Base station, control method, and program

Abstract

To contribute to an adoptive selection of a transmission scheme of a radio communication.SOLUTION: A base station 10 comprises: a communication IF 11 that has a function for performing a radio communication in a plurality of transmission systems; a communication IF 12 that performs a communication with a terminal 20; an acquisition part 13 that acquires an identifier of a communication device 25 as a communication mating of the radio communication of the communication IF 11 from the terminal 20 via the communication IF 12; a generation part 14 that transmits a communication frame using the identifier acquired by the acquisition part 13 as a destination via the communication IF 11 by using each of the plurality of transmission systems, respectively, and generates invalidity information indicating the communication frame transmitted is received by the communication device 25; and a display control part 15 that controls a display of the invalidity information by the terminal 20 by transmitting the invalidity information generated by the generation part 14 to the terminal 20 via the communication IF 12.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a base station, a control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Wireless communication can be performed in various environments. For example, when there are many conductors (e.g., metals) around a wireless communication device, wireless communication loss may occur due to the effect of multipath. When wireless communication loss occurs, it leads to a decrease in the quality of wireless communication, such as a compression of the communication band due to frequent retransmissions or an increase in delay.

[0003] Wireless communication is performed using a transmission method selected from among a number of transmission methods that a base station can use for wireless communication. In general, there is a trade-off between a transmission method with a relatively high transmission rate and a transmission method with a relatively low transmission rate, which has a relatively high tolerance to loss. Therefore, if an appropriate transmission rate is selected according to the environment, it is possible to achieve both low loss and a high transmission rate in wireless communication.

[0004] There is a technology that automatically selects an optimal effective communication rate depending on the communication environment, enabling communication with high throughput (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-115893 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] When a wireless communication base station is installed, it is sometimes difficult for the base station to select an appropriate transmission method in the environment.

[0007] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and has an object to provide a base station and the like that contributes to appropriate selection of a transmission method for wireless communication. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] Hereinafter, examples of inventions that can be obtained from the disclosure of this specification will be given, and the effects and the like that can be obtained from these inventions will be described.

[0009] (1) A base station comprising: a first communication interface having a function of performing wireless communication using a plurality of transmission methods; a second communication interface for communicating with a terminal; an acquisition unit that acquires an identifier of a communication device that is a communication partner of the wireless communication of the first communication interface from the terminal through the second communication interface; a generation unit that transmits a communication frame addressed to the identifier acquired by the acquisition unit through the first communication interface using each of the plurality of transmission methods and generates success / failure information indicating whether the transmitted communication frame has been received by the communication device; and a display control unit that controls the terminal to display the success / failure information by transmitting the success / failure information generated by the generation unit to the terminal through the second communication interface.

[0010] According to the above aspect, the base station displays, on the terminal, success / failure information obtained as a result of actual wireless communication with the communication device using each of a plurality of transmission methods. By visually checking the success / failure information displayed on the terminal, the user can recognize the communication quality obtained as a result of actual wireless communication around the base station, and can determine which transmission method is suitable or unsuitable for wireless communication, making it possible to appropriately select the wireless communication transmission method. By using the communication quality obtained as a result of actual wireless communication by the base station, the actual wireless communication environment is reflected in the success / failure information, which has the effect of making the user's selection of the wireless communication transmission method more appropriate. In this way, the base station can contribute to an appropriate selection of the wireless communication transmission method.

[0011] (2) The base station described in (1), wherein the first communication interface has a function of retransmitting a communication frame if the transmitted communication frame is not received by the communication device, and the generation unit obtains the number of retransmissions of the communication frame by the first communication interface when transmitting multiple communication frames using each of the multiple transmission methods, and generates the success / failure information indicating the number of retransmissions.

[0012] According to the above aspect, the base station uses the number of retransmissions performed when the communication frame is not received by the communication device as success / failure information, so that the base station can more easily obtain appropriate success / failure information, and can more easily contribute to the selection of an appropriate transmission method for wireless communication.

[0013] (3) The base station described in (1) or (2), wherein the multiple transmission methods include multiple transmission methods for wireless communication using radio waves of multiple frequency bands, and the generation unit, before transmitting the communication frame, identifies a frequency band among the multiple frequency bands that is used for wireless communication with the communication device by transmitting and receiving an ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol) frame, which is a communication frame that includes an ICMP message, between the communication device and the generation unit, and when transmitting the communication frame, transmits the communication frame using the identified frequency band.

[0014] According to the above aspect, the base station identifies the frequency band used for wireless communication before transmitting the communication frame used to generate the success / failure information, so there is no need to identify the frequency band when transmitting the communication frame for generating the success / failure information. Therefore, compared to the case where the frequency band is identified when transmitting the communication frame for generating the success / failure information, the communication frame can be appropriately transmitted in a short time. Therefore, the base station can more appropriately contribute to the appropriate selection of the transmission method for wireless communication.

[0015] (4) The base station described in any of (1) to (3), wherein the display control unit further controls the terminal to display an input field that accepts from a user one or more candidate transmission methods to be used for wireless communication with the communication device among the multiple transmission methods, and the acquisition unit further acquires candidate information indicating the one or more candidate transmission methods accepted by the terminal through the input field, and the base station further includes a communication control unit that determines one transmission method to be used for wireless communication with the communication device from the one or more candidate transmission methods indicated in the candidate information acquired by the acquisition unit, and controls the first communication interface to perform wireless communication using the determined one transmission method.

[0016] According to the above aspect, the user can intuitively select a candidate transmission method, and the base station can perform wireless communication using one of the candidate transmission methods received from the user. In other words, the base station can prevent a transmission method that is not included in the candidate transmission methods received from the user from being used in wireless communication. Therefore, the base station can take into account the candidates received from the user when determining the transmission method to be used in wireless communication with the communication device. In this way, the base station can contribute to more appropriate selection of the transmission method for wireless communication by taking into account the candidates received from the user.

[0017] (5) The base station described in (4), wherein the display control unit sets an initial value for the input field using the success / failure information generated by the generation unit, and controls displaying the input field with the initial value set.

[0018] According to the above aspect, the base station sets initial values ​​in the input fields when accepting candidates for the transmission method from the user, and therefore can assist the user in selecting an appropriate transmission method, making it easier for the user to select. In this way, the base station can more appropriately contribute to the appropriate selection of the transmission method for wireless communication by making it easier for the user to select.

[0019] (6) The base station described in (5), wherein the first communication interface has a function of retransmitting a communication frame if the transmitted communication frame is not received by the communication device, the generation unit obtains a number of retransmissions of the communication frame by the first communication interface when the communication frames are transmitted using each of the plurality of transmission methods, and generates the success / failure information indicating the number of retransmissions, and the display control unit, when setting the initial value, identifies one or more transmission methods by using the success / failure information to exclude one or more transmission methods from the plurality of transmission methods for which the number of retransmissions exceeds a reference value, and sets the identified one or more transmission methods as an initial value of the input field.

[0020] According to the above aspect, the base station sets one or more transmission methods excluding a transmission method for which the number of retransmissions exceeds a reference value as an initial value in an input field when accepting a candidate transmission method from a user, and therefore can support the user in selecting a transmission method from among the one or more transmission methods. This allows the base station to make the user's selection easier. In this way, the base station can contribute to the appropriate selection of a transmission method for wireless communication by making it easier for the user to select.

[0021] (7) A base station described in any of (4) to (6), wherein the communication control unit transmits the candidate information to the communication device, thereby controlling the communication device to determine one transmission method to be used for wireless communication with the base station from among the multiple transmission methods in accordance with the candidate information.

[0022] According to the above aspect, the base station can control the communication device to perform wireless communication using one of the transmission method candidates received from the user. In other words, the base station can prevent the communication device from using a transmission method not included in the transmission method candidates received from the user for wireless communication. Therefore, the base station can take the candidate received from the user into consideration when determining the transmission method that the communication device will use for wireless communication with the base station. In this way, the base station can contribute to more appropriate selection of the transmission method for wireless communication by taking into consideration the candidate received from the user.

[0023] (8) The base station according to any one of (1) to (7), wherein the plurality of transmission methods differ in one or more of the number of streams, the modulation method, and the coding rate.

[0024] According to the above aspect, the base station contributes to appropriately selecting a transmission scheme for wireless communication from among a plurality of transmission schemes that differ from each other in one or more of the number of streams, the modulation scheme, and the coding rate.

[0025] (9) A control method for a base station having a first communication interface having a function of wireless communication using a plurality of transmission methods and a second communication interface for communicating with a terminal, the control method including: an acquisition step of acquiring an identifier of a communication device that is a communication partner of wireless communication of the first communication interface from the terminal through the second communication interface; a generation step of transmitting a communication frame addressed to the identifier acquired in the acquisition step through the first communication interface using each of the plurality of transmission methods, and generating success / failure information indicating whether the transmitted communication frame was received by the communication device; and a display control step of controlling the terminal to display the success / failure information generated in the generation step by transmitting the success / failure information to the terminal through the second communication interface.

[0026] According to the above aspect, the same effects as those of the above base station are achieved.

[0027] (10) A program for causing a computer to execute the control method described in (9).

[0028] According to the above aspect, the same effects as those of the above base station are achieved.

[0029] The present invention can be realized not only as an apparatus, but also as a method in which the processing means constituting the apparatus are steps, as a program for causing a computer to execute those steps, as a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM on which the program is recorded, or as information, data, or signals indicating the program.These programs, information, data, and signals may be distributed via a communication network such as the Internet. Effect of the Invention

[0030] The present invention provides an effect that a base station contributes to an appropriate selection of a transmission method for wireless communication. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0031] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a base station according to an embodiment; [Diagram 2] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a plurality of transmission methods that can be used for wireless communication by a communication interface of a base station according to an embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing processing of a base station and a terminal according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an input screen for the address of a communication device, displayed on the terminal according to the embodiment; [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram showing processing of a base station according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] 11 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of success / failure information displayed on the terminal according to the embodiment; FIG. [Figure 7] 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a first example of an input field for transmission method candidates displayed on the terminal according to the embodiment; FIG. [Figure 8]FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a second example of an input field for transmission method candidates displayed on the terminal according to the embodiment; [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing a process of a communication system according to a modified example of an embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of an association response frame according to a modified example of an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0032] Hereinafter, the embodiment will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

[0033] The embodiments described below each show a preferred specific example of the present invention. The numerical values, shapes, materials, components, the arrangement and connection of the components, steps, and the order of steps shown in the following embodiments are merely examples and are not intended to limit the present invention. Furthermore, among the components in the following embodiments, those components that are not described in the independent claims showing the highest concept of the present invention are described as any components that constitute a more preferred embodiment. Note that the same components are given the same reference numerals and descriptions may be omitted.

[0034] (Embodiment) In this embodiment, a base station and a communication system that contribute to an appropriate selection of a transmission method for wireless communication will be described.

[0035] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a base station 10 and a communication system 1 according to the present embodiment.

[0036] The communication system 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a base station 10, a terminal 20, and a communication device 25.

[0037] The base station 10 is a base station for wireless communication. The base station 10 contributes to an appropriate selection of a transmission method for wireless communication between the base station 10 and the communication device 25. The base station 10 is communicably connected to the terminal 20, and is also wirelessly connected to the communication device 25. The configuration and functions of the base station 10 will be described in detail later.

[0038] The terminal 20 is an information terminal including at least a communication IF (interface), a display, and an operation unit (none of which are shown) that accepts operations by a user. The communication IF, the display, and the operation unit may be controlled by a processor included in the terminal 20. The terminal 20 is communicably connected to the base station 10 via the communication IF, acquires information provided by the base station 10 (specifically, success / failure information and input screen information, etc.), and displays the acquired information on the display as an image. It is assumed that the image displayed by the terminal 20 is visually recognized by a user. The operation unit accepts input of an operation by a user on an input field or a button included in the image displayed on the display. The terminal 20 (specifically, the communication IF) can transmit the contents of the operation accepted by the operation unit (specifically, a value entered in an input field, or an operation on a button, etc.) to the base station 10. The display and the operation unit may be configured as a touch panel display. The terminal 20 is, for example, a personal computer, a smartphone, a tablet, or the like.

[0039] The communication device 25 is a communication device having at least a communication IF for wireless communication. The communication device 25 may be an information terminal (such as a personal computer, a smartphone, or a tablet) or may be any communication device having a communication IF (such as a relay device or a home appliance). The communication device 25 is connected to the base station 10 via the communication IF so as to be able to wirelessly communicate with the base station 10.

[0040] 1, the base station 10 includes a communication IF 11, a communication IF 12, an acquisition unit 13, a generation unit 14, a display control unit 15, and a communication control unit 16. The acquisition unit 13, the generation unit 14, the display control unit 15, and the communication control unit 16 can be realized by a processor included in the base station 10 executing a predetermined program using a memory.

[0041] The communication IF 11 is a communication interface capable of wireless communication with the communication device 25. The communication IF 11 has an antenna and a wireless circuit for transmitting and receiving radio waves for wireless communication.

[0042] The communication IF 11 has a function of performing wireless communication using a plurality of transmission methods. The communication standard of the wireless communication of the communication IF 11 is, for example, IEEE802.11a, 11b, 11g, 11n, 11ac, or 11ax. The plurality of transmission methods differ in one or more of the number of spatial streams, the modulation method, and the coding rate. The plurality of transmission methods may also include a plurality of transmission methods that perform wireless communication using radio waves in a plurality of frequency bands (for example, the 2.4 GHz band and the 5 GHz band). The plurality of transmission methods will be described in detail later.

[0043] In this example, the communication standard of the communication IF 11 is IEEE802.11ax. In this case, each of the multiple transmission methods is uniquely identified by an MCS (Modulation and Coding Scheme) index and the number of spatial streams (also simply referred to as the number of streams).

[0044] When the communication standard of the communication IF 11 is IEEE802.11ac, each of the multiple transmission methods is uniquely identified by the MCS index and the number of spatial streams, similarly to the case of IEEE802.11ax.

[0045] Furthermore, when the communication standard of the communication IF 11 is IEEE802.11n, each of the multiple transmission methods is uniquely identified by the MCS index.

[0046] Furthermore, when the communication standard of the communication IF 11 is IEEE802.11a, 11b, or 11g, each of the multiple transmission methods is uniquely identified by the modulation method, the coding rate, and the like.

[0047] The communication IF 11 has a function of retransmitting a transmitted communication frame when the transmitted communication frame is not received by the communication device 25. Specifically, when the communication IF 11 transmits a communication frame addressed to the communication device 25, the communication IF 11 goes into a standby state for receiving an ACK (Acknowledgement) frame from the communication device 25 indicating that the communication frame has been received by the communication device 25. Then, when the communication IF 11 does not receive an ACK frame within a predetermined time after transmitting the communication frame, the communication IF 11 retransmits the communication frame. Note that the communication IF 11 repeats retransmission up to a predetermined number of times (e.g., seven times) until it receives an ACK frame from the communication device 25.

[0048] It should be noted that the communication IF 11 can communicate with the communication device 25 as an access point (AP) in infrastructure mode, for example, but is not limited to this.

[0049] The communication IF 12 is a communication interface capable of communicating with the terminal 20. The communication IF 12 may be a communication interface of a communication standard for wired communication (e.g., Ethernet (registered trademark) or IEEE802.3, etc.) or a communication interface of a communication standard for wireless communication (e.g., IEEE802.11a, 11b, 11g, 11n, 11ac, or 11ax, etc.).

[0050] The acquiring unit 13 acquires an identifier of the communication device 25 as a communication partner in the communication test executed by the generating unit 14. The identifier is identification information capable of uniquely identifying the communication device 25, for example, a communication address (also simply referred to as an address), and more specifically, an IP address. Note that, although a case where the identifier is an IP address will be described here as an example, the identifier may be another address (for example, a MAC (Media Access Control) address) or another identification information (for example, a product number or unique number of the communication device 25, a name set for the communication device 25, etc.).

[0051] Specifically, the acquisition unit 13 acquires an address of a communication device 25 that is a communication partner of wireless communication of the communication IF 11 from the terminal 20 via the communication IF 12. The address acquired by the acquisition unit 13 is used as an address of a communication partner of a communication test executed by the generation unit 14.

[0052] Furthermore, the acquisition unit 13 can acquire candidate information indicating one or more transmission method candidates from the terminal 20 through the communication IF 12. The one or more transmission method candidates acquired by the acquisition unit 13 are used as transmission method candidates for wireless communication between the base station 10 and the communication device 25.

[0053] The generation unit 14 executes a communication test with the communication device 25 using each of the multiple transmission methods to generate success / failure information indicating the success / failure of wireless communication with the communication device 25. Specifically, the generation unit 14 uses the communication IF 11 to transmit a communication frame addressed to an address that is an identifier acquired by the acquisition unit 13, using each of the multiple transmission methods. Then, the generation unit 14 generates success / failure information indicating whether the transmitted communication frame has been received by the communication device 25.

[0054] The generating unit 14 obtains the number of retransmissions of the communication frames by the communication IF 11 when a plurality of communication frames are transmitted using each of a plurality of transmission methods, and generates success / failure information indicating the number of retransmissions.

[0055] Before transmitting the communication frame, the generation unit 14 may perform a process of identifying a frequency band used for wireless communication with the communication device 25 among the multiple frequency bands. Specifically, before transmitting the communication frame, the generation unit 14 transmits and receives a communication frame (also referred to as an ICMP frame) including an Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) message between the communication device 25, thereby being able to identify a frequency band used for wireless communication with the communication device 25 among the multiple frequency bands. In this case, when transmitting the communication frame, the generation unit 14 can transmit the communication frame using the identified frequency band.

[0056] The display control unit 15 controls the terminal 20 to display the success / failure information generated by the generation unit 14 by transmitting the success / failure information to the terminal 20 via the communication IF 12. The control by the display control unit 15 to display the success / failure information on the terminal 20 may include transmitting drawing data (e.g., drawing data written in HTML (HyperText Markup Language)) depicting the success / failure information to the terminal 20. The terminal 20 that has received the drawing data can display the success / failure information on the display of the terminal 20 in accordance with the received drawing data. A user who visually checks the displayed input field can consider one or more candidate transmission methods to be used by the base station 10 for communication with the communication device 25 with reference to the success / failure information.

[0057] Furthermore, the display control unit 15 can control the terminal 20 to display an input field that accepts from the user one or more candidates of transmission methods that the wireless IF 11 uses for wireless communication with the communication device 25 among a plurality of transmission methods. The control by the display control unit 15 to display the input field by the terminal 20 can include transmitting drawing data (e.g., drawing data described in HTML) that draws the input field to the terminal 20. The terminal 20 that receives the drawing data can display the input field on the display of the terminal 20 according to the received drawing data. It is assumed that the user who visually checks the displayed input field performs an operation to input one or more candidates of transmission methods that the base station 10 uses for communication with the communication device 25 into the input field. The terminal 20 generates candidate information indicating the candidates input by the user into the input field and transmits it to the base station 10, and the candidate information transmitted in this manner is acquired by the acquisition unit 13.

[0058] Furthermore, when controlling the display of an input field, the display control unit 15 may set an initial value of the input field in advance using the success / failure information generated by the generation unit 14. In this case, the display control unit 15 can control the display of the input field in which the initial value is set.

[0059] More specifically, the display control unit 15 can use the success / failure information to identify one or more transmission methods by excluding one or more transmission methods from among the multiple transmission methods for which the number of retransmissions exceeds a reference value, and set the identified one or more transmission methods as the initial value of the input field.

[0060] The communication control unit 16 determines one transmission method that the communication IF 11 uses for wireless communication with the communication device 25, and controls the communication IF 11 to perform wireless communication in the determined one transmission method. Specifically, the communication control unit 16 determines one transmission method that is used for wireless communication with the communication device 25 from among one or more transmission method candidates indicated in the candidate information acquired by the acquisition unit 13 based on the control by the display control unit 15, and controls the communication IF 11 to perform wireless communication in the determined one transmission method.

[0061] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a plurality of transmission methods that the communication IF 11 of the base station 10 according to the present embodiment can use for wireless communication.

[0062] Here, a case where the communication standard of the communication IF 11 is IEEE802.11ax will be described as an example.

[0063] 2 indicates one transmission method among a plurality of transmission methods that can be used for wireless communication by the communication IF 11. Each transmission method can be uniquely identified by an MCS index and the number of streams.

[0064] 2 indicates a transmission scheme in which the MCS index is 0 and the number of streams is 1. In this transmission scheme, BPSK (Binary Phase Shift Keying) is used as the modulation scheme, and the coding rate is 1 / 2.

[0065] Moreover, entry 32 indicates a transmission scheme in which the MCS index is 1 and the number of streams is 1. In this transmission scheme, QPSK (Quadrature Phase Shift Keying) is used as the modulation scheme, and the coding rate is 1 / 2.

[0066] Moreover, entry 35 indicates a transmission scheme in which the MCS index is 0 and the number of streams is 2. In this transmission scheme, BPSK is used as the modulation scheme and the coding rate is 1 / 2.

[0067] Moreover, entry 36 indicates a transmission scheme in which the MCS index is 1 and the number of streams is 2. In this transmission scheme, QPSK is used as the modulation scheme and the coding rate is 1 / 2.

[0068] The processing of the base station 10 and the communication system 1 configured as above will be described below.

[0069] 3 is a sequence diagram showing the processing of the base station 10 and the terminal 20 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3 shows the processing of each step that is performed when the terminal 20 is connected to the base station 10.

[0070] At the time when step S101 is executed, a process of establishing a communication link for wireless communication between the base station 10 and the communication device 25 has already been performed, and wireless communication between the base station 10 and the communication device 25 is possible.

[0071] In step S101, the display control unit 15 transmits input screen information including an address input field to the terminal 20. The terminal 20 receives the input screen information.

[0072] In step S102, terminal 20 uses the input screen information received in step S101 to display an address input field as an image on the display of terminal 20. It is assumed that the user performs an operation to input an address into the input field displayed on the display of terminal 20.

[0073] In step S103, the terminal 20 accepts an address input by the user in the input field.

[0074] In step S104, the terminal 20 transmits the address accepted in step S103 to the base station 10. The acquisition unit 13 uses the communication IF 12 to receive the transmitted address.

[0075] In step S105, the generation unit 14 executes a communication test using the address received by the acquisition unit 13. In the communication test, the generation unit 14 actually transmits a communication frame using each of the multiple transmission methods via the communication IF 11. The detailed processing included in step S105 will be described in detail later.

[0076] In step S106, the generation unit 14 uses the results of the communication test executed in step S105 to generate success / failure information indicating whether or not the communication frames actually transmitted using each of the multiple transmission methods were received by the communication device 25.

[0077] In step S107, the display control unit 15 transmits the success / failure information generated by the generation unit 14 in step S106 to the terminal 20. The terminal 20 receives the transmitted success / failure information. The display control unit 15 may perform control to convert the success / failure information generated by the generation unit 14 into a format suitable for display by the terminal 20, and then transmit the information to the terminal 20. Specifically, the display control unit 15 may convert the success / failure information generated by the generation unit 14 into drawing data (for example, drawing data written in HTML) for drawing, and then transmit the information to the terminal 20.

[0078] In step S108, the terminal 20 displays the success / failure information received in step S107 as an image on the display.

[0079] In step S111, the display control unit 15 transmits input screen information including an input field for transmission method candidates to the terminal 20. The terminal 20 receives the transmitted input screen information.

[0080] In step S112, the terminal 20 uses the input screen information received in step S111 to display an input field for transmission method candidates as an image on the display of the terminal 20. It is assumed that the user performs an operation to input the transmission method candidates into the input field displayed on the display of the terminal 20.

[0081] For example, by inputting a transmission method with a relatively high number of retransmissions as an exception, the user may be able to reduce the retransmission rate, thereby reducing the bandwidth occupancy rate and the RTT (round trip time).In addition, by inputting a transmission method with a relatively low transmission rate as an exception, the user may be able to secure the minimum communication bandwidth that should be guaranteed.

[0082] In step S113, the terminal 20 accepts the candidates input by the user in the input field.

[0083] In step S114, the terminal 20 generates candidate information indicating the candidates accepted in step S113, and transmits the candidate information to the base station 10. The acquisition unit 13 uses the communication IF 12 to receive the transmitted candidate information.

[0084] In step S115, the base station 10 (communication control unit 16) uses the candidate information received in step S114 to determine a transmission method (i.e., an MCS index and the number of streams) to be used in communication with the communication device 25. Thereafter, when the base station 10 transmits a communication frame to the communication device 25 via the communication IF 11, the base station 10 can transmit the communication frame using the transmission method determined in step S115. In this case, the base station 10 may transmit the candidate information to the communication device 25, and determine the transmission method based on this candidate information when the communication device 25 performs transmission.

[0085] The base station 10 may transmit the success / failure information in step S107 and the input screen information in step S111 as one process. Furthermore, the base station 10 may generate drawing data for drawing one screen including the success / failure information and the input screen information as a process corresponding to steps S106 and S108. In this case, the terminal 20 uses the received drawing data to display one screen including the success / failure information and the input screen information as an image on the display.

[0086] Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an input screen displayed by terminal 20 according to the present embodiment for inputting the address of communication device 25. The input screen shown in Fig. 4 is an example of an input screen that terminal 20 displays as an image on the display in step S102.

[0087] The input screen information transmitted by the base station 10 in step S101 includes, for example, drawing data for drawing the input screen shown in FIG. 4 (for example, drawing data written in HTML).

[0088] The input screen shown in FIG. 4 includes an input field 40 and a send button 42.

[0089] The input field 40 is an image of an input field that accepts a user's input of the address of the communication device 25. When a user operates the input field 40 to input an address, the operation unit can accept the address.

[0090] The send button 42 is an image of a button that accepts an address sending operation by the user. When the user operates the send button 42, the operation unit can accept the operation. When the send button 42 is operated, the terminal 20 transmits the address entered in the input field 40 to the base station 10 as the address of the communication partner of the communication test of the base station 10.

[0091] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram showing the processing of base station 10 according to the present embodiment.

[0092] The series of processes shown in FIG. 5 is a detailed process included in step S105 in FIG.

[0093] In step S201, the base station 10 executes a process of identifying a frequency band for the communication device 25. Specifically, the base station 10 transmits an ICMP frame (more specifically, an Echo Request) to the communication device 25, and receives an ICMP frame (more specifically, an Echo Reply) transmitted by the communication device 25 that has received the ICMP frame. By performing the process of step S201, when the base station 10 can wirelessly communicate with the communication device 25 in a plurality of frequency bands, the base station 10 can identify the frequency band that is actually used to transmit the communication frame from among the plurality of frequency bands. Specifically, the base station 10 can receive, for example, an ICMP frame, and can receive a notification that the destination was unreachable based on the type and code stored in the ICMP frame, and can know whether the destination communication device 25 was able to receive the frame. The process of step S201 is not essential. In addition, the communication frame to be used does not have to be an ICMP frame, and can be any communication frame that can confirm that the communication device 25 has received the communication frame transmitted by the base station 10 when the communication frame is transmitted.

[0094] In step S202, the generating unit 14 performs a start process of loop A in which the processes of steps S203 to S206 described later are repeatedly executed. In loop A, the generating unit 14 focuses on each of a plurality of transmission methods, executes a process using the focused transmission method, and is controlled so that the process using all of the plurality of transmission methods is finally executed. The focused transmission method is also called the focused transmission method.

[0095] As described above, a transmission scheme is uniquely identified by a pair of an MCS index and the number of streams, so performing processing while focusing on each of a plurality of transmission schemes means performing processing while focusing on each of all pairs (m, s) consisting of each MCS index m and each number of streams s. In the above, m is an integer value between 0 and the maximum value of the MCS index, and s is an integer value between 1 and the maximum value of the number of streams.

[0096] In step S203, the generation unit 14 acquires statistical information of the communication IF 11 at the current time. The statistical information of the communication IF 11 includes at least the number of retransmissions of the communication IF 11 at the current time. The number of retransmissions of the communication IF 11 at the current time is, for example, the number of retransmissions from the time when the base station 10 (or the communication IF 11) was most recently started up to the current time. Note that, if the number of retransmissions of the communication IF 11 has been reset, it may be the number of retransmissions from the time when the number of retransmissions of the communication IF 11 was most recently reset to the current time.

[0097] In step S204, the generating unit 14 transmits a communication frame addressed to the communication device 25 using the communication IF 11 and the transmission method of interest. The number of communication frames transmitted by the generating unit 14 is arbitrary, and may be, for example, 1000, but is not limited to this. The data and frame length included in the communication frame transmitted by the generating unit 14 are arbitrary, and may be, for example, a communication frame including a 1470-byte UDP (User Datagram Protocol) packet, but is not limited to this. In addition, for example, the communication frame may have a frame length of 1000 bytes or more, or 1400 bytes or more. The longer the frame length, the more likely it is that the communication is lost due to the influence of noise, etc. in wireless communication. Therefore, by using a communication frame with a relatively long frame length, a communication test can be performed assuming an environment relatively close to the worst case.

[0098] After transmitting each communication frame, the communication IF 11 waits for an ACK frame from the communication device 25 indicating that the communication frame has been received by the communication device 25, and retransmits the communication frame if the ACK frame is not received within a predetermined time after transmitting the communication frame.

[0099] In step S205, the generation unit 14 acquires statistical information of the current communication IF 11. The statistical information of the communication IF 11 includes at least the current number of retransmissions of the communication IF 11. The explanation of the current number of retransmissions of the communication IF 11 is the same as the explanation of step S203.

[0100] In step S206, the generation unit 14 uses the statistical information acquired in step S203 and the statistical information acquired in step S205 to calculate a difference in the statistical information before and after the transmission of the communication frame in step S204. The generation unit 14 calculates at least a difference in the number of retransmissions as the difference in statistical information. The difference in the statistical information before and after the transmission calculated by the generation unit 14 indicates how much the number of retransmissions has increased due to the transmission of the communication frame in step S204.

[0101] In step S207, the generation unit 14 performs an end process of loop A. Specifically, the generation unit 14 determines whether or not the processes of steps S203 to S206 have been performed with attention to each of the multiple transmission methods, and if not, controls to perform the processes with attention to the transmission methods that have not yet been performed.

[0102] When step S207 is completed, that is, when the processing of loop A is completed for all of the multiple transmission methods, the series of processing steps shown in FIG. 5 is completed.

[0103] Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of success / failure information displayed on a display by terminal 20 according to the present embodiment. The success / failure information shown in Fig. 6 is an example of success / failure information transmitted from base station 10 in step S107 and displayed as an image on a display by terminal 20 in step S108.

[0104] The success / failure information transmitted by the base station 10 in step S107 includes, for example, drawing data (for example, drawing data written in HTML) for drawing the success / failure information shown in FIG.

[0105] 6 shows, as an example of the success / failure information, the number of retransmissions by the communication IF 11 when 1000 communication frames are transmitted in each of a plurality of transmission methods. The plurality of transmission methods includes, for each of the MCS indexes 1 to 11, a transmission method with one stream and a transmission method with two streams, that is, a total of 22 transmission methods.

[0106] For example, it is shown that the number of retransmissions by the communication IF 11 when 1000 communication frames are transmitted using a transmission scheme with an MCS index of 0 and a number of streams of 1 is 0. It is also shown that the number of retransmissions by the communication IF 11 when 1000 communication frames are transmitted using a transmission scheme with an MCS index of 0 and a number of streams of 2 is 2.

[0107] Note that the column of the transmission method in which the number of retransmissions exceeds a reference value (for example, a fixed value of 100) may be displayed in a different manner from the column of the transmission method in which the number of retransmissions does not exceed the reference value. For example, the column of the transmission method in which the number of retransmissions exceeds a reference value and the column of the transmission method in which the number of retransmissions does not exceed the reference value may be displayed with different background colors, as shown in FIG. 6 (specifically, the column in which the number of streams is 2 and the MCS index is 8 to 11). Note that, as another example, the characters may be displayed in different modes (such as character size, font, color, or decoration). Note that the reference value is not limited to a fixed value, and may be, for example, 10% of the number of communication frames transmitted by the base station 10.

[0108] 7 and 8 are explanatory diagrams showing examples of input fields for transmission method candidates displayed by the terminal 20 according to the present embodiment.

[0109] The input screen information transmitted by the base station 10 in step S111 includes, for example, drawing data for drawing the input screen shown in FIG. 7 (for example, drawing data written in HTML).

[0110] The input screen shown in FIG. 7 includes an input field 60 for each transmission method candidate, an exclude button 62, and a send button 64.

[0111] The input field 60 is an image of an input field that receives an operation by a user as to whether or not each transmission method is to be a candidate for a transmission method to be used for communication between the communication IF 11 and the communication device 25. The input field 60 is, for example, a checkbox that includes a check mark when the transmission method is to be a candidate for a transmission method to be used for communication between the communication IF 11 and the communication device 25 and does not include a check mark when the transmission method is not to be a candidate for a transmission method to be used for communication between the communication IF 11 and the communication device 25. Each time the operation unit receives an operation on a checkbox by the user, the checkbox is switched between including a check mark (i.e., the transmission method corresponding to the checkbox is a candidate) and not including a check mark (i.e., the transmission method corresponding to the checkbox is not a candidate).

[0112] Note that an initial value for whether or not each transmission method is to be a candidate may be set in the input field 60. For example, Fig. 8 shows a case in which the initial value is set so that a transmission method for which the number of retransmissions exceeds a reference value (e.g., a fixed value of 100) in the result of the communication test shown in Fig. 6 is not to be a candidate. In Fig. 8, the checkboxes in the input field 60A for which the number of streams is 2 and the MCS index is 8 to 11 are not checked.

[0113] The exclusion button 62 is an image of a button that accepts a user's operation to exclude a transmission method with a relatively large number of retransmissions from the candidates. When the operation unit accepts an operation on the operation button, a transmission method with a number of retransmissions exceeding a reference value is not set as a candidate in wireless communication between the base station 10 and the communication device 25. In the example shown in Fig. 8, the check box with the number of retransmissions exceeding the reference value is changed to a state where it does not include a check mark.

[0114] The send button 64 is an image of a button that accepts a user's operation to send candidate information. The state of the input field 60 when the send button 64 is operated (more specifically, the presence or absence of a check mark) is transmitted from the terminal 20 to the base station 10 as candidate information.

[0115] As described above, the base station 10 of this embodiment can contribute to appropriate selection of a transmission method for wireless communication by using success / failure information obtained as a result of actual wireless communication with a communication device using each of a plurality of transmission methods.

[0116] (Modification of the embodiment) In this modification, a base station and a communication system that contribute to an appropriate selection of a transmission method for wireless communication will be described as an example different from the above embodiment. In this modification, the base station 10 provides candidate information acquired by the base station 10 to a new communication device, thereby contributing to the new communication device determining candidates for the transmission method to be used in wireless communication with the base station 10.

[0117] The configuration is the same as that of the base station 10 of the present modified example, but differs in that the communication control unit 16 transmits candidate information to a new communication device via the communication IF 11.

[0118] Specifically, the communication control unit 16 transmits the candidate information acquired by the acquisition unit 13 to the new communication device through the communication IF 11. The communication control unit 16 can transmit the candidate information by including it in a beacon frame or an authentication response frame. The communication device that receives the beacon frame or the authentication response frame including the candidate information can acquire the candidate information from the received beacon frame or the authentication response frame, and can determine the transmission method to be used for wireless communication with the base station 10 using the acquired candidate information.

[0119] Fig. 9 is a sequence diagram showing the process of the communication system according to the modification of the present embodiment. Fig. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of an association response frame according to the modification of the present embodiment.

[0120] Here, a case will be described in which the base station 10 (communication control unit 16) transmits candidate information included in an authentication response frame. The communication partner of the base station 10 is the communication device 26 (the above-mentioned new communication device). The communication device 26 may be an information terminal like the communication device 25 in the above-mentioned embodiment, or may be any communication device (e.g., a relay device, a home appliance, etc.) equipped with a communication IF.

[0121] The series of processes shown in FIG. 9 includes a process of establishing a communication link for wireless communication between the base station 10 and the communication device 26, which is executed after step S115 in FIG.

[0122] In step S301, the base station 10 transmits a beacon frame. The transmission of the beacon frame is generally repeated at predetermined time intervals (for example, 100 ms). The communication device 26 receives the transmitted beacon frame.

[0123] In step S302, the communication device 26 transmits a probe request frame to the base station 10. The base station 10 receives the transmitted probe request frame.

[0124] In step S303, the base station 10 transmits a probe response frame to the communication device 26. The communication device 26 receives the transmitted probe response frame.

[0125] In step S304, the communication device 26 transmits an authentication request frame to the base station 10. The base station 10 receives the transmitted authentication request frame.

[0126] In step S305, the base station 10 transmits an authentication response frame to the communication device 26. The communication device 26 receives the transmitted authentication response frame.

[0127] In step S306, the communication device 26 transmits an association request frame to the base station 10. The base station 10 receives the transmitted association request frame.

[0128] In step S307, the base station 10 transmits an association response frame to the communication device 26. The communication device 26 receives the transmitted association response frame.

[0129] In this modification, candidate information is included in the association response frame transmitted by the base station 10 by the base station 10 (communication control unit 16). An example of the association response frame including the candidate information is shown in Fig. 10. The association response frame 70 shown in Fig. 10 includes a MAC header 71 and a body 72. The body 72 includes candidate information 73. The candidate information 73 is the association information included in the association response frame 70 by the base station 10 (communication control unit 16).

[0130] In step S308, the communication device 26 acquires candidate information from the association response frame received in step S307.

[0131] In step S309, the base station 10 and the communication device 26 execute a four-way handshake process to share an encryption key to be used in communication.

[0132] In step S310, the communication device 26 determines the transmission method to be used for communication with the base station 10 from among the transmission method candidates indicated in the candidate information acquired in step S308.

[0133] In this way, by transmitting the candidate information to the communication device 26, the communication control unit 16 can control the communication device 26 to determine one transmission method to be used for wireless communication with the base station 10 from among a plurality of transmission methods in accordance with the candidate information.

[0134] As described above, the base station 10 of this modified example can contribute to an appropriate selection of a transmission method to be used by another communication device 26 for wireless communication with the base station 10, by using success / failure information obtained as a result of actual wireless communication with the communication device 25 using each of a plurality of transmission methods.

[0135] The present invention can be realized not only as an apparatus, but also as a method in which the processing means constituting the apparatus are steps, as a program for causing a computer to execute those steps, as a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM on which the program is recorded, or as information, data, or signals indicating the program.These programs, information, data, and signals may be distributed via a communication network such as the Internet.

[0136] Although the base station and the like of the present invention have been described above based on the embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. As long as it does not deviate from the spirit of the present invention, various modifications conceived by a person skilled in the art to this embodiment and forms constructed by combining components of different embodiments are also included within the scope of the present invention. [Industrial Applicability]

[0137] The present invention can be used in wireless communication base stations and the like. [Explanation of symbols]

[0138] 1. Communication Systems 10 base station 11, 12 Communication IF 13 Acquisition Department 14 Generation part 15 Display control section 16 Communication control section 20 Terminals 25, 26 Communication equipment 31, 32, 35, 36 entries 40, 60, 60A input field 42, 64 Send button 62 Exclude button 70 Attribution Response Frame 71 MAC Header 72 Body 73 Candidate Information

Claims

1. a first communication interface having a function of wirelessly communicating using a plurality of transmission methods; a second communication interface for communicating with the terminal; an acquisition unit that acquires, from the terminal via the second communication interface, an identifier of a communication device that is a communication partner of wireless communication of the first communication interface; a generation unit that transmits a communication frame addressed to the identifier acquired by the acquisition unit through the first communication interface by using each of the plurality of transmission methods, and generates success / failure information indicating whether the transmitted communication frame has been received by the communication device; a display control unit that controls the display of the success / failure information by the terminal by transmitting the success / failure information generated by the generation unit to the terminal via the second communication interface. Base station.

2. the first communication interface has a function of retransmitting a communication frame when the transmitted communication frame is not received by the communication device; The generation unit is Acquires the number of retransmissions of the communication frames by the first communication interface when the plurality of communication frames are transmitted using each of the plurality of transmission methods, and generates the success / failure information indicating the number of retransmissions. The base station according to claim 1 .

3. the plurality of transmission methods include a plurality of transmission methods for wireless communication using radio waves in a plurality of frequency bands, The generation unit is Before transmitting the communication frame, an ICMP frame, which is a communication frame including an ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol) message, is transmitted and received between the communication device and the communication device to identify a frequency band used for wireless communication with the communication device among the plurality of frequency bands; When transmitting the communication frame, the communication frame is transmitted using the identified frequency band. The base station according to claim 1 .

4. The display control unit further controlling the terminal to display an input field for receiving from a user one or more candidates for a transmission method to be used for wireless communication with the communication device, among the plurality of transmission methods; The acquisition unit further acquiring candidate information indicating the one or more transmission method candidates accepted by the terminal through the input field; The base station further comprises: a communication control unit that determines one transmission method to be used for wireless communication with the communication device from among the one or more transmission method candidates indicated in the candidate information acquired by the acquisition unit, and controls the first communication interface to perform wireless communication in the determined one transmission method. The base station according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The display control unit is The generation unit controls to set an initial value of the input field using the success / failure information generated by the generation unit, and to display the input field in which the initial value is set. The base station according to claim 4.

6. the first communication interface has a function of retransmitting a communication frame when the transmitted communication frame is not received by the communication device; The generation unit is acquiring a number of retransmissions of the communication frames by the first communication interface when transmitting the plurality of communication frames using each of the plurality of transmission methods, and generating the success / failure information indicating the number of retransmissions; When setting the initial value, the display control unit using the success / failure information, identifying one or more transmission methods by excluding one or more transmission methods for which the number of retransmissions exceeds a reference value from among the plurality of transmission methods; The one or more identified transmission methods are set as initial values ​​in the input field. The base station according to claim 5.

7. The communication control unit By transmitting the candidate information to the communication device, the communication device is controlled so as to determine one transmission method to be used for wireless communication with the base station from among the plurality of transmission methods in accordance with the candidate information. The base station according to claim 4.

8. The plurality of transmission methods differ in at least one of the number of streams, the modulation method, and the coding rate. The base station according to claim 1 .

9. A method for controlling a base station having a first communication interface having a function of wireless communication in a plurality of transmission methods and a second communication interface for communicating with a terminal, comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring, from the terminal via the second communication interface, an identifier of a communication device that is a communication partner of wireless communication of the first communication interface; a generating step of transmitting a communication frame addressed to the identifier acquired in the acquiring step through the first communication interface by using each of the plurality of transmission methods, and generating success / failure information indicating whether the transmitted communication frame has been received by the communication device; and a display control step of controlling the display of the success / failure information by the terminal by transmitting the success / failure information generated in the generating step to the terminal via the second communication interface. Control methods.

10. A program causing a computer to execute the control method according to claim 9.

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