Communication apparatus and communication method

• US 9,288,300 B2
• Filed: 12/27/2011
• Issued: 03/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sovereign Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamaoka, Masaru, Matsumoto, Michihiro, Ohira, Tomoaki, Ohnishi, Toshiaki, Sakata, Tsuyoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsieh, Ping
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jia, Xin
• Application Number:
  US13/581,387
• Publication Number:
  US 20120322374A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,540 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.1, 455/41.2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/125 Means for positioning
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2216 used in interrogator/reader equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/00 Loop antennas with a substantially uniform current distribution around the loop and having a directional radiation pattern in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the loop
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/26 using coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/77 for interrogation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/04 including near field communication means, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/52 including functional features of a camera

Abstract

The present invention provides a communication apparatus and a communication method that can easily indicate the position of the antenna incorporated in the communication apparatus to a user and can align the antenna of the communication apparatus with the antenna of an external device. A portable device (1) includes a loop antenna (11) for performing near-field communication, a display unit (12) provided on a side of the portable device (1) opposite the orientation of the loop antenna (11), and an antenna position information storing unit (142) that stores antenna position information representing the position of the loop antenna (11) in the portable device (1). The display device (12) displays the position of the loop antenna (11) on the basis of the antenna position information stored in the antenna position information storing unit (142).

Claims

1. A communication apparatus that communicates with a server connected via a network and also communicates, by using near-field communication, with a plurality of external devices, each of the external devices being provided with a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, the communication apparatus comprising:

a selection acceptance unit that accepts a selection by a user of a target external device performing the near-field communication among the plurality of external devices, the target external device having a surface on which a guide pattern representing a position of an antenna performing the near-field communication is formed;

a guide pattern acquisition unit that transmits external device identification information for identifying the target external device selected by the user to the server, and acquires, from the server, a guide pattern image having the same shape as the guide pattern corresponding to the external device identification information;

a loop antenna that outputs a polling signal by near-field communication to the RFID tag provided in the target external device and receives a polling response by near-field communication from the RFID tag provided in the target external device that has received the polling signal;

a display unit provided on a side of the communication apparatus opposite an orientation in which the loop antenna transmits the polling signal and receives the polling response;

a communication apparatus identification information storing unit that stores communication apparatus identification information for identifying the communication apparatus;

a position information acquisition unit that transmits the communication apparatus identification information stored in the communication apparatus identification information storing unit to the server and acquires, from the server, antenna position information that represents a position of the loop antenna in the communication apparatus and that corresponds to the communication apparatus identification information; and

a position information storing unit that stores the acquired antenna position information, wherein

the display unit displays the guide pattern image acquired by the guide pattern acquisition unit as a guide pattern indicating the position of the loop antenna on the basis of the antenna position information which is stored in the position information storing unit, and fixedly displays the guide pattern image at the position of the loop antenna included in the communication apparatus regardless of a movement of the communication apparatus, within a period in which the loop antenna outputs the polling signal to the target external device.

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

an image acquisition unit that acquires an image of the orientation of the loop antenna, wherein

the display unit displays a guide image representing the position of the loop antenna in superposition on the image acquired by the image acquisition unit.

3. The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the image acquisition unit is disposed within a zone surrounded by the loop antenna.

4. The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the position information acquisition unit acquires the antenna position information and also acquires image acquisition position information representing a position of the image acquisition unit in the communication apparatus, and

the display unit displays the guide image in superposition on the image acquired by the image acquisition unit according to the antenna position information and the image acquisition position information.

5. The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the display unit displays the guide image according to a distance between the communication apparatus and the target external device.

6. The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the display unit displays the guide image according to a size of the guide pattern included in the image acquired by the image acquisition unit.

7. A communication method in a communication apparatus that communicates with a server connected via a network and also communicates, by using near-field communication, with a plurality of external devices, each of the external devices being provided with a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, the communication method comprising the steps of:

accepting a selection by a user of a target external device performing the near-field communication among the plurality of external devices, the target external device having a surface on which a guide pattern representing a position of an antenna performing the near-field communication is formed;

transmitting external device identification information for identifying the target external device selected by the user to the server, and acquiring, from the server, a guide pattern image having the same shape as the guide pattern corresponding to the external device identification information;

outputting a polling signal to the RFID tag provided in the target external device from a loop antenna that is provided in the communication apparatus and performs near-field communication;

receiving with the loop antenna a polling response transmitted from the RFID provided in the target external device that has received the polling signal;

transmitting communication apparatus identification information for identifying the communication apparatus to the server;

acquiring, from the server, antenna position information that represents a position of the loop antenna in the communication apparatus and that corresponds to the communication apparatus identification information; and

displaying the acquired guide pattern image as a guide pattern indicating the position of the loop antenna on the basis of the antenna position information, and fixedly displaying the guide pattern image at the position of the loop antenna included in the communication apparatus regardless of a movement of the communication apparatus, within a period in which the loop antenna outputs the polling signal to the external device, on a display unit provided on a side of the communication apparatus opposite an orientation in which the loop antenna transmits the polling signal and receives the polling response.