Wireless communication method and apparatus

• US 9,526,124 B2
• Filed: 12/23/2009
• Issued: 12/20/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Hong, Sung-soo, Ko, Chang-seog, Yang, Pil-seung, Hwang, Chang-hwan
• Primary Examiner(s): TALUKDER, MD K
• Application Number:
  US12/646,272
• Publication Number:
  US 20100216399A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,554 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.1, 455/41.2, 455/41.3, 455/39
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/08 Access restriction or access information delivery, e.g. discovery data delivery signalling during connection H04W76/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/18 between terminal devices

Abstract

Provided are wireless communication method and apparatus. The wireless communication method includes: receiving wireless communication module information of a second terminal from the second terminal through a first communicator of a first terminal; and performing a wireless communication with the second terminal using the wireless communication module information through a second communicator of the first terminal.

Claims

1. A first terminal comprising:

a first communicator configured to receive, from a second terminal using a first communication method, communication information for establishing respective wireless connections for a plurality of wireless communication methods supported by the second terminal, and the communication information comprising respective addresses for the plurality of wireless communication methods; and

a controller configured to search for at least one available wireless communication method between the first and the second terminals from among the plurality of wireless communication methods based on the received communication information;

a display configured to display a plurality of available wireless communication methods found by the controller in response to the searching by the controller yielding the plurality of available wireless communication methods from among the plurality of wireless communication methods;

a user interface configured to receive a user input for selecting a second communication method from among the displayed plurality of available wireless communication methods; and

a second communicator configured to establish a wireless connection with the second terminal using the second communication method based on information for establishing the wireless connection for the second communication manner method included in the received communication information,

wherein, in response to the searching by the controller yielding only one available wireless communication method, which is the second communication method, from among the plurality of wireless communication methods, the second communicator is configured to establish a wireless connection with the second terminal using the second communication method based on information for establishing the wireless connection for the second communication method included in the received communication information, and

wherein, in response to the searching by the controller yielding no available wireless communication method from among the plurality of wireless communication methods, the display is further configured to display a message indicating that there are no available wireless communication methods between the first and the second terminals.

2. The first terminal of claim 1, wherein the first communicator is configured to search for the second terminal which is touched with the first terminal or positioned within a predetermined distance from the first terminal, and receive the communication information from the searched second terminal.

3. The first terminal of claim 2, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a user input for requesting the first terminal to perform a wireless communication with another terminal positioned in a vicinity of the first terminal, and the first communicator is configured to search for said another terminal which is touched with the first terminal or positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal.

4. The first terminal of claim 3, wherein, in response to the first communicator searching for a plurality of terminals which are touched with the first terminal or positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal, the display is configured to display information about the plurality of terminals found in the searching, the user interface is configured to receive a user input for selecting the second terminal from among the plurality of terminals found in the searching, and the first communicator is configured to request the second terminal to transmit the communication information.

5. The first terminal of claim 4, wherein, in response to the first communicator determining that no terminal is found which is touched with the first terminal or positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal, the display is configured to display a message indicating that the second terminal with which the first terminal is to perform the wireless communication is to be touched with the first terminal or to be positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal.

6. The first terminal of claim 1, wherein the second communicator is configured to request the second terminal to approve the wireless communication using the second communication method based on information for establishing the wireless connection for the second communication method included in the received communication information, receive approval for the wireless communication from the second terminal, and establish the wireless communication with the second terminal.

7. The first terminal of claim 1, wherein the first communication method is the same as the second communication method.

8. The first terminal of claim 1, wherein the first communicator is configured to receive the communication information using the first communication method which is one from among wireless communication methods including wireless local area network (WLAN), Bluetooth, Zigbee, wireless broadband (WiBro), wireless universal serial bus (WUSB), radio frequency identification (RFID), and infrared data association (IrDA) technologies.

9. The first terminal of claim 1, wherein the second communicator is configured to establish the wireless communication with the second terminal using the second communication method which is one from among wireless communication methods including WLAN, Bluetooth, Zigbee, WiBro, WUSB, RFID, and IrDA technologies.

10. A wireless communication method performed by a first terminal comprising a first communicator and a second communicator, comprising:

receiving, from a second terminal using a first communication method through the first communicator, communication information for establishing respective wireless connections for a plurality of wireless communication methods supported by the second terminal, and the communication information comprising respective addresses for the plurality of wireless communication methods; and

searching for an available wireless communication method between the first and the second terminals from among the plurality of wireless communication methods based on the received communication information;

displaying a plurality of available wireless communication methods in response to the searching yielding the plurality of available wireless communication methods from among the plurality of wireless communication methods;

receiving a user input for selecting a second communication method from among the displayed available wireless communication methods;

establishing a wireless connection with the second terminal using the second communication method through the second communicator based on information for establishing the wireless connection for the second communication method included in the received communication information,

in response to the searching yielding that only the second communication method is available from among the plurality of wireless communication methods, establishing a wireless connection with the second terminal using the second communication method through the second communicator based on information for establishing the wireless connection for the second communication method included in the received communication information, and

in response to the searching yielding that no wireless communication methods from among the plurality of wireless communication ma s are available, displaying a message indicating that there are no available wireless communication method between the first terminal and the second terminal.

11. The wireless communication method of claim 10, further comprising:

searching for the second terminal which is touched with the first terminal or positioned within a predetermined distance from the first terminal through the first communicator.

12. The wireless communication method of claim 11, wherein the searching for the second terminal comprises:

receiving a user input for requesting the first terminal to perform a wireless communication with another terminal positioned in a vicinity of the first terminal, and

searching for said another terminal which is touched with the first terminal or positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal through the first communicator.

13. The wireless communication method of claim 12, further comprising:

in response to finding in said searching a plurality of terminals which are touched with the first terminal or positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal, displaying information about the found plurality of terminals,

receiving a user input for selecting the second terminal from among the found plurality of terminals, and

requesting the second terminal to transmit the communication information through the first communicator.

14. The wireless communication method of claim 13, further comprising:

if no terminal which is touched with the first terminal or positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal is found in said searching, displaying a message indicating the second terminal with which the first terminal is to perform the wireless communication is to be touched with the first terminal or to be positioned within the predetermined distance from the first terminal.

15. The wireless communication method of claim 10, wherein the establishing the wireless connection with the second terminal comprises:

requesting the second terminal to approve the wireless communication using the second communication method through the second communicator based on information for establishing the wireless connection for the second communication method included in the received communication information;

receiving approval for the wireless communication from the second terminal; and

establishing the wireless communication with the second terminal.

16. The wireless communication method of claim 10, wherein the first communication method is the same as the second communication method.

17. The wireless communication method of claim 10, wherein the first communicator is configured to receive the communication information using the first communication method which is one from among wireless communication methods including wireless local area network (WLAN), Bluetooth, Zigbee, wireless broadband (WiBro), wireless universal serial bus (WUSB), radio frequency identification (RFID), and infrared data association (IrDA) technologies.

18. The wireless communication method of claim 10, wherein the second communicator is configured to establish the wireless communication with the second terminal using the second communication method which is one from among wireless communication methods including WLAN, Bluetooth, Zigbee, WiBro, WUSB, RFID, and IrDA technologies.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having embodied thereon a program for implementing the wireless communication method of claim 10.