Information processing system, information processing unit, control method, program and a recording medium

• US 7,911,989 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2008
• Issued: 03/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Matusnaga, Kozo, Itoh, Masaharu, Fujii, Kazuo
• Primary Examiner(s): GELIN, JEAN ALLAND
• Application Number:
  US12/201,572
• Publication Number:
  US 20090002759A1
• Time in Patent Office: 935 Days
• Field of Search: 370/338, 370/310.2, 370/328, 370/335, 370/310, 370/238, 370/322, 370/324, 370/329, 370/341, 370/350, 370/318
• US Class Current: 370/310.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0277 according to available power supply, e.g. switching off when a low battery condition is detected
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/04 Wireless resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/24 Transfer of terminal data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

An information processing system includes a plurality of information processing units wirelessly communicating with each other, each of which includes a distribution data receiving section for receiving distribution data to be distributed to each of the information processing units from an information processing unit that has received the distribution data among the plurality of information processing units, a destination selection section for selecting an information processing unit that has not received the distribution data as a destination information processing unit for the distribution data from among the plurality of information processing units, and a distribution data sending section for sending the distribution data to the information processing unit selected by the destination selection section using a frequency band that is not used by another information processing unit while the other information processing unit is sending the distribution data to still another information processing unit.

Claims

1. An informnation processing system comprising a plurality of information processing units, each of said information processing units comprising:

a distribution data receiving section configured to receive distribution data;

a destination selection section configured to select a destination information processing unit from among said plurality of information processing units of the information processing system; and

a distribution data sending section configured to send said distribution data to the destination information processing unit using a first frequency band that is not being used by other information processing units of the information processing system to transmit the distribution data,

where sending occurs at least in part while a second wireless frequency band is used by at least one of the other information processing units to transmit the distribution data,

where the distribution data sending section is further configured to detect a non-interfering frequency band that does not interfere with the second wireless frequency band being used by the at least one of the other information processing units that is located within a range, where the first wireless frequency band is the detected non-interfering frequency band.

2. A computer readable medium encoded with instructions capable of being executed by a computer to cause the computer to perform operations comprising:

receiving distribution data;

selecting a destination computer from among computers of an information processing system; and

sending the distribution data to the destination computer using a first wireless frequency band that is not being used by other computers of the information processing system to transmit the distribution data,

where sending occurs at least in part while a second wireless frequency band is used by at least one of the other computers to transmit the distribution data,

where the operations further comprise detecting a non-interfering frequency band that does not interfere with the second wireless frequency band being used by an information processing unit of the information processing system that is located within a range, where the first wireless frequency band is the detected non-interfering frequency band.

3. A computer readable medium as in claim 2, where the operations further comprise temporarily suspending operation of said computer in response to not detecting any unused wireless frequency bands.

4. A computer readable medium as in claim 2, where the operations further comprise determining if there is sufficient power available to send the distribution data, and sending the distribution data occurs in response to a determination that sufficient power is available.

5. A computer readable medium as in claim 2, where selecting selects as the destination computer a computer having a highest communication speed.

6. An information processing unit comprising:

a receiver configured to receive distribution data,

where the distribution data is to be distributed to at least one other information processing unit in an information processing system;

a central processing unit configured to select a destination information processing unit from among the information processing units of the information processing system, and

a transmitter configured to send said distribution data to the destination information processing unit using a first wireless frequency band that is not being used by other information processing units of the information processing system to transmit the distribution data,

where sending occurs at least in part while a second wireless frequency band is used by at least one of the other information processing units to transmit the distribution data,

where the central processing unit is further configured;

to detect a non-interfering frequency band that does not interfere with the second wireless frequency band being used by an information processing unit of the information processing system that is located within a range,

where the first wireless frequency band is the detected non-interfering frequency band.

7. The information processing unit according to claim 6, where the central processing unit is configured to select another information processing unit of the information processing system that communicates with the information processing unit at a highest speed as the destination information processing unit.

8. The information processing unit according to claim 6, where the central processing unit is further configured:

to temporarily power down the information processing unit and to place the information processing unit in a suspended state if no non-interfering frequency bands are detected.

9. The information processing unit according to claim 6, where the central processing unit is further configured:

to inquire of at least one other information processing unit of the information processing system whether the distribution data has been received,

where selecting selects an information processing unit from among information processing units that respond that the distribution data has not been received,

to notify the destination information processing unit that the destination information processing unit has been selected as the destination information processing unit, and

to notify at least one responding information processing unit that has not been selected as the destination information processing unit that the non-selected information processing unit has not been selected as the destination information processing unit.

10. The information processing unit according to claim 9, where the central processing unit is further configured:

in response to receiving an inquiry as to whether the information processing unit has received the distribution data, to determine whether the distribution data has already been received;

in response to determining that the distribution data has not been received, to respond that the distribution data has not been received and to place the information processing unit in a reserved state, where while in the reserved state additional responses indicating that the distribution data has not been received are not made in response to receiving additional inquiries;

in response to receiving a notification indicating that the information processing unit has been selected as the destination information processing unit, to receive the distribution data; and

in response to receiving a notification indicating that the information processing unit has not been selected as the destination information processing unit, to release the reserved state.

11. The information processing unit according to claim 9, where the central processing unit is further configured:

to send, to each of the responding information processing units that have not been selected as the destination information processing unit, first information descriptive of a first total number of the responding information processing units; and

in response to receiving second information descriptive of a second total number of the responding information processing units, to temporarily power down the information processing unit for a period of time that is related to the second total number of the responding information processing units.

12. The information processing unit according to claim 6, where the central processing unit is further configured to temporarily power down the information processing unit and to switch the information processing unit to a suspend state in response to not detecting any information processing units that have not received the distribution data.

13. The information processing unit according to claim 6 further comprising a power source, and

where the central processing unit is further configured to power down the information processing unit without sending the distribution data in response to determining that the strength of the power source is below an amount required for sending the distribution data.

14. The information processing unit according to claim 6, further comprising a power source, and where the central processing unit is further configured to power down the information processing unit in response to determining that the strength of the power source is below an amount required for receiving the distribution data.

15. The information processing unit according to claim 6, where the central processing unit is further configured, in response to sending the distribution data at a first communication speed, to select a next destination information processing unit after a waiting time that is a function of a second communication speed of the next destination information processing unit.

16. The information processing unit according to claim 15, where the waiting time is further a function of a number of HOPs which indicate a number of times the distribution data has been transferred sequentially by information processing units.

17. The information processing unit according to claim 6, where the central processing unit is further configured to acquire a transfer route along which the distribution data is transferred sequentially by information processing units,

where selecting the destination information processing unit is based on the transfer route.

18. The information processing unit according to claim 17, where the central processing unit is further configured:

to acquire used band indicating information specifying a frequency band to be used by each information processing unit for wireless communication; and

to detect, based on the used band indicating information, a non-interfering band that is a frequency band that does not interfere with any radio waves of wireless communication performed by any information processing units located within a range.