Wireless terminal, management apparatus and wireless LAN control method

• US 20070047480A1
• Filed: 11/30/2005
• Published: 03/01/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Suga, Junichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,929,503 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/14 using user query or user detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

The present invention provides a wireless terminal for constituting a wireless local area network together with a plurality of access points and a management apparatus that manages the access points and carries out a wireless telecommunication with the access points, comprising an access point notification unit for transmitting connection request information, which includes identifier information about a plurality of the access points recognized as communicable and radio wave information about the wireless telecommunication with each of the access points, to the management apparatus by way of one of the access points.

Claims

1. A wireless terminal for constituting a wireless local area network together with a plurality of access points and a management apparatus that manages the access points and for carrying out a wireless telecommunication with the access points, comprising

an access point notification unit for transmitting connection request information, which includes identifier information about a plurality of the access points recognized as communicable and radio wave information about the wireless telecommunication with each of the access points, to the management apparatus by way of one of the access points.

2. The wireless terminal according to claim 1, wherein

said identifier information includes an service set identifier (SSID) or a basic service set identifier (BSSID), and

said radio wave information includes at least one of a channel used for the wireless telecommunication or a radio wave intensity.

3. The wireless terminal according to claim 1, further comprising

a certification request unit for requesting said management apparatus for connecting to said wireless local area network, wherein

said access point notification unit transmits, to the management apparatus, apart of a certification protocol message from the wireless terminal by adding said connection request information.

4. A management apparatus for constituting a wireless local area network together with a plurality of access points that carries out a wireless telecommunication with a wireless terminal and managing which of the access points the wireless terminal is to be connected to, comprising:

a storage unit for storing access point information including identifier information about each of the access points and the number of the wireless terminals connectable to the applicable access point; and

an access point determination unit for determining the access point that the wireless terminal is to be connected to, and notifying the aforementioned wireless terminal, based on connection request information including identifier information, coming from the wireless terminal by way of one of the access points, about a plurality of the access points recognized as communicable, and radio wave information about the wireless telecommunication between the aforementioned wireless terminal and the access point and the access point information retained by the aforementioned storage unit.

5. The management apparatus according to claim 4, wherein

said identifier information includes a service set identifier (SSID) or a basic service set identifier (BSSID), and

said radio wave information includes at least one of a channel used for the wireless telecommunication or a radio wave intensity.

6. The management apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising

a certification unit for certifying a connection of said wireless terminal to said wireless local area network, wherein

said access point determination unit accepts said connection request information from the wireless terminal and carries out the notification of said access point that the aforementioned wireless terminal is to be connected in the process of a certification sequence for the wireless terminal carried out by the certification unit.

7. A control method for a wireless local area network including a plurality of access points that carries out a wireless telecommunication with a wireless terminal and a management apparatus for managing which of the access points the wireless terminal is to be connected to, comprising:

a first step of transmitting, from each of the wireless terminals to the management apparatus by way of one of the access points, connection request information including identifier information about a plurality of the access points recognized by a current wireless terminal as communicable and radio wave information about the wireless telecommunication with each of the access points; and

a second step of the management apparatus notifying a wireless terminal, which has issued the connection request information, of the access point that the aforementioned wireless terminal is to be connected.

8. The control method for a wireless local area network according to claim 7, wherein

said identifier information includes a service set identifier (SSID) or a basic service set identifier (BSSID), and

said radio wave information includes at least one of a channel used for the wireless telecommunication or a radio wave intensity.

9. The control method for a wireless local area network according to claim 7, wherein

said first and second steps are carried out as a part of a certification sequence for said wireless terminal.