Wireless communication device, wireless communication method and program

• US 10,244,573 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2015
• Issued: 03/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Sasaki, Masao, Ishida, Hirokazu, Hayashi, Kazushige
• Primary Examiner(s): Siddiqui, Kashif
• Application Number:
  US15/515,023
• Publication Number:
  US 20170208642A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,295 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/365 by manual user interaction
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/024 Guidance services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/30 Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/48 for in-vehicle communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/00 Network data management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/10 Small scale networks; Flat hierarchical networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

Wireless communication devices, systems, and programs perform, via a single antenna: (i) communications in a first wireless communication mode in which processing of searching for other registered devices is repeatedly executed at a predetermined execution interval in order to connect to these other devices, the execution interval being set to a reference interval; and (ii) communications in a second wireless communication mode according to a communication standard other than the first wireless communication mode. The devices, methods, and programs change the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to a value larger than the reference interval during at least a part of a period during which communication in the second wireless communication mode is being performed or communication in the second wireless communication mode is enabled.

Claims

1. A wireless communication device comprising:

a processor programed to

perform, via a single antenna;

communications in a first wireless communication mode in which the processor repeatedly executes processing of searching for other registered devices at a predetermined execution interval in order to connect to these other devices, the execution interval being set to a reference interval; and

communications in a second wireless communication mode according to a communication standard other than the first wireless communication mode; and

change the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to a value larger than the reference interval;

during at least a part of a period during which communication in the second wireless communication mode is being performed or communication in the second wireless communication mode is enabled; and

after a round of the processing of searching for those other devices in the first wireless communication mode is performed at the reference interval for all of those other registered devices.

2. The wireless communication device according to claim 1, wherein:

the first wireless communication mode is a wireless communication mode in which direct communication is performed without via an access point, and

the second wireless communication mode is a wireless communication mode in which communication is performed via the access point.

3. The wireless communication device according to claim 2, wherein the processor is programmed to:

change the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to the value larger than the reference interval while a connection to the access point is being established in the second wireless communication mode.

4. The wireless communication device according to claim 2, wherein the processor is programmed to:

change the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to the value larger than the reference interval while processing for starting a connection to the access point is being performed in the second wireless communication mode.

5. The wireless communication device according to claim 4, wherein the processor is programmed to:

change the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to the value larger than the reference interval while the processing for starting a connection to the access point is being performed in the second wireless communication mode based on user'"'"'s operation.

6. The wireless communication device according to claim 5, wherein the processor is programmed to:

change the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to the value larger than the reference interval while a list of access points for connection is being obtained in the second wireless communication mode based on user'"'"'s operation.

7. The wireless communication device according to claim 2, wherein the processor is programmed to:

change the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to the value larger than the reference interval while processing of changing the access point for connection is being performed in the second wireless communication mode.

8. A wireless communication method of performing wireless communications by a wireless communication device, the method comprising:

performing, via a single antenna;

communications in a first wireless communication mode in which a processor in the wireless communication device repeatedly executes processing of searching for other registered devices at a predetermined execution interval in order to connect to these other devices, the execution interval being set to a reference interval; and

communications in a second wireless communication mode according to a communication standard other than the first wireless communication mode; and

changing the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to a value larger than the reference interval;

during at least a part of a period during which communication in the second wireless communication mode is being performed or communication in the second wireless communication mode is enabled; and

after a round of the processing of searching for those other devices in the first wireless communication mode is performed at the reference interval for all of those other registered devices.

9. A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer-executable program that causes a wireless communication device to perform the following functions:

performing, via a single antenna;

communications in a first wireless communication mode in which the wireless communication device repeatedly executes processing of searching for other registered devices at a predetermined execution interval in order to connect to these other devices, the execution interval being set to a reference interval; and

communications in a second wireless communication mode according to a communication standard other than the first wireless communication mode; and

changing the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to a value larger than the reference changing the execution interval in the first wireless communication mode to a value larger than the reference interval;

during at least a part of a period during which communication in the second wireless communication mode is being performed or communication in the second wireless communication mode is enabled; and

after a round of the processing of searching for those other devices in the first wireless communication mode is performed at the reference interval for all of those other registered devices.