Near-field wireless communication system, communication terminal, and communication method

• US 9,736,622 B2
• Filed: 03/10/2015
• Issued: 08/15/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ICOM Incorporated
• Original Assignee: ICOM Incorporated
• Inventors: Ota, Futoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Lu, Zhiyu
• Application Number:
  US14/643,163
• Publication Number:
  US 20150264516A1
• Time in Patent Office: 889 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/15 Setup of multiple wireless link connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/19 Connection re-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

The communication terminals each includes a communication controller for identifying the communication terminal to be reconnected as a communication destination after an inter-terminal connection is disrupted. The communication controller includes a first table and a second table. The first table is configured to, while placing a highest priority on the communication terminal most recently connected before the inter-terminal connection is disrupted, place a first connection priority on the other communication terminals according as a connection order in a direction of going back in time. The second table is configured to place a second connection priority on the other communication terminals by each device function thereof. The communication controller identifies, as the communication terminal to be reconnected as the communication destination, a communication terminal with the first connection priority ranked highest among the other communication terminals with the second connection priority ranked highest.

Claims

1. A near-field wireless communication system operable to connect a master terminal to each of at least two slave terminals to allow mutual communications through near-field wireless communication,

wherein the master terminal comprises a communication controller for identifying a slave terminal from among the at least two slave terminals to reconnect with after an inter-terminal connection is disrupted;

wherein the communication controller comprises a first table and a second table;

wherein the first table is configured to place a first connection priority on each of the at least two slave terminals according to a connection order in a direction backward in time, while placing a highest first connection priority on a most recently connected slave terminal, among said at least two slave terminals, that was connected to said master terminal most recently before the inter-terminal connection was disrupted;

wherein the second table is configured to place a second connection priority of a first priority rank on a device function to be reconnected with the highest priority, among device functions of the at least two slave terminals, and to place a second connection priority being of a lower priority rank than the first priority rank and being numbered in priority order on each of the other device functions; and

wherein the communication controller is configured to perform steps (i)-(viii) to select a communication destination, after the inter-terminal connection was disrupted;

(i) a first step of identifying one slave terminal with the first connection priority ranked highest, among the at least two slave terminals, by referring to the first table;

(ii) a second step of identifying the device function of the identified one slave terminal in the first step by referring to the second table after the first step;

(iii) a third step of automatically reconnecting to the identified one slave terminal as the communication destination when the second connection priority of the first priority rank is placed on the identified device function in the second step by referring to the second table;

(iv) a fourth step of forwarding the connection order when the second connection priority of the first priority rank is not placed on the identified device function in the second step by referring to the second table;

(v) a fifth step of identifying another slave terminal, among the at least two slave terminals, corresponding to the forwarded connection order by referring to the first table after the fourth step;

(vi) a sixth step of identifying the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the fifth step by referring to the second table after the fifth step;

(vii) a seventh step of automatically reconnecting to the another slave terminal as the communication destination when the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the sixth step is the second connection priority of the first priority rank in the second table by referring to the second table; and

(viii) an eighth step of repeatedly performing the fourth through seventh steps while forwarding the connection order until a slave terminal to be reconnected is identified when the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the sixth step is not the second connection priority of the first priority rank in the second table by referring to the second table.

2. A communication terminal, which is a master terminal, communicably connected to at least two slave terminals through near-field wireless communication with the at least two slave terminals,

wherein the master terminal comprises a communication controller for identifying a slave terminal from among the at least two slave terminals to reconnect with after an inter-terminal connection is disrupted;

wherein the controller comprises a first table and a second table;

wherein the first table has a first-table entry for each one of the at least two slave terminals, each first-table entry having a first connection priority according to a connection order of each slave terminal prioritized based on time in a direction backward in time so that a highest first connection priority corresponds to one of the at least two slave terminals most recently connected to the master terminal before the inter-terminal connection is disrupted;

wherein the second table has a second-table entry for each one of the at least two slave terminals, each second-table entry configured to place a second connection priority of a first priority rank on a device function to be reconnected with the highest priority among device functions of the at least two slave terminals, and to place a second connection priority being of a lower priority rank than the first priority rank and being numbered in priority order on each of the other device functions; and

wherein the communication controller identifies a slave terminal from among the at least two slave terminals to be reconnected as a communication destination wherein the communication controller is configured to perform steps (i)-(viii) to select the communication destination, after the inter-terminal connection was disrupted;

(i) a first step of identifying one slave terminal with the first connection priority ranked highest, among the at least two slave terminals, by referring to the first table;

(ii) a second step of identifying the device function of the identified one slave terminal in the first step by referring to the second table after the first step;

(iii) a third step of automatically reconnecting to the identified one slave terminal as the communication destination when the second connection priority of the first priority rank is placed on the identified device function in the second step by referring to the second table;

(iv) a fourth step of forwarding the connection order when the second connection priority of the first priority rank is not placed on the identified device function in the second step by referring to the second table;

(v) a fifth step of identifying another slave terminal, among the at least two slave terminals, corresponding to the forwarded connection order by referring to the first table after the fourth step;

(vi) a sixth step of identifying the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the fifth step by referring to the second table after the fifth step;

(vii) a seventh step of automatically reconnecting to the another slave terminal as the communication destination when the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the sixth step is the second connection priority of the first priority rank in the second table by referring to the second table; and

(viii) an eighth step of repeatedly performing the fourth through seventh steps while forwarding the connection order until a slave terminal to be reconnected is identified when the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the sixth step is not the second connection priority of the first priority rank in the second table by referring to the second table.

3. A communication method employed for a communication terminal which is a master terminal to communicate with at least two slave terminals through near-field wireless communication, the method comprising steps (1)-(3):

(1) placing a first connection priority on each one of the at least two slave terminals according as a connection order in a direction of going back in time, so that a highest first connection priority is placed on a slave terminal from among the at least two slave terminals, that was most recently connected to the master terminal before an inter-terminal connection was disrupted;

(2) placing a second connection priority of a first priority rank on a device function to be reconnected with the highest priority, among device functions of the at least two slave terminals, and placing a second connection priority being of a lower priority rank than the first priority rank and being numbered in priority order on each of other device functions; and

(3) selecting a communication destination from among the at least two slave terminals, wherein the communication controller performs steps (i)-(viii) to select the communication destination, after the inter-terminal connection was disrupted,

(i) a first step of identifying one slave terminal with the first connection priority ranked highest, among the at least two slave terminals, by referring to the first table;

(ii) a second step of identifying the device function of the identified one slave terminal in the first step by referring to the second table after the first step;

(iii) a third step of automatically reconnecting to the identified one slave terminal as the communication destination when the second connection priority of the first priority rank is placed on the identified device function in the second step by referring to the second table;

(iv) a fourth step of forwarding the connection order when the second connection priority of the first priority rank is not placed on the identified device function in the second step by referring to the second table;

(v) a fifth step of identifying another slave terminal, among the at least two slave terminals, corresponding to the forwarded connection order by referring to the first table after the fourth step;

(vi) a sixth step of identifying the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the fifth step by referring to the second table after the fifth step;

(vii) a seventh step of automatically reconnecting to the another slave terminal as the communication destination when the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the sixth step is the second connection priority of the first priority in the second table by referring to the second table; and

(viii) an eighth step of repeatedly performing the fourth through seventh steps while forwarding the connection order until a slave terminal to be reconnected is identified when the device function of the identified another slave terminal in the sixth step is not the second connection priority of the first priority rank in the second table by referring to the second table.