Mobile unit communication apparatus and computer-readable recording medium

• US 7,928,836 B2
• Filed: 10/27/2006
• Issued: 04/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Konishi, Yoshichika, Yamanoto, Yasumasa, Niwa, Eiji
• Primary Examiner(s): Bugg; George A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Small; Naomi
• Application Number:
  US12/092,137
• Publication Number:
  US 20090267750A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,635 Days
• Field of Search: 340/435
• US Class Current: 340/435
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/163 involving continuous checking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

A mobile unit communication apparatus, including a wireless transceiver, is provided at a mobile unit. At the mobile unit communication apparatus, a surrounding object detection unit detects objects surrounding the mobile unit. The surrounding communication impediment detection unit detects a likelihood of an impediment to communication in the surroundings of the mobile unit from conditions for surrounding objects detected by the surrounding object detection unit. A relay communication unit transmits information received by the wireless transceiver from the wireless transceiver. A relay wait time setting unit sets a time until information received by the wireless transceiver is transmitted by the relay communication unit from the wireless transceiver longer for a larger likelihood of an impediment to communication detected by the surrounding communication impediment detection unit.

Claims

1. A mobile unit communication apparatus, including a wireless transceiver, provided at a mobile unit, comprising:

a surrounding object detection unit that detects objects surrounding the mobile unit;

a surrounding communication impediment detection unit that detects a likelihood of an impediment to communication in the surroundings of the mobile unit from conditions for surrounding objects detected by the surrounding object detection unit;

a relay communication unit that transmits information received by the wireless transceiver from the wireless transceiver; and

a relay wait time setting unit that sets a time until information received by the wireless transceiver is transmitted from the wireless transceiver longer at the relay communication unit for a larger likelihood of an impediment to communication detected by the surrounding communication impediment detection unit.

2. The mobile unit communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the surrounding object detection unit comprises a photographing unit that takes an image of surroundings of the mobile unit, and

the surrounding communication impediment detection unit detects a likelihood of an impediment to communication based on an image taken by the photographing unit.

3. The mobile unit communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the surrounding object detection unit comprises a photographing unit that takes an image of surroundings of the mobile unit, and detects objects surrounding the mobile unit by dividing the image taken by the photographing unit into a plurality of regions according to brightness.

4. The mobile unit communication apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the surrounding communication impediment detection unit detects a likelihood of an impediment to communication in the surroundings of the mobile unit using a number of regions that the image taken by the photographing unit are divided into by the surrounding object detection unit.

5. The mobile unit communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the image taken by the photographing unit comprises an arbitrary combination of images for to the front, to the rear, to the right, to the left, to the front side, to the rear side, or images for the entire surroundings of the mobile unit.

6. The mobile unit communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the relay communication unit does not transmit information from the wireless transceiver when the same information as the information received by the wireless transceiver is received again during a time, which is set by the relay wait time setting unit, until the information received by the wireless transceiver is transmitted from the wireless transceiver.

7. A computer-readable recording medium storing a program for allowing a computer, which is connected to a wireless transceiver provided at a mobile unit and a surrounding object detection apparatus that detects objects surrounding the mobile unit, to execute:

a surrounding object detection step of detecting objects surrounding the mobile unit at the surrounding object detection apparatus;

a surrounding communication impediment detection step of detecting a likelihood of an impediment to communication in the surroundings of the mobile unit from conditions for surrounding objects detected by the surrounding object detection step;

a relay communication step of transmitting information received by the wireless transceiver from the wireless transceiver; and

a relay wait time setting step of setting a time until information received by the wireless transceiver is transmitted from the wireless transceiver longer in the relay communication step for a larger likelihood of an impediment to communication detected by the surrounding communication impediment detection step.