6 of the corresponding signal strength values in the identification code set of the hot spot searched by the first device 110 and the second device 120_1.

The identification code sets of the first device 110 and the second device 120_1 all include the identification codes of the AP1~AP3, so that the identification code set of the first device 110 and the second device 120_1 can be determined to be highly similar. At this time, the signal intensity values of the hotspots AP1~AP3 detected by the first device 110 and the second device 120_1 are further compared to further determine whether the first device 110 and the second device 120_1 are near devices. The server 130 calculates that the first identification code set and the second identification code set are ranked first and the corresponding identification code has a difference between the signal strength values corresponding to the at least two identification codes that is smaller than the second threshold (for example, When both S3-S1| and |S4-S2| are less than the second threshold value, it can be confirmed that the first device 110 and the second device 120_1 are near devices. In this embodiment, by combining the judgment of the similarity value and the signal strength value, it can be further determined that the second device 120_1 is a near-end device located around the first device 110.

In summary, the method and system for searching for a near-end device of the present invention directly uploads a set of identification codes of hotspots searched by the device to a server, and the server determines the corresponding value by calculating the similarity values of the sets. Whether the device is a near-end device. In addition, the server can further combine the similar value and the signal strength value to confirm the near-end device. Accordingly, the user of the electronic device can be helped to correctly find the nearby device through the device's existing wireless communication technology for subsequent connection or other interaction. No additional hardware is required.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention, and any one of ordinary skill in the art can make some changes and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the scope of the appended claims.

S210~S240‧‧‧ steps for searching for near-end devices

Claims (6)

A method for searching for a near-end device, adapted to search for a near-end device located around a first device, the method comprising the steps of: searching for at least one hot spot around the hot-spot using a wireless communication technology to obtain the hotspot Identifying a code to generate a first identification code set, and uploading the first identification code set to a server; the first device calculates a signal strength value of each of the searched hotspots, and uploads the value to the server; The second device uses the wireless communication technology to search for the hotspots around the hotspot, obtain the identification code of the hotspot to generate a second identification code set, and upload the second identification code set to the server; The device separately calculates the signal strength values of the searched hotspots and uploads the values to the server; the server sorts the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets according to the signal intensity value. And identifying the first identification code set and each of the plurality of the identification codes in the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets. a similar value of the second identification code set; the server compares the similarity value with a first threshold; the server sequentially compares the first identification code set with each of the second identification code sets The signal strength value corresponding to the identification code; and if the similarity value exceeds the first threshold value, and the first identification code set and the second identification code set are ranked first and corresponding to the identification At least two in the code When the difference between the signal strength values corresponding to the identifier is less than a second threshold, determining that the second device corresponding to the second identifier set is the near-end device located around the first device, and A judgment result is provided to the first device. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of determining, by the server, whether the corresponding second device is the near-end device located around the first device, according to the similar value, further comprises: the server The second device is ordered according to the similarity value as the second device that is closest to the farthest from the first device. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of the server calculating the similarity value of the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets comprises using the following formula: Wherein, A represents the first identification code set, B represents one of the second identification code sets, and S represents the similarity value of the first identification code set and the second identification code set. A system for searching for a near-end device, comprising: a first device, searching for at least one hot spot in the surrounding area by using a wireless communication technology, obtaining an identification code of the hot spot to generate a first identification code set, and calculating each of the searched The signal strength value of the hotspot; the at least one second device respectively searching for the hotspots around the hotspot by using the wireless communication technology, obtaining the identification code of the hotspot to generate a second identification code set, and calculating a signal strength value of each of the searched hotspots; and a server coupled to the first device and the second device to receive the first identification code set uploaded by the first device, the first device The signal strength value of each of the searched hotspots, the second identification code set uploaded by each of the second devices, and each of the signal strength values of each of the hotspots searched by each of the second devices, wherein The server sorts the first identification code set and the identification code in each of the second identification code sets according to the signal strength value, and uses the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets Calculating a similarity value between the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets, and comparing the similarity value with a first threshold value, wherein the server is more dependent Sorting, by the first identification code set, the signal strength value corresponding to the prioritized identification code in each of the second identification code sets, wherein if the similarity value exceeds the first threshold, and the first identification Code set and each of said second identification codes When the difference between the signal strength values corresponding to at least two of the identification codes in the preceding and corresponding identification codes is less than a second threshold, the server determines that the second identification code set corresponds to The second device is the proximal device located around the first device and provides a determination result to the first device. The system of claim 4, wherein the server further sorts the second device according to the similar value as the second device that is closest to the farthest from the first device. The system of claim 4, wherein the server comprises calculating the similarity value of the first identification code set and each of the second identification code sets by using the following formula: Wherein, A represents the first identification code set, B represents one of the second identification code sets, and S represents the similarity value of the first identification code set and the second identification code set.