Communication terminal, communication system, and communication method

• US 20050002404A1
• Filed: 07/02/2004
• Published: 01/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/03/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Marvell Asia Pte Limited (Marvell Technology Group Limited)
• Original Assignee: OKI Electric Industry Company Limited
• Inventors: Fukui, Kiyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,502,343 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/400
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup

Abstract

The present invention provides a communication terminal which can make connection to a communication terminal the position of which can be specified in an actual space but the ID information of which is not known through a network. The communication terminal includes an object designation section for acquiring the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal, an AP information acquisition section for acquiring the application information of an opponent communication terminal acting as a communication opponent, a memory section for storing the position information in the actual space of respective communication terminals, identification information for identifying the respective communication terminals in the network, and attribution information, a search section for searching the identification information of a communication terminal having the AP information in a region specified by the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal from the memory section.

Claims

1. A communication terminal for executing communication through a network, comprising:

an object designation section for acquiring the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal;

a memory section for storing the position information in an actual space of respective communication terminals and identification information for identifying the respective communication terminals in the network; and

a search section for searching the identification information of an opponent communication terminal acting as a communication opponent in a region specified by the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal from the memory section.

2. A communication terminal according to claim 1, further comprising an attribution information acquisition section for acquiring the attribution information of the opponent communication terminal acting as the communication opponent, wherein

the memory section stores the position information in the actual space of respective communication terminals, the identification information for identifying the respective communication terminals in the network, and the attribution information;

and

the search section searches the identification information of a communication terminal having the attribution information in the region specified by the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal from the memory section.

3. A communication terminal according to claim 2, wherein the attribution information includes information as to applications that are provided with the opponent communication terminal and make use of a communication function.

4. A communication terminal according to claim 3, further comprising an application start section for starting an appropriate application according to the attribution information of the opponent communication terminal searched by the search section.

5. A communication terminal according to claim 1, further comprising a distance information acquisition section for acquiring distance information from the communication terminal to the opponent communication terminal, and the region in which the opponent communication terminal is searched by the search section is limited to a distance specified by the distance information.

6. A communication terminal according to claim 2, further comprising a distance information acquisition section for acquiring distance information from the communication terminal to the opponent communication terminal, and the region in which the opponent communication terminal is searched by the search section is limited to a distance specified by the distance information.

7. A communication system comprising a communication terminal and an opponent communication terminal search server through which the communication terminal searches an opponent communication terminal acting as a communication opponent, the communication terminal comprises:

an object designation section for acquiring the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal; and

a communication section for transmitting the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal to the opponent communication terminal search server, and

the opponent communication terminal search server comprises;

a communication section for receiving the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal therefrom;

a memory section for storing the position information in an actual space of respective communication terminals and identification information for identifying the respective communication terminals in a network; and

a search section for searching the identification information of the opponent communication terminal acting as the communication opponent in a region specified by the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal from the memory section.

8. A communication system according to claim 7, further comprising an attribution information acquisition section for acquiring the attribution information of the opponent communication terminal acting as the communication opponent, wherein

the communication section of the communication terminal transmits the position information and the direction information thereof and the attribution information to the opponent communication terminal server section;

the communication section of the opponent communication terminal server section receives the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal and the attribution information from the communication terminal;

the memory section of the opponent communication terminal server section stores the position information in the actual space of the respective communication terminals, the identification information for identifying the respective communication terminals in the network, and the attribution information; and

the search section of the opponent communication terminal server section searches the identification information of a communication terminal having the attribution information in a region specified by the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal from the memory section.

9. A communication system according to claim 8, wherein the attribution information includes information as to applications that are provided with the opponent communication terminal and make use of a communication function.

10. A communication system according to claim 9, wherein the communication terminal further comprises an application start section for starting an appropriate application according to the attribution information of the opponent communication terminal searched by the search section.

11. A communication system according to claim 7, wherein the communication terminal further comprises a distance information acquisition section for acquiring distance information from the communication terminal to the opponent communication terminal, and the region in which the opponent communication terminal is searched by the search section is limited to a distance specified by the distance information.

12. A communication system according to claim 8, wherein the communication terminal further comprises a distance information acquisition section for acquiring distance information from the communication terminal to the opponent communication terminal, and the region in which the opponent communication terminal is searched by the search section is limited to a distance specified by the distance information.

13. A communication method of a communication terminal, which executes communication through a network and comprises a memory section for storing the position information in an actual space of respective communication terminals and identification information for identifying the respective communication terminals in the network, the communication method comprising:

an object designation step for acquiring the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal; and

a search step for searching the identification information of an opponent communication terminal acting as a communication opponent in a region specified by the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal from the memory section.

14. A communication method according to claim 13, wherein the memory section of the communication terminal stores the position information in the actual space of the respective communication terminals, the identification information for identifying the respective communication terminals in the network, and attribution information of the opponent communication terminal acting as the communication opponent, and the communication method further comprises an attribution information acquisition step for acquiring the attribution information of the opponent communication terminal, and the identification information of a communication terminal having the attribution information is searched in the region specified by the position information and the direction information of the communication terminal from the memory section at the search step.

15. A communication method according to claim 13, wherein the attribution information includes information as to applications that are provided with the opponent communication terminal and make use of a communication function.

16. A communication method according to claim 13, further comprising an application start step for starting an appropriate application according to the attribution information of the opponent communication terminal searched at the search step.

17. A communication method according to claim 13, further comprising a distance information acquisition step for acquiring distance information from the communication terminal to the opponent communication terminal, and the region in which the opponent communication terminal is searched at the search step is limited to a distance specified by the distance information.

18. A communication method according to claim 14, further comprising a distance information acquisition step for acquiring distance information from the communication terminal to the opponent communication terminal, and the region in which the opponent communication terminal is searched at the search step is limited to a distance specified by the distance information.