COMMUNICATION CONTROL APPARATUS, COMMUNICATION CONTROL METHOD, PROGRAM AND COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

• US 20140044053A1
• Filed: 04/17/2012
• Published: 02/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kimura, Ryota
• Granted Patent: US 10,264,473 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1867 Arrangements specially adapted for the transmitter end
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0007 the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM(A), DMT
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0035 Resource allocation in a cooperative multipoint environment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0037 Inter-user or inter-terminal allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/186 Processing of subscriber group data

Abstract

There is provided a communication control apparatus including a communication controller that controls communication with other communication control apparatuses, the communication exchanging information about terminal grouping to distinguish operations to a specific wireless terminal and to other wireless terminals.

Claims

1. A communication control apparatus comprising:

a communication controller that controls communication with other communication control apparatuses, the communication exchanging information about terminal grouping to distinguish operations to a specific wireless terminal and to other wireless terminals.

2. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication controller controls communication of inquiry about whether the other communication control apparatuses perform the terminal grouping.

3. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication controller controls communication of inquiry about a terminal list showing the terminal grouping in the other communication control apparatuses.

4. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication controller controls the communication of an inquiry about whether the other communication control apparatuses have a terminal list containing a target wireless terminal as the specific wireless terminal.

5. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication controller controls the communication of an inquiry about whether it is possible to participate in cooperative communication linked to the other communication control apparatuses to communicate with a target wireless terminal.

6. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication controller controls transmission of the information about whether the communication control apparatus performs the terminal grouping in response to an inquiry from the other communication control apparatuses.

7. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication controller controls transmission of the information about whether the communication control apparatus has a terminal list containing a target wireless terminal as the specific wireless terminal in response to an inquiry from the other communication control apparatuses.

8. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the communication control apparatus has a terminal list containing a target wireless terminal as the specific wireless terminal, the communication controller controls transmission of the information indicating participation in cooperative communication in response to an inquiry about whether it is possible to participate in the cooperative communication from the other communication control apparatuses.

9. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a list comparison unit that compares a terminal list received from the other communication control apparatuses and showing the terminal grouping and a terminal list held by the communication control apparatus; and

a list update unit that, when the both lists are determined to be different by the list comparison unit, matches the terminal list held by the communication control apparatus to the terminal list received from the other communication control apparatuses.

10. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a list comparison unit that compares a terminal list received from the other communication control apparatuses and showing the terminal grouping and a terminal list held by the communication control apparatus,

wherein, when the both lists are determined to be different by the list comparison unit, the communication controller controls communication that requests matching of the terminal list held by the other communication control apparatuses to the terminal list held by the communication control apparatus.

11. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a list comparison unit that compares a plurality of terminal lists received from each of a plurality of the other communication control apparatuses and showing the terminal grouping; and

a list creation unit that creates a new terminal list when the list comparison unit determines that the terminal list that is different from the other terminal lists is contained in the plurality of terminal lists,

wherein the communication controller controls transmission of the new terminal list created by the list creation unit to the plurality of the other communication control apparatuses.

12. The communication control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the specific terminal is one of a terminal permitted to connect to the communication control apparatus and a terminal preferentially connected to the communication control apparatus.

13. A communication control method which controls communication with other communication control apparatuses, the communication exchanging information about terminal grouping to distinguish operations to a specific wireless terminal and to other wireless terminals.

14. A program causing a computer to function as

a communication controller that controls communication with other communication control apparatuses, the communication exchanging information about terminal grouping to distinguish operations to a specific wireless terminal and to other wireless terminals.

15. A communication system comprising:

a first communication control apparatus; and

a second communication control apparatus,

wherein the first communication control apparatus includes a communication controller that controls communication with the second communication control apparatus, the communication exchanging information about terminal grouping to distinguish operations to a specific wireless terminal and to other wireless terminals.