COMMUNICATION APPARATUS

• US 20190050186A1
• Filed: 08/06/2018
• Published: 02/14/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Suga, Kenichiro
• Granted Patent: US 10,430,138 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1236 Connection management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1292 Mobile client, e.g. wireless printing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/36 by user or terminal equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/362 Conditional handover
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/02 Selection of wireless resources by user or terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/56 based on priority criteria
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

In a case where the setting information does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band or in a case where the setting information includes the frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and the frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band, the communication apparatus wirelessly connects with the external apparatus using the first frequency band with priority than the second frequency.

Claims

1. A communication apparatus that wirelessly communicates in a first frequency band and a second frequency band, the communication apparatus comprising:

a first receiving unit configured to receive setting information used in processing for wirelessly connecting with an external apparatus;

a connection unit configured to

wirelessly connect, in a case where the setting information does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band or in a case where the setting information includes the frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and the frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band, with the external apparatus using the first frequency band with priority than the second frequency;

a second receiving unit configured to receive a print job via the wireless connection with the external apparatus; and

a printing unit configured to perform printing on a recording medium by using a recording agent based on the print job;

wherein the first frequency band is a 2.4 GHz frequency band, and

wherein the second frequency band is a 5 GHz frequency band.

2. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in a case where the external apparatus identifies that a specific apparatus is performing communication through a first channel from among a plurality of communication channels supporting the second frequency band, a channel currently used in wireless connection using the second frequency band between the external apparatus and the communication apparatus is changed from the first channel to a second channel from among the plurality of communication channels supporting the second frequency band.

3. The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein, via Dynamic Frequency Selection or Transmit Power Control, the channel currently used in the wireless connection using the second frequency band between the external apparatus and the communication apparatus is changed from the first channel to the second channel.

4. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in a case where the setting information does not include the frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and does not include the frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band and establishing a connection with the external apparatus fails using the first frequency band, the communication apparatus wirelessly connects with the external apparatus using the second frequency band.

5. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in a wireless connection with the external apparatus, the external apparatus serves as a master station that determines a communication channel to be used in the wireless connection, and the communication apparatus serves as a slave station that does not determine a communication channel to be used in the wireless connection.

6. The communication apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a wireless connection in which the communication apparatus serves as the slave station and a wireless connection in which the communication apparatus serves as the master station are maintained in parallel.

7. The communication apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising an identification unit configured to identify the communication channel to be used in the wireless connection in which the communication apparatus serves as the slave station as the communication channel to be used in the wireless connection in which the communication apparatus serves as the master station.

8. The communication apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising a control unit configured to in a state where the communication apparatus is wirelessly connecting with the external apparatus using the second frequency band, perform control not to establish a wireless connection in which the communication apparatus serves as the master station.

9. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a first wireless connection with a first information processing apparatus via the external apparatus and a second wireless connection with a second information processing apparatus not via the external apparatus are maintained in parallel.

10. The communication apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising an identification unit configured to identify a communication channel to be used in the first wireless connection as the communication channel to be used in the second wireless connection.

11. The communication apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising a control unit configured to control, in a case where the communication apparatus wirelessly connects with the external apparatus using the second frequency band, not establishing the second wireless connection.

12. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication apparatus receives the setting information directly from the external apparatus.

13. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication apparatus receives the setting information based on any one setting method of AirStation One-Touch Secure System, Rakuraku Musen Start, and Wi-Fi Protected Setup.

14. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication apparatus receives the setting information from an apparatus other than the external apparatus.

15. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting information includes at least one or more of connection information for wirelessly connecting with the external apparatus, information about an authentication method to be used in a wireless connection with the external apparatus, and information about an encryption method to be used in a wireless connection with the external apparatus.

16. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the frequency band information is information about a communication channel to be used in a wireless connection with the external apparatus.

17. A communication apparatus that wirelessly communicates in a first frequency band and a second frequency band, the communication apparatus comprising:

a first receiving unit configured to receive setting information used in processing for wirelessly connecting with an external apparatus;

a connection unit configured to

wirelessly connect, in a case where the setting information does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band or in a case where the setting information includes the frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and the frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band, with the external apparatus using the first frequency band with priority than the second frequency;

a second receiving unit configured to receive a print job via the wireless connection with the external apparatus; and

a printing unit configured to perform printing on a recording medium by using a recording agent based on the print job;

wherein, in a case where the external apparatus identifies that a specific apparatus is performing communication through a first channel from among a plurality of communication channels supporting the second frequency band, a channel currently used in wireless connection using the second frequency band between the external apparatus and the communication apparatus is changed from the first channel to a second channel from among the plurality of communication channels supporting the second frequency band.

18. A control method of communication apparatus that wirelessly communicates in a first frequency band and a second frequency band, the control method comprising:

receiving setting information used in processing for wirelessly connecting with an external apparatus;

wirelessly connecting, in a case where the setting information does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and does not include a frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band or in a case where the setting information includes the frequency band information corresponding to the first frequency band and the frequency band information corresponding to the second frequency band, with the external apparatus using the first frequency band with priority than the second frequency;

receiving a print job via the wireless connection with the external apparatus; and

performing printing on a recording medium by using a recording agent based on the print job;

wherein the first frequency band is a 2.4 GHz frequency band, and

wherein the second frequency band is a 5 GHz frequency band.