COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

• US 20110189990A1
• Filed: 06/26/2009
• Published: 08/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/03/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo Innovations Ltd Hong Kong (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo Innovations Ltd Hong Kong (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Shinada, Satoru
• Granted Patent: US 8,670,759 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/426.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/00 Near-field transmission systems, e.g. inductive or capacitive transmission systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/16 Multipoint routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0063 where the network is a peer-to-peer network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/02 Communication route or path selection, e.g. power-based or shortest path routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

A communication system, which makes possible to carry out wide area communication between terminals, includes a mobile communication terminal which has a mobile communication means to carryout communication via a mobile communication network and a near field wireless communication means to carry out communication via a near field wireless communication network, and a near field wireless communication terminal which has a near field communication means to carry out communication via the near field communication network. Moreover, the mobile communication terminal comprises a communication repeating means to connect, as a repeater, other mobile communication terminal which is connected to the mobile communication terminal via the mobile communication network, and the near field wireless communication terminal which is connected to the mobile communication terminal via the near field communication network, by use of a communication path between the mobile communication terminal and the other mobile communication terminal.

Claims

1. A communication system, comprising:

a mobile communication terminal which has a mobile communication unit which carries out communication via a mobile communication network and a near field wireless communication unit which carries out communication via a near field wireless communication network, and a near field wireless communication terminal which has a near field communication unit which carries out communication via a near field communication network; and

a communication repeating unit which connects, as a repeater, other mobile communication terminal and said near field wireless communication terminal which is connected via said near field communication network, by use of a communication path which is connected to said other mobile communication terminal via said mobile communication network.

2. The communication system according to claim 1,

wherein said mobile communication terminal further comprises a broadcast communication unit which connects simultaneously to a plurality of other mobile communication terminals via said mobile communication network;

and

wherein said communication repeating unit means which said mobile communication terminal comprises connects, as a repeater, said other mobile terminals. and said near field wireless communication terminals which are connected via said near field communication network, by use of communication paths which are connected to said other mobile communication terminals by said broadcast communication unit.

3. The communication system according to claim 1,

wherein said near field wireless communication terminal further comprises a communication requesting unit which requests said mobile communication terminal, which is connected to said near field wireless communication terminal via said near field communication network, to connect to other terminal;

and

wherein said communication repeating unit which said mobile communication terminal comprises connects, as a repeater, said near field wireless communication terminal and said other terminal by use of said communication path which is connected to said other mobile communication terminal via said mobile communication network, in reply to a request issued by said near field wireless communication terminal.

4. The communication system according to claim 1,

wherein said communication repeating unit which said mobile communication terminal comprises connects to other near field wireless communication terminal via said near field wireless communication network in reply to a request issued by said near field wireless communication terminal which is connected by use of said communication path which is connected to said other mobile communication terminal via said mobile communication network.

5. The communication system according to claim 1,

wherein said near field wireless communication unit carries out near field wireless communication on the basis of any one of wireless LAN (Local Area Network) communication, infrared communication, Bluetooth (registered trademark) and non-contact type IC card communication.

6. The communication system according to claim 1,

wherein said mobile communication terminal is a cellular phone.

7. A mobile communication terminal, comprising:

a mobile communication unit which carries out communication via a mobile communication network;

a near field wireless communication unit which carries out communication via a near field wireless communication network; and

a communication repeating unit which connects, as a repeater, other mobile communication terminal and a near field wireless communication terminal which is connected via said near field communication network, by use of a communication path which is connected to said other mobile communication terminal via said mobile communication network.

8. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 7,

wherein said mobile communication terminal further comprises a broadcast communication unit which connects simultaneously to a plurality of other mobile communication terminals via said mobile communication network;

and

wherein said communication repeating unit connects, as a repeater, said other mobile communication terminals and said near field wireless communication terminals which are connected via said near field communication network, by use of said communication paths which are connected to said other mobile communication terminals by said broadcast communication unit.

9-10. -10. (canceled)

11. A communication method of a mobile communication terminal which includes a mobile communication unit which carries out communication via a mobile communication network and a near field wireless communication unit which carries out communication via a near field wireless communication network, the communication method comprises the step of:

carrying out a communication repeating process to connect, as a repeating process, other mobile communication terminal and a near field wireless communication terminal which is connected via said near field communication network, by use of a communication path which is connected to said other mobile communication terminal via said mobile communication network.

12. The communication method according to claim 11, the communication method further comprises the steps of:

carrying out a broadcast communication process to connect said mobile communication terminal simultaneously to a plurality of other mobile communication terminals via said mobile communication network; and

carrying out said communication repeating process to connect, as a repeating process, said other mobile communication terminals which are connected to said mobile communication terminal by said broadcast communication process, and said near field wireless communication terminal which is connected via said near field communication network, by use of communication paths which are connected to said other mobile communication terminals.