WIRELESS COMMUNICATION APPARATUS, WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, WIRELESS COMMUNICATION METHOD, X-RAY SENSOR, AND PROGRAM STORAGE MEDIUM

• US 20120045991A1
• Filed: 08/10/2011
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Ayutthaya Limited (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Ayutthaya Limited (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Nonaka, Hideki
• Granted Patent: US 9,264,841 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.2
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4494 Means for identifying the diagnostic device
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor
• 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 76/10 Connection setup

Abstract

A wireless communication apparatus includes an X-ray sensor that transmits X-ray image data, a wireless access point that receives the X-ray image data from the X-ray sensor by wireless communication, and an entry apparatus that communicates with the X-ray sensor by short-range communication. A wireless setting apparatus sets wireless communication parameters for starting the wireless communication between the X-ray sensor and the wireless access point to the wireless access point and sets the same wireless communication parameters as those set to the wireless access point to the X-ray sensor by performing short-range wireless communication from the entry device.

Claims

1. A wireless communication apparatus capable of transmitting wireless communication parameters with an access point to an X-ray sensor, the wireless communication apparatus comprising:

a setting unit configured to acquire region information from the access point to set the wireless communication parameters within a range of a channel corresponding to the region information; and

an entry unit configured to transmit the wireless communication parameters to the X-ray sensor by short-range wireless communication.

2. The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the wireless communication parameters set by the setting unit include a service set identifier (SSID), an encryption key, and channel information.

3. The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the entry unit uses one of Infrared Data Association, Bluetooth, Radio Frequency Identification, and TransferJet for wireless communication.

4. The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting unit sets the wireless communication parameters in response to reception of the short-range wireless communication by the entry unit from the X-ray sensor.

5. An X-ray sensor capable of receiving wireless communication parameters with an access point from an entry apparatus by short-range wireless communication, the X-ray sensor comprising:

a generation unit configured to generate an X-ray strength distribution as digital X-ray image data;

a communication unit configured to communicate with the entry apparatus by short-range wireless communication to acquire the wireless communication parameters in which region information is reflected; and

a RF wave communication unit configured to perform wireless communication of the digital X-ray image data with the access point using the wireless communication parameters.

6. The X-ray sensor according to claim 5, wherein the X-ray sensor does not perform the wireless communication by the RF wave communication unit before the wireless communication parameters reflecting the region information is set.

7. A wireless communication system, comprising:

an access point storing region information;

a wireless setting apparatus configured to acquire the region information from the access point to set wireless communication parameters within a range of a channel corresponding to the region information;

an entry apparatus configured to transmit the wireless communication parameters by short-range wireless communication; and

an X-ray sensor configured to wirelessly transmit digital X-ray image data to the access point with the transmitted wireless communication parameters.

8. The wireless communication system according to claim 7, further comprising an X-ray generation apparatus configured to illuminate the X-ray sensor with X-rays.

9. A wireless communication method for a wireless communication system including an X-ray sensor capable of transmitting digital X-ray image data by wireless communication and an access point capable of receiving the digital X-ray image data by the wireless communication, the wireless communication method comprising:

acquiring region information from the access point;

setting wireless communication parameters within a range of a channel corresponding to the region information;

transmitting the wireless communication parameters to the X-ray sensor by short-range wireless communication; and

wirelessly transmitting the digital X-ray image data from the X-ray sensor to the access point with the wireless communication parameters.

10. A computer-readable medium storing a computer-readable program to control a wireless communication system including an X-ray sensor capable of transmitting digital X-ray image data by wireless communication and an access point capable of receiving the digital X-ray image data by the wireless communication, the program causing a computer to:

acquire region information from the access point;

set wireless communication parameters within a range of a channel corresponding to the region information;

transmit the wireless communication parameters to the X-ray sensor by short-range wireless communication; and

wirelessly transmit the digital X-ray image data from the X-ray sensor to the access point with the wireless communication parameters.

11. A wireless communication apparatus, comprising:

a setting apparatus configured to acquire region information from an access point to set wireless communication parameters within a range of a channel corresponding to the region information; and

an entry apparatus configured to transmit the wireless communication parameters to an X-ray sensor by short-range wireless communication.

12. An X-ray sensor, comprising:

a generation unit configured to generate an X-ray strength distribution as digital X-ray image data;

a communication unit configured to communicate with the entry apparatus by short-range wireless communication to acquire the wireless communication parameters in which region information is reflected; and

a RF wave communication unit configured to perform wireless communication of the digital X-ray image data with the access point using the wireless communication parameters.