Communication program, communication terminal and method

Abstract

To provide a mechanism for enabling a peripheral terminal to be favorably used in each application in an environment in which the peripheral terminal is used by a plurality of applications and a different central terminal can execute the plurality of applications.SOLUTION: A communication system includes a first terminal and a second terminal. The second terminal includes a storage part for storing first information associated with each application to be executed by the first terminal as pair information, and a transmission part for transmitting second information stored in the storage part and based on the first information associated with the application to be executed by the first terminal in response to a request from the application to be executed by the first terminal. The first terminal includes a termination part for determining processing related to data communication with the second terminal on the basis of a comparison result between third information associated with an application being executed and the second information received from the second terminal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present technology relates to a communication system, a communication device, a communication method, and a communication program. [Background technology]

[0002] Configurations in which an information processing device exchanges data with other devices via wireless communication when executing an application have been widely put to practical use. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-34655 (Patent Document 1) discloses a communication system having two mobile terminals and two BLE terminals. In this communication system, the mobile terminal acts as a central and the BLE terminal acts as a peripheral, and the mobile terminal and the BLE terminal are connected to each other. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-34655 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] A peripheral terminal may be used by an application executed by a central terminal. A peripheral terminal may be used by multiple types of applications. However, the multiple applications that use the peripheral terminal may not necessarily be executed by the same central terminal.

[0005] The present technology provides a mechanism for enabling a peripheral terminal to be used in an appropriate manner in each application in an environment in which a peripheral terminal is used in multiple applications and the multiple applications can be executed on different central terminals. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A communication system according to one embodiment includes a first terminal executing one or more applications and a second terminal performing data communication with the first terminal via wireless communication. The second terminal includes a storage unit that stores first information associated with each application executed on the first terminal as pair information, and a transmission unit that transmits second information based on the first information associated with the application executed on the first terminal and stored in the storage unit in response to a request from the application executed on the first terminal. The first terminal includes a determination unit that determines processing related to data communication with the second terminal based on a comparison result between third information associated with the application being executed and the second information received from the second terminal.

[0007] According to this configuration, even when various applications are executed on one or more first terminals, appropriate data communication can be performed with the second terminal associated with each application. The second terminal stores identification information associated with the application executed on the first terminal as pair information, which simplifies the processing required to start data communication between the application executed on the first terminal and the second terminal.

[0008] The first terminal may include a device that accepts user operations and a management server. This configuration allows the resources (storage capacity and processor resources) required for the first terminal to be appropriately designed.

[0009] The first terminal may further include a generating unit that generates first information used as pair information. According to this configuration, when the first terminal and the second terminal are connected, the first terminal generates first information used as pair information. The first information required for pair information can be provided to the two terminals.

[0010] The generating unit may be provided in the management server. With this configuration, the generation of the first information required for the pair information can be centrally processed by the management server.

[0011] The management server may compare the third information with the second information. With this configuration, the comparison of the third information with the second information can be executed centrally by the management server.

[0012] The first terminal may further include a second storage unit that, when connected to the second terminal, stores the address of the connected second terminal. This configuration reduces the amount of processing required when reconnecting between the first terminal and the second terminal that have previously been connected.

[0013] The first terminal may further include a search unit that receives an advertisement transmitted from the second terminal and searches for a second terminal to which the first terminal is to connect. With this configuration, the first terminal can search for second terminals present around the first terminal, and more easily start data communication with the second terminal to which the first terminal is to connect.

[0014] If the address of the second terminal that sent the received advertisement is included in the addresses stored in the second storage unit, the first terminal may start a connection process with the second terminal that sent the advertisement and send a request to the second terminal after the connection is established. With this configuration, the first terminal and the second terminal can be automatically connected and processing related to data communication with the second terminal can be continued.

[0015] The second terminal may be configured to transmit a plurality of types of advertisements. Each of the applications executed on the first terminal may be configured to refer to one or more advertisements specific to the application from among the plurality of types of advertisements. With this configuration, data communication processing can be performed using an advertisement appropriate for each application executed on the first terminal.

[0016] The plurality of types of advertisements may include advertisements that are always transmitted. In this case, any of the applications executed on the first terminal that are configured to refer to the advertisements that are always transmitted may be configured to be able to stop transmission of the advertisements that are always transmitted. With this configuration, the user can stop the advertisements that are always transmitted from any of the applications that are configured to refer to the advertisements that are always transmitted.

[0017] A communication device according to another embodiment includes an execution unit that executes one or more applications and a communication unit that performs data communication with a peripheral terminal via wireless communication. The peripheral terminal stores, as first information, identification information associated with the application executed by the execution unit. The communication device includes a determination unit that determines processing related to data communication with the peripheral terminal based on a comparison result between second information acquired from the peripheral terminal and third information associated with the application being executed.

[0018] A communication device according to yet another embodiment includes a communication unit that communicates data via wireless communication with a central terminal that executes one or more applications, a memory unit that stores identification information associated with the applications executed on the central terminal as first information, and a transmission unit that transmits second information based on the first information associated with the applications executed on the central terminal that is stored in the memory unit in response to a request from the applications executed on the central terminal.

[0019] According to yet another embodiment, there is provided a communication method executed by a first terminal and a second terminal that communicate data wirelessly. The communication method includes the steps of: executing one or more applications by the first terminal; storing, by the second terminal, first information associated with the applications executed by the first terminal as pair information; transmitting, by the second terminal, second information based on the first information associated with the applications executed by the first terminal, by referring to the pair information in response to a request from the application executed by the first terminal; and determining, by the first terminal, processing related to data communication with the second terminal based on a result of comparing the second information received from the second terminal with third information associated with the running application.

[0020] According to yet another embodiment, there is provided a communication program executed in a communication device that executes one or more applications. The communication program causes the communication device to execute a step of performing data communication with a peripheral terminal via wireless communication. The peripheral terminal stores first information associated with the application executed by the communication device as pair information. The communication program causes the communication device to execute a step of determining a process for data communication with the peripheral terminal based on a comparison result between second information acquired from the peripheral terminal and third information associated with the application currently being executed. [Effects of the Invention]

[0021] According to the present technology, usability can be maintained even in a configuration in which the target of data communication differs for each application. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an overview of a general communication system related to the present embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3]FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration of a central terminal included in the communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration of a peripheral terminal included in the communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing a processing procedure for initial connection between a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in the communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing a processing procedure for reconnecting a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in the communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a communication system according to a modification of the first modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for initial connection between a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in a communication system according to the first modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for reconnecting a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in a communication system according to the first modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a communication system according to a second modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for initial connection between a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in a communication system according to a second modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for reconnecting a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in a communication system according to a second modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for initial connection between a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in a communication system 1 according to a third modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 15]FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for reconnecting a central terminal and a peripheral terminal in a communication system 1 according to a third modification of the present embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a user interface screen provided by a central terminal of the communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing another example of a user interface screen provided by the central terminal of the communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an advertisement transmitted by a peripheral terminal in the communication system according to the present embodiment. [Figure 19] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing yet another example of a user interface screen provided by the central terminal of the communication system according to the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0023] The present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, in which the same or corresponding parts are designated by the same reference numerals and description thereof will not be repeated.

[0024] [A. Overview] First, an overview of a general communication system related to this embodiment will be described. Fig. 1 is a diagram for explaining the overview of a general communication system 1A related to this embodiment.

[0025] Referring to FIG. 1, a communication system 1A includes, for example, a central terminal 100 which is an example of a communication device, and a peripheral terminal 200 which is capable of exchanging data with the central terminal 100 via wireless communication.

[0026] The central terminal 100 is any information processing device, such as a smartphone, tablet, personal computer, or game device. The central terminal 100 executes one or more applications. The peripheral terminal 200 is any communication device, such as a controller, speaker, headphones, camera, or mobile device.

[0027] The peripheral terminal 200 communicates data with the central terminal 100 via wireless communication. Bluetooth (registered trademark) can typically be used for wireless communication between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200. In the following description, a configuration example using Bluetooth will be mainly described, but any wireless communication such as ZigBee (registered trademark), wireless LAN (IEEE802.11), or infrared communication may also be used.

[0028] 1, the communication system 1A includes two central terminals 100A and 100B and a peripheral terminal 200. The central terminal 100A is capable of executing applications 150A and 150B, and the central terminal 100B is capable of executing application 150C. That is, the applications 150A and 150B are installed in the central terminal 100A, and the application 150C is installed in the central terminal 100B.

[0029] For ease of explanation, Fig. 1 illustrates a state in which the central terminal 100A is executing an application 150A and a state in which the central terminal 100A is executing an application 150B side by side. Note that an application may also be abbreviated as "app."

[0030] The application 150 executed by the central terminal 100 may be any program that communicates data with the peripheral terminal 200 .

[0031] In the communication system 1A shown in FIG. 1, the peripheral terminal 200 is used to execute applications 150A, 150B, and 150C. 0A, 150B, and 150C are not necessarily executed by the same central terminal 100.

[0032] A peripheral terminal 200 that implements general Bluetooth holds pairing information with the central terminal 100 to which it has been connected, and responds to a connection request from the central terminal 100 by referring to the pairing information.

[0033] In the example shown in FIG. 1, the pairing information 270 of the peripheral terminal 200 may include an address A of the central terminal 100A and an address B of the central terminal 100B.

[0034] 1, when the application 150A or the application 150B is executed in the central terminal 100A, it is necessary to connect the central terminal 100A to the peripheral terminal 200. On the other hand, when the application 150C is executed in the central terminal 100B, it is necessary to connect the central terminal 100B to the peripheral terminal 200.

[0035] In this way, when the peripheral terminal 200 is used by the applications 150A, 150B, and 150C, the applications 150A, 150B, and 150C are not necessarily executed by the same central terminal 100. In other words, when there are multiple applications that use the peripheral terminal 200, a usage scenario is envisioned in which the multiple applications are installed in different central terminals 100.

[0036] Therefore, in the communication system 1 according to the present embodiment, pair information 260 is used to define the connection relationship between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 for each application. The pair information 260 held by the peripheral terminal 200 includes identification information for each application. By using such pair information 260, the peripheral terminal 200 can be suitably used in each application 150.

[0037] Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating an overview of communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. With reference to Fig. 2, as an example, pair information 260 of peripheral terminal 200 includes identification information 264 associated with each application 150. In the example shown in Fig. 2, pair information 260 includes (1) a set of application type information 262A (indicating application 150A) and corresponding identification information 264A, (2) a set of application type information 262B (indicating application 150B) and corresponding identification information 264B, and (3) a set of application type information 262C (indicating application 150C) and corresponding identification information 264C.

[0038] Each of the applications 150A, 150B, and 150C has, as pair information 160, identification information 164 having the same value as the identification information 264 included in the pair information 260. More specifically, the application 150A of the central terminal 100A has, as pair information 160A, identification information 164A having the same value as the identification information 264A of the pair information 260. The application 150B of the central terminal 100A has, as pair information 160B, identification information 164B having the same value as the identification information 264B of the pair information 260. The application 150C of the central terminal 100B has, as pair information 160C, identification information 164C having the same value as the identification information 264C of the pair information 260.

[0039] 2, by comparing the pair information 160 of the central terminal 100 with the pair information 260 of the peripheral terminal 200, it is possible to manage the connection for each application 150. In this case, the central terminal 100 on which the application 150 is executed may be any one.

[0040] In this specification, "pair information" can also be said to be information for (substantially) uniquely determining the connection combination between a specific application 150 running on any central terminal 100 (or a specific central terminal 100) and a specific peripheral terminal 200.

[0041] The identification information included in the "pair information" includes unique information that uniquely identifies a connection combination and can distinguish the combinations from one another. Therefore, the identification information can use, for example, a randomly determined value (random number) instead of only the type information of the application 150 itself or only the address of the central terminal 100. Any other unique information that can substantially distinguish the combinations from one another may be generated as appropriate.

[0042] The pair information 160 and the pair information 260 are generated or updated when the central terminal 100 that executes an application connects to the peripheral terminal 200. Details of the processes related to the generation and update of the pair information 160 and the pair information 260 will be described later.

[0043] [B. Hardware configuration example] Next, an example of a hardware configuration of devices constituting communication system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described.

[0044] (b1: Central terminal 100) Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration of a central terminal 100 included in the communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Referring to Fig. 3, the central terminal 100 is an example of a computer, and includes a processor 102, a memory 104, a storage 106, a display 114, an operation unit 116, an audio output unit 118, and a wireless communication unit 120. These components are connected to each other via a bus 112 so as to be able to communicate data with each other.

[0045] The processor 102 is a processing entity (processing means) for executing the processes provided by the central terminal 100. The processor 102 reads the system program 108 and the application 150 stored in the storage 106, expands them in the memory 104, and executes various information processes as described below.

[0046] The system program 108 includes instruction codes for implementing various processes including a communication process, which will be described later. That is, the system program 108 includes a communication program according to this embodiment.

[0047] The memory 104 is any storage device (storage medium) accessible by the processor 102, and is implemented using a volatile storage device such as a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or a static random access memory (SRAM), for example.

[0048] The storage 106 is implemented using a nonvolatile storage medium such as a hard disk or flash memory. The storage 106 may also be implemented using a storage medium that is detachable from the central terminal 100, such as an optical disk or cartridge. In this case, a communication device is realized by combining the central terminal 100 with any storage medium.

[0049] The storage 106 stores a system program 108, one or more applications 150, and pair information 160. The pair information 160 may be stored as an individual file for each application 150.

[0050] The display 114 is generated as a result of the information processing performed by the processor 102. The display 114 may display an image received from another device. There may be multiple displays 114. The central terminal 100 may also be configured to use one or multiple external displays.

[0051] The operation unit 116 accepts operations from the user of the central terminal 100. The operation unit 116 includes, for example, a push button, an operation lever, a touch panel, a mouse, etc. The operation unit 116 may be a game controller that is separate from the central terminal 100 and connected by wire or wirelessly.

[0052] The audio output unit 118 provides audio from the central terminal 100 to the user. The wireless communication unit 120 exchanges data with the peripheral terminal 200 via wireless signals. As an example, the wireless communication unit 120 implements wireless communication conforming to Bluetooth. The wireless communication unit 120 is configured to store connection information 170. That is, the wireless communication unit 120 has a storage unit that stores, when connected to the peripheral terminal 200, the address (connection information 170) of the connected peripheral terminal 200.

[0053] All or part of the processing of the wireless communication unit 120 may be implemented by the processor 102.

[0054] 3, the central terminal 100 is depicted as an integrated device, but it may be implemented as a collection of multiple devices. That is, the central terminal 100 may be implemented as a combination of multiple independent devices. For example, it may be configured to include a main body unit having hardware corresponding to the processor 102, memory 104, and storage 106, and a terminal unit having hardware corresponding to the display 114, operation unit 116, and audio output unit 118.

[0055] Furthermore, at least a part of the information processing executed in the central terminal 100 may be executed in a distributed manner by one or more other devices distributed over a network (wide area network and / or local network).

[0056] (b2: Peripheral terminal 200) 4 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration of peripheral terminal 200 included in communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 4, peripheral terminal 200 is an example of a computer, and includes a wireless communication unit 220. Peripheral terminal 200 may also include an input unit 202 and an output unit 204.

[0057] The wireless communication unit 220 exchanges data with the central terminal 100 via wireless signals. More specifically, the wireless communication unit 220 transmits input information from the input unit 202 and the like to the central terminal 100, and also gives commands from the central terminal 100 to the output unit 204 and the like. The wireless communication unit 220 implements wireless communication according to Bluetooth, for example.

[0058] The wireless communication unit 220 has a storage unit that stores, as pair information 260, identification information 264 associated with each application 150 executed on the central terminal 100. In this specification, the "first information" includes the identification information 264, and includes, for example, only the identification information 264 and a pair of the application type information 262 and the identification information 264.

[0059] The input unit 202 acquires various information. The input unit 202 includes devices for acquiring operation information from a user, such as a push button, an operation lever, a touch panel, a mouse, etc. The input unit 202 also includes peripheral terminals, such as a vibration sensor (acceleration sensor), a temperature sensor, a pressure sensor, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver, etc. This includes devices that obtain various information about 200.

[0060] The output unit 204 provides various types of information to the user. The output unit 204 includes, for example, devices that provide visual information such as a display or LED (Light Emitting Diode), devices that provide auditory information such as a speaker or buzzer, and devices that provide tactile information such as a vibrator or electric heating element.

[0061] (b3:Other) The processing performed in the central terminal 100 and / or the peripheral terminal 200 may be realized by a processor executing a program, or a part or all of the processing may be realized by a SoC (system on chip), an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit), or the like. ), FPGA (field programmable gate array), and other hardwired circuits. It may be expressed.

[0062] [C. Functional configuration] Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Referring to Fig. 5, the central terminal 100 includes, as its functional configuration, a search unit 130, an application execution unit 132, a processing decision unit 134, a comparison unit 136, a relay unit 138, and an identification information generation unit 140. These functional configurations are typically realized by the processor 102 of the central terminal 100 executing the system program 108 and / or the application 150.

[0063] The search unit 130 receives an advertisement transmitted from the peripheral terminal 200 and searches for a peripheral terminal 200 to be connected.

[0064] The application execution unit 132 executes one or more applications 150. Note that a part of the application execution unit 132 may be realized by instruction codes included in the application 150.

[0065] The processing determination unit 134 determines processing related to data communication with the peripheral terminal 200 based on a comparison result between the identification information 164 associated with the running application 150 and the identification information 264 received from the peripheral terminal 200. Examples of the processing related to data communication to be determined include continuing data communication with the peripheral terminal 200, stopping data communication, notifying that the peripheral terminal 200 is not a registered peripheral terminal, and registering pair information for the first time. Specific processing examples will be described later.

[0066] The comparison unit 136 compares the identification information 164 associated with the running application 150 with the identification information 264 received from the peripheral terminal 200. The result of the comparison by the comparison unit 136 is provided to the processing determination unit .

[0067] The relay unit 138 transmits the identification information 264 received from the peripheral terminal 200 to the management server 300, and receives a comparison result from the management server 300. The management server 300 compares the identification information 164 associated with the running application 150 with the identification information 264 received from the peripheral terminal 200. Details of the management server 300 will be described later with reference to FIGS. 8 to 15.

[0068] The identification information generation unit 140 generates identification information 164, 264 to be used as the pair information 160, 260. More specifically, the identification information generation unit 140 has a random number generator and determines the identification information 164, 264 using random numbers. The identification information generation unit 140 also generates an application ID indicating the type of the application 150 executed by the central terminal 100. Alternatively, the type information may be generated.

[0069] The peripheral terminal 200 has a wireless communication unit 220. The wireless communication unit 220 has a transmission unit that transmits identification information 264 and the like stored in the wireless communication unit 220 (storage unit) in response to a request from the application 150 executed on the central terminal 100.

[0070] [D. Processing Procedure] Next, an example of a processing procedure in communication system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described.

[0071] Fig. 6 is a sequence diagram showing a processing procedure for initial connection between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Fig. 6 shows a processing procedure when a connection is first established between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 that are executing an arbitrary application. In the processing procedure shown in Fig. 6, it is assumed that the central terminal 100 is executing an application 150.

[0072] Referring to FIG. 6, the central terminal 100 searches for connectable peripheral terminals 200 (sequence SQ10). The search for connectable peripheral terminals 200 may be started according to a user operation in the running application 150, or may be started automatically at a predetermined timing. Typically, the central terminal 100 finds connectable peripheral terminals 200 by scanning advertisements from peripheral terminals 200 present in the vicinity. Note that when multiple peripheral terminals 200 exist around the central terminal 100, the central terminal 100 receives advertisements from each of the peripheral terminals 200. In principle, the advertisement itself does not include pair information 260 (or identification information 264 (first information)).

[0073] The central terminal 100 starts connection processing with a specified peripheral terminal 200 among the connectable peripheral terminals 200 in accordance with a user operation or the like (sequence SQ12).

[0074] Next, the central terminal 100 requests the connected peripheral terminal 200 to transmit the identification information 264 it holds (sequence SQ14). At this time, the central terminal 100 transmits application type information indicating the type of the application 150 being executed to the peripheral terminal 200.

[0075] The peripheral terminal 200 refers to its own pair information 260 and transmits identification information 264 corresponding to application type information 262 that is the same as the specified application type information (sequence SQ16). Note that when a connection is first established, the corresponding identification information 264 is not registered in the pair information 260, and therefore an invalid value is transmitted as the identification information 264.

[0076] Thus, in sequences SQ14 and SQ16, in response to a request from an application 150 running on the central terminal 100, the peripheral terminal 200 transmits second information (e.g., identification information 264) based on first information (e.g., identification information 264) associated with the application 150 running on the central terminal 100.

[0077] In this specification, the "second information" includes information including the identification information 264 or information generated based on the identification information 264. Information including the identification information 264 includes, for example, only the identification information 264 and a set of the application type information 262 and the identification information 264. Therefore, the "second information" includes, for example, not only the identification information 264 but also the application type information 262. A set of the communication type information 262 and the identification information 264 may be transmitted to the central terminal 100. This process is also the same for a sequence SQ48 (FIGS. 7, 10, and 13) described later.

[0078] The central terminal 100 determines whether the identification information 264 from the peripheral terminal 200 is an invalid value (sequence SQ18).

[0079] If the identification information 264 from the peripheral terminal 200 has a valid value (NO in sequence SQ18), this means that some pair information 260 has already been registered in the peripheral terminal 200, and the user is notified as to whether the pair information 260 needs to be updated. In response to this notification, a predetermined user operation may be performed, and the processing from sequence SQ20 onwards may be continued. In this case, the pair information 260 registered in the peripheral terminal 200 will be updated. At this time, various data stored in the peripheral terminal 200, such as information about the user and the usage history of the peripheral terminal 200, may be erased.

[0080] On the other hand, if the identification information 264 from the peripheral terminal 200 is an invalid value (YES in sequence SQ18), the central terminal 100 determines the value of the identification information 264 to be registered in the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ20). The value of the identification information 264 may be determined randomly. Then, the central terminal 100 requests the connected peripheral terminal 200 to register the determined identification information 264 as the pair information 260 (sequence SQ22). At this time, the application type information 262 and the identification information 264 are transmitted from the central terminal 100 to the peripheral terminal 200.

[0081] In response to the registration request for the identification information 264, the peripheral terminal 200 registers the specified application type information 262 and the identification information 264 as the pair information 260 (sequence SQ24). In this way, the peripheral terminal 200 stores, as the pair information 260, the identification information 264 associated with each application executed by the central terminal 100.

[0082] Meanwhile, the central terminal 100 registers the address (e.g., Bluetooth Device Address) of the currently connected peripheral terminal 200 in the connection information 170 (sequence SQ26). In addition, the central terminal 100 registers, as pair information 160 of the running application, identification information 164 having the same value as the determined identification information 264 (sequence SQ28).

[0083] When the above series of processes relating to the initial connection are completed, data communication is started between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ30).

[0084] Fig. 7 is a sequence diagram showing the processing procedure for reconnecting the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Fig. 7 shows the processing procedure when a connection is established for the second or subsequent time between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 that are executing an arbitrary application. In the processing procedure shown in Fig. 7, it is assumed that the central terminal 100 is executing an application 150.

[0085] 7, the central terminal 100 searches for connectable peripheral terminals 200 (sequence SQ40). The search for connectable peripheral terminals 200 may be started in response to a user operation in the running application 150, or may be started automatically at a predetermined timing.

[0086] The central terminal 100 selects the connection information 170 of the connectable peripheral terminals 200. The central terminal 100 then determines, as the connection destination, the peripheral terminal 200 having the same address as the address registered in (sequence SQ42). Then, the central terminal 100 starts connection processing with the determined peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ44).

[0087] Next, the central terminal 100 requests the connected peripheral terminal 200 to transmit the identification information 264 it holds (sequence SQ46). At this time, the central terminal 100 transmits application type information indicating the type of the application being executed to the peripheral terminal 200.

[0088] In this way, if the address of the peripheral terminal 200 that sent the received advertisement is included in the stored address (connection information 170) stored in the wireless communication unit 120, the central terminal 100 starts connection processing with the peripheral terminal 200 that sent the advertisement, and after connection, sends a request for identification information 264 to the peripheral terminal 200.

[0089] In response to such a request from an application executed on the central terminal 100, the peripheral terminal 200 refers to its own pair information 260 and transmits identification information 264 corresponding to application type information 262 that is the same as the specified application type information (sequence SQ48).

[0090] The central terminal 100 compares the identification information 164 associated with the running application with the identification information 264 received from the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ50). Then, the central terminal 100 determines whether the comparison result between the identification information 164 associated with the running application and the identification information 264 received from the peripheral terminal 200 satisfies a predetermined condition for reconnection (sequence SQ52). For example, the condition for reconnection includes that the identification information 264 returned by the peripheral terminal 200 matches the identification information 164 of the central terminal 100.

[0091] If the comparison result does not satisfy the reconnection condition (NO in sequence SQ52), the connection process is stopped. On the other hand, if the comparison result satisfies the reconnection condition (YES in sequence SQ52), data communication is started between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ54).

[0092] If the comparison result does not satisfy the conditions for reconnection (NO in sequence SQ52), instead of or in addition to canceling the connection process, processing such as disconnecting the target peripheral terminal 200, notifying the user that the peripheral terminal 200 is not a registered peripheral terminal, or switching to initial connection processing may be performed. Note that, for example, when switching to initial connection processing, various data stored in the peripheral terminal 200, such as information about the user and the usage history of the peripheral terminal 200, may be erased.

[0093] In this way, the central terminal 100 determines the processing related to data communication with the peripheral terminal 200 based on the comparison result between the third information (e.g., identification information 164) associated with the running application 150 and the second information received from the peripheral terminal 200.

[0094] As described above, in this specification, "second information" includes information including identification information 264 or information generated based on identification information 264. The "third information" to be compared includes information including identification information 264 or information generated based on identification information 264, and is, for example, the same information as the second information. Note that the "third information" may be different from the second information. In any case, the "third information" includes information that can be compared with the "second information."

[0095] [E. Variation 1] In the above description, an implementation example is shown in which the central terminal 100 executes the processing related to the management of pair information, but this is not limiting, and all or part of the required processing may be realized using computing resources (typically, computing resources on the cloud) other than the central terminal 100. Below, an example is given of a form in which the management server executes part of the processing related to the management of pair information.

[0096] Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a communication system 1 according to a first modification of the present embodiment. Referring to Fig. 8, the communication system 1 includes, in addition to a central terminal 100 and a peripheral terminal 200, management servers 300A, 300B, 300C, ... (hereinafter, sometimes collectively referred to as "management servers 300").

[0097] In the configuration example shown in Figure 8, the central terminal 100 functions as a device that accepts user operations, and the central terminal 100 and the management server 300 can be considered as a single processing entity (first terminal) (the same applies to the following variants 1 to 3).

[0098] A management server 300 is provided for each application. For example, management servers 300A, 300B, and 300C are provided in association with applications 150A, 150B, and 150C, respectively. The management server 300 manages the pair information 160 on behalf of the central terminal 100.

[0099] Pair information 160 managed by management server 300 includes one or more pairs of user identification information 166 and identification information 164. More specifically, management server 300A manages pair information 160A related to application 150A. Pair information 160A includes one or more pairs of user identification information 166A and identification information 164A. Similarly, management server 300B manages pair information 160B related to application 150B, and management server 300C manages pair information 160C related to application 150C. The information included in pair information 160B and pair information 160C is the same as that included in pair information 160A.

[0100] As will be described later, the management server 300 creates, modifies, deletes, etc. the pair information 160 in accordance with notifications from the central terminal 100, and also performs processes such as authenticating identification information from the peripheral terminal 200.

[0101] The user identification information 166 is any information that allows the management server 300 to uniquely distinguish a user. For example, the user identification information 166 can be a user account, a randomly determined value (random number), identification information of the central terminal 100, or identification information of an application that is executed on each central terminal 100. However, the user identification information 166 does not need to identify the user himself / herself.

[0102] Management server 300 is typically implemented by one or more general-purpose computers, and therefore, description of an example hardware configuration of management server 300 will not be repeated here.

[0103] Fig. 9 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for initial connection between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the first modification of the present embodiment. The processing procedure shown in Fig. 9 is similar to the processing procedure shown in Fig. 6, so only the changes will be described. More specifically, instead of the processing of sequence SQ20 shown in Fig. 6, the processing of sequences SQ34 to SQ38 is executed. Also, sequence SQ28 is unnecessary.

[0104] If the identification information 264 from the peripheral terminal 200 is an invalid value (YES in sequence SQ18), the central terminal 100 transmits the user identification information 166 to the management server 300 (sequence SQ32).

[0105] When the management server 300 receives the user identification information 166 from the peripheral terminal 200, it determines the value of the identification information 164 corresponding to the received user identification information 166 (sequence SQ34) and registers the set of the user identification information 166 and the identification information 164 as pair information 160 (sequence SQ36). If the identification information 164 associated with the same user identification information 166 has already been registered, the management server 300 updates the already registered information with the value determined this time. At this time, various data stored in the peripheral terminal 200, such as information about the user and the usage history of the peripheral terminal 200, may be erased.

[0106] That is, in the first modification, the management server 300 is provided with an identification information generating unit 140 (see FIG. 5) that generates the identification information 164, 264 used as the pair information 160, 260.

[0107] Next, the management server 300 transmits the identification information 164 included in the registered user identification information 166 to the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ38). Then, the central terminal 100 requests the connected peripheral terminal 200 to register the identification information 264 that is the same as the identification information 164 received from the management server 300 as the pair information 260 (sequence SQ22). At this time, the central terminal 100 may transmit application type information 262 in addition to the identification information 264 to the peripheral terminal 200.

[0108] When the above-described series of processes relating to the initial connection are completed, data communication between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 begins.

[0109] Fig. 10 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for reconnecting the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the first modification of the present embodiment. The processing procedure shown in Fig. 10 is similar to the processing procedure shown in Fig. 7, so only the changes will be described. More specifically, instead of the processing of sequences SQ50 and SQ52 shown in Fig. 7, the processing of sequences SQ56 to SQ62 is executed.

[0110] Upon receiving the identification information 264 from the peripheral terminal 200, the central terminal 100 transmits the user identification information 166 and the received identification information 264 to the management server 300 (sequence SQ56).

[0111] The management server 300 refers to the registered pair information 160, extracts the identification information 164 corresponding to the user identification information 166 received from the central terminal 100, and compares the extracted identification information 164 with the received identification information 264 (sequence SQ58). Then, the management server 300 determines whether the comparison result satisfies predetermined conditions for reconnection (sequence SQ60). For example, the conditions for reconnection include whether the extracted identification information 164 matches the received identification information 264.

[0112] If the comparison result does not satisfy the conditions for reconnection (NO in sequence SQ60), the connection process is aborted. On the other hand, if the comparison result satisfies the conditions for reconnection (YES in sequence SQ60), the management server 300 notifies the central terminal 100 that connection is possible (sequence SQ62). This starts data communication between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ54).

[0113] If the comparison result does not satisfy the conditions for reconnection (NO in sequence SQ58), the management server 300 may notify the central terminal 100 that connection is not possible. Instead of or in addition to notifying that connection is not possible, the management server 300 may switch to processing for initial connection. At this time, various data stored in the peripheral terminal 200, such as information about the user and the usage history of the peripheral terminal 200, may be deleted. Alternatively, the central terminal 100 may abort the processing if there is no notification from the management server 300 within a predetermined time (timeout).

[0114] In this way, the management server 300 compares the third information (for example, the identification information 164) associated with the application 150 running on the central terminal 100 with the second information received from the peripheral terminal 200.

[0115] According to the configuration of variant example 1, the management server 300, not the central terminal 100, manages the pair information 160, thereby avoiding a situation in which the comparison result between the third information and the second information may be affected by rewriting the pair information 160 managed by the central terminal 100.

[0116] [F. Variation 2] In the above-described first modification, pair information 160 managed by management server 300 includes one or more pairs of user identification information 166 and identification information 164. Each pair included in such pair information 160 may be further associated with a peripheral terminal address 168.

[0117] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an overview of communication system 1 according to a second modification of the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 11, pair information 160 managed by management server 300 includes one or more sets of peripheral terminal address 168, user identification information 166, and identification information 164. More specifically, management server 300A manages pair information 160A related to application 150A. Pair information 160A includes one or more sets of peripheral terminal address 168A, user identification information 166A, and identification information 164A. Similarly, management server 300B manages pair information 160B related to application 150B, and management server 300C manages pair information 160C related to application 150C. The information included in pair information 160B and pair information 160C is the same as that included in pair information 160A.

[0118] The peripheral terminal address 168 indicates the address of the peripheral terminal 200 to which the destination central terminal 100 further connects. The peripheral terminal address 168 may include only a part of the address of the peripheral terminal 200, or may be the address of the peripheral terminal 200 to which arbitrary information has been added. Furthermore, the peripheral terminal address 168 may be a unique value calculated from the address of the peripheral terminal 200.

[0119] The pair information 160 shown in FIG. 11 includes a peripheral terminal address 168, user identification information 166, and identification information 164, and therefore any of these may be used as the search key, but typically the peripheral terminal address 168 is set as the search key.

[0120] Fig. 12 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for initial connection between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the second modification of the present embodiment. The processing procedure shown in Fig. 12 is similar to the processing procedure shown in Fig. 9, so only the changes will be described. More specifically, instead of the processing of sequences SQ32 and SQ36 shown in Fig. 9, the processing of sequences SQ33 and SQ37 are executed, respectively.

[0121] If the identification information 264 from the peripheral terminal 200 is an invalid value (YES in sequence SQ18), the central terminal 100 transmits the user identification information 166 and the address of the peripheral terminal 200 (peripheral terminal address) to the management server 300 (sequence SQ33). Note that the central terminal 100 has already acquired the address of the peripheral terminal 200 in the connection process with the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ12).

[0122] When the management server 300 receives the user identification information 166 and the peripheral terminal address from the peripheral terminal 200, it determines the value of the identification information 164 corresponding to the user identification information 166 (sequence SQ34) and registers a set of the peripheral terminal address 168, the user identification information 166, and the identification information 164 as pair information 160 (sequence SQ37). If the identification information 164 associated with the same peripheral terminal address 168 has already been registered, the management server 300 updates the already registered information with the value determined this time. At this time, various data stored in the peripheral terminal 200, such as information about the user and the usage history of the peripheral terminal 200, may be erased.

[0123] Fig. 13 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for reconnecting the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the second modification of the present embodiment. The processing procedure shown in Fig. 13 is similar to the processing procedure shown in Fig. 10, so only the changes will be described. More specifically, instead of the processing of sequences SQ56 and SQ58 shown in Fig. 10, the processing of sequences SQ57 and SQ59 is executed.

[0124] When the central terminal 100 receives the identification information 264 from the peripheral terminal 200, it transmits the received identification information 264 to the management server 300 in addition to the address of the peripheral terminal 200 (peripheral terminal address) and the user identification information 166 (sequence SQ57). Note that the central terminal 100 has already acquired the address of the peripheral terminal 200 in the connection process with the peripheral terminal 200 (sequence SQ44).

[0125] The management server 300 refers to the registered pair information 160, extracts a pair of user identification information 166 and identification information 164 corresponding to the peripheral terminal address received from the central terminal 100, and compares the extracted pair of user identification information 166 and identification information 164 with the received pair of user identification information 166 and identification information 264 (sequence SQ59). The management server 300 then determines whether the comparison result satisfies a predetermined reconnection condition (sequence SQ60). For example, the reconnection condition includes that the extracted pair of user identification information 166 and identification information 164 matches the received pair of user identification information 166 and identification information 264. If the comparison result does not satisfy the reconnection condition (NO in sequence SQ60), the management server 300 may notify the central terminal 100 that connection is not possible. Instead of or in addition to notifying that connection is not possible, the management server 300 may switch to initial connection processing. At this time, various data stored in the peripheral terminal 200, such as information about the user and the usage history of the peripheral terminal 200, may be erased.

[0126] According to the configuration of variant example 2, the management server 300, rather than the central terminal 100, manages the pair information 160, thereby avoiding a situation in which the comparison result between the third information and the second information may be affected by rewriting the pair information 160 managed by the central terminal 100.

[0127] Furthermore, according to the configuration of the second modification, the identification information 164 is managed in association with a pair of the peripheral terminal address 168 and the user identification information 166. For example, Even when an address of the peripheral terminal 200 stored in the peripheral terminal 200 is rewritten and an attempt is made to use a peripheral terminal 200 different from the previous one, the pair information 260 stored in the peripheral terminal 200 can be reliably initialized.

[0128] [G. Variation 3] In the above-described second modification, a configuration is adopted in which the address of peripheral terminal 200 (peripheral terminal address 168) is included in pair information 160, but it is preferable to ensure that there is no error in peripheral terminal address 168 itself. For this reason, a digital signature generated from the address of the peripheral terminal 200 may be obtained from the peripheral terminal 200, and the obtained digital signature may be used to check whether there is an error such as garbled characters in peripheral terminal address 168 before performing processing such as registering pair information 160.

[0129] Fig. 14 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for initial connection between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the third modification of the present embodiment. The processing procedure shown in Fig. 14 adds the processing of sequences SQ17 and SQ39 to the processing procedure shown in Fig. 12, and changes the processing of sequence SQ33 to sequence SQ33A.

[0130] After transmitting the identification information 264 (sequence SQ16), the peripheral terminal 200 transmits a digital signature 280 generated from the address of the terminal itself to the central terminal 100 (sequence SQ17). The digital signature 280 may be, for example, a hash value calculated by inputting the address of the terminal itself into a predetermined hash function.

[0131] The transmission of the electronic signature 280 from the peripheral terminal 200 may be performed automatically after the transmission of the identification information 264, or may be performed in response to an explicit request from the central terminal 100.

[0132] In sequence SQ33A, the central terminal 100 transmits the digital signature 280 to the management server 300 in addition to the user identification information 166 and the address of the peripheral terminal 200 (peripheral terminal address).

[0133] The management server 300 determines whether or not an error exists in the received peripheral terminal address by using the digital signature 280 from the central terminal 100 (sequence SQ39). More specifically, it determines whether or not the value calculated by inputting the received peripheral terminal address into a predetermined hash function matches the received digital signature 280.

[0134] If an error exists in the received peripheral terminal address (YES in sequence SQ39), the process is stopped. If no error exists in the received peripheral terminal address (NO in sequence SQ39), the process from sequence SQ34 onwards is executed.

[0135] Fig. 15 is a sequence diagram showing another processing procedure for reconnecting the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 in the communication system 1 according to the third modification of the present embodiment. The processing procedure shown in Fig. 15 is different from the processing procedure shown in Fig. 13 in that the processing of sequences SQ49 and SQ63 is added and the processing of sequences SQ57 and SQ59 is changed to sequences SQ57A and SQ59A, respectively.

[0136] After transmitting the identification information 264 (sequence SQ48), the peripheral terminal 200 transmits the digital signature 280 generated from the address of its own terminal to the central terminal 100 (sequence SQ49).

[0137] The transmission of the electronic signature 280 from the peripheral terminal 200 may be performed automatically after the transmission of the identification information 264, or may be performed in response to an explicit request from the central terminal 100.

[0138] In sequence SQ57A, the central terminal 100 transmits the digital signature 280 to the management server 300 in addition to the user identification information 166 and the address of the peripheral terminal 200 (peripheral terminal address).

[0139] The management server 300 uses the digital signature 280 from the central terminal 100 to determine whether or not an error exists in the received peripheral terminal address (sequence SQ63).

[0140] If an error exists in the received peripheral terminal address (YES in sequence SQ63), the process is stopped. If no error exists in the received peripheral terminal address (NO in sequence SQ63), the process from sequence SQ59A onwards is executed.

[0141] In sequence SQ59A, the management server 300 refers to the registered pair information 160, extracts a set of user identification information 166, identification information 164, and peripheral terminal address 168, and compares the extracted set of user identification information 166, identification information 164, and peripheral terminal address 168 with the received set of user identification information 166, identification information 164, and peripheral terminal address 168 (sequence SQ59A).

[0142] According to the configuration of variant example 3, even if an error such as garbled characters occurs in the address (peripheral terminal address 168) due to a hardware malfunction of the peripheral terminal 200, it is possible to prevent such an error from affecting the management of pair information.

[0143] [H. User Interface Example] Next, an example of a user interface provided by communication system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described.

[0144] FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a user interface screen provided by central terminal 100 of communication system 1 according to the present embodiment.

[0145] 16(A) is provided in response to the result of a search for connectable peripheral terminals 200 by the central terminal 100 when the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 are connected for the first time (see sequence SQ10 in FIGS. 6 and 9, etc.). More specifically, the user interface screen 180 includes a candidate list 182 of the searched peripheral terminals 200. The user selects a peripheral terminal 200 to which the user wishes to connect from the peripheral terminals 200 displayed in the candidate list 182. Then, a connection process between the central terminal 100 and the selected peripheral terminal 200 is started (see sequence SQ12 in FIGS. 6 and 9, etc.).

[0146] 16(B) is provided when the central terminal 100 reconnects with the peripheral terminal 200. More specifically, when the central terminal 100 connects with the peripheral terminal 200 for which the conditions for reconnection are satisfied (see sequence SQ52 in FIG. 7 and sequence SQ60 in FIG. 10, etc.), the user interface screen 184 presents the connected peripheral terminal 200 to the user.

[0147] [I. Searching for and advertising peripheral devices] Next, the advertisement used to search for the peripheral terminal 200 will be described.

[0148] Depending on the peripheral terminal 200, transmission of an advertisement may be started by pressing a button or the like provided on the peripheral terminal 200. Therefore, when connecting the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200, the user is required to perform an operation such as pressing a button on the peripheral terminal 200. The central terminal 100 may assist the user in performing such an operation of pressing a button on the peripheral terminal 200.

[0149] FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram showing another example of a user interface screen provided by central terminal 100 of communication system 1 according to the present embodiment.

[0150] When the central terminal 100 needs to connect to a peripheral terminal 200 while an application is being executed, the central terminal 100 provides a user interface screen 186 as shown in Fig. 17(A). The user interface screen 186 includes a message prompting the user to press the button of the peripheral terminal 200 to which the user wishes to connect.

[0151] When the user presses the button of the peripheral terminal 200 and the central terminal 100 finds the peripheral terminal 200 as a connectable peripheral terminal, a user interface screen 188 as shown in FIG. 17(B) is provided.

[0152] The user interface screen 188 includes specification information 190 indicating connectable peripheral terminals 200, as well as an OK button 192 for accepting a connection instruction. After checking the specification information 190 displayed on the user interface screen 188, the user presses the OK button 192. This starts the connection process between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200.

[0153] Alternatively, the process of connecting the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 may be started by the user operating the input unit 202 of the peripheral terminal 200 .

[0154] It is also possible to configure the application executed on the central terminal 100 to automatically connect to the surrounding peripheral terminals 200 and start data communication without displaying the user interface screens shown in FIGS. 16 and 17.

[0155] The methods of searching for and determining the peripheral terminal 200 to be connected vary depending on the application executed on the central terminal 100. Therefore, multiple types of advertisements to be transmitted by the peripheral terminal 200 may be prepared. In other words, the peripheral terminal 200 may be configured to transmit multiple types of advertisements.

[0156] Fig. 18 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an advertisement transmitted by peripheral terminal 200 of communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Referring to Fig. 18, peripheral terminal 200 may transmit two types of advertisements.

[0157] 18, the peripheral terminal 200 implements an advertise 211 that is constantly transmitted and an advertise 212 that is transmitted when a button 2021 of the peripheral terminal 200 is pressed. The advertises are periodically transmitted by broadcast communication. Therefore, "constant transmission" means that periodic transmission continues.

[0158] In this way, a plurality of advertisements with different transmission conditions are prepared in the peripheral terminal 200. This allows for diversifying the processing for an application executed on the central terminal 100 to connect to the peripheral terminal 200. In other words, the advertisement used in the processing for searching for the peripheral terminal 200 to be connected may be selected appropriately depending on the type of application, the scene, etc.

[0159] For example, in the first connection, in order to simplify or facilitate the selection of the peripheral terminal 200 to be connected, connectable peripheral terminals 200 may be searched for using the advertisement 212 transmitted when the button 2021 is pressed (see sequence SQ10 in FIGS. 6 and 9). That is, only the peripheral terminal 200 for which the user has explicitly pressed the button 2021 is searched for as a connection target.

[0160] On the other hand, when reconnecting, since pair information 160, 260 is prepared, the advertisement 211 that is constantly transmitted may be used to search for all peripheral terminals 200 present around the central terminal 100 (see sequence SQ40 in Figures 7 and 10, etc.).

[0161] Alternatively, depending on the application, even in the case of reconnection, a search for connectable peripheral terminals 200 may be performed using the advertisement 212 transmitted when the button 2021 is pressed. In other words, even in the case of reconnection, only peripheral terminals 200 for which the user has explicitly pressed the button 2021 may be searched for as connection targets.

[0162] In this way, each of the applications 150 executed in the central terminal 100 may be configured to refer to one or more advertisements 211, 212 that are specific to the application 150 among the multiple types of advertisements 211, 212. Note that the number of types of advertisements transmitted by the central terminal 100 is not limited to two, and more types may be transmitted.

[0163] Here, by constantly transmitting the advertisement 211, the central terminal 100 can find the peripheral terminal 200 more easily, but the battery consumption of the peripheral terminal 200 may increase.

[0164] Therefore, it may be possible to stop the constant transmission of the Advertisement 211 from the central terminal 100 to the peripheral terminal 200.

[0165] 19 is a schematic diagram showing yet another example of a user interface screen provided by the central terminal 100 of the communication system 1 according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 19, the user interface screen 194 includes, in addition to identification information 196 indicating the target peripheral terminal 200, an OK button 198 for receiving an instruction to stop advertising 211. After checking the identification information 196 displayed on the user interface screen 194, the user presses the OK button 198. Then, an instruction is provided from the central terminal 100 to the target peripheral terminal 200, and the peripheral terminal 200 stops transmitting the advertising 211.

[0166] In this way, the central terminal 100 may be able to stop transmitting the advertise 211 to the peripheral terminal 200. In this case, the stop of transmission of the advertise 211 to the peripheral terminal 200 may be instructed by any application executed in the central terminal 100. In other words, among the applications 150 executed in the central terminal 100, any application 150 configured to refer to the constantly transmitted advertise 211 may be able to stop transmitting the advertise 211.

[0167] That is, the process of notifying the stop of transmission of the advertise 211 may be executed by the central terminal 100 and implemented in any application that can use the peripheral terminal 200. Note that the process of notifying the stop of transmission may be implemented only in the application that uses the constantly transmitted advertise 211 among the above applications.

[0168] Also, in Figure 19, an example is shown in which the user explicitly presses the OK button 198 to notify the user that transmission of the advertisement 211 has been stopped, but the notification to stop transmission of the advertisement 211 may be made automatically when a predetermined condition is met, rather than being limited to a user operation.

[0169] For example, when the central terminal 100 is set to airplane mode, an application may be configured to link with the setting and automatically notify the user to stop transmitting the advertisement 211.

[0170] Furthermore, the constantly transmitted advertisement 211 may also be initially set to a stopped state. In this case, when a connection is made with a central terminal 100 that executes an arbitrary application, the constantly transmitted advertisement 211 may be automatically enabled without any user operation.

[0171] Also, a user interface screen similar to that shown in FIG. 19 may be provided so that transmission of the advertisement 211 can be resumed at any timing in response to a user operation.

[0172] In this way, by making it possible to arbitrarily stop the advertisement 211 that is constantly transmitted by the central terminal 100, it is possible to reduce battery consumption in the peripheral terminal 200.

[0173] [J. Other Forms] (j1: Combination of processing types) 6 and 7 show a form in which the central terminal 100 manages pair information, and Fig. 9 and 10 show a form in which the management server 300 manages pair information, etc. The present invention is not limited to any one of the processing forms, and these processing forms may be combined as appropriate.

[0174] For example, once the management server 300 determines that the pair information 260 of the peripheral terminal 200 satisfies the conditions for reconnection, when the central terminal 100 subsequently acquires the same pair information 260 from the same peripheral terminal 200, it may determine that the conditions for reconnection are satisfied without inquiring of the management server 300.

[0175] That is, the management server 300 is the one that proactively determines whether the pair information 260 of the peripheral terminal 200 satisfies the reconnection conditions, but it is not necessary for the management server 300 to always make the determination. The management server 300 may determine whether the reconnection conditions are met only when the central terminal 100 determines that it is necessary to inquire of the management server 300.

[0176] When the above-described processing is employed, it is preferable that the central terminal 100 caches the comparison results from the management server 300 and the pair information 260 that is the subject of the comparison results for a predetermined period of time. The period for caching the comparison results and the pair information 260 can also be determined appropriately, taking usability and security into consideration.

[0177] (j2: Update pair information) The pair information held by the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200 may be updated under any conditions or at any timing. For example, information that can specify an expiration date may be added to the pair information, and the central terminal 100 may appropriately determine whether the expiration date of the pair information has passed. The expiration date may be stored in any of the central terminal 100, the peripheral terminal 200, and the management server 300.

[0178] If the expiration date of the pair information has passed, the central terminal 100 may generate new identification information and update the pair information.

[0179] Furthermore, the pair information of the peripheral terminal 200 may be deleted or erased in response to an instruction from the central terminal 100. For example, when an application running on the central terminal 100 is updated or uninstalled, the peripheral terminal 200 may be instructed to delete the pair information. By deleting the pair information, previously used pair information is invalidated, and unnecessary reconnection can be prevented.

[0180] (j3: Application execution entity) In the above description, an example has been described in which the central terminal 100 executes the application 150, but the execution of the application 150 itself may be handled by a computing resource on a network (so-called cloud). In this case, the central terminal 100 displays the execution result of the application 150 executed by the computing resource, but from the user's perspective, it is no different from the application 150 being executed by the central terminal 100.

[0181] Therefore, in this specification, the central terminal 100 executing the application 150 may include not only the case where the central terminal 100 itself executes the application 150, but also the case where the central terminal 100 and any computing resource work together to execute the application 150, and the case where any computing resource executes the application 150 and displays the results on the central terminal 100.

[0182] Furthermore, the execution of the application 150 by the central terminal 100 includes execution in the background as well as execution in the foreground. That is, the execution form of the application 150 may be any.

[0183] (j4: Management Server 300) Although the above description shows an example of a configuration in which a management server 300 is provided for each application, a common management server 300 may be provided for multiple applications. In this case, application type information may be associated with the pair information 160 managed by the management server 300.

[0184] [K.Advantages] According to the communication system of this embodiment, in an environment in which a peripheral terminal 200 is used by multiple applications 150 and the multiple applications 150 that use the peripheral terminal 200 are not necessarily executed by the same central terminal 100, the peripheral terminal 200 can be used favorably in each of the applications 150 executed by any of the central terminals 100.

[0185] According to the communication system of this embodiment, even if there are multiple central terminals 100 and each of the central terminals 100 executes various applications 150, Connection establishment and data communication with the peripheral terminal 200 suitable for each application 150 can be easily and quickly performed.

[0186] According to the communication system of the present embodiment, a pair of application 150 and peripheral terminal 200 that have performed data communication in the past can smoothly resume and start data communication from the next time onwards.

[0187] According to the communication system of the present embodiment, after a connection is established between the central terminal 100 and the peripheral terminal 200, pair information is transmitted from the peripheral terminal 200 to the central terminal 100, and a decision is made as to whether or not to execute data communication based on the transmitted pair information. By adopting such a two-stage configuration, the amount of communication can be reduced compared to when pair information is included in an advertisement.

[0188] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative in all respects and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not by the above description, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0189] 1,1A Communication system, 100,100A,100B Central terminal, 102 Processor, 104 Memory, 106 Storage, 108 System program, 112 Bus, 114 Display, 116 Operation unit, 118 Audio output unit, 120, 220 Wireless communication unit, 130 Search unit, 132 Application execution unit, 134 Processing decision unit, 136 Comparison unit, 138 Relay unit, 140 Identification information generation unit, 150, 150A, 150B, 150C Application, 160, 260 Pair information, 162, 262, 262A, 262B, 262C Application type information, 164, 164A, 164B, 164C, 264, 264A, 264B, 264C Identification information, 170 Connection information, 180, 184, 186, 188, 194 User interface screen, 182 Candidate list, 190, 196 Specific information, 192, 198, 2021 Button, 200 Peripheral terminal, 202 Input unit, 204 Output unit, 211, 212 Advertise, 300 Management Server.

Claims

1. a first terminal running one or more applications; a second terminal that performs data communication with the first terminal by wireless communication; The second terminal a storage unit configured to store, as pair information, first information associated with each application executed on the first terminal; a transmitting unit that transmits second information based on first information associated with the application executed on the first terminal, the second information being stored in the storage unit, in response to a request from the application executed on the first terminal; A communication system, wherein the first terminal is provided with a decision unit that decides processing related to data communication with the second terminal based on a comparison result between third information associated with a running application and second information received from the second terminal.

2. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein the first terminal comprises a device that accepts user operations and a management server.

3. The communication system according to claim 2 , wherein the first terminal further comprises a generating unit that generates the first information used as the pair information.

4. The communication system according to claim 3 , wherein the generation unit is provided in the management server.

5. The communication system according to claim 3 , wherein the management server compares the third information with the second information.

6. 6. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the first terminal further comprises a second storage unit that, when connected to the second terminal, stores an address of the connected second terminal.

7. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first terminal further comprises a search unit that receives an advertisement transmitted from the second terminal and searches for a second terminal to be connected.

8. The communication system described in claim 7, wherein if the address of the second terminal that sent the received advertisement is included in the addresses stored in the second memory unit, the first terminal starts a connection process with the second terminal that sent the advertisement, and after connection, sends the request to the second terminal.

9. the second terminal is configured to transmit a plurality of types of advertisements; A communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein each of the applications executed on the first terminal is configured to refer to one or more advertisements specific to the application among the plurality of types of advertisements.

10. the plurality of types of advertisements include advertisements that are always transmitted; 10. The communication system of claim 9, wherein any application running on the first terminal that is configured to reference the constantly transmitted advertisements is configured to be able to stop transmitting the constantly transmitted advertisements.

11. an execution unit that executes one or more applications; a communication unit that performs data communication with a peripheral terminal by wireless communication, and the peripheral terminal stores first information associated with each application executed by the execution unit as pair information; I remember it as news, A communication device comprising a decision unit that decides processing related to data communication with the peripheral terminal based on a comparison result between second information acquired from the peripheral terminal and third information associated with a running application.

12. a communication unit that wirelessly communicates data with a central terminal that executes one or more applications; a storage unit configured to store first information associated with each application executed on the central terminal as pair information; A communication device comprising: a transmitting unit that transmits second information based on first information associated with the application executed on the central terminal, which is stored in the memory unit, in response to a request from the application executed on the central terminal.

13. A communication method executed by a first terminal and a second terminal that communicate data wirelessly, comprising: the first terminal executing one or more applications; a step of storing, by the second terminal, first information associated with each application executed by the first terminal as pair information; a step in which the second terminal, in response to a request from an application executed on the first terminal, refers to the pair information and transmits second pair information based on first information associated with the application executed on the first terminal; A communication method comprising a step in which the first terminal determines processing related to data communication with the second terminal based on a comparison result between third information associated with a running application and second information received from the second terminal.

14. A communication program executed on a communication device that executes one or more applications, the communication program including: a step of wirelessly communicating data with a peripheral terminal, the peripheral terminal storing first information associated with each application executed by the communication device as pair information; and determining a process for data communication with the peripheral terminal based on a comparison result between second information acquired from the peripheral terminal and third information associated with the running application.

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