Method for guiding wireless communication device into communicable range and wireless communication device

• US 20040048571A1
• Filed: 03/25/2003
• Published: 03/11/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Brother Industries Limited)
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Brother Industries Limited)
• Inventors: Kiyose, Katsumi
• Granted Patent: US 7,221,909 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.2
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/16 by integrating acceleration or speed, i.e. inertial navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0247 Determining attitude
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/5016 User-machine interface; Display panels; Control console
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/5087 for receiving image data
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00109 Remote control of apparatus, e.g. by a host
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals

Abstract

A personal digital assistant (PDA) detects its position by a two-axis acceleration sensor provided therein. While the PDA is within a communicable range where the PDA can communicate with the printer, a position of the PDA, which is located at time when the position of the PDA is detected, is recorded as an origin point and the origin point is periodically updated to the detected position. When the PDA moves to a position (current position) through a position which is out of the communicable range of the printer, guidance information for guiding the PDA into the communicable range of the printer is created based on a relative positional relationship between the current position and the origin point, which is recorded immediately before the PDA moves to a position out of the communicable range, and then the guidance information is displayed on the PDA.

Claims

1. A method for guiding a wireless communication device, which is designed to implement wireless data communication with an external communication target, into a communicable range where the wireless communication device can perform wireless data communication with the communication target, comprising the steps of:

setting a position of the wireless communication device within the communicable range as an origin point;

calculating at least one of a distance and a direction between the origin point and a location of the wireless communication device after moving the wireless communication device; and

providing guidance information in order to place the wireless communication device back to the origin point in accordance with at least one of the calculated distance or direction.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating the moved distance or direction is performed based on an acceleration of the wireless communication device.

19. The method according to claim 1, wherein a position where data communication has actually been performed and that is normally completed between the wireless communication device and the communication target is set as the origin point.

20. The method according to claim 1, wherein the origin point is a position where a highest number of communicable targets are detected.

3. A wireless communication device that performs wireless data communication with an external communication target, comprising:

a controller that;

determines whether the wireless communication device exists within a communicable range where the wireless communication device can perform data communication with the communication target;

records a position of the wireless communication device as an origin point when the wireless communication device is determined to exist within the communicable range;

determines at least one of a distance and a direction between the origin point and a location of the wireless communication device after moving the wireless communication device; and

provides guidance information to be used to place the wireless communication device back to the origin point in accordance with at least one of the determined distance or direction.

4. The wireless communication device according to claim 3, wherein the controller records a position, which is detected within the communicable range immediately before the wireless communication device moves to a first position, which is out of the communicable range, as the origin point, when the wireless communication device is determined to be out of the communicable range.

5. The wireless communication device according to claim 4, wherein when the wireless communication device further moves from the first position to a second position, which is out of the communicable range, the controller detects at least one of a direction and a distance between the first position and the second position and provides information to be used to place the wireless communication back to the origin point from the second position.

6. The wireless communication device according to claim 3, wherein the controller records a position where data communication has been actually performed and thus normally completed between the wireless communication device and the communication target, as the origin point.

8. The wireless communication device according to claim 3, wherein the controller includes an acceleration detecting unit that detects accelerations of at least two axes of the wireless communication device, and detects at least one of the moved distance or direction based on the accelerations detected by the acceleration detecting unit.

10. The wireless communication device according to claim 4, wherein the controller includes an acceleration detecting unit that detects accelerations of at least two axes of the wireless communication device, and detects at least one of the moved distance or direction based on the accelerations detected by the acceleration detecting unit.

11. The wireless communication device according to claim 5, wherein the controller includes an acceleration detecting unit that detects accelerations of at least two axes of the wireless communication device, and detects at least one of the moved distance or direction based on the accelerations detected by the acceleration detecting unit.

12. The wireless communication device according to claim 6, wherein the controller includes an acceleration detecting unit that detects accelerations of at least two axes of the wireless communication device, and detects at least one of the moved distance or direction based on the accelerations detected by the acceleration detecting unit.

13. The wireless communication device according to claim 3, wherein the controller detects both of the moved distance and direction, and provides at least one of the direction and distance from the current position of the wireless communication device to the origin point, as the guidance information.

14. The wireless communication device according to claim 4, wherein the controller detects both of the moved distance and direction, and provides at least one of the direction and distance from the current position of the wireless communication device to the origin point, as the guidance information.

15. The wireless communication device according to claim 5, wherein the controller detects both of the moved distance and direction, and provides at least one of the direction and distance from the current position of the wireless communication device to the origin point, as the guidance information.

16. The wireless communication device according to claim 6, wherein the controller detects both of the moved distance and direction, and provides at least one of the direction and distance from the current position of the wireless communication device to the origin point, as the guidance information.

18. The wireless communication device according to claim 3, wherein the origin point is a predetermined area within the communicable range.

7. A wireless communication device that performs wireless data communication with an external communication target, comprising:

a controller that;

detects the number of communication targets that are communicable with the wireless communication device;

records a position of the wireless communication device as an origin point when at least one communicable communication target is detected;

determines at least one of a distance and a direction from the origin point to a location of the wireless communication device after moving the wireless communication device; and

provides guidance information to be used to place the wireless communication device back to the origin point in accordance with at least one of the determined distance or direction, wherein the origin point is updated to a position where the highest number of communicable targets are detected.

9. The wireless communication device according to claim 7, wherein the controller includes an acceleration detecting unit that detects accelerations of at least two axes of the wireless communication device, and detects at least one of the moved distance or direction based on the accelerations detected by the acceleration detecting unit.

17. The wireless communication device according to claim 7, wherein the controller detects both of the moved distance and direction, and provides at least one of the direction and distance from the current position of the wireless communication device to the origin point, as the guidance information.