COMMUNICATION APPARATUS AND POSITIONAL INFORMATION COMMUNICATING METHOD

• US 20110140883A1
• Filed: 10/05/2010
• Published: 06/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: YAMASHITA, Makoto
• Application Number:
  US12/898,263
• Publication Number:
  US 20110140883A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/539.13
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4131 home appliance, e.g. lighting, air conditioning system, metering devices home automation data switching networks exchanging configuration information on appliance services H04L12/2807
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41422 located in transportation means, e.g. personal vehicle arrangements specially adapted for transportation systems in broadcast systems H04H20/62
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42202 environmental sensors, e.g. for detecting temperature, luminosity, pressure, earthquakes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43637 involving a wireless protocol, e.g. Bluetooth, RF or wireless LAN [IEEE 802.11] arrangements for wireless networking or broadcasting of information in indoor or near-field type systems H04B10/114
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/66 Remote control of cameras or camera parts, e.g. by remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8233 the additional signal being a character code signal

Abstract

A communication apparatus includes: a transmitter configured to transmit to an external apparatus a search signal for requesting the external apparatus to transmit an address that is uniquely assigned to the external apparatus; a receiver configured to receive a response signal being transmitted from the external apparatus in response to the search signal, the response signal containing positional information and the address of the external apparatus; and an extractor configured to extract the positional information from the response signal received by the receiver.

Claims

1. A communication apparatus comprising:

a transmitter configured to transmit to an external apparatus a search signal for requesting the external apparatus to transmit an address that is uniquely assigned to the external apparatus;

a receiver configured to receive a response signal being transmitted from the external apparatus in response to the search signal, the response signal containing positional information and the address of the external apparatus; and

an extractor configured to extract the positional information from the response signal received by the receiver.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a communication controller configured to transmit a connection request containing the address that is contained in the received response signal to the external apparatus having the address and to establish a communication connection to the external apparatus.

3. The apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the receiver is configured to receive from the external apparatus the response signal that contains the positional information, the address of the external apparatus, and information indicating whether the positional information indicates a fixed position,

wherein the extractor is configured to extract the information indicating whether the positional information indicates a fixed position from the response signal, and

wherein the communication apparatus further comprises:

a selector configured to select, when a plurality of the response signals are received by the receiver, a piece of positional information indicating the fixed position from a plurality of the positional information extracted from the response signals based on the information indicating whether the positional information is the fixed position.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a determination module configured to employ, when the receiver receives a plurality of the response signals, as positional information of the communication apparatus, secondary positional information that does not coincide with any of the positional information extracted from the response signals.

5. The apparatus of claim 4,

wherein the secondary positional information is a positional information indicating a coordinate obtained by averaging a plurality of coordinates included in the plurality of positional information extracted from the plurality of response signals

6. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a selector configured to select, when a plurality of the response signals are received by the receiver, a piece of positional information from a plurality of the positional information extracted from the response signals.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 further comprising:

a detector configured to detect reception signal level of the response signal received by the receiver,

wherein the selector is configured to select one piece of the positional information that is extracted from a response signal having highest reception signal level among the plurality of pieces of positional information extracted from the plurality of the response signals received by the receiver.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 further comprising:

a detector configured to detect reception signal level of the response signal received by the receiver,

wherein the receiver is configured to receive, from each of a plurality of the external apparatuses, a response signal that further contains information indicating transmission signal level at which the response signal is sent by the respective external apparatuses,

wherein the extractor is configured to extract the information indicating the transmission signal level from each of the response signals received by the receiver, and

wherein the selector is configured to select one piece of positional information that is extracted from a response signal having lowest signal level attenuation that is calculated based on the transmission signal level and the reception signal level among the plurality of pieces of positional information extracted from the plurality of the response signals received by the receiver.

9. The apparatus of claim 6 further comprising:

a display device configured to display, when the receiver receives a plurality of the response signals, a screen for selecting one of the plural pieces of positional information extracted from the response signals.

10. A communication apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive a search signal transmitted from an external apparatus for requesting to transmit an address that is uniquely assigned to the communication apparatus; and

a transmitter configured to transmit a response signal containing positional information and the address of the communication apparatus to the external apparatus when the search signal is received by the receiver from the external apparatus.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 further comprising:

a communication controller configured to establish a communication connection to the external apparatus when a connection request is received from the external apparatus, the connection request containing the same address as the address contained in the response signal after the transmitter transmits the response signal to the external apparatus.

12. The apparatus of claim 10 further comprising:

a positional information acquiring module configured to acquire positional information,

wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the response signal further containing the positional information acquired by the positional information acquiring module.

13. The apparatus of claim 10,

wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the response signal further containing transmission signal level at which the response signal is transmitted.

14. The apparatus of claim 10,

wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the response signal further containing information indicating whether the positional information is positional information of a fixed position.

15. A positional information communicating method in a system including a first communication apparatus and a second communication apparatus, the method comprising:

transmitting from the first communication apparatus a search signal for requesting transmission of an address that is uniquely assigned to an apparatus that received the search signal;

receiving the search signal by the second communication apparatus;

transmitting a response signal by the second communication apparatus to the first communication apparatus in response to the search signal, the response signal containing positional information and an address of the second communication apparatus; and

receiving the response signal by the first apparatus.