WO2015103918A1 - Method and system for setting wireless network of imaging device, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are a method and system for setting a wireless network of an imaging device, and a storage medium. The method comprises: a search step: searching, by an intelligent device, wireless access points, and acquiring wireless access point identifiers of various wireless access points; a determination step: determining, by the intelligent device, one of the searched various wireless access points to be a selected wireless access point according to a user input; an acquisition step: acquiring network access configuration information about the selected wireless access point; and a transmission step: transmitting , by the intelligent device, the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point to the imaging device. The present invention can simplify network configuration processing at an imaging device side as far as possible.

Description

Method, system and storage medium for setting wireless network of imaging device

Cross-reference to related applications

The present application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. CN201410013569.1, filed on Jan. 10,,,,,,,,,,,,, In this article.

Technical field

The present invention relates to imaging technology, and more particularly to an imaging device wireless network setting method, system and storage medium.

Background technique

In recent years, devices having a wireless interface, such as a network printer or a printer adapter, have been widely used because they can wirelessly form a network that is usually wired, without any wiring or the like. For example, there is a standard No. 802.11b established by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers), and a wireless device corresponding to the standard includes, for example, a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) access point or a router.

When using a wireless interface to connect a network printer to a wireless LAN, the network printer needs to have settings that meet the requirements of the wireless LAN environment. However, the user interface of the display device or the input device set in the network printer is lower in operability than the computer or the like, and thus it is difficult to set the network. In addition, it is prone to incorrect setting input. For the convenience of setting, a convenient operation display screen is usually added to the network printer, but this will cause an increase in the space and cost of the network printer. Therefore, the printer network is usually set by a peripheral device such as a PC connected to a network printer. But for users who are not familiar with wireless network settings, it is very difficult to set up the network of the printer through the computer.

In addition, simplifying the development cost and development speed of the printer makes it easier for manufacturers to update existing printers or develop new products. Therefore, how to simplify the processing logic of the printer in network configuration is extremely important.

In addition, when there are multiple network printers that need to connect to the wireless LAN, the user needs to repeat various cumbersome steps to complete the network settings of the above multiple network printers, so that they are connected to the network. It brings inconvenience to the user's use.

The present invention is directed to solving one or more of the above technical problems.

Summary of the invention

One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a method, system, and storage medium for an imaging device wireless network that minimizes imaging device side network configuration processing and/or simplifies user configuration operations.

In order to solve the above technical problem, the present invention provides a wireless network setting method for an imaging device. The method includes: a searching step, the smart device searches for the wireless access point and acquires the wireless access point identifier of each wireless access point; and the determining step, the smart device determines one of the searched wireless access points according to the user input For selecting a wireless access point; acquiring step, acquiring network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point; and transmitting, the smart device identifying the wireless access point of the selected wireless access point and the network Access configuration information is transmitted to the imaging device.

In addition, the determining step may further include: the smart device presents the searched respective wireless access point identifiers to the user; and determining, according to the user input, the selected wireless access points selected by the user from the respective wireless access points; Obtaining network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point according to user input.

In addition, the step of the smart device presenting the searched respective wireless access point identifiers to the user may further include: presenting, to the user, the signal strength of the respective wireless access points, according to the signals of the respective wireless access points The weak, the smart device access frequency or the frequency used to perform the wireless network setting of the imaging device is sorted, and each wireless access point identifier obtained by the sorted search is presented.

Preferably, the wireless access point identifier is a service set identifier or a basic service set identifier; and the network access configuration information includes a key required to access the wireless access point.

Furthermore, the transmitting step may further comprise: prompting the user to connect the imaging device through a USB cable; the smart device wirelessly connecting the selected wireless access point by a USB cable connection with the imaging device Point identification and network access configuration information is transmitted to the imaging device.

Moreover, the method may further include: the imaging device accessing the selected wireless access point based on the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information received from the smart device, and determining whether If the result of the determination is that the access is unsuccessful, the information about the inability to access the selected wireless access point is returned to the smart device, and the determining step is returned.

In addition, the method may further include: before the searching step, the smart device determines whether it has a wireless access point search function; wherein, if the determination result is yes, the smart device And performing the searching step; if the determination result is not, indicating: the imaging device prints out the searched wireless access point identifiers and prompts the user to manually input the wireless access point identifier of a wireless access point, Or prompting the user to manually input the wireless access point identifier of a wireless access point, and in the determining step, using the wireless access point corresponding to the wireless access point identifier manually input by the user as the selected wireless access point, Then enter the acquisition step.

Moreover, the method may further include: after the obtaining step, the smart device saves a wireless access point identifier and network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point; and before the searching step, Determining whether the smart device stores the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information of the wireless access point for the imaging device wireless network setting, and if it is determined to be saved, the saved wireless access point is used as the Select the wireless access point and jump directly to the transfer step.

In addition, the method may further include: before searching for the wireless access point, the smart device determines whether it is currently accessing a wireless access point; if the determination result is that the access is already, the smart device will The wireless access point being accessed enters the transmission step as the selected wireless access point.

Further, when the smart device receives an indication that the wireless access point identifier is to be manually input, or does not search for any wireless access point after the searching step, the following processing is performed: the receiving user manually inputs a wireless The wireless access point identifier of the access point; and the wireless access point corresponding to the wireless access point identifier input by the user is used as the selected wireless access point, and jumps to the obtaining step.

In addition, the method may further include: determining, according to a user indication, whether the wireless access point saved in the smart device is used as the selected wireless access point before the determining step, and if the determination is yes, entering the location The transfer steps.

In addition, the method may further include: before searching for the wireless access point, the smart device determines whether it is currently accessing a wireless access point; if the determination result is that the access is already, determining whether it is necessary according to the user indication The wireless access point accessed by the smart device is used as the selected wireless access point; if it is determined that the wireless access point accessed by the smart device is required to be the selected wireless access point, The smart device uses the wireless access point that it is currently accessing as the selected wireless access point and enters the transmission step.

Further, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is further provided a storage medium storing a program for implementing the method according to the foregoing technical solution.

Further, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is also provided an imaging apparatus wireless network setting system including a smart device and an imaging device that are data-connected to each other. The smart device transmits the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point to the foregoing method according to the foregoing method. The imaging device;

The imaging device receives wireless access point identification and network access configuration information from the selected wireless access point of the smart device, and according to the received wireless access of the selected wireless access point Point identification and network access configuration information to access the selected wireless access point.

Compared with the prior art, one or more embodiments of the present invention may have the advantage that the present invention searches for a wireless access point and acquires a wireless access point identifier by a smart device instead of an imaging device, and searches for it. The network access configuration information of the identification and the user input is transmitted to the imaging device, which is configured by using the imaging device to search for the wireless access point and then transmitting the searched wireless access point identifier to the computer by the imaging device. The method can simplify the search processing on the imaging device side, simplify the communication interaction between the smart device and the imaging device, thereby facilitating shortening the development cycle of the imaging device and even reducing the research and development cost of the imaging device.

Other advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in the <RTIgt; The teachings of the present invention are taught. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained in the <RTIgt;

DRAWINGS

The drawings are intended to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are intended to be a part of the description of the invention. In the drawing:

1 shows a system block diagram of a network system including a printer system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a block diagram showing the appearance and structure of a PC according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a block diagram showing the appearance and structure of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4A-4F respectively illustrate user operation interfaces in accordance with a practical example of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a method for setting a wireless network of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG.

6 shows a flow chart of a method for setting a wireless network of a printer according to still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a method of setting a wireless network of a printer according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

detailed description

The embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments, in which the present invention can be applied to the technical problems, and the implementation of the technical effects can be fully understood and implemented. It should be noted that various embodiments of the present invention and The various features in the various embodiments may be combined with each other, and the formed technical solutions are all within the scope of the present invention.

Additionally, the steps illustrated in the flowchart of the figures may be executed in a computer system such as a set of computer executable instructions, and although the logical order is illustrated in the flowchart, in some cases may be different The steps shown or described are performed in the order herein.

The present invention also provides a system for wireless network setting of an imaging device including a smart device and an imaging device that are data-connected to each other. The method and system for setting up a wireless network of an imaging device of the present invention are described in detail below.

The smart device of the present invention refers to a mobile phone, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a computer, a tablet computer, a notebook, and the like. These devices often have display and input units such as touch screens, computer displays, keyboards, and mice. The image forming apparatus of the present invention refers to a printer, a scanner, a copying machine, a facsimile machine, or a MFP which integrates printing, copying, scanning, and facsimile. For convenience of explanation, the following describes in detail a computer as an example of a smart device and a printer as an example of an imaging device.

1 shows a system block diagram of a network system including a printer system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the network system 10 includes an access point, PC1, PC2, PC3, and the like, and is a system for forming a local area network. An external device such as a setting PC (computer) or the like is connected to the local area network system through an access point by wireless communication. In order to communicate with the access point by wireless communication, network settings such as SSID (Service Set Identifier) and WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) key need to correspond to the settings of the access point. The SSID is an identifier used to enable devices using the same SSID to communicate with each other in a wireless local area network. Here, it is not limited to use the SSID to enable the devices of the wireless local area network to communicate with each other, and the name set by the access point in the wireless local area network such as the BSSID (Basic Service Set Identifier) may be used as long as it can be used for the identification connection. Just enter the point. The WEP key is the network password set for the encoded wireless network. In this local area network system, there is a mode in which a plurality of wireless devices can be connected via an access point, and this is called an infrastructure connection mode. In the basic network connection mode, the same SSID is set for the access point to the wireless device, so that communication with each other can be performed by the relay of the access point. When using the printer in a wireless communication mode, the printer must be set to be able to connect to the access point. The invention mainly uses a PC to set up a network of printers so that the printer can be connected to an access point.

The computer PC1 in FIG. 1 uses a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable as a wired interface, and a PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) card type wireless is mounted on the PC 1. LAN (local area network) card (hereinafter mainly referred to as a wireless LAN adapter), As a wireless interface. At the same time, general PCs are equipped with a wired network interface (such as an RJ-45 interface connected to Ethernet (registered trademark)). In a LAN system, any device can communicate with an access point via a wireless interface, and can also communicate with an access point via a wired network interface. As shown in FIG. 1, the PCI connects to the access point through a wireless communication method (such as the IEEE standard No. 802.11b), and the PC2 and the PC3 connect the access point in a wired manner through a wired network interface such as an RJ-45 interface. When the PC connects to the access point, it can only be connected through one of the wireless interface and the wired network interface. Between the PC and the printer, not only the print data can be sent via the USB cable, but also the print data can be sent via the access point via the wireless interface or the wired network interface. In the present invention, a plurality of PCs can be connected to an access point, and one printer can be shared by a plurality of PCs.

2 is a block diagram showing the appearance and structure of a PC according to an embodiment of the present invention. The PC includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 201, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 202, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 203, and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 204. CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read-Only Memory) drive 206, input interface (I/F) 207, video interface (I/F) 208, USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface 209 A wired network interface 205 and a wireless LAN adapter (also called a wireless LAN card) 210. The CPU 201 controls various functions of the PC, and the ROM 202 stores various programs such as a BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) executed by the CPU 201 in the startup process; the RAM 203 is used by the CPU 201 as a work memory. The HDD 204 stores various files including files of the operating system; the CD-ROM drive 206 is for reading data from a CD (Compact Disc); the input interface (I/F) 207 is configured to be connected to the PC. An input signal of a keyboard or mouse (not shown) is input to the CPU 201; the video interface (I/F) 208 is configured to display information on the display of the PC under the control of the CPU 201; the wired network interface 205 is configured The connection point or router is connected by a wired cable to connect the PC to the local area network system; the wireless LAN adapter 210 is configured to connect the PC to the external device through a wireless connection in accordance with a wireless communication standard such as IEEE 802.11. These components are connected to each other via a bus.

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of the appearance and structure of a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 3. The printer includes a CPU 301, a ROM 302, a RAM 303, an engine control unit 304, an HDD 305, a setting unit 306, a wired interface 307, and a wireless LAN adapter 308. Among them, the CPU 301 controls various operations of the printer; the ROM 302 stores various operational programs such as a BIOS executed by the CPU 301 in the startup process; the RAM 303 is used by the CPU as a work memory; and the engine control unit 304 is configured to control the printing of the printer. Operations such as controlling transfer, fixing, etc.; HDD 305 stores various programs executed by CPU 301; users can input commands into the printer through setting unit 306; wireless LAN adapter 308 is configured to comply with wireless communication standards (such as IEEE 802.11) ) Connect the printer to an external device over a wireless connection. These components are connected to each other via a bus.

First embodiment

FIG. 5 shows a flow chart of a printer wireless network setting method according to the present embodiment. The present embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to Figs. 4A to 5 .

First, in step 501, the PC determines whether it has a wireless access point search function, and also determines whether the PC can search for the wireless access point. For example, it can be judged whether or not it has a wireless access point search function by judging whether the PC has a wireless LAN adapter installed. If it is determined to have, the PC performs the search step of step 502. If it is determined that it does not have, the process proceeds to step 504.

In step 502 (search step), the PC searches for the wireless access point and obtains the wireless access point identification. Specifically, the wireless LAN adapter of the PC works, such as searching for a wireless access point, and communicating with wireless access points in the local area network system to obtain wireless access point identification of each wireless access point. More specifically, the scanning function of the operating system of the PC is activated to cause the wireless LAN adapter of the PC to search for the wireless access point and return information (SSID, radio wave status, address, channel, etc.) of the searched wireless access point.

Optionally, before or after step 502, when the user desires to select the wireless access point by manually inputting the wireless access point identifier (step 503), step 505 may be entered to manually input the wireless access point identifier by the user. When the wireless access point identification is not manually input, the process proceeds to step 506. Further, as will be highlighted later, step 502 may also proceed directly to step 506 without performing the determination of step 503.

More specifically, in step 503, it is determined whether it is necessary to manually input the identity (eg, SSID) of the wireless access point. Here, it can be determined according to the user's choice or based on the result of the PC searching for the wireless access point. Here, in order to provide the user with a wireless access point when the PC does not search for any wireless access point, or when the user has previously known the information of the wireless access point to be connected. In step 503, it is determined according to whether the PC searches for the wireless access point or receives the user's instruction to determine whether it is necessary to manually input the SSID of the wireless access point. When the PC does not search for any wireless access point, or receives an instruction that the user selects to manually input by itself, the determination in step 503 is yes, and proceeds to step 505 to cause the user to input the SSID of the wireless access point to be connected.

In step 506 (determination step), one of the searched wireless access points is determined as the selected wireless access point according to the user input. More specifically, the PC presents the searched respective wireless access point identifications or names to the user, and determines the selected wireless access points selected by the user from the respective wireless access points based on the user input. In this way, the user can conveniently make a selection based on the list presented by the PC. Preferably, the signal strength of each wireless access point, the PC access frequency, or the wireless function of the printer can be used. The frequency of the network setting is sorted, and each wireless access point identifier obtained by the sorted search is presented, which further improves user friendliness. Then proceed to step 507.

If it is determined in step 501 that the PC does not have the wireless access point search function, then step 504 is entered. In step 504, the PC instructs the printer to search for the wireless access point and print out the identity of each of the wireless access points it has searched for. More specifically, the PC sends a "Print Wireless Network Information Page" command via a USB cable. After the printer receives the command, the printer configures the wireless LAN adapter to perform a wireless access point search using the wireless LAN adapter. The wireless LAN adapter of the printer that performs the wireless access point search configuration transmits a wireless access point search signal. The wireless access point that receives the signal transmits its own wireless access point information (SSID, radio wave status, address, channel, etc.) to the wireless LAN adapter that sent the search, and the wireless LAN adapter of the printer receives the wireless access The information sent back is printed, and the information page containing the searched wireless access point information is printed.

Then, in step 505, the user is prompted to manually input the wireless access point identifier of a wireless access point, and receive the wireless access point identifier such as the SSID manually input by the user. Incidentally, when it is determined in step 501 that the PC does not have the wireless access point search function, it is also possible to directly proceed to step 505 without performing step 504. In addition, in step 505, the wireless access point corresponding to the wireless access point identifier manually input by the user is used as the selected wireless access point, and then proceeds to step 507.

In step 507 (corresponding to the obtaining step), the PC acquires network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point. The network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point acquired by the PC may be input by the user or may be pre-stored by the PC. The selected wireless access point may be the wireless access point selected by the user according to the searched wireless access point list displayed by the PC in step 506, or may be the wireless access manually input by the user in step 505. The point or step 505 selects the manually entered wireless access point based on the wireless access point information in the information page printed by the printer. In this way, the wireless network of the printer can be conveniently configured by allowing the user to reselect the wireless access point even if the geographical area of the PC and the printer are different. The network access configuration information may include a password and other information required to access the wireless access point.

From step 507 to step 508 (corresponding to the transmission step), the PC transmits the wireless access point identification and network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point to the printer. The network access configuration information may include information such as an access key of the wireless access point. More specifically, the PC may prompt the user to connect to the printer via a USB cable, and the PC transmits the wireless access point identification and network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point to the printer through a USB cable connection with the printer.

From step 508, the process proceeds to step 509. In step 509, the printer accesses the selected wireless access point based on the wireless access point identifier and network access configuration information received from the PC. If the access is successful, the process ends. . If the result of the determination in step 509 is no, the printer returns to the PC about The method accesses the information of the selected wireless access point, and returns to step 506 (corresponding to the determining step) to redisplay the searched wireless access point list to the user, and re-determines the selected wireless access according to the user input. point.

Further, when the result of the determination in step 509 is NO, it is also possible to return to step 505 (corresponding to the determining step) to allow the user to re-set the setting by manual input.

In addition, it should be emphasized that step 501 is optional, because most of the current smart devices such as PCs have the wireless access point search function, or the user generally knows in advance which smart devices have the wireless access point search function. . In the case where step 501 is not executed, the method may directly enter step 502, step 504 or step 505. In addition, after step 501 directly proceeds to step 505, the PC may be instructed to instruct the printer to search for the wireless access point according to the user's instruction, according to the list of wireless access points in the information page printed by the printer after the search, according to the user's wireless connection. The in-point list selects a wireless access point to manually input to determine the selected wireless access point, and proceeds to step 507.

In addition, whether before or after step 502, that is, before or after the PC searches for the wireless access point, the PC receives an indication that the wireless access point identification is to be manually entered, or does not search after the search step. To any wireless access point, you can go directly to step 505 to receive the wireless access point identifier that the user manually inputs a wireless access point; and select the wireless access point corresponding to the wireless access point identifier input by the user as an option. Set the wireless access point, then go directly to step 507 (acquisition step).

Second embodiment

The present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. 6. For ease of understanding, the steps of the present embodiment that are identical or substantially similar to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. Only the steps different from the first embodiment in this embodiment will be mainly described below, and the same steps as those of the first embodiment will not be described again.

Referring to FIG. 6, the present embodiment adds steps 600, 608a, and 608b on the basis of the first embodiment.

In step 608a, the PC saves the wireless access point identification and network access configuration information for the selected wireless access point.

In this way, when it is required to perform wireless network setting on other printers, before proceeding to step 501 or 502, step 600 is executed, and the PC determines whether it stores the wireless access point identifier and network connection of the wireless access point for the printer wireless network configuration. If the configuration information is determined to be saved, the process proceeds to step 608b, and the saved wireless access point is used as the selected wireless access point, and then proceeds to step 508 to set the wireless access point of the saved wireless access point. The identification and network access configuration information is transmitted to the printer. If it is determined in step 600 that it is not saved, then step 501, 502 or step may be entered. 505. Even as described below, step 700 of the third embodiment can be entered.

In addition, the user can choose whether or not the printer needs to be connected to a saved wireless access point. In this regard, a determining step may be added before step 608b to determine whether to use the wireless access point saved in the PC as the selected wireless access point to allow the printer to connect to the wireless access point stored in the PC. Then, the process proceeds to step 501, step 502 or step 505; otherwise, the process proceeds to step 608b, and then proceeds to step 508.

It should be noted that the timing and manner of saving the wireless access point are not limited to the above. For example, the wireless access point may also be manually set and saved by the user at any opportunity (preferably any time before one of the searched wireless access points is determined to be the selected wireless access point according to the user input). Wireless access point identification and network access configuration information.

By adding steps 608a, 608b and step 600, the present example makes the user setting work more convenient and improves user friendliness.

Third embodiment

The present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. For ease of understanding, the steps of the present embodiment that are identical or substantially similar to the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. Only the steps different from the first embodiment in this embodiment will be mainly described below, and the same steps as those of the first embodiment will not be described again.

Referring to Figure 7, the present embodiment adds steps 700 and 708a to the first embodiment.

In step 700, the PC determines whether it is currently accessing a wireless access point before searching for the wireless access point; if the result of the determination is that the wireless access point is being accessed, then the process proceeds to step 708a to set itself The wireless access point being accessed acts as the selected wireless access point and proceeds to step 508. If it is determined that the wireless access point is not currently connected, the process may proceed to step 501, 502 or step 505. Even as described below, step 600 of the second embodiment can be entered.

In addition, you can choose whether to use the wireless access point connected to the PC as the wireless access point to which the printer is connected. In this regard, a determining step may be added before step 708a to determine whether to connect the wireless access point to which the PC is connected as the selected wireless access point according to the user indication, to allow the printer to connect to the wireless access point to which the PC is connected. . If the determination is no, the process proceeds to step 501, 502 or step 505; otherwise, the process proceeds to step 708a.

In addition, the second embodiment can be combined with the third embodiment. In this case, the PC can perform the step 700 of the embodiment first, that is, whether it is currently accessing a wireless access point. If the determination is no, the step 600 in the second embodiment is performed to further determine whether the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information for performing the wireless network setting of the printer are saved. Step 600 may be performed first. If the determination result in step 600 is no, step 700 is further performed. Judgment.

In this embodiment, by adding steps 700 and 708a, the wireless network setting of the printer can be performed more easily when the PC is already accessing the wireless access point.

Application example one

Run a certain version of the OS (Operating System) on the PC. In order to set the printer's wireless network using a PC, an application is installed on the PC, through which the printer performs a simple network setting operation, that is, a tool for setting the wireless network of the printer.

4A-4F are operation screens displayed in a network setting process of a printer according to an application example of the present invention.

Launch the application on your PC and start network setup processing. When the application software determines that the PC can search for the access point, the launch application enters the display screen of FIG. 4A. When the application software determines that the PC has a wireless LAN adapter and is able to search for an access point, it causes the wireless LAN adapter of the PC to search for an access point in the current area and display an access point list. The display area 401 displays a list of access points found by the PC through the access point search. The list not only displays the SSID of the access point, but also displays the security mode of the access point and the signal strength. The security mode is the access point. Encryption technology. The display area 401 can be sorted in accordance with the signal strength of the searched access point or the presence or absence of a security mode. Displayed in display area 401 is all access points operating within the coverage of the radio wave.

In the display area 401, the user can select an access point. When the selected access point is encrypted and proceeds to the display of Figure 4C, the key or password used for decryption can be entered into input box 406.

Generally speaking, in wireless LAN, encryption technology is used to prevent eavesdropping and data leakage. Representative encryption technology has WEP (wired equivalent security). The WEP is an algorithm in which both encryption and decryption use the same cipher information, which is called a key. By setting the key, data hiding from other devices is realized. When using an encrypted wireless LAN, the same key must be set for the printer. Another encryption technology is WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access), whose encryption characteristics make it more difficult to invade than WEP. Therefore, if there is a high requirement for data security, then it must be selected. WPA encryption method. Therefore, the user can select the encryption mode of the access point in the security mode input box 405 of FIG. 4C. If a searched access point is selected in FIG. 4A, the input box 405 automatically according to the security mode of the searched access point. Display encryption technology, no longer need user selection.

After selecting the access point and entering the password, click “Next” to enter the display screen of Figure 4D, prompting the user to connect to the printer via USB cable, and the PC sends a request to set up the network. The printer is sent to the printer, followed by the address of the user-selected access point, the encryption key, and other information needed to utilize the access point to the printer. If the access point selected in the display area 401 is not encrypted, the information of the selected access point is directly sent to the printer through the USB cable according to the result selected by the user. After the printer setting is completed, the display screen of FIG. 4E is displayed, and the user is displayed. Click "OK" to exit the settings.

In FIG. 4A, if the PC does not search for any access point or the user selects the "Manually enter network name" option 402, the SSID of the access point is manually entered, and the display screen of FIG. 4B is entered, in the input box of FIG. 4B. Enter the SSID of the access point that the user wants to connect in 403. After clicking “Next”, if the input access point needs to be encrypted, enter the display screen of FIG. 4C, and pull down the security mode of the access point in the input box 405. Select an encryption technology, enter the key or password used for decryption into the input box 406, click "Next" to enter the display screen of Figure 4D, prompting the user to connect to the printer via a USB cable. When the user manually enters the SSID of the access point by himself, and then the security mode selected in the input box 405 does not conform to the security mode of the input access point or the password is entered incorrectly, an error occurs in the printer connecting the access point after the setting is completed. Then, the display screen of FIG. 4F is displayed, so that the user can click "Back" to return to the safe mode and the display screen of FIG. 4C of the password setting for the user to set again.

In addition, when the application software determines that the PC cannot search for the access point, the application software is launched to enter the display screen of FIG. 4B, and the application software automatically selects the “Manually input network name” option 402 according to the determination result, and the user inputs the access point by himself. SSID to input box 403, click "Next". If the selected access point needs to be encrypted, go to the display screen of Figure 4C, and pull down the security mode of the access point in input box 405 to select an encryption technology, which will be used. The decrypted key or password is entered into input box 406.

At the same time, for the unfamiliar access point, the user can click the "Print Wireless Network Information Page" option 404 in the display screen of FIG. 4B, and prompt the user to connect the printer through the USB cable (the prompt screen is the same as FIG. 4D). The PC sends a "Print Wireless Network Information Page" command via the USB cable. After the printer receives the command, the printer configures the wireless LAN adapter to use the wireless LAN adapter for access point search. The wireless LAN adapter of the printer that has performed the access point search configuration transmits an access point search signal. The access point that receives the signal transmits its own access point information (SSID, radio wave status, address, channel, etc.) to the wireless LAN adapter that sent the search, and the wireless LAN adapter of the printer receives the return from the access point. The information is then controlled by the engine control unit to print out an information page, which includes information of the searched access point, and the printed result displays information such as the SSID, security mode, and signal strength of the access point. Or, in the case of FIG. 4B, the option 404 is not set, only the display "may press and hold the start button of the printer (this button is any button that can cause the printer to print the information page) to print the information page to obtain the access point information", and the user is prompted to pass the printer. The button prints an information page that displays information about the access point that the printer's wireless LAN adapter has searched for. According to the SSID list information in the print result, the user inputs the selected SSID to the input box 403 in FIG. 4B, and clicks “Next”. If the selected access point needs to be encrypted, the user enters the display screen of FIG. 4C and accesses. The point's security mode pulls down an input encryption technique in input box 405 to input a key or password for decryption into input box 406.

After the above information input required to connect the access point is completed, the display screen of FIG. 4D is prompted to prompt the user to connect the printer through the USB cable. Here, it is not limited to wired communication between the PC and the printer by USB, and the PC can be set to a wireless network of the printer through other interfaces such as IEEE1284 and a wired network interface. The PC sends a request command to set up the network to the printer via the USB cable, and then sends the address of the user-selected access point, the encryption key, and other information needed to utilize the access point to the printer. After the printer receives the command, the wireless LAN adapter in the printer uses the access point information sent by the PC to connect with the specific access point, and the application software completes the setting of the printer network, and proceeds to the display screen of FIG. 4E. If there is an error in the connection point of the printer connection, such as the failure of the security mode or the password is not matched, then the display screen of Figure 4F is entered. According to the error message returned by the printer, the user can click "Previous" to return to Figure 4C. The display screen allows the user to reset. If the printer makes an error in connecting the selected access point, the user can start the printer's network setting again according to the error information shown in FIG. 4F, and the user can gradually display back to FIG. 4A or FIG. 4B according to the selection “previous step”. In Fig. 4F, the reason why the printer is connected to the access point is displayed, and the user can click "Back" to return to the corresponding display screen according to the error information for setting.

In the present invention, when the application software is started to start the network setting of the printer, the screen of FIG. 4A or FIG. 4B is automatically displayed depending on whether the PC itself can search for the access point. It is also possible to enter a main interface when launching the application software, prompting the user whether the user needs to manually input the setting network or set the network according to the search access point result of the PC to enter the display screen of FIG. 4B or the display screen of FIG. 4A, so that when the user is The main interface selection is based on the result of the search access point of the PC. When the network enters the display screen of FIG. 4A, when the PC does not search for the desired access point, the user can also manually enter the network name in FIG. 4A. Option 402, manually enter the access point you want to connect to. Or return to the main interface from FIG. 4A, and then select the display screen that needs to be manually input to enter the display screen of FIG. 4B.

Application example two

In a network system, there are multiple printers. When using a PC to configure a wireless network of multiple printers, it is necessary to repeat a cumbersome long-term operation. Therefore, after the PC is configured with the wireless network of the first printer, you can prompt The user stores the currently set information that needs to be connected to the access point. Specifically, the result that the user sets the access point can be stored in the PC after the foregoing step 505, where In order to cover the storage, or store the setting result of the plurality of access points, the setting result of the access point may also be stored or not stored according to the user's instruction. After storage, you can launch the application when configuring the next printer. Before displaying the above main interface, directly display a display screen including the “Auto Setup” option for the user to set. The function of “Auto Setup” is to The information set by the user's previous access point is saved and the next printer that needs network settings is set, which saves the operation steps of FIG. 4A, 4B, and 4C, and saves a lot of setup time. Specifically, when configuring the wireless network for the next printer, only the PC needs to be connected to the printer through the USB cable. Select the "Automatic Configuration" option in the screen displayed after launching the application software, and select a storage access point to complete the pair. Wireless network settings for the next printer.

Application example three

The required information (SSID, encryption key, etc.) of the access point to which the PC is connected is directly transmitted to the printer via the USB cable. Specifically, it is detected whether the wireless LAN adapter of the PC is connected to a specific access point, and when the wireless LAN adapter of the PC is detected to be connected to a specific access point, the wireless LAN adapter of the PC is stored and connected to the specific access point. The required information is sent to the printer via the USB cable, allowing the printer to connect to the same access point as the PC. The specific display operation is to add the "one button configuration" option on the display interface of FIG. 4A, and the "one button configuration" function is to connect the printer to the access point connected to the PC. When the user selects "one-click configuration", the access point identifier, encryption key and other information required for using the access point of the PC are sent to the printer via the USB cable, and the printer is connected according to the received information. Connect to the same access point as the PC. When the PC is not connected to a specific access point, the "One Button Configuration" option is not displayed in the display screen of FIG. 4A or the "One Button Configuration" option is grayed out, so that the user cannot click to use. There is another display operation, when the user interface is selected according to the PC's access point search result network setting, when detecting that the PC can search for the access point and connect to a specific access point, the main interface is Enter the interface that displays the “One Button Configuration” button. If the user selects the “One Button Configuration” button, then the screen that enters the screen of Figure 4D prompts the user to connect the printer via a USB cable to connect the stored PC to the specific access point. The required information is sent to the printer so that the printer is connected to the same access point as the PC.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the various modules or steps of the present invention described above can be implemented by a general-purpose computing device, which can be centralized on a single computing device or distributed over a network of multiple computing devices. Alternatively, they may be implemented by program code executable by the computing device, such that they may be stored in a storage device by a computing device, or they may be fabricated into individual integrated circuit modules, or many of them Modules or steps are made into a single integrated circuit module. Thus, the invention is not limited to any specific combination of hardware and software. A storage medium storing a program for implementing the above method also falls within the protection scope of the present invention Wai.

While the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the described embodiments are merely illustrative of the embodiments of the invention, and are not intended to limit the invention. Any modification and variation of the form and details of the invention may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is still subject to the scope defined by the appended claims.

Claims (14)

1. A method for setting a wireless network of an imaging device, comprising:

   In the searching step, the smart device searches for the wireless access point and obtains the wireless access point identifier of each wireless access point;

   Determining a step, the smart device determining one of the searched wireless access points as the selected wireless access point according to the user input;

   Obtaining, obtaining network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point;

   In the transmitting step, the smart device transmits the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point to the imaging device.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein said determining step further comprises:

   The smart device presents the searched respective wireless access point identifiers to the user;

   Determining, according to user input, a selected wireless access point selected by the user from the respective wireless access points;

   Obtaining network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point according to user input.
3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the step of the smart device presenting the searched respective wireless access point identifiers to the user further comprises:

   Presenting to the user the signal strength of the respective wireless access points,

   Sorting according to the signal strength of each wireless access point, the smart device access frequency, or the frequency for performing the imaging device wireless network setting, and presenting the respective wireless access point identifiers obtained by the sorted search. .
4. The method of claim 1 wherein

   The wireless access point identifier is a service set identifier or a basic service set identifier;

   The network access configuration information includes a key required to access the wireless access point.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein said transmitting step further comprises include:

   Prompting the user to connect the imaging device through a USB cable;

   The smart device transmits the wireless access point identification and network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point to the imaging device through a USB cable connection with the imaging device.
6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

   The imaging device accesses the selected wireless access point based on the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information received from the smart device, and determines whether the access is successful;

   If the result of the determination is that the access is not successful, information about the inability to access the selected wireless access point is returned to the smart device, and the determining step is returned.
7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising: before the searching step, the smart device determines whether it has a wireless access point search function;

   If the judgment result is yes, the smart device performs the searching step;

   If the result of the determination is no, the imaging device is instructed to print out the searched wireless access point identifiers and prompt the user to manually input the wireless access point identifier of a wireless access point, or prompt the user to manually input a wireless The wireless access point identifier of the access point and in the determining step, the wireless access point corresponding to the wireless access point identifier manually input by the user is used as the selected wireless access point, and then proceeds to the obtaining step.
8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising:

   After the obtaining step, the smart device saves a wireless access point identifier and network access configuration information of the selected wireless access point;

   Before the searching step, the smart device determines whether it saves the wireless access point identifier and the network access configuration information of the wireless access point for the imaging device wireless network setting, and if it is determined to be saved, the saved device saves The wireless access point acts as the selected wireless access point and jumps directly to the transmitting step.
9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising:

   Before searching for the wireless access point, the smart device determines whether it is currently connected to a wireless access point;

   If the result of the determination is that the access has been made, the smart device enters the transmission step by using the wireless access point that it is currently accessing as the selected wireless access point.
10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the smart device does not search for any indication that the wireless access point identification is to be manually entered, or after the search step When the wireless access point is used, the following processing is performed:

    Receiving a wireless access point identifier that the user manually inputs a wireless access point; and,

    The wireless access point corresponding to the wireless access point identifier input by the user is used as the selected wireless access point, and jumps to the obtaining step.
11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising:

    Before the determining step, it is determined according to the user instruction whether the wireless access point saved in the smart device is used as the selected wireless access point, and if the determination is yes, the transmission step is entered.
12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising:

    Before searching for the wireless access point, the smart device determines whether it is currently connected to a wireless access point;

    If the result of the determination is that the access is already established, determining, according to the user indication, whether the wireless access point accessed by the smart device needs to be the selected wireless access point;

    If it is determined that the wireless access point accessed by the smart device is required as the selected wireless access point, the smart device uses the wireless access point that it is currently accessing as the selected wireless access Point and enter the transfer step.
13. A storage medium characterized by storing a program for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12.
14. An imaging device wireless network setting system comprising a smart device and an imaging device connected to each other in a data, characterized in that

    The smart device wirelessly selects the selected wireless access point according to the method of claims 1 to 12. Transmitting an access point identifier and network access configuration information to the imaging device;

    The imaging device receives wireless access point identification and network access configuration information from the selected wireless access point of the smart device, and according to the received wireless access of the selected wireless access point Point identification and network access configuration information to access the selected wireless access point.

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