Information communication apparatus, information communication method, and program

Abstract

To suitably transmit data between an information communication device and an external device.SOLUTION: Each of the scientific calculators 201 to 250 includes a control unit. When the acquisition of the data from the PC1 via the predetermined communication unit is completed, the control unit transmits data acquisition completion information indicating that the acquisition of the data by the own device is completed to the PC1 via the communication unit. The control unit obtains, from the PC1 via the communication unit, obtainment status information indicating whether or not the PC1 has obtained the data-obtainment completion information. When the controller obtains the obtainment status information from the external device, the controller retransmits the data-obtainment completion information if the obtainment status information indicates that the PC1 has not obtained the data-obtainment completion information even though the data-obtainment completion information has already been transmitted.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

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

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known an information communication system that includes an information processing device and multiple information terminals and that can transmit data from the information processing device to the multiple information terminals. For example, a wireless system is known in which a gateway broadcasts test data to multiple unknown wireless terminals (see Patent Document 1). After transmitting the test data via broadcast, the wireless terminal that receives it relays the test data to other wireless terminals. Applying such a system, for example, in a school mathematics class, in a system that includes a PC (Personal Computer) that is an information processing device used by a teacher and scientific calculators that are information terminals used by multiple students, the PC could transmit data via broadcast communication to the multiple scientific calculators, and when data acquisition is complete, the scientific calculator could send a response communication to the PC indicating that acquisition is complete. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-175425 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When a PC sends data once, responses are sent simultaneously from many scientific calculators, but in this case the PC may not be able to process all the responses and may miss some of them. In this case, the PC will determine that the data has not reached all the scientific calculators and will broadcast the data again to all the scientific calculators, which could result in inefficient retransmission.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to transmit data suitably between an information communication device and an external device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, the information communication device of the present invention is equipped with a control unit that, when it has completed data acquisition from an external device via a specified communication unit, transmits data acquisition completion information indicating that the device has completed acquisition of the data to the external device via the communication unit, and acquires acquisition status information from the external device via the communication unit, indicating whether the external device has acquired the data acquisition completion information; and when the control unit acquires the acquisition status information from the external device, if the acquisition status information indicates that the external device has not acquired the data acquisition completion information despite the data acquisition completion information having been transmitted, it resends the data acquisition completion information.

[0007] The information communication device of the present invention is also characterized by comprising a control unit that transmits first data to a plurality of external devices via a predetermined communication unit, determines acquisition status information for each of the plurality of external devices indicating whether data acquisition completion information, which is information transmitted from the external device when the external device has completed acquisition of the first data, has been acquired from the external device via the communication unit, repeatedly transmits acquisition status information indicating the acquisition status of the data acquisition completion information of the plurality of external devices to the plurality of external devices, and transmits the acquisition status information only once when the data acquisition completion information of a predetermined target of the plurality of external devices has been acquired. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, data can be transmitted suitably between an information communication device and an external device. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing an information communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a PC. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a scientific calculator. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of a packet for one loop. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the configurations of a flag packet and a data packet. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission process. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart showing a receiving process. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing an example of information transmission and reception between a PC and a scientific calculator. [Figure 9] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating examples of reception status flags of a PC and a scientific calculator. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to the illustrated examples.

[0011] The device configuration of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 3. As shown in Fig. 1, an information communication system 1000 is a system used, for example, during mathematics classes in classrooms at schools serving as educational institutions. A teacher and multiple students are present in the classroom. The information communication system 1000 includes a PC 1 and scientific calculators 201, 202, ... 250.

[0012] PC1 is a palmtop PC and is an information communication device (information processing device) carried by the teacher who teaches the class. Scientific calculators 201 to 250 are information communication devices (information terminals) carried by each of the 50 students attending the class. The number of scientific calculators and the number of students, 50, is an example, and any other number greater than or equal to 2 may be used. The device numbers identifying the scientific calculators 201 to 250 are 1 to 50, respectively.

[0013] The PC1 and the scientific calculators 201-250 communicate wirelessly. This wireless communication will be described as using, for example, a wireless communication using a Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy (BLE) advertising signal in order to reduce power consumption for the scientific calculators. The advertising signal is a signal transmitted when a mutual connection between the central (PC1) and the peripherals (scientific calculators 201-250) has not yet been established. Here, an example will be described in which PC1 broadcasts data for questions to be posed to students to the scientific calculators 201-250. Note that the wireless communication method of the information communication system 1000 is not limited to BLE, and other wireless communication methods may be used, such as Bluetooth or a wireless local area network (LAN) such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark).

[0014] The internal functional configuration of PC 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 2. PC 1 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, an operation unit 12, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, a display unit 14, a storage unit 15, and a communication unit 16. The various units of PC 1 are connected via a bus 17.

[0015] The CPU 11 controls each part of the PC 11. The CPU 11 reads out a specified program from among the system programs and various application programs stored in the storage unit 15 and loads it into the RAM 13. The CPU 11 executes various processes in cooperation with the loaded program. The operation unit 12 has a keyboard with various keys and a pointing device such as a mouse. The operation unit 12 receives key operations and position operations from the user and outputs the operation information to the CPU 11. The operation unit 12 may include a touch panel provided on the display unit 14.

[0016] The RAM 13 is a volatile semiconductor memory that forms a work area for temporarily storing various data and programs. The display unit 14 has a display panel such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or an ELD (Electro-Luminescent Display). The display unit 24 displays various display information on the display panel under the control of the CPU 11.

[0017] The storage unit 15 is configured with a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or the like, and stores information in a readable and writable manner. The storage unit 15 stores various programs and various information. In particular, the storage unit 15 stores a data transmission program P1 for executing a data transmission process described below. The communication unit 16 is a wireless communication module that uses the BLE communication standard. The CPU 11 transmits and receives information to and from external devices such as the scientific calculators 201 to 250 via the communication unit 16.

[0018] Next, the internal functional configuration of scientific calculator 201 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Here, the configuration of scientific calculator 201 will be described as a representative example, but scientific calculators 202 to 250 also have similar configurations. Scientific calculator 201 includes CPU 21, operation unit 22, RAM 23, display unit 24, storage unit 25, and communication unit 26. The various units of scientific calculator 201 are connected via bus 27. CPU 21, RAM 23, display unit 24, and communication unit 26 have the same configuration as CPU 11, RAM 13, display unit 14, and communication unit 16, and differences will be mainly described.

[0019] The CPU 21 controls each part of the scientific calculator 201. The operation unit 12 has operation keys such as cursor keys, function keys, number keys, and calculation keys. The operation unit 12 accepts key operations from a student who is the user, and outputs the operation information to the CPU 21. The storage unit 25 is composed of a flash memory or the like. In particular, the storage unit 25 stores a reception program P2 for executing the reception process described below, and a device number as identification information for the device itself. The communication unit 16 is a wireless communication module that uses the BLE communication standard. The CPU 21 transmits and receives information to and receives information from an external device such as a PC 1 via the communication unit 26.

[0020] Next, the structure of data transmitted from PC1 to the scientific calculators 201-250 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. Consider, for example, the case where PC1 broadcasts question data to the scientific calculators 201-250. The question data may be, for example, multiple numerical values ​​for a calculation question, such as data for having students perform calculations such as averages and standard deviations. When PC1 broadcasts several kilobytes (KB) of data (total data), such as question data, it must periodically check whether the scientific calculators 201-250 have received the data. Therefore, we assume a specification in which the scientific calculators 201-250 check every 160 bytes to see if they have received the data. In a BLE broadcast, the BLE standard allows for the transmission of up to 31 bytes of data. The header for establishing communication between PC1 and the scientific calculators 201-250 uses 11 bytes, and the actual data that can be transmitted is 20 bytes. Therefore, after sending 20 [Bytes] of data eight times in a row, PC1 checks whether all of the scientific calculators 201 to 250 have received the data up to that point. Once all of the scientific calculators 201 to 250 have received the data, PC1 broadcasts the next 160 [Bytes] of data.

[0021] For this reason, as shown in FIG. 4, PC1 broadcasts a flag packet FP1 and data packets DP1 to DP8 as a single packet group PK1. The flag packet FP1 includes a reception status flag indicating the reception status of the scientific calculators 201 to 250. In the packet group PK1, a group of data packets transmitted consecutively for each flag packet constitutes one loop. For example, to transmit a total of 1120 bytes of data, seven 160-byte loops are required. Due to limitations of the communication unit 16 of PC1, the response time of the scientific calculators 201 to 250 to the packet group PK1 is, for example, 750 ms. Therefore, the transmission time of one packet group PK1 is set to, for example, 4 seconds, which includes 850 ms set corresponding to the response time.

[0022] The flag packet FP1 and data packets DP1 to DP8 are actually included in the advertising data (maximum 31 [bytes (oct)]) in the payload of the protocol data unit in each packet of one packet group PK1. As shown in FIG. 5, the flag packet FP1 has a header H and a reception status flag D1. The header H has a packet length H1, an AD type H2, a data type H3, an index number H4, a group H5, a loop number H6, a total number of packets H7, a packet number H8, a data length H9, and a command H10. The packet length H1 and the AD type H2 are areas for information related to the BLE standard. The data type H3 to the packet number H8 are areas for information used in BLE communication. The data length H9 and the command H10 are areas for information related to the data of the flag packet FP1 (reception status flag D1).

[0023] Packet length H1 is a 1 [oct] field indicating the packet length of the flag packet FP1. AD type H2 is a 3 [oct] information field indicating the BLE standard type of the flag packet FP1. AD type H2 may include the ID of the company that provides the proprietary standard for the flag packet FP1. Data type H3 is a 1 [oct] field indicating the format type of the flag packet FP1. Index number (Index to Slave) H4 is a 1 [oct] field indicating a numerical value that is incremented each time data (packet) is transmitted. Index number H4 indicates how far the data packet has been transmitted. Group H5 is a 1 [oct] field indicating identification information for the student group in the class. Group H5 is not used in this embodiment.

[0024] The loop number (Loop Number) H6 is a 4-bit field that indicates whether the current loop is an even-numbered even loop (=0) or an odd-numbered odd loop (=1) when transmitting one entire data set using multiple loops. The total packet number (Total Packet) H7 is a 4-bit field that indicates the total number of packets per loop. For example, the total packet number H7 is 9 (1 = the number of flag packets FP1 + 8 = the number of data packets DP1 to DP8) in the packet group PK1. The packet number (Packet Number) H8 is a 1-oct field that indicates the number of the packet currently being transmitted among all packets per loop. For example, the packet number H8 takes on a value from 1 to 9 in the packet group PK1. The packet number H8 corresponding to the flag packet FP1 is 1.

[0025] The data length H9 is a 1-oct field that indicates the length of the reception status flag D1. The command H10 is a 1-oct field that indicates the type of data in the reception status flag D1 and the processing to be performed on the destination scientific calculator. The reception status flag D1 indicates the reception status based on the presence or absence of a 20-byte response corresponding to the completion of data reception on all destination scientific calculators. The reception status flag D1 has a 50-bit structure in which the numerical values ​​of the 1-bit response flags are arranged in ascending order of device number for the number of scientific calculators 201 to 250. The numerical values ​​of the response flags in the reception status flag D1 are 1 for response and 0 for no response.

[0026] Similarly, data packet DP1 has a header H and data D2. The header H of data packet DP1 is the same as the header H of flag packet FP1, with information about reception status flag D1 replaced with information about data D2. The data D2 is the data body (maximum 20 bytes) obtained by packetizing the entire data to be transmitted. The structure of data packets DP2 to DP8 is also the same as that of data packet DP1. The packet numbers H8 corresponding to data packets DP1 to DP8 are 2 to 9, respectively.

[0027] Next, the operation of information communication system 1000 will be described with reference to Figures 6 to 9. A teacher who owns PC1 and 50 students who each own scientific calculators 201 to 250 have entered a specific classroom and a mathematics class is being held. It is assumed that during the mathematics class, it is necessary to transmit all data, such as mathematics question data, from PC1 to scientific calculators 201 to 250 by broadcast.

[0028] The data transmission process executed by the PC 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 6. In the PC 1, an instruction to execute the data transmission process is input, for example, from the teacher via the operation unit 12. The CPU 11 is triggered by the input of the execution instruction to execute the data transmission process in accordance with the data transmission program P1.

[0029] CPU 11 broadcasts a device registration request to scientific calculators 201-250 via communication unit 16 (step S11). The device registration request is request information for a device number for registering the scientific calculator as a device in PC 1. In response to the device registration request, each scientific calculator transmits the device number (1-50) assigned to itself to PC 1. CPU 11 receives the device number corresponding to the device registration request from each scientific calculator via communication unit 16 and registers it in storage unit 15 (step S12). Here, it is assumed that all scientific calculators 201-250 are registered, but there may be scientific calculators that are not registered, such as scientific calculators for those absent.

[0030] Based on the overall data such as the question data, the CPU 11 creates a flag packet and a data packet corresponding to the next loop of the overall data (step S13). When step S13 is executed for the first time, the next loop will be the loop with the smallest loop number. The data packets created will be multiple packets for one loop, into which the overall data is divided by the number of loops. The flag packet and multiple data packets created in step S13 constitute a packet group for one loop. The CPU 11 increments the current loop number by 1 (step S14). The loop number is initialized to 0. Also, in step S14, the CPU 11 sets the loop number H6 in the header H of the flag packet and the data packet to an even loop (= 0) or odd loop (= 1) corresponding to the current loop number after the increment.

[0031] CPU 11 broadcasts the flag packet created in step S13 to scientific calculators 201-250 via communication unit 16 (step S15). CPU 11 broadcasts the multiple data packets for the current loop number created in step S13 to scientific calculators 201-250 via communication unit 16 (step S16). CPU 11 receives response information corresponding to the flag packet and multiple data packets sent in steps S15 and S16 from each scientific calculator via communication unit 16, along with the device number (step S17). The response information is data acquisition completion information indicating that the destination scientific calculator has received the flag packet and multiple data sent in steps S15 and S16. In step S17, there is a risk that some scientific calculators will not receive the flag packet and multiple data, and in that case, the scientific calculator will not send the response information. There is also a risk that PC1 will not be able to complete reception of the response information from a certain scientific calculator in step S17. This could result in some scientific calculators not receiving the response information.

[0032] CPU 11 updates reception status flag D1 of the flag packet based on the response information and device number received in step S17 (step S18). In step S18, CPU 11 sets the response flag of the device number of the scientific calculator for which there is response information to "1" in reception status flag D1, and leaves the response flag of the device number of the scientific calculator for which there is no response information at "0". CPU 11 determines whether there are response flags "1" in reception status flag D1 for all scientific calculators (50) (step S19). If there are not 50 response flags "1" (step S19; NO), the process proceeds to step S15.

[0033] If there are 50 response flags set to "1" (step S19; YES), the CPU 11 determines whether there is a loop number next to the current loop number based on the number of loops in the entire data (step S20). If there is a next loop number (step S20; YES), the process proceeds to step S13. When the process proceeds from step S20 to step S13, the reception status flag D1 is reset to "0" in step S13, and all response flags are reset to "0". If there is no next loop number (step S20; NO), the data transmission process ends.

[0034] Next, with reference to FIG. 7, the reception process executed by scientific calculators 201 to 250 in response to the data transmission process will be described. Here, the reception process executed by scientific calculator 201 will be described as a representative example, but the reception process executed by each of scientific calculators 202 to 250 is similar. When a flag packet of a packet group is received from PC 1, CPU 21 of scientific calculator 201 sets a data packet mode to OFF in advance, so that data packets of the packet group can be received. In response to the data transmission process, scientific calculator 201 receives information from PC 1 via communication unit 26. Reception of the information triggers CPU 21 to execute the reception process in accordance with reception program P2. The information is a device registration request, a flag packet, or a data packet.

[0035] The CPU 21 determines whether or not the information received as a trigger for the reception process is a device registration reception request corresponding to step S11 (step S31). If it is a device registration reception request (step S31; YES), the CPU 21 reads out the device number of its own device from the storage unit 25 (step S32). In step S32, the CPU 21 transmits the device number of its own device to the PC 10 via the communication unit 26, and ends the reception process. If it is not a device registration reception request (step S31; NO), the received information is a flag packet or a data packet corresponding to steps S15 and S16. The CPU 21 determines whether or not a flag packet has been received as a trigger for the reception process (step S33).

[0036] If it is a flag packet (step S33), CPU 11 determines whether the first bit corresponding to its own device (scientific calculator 201) of reception status flag D1 of the received flag packet is 0 or not (step S34). If the first bit is 0 (step S34; YES), its own device has not received a data packet. Therefore, CPU 21 turns on the data packet reception mode (step S35) and ends the reception process. If the first bit is 1 (step S34; NO), its own device has completed receiving the data packet. Therefore, CPU 21 turns off the data packet reception mode (step S36) and ends the reception process.

[0037] If it is not a device registration reception request (step S31; YES), the information received as a trigger for the reception process is a data packet. Therefore, the CPU 21 determines whether the data packet reception mode is on or not (step S37). If the data packet reception mode is off (step S37; NO), the reception process ends. If the data packet reception mode is on (step S37; YES), the CPU 21 determines whether the loop number H6 of the data packet received as a trigger for the reception process is different from the saved loop number saved in the memory unit 25 (step S38). The saved loop number is the number of the loop from which data was received most recently. The loop numbers are expressed in ascending order of loop number, with odd numbers = 1 and even numbers = 0. Therefore, when a data packet of a new loop that has not yet been received is received, the saved loop number is always different from the saved loop number from which data was received most recently.

[0038] If the loop numbers are different (step S38; YES), the CPU 21 stores data D2 of the data packet received as a trigger for the reception process in the storage unit 25 (step S39). The CPU 21 references the total packet count H7 and packet number H8 of the data packet received as a trigger for the reception process (step S40). In step S40, the CPU 21 determines whether the referenced packet number H8 is the total packet count H7 and whether reception of all data packets for one loop of the current loop number has been completed.

[0039] If reception of the data packets has not been completed (step S40; NO), the CPU 21 receives the data packet of the next packet number corresponding to step S16 from the PC 1 via the communication unit 26 (step S41). The process proceeds to step S39. If reception of the data packets has been completed (step S40; YES), the CPU 21 refers to the loop number H6 of the data packet received as a trigger for the reception process, and overwrites the loop number H6 in the storage unit 25 as a saved loop number (step S42). The CPU 21 generates response information indicating that reception of all data packets of the current loop number has been completed, and transmits the generated response information to the PC 1 via the communication unit 26 (step S43). The reception process ends. If the loop numbers are the same (step S38; NO), a data packet of the same loop as the trigger for the reception process has been received. The process proceeds to step S43.

[0040] Next, an example of the flow of data transmission processing and reception processing in PC1 and all scientific calculators 201-250 will be described with reference to Figures 8 and 9. Here, as shown in Figure 4, an example is taken in which a flag packet FP1 and data packets DP1-DP8 are transmitted as a single packet group PK1 in one loop. First, in step S11 of the data transmission processing, a device registration request is transmitted from PC1 to the scientific calculators 201-250. Then, in response to the device registration request, in step S32 of the reception processing, each device number is transmitted from the scientific calculators 201-250 to PC1.

[0041] Then, in steps S15 and S16 of the data transmission processing, flag packet FP1 and data packets DP1 to DP8 with loop count=1 (loop number=1) are transmitted from PC1 to scientific calculators 201 to 250. In response to this, it is assumed that response information is transmitted from 25 scientific calculators to PC1 in step S43 of the reception processing. At this time, the reception status flag D1 of flag packet FP1 is a bit string of all "0"s in all scientific calculators 201 to 250, so steps S34, S35, and S37 to S43 are executed. Of scientific calculators 201 to 250, the response information of 25 scientific calculators is received by PC1. The response information of the other scientific calculators is not received by PC1 due to a wireless communication malfunction or the like.

[0042] Then, in steps S15 and S16 of the data transmission processing, flag packet FP1 and data packets DP1 to DP8 with loop count=1 are again transmitted from PC1 to scientific calculators 201 to 250. In response to this, it is assumed that response information is transmitted from the other 20 scientific calculators to PC1 in step S43 of the transmission processing. At this time, the 25 scientific calculators that have transmitted response information have their own reception status flags D1 in flag packet FP1 set to "1", so they only execute step S36. The 25 scientific calculators that have not transmitted response information, when they receive flag packet FP1 and data packets DP1 to DP8, have their own reception status flags D1 set to "0", so they execute steps S34, S35, and S37 to S43.

[0043] At this time, it is assumed that reception status flag D1a has been transmitted, for example, as shown in Fig. 9. The 25 scientific calculators 201, 204, ..., 249, 250 that have transmitted response information execute only step S36. Of the 25 scientific calculators that have not transmitted response information, 20 scientific calculators 202, ..., 248 execute steps S34, S35, and S37 to S43. PC1 receives the response information from the 20 scientific calculators 202, ..., 248. For the other five scientific calculators 203, ..., at least PC1 does not receive response information.

[0044] Then, in steps S15 and S16 of the data transmission process, flag packet FP1 and data packets DP1 to DP8 with a loop count of 1 are again transmitted from PC1 to scientific calculators 201 to 250. In response to this, in step S43 of the transmission process, response information is transmitted from all five remaining scientific calculators to PC1. At this time, the 45 scientific calculators that have transmitted response information have their own response flags in the reception status flags D1 set to "1," so they only execute step S36. The five scientific calculators that have not yet transmitted response information have their own response flags in the reception status flags D1 set to "0," so they execute steps S34, S35, and S37 to S43. Then, the process moves to the next loop, and in step S14 of the data transmission process, the loop number is incremented to "2," and data transmission and reception processes for the next loop are executed. This series of processes is repeated the number of loops corresponding to all the data.

[0045] As described above, according to this embodiment, the scientific calculators 201-250 serving as information communication devices each include a CPU 21. When the CPU 21 completes data acquisition from PC1 serving as an external device via the predetermined communication unit 26, it transmits response information to PC1 via the communication unit 26 as data acquisition completion information indicating that the device has completed data acquisition. The CPU 21 acquires a reception status flag D1 from PC1 via the communication unit 26 as acquisition status information indicating whether PC1 has acquired the response information. When the CPU 21 acquires the reception status flag D1 from PC1, if the reception status flag D1 indicates that PC1 has not acquired the response information despite having already transmitted the response information, the CPU 21 retransmits the response information. This enables optimal data transmission between the scientific calculators 201-250 and PC1. Furthermore, because response information is only transmitted from scientific calculators whose responses PC1 does not recognize, the number of received response information is reduced, making processing easier, reducing the number of retransmissions and shortening the time required to complete transmission of all data.

[0046] Furthermore, when the reception status flag D1 indicates that PC1 has not acquired its own response information and data acquisition is complete, CPU21 retransmits the response information. When the reception status flag D1 indicates that PC1 has acquired its own response information, CPU21 does not retransmit the response information. This prevents unnecessary retransmission of response information, prevents power consumption of scientific calculators 201-250 due to the retransmission, and reduces the processing load on scientific calculators 201-250 and PC1.

[0047] Furthermore, CPU 21 acquires the data and reception status flag D1 together with loop number H6 as common identification information. If the reception status flag D1 does not indicate that PC1 has acquired its own response information and the data has been acquired together with loop number H6 that is the same as the loop number H6 acquired together with reception status flag D1, CPU 21 retransmits the response information. If the reception status flag D1 does not indicate that PC1 has acquired its own response information and the data has not been acquired together with loop number H6 that is the same as the loop number H6 acquired together with reception status flag D1, CPU 21 acquires the data, stores it in storage unit 25, and transmits the response information. This prevents data from being reacquired when the loop number used when the data was received is the same, thereby reducing the processing load on scientific calculators 201-250.

[0048] Furthermore, PC1, which serves as an information communication device, includes CPU 11. CPU 11 transmits first data to scientific calculators 201-250, which serve as a plurality of external devices, via predetermined communication unit 16. CPU 11 determines, for each scientific calculator 201-250, a reception status flag D1 as acquisition status information indicating whether response information, which is information transmitted from the scientific calculator when the scientific calculator 201-250 has completed acquisition of the first data, has been acquired from the scientific calculator via communication unit 16. CPU 11 repeatedly transmits reception status flag D1, which indicates the acquisition status of the response information for each scientific calculator 201-250, to the scientific calculators 201-250 all at once. This allows for optimal data transmission between PC1 and scientific calculators 201-250. Furthermore, because response information is only transmitted from scientific calculators whose responses PC1 has not recognized, the number of received response information is reduced, making processing easier, reducing the number of retransmissions and shortening the time required to complete transmission of all data.

[0049] Furthermore, when CPU 11 acquires response information from a predetermined target (here, all scientific calculators 201 to 250 are the transmission targets), it transmits second data to scientific calculators 201 to 250 via communication unit 16. CPU 11 acquires second response information, which is information transmitted from a predetermined target when the predetermined target has completed acquiring the second data, via communication unit 16. CPU 11 simultaneously transmits second reception status flag D1, which indicates the acquisition status of the second response information from scientific calculators 201 to 250, to scientific calculators 201 to 250. Therefore, when the first data has been successfully transmitted to the transmission target scientific calculators 201 to 250, PC 1 can easily transmit the second data (for the next loop).

[0050] In the above description, an example has been disclosed in which the storage units 15 and 25 are used as a computer-readable medium for the program according to the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this example. Other computer-readable media may include a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a portable recording medium such as a CD-ROM. Furthermore, a carrier wave may also be used as a medium for providing data for the program according to the present invention via a communication line.

[0051] The description in the above embodiment is merely an example of the information communication device, the information communication method, and the program according to the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to this.

[0052] For example, in the above embodiment, when PC1 receives response information from all of the scientific calculators 201-250 to which data is to be transmitted, a reception status flag D1 indicating this may be transmitted only once to the scientific calculators 201-250. Specifically, when step S19 of the data transmission process is YES, CPU 11 may transmit, via communication unit 16, a reception status flag D1 in which all response flags are set to "1" (or a flag packet FP1 including this flag). CPU 21 of scientific calculators 201-250 receives, via communication unit 26, from PC1 a reception status flag D1 or flag packet FP1 in which all response flags are set to "1." This provides the same effects as the above embodiment, and allows scientific calculators 201-250 to reliably recognize that PC1 has received response information from all of the scientific calculators 201-250 to which data is to be transmitted.

[0053] In the above embodiment, the CPU 11 is configured to inquire about and determine (register) the scientific calculator to which data is to be transmitted each time the data transmission process is performed. However, this is not limited to this. For example, the scientific calculator to which data is to be transmitted may be registered in advance in the PC 1 before the data transmission process, excluding steps S11 and S12, is performed, such as at the beginning of a class, a semester, or a school year. The CPU 11 accepts input from the teacher via the operation unit 12 of the device number of each scientific calculator to which data is to be transmitted, and registers the device number in the storage unit 15. The pre-registered device number is used from step S13 onwards. This configuration allows the teacher to adjust the device number specific to the scientific calculator in response to a student's absence (by removing the absent student from the registration).

[0054] In the above embodiment, the configuration of the information communication system 1000 has been described, which includes a PC 1 on the data transmission side and multiple scientific calculators 201-250 on the data reception side. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The information communication device on the data transmission side may be other information communication devices such as a desktop PC, a server, or a tablet PC. The information communication device on the data reception side may be other information communication devices such as a regular calculator, a tablet PC, a smartphone, or a handheld terminal. The information communication system, data transmission processing, and reception processing can also be applied to configurations that perform broadcast communication outside of educational institution classes, such as corporate training and setup work for multiple information communication devices.

[0055] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0056] 1 PC, 201-250 Scientific calculator, 11,21 CPU, 16,26 Communication unit

Claims

1. when the data acquisition from the external device is completed via a predetermined communication unit, transmitting data acquisition completion information indicating that the device has completed the data acquisition to the external device via the communication unit; a control unit that acquires acquisition status information indicating whether the external device has acquired the data acquisition completion information from the external device via the communication unit; The control unit When the acquisition status information is acquired from the external device, if the acquisition status information indicates that the external device has not acquired the data acquisition completion information despite the fact that the data acquisition completion information has already been transmitted, retransmit the data acquisition completion information. An information communication device characterized by:

2. The control unit If the acquisition status information indicates that the external device has not acquired the data acquisition completion information of its own device, and if the external device has completed acquisition of the data, retransmitting the data acquisition completion information; The information communication device according to claim 1, characterized in that when the acquisition status information indicates that the external device has acquired the data acquisition completion information of the device itself, the data acquisition completion information is not retransmitted.

3. The control unit Acquire the data and the acquisition status information together with common identification information; If the acquisition status information does not indicate that the external device has acquired the data acquisition completion information of its own device, and if the external device has acquired the data together with the identification information that is common to the identification information acquired together with the acquisition status information, retransmit the data acquisition completion information; If the acquisition status information does not indicate that the external device has acquired the data acquisition completion information of its own device, and if the external device has not acquired the data together with the identification information that is common to the identification information acquired together with the acquisition status information, acquire the data and transmit the data acquisition completion information.

2. The information communication device according to claim 1,

4. transmitting the first data to a plurality of external devices via a predetermined communication unit; determining, for each of the plurality of external devices, acquisition status information indicating whether data acquisition completion information, which is information transmitted from the external device when the external device has completed acquisition of the first data, has been acquired from the external device via the communication unit; repeatedly transmitting acquisition status information indicating acquisition status of the data acquisition completion information of the plurality of external devices to the plurality of external devices simultaneously; a control unit that transmits the acquisition status information once when the data acquisition completion information of a predetermined target among the plurality of external devices is acquired; An information communication device characterized by:

5. The control unit When the data acquisition completion information is acquired from the predetermined target, transmitting second data to the plurality of external devices via the communication unit; acquiring, via the communication unit, second data acquisition completion information that is information transmitted from the external device when the external device has completed acquisition of the second data; transmitting second acquisition status information, which is an acquisition status of the second data acquisition completion information of the plurality of external devices, to the plurality of external devices simultaneously; 5. The information communication device according to claim 4.

6. when the data acquisition from the external device is completed via a predetermined communication unit, transmitting data acquisition completion information indicating that the device has completed the data acquisition to the external device via the communication unit; a control step of acquiring, from the external device via the communication unit, acquisition status information indicating whether the external device has acquired the data acquisition completion information; The control step includes: When the acquisition status information is acquired from the external device, if the acquisition status information indicates that the external device has not acquired the data acquisition completion information despite the fact that the data acquisition completion information has already been transmitted, retransmit the data acquisition completion information. An information communication method comprising:

7. transmitting the first data to a plurality of external devices via a predetermined communication unit; determining, for each of the plurality of external devices, acquisition status information indicating whether data acquisition completion information, which is information transmitted from the external device when the external device has completed acquisition of the first data, has been acquired from the external device via the communication unit; repeatedly transmitting acquisition status information indicating acquisition status of the data acquisition completion information of the plurality of external devices to the plurality of external devices simultaneously; a control step of transmitting the acquisition status information only once when the data acquisition completion information of a predetermined target among the plurality of external devices is acquired, An information communication method comprising:

8. Computer, when the data acquisition from the external device is completed via a predetermined communication unit, transmitting data acquisition completion information indicating that the device has completed the data acquisition to the external device via the communication unit; functioning as a control unit that acquires acquisition status information indicating whether the external device has acquired the data acquisition completion information from the external device via the communication unit; The control unit When the acquisition status information is acquired from the external device, if the acquisition status information indicates that the external device has not acquired the data acquisition completion information despite the fact that the data acquisition completion information has already been transmitted, retransmit the data acquisition completion information. A program characterized by:

9. Computer, transmitting the first data to a plurality of external devices via a predetermined communication unit; determining, for each of the plurality of external devices, acquisition status information indicating whether data acquisition completion information, which is information transmitted from the external device when the external device has completed acquisition of the first data, has been acquired from the external device via the communication unit; repeatedly transmitting acquisition status information indicating acquisition status of the data acquisition completion information of the plurality of external devices to the plurality of external devices simultaneously; a control unit that transmits the acquisition status information only once when the data acquisition completion information of a predetermined target among the plurality of external devices is acquired; A program to function as a

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