Wireless device and wireless communication method

• US 10,158,397 B2
• Filed: 07/06/2018
• Issued: 12/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Matsuo, Ryoko, Nabetani, Toshihisa, Nakanishi, Toshiyuki, Tanaka, Hirokazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Aghdam, Freshteh N
• Application Number:
  US16/029,102
• Publication Number:
  US 20180316384A1
• Time in Patent Office: 165 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/713 using frequency hopping
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 13/005 Transmission systems in which the medium consists of the human body
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/244 using a network of reference devices, e.g. beaconing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a wireless device includes a receiver configured to receive a first beacon signal via a first channel; and control circuitry. The control circuitry is configured to: analyze the first beacon signal to obtain channel information for specifying a second channel, change an operation channel of the receiver from the first channel to the second channel, and change, in a case of not receiving a second beacon signal via the second channel during a predetermined period of time, the operation channel of the receiver from the second channel to the first channel. The receiver is further configured to receive a third beacon signal via the first channel after the operation channel is changed from the second channel to the first channel.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus corresponding to a hub communicable with at least one terminal corresponding to a node via a first channel of a control channel and a second channel of a data channel, the electronic apparatus comprising:

transmission circuitry configured to

transmit a first beacon frame including “

1”

in a first field indicating a switch of the data channel and including a number of a third new channel in a second field indicating a channel number via the second channel informing the at least one terminal that the data channel will switch from the second channel to the third channel, and

transmit a second beacon frame including the number of the third channel in a third field indicating a data channel number via the first channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel; and

reception circuitry configured to receive a data frame via the third channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

a beacon interval of the data channel includes a first period used for communication according to an allocated slot, a second period used for communication according to a contention based access scheme after the first period, and a third period not used for communication after the second period, and

the reception circuitry is configured to receive the data frame via the third channel within the first period after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

3. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first beacon frame includes information specifying a beacon frame transmitted at a timing at which the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel in a fourth field indicative a timing of channel change.

4. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the electronic apparatus is attached to a biological body, and forms a body area network with the at least one terminal, and

the reception circuitry receives the data frame including sensing information acquired by a biosensor from the biological body.

5. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a processor configured to execute firmware; and

at least one antenna, wherein

the transmission circuitry includes the processor and transmits the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame via the at least one antenna.

6. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a host processor configured to perform at least a process of an upper layer than a medium access control (MAC) layer; and

a clock generator, wherein

at least the reception circuitry and the transmission circuitry are included in a wireless communication apparatus,

a clock signal generated by the clock generator is supplied to both the host processor and the wireless communication apparatus, and

the wireless communication apparatus and the host processor operate according to the clock signal.

7. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

at least one of an light emitting diode (LED) and a vibrator, wherein

the electronic apparatus notifies a user of an operation state of the transmission circuitry or the reception circuitry by at least one of the LED and the vibrator.

8. A wireless communication method performed by an electronic apparatus communicable with at least one terminal via a first channel of a control channel and a second channel of a data channel, the wireless communication method comprising:

transmitting a first beacon frame including “

1”

in a first field indicating a switch of the data channel and including a number of a third new channel in a second field indicating a channel number via the second channel informing the at least one terminal that the data channel will switch from the second channel to the third channel;

transmitting a second beacon frame including the number of the third channel in a third field indicating a data channel number via the first channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel; and

receiving a data frame via the third channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

9. The wireless communication method according to claim 8, wherein

a beacon interval of the data channel includes a first period used for communication according to an allocated slot, a second period used for communication according to a contention based access scheme after the first period, and a third period not used for communication after the second period, and

the wireless communication method further comprises receiving the data frame via the third channel within the first period after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

10. The wireless communication method according to claim 8, wherein the first beacon frame includes information specifying a beacon frame transmitted at a timing at which the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel in a fourth field indicative a timing of channel change.

11. The wireless communication method according to claim 8, wherein

the electronic apparatus is attached to a biological body, and forms a body area network with one or more terminal, and

the wireless communication method further comprises receiving the data frame including sensing information acquired by a biosensor from the biological body.

12. The wireless communication method according to claim 8, further comprising:

executing firmware in a processor; and

transmitting the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame via at least one antenna.

13. The wireless communication method according to claim 8, further comprising:

performing at least a process of an upper layer than a medium access control (MAC) layer in a host processor;

performing transmission of at least the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame in a wireless communication apparatus;

supplying a clock signal generated by a clock generator to both the host processor and the wireless communication apparatus; and

operating the wireless communication apparatus and the host processor according to the clock signal.

14. The wireless communication method according to claim 8, further comprising:

performing transmission of at least the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame in a transmitter; and

notifying a user of an operation state of the transmitter by at least one of an light emitting diode (LED) and a vibrator.

15. An electronic apparatus corresponding to a node communicable with a base station corresponding to a hub via a first channel of a control channel and a second channel of a data channel, the electronic apparatus comprising:

reception circuitry configured to

receive a first beacon frame including “

1”

in a first field indicating a switch of the data channel and including a number of a third new channel in a second field indicating a channel number via the second channel informing the electronic apparatus that the data channel will switch from the second channel to the third channel, and

receive a second beacon frame including the number of the third channel in a third field of a data channel number via the first channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel; and

transmission circuitry configured to transmit a data frame via the third channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

16. The electronic apparatus according to claim 15, wherein

a beacon interval of the data channel includes a first period used for communication according to an allocated slot, a second period used for communication according to a contention based access scheme after the first period, and a third period not used for communication after the second period, and

the transmission circuitry is configured to transmit the data frame via the third channel within the first period after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

17. The electronic apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the first beacon frame includes information specifying a beacon frame transmitted at a timing at which the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel in a fourth field indicative a timing of channel change.

18. The electronic apparatus according to claim 15, wherein

the electronic apparatus is attached to a biological body, and forms a body area network with the base station, and

the transmission circuitry transmits the data frame including sensing information acquired by a biosensor from the biological body.

19. The electronic apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising:

a processor configured to execute firmware; and

at least one antenna, wherein

the reception circuitry includes the processor and receives the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame via the at least one antenna.

20. The electronic apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising:

a host processor configured to perform at least a process of an upper layer than a medium access control (MAC) layer; and

a clock generator, wherein

at least the reception circuitry and the transmission circuitry are included in a wireless communication apparatus,

a clock signal generated by the clock generator is supplied to both the host processor and the wireless communication apparatus, and

the wireless communication apparatus and the host processor operate according to the clock signal.

21. The electronic apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising:

at least one of an light emitting diode (LED) and a vibrator, wherein

the electronic apparatus notifies a user of an operation state of the transmission circuitry or the reception circuitry by at least one of the LED and the vibrator.

22. A wireless communication method performed by an electronic apparatus communicable with a base station via a first channel of a control channel and a second channel of a data channel, the wireless communication method comprising:

receiving a first beacon frame including “

1”

in a first field indicating a switch of the data channel and including a number of a third new channel in a second field indicating a channel number via the second channel informing the electronic apparatus that the data channel will switch from the second channel to the third channel;

receiving a second beacon frame including the number of the third channel in a third field of a data channel number via the first channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel; and

transmitting a data frame via the third channel after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

23. The wireless communication method according to claim 22, wherein

a beacon interval of the data channel includes a first period used for communication according to an allocated slot, a second period used for communication according to a contention based access scheme after the first period, and a third period not used for communication after the second period, and

the wireless communication method further comprises transmitting the data frame via the third channel within the first period after the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel.

24. The wireless communication method according to claim 22, wherein the first beacon frame includes information specifying a beacon frame transmitted at a timing at which the data channel is switched from the second channel to the third channel in a fourth field indicative a timing of channel change.

25. The wireless communication method according to claim 22, wherein

the electronic apparatus is attached to a biological body, and forms a body area network with the base station, and

the wireless communication method further comprises transmitting the data frame including sensing information acquired by a biosensor from the biological body.

26. The wireless communication method according to claim 22, further comprising

executing firmware in a processor;

and

receiving the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame via at least one antenna.

27. The wireless communication method according to claim 22, further comprising:

performing at least a process of an upper layer than a medium access control (MAC) layer in a host processor;

performing reception of the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame in a wireless communication apparatus;

supplying a clock signal generated by a clock generator to both the host processor and the wireless communication apparatus; and

operating the wireless communication apparatus and the host processor operate according to the clock signal.

28. The wireless communication method according to claim 22, further comprising:

performing reception of at least the first beacon frame and the second beacon frame in a receiver; and

notifying a user of an operation state of the receiver by at least one of an light emitting diode (LED) and a vibrator.