COMMUNICATION METHOD AND TERMINAL

• US 20160128106A1
• Filed: 06/26/2015
• Published: 05/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xiaomi Inc. (Xiaomi Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xiaomi Inc. (Xiaomi Corp.)
• Inventors: Ren, Qiao, Gao, Ziguang, Zhao, Ming, Fu, Qiang
• Granted Patent: US 9,723,639 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/51 based on terminal or device properties
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A communication method and a terminal are provided. The terminal may be equipped with circuitry that supports connecting to a wireless router using two or more frequency bands. The router may provide multiple networks using respective frequency bands. The terminal may be connected to the router a first frequency band. The method and terminal may facilitate establishment of a direct communication between the terminal and another terminal that is connected to the router using a network of a second frequency band. The another terminal may be equipped with a circuitry that only supports the second frequency band. The method and terminal describe determining a network that a target communication device is connected to, and connecting the terminal to that network. The terminal may then communicate with the target communication device through the network.

Claims

1. A communication method, comprising:

receiving a communication operation instruction by a terminal;

determining a target communication device corresponding to the communication operation instruction;

determining that the target communication device is operable at a network frequency supported by the terminal to connect to a communication network;

operating the terminal at the network frequency to connect to the communication network; and

communicating, by the terminal, with the target communication device via the communication network.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the communication operation instruction is an instruction to activate an application, the application being associated with at least one communication device identity, and determining the target communication device corresponding to the communication operation instruction comprises:

selecting a communication device corresponding to the communication device identity as the target communication device in response to a user-operation in the application.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the application is matched with a network frequency supported by a communication device corresponding to the communication device identity, and determining that the network is accessible by the target communication device comprises:

selecting the network frequency supported by the target communication device; and

identifying a communication network with the selected corresponding network frequency as the network the target communication device is connected to.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the communication network is a first communication network, the corresponding network frequency is a first network frequency, and the method further comprises:

prior to operating the terminal at the first network frequency, determining a second network frequency that the terminal is using;

comparing the first network frequency and the second network frequency;

in response to the first network frequency and the second network frequency not being the same;

enabling a first network module of the terminal; and

disabling a second network module of the terminal, wherein the first network module is used to operate the terminal at the first network frequency, and the second network module is used to operate the terminal at the second network frequency;

communicatively connecting the terminal with the target communication device via the first network module; and

sending a control signal to the target communication device using the second network frequency to perform a corresponding operation according to the control signal.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the first network frequency is 5.0 GHz, and the second network frequency is 2.4 GHz;

and

the target communication device only supports 2.4 GHz.

6. The method according to claim 2, wherein the application is associated with a first network identity of the communication network being used by the target communication device, and the method further comprises:

identifying a second network identity of a communication network that the terminal is currently connected to;

comparing the first network identity and the second network identity;

in response to the first network identity and the second network identity not being the same, disconnecting the terminal from the communication network that the terminal is currently connected to and connecting the terminal to the communication network being used by the target communication device; and

sending a control signal to the target communication device through the communication network being used by the target communication device, so that the target communication device performs a corresponding operation according to the control signal.

7. The method according to claim 4, wherein after sending the control signal to the target communication device, the method further comprises:

disconnecting the terminal from the first network frequency and reconnecting the terminal to the second network frequency.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein after sending the control signal to the target communication device through the communication network being used by the target communication device, the method further comprises:

disconnecting the terminal from the through the communication network being used by the target communication device and reconnecting the terminal to the communication network that the terminal was previously connected to.

9. A terminal, comprising:

a communication module connected to a wireless router via a first network;

a processor; and

a memory for storing instructions executable by the processor;

wherein the processor is configured to;

receive a communication operation instruction;

determine a target communication device corresponding to the communication operation instruction, wherein the target communication device is connected to said wireless router via a second network;

connect to the second network; and

communicate with the target communication device through the second network.

10. The terminal according to claim 9, wherein:

the received communication operation instruction is an activation instruction for operating an application, the application being stored with at least one communication device identity; and

the processor is further configured to select a communication device identity based on an operation in the application; and

identify the target communication device as a communication device corresponding to the selected communication device identity.

11. The terminal according to claim 10, wherein:

the processor is further configured to look up a network frequency band supported by the target communication device, wherein the application is stored with network frequency bands supported by each communication device corresponding to each stored communication device identity; and

determine the second network of the target communication device according to the network frequency band.

12. The terminal according to claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine a first network frequency band of the first network being used by the terminal, and wherein the network frequency band of the second network is a second network frequency band;

detect whether the determined first network frequency band and the second frequency band are the same;

in response to the first frequency band and the second frequency band not being the same, disable a first network module and enable a second network module, the first network module configured to connect the terminal to the first network frequency band, and the second network module configured to connect the terminal to the second network frequency band; and

access the second network through the second network module, and send control signaling to the target communication device through the second network, so that the target communication device performs a corresponding operation according to the control signaling.

13. The terminal according to claim 12, wherein:

the target communication device only supports the second network frequency band of the second network.

14. The terminal according to claim 10, wherein the application is further stored with network identities of networks connected by each communication device corresponding to each communication device identity, and the processor is further configured to:

determine whether the first network that is currently accessed by the terminal and the second network are the same network based on the respective network identities;

in response to the first network and the second network not being the same network, disconnect the terminal from the first network and connect the terminal to the second network; and

send control signaling to the target communication device through the second network, so that the target communication device performs a corresponding operation according to the control signaling.

15. The terminal according to claim 12, wherein:

the processor is further configured to disconnect the terminal from the second network and reconnect the terminal to the first network after the communication with the target communication device is completed.

16. The terminal according to claim 14, wherein:

the processor is further configured to disconnect the terminal from the second network and reconnect the terminal to the first network after the communication with the target communication device is completed.

17. The terminal according to claim 12, wherein:

the first network frequency band of the first network is 5.0 GHz; and

the second network frequency band of the second network is 2.4 GHz.

18. A non-transitory readable storage medium comprising instructions, executable by a processor in a terminal, for performing a communication method, the method comprising:

receiving a communication operation instruction by the terminal, the terminal connected to a first network provided by a wireless router;

determining a target communication device corresponding to the communication operation instruction;

determining a second network that the target communication device is connected to, the second network provided by said wireless router; and

connecting the terminal to the second network; and

establishing a communication between the terminal and the target communication device through the second network.