Control system and method for a wireless communications terminal

• US 6,961,579 B2
• Filed: 12/23/2002
• Issued: 11/01/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Inukai, Hisamori, Kawashima, Takashi, Shin, Hidehiko
• Primary Examiner(s): APPIAH, CHARLES NANA
• Application Number:
  US10/325,750
• Publication Number:
  US 20030125014A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,044 Days
• Field of Search: 4554561-4566, 455/404.2, 455/565, 455/74.1, 455/68, 455/521, 455/422.1, 340/540
• US Class Current: 455/456.4
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/245 from a network towards a terminal

Abstract

A wireless communications terminal stores owner information and function states. A terminal control device transmits, to the wireless communications terminal, control data including control target information for specifying a terminal to be controlled and function state change information indicating a change made in the function states of the terminal. The wireless communications terminal determines, based on the received control target information and the stored owner information, whether or not a function state(s) is to be changed, and changes the stored function states in accordance with the determination result. The wireless communications terminal transmits, to the terminal control device, a process end notification including the terminal'"'"'s own identification information and indicating whether or not the function state(s) has been changed.

Claims

1. A control system for at least one wireless communications terminal for controlling a function of said at least one wireless communications terminal, said system comprising:

a terminal control device; and

said at least one wireless communications terminals;

wherein said terminal control device comprises;

a control data generation section operable to generate control data including control target information to specify a terminal of said at least one wireless communications terminal, and function state change information about a change made in a function state of the terminal of said at least one wireless communications terminal; and

a transmitting section operable to transmit the control data generated by said control data generation section to said at least one wireless communications terminal;

wherein each of said at least one wireless communications terminal comprises;

an owner information storing section operable to store owner information of said at least one wireless communications terminal;

a function state storing section operable to store the function state of said at least one wireless communications terminal;

a receiving section operable to receive the control data transmitted from said terminal control device;

an extraction section operable to extract the control target information and the function state change information from the control data received by said receiving section;

a determination section operable to determine, based on the control target information extracted by said extraction section, whether or not the function state stored in said function state storing section is to be changed; and

a change section operable to change, in accordance with a determination result obtained by said determination section, the function state stored in said function state storing section, based on the function state change information extracted by said extraction section;

wherein the control target information is one of target information for specifying a terminal to be controlled and non-target information for specifying a terminal not to be controlled; and

wherein, based on the owner information stored in said owner information storing section, said determination section is operable to determine that the function state stored in said function state storing section is to be changed when said at least one communications terminal is one of specified in the target information and not specified in the non-target information.

2. The control system according to claim 1, wherein;

each of said at least one wireless communications terminal further comprises a response transmitting section operable to transmit, to said terminal control device, a response which indicates whether or not the function state stored in said function state storing section has been changed, the response including identification information of said at least one wireless communications terminal; and

said terminal control device further comprises;

a response receiving section operable to receive the response transmitted from said at least one wireless communications terminal;

process history storing section operable to store the response received by said response receiving section as a process history; and

a management section operable to change, based on the process history stored in said process history storing section, a content of the control data to be generated by said control data generation section.

3. The control system according to claim 1, wherein:

the function state change information includes function specification information including a value to be set in the terminal of said at least one wireless communications terminal to be controlled, and time specification information specifying a period of time during which the value included in the function specification information of the terminal is effective; and

said change section is operable to change, only within the period of time specified by the time specification information, the function state stored in said function state storing section into the value included in the function specification information.

4. A wireless communications terminal structured so that a function thereof is controllable by a terminal control device, said wireless communications terminal comprising:

an owner information storing section operable to store owner information of said wireless communications terminal;

a function state storing section operable to store a function state of said wireless communications terminal;

a receiving section operable to receive, from the terminal control device, control data including control target information to specify a terminal and function state change information indicating a change made in the function state;

an extraction section operable to extract the control target information and the function state change information from the control data received by said receiving section;

a determination section operable to determine, based on the control target information extracted by said extraction section, whether or not the function state stored in said function state storing section is to be changed; and

a change section operable to change, in accordance with the determination result obtained by said determination section, the function state stored in said function state storing section, based on the function state change information extracted by said extraction section;

wherein the control target information is one of target information for specifying a terminal to be controlled and non-target information for specifying a terminal not to be controlled; and

wherein based on the owner information stored in said owner information storing section, said determination section is operable to determine that the function state stored in said function state storing section is to be changed when said wireless communications terminal is one of specified in the target information and not specified in the non-target information.

5. A control method for at least one wireless communications terminal controlling a function of the at least one wireless communications terminal by using a terminal control device,

said method being executed with owner information and a function state of each of the at least one wireless communications terminal being respectively stored in each of the at least one wireless communications terminal,

wherein, in the terminal control device, said method comprises:

generating control data including control target information to specify a terminal of the at least one wireless communications terminal and function state change information indicating a change made in the function state of the terminal of the at least one wireless communications terminal; and

transmitting the generated control data to the at least one wireless communications terminal;

wherein, in each of the at least one wireless communications terminal, said method comprises;

receiving the transmitted control data;

extracting the control target information and the function state change information from the received control data;

determining whether or not the stored function state is to be changed based on the extracted control target information; and

changing the stored function state based on the extracted function state change information in accordance with the determination result of said determining;

wherein the control target information is one of target information for specifying a terminal to be controlled and non-target information for specifying a terminal not to be controlled; and

wherein, based on the owner information stored in the at least one wireless communications terminal, said determining determines that the function state stored in the at least one wireless communications terminal is to be changed when the at least one wireless communications terminal is one of specified in the target information and not specified in the non-target information.

6. A program executed by at least one a wireless communications terminal for enabling control of a function by using a terminal control device,

the program being executed with owner information and a function state of each of the at least one wireless communications terminal being respectively stored in each of the at least one wireless communications terminal, said program comprising:

receiving control data including control target information to specify a terminal and function state change information indicating a change made in the function state of the terminal;

extracting the control target information and the function state change information from the received control data;

determining, based on the extracted control target information, whether or not the stored function state is to be changed or not; and

changing, in accordance with the determination result of said determining, the stored function state based on the extracted function state change information,

wherein the control target information is one of target information for specifying a terminal to be controlled and non-target information for specifying a terminal not to be controlled; and

wherein, based on the owner information stored in the at least one wireless communications terminal, said determining determines that the function state stored in the at least one wireless communications terminal is to be changed when the at least one wireless communications terminal is one of specified in the target information and not specified in the non-target information.