JP6528867B2 - Wireless communication apparatus, wireless communication method, and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus, a wireless communication method, and a program .

The master, which is a wireless communication device that performs wireless communication based on Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy of the short distance wireless communication standard, is called an advertisement that is periodically transmitted by a slave, which is another wireless communication device as a communication partner. After receiving information and transmitting a connection request to the slave, data is transmitted / received to / from the slave (for example, see Patent Document 1).
.

JP, 2012-142877, A

As described above, in the wireless communication device that performs wireless communication based on Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy, the slave uses three channels assigned in advance for advertising among all 40 channels in the frequency band for advertising. However, always advertising using these three channels results in wasted power consumption when communicating between a specific slave and a master.

The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a wireless communication apparatus, a wireless communication method, and a program capable of suppressing unnecessary power consumption.

In order to achieve the above object, a wireless communication apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is:
A wireless communication unit that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication device;
About information after connection with the other wireless communication apparatus, time zone information about a time zone for performing wireless communication with the other wireless communication apparatus, and a frequency band for performing wireless communication with the other wireless communication apparatus A storage unit that stores frequency band information of
A processor, and
The processor is
In the second wireless communication after the first wireless communication with the other wireless communication device, the time zone in which the frequency band for performing the wireless communication with the other wireless communication device is stored in the storage unit Determined from information and the frequency band information,
It is characterized by

Further, to achieve the above object, a wireless communication apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention is:
A wireless communication unit that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication device;
A function of an application using communication with the other wireless communication device, and information after connection with the other wireless communication device, the frequency band for a frequency band for performing wireless communication with the other wireless communication device A storage unit for storing information;
A processor, and
The processor is
During the second wireless communication after the first wireless communication with the other wireless communication device, a frequency band for performing wireless communication with the other wireless communication device is stored in the storage unit. Determined from the function and the frequency band information,
It is characterized by

  According to the present invention, wasteful power consumption can be suppressed.

It is a figure showing the example of composition of the radio communications system concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a figure showing a table showing assignment of a frequency band in wireless communications based on Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy. It is a figure showing an example of composition of a master concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the data stored in a frequency band table. It is a figure showing an example of composition of a slave concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation | movement of the radio | wireless communications system of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the master side connection process which the master of FIG. 3 performs. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the slave side connection process which the slave of FIG. 5 performs. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the radio | wireless communications system concerning the modification 1. FIG. (A) And (b) is a figure which shows an example of the data stored in a frequency band table.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the configuration example shown in FIG. 1, the wireless communication system 1 is a master 1 as a wireless communication device.
00, and a plurality of slaves 200 (200
a to 200 d). The master 100 and the slave 200 wirelessly communicate with each other based on Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy (hereinafter referred to as BLE). B
LE is a standard (mode) formulated for low power consumption in a short distance wireless communication standard called Bluetooth (registered trademark). The master 100 is a device that uses a service (for example, measured data) provided by the slave 200. Also, the slave 200 is an apparatus for providing the master 100 with a service (for example, measured data).

The master 100 is a terminal that can be carried, such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet personal computer, a notebook personal computer, etc., and has a wireless communication function based on BLE. In the present embodiment, as an example, master 100 is configured of a smartphone. The master 100 receives various data from the slave 200,
Based on the received data, various information is displayed on a display unit 128 described later, and an audio such as an alarm is sounded from a speaker 124 described later.

The slave 200 notifies the master 100 of the service outline owned by the slave 200, and transmits an advertisement for waiting for a connection request from the master 100.

In wireless communication performed based on BLE, the slave 200 transmits an advertisement and the master 100 receives the advertisement before transmitting and receiving data between the master 100 and the slave 200. Advertising refers to identification information for informing other wireless communication devices of their own existence in order to search for other wireless communication devices or to connect with other wireless communication devices.

In the present embodiment, the slave 200 transmits an advertisement to the master 100. Here, the frequency band (channel) of the advertisement transmitted by the slave 200 will be described.

FIG. 2 shows a table representing allocation of frequency bands and channels in BLE. Figure 2
As shown in BLE, the frequency band of 2400 MHz to 2483.5 MHz is 2 MHz.
Divide into 40 channels of width and use. Of the 40 channels, the
Three advertising channels (channels of Advertising Channel Index 37, 38, 39) with RF Center Frequency 2402, 2426, 2480 MHz are used for advertising. 37 other data communication channels (Data Channel Index 0 to 0)
36) are used for data communication after the connection is established between the master 100 and the slave 200.

Here, in the conventional wireless communication based on BLE, the slave always advertises using the above three channels. On the other hand, the slave 200 according to the present embodiment advertises using one of the above three channels when the connection with the master 100 is the second time or later.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the communication system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing a configuration example of the master 100 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, the communication terminal 100 includes a control unit 102 and a ROM (Read Only Memory) 1.
04, RAM (Random Access Memory) 106, wireless communication processing unit 110, antenna 112
, The speaker 124, the driver 126, the display unit 128, and the touch panel 130.

The control unit 102 is configured of, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The control unit 102 controls various functions of the master 100 by executing software processing in accordance with a program stored in the ROM 104 (for example, a program for realizing the operation of the master 100 shown in FIG. 7 described later). .

The ROM 104 is composed of a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory, and stores programs and data for the control unit 102 to control various functions as described above. RAM 106
Is composed of volatile memory, and is used as a work area for temporarily storing data for the control unit 102 to perform various processes.

The wireless communication processing unit 110 is configured using, for example, a radio frequency (RF: Radio Frequency) circuit or a baseband (BB: Baseband) circuit. The wireless communication processing unit 110 transmits and receives a wireless signal based on BLE via the antenna 112.

The speaker 124 outputs an audio such as an alarm based on the audio data from the control unit 102. The driver 126 outputs an image signal based on the image data output from the control unit 102 to the display unit 128. The display unit 128 is, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display).
And an EL (Electroluminescence) display or the like. The display unit 128 is
The image is displayed in accordance with the image signal output from the driver 126.

The touch panel 130 is an interface that is disposed on the top surface of the display unit 128 and is used to input the operation content of the user. The touch panel 130 incorporates, for example, a transparent electrode (not shown), detects a position at which the voltage has changed as a touch position when the user's finger or the like contacts, and outputs information on the touch position to the control unit 102 as an input instruction .

Next, the functional configuration of the control unit 102 of the master 100 will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 102 includes a connection determination unit 151, a first connection establishment unit 152, and a second connection establishment unit 153.
The frequency band determination unit 154 functions as the frequency band notification unit 155, and the data communication unit 156.

For example, after launching an application for communication with the slave 200, the connection determination unit 151 acquires, as a connection instruction with the slave 200, an operation on the touch panel 130 performed by the user for starting communication. The connection instruction is not limited to one generated by the user's operation, and may be generated based on, for example, that a predetermined timer time has elapsed after the application for measuring the environmental information is activated. Good. Then, the connection determination unit 151 determines whether or not the slave 200 instructed by the connection instruction has been connected in the past.

Specifically, the connection determination unit 151 refers to the frequency band table recorded in the ROM 104, and determines whether the identification information of the slave 200 instructed by the connection instruction is recorded in the frequency band table. An example of the frequency band table 161 is shown in FIG. In the frequency band table 161 shown in FIG. 4, identification information (slave ID) of the slave 200 and an index of a channel used for communication with the slave 200 are stored in association with each other. The information stored in the frequency band table 161 is the frequency band determination unit 1 as described later.
54 and stored. The connection determination unit 151 refers to the frequency band table 161. For example, when the slave 200 instructed by the connection instruction is the slave 200a, the slave ID “200a” of the slave 200a is stored in the frequency band table 161. Therefore, it is determined that the master 100 has connected to the slave 200a in the past. Further, for example, when the slave 200 instructed by the connection instruction is the slave 200 b, the connection determination unit 151 does not store the slave ID “200 b” of the slave 200 b in the frequency band table 161, so the master 100 It is determined that the slave 200b has not been connected in the past.

The first connection establishment unit 152 establishes a connection with the slave 200 determined by the connection determination unit 151 not to be connected in the past. Specifically, when it is determined by the connection determination unit 151 that the first connection establishment unit 152 has never connected to the slave 200 instructed by the connection instruction, the first connection establishment unit 152 displays an advertisement from the slave 200 as shown in FIG. Listen and receive on the three advertising channels shown in 2. Then, the first connection establishment unit 152 transmits a connection request to the slave 200, and establishes a connection with the slave 200.

The second connection establishment unit 153 establishes a connection with the slave 200 determined by the connection determination unit 151 to have been connected in the past. Specifically, when it is determined by the connection determination unit 151 that the second connection establishment unit 153 has previously connected to the slave 200 instructed by the connection instruction, the second connection establishment unit 153 displays an advertisement from the slave 200 as shown in FIG. Among the three advertising channels shown in FIG. 2, the channel awaits and receives on the channel stored in association with the slave 200 in the frequency band table 161 shown in FIG. Then, the second connection establishment unit 152 transmits a connection request to the slave 200, and establishes a connection with the slave 200.

After the connection with the slave 200 is established by the first communication establishment unit 152, the frequency band determination unit 154 advertises three advertisements shown in FIG. 2 as a frequency band to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 from the next time onwards. One of the channels is determined. In the present embodiment, the frequency band determination unit 154 randomly determines one channel out of three channels as an example of a channel determination method.

Further, the frequency band determination unit 154 records, in the frequency band table 161 illustrated in FIG. 4, the slave 200 that has established the connection by the first communication establishment unit 152 and the determined channel. Therefore, in the frequency band table 161, the slave 200 that has established connection with the master 100 in the past and the channel determined by the frequency band determination unit 154 are stored in association with each other.

The frequency band notification unit 155 transmits the channel determined by the frequency band determination unit 154 to the slave 200 that has established the connection by the first communication establishment unit 152. The slave 200 having received the channel transmitted by the frequency band notification unit 155 records the received channel in its storage unit. Then, the slave 200 transmits an advertisement on the channel recorded to connect to the master 100 from the next time onwards.

After the connection with the slave 200 is established by the first connection establishment unit 152 or the second connection establishment unit 153, the data communication unit 156 performs data communication with the slave 200 in the 37 data communication channels shown in FIG. I do.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically showing a configuration example of the slave 200 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, the slave 200 includes a control unit 202, a ROM 204, a RAM 206, and the like.
Wireless communication processing unit 210, antenna 212, operation unit 220, driver 226, and display unit 2
28 is provided.

The control unit 202 is configured by, for example, a CPU. The control unit 202 controls various functions of the slave 200 by executing software processing in accordance with a program stored in the ROM 204 (for example, a program for realizing the operation of the slave 200 shown in FIG. 8 described later). .

The ROM 204 is composed of a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory, and stores programs and data for the control unit 202 to control various functions as described above. RAM 206
Is composed of volatile memory, and is used as a work area for temporarily storing data for the control unit 202 to perform various processes.

The wireless communication processing unit 210 is configured using, for example, a radio frequency (RF) circuit or a baseband (BB) circuit. The wireless communication processing unit 210 transmits and receives a wireless signal based on BLE via the antenna 212.

The operation unit 220 includes, for example, a switch, and is used to input user's operation content such as power ON / OFF.

The driver 226 outputs an image signal based on the image data output from the control unit 202 to the display unit 228. The display unit 228 is configured of, for example, an LCD, an EL display, or the like. The display unit 228 displays an image in accordance with the image signal output from the driver 226.

Next, the functional configuration of the control unit 202 of the slave 200 will be described. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the control unit 202 functions as a connection determination unit 251, a first advertisement transmission unit 252, a second advertisement transmission unit 253, a notification reception unit 254, a connection establishment unit 255, and a data communication unit 256.

When the connection determination unit 251 acquires a connection instruction with the master 100, the connection determination unit 251 detects a slave 2 in the past.
It is determined whether 00 has already established a connection with the master 100. Specifically, the connection determination unit 251 determines whether a channel used for advertisement to be transmitted to the connection destination master 100 is recorded in the ROM 204. The channel recorded in the ROM 204 is
As described later, when a connection with the master 100 is established in the past, the channel is a channel included in the notification transmitted from the master 100 and received by the notification receiving unit 254. Connection determination unit 2
51 determines that the slave 200 has been connected to the master 100 in the past when a frequency band is recorded in the ROM 204. In addition, the connection determination unit 251 stores the ROM 204.
If the frequency band is not recorded, it is determined that the slave 200 has never connected to the master 100 in the past.

The first advertisement transmitting unit 252 corresponds to a first identification information transmitting unit, and advertises to the master 100 determined not to be connected in the past by the connection determining unit 251 using the three advertising channels shown in FIG. Send

The second advertisement transmission unit 253 corresponds to a second identification information transmission unit, and advertises the master 100 determined to have been connected in the past by the connection determination unit 251 using one channel recorded in the ROM 104. Send.

The notification receiving unit 254 receives, from the master 100 that has received the advertisement transmitted by the first advertisement transmitting unit 252, a notification specifying one of the three advertising channels shown in FIG. The notification receiving unit 254 records the received channel in the ROM 204 as a channel to be used for advertising to the master 100 from the next time on.

The connection establishment unit 255 receives the connection request transmitted from the master 100 that has received the advertisement transmitted by the first advertisement transmission unit 252 or the second advertisement transmission unit 253, and establishes a connection with the master 100.

After the connection with the master 100 is established by the connection establishment unit 255, the data communication unit 256 performs data communication with the master 100 through the 37 data communication channels shown in FIG.

Next, the operation of the wireless communication system 1 in the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

When the slave 200 tries to connect to the master 100 which has never established a connection in the past, as shown in FIG. 6, it uses the three advertising channels shown in FIG. It transmits regularly at the interval T (step S10).

For example, the master 100 operates the slave 20 to operate the touch panel 130 by the user.
Accept as a connection instruction to 0 (step S11), and execute a scan process for receiving an advertisement from the slave 200 (step S12). In this scan process,
The master 100 determines that a connection has not been established in the past with the slave 200 attempting to start communication, and scans advertisements using the three advertisement channels.

Then, when the master 100 receives the advertisement from the slave 200, the master 100 transmits a connection request (Connection Request) to the slave 200 that has transmitted the advertisement (step S13). As a result, connection processing is performed in the master 100 and the slave 200, and connection is established (step S14).

After the connection between the master 100 and the slave 200 is established, the master 100 and the slave 200 transmit and receive data (step S15). Transmission and reception of data, master 10
This is performed by transmitting a data request (Data Request) from 0 to the slave 200, and the slave 200 returning a data response (Data Response) to the master 100.

In the data transmission / reception in step 16, the master 100 determines one of the three advertising channels as a channel to be used for establishing a connection with the connected slave 200 from the next time onwards. Then, the master 100 notifies the slave 200 of the determined channel. The slave 200 records the channel received from the master 100 for use in the next and subsequent connections. The master 100 also records the determined channel for use in the subsequent connection with the slave 200.

When data transmission / reception between the master 100 and the slave 200 is completed, the master 1
00 and the slave 200 execute the disconnection operation process, and the connection is ended.

When the slave 200 tries to connect to the master 100 after the initial connection between the master 100 and the slave 200 described above is established, as shown in FIG. The advertisement is periodically transmitted to the master 100 at the time interval T using the channels (step S16).

When the master 100 receives a connection instruction as in step S11 (step S17)
And a scan process for receiving an advertisement from the slave 200 (step S18). In this scanning process, the master 100 determines that a connection has been established in the past with the slave 200 that is to start communication, and scans an advertisement using one recorded advertising channel.

Then, when the master 100 receives an advertisement from the slave 200, the master 100 transmits a connection request (Connection Request) to the slave 200 that has transmitted the advertisement (step S19). As a result, connection processing is performed in the master 100 and the slave 200, and connection is established (step S20). Subsequent data transmission and reception are performed in the same manner as step S15.

Next, the operation of the master 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the master side connection process performed by the control unit 102 of the master 100 according to the present embodiment. The master side connection process is performed by the ROM 104.
It is performed by the control unit 102 which reads and executes a program stored in advance.

For example, when the control unit 102 of the master 100 starts an application for communication with the slave 200 and then receives a connection instruction including information of the slave 200 desired to be connected from the user, the master side connection process shown in FIG. 7 is performed. To start.

First, in the received connection instruction, the connection determination unit 151 determines whether or not the connection with the slave 200 to which the user desires to connect this time is the second or later (step 101). Specifically, the connection determination unit 151 refers to the frequency band table 161 and determines whether or not the slave 200 attempting connection this time is recorded in the frequency band table 161.

When the connection determination unit 151 determines that the connection with the slave 200 that the user desires to connect at this time is not the second time or later, that is, the first time (step S101; No), all three advertising channels are It designates as a channel used for this scan (Step S102).

Also, the connection determination unit 151 is configured to connect to the slave 200 that the user wishes to connect at this time.
When it is determined that it is the second time or later (step S101; Yes), frequency band table 1
Referring to 61, the channel recorded in association with the slave 200 to which the user desires to connect this time is designated as the channel to be used for the current scan (step S103).

Next, the first connection establishment unit 152 or the second connection establishment unit 153 starts scanning of the slave 200 on the channel designated in step S102 or step S103 (step S104). Specifically, when the designated channel is all three channels designated in step S102, the first connection establishment unit 152 starts scanning using the three channels. When the designated channel is one channel designated in step S103, the second connection establishment unit 153 starts scanning using the one channel.

Next, the first connection establishment unit 152 or the second connection establishment unit 153 determines whether the advertisement transmitted from the slave 200 has been received (step S105). The first connection establishing unit 152 or the second connection establishing unit 153 continues to stand by for scanning until it receives an advertisement from the slave 200 (step S105; No).

When it is determined that the advertisement transmitted from the slave 200 has been received (step S1
05; Yes), the first connection establishment unit 152 or the second connection establishment unit 153 connects the slave 200 to which the user desires to connect this time, in the received connection instruction, among the slaves 200 that transmitted the received advertisement. The slave 200 is determined as the slave 200 (step S106).

Next, the first connection establishing unit 152 or the second connection establishing unit 153 transmits a connection request to the slave 200 determined in step S106 (step S107), and establishes a connection with the slave 200 (step S107). Step S108).

Next, as in step S101, the connection determination unit 151 determines whether the connection with the slave 200 that has established the connection this time is the second or later (step 109). Connection determination unit 151
When it is determined that the connection with the slave 200 that has established the connection this time is the second time or later (
Step 109; Yes), end the master side connection process.

If the connection determination unit 151 determines that the connection with the slave 200 that has established the connection this time is not the second or later, that is, the first connection (step S109; No), the frequency band determination unit 154 determines that three advertisements are used. Of all the channels, one channel at random is determined as a channel to be used for the next and subsequent connections with the slave 200 connected this time (step S110).

Next, the frequency band notification unit 155 transmits a notification to the slave 200 so as to specify the specific service (Service) and the characteristics (Characteristics) and record the channel determined in step S110 (step S111).

Also, the frequency band determination unit 154 determines the channel determined in step S110 as
It is recorded in the frequency band table 161 in association with the slave ID of the slave 200 connected this time (step S112). Then, the master side connection process is ended.

After the above master side connection processing is completed, the data communication unit 156
Data transmission / reception is performed between the slave 200 and the slave 200 with which the connection has been established.

Next, the operation of the slave 200 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the slave side connection process performed by the control unit 202 of the slave 200 according to the present embodiment. The slave side connection process is performed by the ROM 204.
It is performed by the control unit 202 which reads and executes a program stored in advance.

The control unit 202 of the slave 200 starts the slave side connection process illustrated in FIG. 8 after the power is turned on by, for example, the operation of the operation unit 220 by the user.

First, the connection determination unit 251 determines whether or not the connection with the master 100 to be tried this time is the second time or later (step 201). Specifically, the connection determination unit 251 executes the ROM 204.
It is determined whether or not the channel to be used for connection establishment, which has been received from the master 100 attempting to connect this time, is recorded.

When the connection determination unit 251 determines that the connection with the master 100 to be tried this time is not the second time or later, that is, the first time (step S201; No), all three advertising channels are advertised as the current time. It designates as a channel to be used for (step S202).

Further, when the connection determination unit 251 determines that the connection with the master 100 for which connection is desired this time is the second or later (step S201; Yes), the connection determination unit 251 refers to the ROM 204 and uses it for establishing connection with the master 100. One channel recorded as a channel is designated as a channel used for advertisement of this time (step S203).

Next, the first advertisement transmission unit 252 or the second advertisement transmission unit 253 starts transmission of advertisements to the master 100 on the channel designated in step S202 or step S203 (step S204). Specifically, when the designated channel is all three channels designated in step S202, the first advertisement transmitting unit 252 starts the transmission of the advertisement using the three channels. If the designated channel is one channel designated in step S203, the second advertisement transmitting unit 253 starts the transmission of the advertisement using the one channel.

Next, the connection establishment unit 255 determines whether the connection request transmitted from the master 100 has been received (step S205). The connection establishment unit 255 continues advertising and waits until receiving an advertisement from the master 100 (step S205; No).

If the connection establishment unit 255 determines that an advertisement has been received from the master 100 (step S205; Yes), the connection establishment unit 255 establishes a connection with the master 100 (step S206).
).

Next, as in step S201, the connection determination unit 251 determines whether the connection with the master 100 that has established the connection this time is the second or later (step 207). The connection determination unit 251 determines that the connection with the master 100 that has established the connection this time is the second or later connection (
Step S207; Yes), the slave side connection process is ended.

When the connection determination unit 251 determines that the connection with the master 100 that has established the connection this time is not the second or later, that is, the first connection (step S207; No), the notification receiving unit 254
It is determined whether or not notification of a channel to be used for the next and subsequent connections has been received from the master 100 connected this time (step S208). The notification receiving unit 254 waits until a notification is received from the master 100 (step S208; No).

If it is determined that the notification of the channel to be used for the next and subsequent connections has been received from the master 100 connected this time (step S208; Yes), the notification receiving unit 254 determines the service and characteristic specified in the notification. The channels to be used for the next and subsequent connections are recorded in the ROM 204 together with the characteristics (Characteristics) (step S 209)
. Then, the slave side connection process is ended.

After the above slave side connection processing is completed, the data communication unit 256 causes the slave 200 to
Data transmission and reception are performed between the master 100 and the master 100 with which the connection has been established.

As described above, when the master 100 according to the above-described embodiment establishes a connection with the slave 200 that has not established a connection in the past, 3 as a channel to be used when establishing a connection from the next time onwards. One of the advertising channels is determined and notified to the slave 200. Therefore, since the slave 200 advertises on one channel notified from the master 100 in advance when connecting to the master 100 from the next time onwards, the master 100 may execute a scan on that one channel. . Therefore, the power consumption at the time of scanning the slave 200 can be suppressed.

Also, according to the slave 200 according to the above embodiment, when establishing a connection with the master 100 that has already established a connection in the past, advertising is performed using one channel notified from the master 100 in advance. Do. Therefore, power consumption can be reduced as compared with the case where advertisements are always transmitted using three channels for advertisement.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications and applications are possible.

(Modification 1)
In the above embodiment, the frequency band determination unit 154 of the master 100 uses one of three advertising channels shown in FIG. 2 as a frequency band to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 from the next time onwards. Determine the channel of at random. However, the method of determining the channel by the frequency band determination unit 154 is not limited to this. In this modification, as another example of the channel determination method by the frequency band determination unit 154, among the three channels,
An example in which one channel is determined in accordance with a time zone in which communication between the master 100 and the slave 200 is performed will be described. In the following description, the same reference numerals are used for the same components as those in the above embodiment, and the detailed description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a wireless communication system according to a modification of the present invention.

In the configuration example shown in FIG. 9, the wireless communication system 1 includes a master 100 as a wireless communication device and a plurality of slaves 200 as wireless communication devices different from the master 100, as in the above-described embodiment shown in FIG. And (200a to 200f). In this modification, slaves 200a to 200d belonging to group G1 are already masters 10
The connection has been established with 0, and as shown in FIG. 10A, the slave ID and the channel used when establishing the connection with the master 100 are associated and stored in the frequency band table 171 of the master 100. ing. Also, the slave 200e, which belongs to the group G2,
The device 200 f is a device newly added to the wireless communication system 1 and has not yet established a connection with the master 100.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are diagrams showing an example of data stored in the frequency band table 171 according to the present modification. As shown in FIGS. 10 (a) and 10 (b), the frequency band table 171 further includes a use time zone for each slave 200, as compared with the frequency band table 161 according to the embodiment shown in FIG. It differs in Use time zone is master 10
0 represents a time zone in which communication with the corresponding slave 200 is performed. For example, the master 100
Slave 200a whose slave ID is "200a", and use time zone "AM 9:00 to 1"
At 2:00 ", establish a connection using a channel whose index is" 37 ",
Communicate. The use time zone is input for each slave 200, for example, through an operation on the touch panel 130 by the user, and is stored in the frequency band table 171.

Note that, in the example of the frequency band table 171 shown in FIG.
Since 00d has already established a connection with the master 100, a channel used for establishing the next connection is stored together with the slave ID. However, since the newly added slaves 200e and 200f have not yet established a connection with the master 100, the slave ID, the use time zone, and the channel used for the next connection establishment are not stored. Further, in the example of the frequency band table 171 shown in FIG. 10 (b), the slaves 200e and 200f further establish connection with the master 100 from the state shown in FIG. 10 (a), and their slave ID, use time zone, And the state where the channel used for the next connection establishment was stored is shown.

Next, a channel determination method by the frequency band determination unit 154 according to the present modification will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 9, when the slaves 200e and 200f are added to the wireless communication system 1, for example, the slave ID "200e" of the slaves 200e and 200f added to the frequency band table 171 by the operation input from the user. And “200 f”, and the use time zones “PM 3: 00-6: 00” and “PM 3: 00-6” of the slaves 200 e, 200 f.
: 00 "is added.

Next, when the user desires to communicate with the slave 200e, the master side connection process and the slave side connection process at the time of the first connection shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 in the above embodiment are executed. Here, in step S110 of the master side connection process shown in FIG. 7, in the present variation, the frequency band determination unit 154 determines based on the use time zone recorded in the frequency band table.
The channel to be used when establishing the connection with the slave 200 e next time is determined.

Specifically, the frequency band determination unit 154 specifies the use time zone of the slave 200 e with reference to the frequency band table 171, and the channel with the lowest frequency associated with the slave 200 in the use time zone is selected. Identify. Here, since the use time zone of the slave 200e is "PM 3:00-6:00", the channel "37" is used in the use time zone.
Are associated with slave 200c, and channels "38" and "39" are not associated with any slave 200. That is, channel "38" and channels "38:00 to 6:00" in use time zone "PM 3:00 to 6:00". “39” is the channel with the lowest frequency associated with the slave 200.

Then, the frequency band determination unit 154 determines the specified channel as a channel to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 e next time. When there are a plurality of specified channels, one of them is determined as a channel to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 e next time. Here, the frequency band determination unit 154 sets the channel “
Since 38 "and" 39 "are identified as the channels with the lowest frequency associated with slave 200, channel" 38 "having a smaller index among these two channels
Is determined as a channel to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 e next time. Then, the frequency band determination unit 154 associates the determined channel "38" with the slave ID "200e" of the slave 200e in step S112 shown in FIG.
As shown in b), the frequency band table 171 is recorded.

Next, when the user desires to communicate with the slave 200f, the master side connection process and the slave side connection process at the time of the first connection shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 in the above embodiment are executed. Here, in step S110 of the master side connection process shown in FIG. 7, in the present variation, the frequency band determination unit 154 determines based on the use time zone recorded in the frequency band table.
The channel to be used when establishing the connection with the slave 200f next time is determined.

Specifically, the frequency band determination unit 154 specifies the use time zone of the slave 200 f with reference to the frequency band table 171, and the channel with the lowest frequency associated with the slave 200 in the use time zone is selected. Identify. Here, since the use time zone of the slave 200f is "PM 3:00-6:00", the channel "37" is used in the use time zone.
And “38” are respectively associated with slaves 200c and 200e, and channel “39”
“Is not associated with any slave 200. That is, use time zone“ PM3:
The channel “39” is the channel with the lowest frequency associated with the slave 200 from 00 to 6:00 ′ ′.

Then, the frequency band determination unit 154 determines the identified channel as a channel to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 f next time. When there are a plurality of specified channels, one of them is determined as a channel to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 f next time. Here, the frequency band determination unit 154 sets the channel “
Since only 39 ′ ′ is identified as the channel with the lowest frequency associated with the slave 200, this channel “39” is determined as the channel to be used next when establishing a connection with the slave 200f. The band determination unit 154 determines the channel "39" determined in step S112 illustrated in FIG. 7 as the slave ID "2" of the slave 200f.
As shown in FIG. 10B, the frequency band table 171 is recorded in association with 00f ′ ′.

The channel determined by the frequency band determination unit 154 as described above is notified to the slave 200 by the frequency band notification unit 155 in step S111 shown in FIG. 7, and the connection from the next time onward is performed as in the above embodiment. Used in the establishment of

In the configuration of this modification described above, when the master 100 determines a channel,
Based on the usage time zone of each slave 200, a less frequently used channel is assigned as a channel to be used when establishing a connection with the slave 200 that has newly established a connection from the next time onwards. As described above, since the channels are allocated so that the channels used are not biased for each time zone, it is possible to suppress congestion on a specific channel.

(Modification 2)
As another example of the channel determination method by the frequency band determination unit 154, the master 100
3 according to the function of the application used when communicating with slave 200
One of the channels may be determined.

Specifically, in the frequency band table 171 according to the first modification, the master 100 stores the function of the application used when communicating with the corresponding slave 200 instead of the use time zone. Here, the function of the application is, for example, a function of transferring data from the slave 200 and uploading the data. And master 100
Refers to the frequency band table 171, and based on the function of the application corresponding to each slave 200, a channel with a low frequency of use among the same or similar functions is next connected with the slave 200 that has newly established connection. Allocated as a channel to be used when establishing a subsequent connection. In this way, when there are a plurality of applications that perform the same or similar operations, it is possible to congest a specific channel in order to assign a channel such that there is no bias in the channels used among the plurality of applications. It can be suppressed.

As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention and its modification were demonstrated, this invention is not limited by said embodiment and its modification.

In the above embodiment, a smartphone is used as a master, but the wireless communication device to be the master is not limited to a smartphone. For example, a watch or the like capable of wireless communication based on BLE may be used as a master, and a smartphone or a mobile phone having a mail reception function may be used as a slave.

In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG.
And four slaves 200. However, the wireless communication system 1 may be configured with one or more masters and one or more slaves.

Further, in the above embodiment and modification, the frequency band determination unit 154 determines one of the three advertising channels shown in FIG. However, the number of channels determined by the frequency band determination unit 154 is not limited to one. For example, two channels may be determined. That is, the frequency band determination unit 154 may determine the number of channels smaller than three among the three advertising channels shown in FIG. This makes it possible to reduce power consumption more than when scanning is always performed on three channels.

Further, even in the slave 200, the second advertisement transmitting unit 253 uses not only one channel for transmitting advertisements, but when notification of two channels is received from the master 100, the advertisement is performed using two channels. May be sent. This makes it possible to reduce power consumption as compared to always transmitting advertisements on three channels.

Further, the master 100 and the slave 200 according to the present invention can be realized using a normal computer system without using a dedicated device. For example, the computer may execute a program to realize the functions of the master 100 and the functions of the slave 200. A program for realizing the function of the master 100 and the function of the slave 200 is USB (
Universal Serial Bus) Memory, SD (Secure Digital) Memory Card, CD-ROM
Compact Disc Read Only Memory (DVD), Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), BD (Blu-ray)
It may be stored in a computer readable recording medium such as (registered trademark) Disc) or HDD (Hard Disk Drive), or may be downloaded to a computer via a network.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments, and the present invention includes the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof. Be In the following, the invention described in the original claims of the present application is appended.

(Supplementary Note 1)
A wireless communication apparatus that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication apparatus, wherein the identification information is transmitted in a predetermined N (N is a natural number less than or equal to two or more communicable frequency bands frequency bands) frequency bands. A first connection establishing unit that receives the identification information from the wireless communication device of claim 1 and establishes a connection with the other wireless communication device;
After the connection with the other wireless communication apparatus is established by the first connection establishing unit, the predetermined N as a frequency band to be used when establishing a connection with the other wireless communication apparatus from next time onwards A frequency band determination unit that determines M (M is a natural number smaller than N) frequency bands among the frequency bands;
A frequency band notification unit that notifies the other wireless communication apparatus that has established a connection by the first connection establishment unit, the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit;
A second connection establishment unit that receives identification information from the other wireless communication device in the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit, and establishes a connection with the other wireless communication device;
Wireless communication device comprising:

(Supplementary Note 2)
The wireless communication apparatus performs wireless communication with K (K is a natural number of 2 or more) other wireless communication apparatuses,
Among the K other wireless communication devices, for each of the other wireless communication devices of L (where L is a natural number smaller than K), a time zone in which the other wireless communication device communicates with the wireless communication device And a storage unit that stores the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit in association with each other,
Among the plurality of other wireless communication devices, the frequency band determination unit establishes a connection with one other wireless communication device whose frequency band is not stored in the storage unit. Thereafter, as a frequency band to be used when establishing a connection with the other wireless communication apparatus from time to time, a time zone in which the other wireless communication apparatus communicates with the wireless communication apparatus among the N frequency bands Determine the M frequency bands with the lowest frequency associated with the L other wireless communication devices stored in the storage unit,
The wireless communication device according to claim 1, characterized in that:

(Supplementary Note 3)
The wireless communication apparatus performs wireless communication with K (K is a natural number of 2 or more) other wireless communication apparatuses,
Among the K other wireless communication devices, an application using communication between the other wireless communication device and the wireless communication device for each of the other wireless communication devices of L (where L is a natural number smaller than K) And a storage unit that stores the function of the frequency band and the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit in association with each other,
Among the plurality of other wireless communication devices, the frequency band determination unit establishes a connection with one other wireless communication device whose frequency band is not stored in the storage unit. After that, as a frequency band to be used when establishing a connection with the other wireless communication apparatus from next time onwards, communication between the other wireless communication apparatus and the wireless communication apparatus among the N frequency bands is used. In the function of the application, determine M frequency bands with the lowest frequency associated with the L other wireless communication devices stored in the storage unit.
The wireless communication device according to claim 1, characterized in that:

(Supplementary Note 4)
The data communication unit further includes a data communication unit that transmits and receives data in a frequency band other than the plurality of frequency bands after the connection with the other wireless communication device is established.
The wireless communication device according to any one of appendices 1 to 3, characterized in that:

(Supplementary Note 5)
A wireless communication apparatus that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication apparatus, and transmits identification information in a predetermined N (N is a natural number less than or equal to the number of communicable frequency bands but not less than 2) frequency bands. 1 Identification information transmission unit,
Designate M (M is a natural number smaller than N) frequency bands among the N frequency bands from the other wireless communication apparatus that has received the identification information transmitted by the first identification information transmission unit A notification receiving unit that receives the notification;
A second identification information transmission unit that transmits the identification information to the other wireless communication device in a frequency band specified by the notification received by the notification reception unit;
A wireless communication apparatus comprising:

(Supplementary Note 6)
A wireless communication system comprising a wireless communication device and another wireless communication device that performs wireless communication with the wireless communication device, the wireless communication system comprising:
The wireless communication device is
The identification information is received from the other wireless communication device that transmits identification information in a predetermined N (N is a natural number less than the number of communicable frequency bands but 2) frequency bands, and the other wireless A first connection establishing unit that establishes a connection with the communication device;
After the connection with the other wireless communication apparatus is established by the first connection establishing unit, the predetermined N as a frequency band to be used when establishing a connection with the other wireless communication apparatus from next time onwards A frequency band determination unit that determines M (M is a natural number smaller than N) frequency bands among the frequency bands;
A frequency band notification unit that notifies the other wireless communication apparatus that has established a connection by the first connection establishment unit, the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit;
A second connection establishment unit that receives identification information from the other wireless communication device in the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit and establishes a connection with the other wireless communication device;
The other wireless communication device is
A first identification information transmission unit that transmits identification information in the N frequency bands;
From the wireless communication device that has received the identification information transmitted by the first identification information transmission unit,
A notification receiving unit that receives a notification specifying the M frequency bands among the N frequency bands;
A second identification information transmission unit that transmits the identification information to the wireless communication device in a frequency band specified by the notification received by the notification reception unit.

(Appendix 7)
A wireless communication method performed by a wireless communication device that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication device,
The identification information is received from the other wireless communication device that transmits identification information in a predetermined N (N is a natural number less than the number of communicable frequency bands but 2) frequency bands, and the other wireless Establishing a connection with the communication device;
After the connection with the other wireless communication apparatus is established in the first connection establishment step, the predetermined N as a frequency band to be used when establishing a connection with the other wireless communication apparatus from the next time onwards A frequency band determining step of determining M (M is a natural number smaller than N) frequency bands among the frequency bands;
A frequency band notification step of notifying the other wireless communication apparatus which has established a connection in the first connection establishment step, the frequency band determined in the frequency band determination step;
A second connection establishment step of receiving identification information from the other wireless communication device in the frequency band determined in the frequency band determination step, and establishing a connection with the other wireless communication device;
A wireless communication method comprising:

(Supplementary Note 8)
A wireless communication method performed by a wireless communication device that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication device,
A first identification information transmission step of transmitting identification information in a predetermined N (N is a natural number less than the number of communicable frequency bands but 2 or more) frequency bands;
Designate M (M is a natural number smaller than N) frequency bands among the N frequency bands from the other wireless communication apparatus that has received the identification information transmitted in the first identification information transmission step A notification receiving step of receiving a notification;
A second identification information transmission step of transmitting the identification information to the other wireless communication device in the frequency band designated by the notification received in the notification reception step;
A wireless communication method comprising:

(Appendix 9)
A computer that communicates wirelessly with a wireless communication device,
The identification information is received from the wireless communication device that transmits identification information in a predetermined N (N is a natural number less than the number of communicable frequency bands but 2) frequency bands, and the wireless communication device First connection establishing means for establishing a connection;
After the connection with the wireless communication apparatus is established by the first connection establishing means, the predetermined N frequency bands are used as frequency bands to be used when establishing a connection with the wireless communication apparatus from the next time onwards. Frequency band determining means for determining M (M is a natural number smaller than N) frequency bands of
Frequency band notification means for notifying the radio communication apparatus which has established a connection by the first connection establishment means, the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination means;
Second connection establishment means for receiving identification information from the wireless communication device in the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination means, and establishing connection with the wireless communication device
A program characterized by acting as

(Supplementary Note 10)
A computer that communicates wirelessly with a wireless communication device,
First identification information transmission means for transmitting identification information in a predetermined N (N is a natural number less than the number of communicable frequency bands but 2 or more) frequency bands,
The wireless communication apparatus that has received the identification information transmitted by the first identification information transmission unit sends a notification specifying M (M is a natural number smaller than N) frequency bands among the N frequency bands. Notification receiving means to receive,
A second identification information transmission unit that transmits the identification information to the wireless communication device in a frequency band specified by the notification received by the notification reception unit;
A program that is characterized as functioning as

(Supplementary Note 11)
A master that performs wireless communication based on the slave and Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy, and
A first connection establishing unit that receives the advertisement from the slave transmitting the advertisement in three frequency bands and establishes a connection with the slave;
After the connection with the slave is established by the first connection establishing unit, M (M out of the three frequency bands are used as frequency bands to be used when establishing a connection with the slave from the next time onwards (M (M Is a natural number smaller than 3), and
A frequency band notification unit that notifies the slave that has established a connection by the first connection establishment unit, the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit;
A second connection establishment unit that receives an advertisement from the slave and establishes a connection with the slave in the frequency band determined by the frequency band determination unit;
Master with a.

(Supplementary Note 12)
A slave that performs wireless communication based on the master and Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy,
A first advertisement transmitting unit that transmits advertisements in three frequency bands;
Receiving notification from the master that has received the advertisement sent by the first advertisement sending unit, a notification specifying M (M is a natural number smaller than 3) frequency bands among the three frequency bands Department,
A second advertisement transmitting unit that transmits the advertisement to the master in a frequency band specified by the notification received by the notification receiving unit;
Characterized in that it comprises a slave.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Wireless communication system, 100 ... Master, 102 ... Control part, 104 ... ROM, 106 ...
RAM 110 wireless communication processing unit 112 antenna 124 speaker 126 driver 128 display unit 130 touch panel 151 connection determination unit 152 first connection establishment unit 153 second connection establishment , 154: frequency band determination unit, 155: frequency band notification unit, 156: data communication unit, 161, 171: frequency band table, 200 (200a to 200
200f) ... slave, 202 ... control unit, 204 ... ROM, 206 ... RAM, 210 ... wireless communication processing unit, 212 ... antenna, 220 ... operation unit, 226 ... driver, 228 ... display unit, 251 ... connection determination unit, 252 ... First advertisement transmitting unit (first identification information transmitting unit), 25
3 second advertisement transmitting unit (second identification information transmitting unit) 254 notification receiving unit 255 connection establishing unit 256 data communication unit

Claims (6)

A wireless communication unit that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication device;
A function of an application using communication with the other wireless communication device, and information after connection with the other wireless communication device, the frequency band for a frequency band for performing wireless communication with the other wireless communication device A storage unit for storing information;
A processor, and
The processor is
In the second wireless communication after the first wireless communication with the other wireless communication device, the frequency band for performing the wireless communication with the other wireless communication device is the same or similar stored in the storage unit the determining based on the frequency band range information in the function of the application,
A wireless communication device characterized in that. The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor stores the frequency band information in the storage unit after performing the first wireless communication. The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor stores the frequency band information in the storage unit after a connection in the first wireless communication is established. The processor causes the wireless communication unit to transmit and receive data in a frequency band different from a frequency band used to establish a connection in the first wireless communication or the second wireless communication. The wireless communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. A wireless communication method of a wireless communication device, comprising: a wireless communication unit that performs wireless communication with another wireless communication device; and a storage unit,
Storing function information of an application using communication with the other wireless communication apparatus in the storage unit;
Storing, in the storage unit, frequency band information on a frequency band for performing wireless communication with the other wireless communication device, which is information after connection to the other wireless communication device;
In the second wireless communication after the first wireless communication with the other wireless communication device, the frequency band for performing the wireless communication with the other wireless communication device is the same or similar stored in the storage unit determining on the basis of said frequency band range information in the function of the application,
A wireless communication method comprising: A processor of a wireless communication apparatus comprising: a wireless communication unit performing wireless communication with another wireless communication apparatus; and a storage unit;
Function information storage means for storing function information of an application using communication with the other wireless communication device in the storage unit;
Frequency band information storage means for storing, in the storage unit, frequency band information on a frequency band for performing wireless communication with the other wireless communication device, which is information after connection with the other wireless communication device;
In the second wireless communication after the first wireless communication with the other wireless communication device, the frequency band for performing the wireless communication with the other wireless communication device is the same or similar stored in the storage unit frequency band determination means for determining on the basis of said frequency band range information in the function of the application,
A program characterized by acting as

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