Communication device, electronic apparatus and wireless connection method

Abstract

The communication device 2 has a first communication unit 42 and a second communication unit 44, and has a function of wirelessly connecting to an electronic device 200. The first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 operate according to the same communication protocol. The first communication unit 42 has a function of waiting for and receiving a connection request from the electronic device 200. The second communication unit 44 is wirelessly connected to the electronic device 200 from which the first communication unit 42 has received a connection request. In the case where the first communication unit 42 is not connected to the electronic device 200, the first communication unit 42 waits and receives a connection request in a first mode in which the waiting / receiving time period is relatively long. In the case where the first communication unit 42 is connected to the electronic device 200, the first communication unit 42 waits and receives a connection request in a second mode in which the waiting / receiving time period is relatively short.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a wireless communication technology. Background Art

[0002] PTL 1 discloses a gaming machine including a plurality of communication modules of the same type that communicate wirelessly by a frequency hopping method. A control unit of the gaming machine determines a frequency hopping channel of at least one communication module so that frequency channels used by the plurality of communication modules do not overlap with each other in time.

[0003] [Citation list]

[0004] [Patent Document]

[0005] [PTL]

[0006] JP 2005-142860A Summary of the invention

[0007] [Technical issues]

[0008] An invention is proposed that allows users to play games together while engaging in voice chat. By using wireless headphones, users can be freed from the hassle of cables. In addition, by incorporating a microphone and a speaker in a wireless game controller for operating a game console, an environment is achieved in which users can enjoy voice chat without headphones. Due to the emergence of such electronic devices, game consoles must be able to send and receive large amounts of data to and from the electronic devices, and it is necessary to construct an invention that effectively manages wireless connections when multiple electronic devices are connected simultaneously.

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide a technology related to a wireless communication device.

[0010] [Solution to the problem]

[0011] The invention is defined by the appended claims.

[0012] In order to solve, or at least alleviate, or at least try to solve the above-mentioned subject, according to an example mode of the present invention, a communication device is provided, comprising: a first communication unit; and a second communication unit of the same type as the first communication unit, the communication device being wirelessly connected (or at least connectable) to an external device, wherein the first communication unit has a function of waiting for a connection request from the external device, and the second communication unit is wirelessly connected to the external device from which the first communication unit receives a connection request.

[0013] According to another example mode of the present invention, there is provided an electronic device wirelessly connected to a communication device, the communication device including a plurality of communication units of the same type, the device including: a retaining unit which retains identification information of one of the communication units obtained through a pairing process performed with the communication units; and a connection processing unit which sends a connection request including the identification information of the one communication unit.

[0014] According to another example mode of the present invention, there is provided a wireless connection method for establishing a wireless connection to a communication device, the communication device comprising a plurality of communication units of the same type, the method comprising: a step of retaining identification information of one of the communication units obtained through a pairing process performed with the communication units; and a step of sending a connection request including the identification information of the one communication unit.

[0015] It should also be noted that any combination of the above-described components and representations of the present invention, converted between methods, apparatuses, systems, computer programs, recording media that readable record the computer programs, data structures, etc., are effective as modes of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 is a diagram showing a communication system of the embodiment.

[0017] Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating a portion of a communication device.

[0018] Figure 3 is a diagram showing a configuration related to communication between a communication apparatus and an electronic device.

[0019] Figure 4 is a diagram showing a sequence in which an electronic device and a communication apparatus establish a wireless connection therebetween.

[0020] Figure 5 is a diagram showing a state in which a first electronic device is wirelessly connected to a second communication unit.

[0021] Figure 6 is a diagram showing a state in which the second electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit.

[0022] Figure 7 is a diagram showing a state in which a third electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit.

[0023] Figure 8 is a diagram showing a state in which a third electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit and the second communication unit at the same time.

[0024] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a state in which the third electronic device is disconnected from the first communication unit.

[0025] Fig.10 is a diagram showing a state in which a fourth electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit.

[0026] Fig.11 is a diagram showing a state in which the third electronic device is disconnected from the second communication unit.

[0027] Fig.12 is a diagram showing a state in which a fourth electronic device is connected to the second communication unit.

[0028] Fig.13 is a diagram showing a timing chart when an electronic device performs paging.

[0029] Fig.14 is a diagram showing a timing chart when an electronic device performs paging.

[0030] Fig.15 is a diagram showing a state of the first communication unit.

[0031] Fig.16 is a view showing a BT clock.

[0032] Fig.17 is a diagram showing a timing chart of transmission and reception of the first communication unit and the second communication unit.

[0033] Fig.18 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method.

[0034] Fig.19 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method.

[0035] Fig. 20 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method.

[0036] Fig.21 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method.

[0037] Fig. 22 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method.

[0038] Fig.23 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method.

[0039] Fig.24 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method.

[0040] Fig.25 A computer is schematically shown.

[0041] Fig.26 is a diagram showing a sequence in which an electronic device and a communication apparatus establish a wireless connection therebetween according to a variation.

[0042] Fig. 27 A state in which the first electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit in the active mode is shown.

[0043] Fig.28 A state in which the first electronic device is connected to the first communication unit and the second communication unit in an active mode is shown.

[0044] Fig.29 A state in which the first electronic device is wirelessly connected to the second communication unit and wirelessly connected to the first communication unit in the sniffing mode is shown.

[0045] Fig.30 A state in which the second electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit in the active mode is shown.

[0046] Fig.31 A state in which the second electronic device is connected to the first communication unit and the second communication unit in the active mode is shown.

[0047] Fig.32 A state in which the second electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit in the active mode and is wirelessly connected to the second communication unit in the sniffing mode is shown.

[0048] Fig.33 A state in which the third electronic device wants to wirelessly connect to the first communication unit in an active mode is shown.

[0049] Fig.34 A state in which the third electronic device is simultaneously connected to the first communication unit and the second communication unit in an active mode is shown.

[0050] Fig.35 A state in which the third electronic device is wirelessly connected to the second communication unit in the active mode and is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit in the sniffing mode is shown.

[0051] Fig.36 A state in which the fourth electronic device is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit in the active mode and is wirelessly connected to the second communication unit in the sniffing mode is shown.

[0052] Fig.37 A state in which the third electronic device is disconnected from the communication block is shown.

[0053] Fig.38 A state in which the fourth electronic device is wirelessly connected to the second communication unit in the active mode and is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit in the sniffing mode is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0054] The communication system of the embodiment is described below. The communication system of the present embodiment includes a communication device and at least one electronic device. The communication device and the electronic device wirelessly communicate with each other using a Bluetooth (Bluetooth, registered trademark) protocol using a frequency hopping method. When the communication device is integrated into a gaming device, the electronic device wirelessly connected to the communication device can be a gaming device peripheral, such as a headset or game controller that allows a user to perform voice chat. By integrating the functions of a microphone and a speaker into a game controller, a user can perform voice chat even without a headset.

[0055] The communication device of this embodiment includes a plurality of communication units (transceivers) of the same type. Here, "same type" may indicate, for example, that the physical circuits of the communication units are the same or at least capable of having the same or similar functions. For example, it may indicate that the operating software and / or operating protocols of the communication units are the same. This means that (a) the communication units may be configured to operate according to the same wireless communication protocol (e.g., although not unique, This enables wireless communications with any given external device to be handled interchangeably by one or either of the communication units.

[0056] Thus, the communication processing of the external device is the same or similar, independent of which communication unit constitutes the other party to such communication, enabling the external device to communicate with any one of a plurality of such communication units, for example, of the same type, for example, by following a common communication protocol when it communicates with communication units of the same type. (Nevertheless, it is of course noted that there may be aspects of communication with a particular communication unit that are specific to a particular communication operation with that particular communication unit. For example, communications between an external device and a particular communication unit may potentially specify an identifier of that particular communication unit (whether paired or ad-hoc), or the external device and the communication unit may each selectively operate as a master or slave for that particular communication operation, or the actual data sent or received during a particular communication may be specific to the particular communication).

[0057] In this way, by providing a plurality of communication units of the same type, the communication device can increase the communication capacity and can communicate wirelessly with many electronic devices. The plurality of communication units can be controlled by a single device driver, and the data from the plurality of communication units can be processed by the device driver as the data from a single communication unit. The device driver appropriately connects the communication unit and the electronic device based on the communication conditions of the plurality of communication units. It should be noted that the communication device of the present embodiment can be integrated into different types of information processing devices other than gaming devices.

[0058] Figure 1The communication system 1 of the present embodiment is shown. The communication device 2 includes a device body 3 and a communication block 40. The communication block 40 includes a plurality of Bluetooth (hereinafter may be simply referred to as "BT") communication devices. The device body 3 includes a device driver that controls the communication block 40, and data acquired via the communication block 40 is provided to application software for games or chats. The electronic devices 200a to 200d (in the case where they are not distinguished from each other, each of them is referred to as an "electronic device 200") may be a peripheral device such as a headset or a game controller including a BT communication device.

[0059] Note that the present technology is not limited to BT arrangements. Other communication protocols, such as other frequency hopping protocols (e.g., non-BT protocols using adaptive frequency hopping spread spectrum or frequency hopping code division multiple access techniques) may be used alternatively or additionally. The term "communication operation" refers to the use of any such technology.

[0060] The communication block 40 is wirelessly connected to one or more electronic devices 200. The device driver integrated in the device body 3 effectively assigns the electronic device 200 to one of the plurality of communication units of the communication block 40 and supports good wireless communication between the communication block 40 and the electronic device 200.

[0061] The communication device 2 may include a programmable processing unit, thus providing an example of a computer provided in a communication device including a plurality of communication units of the same type. Fig.25 A computer (schematically shown in FIG. 1 ) may execute any method or technique discussed herein related to the operation of such a communication device under the control of a program comprising computer-executable instructions.

[0062] The electronic device 200 may include a programmable processing unit, thus providing an example of a computer capable of wirelessly connecting to a communication device including multiple communication units of the same type. Fig.25 A computer (schematically shown in FIG. 1 ) can perform any method or technique discussed herein related to the operation of such an electronic device under the control of a program including computer-executable instructions.

[0063] Figure 2 1 is a block diagram of a portion of a communication device 2 that is wirelessly connected to an external electronic device. The communication device 2 includes a power block 10, a system controller 20, a host block 30, and a communication block 40. In the power block 10, VDD_MAIN 12 provides a main power supply, and VDD_LP 14 provides a low power supply. Figure 2 In the example shown, the system controller 20 and the communication block 40 are driven by the low power supply, and the host block 30 is driven by the main power supply.

[0064] The communication block 40 includes multiple communication units of the same type, and in this embodiment, it includes two communication units, namely the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44. The same type of communication units can indicate that the communication standards they use are the same as each other. The communication block 40 can be configured as a system-on-chip, and the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 can operate based on the clock signal of a common system clock oscillator provided on the same chip. The first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are integrated circuit components respectively connected to the antenna, and have the function of establishing a wireless connection to the external electronic device 200 according to the Bluetooth protocol. The Universal Serial Bus (USB) module 32 of the host block 30 and the USB module 46 of the communication block 40 are connected to each other according to the general USB standard. It should be noted that the host block 30 and the communication block 40 can be connected to each other according to communication standards other than the USB standard.

[0065] The first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are connected to a single USB module 46. By sharing a single USB module 46 in the communication block 40, the chip production cost of the communication block 40 can be reduced. The data signals received by the first communication unit 42 and / or the second communication unit 44 are sent to the USB module 32 through the USB module 46, and are processed as necessary by the control unit 34, and then provided to the main central processing unit (CPU) (not shown) that executes the application. At the same time, the data signals generated by the main CPU are sent to the USB module 46 through the USB module 32, and are sent from the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 to the electronic device 200 wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44.

[0066] Next, the state transition of the power supply system in the communication device 2 will be described.

[0067] <Shutdown>

[0068] When the power cable of the communication device 2 is not connected to the power socket, the communication device 2 is in the shutdown state.

[0069] <BT Initialization>

[0070] If the power cable of the communication device 2 is connected to the power socket, the system controller 20 starts. After the system controller 20 is started, it supplies power to the host block 30 and the communication block 40. After the host block 30 is started, the system controller 20 provides a USB_EN signal for enabling the USB module 46 to the communication block 40. Therefore, the USB module 32 and the USB module 46 are USB-connected to each other.

[0071] In the host block 30, the control unit 34 functions as a device driver for controlling the BT communication device. The control unit 34 downloads the firmware to the first communication unit 42 through the USB connection to initialize the first communication unit 42. In this state, the control unit 34 initializes only one communication unit, the first communication unit 42, which is predetermined from a plurality of communication units of the same type, and does not perform initialization of the second communication unit 44. The control unit 34 sets the wake-up parameter to the first communication unit 42.

[0072] <Awakening BT>

[0073] After the control unit 34 sets the wakeup parameter to the first communication unit 42, the system controller 20 stops the power supply to the host block 30 and stops the power supply of the USB_EN signal. Therefore, in the communication device 2, only the system controller 20 and the first communication unit 42 remain in the activated state.

[0074] The first communication unit 42 enters a paging scan mode to wait for a connection request from the external electronic device 200. The first communication unit 42 has previously acquired and retained address information (device identification (ID)) for identifying the electronic device 200 to be connected to the communication device 2 through a pairing process. The first communication unit 42 can acquire and retain the address information through predetermined pairing information encoded in one or both of the electronic device and the communication device, or by using an ad-hoc association between the electronic device and the communication device. The first communication unit 42 reads out a connectable device ID list including one or more device IDs in the paging scan mode, and waits for a connection request (paging) from the electronic device 200. In the state of waking up the BT, the connection request from the external electronic device 200 becomes a startup request for the entire communication device including the device body 3.

[0075] If the first communication unit 42 receives a connection request from the electronic device 200 (the electronic device 200 has a BT device address included in the device ID list), it outputs a wake-up (WAKE) signal to the system controller 20 according to the wake-up parameter. When the system controller 20 receives the wake-up signal, it supplies power to the host block 30 and provides the communication block 40 with a USB_EN signal for enabling the USB module 46. The control unit 34 downloads the firmware to the second communication unit 44 through the USB connection to initialize the second communication unit 44. Therefore, in the communication block 40, the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are placed in a state capable of establishing a wireless connection to the external electronic device 200.

[0076] <Suspend>

[0077] In the suspended state, the first communication unit 42 operates in a page scanning mode to wait for a connection request from the external electronic device 200. The USB module 32 and the USB module 46 are suspended, and the second communication unit 44 is dormant.

[0078] Figure 3 The configuration related to the communication between the communication device 2 and the electronic apparatus 200 is shown. The control unit 34 functions as a device driver that controls the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44. The control unit 34 includes a connection management unit 102, an allocation processing unit 104, and a role management unit 106. In the context of the following discussion, any one or more of them may be regarded as a "control unit".

[0079] The first communication unit 42 has a function of wirelessly communicating with an external device through the Bluetooth protocol, and includes a connection processing unit 50, a communication control unit 52, a reservation unit 54, and a clock counter 56. The connection processing unit 50 performs processing for establishing a wireless connection to the electronic device 200. The communication control unit 52 sends a data signal to the electronic device 200 and receives a data signal from the electronic device 200 after the connection is established. The clock counter 56 generates a 28-bit BT clock with a clock rate of 3.4KHz. The reservation unit 54 retains the device ID information of the electronic device 200 with which the pairing process was performed in the past, and the connection processing unit 50 has a function of waiting for a connection request from the external electronic device 200.

[0080] The second communication unit 44 has a function of wirelessly communicating with an external device through the Bluetooth protocol, and includes a connection processing unit 60, a communication control unit 62, and a clock counter 64. The connection processing unit 60 performs processing for establishing a wireless connection to the electronic device 200 from which the first communication unit 42 receives a connection request. The communication control unit 62 sends and receives a data signal to and from the electronic device 200 after the connection is established. The clock counter 64 generates a 28-bit BT clock with a clock rate of 3.4KHz. In the communication device 2 of the present embodiment, the value of a predetermined bit of the BT clock of the clock counter 56 and the value of a predetermined bit of the BT clock of the clock counter 64 are controlled so as to be synchronized with each other. Unlike the connection processing unit 50, the connection processing unit 60 in the present embodiment does not have a function of waiting for a connection request from the external electronic device 200, and does not wait for a connection request. It should be noted that although in a different example, the connection processing unit 60 may have a function of waiting for a connection request, it is desirable to limit the waiting function so that the connection processing unit 60 does not wait for a connection request.

[0081] The electronic device 200 is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42 and / or the second communication unit 44 through the Bluetooth protocol. The electronic device 200 includes a connection processing unit 210, a communication control unit 220, a reservation unit 222, and a clock counter 224, and the connection processing unit 210 includes a connection request unit 212, an instruction processing unit 214, and a request processing unit 216. The reservation unit 222 reserves the device ID information of the first communication unit 42 obtained by the pairing process performed with the communication device 2.

[0082] refer to Figure 3 , components described as functional blocks that perform various processes may be configured in hardware from circuit blocks, memories, and other large-scale integration (LSI), and implemented in software from system software, game programs loaded in memories, etc. Therefore, it should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the functional blocks may be implemented in various forms from only hardware, only software, or a combination thereof, and are not limited.

[0083] Hereinafter, a process for establishing a wireless connection between the electronic device 200 and the communication apparatus 2 is described.

[0084] In order to wirelessly connect to the communication device 2, the electronic apparatus 200 performs a pairing process with the communication device 2 in advance. In the pairing process, the electronic apparatus 200 and the first communication unit 42 exchange mutual apparatus ID information. Therefore, in the retaining unit 222 of the electronic apparatus 200, the apparatus ID information of the first communication unit 42 is retained, and in the retaining unit 54 of the first communication unit 42, the apparatus ID information of the electronic apparatus 200 is retained. Since the first communication unit 42 has performed the pairing process with the plurality of electronic apparatuses 200a to 200d to which the first communication unit 42 can wirelessly connect, the apparatus ID information of the plurality of electronic apparatuses 200a to 200d is retained in the retaining unit 54 to generate the apparatus ID list.

[0085] When the communication device 2 has no wireless connection with any electronic apparatus 200 , the communication device 2 is in the awake BT state.

[0086] Figure 4 1 shows a sequence by which the electronic device 200 and the communication apparatus 2 establish a wireless connection with each other. In the wake-up BT state, the first communication unit 42 operates in a paging scan mode in which the first communication unit 42 waits for a connection request from the external electronic device 200 (S10). In the paging scan mode, the connection processing unit 50 of the first communication unit 42 waits for a connection request (paging) from an electronic device 200 included in the connectable device ID list.

[0087] In the electronic device 200, the connection request unit 212 reads out the device ID information of the first communication unit 42 from the reservation unit 222, and transmits a connection request including the device ID information of the first communication unit 42 to the first communication unit 42 (S12). In the first communication unit 42, when the connection processing unit 50 receives the connection request from the electronic device 200 having the device ID included in the device ID list, it outputs a wake-up signal to the system controller 20 according to the wake-up parameter (S14). When the system controller 20 receives the wake-up signal, it starts the host block 30 and the USB module 46 to activate the USB connection between the USB module 32 and the USB module 46.

[0088] In the control unit 34, the connection management unit 102 downloads the firmware into the second communication unit 44 through the USB connection to initialize the second communication unit 44. Therefore, the second communication unit 44 is placed in a state capable of wirelessly connecting to the external electronic device 200 (S16). The connection management unit 102 performs an authentication process and an encryption process with the electronic device 200, and the first communication unit 42 establishes a connection with the electronic device 200 in an active mode, which is a data transmission mode in which data can be transmitted (S18).

[0089] The BT communication device operates as one of a master device and a slave device. (In some examples, a specific BT communication device may be constrained by design or configuration settings to operate as a master device or a slave device at any point in time, that is, in such an example, the BT communication device cannot operate as a master device and a slave device at the same time even if the communication destination is different.) If two BT communication devices establish a BT link between them at the baseband level, the paging device becomes the master device and the paged device becomes the slave device. The master device determines the frequency hopping pattern based on its own BT device address and determines the phase of the frequency hopping sequence by its own clock.

[0090] At the time point of S18, the electronic device 200 as a paging device is a master device, and the first communication unit 42 as a paged device is a slave device. In order for the communication device 2 to control the electronic device 200 as a peripheral device, the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200 must operate as a master device and a slave device, respectively, and the role management unit 106 sends a role switching instruction (S20) for switching the roles of the master device and the slave device to the electronic device 200 through the first communication unit 42. In the electronic device 200, the instruction processing unit 214 accepts the role switching instruction. After a predetermined time interval after sending the role switching instruction, the connection processing unit 50 and the instruction processing unit 214 in the first communication unit 42 perform the role switching synchronously with each other. Therefore, the electronic device 200 starts to operate as a slave device, and the first communication unit 42 starts to operate as a master device.

[0091] In the communication system 1 of the present embodiment, after the first communication unit 42 accepts the connection request from the electronic device 200 and establishes a wireless connection to the electronic device 200, it instructs the electronic device 200 to establish a state in which the electronic device 200 waits for the acceptance of the connection request (S22). This is a process necessary to switch the connection destination of the electronic device 200 (from which the connection request is received) from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44, and such switching can occur in response to the reception of the connection request and depending on the allocation process. Hereinafter, the reason why the first communication unit 42 sends a waiting instruction to the electronic device 200 is described.

[0092] The connection management unit 102 obtains the communication situation (or communication status) between the first communication unit 42 and the external device, and the communication situation (or communication status) between the second communication unit 44 and the external device. At the time point of establishing the connection at S18, the first communication unit 42 is connected to one electronic device 200, while the second communication unit 44 is not connected to any electronic device 200. The connection management unit 102 can separately obtain the number of external devices to which the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are connected as the communication situation.

[0093] The allocation processing unit 104 performs allocation processing for determining the connection destination of the external device to be the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 based on the communication conditions of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 acquired by the connection management unit 102. Here, when the first communication unit 42 has a function of waiting for a connection request from an external device, the second communication unit 44 does not have or does not perform a function of waiting for a connection request from an external device. Since the first communication unit 42 in the present embodiment has a role of periodically operating in the paging scan mode, the allocation processing unit 104 preferably determines the connection destination of the external device to be the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 so that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 with the external device is equal to or lower than the communication load on the second communication unit 44 with the external device. Therefore, when only one electronic device 200 is connected to the communication apparatus 2, it is preferred that the allocation processing unit 104 determines the connection destination of the electronic device 200 to be the second communication unit 44 so that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 is lighter than the communication load on the second communication unit 44.

[0094] The communication load to be used as a reference for the allocation processing unit 104 to determine the allocation destination is a load factor that has an influence on the communication of each communication unit, and may be the number of external devices to which each communication unit is connected. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 may allocate external devices to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 so that the number of external devices to which the first communication unit 42 is connected is smaller than the number of external devices to which the second communication unit 44 is connected.

[0095] It should be noted that the communication load to be used as a reference may be the amount of communication data between each communication unit and the external device. Although the data amount of voice data in the voice chat with the electronic device 200 is large, the data amount of the operation data of the game controller is small. Therefore, the connection management unit 102 may monitor the amount of communication data between each communication unit and the electronic device 200, and the allocation processing unit 104 may determine the connection destination of the electronic device 200 so that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 becomes lower than the communication load on the second communication unit 44. The communication load to be used as a reference may be the communication error rate in each communication unit or may be a combination of some of them.

[0096] At the moment of establishing the connection at S18, only one electronic device 200 has been connected to the communication device 2. Therefore, the allocation processing section 104 decides to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200 from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44. In the communication system 1 of the present embodiment, in order to change the connection destination, the allocation processing unit 104 initiates the connection processing of the already connected electronic device to the second communication device. To this end, the electronic device 200 is operated in a scanning mode (such as a paging scanning mode), and the second communication unit 44 is caused to send a connection request to the electronic device 200. For this purpose, at S22, the first communication unit 42 sends a signal (wait instruction signal) for instructing the electronic device 200 to establish a state in which the electronic device 200 waits for a connection request from the second communication unit 44.

[0097] In this connection destination switching process, the allocation processing unit 104 notifies the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 that the connection destination of the electronic device 200 currently connected to the first communication unit 42 will be switched from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44. At this time, the allocation processing unit 104 also notifies the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 that the device ID information (BT device address) of the destination to which the electronic device 200 is connected will be changed. Therefore, the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 recognize that they will operate so that the electronic device 200 currently connected to the first communication unit 42 is connected to the second communication unit 44.

[0098] In the first communication unit 42, the connection processing unit 50 sends a waiting instruction signal to the electronic device 200 (S22). The waiting instruction signal may include identification information of a device (e.g., a communication unit) from which a connection request is to be sent (in this example, the device ID information of the second communication unit 44), and the instruction processing unit 214 receives the waiting instruction signal and accepts the instruction to enter a state in which it waits for a connection request from the second communication unit 44. Therefore, while the instruction processing unit 214 maintains the connection with the first communication unit 42, the request processing unit 216 operates in the paging scan mode to wait for a connection request from the second communication unit 44 (S24).

[0099] At this time, the instruction processing unit 214 operates to alternately switch the communication period (first period) of the first communication unit 42 of the connection switching source and the scanning period (second period) in which the second communication unit 44 of the connection switching source waits for the connection request. The connection processing unit 50 may place timing information defining the alternating switching between the first period and the second period into the waiting instruction signal, so that the instruction processing unit 214 alternately and periodically switches the communication period with the first communication unit 42 and the scanning period for waiting for the connection request from the second communication unit 44 according to the timing information included in the waiting instruction signal.

[0100] It should be noted that the connection processing unit 50 preferably sets the timing information in response to the connection status of the electronic device 200 and the communication equipment 2. Figure 4 At the moment of S22 in FIG. 1 , the electronic device 200 is in a stage in which it performs a new connection process with the communication device 2 and has not yet started data communication of voice data or the like with the first communication unit 42. Therefore, the connection processing unit 50 sets the timing information TI1 so that the electronic device 200 can quickly establish wireless communication with the second communication unit 44. For example, the connection processing unit 50 may set the timing information TI1 indicating that the second period is longer than the first period.

[0101] In the paging scan mode performed in the scan period (second period), the request processing unit 216 waits for a connection request from the second communication unit 44 having the device ID information included in the waiting instruction signal. In the second communication unit 44, the connection processing unit 60 sends a connection request including the device ID information of the electronic device 200 to the electronic device 200 (S26). If the request processing unit 216 accepts the connection request, a connection process is performed between the request processing unit 216 and the connection processing unit 60. As a result, the second communication unit 44 is connected to the electronic device 200 in the active mode (S28).

[0102] If the connection management unit 102 detects that a connection is established between the second communication unit 44 and the electronic device 200, it instructs the first communication unit 42 to cancel the connection with the electronic device 200. Receiving the instruction, the connection processing unit 50 sends a disconnection request to the electronic device 200 (S30). It should be noted that the disconnection request can be sent from the electronic device 200 to the first communication unit 42. Thereafter, the connection between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200 is canceled (S32) (for example, by a communication device), and the electronic device 200 is connected only to the second communication unit 44. In this way, in the communication system 1, after the second communication unit 44 establishes a connection with the electronic device 200, the wireless connection between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200 is canceled (for example, by a communication device), and the electronic device 200 is connected only to the second communication unit 44 wirelessly. Then, the first communication unit 42 operates in a paging scan mode to wait for a connection request from the external electronic device 200 (S34), and waits for a connection request (paging) from the electronic device 200 included in the connectable device ID list.

[0103] As described above, the process when the first electronic device 200 establishes a connection to the communication apparatus 2. Hereinafter, the process when the second and subsequent electronic devices 200 establish a connection to the communication apparatus 2 is described with reference to a connection transition diagram depicting a connection state.

[0104] Figure 5 The first electronic device 200a is shown according to Figure 4 The wireless connection sequence shown is a state of wireless connection to the second communication unit 44. As described above, the electronic device 200a sends a connection request to the first communication unit 42 to establish a connection with the first communication unit 42, and then operates in a paging scan mode in which the electronic device 200a waits for a connection request from the second communication unit 44. The electronic device 200a receives the connection request from the second communication unit 44, establishes a connection to the second communication unit 44, and then cancels the connection to the first communication unit 42. Figure 5 This state is shown.

[0105] Figure 6 4. A state is shown in which the second electronic device 200b is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42. The electronic device 200b sends a connection request to the first communication unit 42 to establish a connection to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode.

[0106] The connection management unit 102 obtains the communication status between the first communication unit 42 and the external device and the communication status between the second communication unit 44 and the external device. Figure 6In the connection state shown, the first communication unit 42 is connected to one electronic device 200b, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a. The connection management unit 102 acquires the number of electronic devices 200 to which each of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 is connected as the communication situation. The allocation processing unit 104 performs processing for allocating the electronic device 200b to one of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 based on the number of electronic devices 200 to which the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are respectively connected.

[0107] The allocation processing unit 104 allocates the newly established electronic device 200b to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 so that the communication load with the external device on the first communication unit 42 becomes equal to or lower than the communication load with the external device on the second communication unit 44. Figure 6 ), the first communication unit 42 is connected to one electronic device 200b, the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a, and the communication loads on the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are equal to each other. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 determines that there is no problem because the connection destination of the electronic device 200b is the first communication unit 42, and accordingly determines not to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200b.

[0108] Figure 7 A state is shown in which the third electronic device 200c is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42. The electronic device 200c sends a connection request to the first communication unit 42 to establish a connection to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode.

[0109] The connection management unit 102 acquires the number of connections of the external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 and the number of connections of the external devices connected to the second communication unit 44. Figure 7 In the connection state shown, the first communication unit 42 is connected to two electronic devices 200b and 200c, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a. The allocation processing unit 104 allocates the newly established connected electronic device 200c to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 so that the connection number of the external device connected to the first communication unit 42 becomes equal to or less than the connection number of the external device connected to the second communication unit 44. In the state where the third electronic device 200c is connected to the first communication unit 42 ( Figure 7), the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 is greater than the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 determines that the connection destination of the electronic device 200c is the second communication unit 44, and accordingly determines to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200c from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44.

[0110] Figure 8 4 shows a state in which the electronic device 200c is simultaneously connected to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44. The first communication unit 42 transmits a signal (wait instruction signal) for instructing the electronic device 200c to enter a state of waiting for a connection request to the electronic device 200c, and while the electronic device 200c maintains connection to the first communication unit 42, it operates in a paging scan mode of waiting for a connection request from the second communication unit 44. The electronic device 200c receives the connection request from the second communication unit 44 and establishes connection to the second communication unit 44. Figure 8 This status is shown.

[0111] Fig. 9 A state is shown in which the electronic device 200c cancels the connection with the first communication unit 42. The first communication unit 42 sends a disconnection request to the electronic device 200c to cancel the connection with the electronic device 200c. Fig. 9 This state is shown.

[0112] Fig.10 A state is shown in which the fourth electronic device 200d is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42. The electronic device 200d sends a connection request to the first communication unit 42 to establish a connection to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode.

[0113] The connection management unit 102 acquires the number of connections of the external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 and the number of connections of the external devices connected to the second communication unit 44. Fig.10 In the connection state shown, the first communication unit 42 is connected to two electronic devices 200b and 200d, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to two electronic devices 200a and 200c. The allocation processing unit 104 allocates the newly established electronic device 200d to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 so that the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 becomes equal to or less than the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44. In the state where the fourth electronic device 200d establishes a connection with the first communication unit 42 ( Fig.10), the connection number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 is equal to the connection number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 determines that the connection destination of the electronic device 200d can be the first communication unit 42, and accordingly determines not to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200d.

[0114] Fig.11 A state is shown in which the third electronic device 200c is disconnected from the second communication unit 44. For example, if the user of the electronic device 200c ends the game of the electronic device 200c and logs out from the device body 3, the connection between the electronic device 200c and the second communication unit 44 is canceled.

[0115] After the connection between the electronic device 200c and the communication device 2 is canceled, the connection management unit 102 acquires the number of connections of the external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 and the number of connections of the external devices connected to the second communication unit 44. Fig.11 In the connection state shown, the first communication unit 42 is connected to two electronic devices 200b and 200d, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a. The allocation processing unit 104 performs allocation processing using the end of the wireless connection with the electronic device 200c (the communication device was once connected to the electronic device 200c) as a trigger (or in other words, in response to detection). Specifically, the allocation processing unit 104 changes the connection destination of the already connected electronic device 200d so that the connection number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 becomes equal to or less than the connection number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44. Fig.11 In the state shown, since the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 is greater than the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44, the allocation processing unit 104 determines to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200d from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44.

[0116] Fig.12The state in which the electronic device 200d is connected to the second communication unit 44 is shown. When the connection destination is to be switched, the electronic device 200d receives a waiting instruction signal from the first communication unit 42, and enters a state of waiting for a connection request from the second communication unit 44. The instruction processing unit 214 in the electronic device 200d performs switching between a communication period with the first communication unit 42 and a scanning period for waiting for a connection request from the second communication unit 44 alternately and periodically according to a timing signal included in the waiting instruction signal. If the request processing unit 216 in the electronic device 200d accepts the connection request from the second communication unit 44, connection processing is performed between the electronic device 200d and the second communication unit 44, and after a state in which the electronic device 200d is simultaneously connected to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44, the electronic device 200d is disconnected from the first communication unit 42 and connected only to the second communication unit 44.

[0117] At the time point when the waiting instruction signal is received, the electronic device 200d is in a state where data communication of voice data and the like has been completed with the first communication unit 42, and these situations are similar to those described above. Figure 4 The situation of performing new connection processing shown in S22 of . Therefore, the connection processing unit 50 sets the timing information TI2 so that when the data communication between the electronic device 200d and the first communication unit 42 is preferentially retained, the connection processing unit 50 can establish wireless communication to the second communication unit 44 during this period. The connection processing unit 50 can set the timing information TI2 so that the communication period (first period) with the first communication unit 42 as the connection switching source is longer than the scanning period (second period) in which the connection processing unit 50 waits for a connection request from the communication unit 44 as the connection switching destination. In other words, the timing information TI1 sent at the time of new connection processing can be different from the timing information TI2 sent after the start of data communication.

[0118] It should be noted that although Fig.12 In the example, the connection destination of the electronic device 200d has been switched from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44, but when the connection destination is also to be switched from the second communication unit 44 to the first communication unit 42, the connection processing unit 50 can place the timing information TI2 into the waiting instruction signal, and the second communication unit 44 can send the waiting instruction signal to the electronic device 200d.

[0119] In the communication system 1 of this embodiment, the allocation processing unit 104 determines the connection destination of the external device to be the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44, so that the communication load with the external device on the first communication unit 42 becomes equal to or lower than the communication load with the external device on the second communication unit 44.

[0120] Therefore, even if data communication is started between the communication device 2 and the electronic apparatus 200, a switching process of the connection destination of the electronic apparatus 200 is performed in response to a change in the connection environment between the communication device 2 and the electronic apparatus 200. In particular, if, in a state where one of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 is wirelessly connected to the electronic apparatus 200, after a wait instruction signal including the timing information TI2 is transmitted to the electronic apparatus 200, the electronic apparatus 200 establishes the other of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44, then cancels the wireless connection between one of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 and the electronic apparatus 200. Since the allocation processing unit 104 determines the connection destination of the external apparatus based on a reference using the communication load, a stable paging scan mode operation of the first communication unit 42 is guaranteed to the new external apparatus.

[0121] In the communication system 1 of the present embodiment, since the electronic device 200 performs paging processing on the first communication unit 42, when the connection is first established between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200, the electronic device 200 becomes (or acts as) the master device, and the first communication unit 42 becomes (or acts as) the slave device. Thereafter, in order to send and receive data for voice chat, games, etc., the communication device 2 and the electronic device 200 need to become the master device and the slave device, respectively, so that the communication of the electronic device 200 is controlled by the communication device 2. Therefore, as Figure 4 As shown in S20 , the role management unit 106 sends a role switching instruction for switching the roles of the master device and the slave device to the electronic device 200 through the first communication unit 42 to switch the electronic device 200 to the slave device and switch the first communication unit 42 to the master device.

[0122] Despite Figure 4 In the example, only one electronic device 200 establishes a wireless connection to the first communication unit 42 at the time point S18 (due to Figure 4 1 shows a sequence starting from a BT wake-up state), but after the communication device 2 is started, for example, Figure 7 As shown, in a state where the electronic device 200 b is already connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode, the electronic device 200 c may try to newly establish a connection to the first communication unit 42 .

[0123] Fig.13 1 shows a timing diagram when the electronic device 200b pages the first communication unit 42. At this time, the first communication unit 42 is not connected to the external device. In the case where the first communication unit 42 is not connected to the external device, it waits for a connection request in the first mode in which the waiting period P1 is relatively long.

[0124] The electronic device 200b sends a connection request (paging) to the first communication unit 42. The first communication unit 42 establishes a connection with the electronic device 200b at time t1. At time t1, the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200b are in Figure 4 The state at S18 in the sequence of , and at the time of establishing the connection, the first communication unit 42 becomes the slave device, and the electronic device 200b becomes the master device. Therefore, the role management unit 106 recognizes their roles.

[0125] After the electronic device 200b is connected, the role management unit 106 controls the period during which the first communication unit 42 operates as a slave device in response to the communication situation of other external devices other than the electronic device 200b to the first communication unit 42. Fig.13 At the time point of time t1 depicted in FIG. 1 , the first communication unit 42 is not connected to any other external device. In this case, the role management unit 106 causes the first communication unit 42 to operate as a slave for a period in which the role switching process is performed at time t3 after time t1.

[0126] After time t1, the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200b send information required for data communication, such as clock information and communication parameters, and after the process ends and the information has been sent or transmitted, at time t2, the role management unit 106 sends a role switching instruction for switching the roles of the master device and the slave device to the electronic device 200b through the first communication unit 42. The connection processing unit 50 in the first communication unit 42 and the instruction processing unit 214 in the electronic device 200b perform role switching in synchronization with each other at time t3 after a predetermined period of time after sending the role switching instruction. Therefore, the electronic device 200 operates as a slave device, and the first communication unit 42 operates as a master device. In this way, if any other external device other than the electronic device 200b is not connected, the role management unit 106 can cause the first communication unit 42 to operate as a slave device until the role switching process is performed according to the role switching instruction.

[0127] Thus, in general, when the communication unit is connected to a given external device, the control unit is configured to control a period during which the communication unit operates as a slave in response to a communication situation between the communication unit and an external device different from the given external device.

[0128] Fig.141 shows a timing diagram when the electronic device 200c performs paging on the first communication unit 42. At this time, the first communication unit 42 is already in a state of communicating with the electronic device 200b in the active mode. In the case where the first communication unit 42 is connected to an external device, it waits for a connection request in the second mode in which the waiting period P2 is relatively short. Therefore, the first communication unit 42 can wait for a connection request from a new electronic device 200c while maintaining communication of voice data, etc. with the electronic device 200b.

[0129] To this end, the waiting period P2 is preferably set to a period during which the communication between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200b is not disturbed. For example, in the case where the communication cycle of the voice data between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200b is 10ms, the waiting period P2 is preferably set to a period less than 10ms. This enables the first communication unit 42 to wait for a connection request from the new electronic device 200c between the time zones for sending and receiving voice data.

[0130] The electronic device 200c sends a connection request (paging) to the first communication unit 42. The first communication unit 42 establishes a connection with the electronic device 200c at time t11. At this time, the first communication unit 42 becomes a slave device, and the electronic device 200c becomes a master device, and the role management unit 106 identifies their roles. After the electronic device 200c is connected, the role management unit 106 controls the period of time during which the first communication unit 42 operates as a slave device in response to the communication status of the first communication unit 42 with other external devices other than the electronic device 200c. Fig.14 In the illustrated state, the first communication unit 42 has been connected to the electronic device 200b, and the role management unit 106 controls the period during which the first communication unit 42 operates as a slave in the following manner.

[0131] and Fig.13 Unlike the situation shown, at time t11, the first communication unit 42 periodically performs data communication with the electronic device 200b, and if the first communication unit 42 continues to be a slave device during the period until time t13 when the role switching is performed based on the role switching instruction, the first communication unit 42 cannot communicate with the electronic device 200b. This means that in the case where the user of the electronic device 200b is having a voice chat, the voice chat is temporarily interrupted during the period from time t11 to time t13.

[0132] Therefore, when the first communication unit 42 establishes a connection to the electronic device 200c, if it is already connected to the other electronic device 200b, the role management unit 106 alternately performs switching between a period in which the first communication unit 42 operates as a slave and another period in which the first communication unit 42 operates as a master. The period in which the first communication unit 42 operates as a master is a period in which data communication is possible between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200b, and the period in which the first communication unit 42 operates as a slave is a period in which information required for data communication between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200c can be sent and received.

[0133] Fig.15 1 shows the state of the first communication unit 42 from time t11 to time t13. Here, "S" indicates a period when the first communication unit 42 is a slave device, and "M" indicates a period when the first communication unit 42 is a master device. The role management unit 106 periodically and alternately sets the slave period and the master period so that the first communication unit 42 can send and receive information required for communication with the electronic device 200c in the slave period, and can communicate data with the electronic device 200b in the master period.

[0134] The period during which the first communication unit 42 operates as a slave is set based on the communication cycle with the already connected electronic device 200b. For example, in the case where the communication period of voice data between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200b is 10ms, setting the period during which the first communication unit 42 operates as a slave to a period shorter than 10ms makes it possible to send and receive information with the new electronic device 200c between the time zones for sending and receiving voice data.

[0135] In the BT protocol, a BT communication device that becomes a master performs transmission in even time slots, and another BT communication device that becomes a slave performs transmission in odd time slots. The time slot cycle is 625 μs, and the transmission operation of the master and the transmission operation of the slave are defined by the BT clock of the master.

[0136] Fig.16 The BT clock is shown. The clock counter integrated in the BT communication device generates a 28-bit BT clock with a clock rate of 3.4KHz. Here, the time slot is defined by the bit C1, and the master device performs a transmission operation in an even time slot (C1=0) and a reception operation in an odd time slot (C1=1).

[0137] In the communication system 1 of the present embodiment, the communication device 2 includes two communication units, the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44. For example, if the second communication unit 44 performs a receiving operation during a sending operation of the first communication unit 42, the sending operation of the first communication unit 42 becomes to interfere with the receiving operation of the second communication unit 44. Therefore, it is preferable to avoid a conflict of sending and receiving between the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44.

[0138] Fig.17 1 shows a timing diagram of transmission and reception in the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44. In the first communication unit 42, the communication control unit 52 switches between the transmission operation and the reception operation in response to the value of the predetermined bit (C1) of the clock counter 56 (which generates the clock signal of the first communication unit having a plurality of consecutive bits (C0, C1, ... CN)). Similarly, in the second communication unit 44, the communication control unit 62 similarly switches between the transmission operation and the reception operation in response to the value of the predetermined bit (C1) of the clock counter 64 (which generates the clock signal of the second communication unit having a plurality of consecutive bits). Therefore, as Fig.17 As shown, by synchronizing the value of the predetermined bit (C1) of the clock counter 56 and the value of the predetermined bit (C1) of the clock counter 64, the transmission operation and the reception operation of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 can be synchronized with each other. The predetermined bit (C1) of the clock counter 56 and the predetermined bit (C1) of the clock counter 64 are bits located at the same position, which is the second bit from the least significant bit (LSB).

[0139] The first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 in the present embodiment are formed on the same chip, and the clock counter 56 and the clock counter 64 can generate a BT clock based on a clock signal of a common system clock oscillator.

[0140] The clock counter 56 provides a counter reset signal as a sideband signal to the clock counter 64. In the case where the lowest 2 bits (C1, C0) are 0, the clock counter 56 outputs the counter reset signal. When receiving the counter reset signal, the clock counter 64 sets the lowest 2 bits (C1, C0) to 0. Therefore, the clock counter 56 and the clock counter 64 can synchronize the value of the bit C1 defining the time slot with each other, and the communication control unit 52 of the first communication unit 42 and the communication control unit 62 of the second communication unit 44 can synchronize the transmission and reception operations with each other.

[0141] It should be noted that the communication control unit 52 and the communication control unit 62 synchronize the transmission and reception operations with each other, and preferably communicate with each other at frequencies different from each other. Since the frequency hopping pattern is determined using the BT device address of the master device, the communication control unit 52 can determine the frequency hopping pattern using the BT device address of the first communication unit 42 as it is, and the communication control unit 62 can determine the frequency hopping pattern by offsetting the BT device address of the first communication unit 42 by a predetermined value. This makes it possible to surely make the frequencies to be used by the communication control unit 52 and the communication control unit 62 different from each other.

[0142] It should be noted that although the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 in the embodiment include the clock counter 56 and the clock counter 64, respectively, in a different example, a clock counter common to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 arranged on the same chip may be provided so that the BT clock from the common clock counter is provided to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44. Alternatively, the clock counter 56 may generate a BT clock from a clock signal of a system clock oscillator, and provide the generated BT clock and a counter reset signal to the clock counter 64 so that the values ​​of the bits C1 of the designated time slots are synchronized with each other. It should be noted that although it is presupposed in the present embodiment that the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are arranged on the same chip, even in the case where they are arranged on different chips, by providing a counter reset signal from the clock counter 56 to the clock counter 64, the values ​​of the bits C1 defining the time slots can be synchronized with each other.

[0143] Therefore, in the exemplary embodiment, the bit synchronization of the clock counter 56 and the clock counter 64 is performed only for the lower 2 bits (C1, C0). Each bit can define a so-called time slot (or period) within the clock cycle defined by the bit sequence. As described above, the master device performs a send operation in an even time slot (C1=0) and performs a receive operation in an odd time slot (C1=1). To achieve this, only bit C1 may be synchronized, but in the exemplary arrangement, both C1 and C0 are set to 0 for counter reset. Bits C2 and higher are not affected by the counter reset. Therefore, a "given bit" can be C1, or C0 and C1.

[0144] The present invention is described on the basis of this embodiment. This embodiment is exemplary, and those skilled in the art should recognize that various modifications may be made to the components or processes of this embodiment, and these modifications are still within the scope of the present invention.

[0145] exist Figure 4In the sequence shown, in which the electronic device 200 operates in the paging scan mode in a state where the electronic device 200 is notified of the device ID information of the second communication unit 44 from the first communication unit 42, the electronic device 200 is able to fully respond to the connection request from the second communication unit 44 having the notified device ID information. Even if the electronic device 200 is not notified of the device ID information of the second communication unit 44, it can respond to the connection request from the second communication unit 44. It is to be noted that when the electronic device 200 is notified of the device ID information of the second communication unit 44, the electronic device 200 can send a connection request including the device ID information of the second communication unit 44 to the second communication unit 44 to establish a connection.

[0146] Now take the reference as Figure 18 to Figure 24 Schematic flow charts are provided to describe example methods that represent at least some of the above-described techniques.

[0147] Fig.18 is a schematic flow chart showing a wireless connection method for establishing a wireless connection to a communication device including a plurality of communication units of the same type, the method comprising:

[0148] Step 1800, retaining identification information of one of the communication units obtained through the pairing process performed with the communication unit; and

[0149] Step 1810, sending a connection request including identification information of a communication unit.

[0150] Fig.19 is a schematic flow chart showing an operation method of a communication device having a first communication unit and a second communication unit of the same type as the first communication unit, the communication device being capable of wirelessly connecting to an external device, the method comprising:

[0151] The first communication unit waits (at step 1900) for a connection request from an external device; and

[0152] In response to receipt of the connection request, the second communication unit wirelessly connects (at step 1910) to the external device from which the first communication unit received the connection request.

[0153] Fig. 20 is a schematic flowchart showing a connection destination determination method for determining a connection destination of an external device in a communication device, the communication device including a first communication unit and a second communication unit of the same type as the first communication unit, the method comprising:

[0154] Step 2000, obtaining a communication status between the first communication unit and the external device and another communication status between the second communication unit and the external device; and

[0155] Step 2010: Determine a connection destination of the external device to the first communication unit or the second communication unit based on the acquired communication situation.

[0156] Fig.21 is a schematic flow chart showing a method of wirelessly connecting a communication device including a first communication unit and a second communication unit of the same type as the first communication unit to an external device, the first communication unit or the second communication unit performing:

[0157] Step 2100, establishing a wireless connection to an external device; and

[0158] Step 2110: Send a waiting instruction signal to the external device to instruct the external device to enter a state where the external device waits for a connection request.

[0159] Fig. 22 is a schematic flow chart showing a wireless connection method for establishing a wireless connection to a communication device, comprising:

[0160] Step 2200, sending a connection request to a communication device; and

[0161] Step 2210: After establishing a connection to the communication device, receive an instruction to enter a state of waiting for a connection request.

[0162] Fig.23 is a schematic flow chart showing an operation method of a communication device including a communication unit operating as one of a master device and a slave device to control a state of the communication unit, the method comprising:

[0163] Step 2300, establishing a connection between the communication unit and the external device; and

[0164] Step 2310, in response to a communication situation between the communication unit and an external device different from the external device, controlling a period during which the communication unit operates as a slave device.

[0165] Fig.24 is a schematic flow chart showing an operation method of a communication device having a first communication unit and a second communication unit of the same type as the first communication unit; the method comprising:

[0166] Each of the first communication unit and the second communication unit performs switching between a transmission operation and a reception operation in response to a value of a given bit of a corresponding clock signal having a plurality of consecutive bits (at step 2400); and

[0167] A value of a given bit of the clock signal of the first communication unit and a value of a given bit of the clock signal of the second communication unit are synchronized with each other (at step 2410).

[0168] Fig.25A computer or computer processor that can be used to implement any one or more components of the above-mentioned communication device or electronic device is schematically shown. For example, control or other functions such as those provided by any one or more of units 34, 50, 52, 54, 56, 60, 62, 64, 102, 104, 106 can be implemented by executing program instructions by such a computer. Similarly, control or other functions such as those provided by any one or more of units 210, 212, 214, 216, 220, 222, 224 can be implemented by executing program instructions by such a computer. The computer includes a central processing unit (CPU) 2500, a random access memory (RAM) 2510, a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium (NTMRSM) 2520 (e.g., a read-only memory, a hard disk, an optical disk, a flash memory, etc. through which program instructions are provided) and an input / output (I / O) circuit 2510, and the above components are interconnected by a bus arrangement 2540.

[0169] A description of a variation will now be given.

[0170] Fig.26 is a diagram showing a sequence of the electronic device 200 and the communication apparatus 2 according to a variation of establishing a wireless connection therebetween. Figure 4 and Fig.26 The processes denoted by the same numbers in the figure are the same or similar processes. In the wake-up BT state, the first communication unit 42 operates in a paging scan mode, in which the first communication unit 42 waits for a connection request from the external electronic device 200 (S10). The connection processing unit 50 of the first communication unit 42 waits for a connection request (paging) from an electronic device 200 included in the connectable device ID list.

[0171] In the electronic device 200, the connection request unit 212 reads out the device ID information of the first communication unit 42 from the reservation unit 222, and sends a connection request including the device ID information of the first communication unit 42 to the first communication unit 42 (S12). In the first communication unit 42, when the connection processing unit 50 receives the connection request from the electronic device 200 having the device ID included in the device ID list, it outputs a wake-up signal to the system controller 20 according to the wake-up parameter (S14). When the system controller 20 receives the wake-up signal, it starts the host block 30 and the USB module 46 to activate the USB connection between the USB module 32 and the USB module 46.

[0172] In the control unit 34, the connection management unit 102 downloads the firmware into the second communication unit 44 through the USB connection to initialize the second communication unit 44. Therefore, the second communication unit 44 is placed in a state capable of wirelessly connecting to the external electronic device 200 (S16). The connection management unit 102 performs authentication processing and encryption processing with the electronic device 200, and the first communication unit 42 establishes a connection with the electronic device 200 in an active mode, which is a data transmission mode in which data can be transmitted (S18). The active mode is a connection mode in which the communication block 40 and the electronic device 200 send and receive data to each other using multiple continuous time slots. In order to transmit data such as voice data between the communication block 40 and the electronic device 200, the communication block 40 and the electronic device 200 need to be connected to each other in the active mode.

[0173] At the time point when the connection is established in the active mode, the electronic device 200 as the paging device is the master device, and the first communication unit 42 as the paged device is the slave device. The role management unit 106 sends a role switching instruction for switching the roles of the master device and the slave device to the electronic device 200 through the first communication unit 42 (S20). In the electronic device 200, the instruction processing unit 214 accepts the role switching instruction. After a predetermined time interval after sending the role switching instruction, the connection processing unit 50 and the instruction processing unit 214 in the first communication unit 42 perform the role switching of the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200 synchronously with each other. Therefore, the electronic device 200 starts to operate as a slave device, and the first communication unit 42 of the communication device 2 starts to operate as a master device. Afterwards, the first communication unit 42 instructs the electronic device 200 to establish a state in which the electronic device 200 waits for acceptance of a connection request (S22).

[0174] The connection management unit 102 obtains the communication status between the first communication unit 42 and the external device and the communication status between the second communication unit 44 and the external device. When the connection is established at S18, the first communication unit 42 is connected to one electronic device 200, while the second communication unit 44 is not connected to any electronic device 200.

[0175] Fig. 27 A state in which the first electronic device 200a is connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode is shown. The connection management unit 102 may acquire the number of external devices to which the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are respectively connected in the active mode as the communication situation.

[0176] In a variation, the electronic device 200 is connected to one of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 in a data transmission mode in which data can be transmitted, and is connected to the other of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 in a data non-transmission mode in which data is not transmitted. Detailed description is as follows.

[0177] In a variant, the data transmission mode is an active mode in which a data transmission period is protected. In the data transmission mode, data used in a process performed in an information processing device that integrates the communication device 2 is transmitted and / or received. In the case where the information processing device is a game device, data for running a game or voice data for voice chat can be transmitted and received in the data transmission mode.

[0178] In the case where the electronic device 200 is a peripheral device such as a headset or a game controller, the electronic device 200 transmits the data input by the user to the communication unit in a data transmission mode, and the communication unit transmits the user's output data to the electronic device 200 in a data transmission mode. The data input by the user includes, for example, voice data initiated by the user or data required for executing a game (application). The data required for executing the game may include the operation data of the controller and the motion data of the controller. The user's output data may include voice data in the game and voice data initiated by another user.

[0179] The data non-transmission mode may be a connection mode in which data cannot be transmitted, or may be a connection mode in which data can be transmitted but is not transmitted. In the data non-transmission mode, data input by the user and data output by the user are not transmitted between the electronic device 200 and the communication unit. In this variant, control data of the electronic device 200 or status data indicating the status of the electronic device 200 is transmitted in the data transmission mode, but these data items may be transmitted in the non-transmission mode as an exception.

[0180] Therefore, the electronic device 200 according to this variation is connected to one of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 so that data communication can be performed, and is connected to the other of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 so that data communication is not performed. For example, in the case where three or more communication units are provided in the communication block 40, the electronic device 200 is connected to one of the communication units in a data transmission mode, and is connected to the other communication units in a data non-transmission mode.

[0181] In the data non-transmission mode, an extremely short period within the communication cycle is defined as a communication enable period for maintaining synchronization, and the remaining time of the communication cycle is defined as a non-communication period. For example, the communication enable period in the communication cycle in the data non-transmission mode can be 1 / 10 or shorter than the non-communication period. A variant of the data non-transmission mode may be a sniffing mode, in which data packets for maintaining synchronization are sent and received by using only a predetermined number of time slots (e.g., two time slots) in a predetermined time interval (N time slots). In the sniffing mode, the N time slots defining the predetermined time interval are called sniffing cycles, and N can be such that N=300. The sniffing mode is a power-saving connection mode for the purpose of operating and maintaining synchronization in a power saving mode. The data non-transmission mode may be a connection mode in a format other than the sniffing mode, as long as it is a mode that does not transmit data but can maintain communication synchronization.

[0182] In the sniffing mode, the electronic device 200 connected to the communication unit sends and receives data packets to and from the communication unit only during two sniffing time slots defined within a sniffing loop consisting of 300 consecutive time slots. During 298 time slots other than the two sniffing time slots, the electronic device 200 does not perform any processing on the communication unit connected in the sniffing mode. In the sniffing mode, the master device sends a predetermined polling data packet, and the slave device receiving the data packet returns an empty data packet, and the data packet communication is completed in the sniffing loop to maintain synchronization. In the sniffing mode, the communication parameters for the connection are maintained so that no new paging processing or verification processing is required when the connection mode is changed from the sniffing mode to the active mode.

[0183] The allocation processing unit 104 performs allocation processing for determining a connection destination of an external device to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 in the data transmission mode (active mode) based on the communication conditions of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 acquired by the connection management unit 102. The allocation processing unit 104 preferably determines the connection destination of the external device to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 in the active mode so that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 with the external device is equal to or lower than the communication load on the second communication unit 44 with the external device. In other words, the allocation processing unit 104 preferably makes the communication load on the first communication unit 42 having the function of waiting for a connection request from the external electronic device 200 equal to or lower than the communication load on the second communication unit 44 not having the function.

[0184] The allocation processing unit 104 preferably performs allocation processing so that the communication load on the second communication unit 44 is not excessively greater than the communication load on the first communication unit 42 while ensuring that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 is equal to or lower than the communication load on the first communication unit 42. For example, the allocation processing unit 104 preferably performs allocation processing so that, under the condition that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 is equal to or lower than the communication load on the first communication unit 42, the difference between the communication load on the second communication unit 44 and the communication load on the first communication unit 42 does not exceed a predetermined threshold.

[0185] In the present variation, the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are connected to the electronic device 200 in one of the active mode and the sniffing mode. The communication load carried during the connection in the sniffing mode is extremely lower than the communication load carried during the connection in the active mode. In this context, the allocation processing unit 104 can determine the connection destination of the external device in the active mode by ignoring the communication load during the sniffing mode and determining the relative size of the communication load based on the number of external devices to which the first communication unit 42 is connected in the active mode and the number of external devices to which the second communication unit 44 is connected in the active mode.

[0186] like Fig. 27 As shown, when only one electronic device 200 is connected to the communication apparatus 2 , the allocation processing unit 104 preferably determines the connection destination of the electronic device 200 in active mode to the second communication unit 44 so that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 is lighter than the communication load on the second communication unit 44 .

[0187] Therefore, the communication load used as a reference for the allocation processing unit 104 to decide the allocation destination may be the number of external devices to which each communication unit is connected in the active mode. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 may allocate external devices to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 in the active mode so that the number of external devices to which the first communication unit 42 is connected in the active mode is equal to or less than the number of external devices to which the second communication unit 44 is connected in the active mode.

[0188] It should be noted that the communication load used as a reference may be the amount of communication data between each communication unit and the external device. Although the data amount of voice data in the voice chat with the electronic device 200 is large, the data amount of the operation data of the game controller is small. Therefore, the connection management unit 102 may monitor the amount of communication data between each communication unit and the electronic device 200, and the allocation processing unit 104 may determine the connection destination of the electronic device 200 so that the communication load on the first communication unit 42 becomes lower than the communication load on the second communication unit 44. The communication load to be used as a reference may be the communication error rate in each communication unit or may be a combination of some of them.

[0189] Alternatively, the communication load to be used as a reference may be predicted based on the function of the electronic device 200 or the on / off state of the function. For example, if the microphone is not connected to the electronic device 200, the communication load on the electronic device 200 is predicted to be low, and, on the other hand, if the microphone is connected, the communication load on the electronic device 200 is predicted to be high or will become high. The connection management unit 102 may notify the allocation processing unit 104 of the availability of the function in the electronic device 200 or the on / off state of the function. The allocation processing unit 104 may determine the connection destination of the electronic device 200 by predicting the communication load.

[0190] exist Fig. 27 In the state shown, only one electronic device 200a has been connected to the communication apparatus 2. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 determines to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200a in the active mode from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44. The allocation processing unit 104 initiates the connection processing of the already connected electronic device to the second communication unit 44. Specifically, the allocation processing unit 104 causes the electronic device 200a to operate in a scanning mode (e.g., a paging scanning mode) and causes the second communication unit 44 to send a connection request to the electronic device 200a. To this end, in S22, the first communication unit 42 sends a signal (a wait instruction signal) for instructing the electronic device 200a to establish a state in which the electronic device 200a waits for a connection request from the second communication unit 44.

[0191] The allocation processing unit 104 notifies the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 that the connection destination of the electronic device 200a in the active mode will be switched from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44. At this time, the allocation processing unit 104 also notifies the device ID information (BT device address) of the electronic device 200a to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44. Therefore, the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 recognize that they will operate so that the electronic device 200a currently connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode is connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode, and is connected to the first communication unit 42 in the sniffing mode.

[0192] In the first communication unit 42, the connection processing unit 50 sends a waiting instruction signal to the electronic device 200a (S22). The waiting instruction signal may include identification information of a device (e.g., a communication unit) from which a connection request is to be sent (in this example, the device ID information of the second communication unit 44). In the electronic device 200a, the instruction processing unit 214 receives the waiting instruction signal and accepts the instruction to enter a state in which it waits for a connection request from the second communication unit 44. Therefore, while the instruction processing unit 214 maintains the connection with the first communication unit 42 in the active mode, the request processing unit 216 operates in the paging scan mode to wait for a connection request from the second communication unit 44 (S24).

[0193] At this time, the instruction processing unit 214 operates to alternately switch the communication period (first period) for communicating with the first communication unit 42 and the scanning period (second period) for waiting for a connection request from the second communication unit 44. The connection processing unit 50 may put timing information defining the alternate switching between the first period and the second period into the waiting instruction signal, so that the instruction processing unit 214 alternately and periodically switches between the communication period for communicating with the first communication unit 42 and the scanning period for waiting for a connection request from the second communication unit 44 according to the timing information included in the waiting instruction signal.

[0194] It should be noted that the connection processing unit 50 preferably sets the timing information in response to the connection status of the electronic device 200 and the communication equipment 2 in the active mode. Fig.26 At the moment of S22, the electronic device 200a is in a stage of performing a new connection process with the communication device 2 and has not yet started data communication such as voice data with the first communication unit 42. Therefore, the connection processing unit 50 sets the timing information TI1 so that the electronic device 200a can quickly establish a wireless connection with the second communication unit 44. For example, the connection processing unit 50 may set the timing information TI1 indicating that the second period is longer than the first period.

[0195] In the paging scan mode performed in the scan period (second period), the request processing unit 216 waits for a connection request from the second communication unit 44, which has the device ID information included in the waiting instruction signal. In the second communication unit 44, the connection processing unit 60 sends a connection request including the device ID information of the electronic device 200a to the electronic device 200a (S26). If the request processing unit 216 accepts the connection request, a connection process including an authentication process and an encryption process is performed between the request processing unit 216 and the connection processing unit 60. Therefore, the second communication unit 44 is connected to the electronic device 200 in the active mode (S28).

[0196] Fig.28 The state in which the first electronic device 200a is connected to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 in the active mode is shown. If the connection management unit 102 detects that the second communication unit 44 and the electronic device 200a are connected, it instructs the first communication unit 42 to change the connection mode for connecting to the electronic device 200a to the sniffing mode. Upon receiving the instruction, the connection processing unit 50 sends a change request to the electronic device 200 to change the connection mode (S40). It should be noted that the mode change request can be sent from the electronic device 200 to the first communication unit 42. Thereafter, the connection mode between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200a is changed to the sniffing mode (S42). Then, the first communication unit 42 operates in the paging scan mode to wait for a connection request from the external electronic device 200 (S34), and waits for a connection request (paging) from the electronic device 200 included in the connectable device ID list.

[0197] The above describes the process when the first electronic device 200a establishes a connection to the communication apparatus 2. Hereinafter, the process when the second and subsequent electronic devices 200 establish a connection to the communication apparatus 2 is described. Fig.29 The first electronic device 200a is shown according to Fig.26 The wireless connection sequence shown is a state of being wirelessly connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode and being wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42 in the sniffing mode.

[0198] Fig.30 A state in which the second electronic device 200b is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode is shown. The electronic device 200b sends a connection request to the first communication unit 42 to establish a connection with the first communication unit 42 in the active mode.

[0199] The connection management unit 102 obtains the communication status between the first communication unit 42 and the external device and the communication status between the second communication unit 44 and the external device. Fig.30In the connection state shown, the first communication unit 42 is connected to one electronic device 200b in the active mode, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a in the active mode. The connection management unit 102 acquires the number of electronic devices 200 to which the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are respectively connected in the active mode as the communication situation. The allocation processing unit 104 performs processing for determining the connection destination of the electronic device 200b to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 in the active mode based on the number of electronic devices 200 to which the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are respectively connected in the active mode.

[0200] The allocation processing unit 104 determines the connection destination of the newly connected electronic device to the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44 in the active mode so that the communication load with the external device on the first communication unit 42 is equal to or lower than the communication load with the external device on the second communication unit 44. In a state where the second electronic device 200b establishes a connection with the first communication unit 42 in the active mode ( Fig.30 ), the first communication unit 42 is connected to one electronic device 200b in active mode, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a in active mode, and the communication loads on the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 are equal to each other. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 determines that there is no problem that the connection destination of the electronic device 200b in active mode is the first communication unit 42.

[0201] Thus, the second electronic device 200b is determined to be wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode and wirelessly connected to the second communication unit 44 in the sniffing mode. Before connecting to the second communication unit 44 in the sniffing mode, the electronic device 200b Fig.26 Steps S24, S26 and S28 are shown connecting to the second communication unit 44 in active mode.

[0202] Fig.31 The state in which the second electronic device 200b is connected to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 in the active mode is shown. If the connection management unit 102 detects that the second communication unit 44 and the electronic device 200a are connected in the active mode, it instructs the second communication unit 44 to change the connection mode for connecting to the electronic device 200b to the sniffing mode. Receiving the instruction, the connection processing unit 60 sends a change request to the electronic device 200 to change the connection mode. It should be noted that the mode change request can be sent from the electronic device 200 to the second communication unit 44. Thereafter, the connection mode between the second communication unit 44 and the electronic device 200b is changed to the sniffing mode.

[0203] Fig.32 A state in which the connection mode between the second communication unit 44 and the electronic device 200b is changed to the sniffing mode is shown. Therefore, in the present variant, the control unit 34 connects one of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 to the electronic device 200 in an active mode in which data can be transmitted, and connects the other of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 to the electronic device 200 in a sniffing mode in which data is not transmitted. In other words, the electronic device 200 is connected to the first communication unit 42 in an active mode in which data can be transmitted, and is connected to the second communication unit 44 in a sniffing mode having a shorter communication enable period than the active mode and not used for transmitting data. When the allocation processing unit 104 changes the connection destination of the electronic device 200 in the active mode in response to, for example, a change in the connection environment, since the electronic device 200 is already connected to the communication unit to which the connection is switched in the sniffing mode, the process of changing the connection destination in the active mode can be instantly performed without performing a new paging process or a verification process.

[0204] Fig.33 A state is shown in which the third electronic device 200c is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42. The electronic device 200c sends a connection request to the first communication unit 42 to establish a connection to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode.

[0205] The connection management unit 102 acquires the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode and the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode. Fig.33 In the connection state shown, the first communication unit 42 is connected to two electronic devices 200b and 200c in the active mode, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a in the active mode. The allocation processing unit 104 determines the connection destination of the newly established electronic device 200c in the active mode to be the first communication unit 42 or the second communication unit 44, so that the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode becomes equal to or less than the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode. In the state where the third electronic device 200c establishes a connection to the first communication unit 42 ( Fig.33 44), the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode is greater than the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 104 determines that the connection destination of the electronic device 200c in the active mode is the second communication unit 44, and accordingly determines to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200c in the active mode from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44.

[0206] Fig.34 2 shows a state where the electronic device 200c is connected to the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 at the same time in the active mode. Fig.33 The first communication unit 42 in the connection state shown transmits a waiting instruction signal to the electronic device 200c, and while the electronic device 200c maintains the connection with the first communication unit 42 in the active mode, it operates in the paging scan mode waiting for a connection request from the second communication unit 44. The electronic device 200c receives the connection request from the second communication unit 44 and establishes the connection to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode. Fig.34 This state is shown.

[0207] Fig.35 The state in which the connection between the electronic device 200c and the first communication unit 42 is changed to the sniffing mode is shown. The connection management unit 102 instructs the first communication unit 42 to change the connection mode with the electronic device 200c to the sniffing mode. Upon receiving the instruction, the connection processing unit 50 sends a change request to the electronic device 200c to change the connection mode. Thereafter, the connection mode between the first communication unit 42 and the electronic device 200c is changed to the sniffing mode.

[0208] Fig.36 There is shown a state in which the fourth electronic device 200d is connected to the communication block 40. The electronic device 200d is wirelessly connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode, and is wirelessly connected to the second communication unit 44 in the sniff mode.

[0209] Fig.37 A state is shown in which the third electronic device 200c is disconnected from the communication block 40. For example, if the user of the electronic device 200c ends the game and logs out from the device body 3, the connection between the electronic device 200c and the communication block 40 is canceled.

[0210] After canceling the connection between the electronic device 200c and the communication device 2, the connection management unit 102 acquires the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode and the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode. Fig.37In the connection state shown, the first communication unit 42 is connected to two electronic devices 200b and 200d in the active mode, and the second communication unit 44 is connected to one electronic device 200a in the active mode. The allocation processing unit 104 performs allocation processing, which is triggered by the termination of the wireless connection with the electronic device 200c so far. In particular, the allocation processing unit 104 changes the connection destination of the electronic device 200d in the active mode so that the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 in the active mode becomes equal to or less than the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode. Fig.37 In the state shown, since the number of external devices connected to the first communication unit 42 in active mode is greater than the number of external devices connected to the second communication unit 44 in active mode, the allocation processing unit 104 determines to change the connection destination of the electronic device 200d in active mode from the first communication unit 42 to the second communication unit 44.

[0211] Fig.38 The state in which the electronic device 200d is connected to the second communication unit 44 in the active mode and connected to the first communication unit 42 in the sniffing mode is shown. In this variation, when the connection destination in the active mode is switched, the paging process or the verification process required in the present embodiment is not required. Therefore, the data communication between the electronic device 200 and the communication apparatus 2 is appropriately maintained.

[0212] In this process, the control unit 34 changes the connection in the sniffing mode between the electronic device 200d and the second communication unit 44 to the connection in the active mode, and then changes the connection in the active mode to the connection in the sniffing mode between the electronic device 200d and the first communication unit 42. By following the above process, the data communication between the electronic device 200d and the communication device 2 can be properly maintained without being interrupted.

[0213] In the present variation, when the connection between one of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 and the electronic device 200 is canceled, the control unit 34 may cancel the connection between the other of the first communication unit 42 and the second communication unit 44 and the electronic device 200. For example, when the duration of the disconnection exceeds a predetermined period, the connection management unit 102 determines to cancel the connection with the electronic device 200. By ensuring that the connection with one party is canceled when it is determined to cancel the connection with the other party, the connection with the electronic device 200 can be easily managed.

[0214] It should be noted that although various techniques have been described separately for clarity of description, embodiments may use any one or more of the techniques discussed above, such that the various techniques may be combined in any arrangement.

[0215] [Industrial Applicability]

[0216] The present invention is applicable to wireless communication technology.

[0217] [Reference Symbol List]

[0218] 1…communication system, 2…communication device, 34…control unit, 40…communication block, 42…first communication unit, 44…second communication unit, 50…connection processing unit, 52…communication control unit, 54…reservation unit, 56…clock counter, 60…connection processing unit, 62…communication control unit, 64…clock counter, 102…connection management unit, 104…allocation processing unit, 106…role management unit, 200…electronic device, 210…connection processing unit, 212…connection request unit, 214…instruction processing unit, 216…request processing unit, 220…communication control unit, 222…reservation unit, 224…clock counter.

Claims

1. A communication device, comprising: a first communication unit; as well as a second communication unit of the same type as the first communication unit, The communication device is capable of wirelessly connecting to an external device, wherein The first communication unit is configured to wait for a connection request from an external device, and the second communication unit is configured to wirelessly connect to the external device from which the first communication unit received the connection request, Wherein, the first communication unit is configured to wait for a connection request in a first mode in which a waiting period is longer than a predetermined time when the first communication unit is not connected to an external device in a data transmission mode, and the first communication unit is configured to wait for a connection request in a second mode in which a waiting period is shorter than the predetermined time when the first communication unit is connected to an external device in a data transmission mode.

2. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein The second communication unit is configured not to wait for a connection request from an external device.

3. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein When the first communication unit receives a connection request from an external device, the first communication unit is configured to notify the second communication unit of information of the external device.

4. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein The first communication unit and the second communication unit are provided on the same chip.

5. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein The first communication unit and the second communication unit are connected to a single universal serial bus module.

6. An electronic device capable of wirelessly connecting to a communication device, the communication device comprising a plurality of communication units of the same type, the device comprising: a retaining unit configured to retain identification information of one of the communication units obtained through a pairing process performed with the communication device; as well as a connection processing unit configured to send a connection request including identification information of the one communication unit, wherein a first communication unit among the plurality of communication units is configured to wait for a connection request in a first mode in which a waiting period is longer than a predetermined time when the first communication unit is not connected to an external device in a data transmission mode, and the first communication unit is configured to wait for a connection request in a second mode in which a waiting period is shorter than the predetermined time when the first communication unit is connected to an external device in a data transmission mode.

7. A wireless connection method for establishing a wireless connection to a communication device, the communication device comprising a plurality of communication units of the same type, the method comprising: a step of retaining identification information of one of the communication units obtained through a pairing process performed with the communication device; as well as a step of sending a connection request including identification information of said one communication unit, wherein a first communication unit among the plurality of communication units is configured to wait for a connection request in a first mode in which a waiting period is longer than a predetermined time when the first communication unit is not connected to an external device in a data transmission mode, and the first communication unit is configured to wait for a connection request in a second mode in which a waiting period is shorter than the predetermined time when the first communication unit is connected to an external device in a data transmission mode.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including a program, the program including computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to implement the following functions, the computer being capable of wirelessly connecting to a communication device including a plurality of communication units of the same type, the functions comprising: a function for retaining identification information of one of the communication units obtained through a pairing process with the communication device; as well as a function for sending a connection request including identification information of said one communication unit, wherein a first communication unit among the plurality of communication units is configured to wait for a connection request in a first mode in which a waiting period is longer than a predetermined time when the first communication unit is not connected to an external device in a data transmission mode, and the first communication unit is configured to wait for a connection request in a second mode in which a waiting period is shorter than the predetermined time when the first communication unit is connected to an external device in a data transmission mode.

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