Information processing device, control method, and program

Abstract

This provides a mechanism to improve the convenience of establishing connections between information processing devices and communication devices. [Solution] An instruction to connect a communication device and an information processing device that have enabled a predetermined access point having identification information including both a specific string and a string other than the specific string is executed by notifying the OS of the specific string.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a control method, and a program for performing communication connection between apparatuses.

Background Art

[0002] A technique is known in which an information processing apparatus such as a smartphone establishes a connection with a communication apparatus such as a printer and communicates information regarding an access point via the connection.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes establishing a connection with a communication apparatus by using the SSID of the communication apparatus, then communicating information regarding an access point, and setting the connection mode of the communication apparatus.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] By the way, as a technique for establishing a connection between an information processing apparatus and a communication apparatus and communicating information regarding an access point via the connection becomes widespread, there is a demand for improving the convenience in establishing the connection between the information processing apparatus and the communication apparatus.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to improve the convenience in establishing a connection between an information processing apparatus and a communication apparatus.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] To solve the above problems, the present invention provides a program that causes an information processing device having an operating system (OS) different from the program to execute an instruction step to the OS by notifying the OS of the specific string, instructing the OS to connect the information processing device with a communication device that has enabled a predetermined access point having identification information including both a specific string and a string other than the specific string; and, when a connection is established between the communication device that has enabled the predetermined access point and the information processing device, a communication step to communicate information about an access point different from the predetermined access point via the connection between the communication device that has enabled the predetermined access point and the information processing device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the convenience of establishing a connection between an information processing device and a communication device. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This diagram shows the configuration of a system including an information processing device and a communication device. [Figure 2] This is a sequence diagram showing the processes performed by each device during the connection setup process. [Figure 3] This is a sequence diagram showing the processes executed by the application and the embedded OS. [Figure 4] This flowchart shows the communication control process for the connection settings application. [Figure 5] This is a sequence diagram showing the processes executed by the application and the embedded OS. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] The embodiments will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention to the claims. While the embodiments describe multiple features, not all of these features are essential to the invention, and the features may be combined in any way. Furthermore, in the attached drawings, the same or similar configurations are given the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions are omitted.

[0011] [First Embodiment] This section describes the information processing device and communication device included in the communication system of this embodiment. While a smartphone is used as an example of the information processing device in this embodiment, it is not limited to this, and various devices such as mobile terminals, notebook PCs, tablet terminals, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), and digital cameras can be applied. Similarly, while a printer is used as an example of the communication device in this embodiment, it is not limited to this, and various devices capable of wireless communication with the information processing device can be applied. For example, if it is a printer, it can be an inkjet printer, a full-color laser beam printer, a monochrome printer, etc. Furthermore, it can be applied not only to printers, but also to copiers, facsimile machines, mobile terminals, smartphones, notebook PCs, tablet terminals, PDAs, digital cameras, music playback devices, televisions, smart speakers, etc. It can also be applied to multifunction devices equipped with multiple functions such as copying, faxing, and printing.

[0012] First, the configuration of the system including the information processing device and a communication device capable of communicating with the information processing device will be described with reference to Figure 1. Furthermore, while the following configuration is described as an example in this embodiment, this embodiment is applicable to devices capable of communicating with a communication device and is not limited to the configuration shown in Figure 1.

[0013] The terminal device 101 is an information processing device in this embodiment. The terminal device 101 includes an input interface 102, a CPU 103, a ROM 104, a RAM 105, an external storage device 106, an output interface 107, a display unit 108, a communication unit 109, a short-range communication unit 110, and a camera 111. In this embodiment, the terminal device 101 will be described using a smartphone as an example.

[0014] The input interface 102 is an interface for receiving data input and operation instructions from the user, and consists of a physical keyboard, buttons, touch panel, etc. Alternatively, the output interface 107 (described later) and the input interface 102 may have the same configuration, allowing screen output and user operation to be handled with the same configuration.

[0015] The CPU 103 is the system control unit and comprehensively controls the entire terminal device 101. The ROM 104 stores fixed data such as control programs executed by the CPU 103, data tables, and embedded operating system (OS) programs. In this embodiment, each control program stored in the ROM 104 performs software execution control such as scheduling, task switching, and interrupt processing under the management of the embedded OS stored in the ROM 104.

[0016] RAM105 consists of SRAM (Static Random Access Memory) and other components that require a backup power supply. Since RAM105's data is held by a primary battery (not shown) for data backup, important data such as program control variables can be stored without being lost. RAM105 also includes a memory area for storing configuration information and management data for the terminal device 101. Furthermore, RAM105 is used as both the main memory and work memory for the CPU 103.

[0017] The external storage device 106 includes a connection setting application program (connection setting app, to be described later) that provides a connection setting function. Further, the external storage device 106 includes various programs such as a print information generation program that generates print information interpretable by the communication device 151, and an information transmission / reception control program that transmits and receives information to and from the communication device 151 connected via the communication unit 109. Further, the external storage device 106 stores various information used by these programs and image data acquired via other information processing devices or the Internet.

[0018] The output interface 107 is an interface that controls the display unit 108 to display data and notify the state of the terminal device 101.

[0019] The display unit 108 is configured to include an LED (light emitting diode), an LCD (liquid crystal panel), etc., and displays data and notifies the state of the terminal device 101. Note that a soft keyboard provided with keys such as a numerical input key, a mode setting key, a determination key, a cancellation key, a power key, etc. may be provided on the display unit 108 so as to receive input from the user via the display unit 108.

[0020] The communication unit 109 connects to devices such as the communication device 151 and performs data communication. For example, the communication unit 109 may communicate directly with the communication device 151 via wireless communication, or may communicate via an external access point (access point 131 (hereinafter referred to as AP131)) existing outside the terminal device 101 or the communication device 151. An access point is a device that constructs a network and determines a communication channel used in communication within the constructed network. In this embodiment, as the wireless communication method of the communication unit 109, Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) (registered trademark) is used, but Bluetooth Classic (registered trademark) or the like may also be used. Further, as the AP131, for example, devices such as a wireless LAN router are used. In this embodiment, a method in which the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 are directly connected without going through an external access point is referred to as a direct connection method. Also, a method in which the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 are connected via an external access point is referred to as an infrastructure connection method.

[0021] The short-range wireless communication unit 110 is a configuration for performing data communication by wirelessly connecting to devices such as the communication device 151 at a short range, and communicates using a communication method different from that of the communication unit 109. The short-range wireless communication unit 110 can be connected to the short-range wireless communication unit 157 within the communication device 151. Note that as the communication method of the short-range wireless communication unit 110, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Bluetooth Classic, Wi-Fi Aware, or the like may be used.

[0022] The imaging device 111 is a device that converts an image captured by an imaging element into digital data. The digital data is temporarily stored in the RAM 105. Thereafter, it is converted into a predetermined image format by a program executed by the CPU 103 and stored in the external storage device 106 as image data.

[0023] The communication device 151 is the communication device in this embodiment. The communication device 151 includes a ROM 152, RAM 153, CPU 154, print engine 155, communication unit 156, short-range wireless communication unit 157, input interface 158, output interface 159, function control unit 160, and display unit 161.

[0024] The communication unit 156 connects to a device such as a terminal device 101 and performs data communication. In this embodiment, Wi-Fi is used as the wireless communication method for the communication unit 156, but Bluetooth Classic or the like may also be used. The communication unit 156 has an access point 156a as an access point inside the communication device 151 for connecting to a device such as a terminal device 101. The access point 156a can be connected to the communication unit 109 of the terminal device 101. The communication unit 156 may communicate directly with the terminal device 101 via the access point 156a, or it may communicate with the terminal device 101 via AP 131. The access point 156a may be hardware that functions as an access point, or the communication unit 156 may operate as an access point 156a through software that functions as an access point. Furthermore, the access point inside the communication device 151 may consist of multiple access points with different identification information (e.g., SSID (Service Set Identifier)) and passwords. In this embodiment, the access point inside the communication device 151 includes at least one AP for connection configuration, as described later.

[0025] RAM153 is composed of SRAM and other components that require a backup power supply. Since RAM153 retains data through a data backup power supply (not shown), it can store important data such as program control variables without losing them. RAM153 is also used as the main memory and work memory of the CPU154. Furthermore, RAM153 can temporarily store print information received from terminal devices such as the 101 as a receive buffer, and can store various other types of information.

[0026] ROM 152 stores fixed data such as control programs, data tables, and OS programs executed by the CPU 154. In this embodiment, each control program stored in ROM 152 performs software execution control such as scheduling, task switching, and interrupt handling under the management of the embedded OS stored in ROM 152. ROM 152 also includes a memory area for storing data that needs to be retained even when power is not supplied, such as setting information and management data for the communication device 151.

[0027] The CPU 154 is the system control unit and comprehensively controls the entire communication device 151. Based on the information stored in the print engine 155 and RAM 153, and the print jobs received from the terminal device 101, etc., it forms an image on a recording medium such as printing paper using a recording material such as ink, and outputs the print result. At this time, since the print jobs transmitted from the terminal device 101, etc. have a large amount of data and require high-speed communication, they may be received via the communication unit 156, which can communicate at a higher speed than the short-range wireless communication unit 157.

[0028] The short-range wireless communication unit 157 is configured to establish a wireless connection with devices such as the terminal device 101 at short range. Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Bluetooth Classic, Wi-Fi Aware, or other similar communication methods may be used for the short-range communication unit 157.

[0029] The input interface 158 is an interface for receiving data input and operation instructions from the user, and is composed of a physical keyboard, buttons, a touch panel, etc. Note that the output interface 159 described later and the input interface 158 may have the same configuration, and the screen output and the reception of operations from the user may be performed with the same configuration. The output interface 159 is an interface for controlling the display unit 161 to perform data display, status notification of the communication device 151, and information display. The function control unit 160 manages the control of function operations such as whether to operate the functions of the communication device 151 simultaneously.

[0030] <00​​​​​​​​​​WFD is a standard developed by the WiFi Alliance. WFD-compatible devices, terminal device 101 and communication device 151, can connect wirelessly to each other directly without going through other access points. A device that is WFD-compatible and also acts as an access point (master station) is specifically called a Group Owner. The mode in which P2P connection is performed using WFD is called WFD mode.

[0033] Furthermore, the communication device 151 has a software access point (software AP) function for operating as an access point. The communication device 151 activates (starts) the software AP inside the communication device 151, and the terminal device 101 connects to the software AP using normal Wi-Fi, not WFD. By connecting in this way, the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 can directly connect to each other wirelessly without going through other access points. The mode in which a P2P connection is performed by activating and operating the software AP inside the communication device 151 is called software AP mode. Note that when the software AP mode is stopped, the communication device 151 disables the software AP inside the communication device 151, and it becomes impossible to make a P2P connection with other devices using the software AP.

[0034] In P2P mode, the communication device 151 acts as the master unit, and therefore can determine which communication channel to use for communication in P2P mode. For example, when the communication device 151 operates in parallel with infrastructure mode and P2P mode, it controls the communication channel used for communication in infrastructure mode to be used for communication in P2P mode. The communication device 151 may also, for example, prioritize the communication channel used for connection with AP131 over other channels as the channel to be used for communication in P2P mode.

[0035] Also, the connection information (such as SSID and password) for connecting to the communication device 151 in P2P mode may be arbitrarily changeable by a user operation or the like on the operation unit of the communication device 151.

[0036] <Regarding Wi-Fi communication (Infrastructure mode)> In order to establish an infrastructure - type connection (hereinafter referred to as infrastructure connection) in Wi-Fi communication, the communication device 151 of the present embodiment operates in infrastructure mode. In the present embodiment, the infrastructure connection means a form in which an external device that controls a network such as the AP 131 operates as a master device, and devices are wirelessly connected via the master device. The communication device 151 operating in infrastructure mode operates as a slave device within the network to which the communication device 151 belongs.

[0037] In infrastructure mode, the communication device 151 and the terminal device 101 are connected via the AP 131, and communication between the communication device 151 and the terminal device 101 via the AP 131 becomes possible. The channel used for communication in the infrastructure mode here is, for example, a channel in a frequency band other than 2.4 GHz (such as the 5.0 GHz band).

[0038] Note that in order for the terminal device 101 to communicate with the communication device 151 via the AP 131, it is necessary for the terminal device 101 to recognize that the communication device 151 belongs to the network formed by the AP 131 and to which the terminal device 101 belongs. For this purpose, for example, the terminal device 101 transmits a search signal via the AP 131 on the network to which the terminal device 101 belongs and checks for communication (connection) with the communication device 151.

[0039] In this embodiment, the infrastructure connection state is simply defined as the state in which the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 are connected to the same AP. That is, in the infrastructure connection state, the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 only need to be connected to the same AP, and do not need to be aware that the other device belongs to the same network.

[0040] In this embodiment, a P2P connection for connection setup is used between the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 when communicating setting commands and acquiring information for establishing a P2P connection with the communication device 151 during the connection setup process. In this embodiment, a Wi-Fi connection (connection by communication unit 109 and communication unit 156) is used as the P2P connection for connection setup. However, a BLE connection (connection by short-range wireless communication unit 110 and short-range wireless communication unit 157) may also be used as the P2P connection for connection setup.

[0041] The following describes the connection setup process using a Wi-Fi connection. Note that other communication methods besides Wi-Fi and BLE, such as Classic Bluetooth, may be used as the P2P connection for setup. After the connection setup process establishes an infrastructure connection or P2P connection between the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151, communication becomes possible between the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 via the established network connection. For example, the terminal device 101 can send a print job to the communication device 151 to execute printing, or a scan job to the communication device 151 to execute scanning, via the established connection. Specifically, if the established connection is an infrastructure connection, the job is sent via an external access point; if the established connection is a P2P connection, the job is sent via the communication device 151's internal access point.

[0042] <About connection settings mode> In this embodiment, the communication device 151 can operate in connection setting mode. Connection setting mode is a mode for configuring its own connection settings by communicating setting commands with the terminal device 101. In this embodiment, the setting commands are assumed to be infrastructure setting commands and P2P setting commands. Infrastructure setting commands are commands that cause the communication device 151 to execute connection settings to establish an infrastructure connection between the communication device 151 and the terminal device 101. On the other hand, P2P setting commands are commands that cause the communication device 151 to execute connection settings to establish a P2P connection between the communication device 151 and the terminal device 101. The trigger for the communication device 151 to start operating in connection setting mode may be, for example, the user pressing a button for connection setting mode, or the communication device 151 being started (powered on) for the first time after arrival. The button for connection setting mode may be a hard button provided on the communication device 151, or it may be a soft button displayed on the display unit 161 by the communication device 151.

[0043] When the communication device 151 starts operating in connection setting mode, it enables both Wi-Fi communication and BLE communication. For example, as part of the process to enable Wi-Fi communication, the communication device 151 enables an internal AP (connection setting AP) dedicated to connection setting mode. This allows the communication device 151 to establish a P2P connection with the terminal device 101 via Wi-Fi. Connection information (SSID and password) for connecting to the connection setting AP is pre-stored in the connection setting application installed on the terminal device 101. Therefore, the terminal device 101 is already aware of the connection information for connecting to the connection setting AP. In this embodiment, unlike the connection information of the AP enabled in P2P mode, the connection information for connecting to the connection setting AP cannot be arbitrarily changed by the user. When the terminal device 101 connects to the communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode, it becomes possible to communicate setting commands with the communication device 151. In connection setting mode, the communication device 151 may connect to the terminal device 101 via Wi-Fi Direct (WFD) instead of regular Wi-Fi. That is, the communication device 151 may operate as the Group Owner and receive setting commands from the terminal device 101 via WFD communication.

[0044] Furthermore, the communication device 151 starts transmitting advertisement information as part of the BLE communication activation process. This puts the communication device 151 in a state where it can establish a BLE connection with the terminal device 101. In this embodiment, the communication device 151 is in a state where it can receive BLE pairing requests for a predetermined period of time after BLE communication is activated. When the communication device 151 receives a BLE pairing request within that predetermined period, it pairs with the device that sent the pairing request and establishes a BLE connection. The communication device 151 may also be configured to disable BLE communication if no BLE pairing requests are received within that predetermined period.

[0045] When the communication device 151 enables both Wi-Fi communication and BLE communication in the connection setting mode, it receives a setting command via these communications and executes processing according to the received setting command.

[0046] <Connection setting process using Wi-Fi> FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing the processing executed by each device in the connection setting process using Wi-Fi. Each process in FIG. 2 is realized, for example, in each device by the CPU reading a program stored in the memory into the RAM and executing it.

[0047] In S201, the terminal device 101 and the AP 131 are connected by Wi-Fi. In S202, the communication device 151 starts operating in the connection setting mode. The connection setting mode is a mode for the communication device 151 to execute the connection setting process.

[0048] When the communication device 151 starts operating in the connection setting mode, it enables an internal AP (connection setting AP) of the communication device 151 dedicated to the connection setting mode. Thereby, the communication device 151 becomes in a state where it can establish a P2P connection with the terminal device 101 via Wi-Fi. The connection information (SSID and password) for connecting to the connection setting AP is held in advance in the connection setting application installed in the terminal device 101, and the terminal device 101 recognizes in advance the connection information for connecting to the connection setting AP. In the present embodiment, unlike the connection information of the AP enabled in the P2P mode, the connection information for connecting to the connection setting AP cannot be arbitrarily changed by the user.

[0049] Note that when the communication device 151 starts operating in the connection setting mode, it further enables the BLE function and starts transmitting advertisement information. Thereby, the communication device 151 becomes in a state where it can establish a connection with the terminal device 101 via BLE.

[0050] In S203, the terminal device 101 receives instructions from the user to execute a connection setting process (a predetermined operation) via a user interface screen displayed on the display unit 108 by a connection setting application. In S204, the terminal device 101 stores information about the AP (for example, AP131) to which it is connected when it receives the instruction to execute the connection setting process in memory. Hereinafter, the AP to which it is connected when it receives the instruction to execute the connection setting process will be described as AP131. Information about AP131 includes, for example, connection information (SSID and password) for connecting to AP131, and information about the frequency and channel used for connecting to AP131.

[0051] In S205, terminal device 101 disconnects its Wi-Fi connection with AP131. In S206, terminal device 101 uses connection information for connecting to a pre-recognized connection setting AP to establish a Wi-Fi connection with the connection setting AP inside communication device 151. As a result, terminal device 101 temporarily establishes a Wi-Fi P2P connection with communication device 151.

[0052] In S207, terminal device 101 sends a command to start connection setup processing to communication device 151 via Wi-Fi connection. Since the AP list described later is received after the command to start connection setup processing is sent, in this embodiment, the command to start connection setup processing serves as a command to request the AP list.

[0053] In S208, the communication device 151 searches for access points to which it can connect via Wi-Fi. The communication device 151 then transmits the search result, a list of access points to which it can connect via Wi-Fi (AP list), to the terminal device 101 via the Wi-Fi connection. That is, the terminal device 101 obtains the AP list via the Wi-Fi connection. Note that the timing of the access point search is not limited to this timing; for example, it may occur immediately after starting operation in connection setting mode.

[0054] In S209, terminal device 101 sends an infrastructure configuration command to communication device 151 via Wi-Fi connection. The infrastructure configuration command includes the access point to be connected to by communication device 151 and connection information for connecting. For example, if AP131, which was stored in memory in S204, is included in the AP list, then the access point to be connected to by communication device 151 will be AP131, which was stored in memory in S204. Alternatively, if AP131, which was stored in memory in S204, is not included in the AP list, then the access point to be connected to by communication device 151 will be the access point selected by the user from the AP list. Here, the access point to be connected to communication device 151 will be described as AP131, which was stored in memory in S204. At this time, terminal device 101 may also accept additional connection information (such as a password) from the user to connect to AP131 and send this additional connection information along with the infrastructure configuration command to communication device 151.

[0055] In S210, terminal device 101 disconnects the Wi-Fi P2P connection with communication device 151. In S211, terminal device 101 uses the connection information for connecting to AP131 stored in memory in S204 to reconnect with AP131 via Wi-Fi.

[0056] In S212, the communication device 151 connects to AP131 via Wi-Fi using the connection information received in S209, based on the infrastructure configuration command received in S209. As a result, the communication device 151 starts operating in infrastructure mode, and an infrastructure connection is established between the terminal device 101 and the communication device 151 via AP131.

[0057] The above describes the form in which infrastructure configuration commands are sent in S209, but the system is not limited to this form. For example, P2P configuration commands may be sent. In that case, the communication device 151 that receives the P2P configuration command sends connection information to the terminal device 101 for connecting to the communication device 151 which is operating in P2P mode. This connection information includes, for example, the SSID of the access point that is enabled when the communication device 151 is operating in P2P mode and the password for connecting to that access point. The access point that is enabled when the communication device 151 is operating in P2P mode is a different access point from the access point that is enabled when the communication device 151 is operating in connection configuration mode. That is, the SSID of the access point that is enabled when the communication device 151 is operating in P2P mode is different from the SSID of the access point that is enabled when the communication device 151 is operating in connection configuration mode. The communication device 151 then starts operating in P2P mode and enables the access point. The terminal device 101 then uses the received connection information to connect with the communication device 151, which is operating in P2P mode.

[0058] <Regarding the process of searching for the communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode> As described above, in this embodiment, the terminal device 101 connects to the communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode. To do this, the terminal device 101 needs to find the communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode. Here, we will explain the process of finding the communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode (search process).

[0059] For example, some embedded operating systems, such as iOS, do not provide applications on the terminal device 101 with a list of access points discovered through searches performed by the embedded OS. Therefore, conventionally, in order to select a device to be processed by the connection configuration application, a separate configuration application compatible with the embedded OS had to be launched. The user was then asked to select the access point of the device to be processed by the connection configuration application on that configuration application, and the terminal device 101 was connected to the selected access point. After that, the connection configuration application was run again in the foreground, and the device with the access point to which the terminal device 101 was connected was selected as the device to be processed by the connection configuration application. These methods have the problem of requiring users to perform cumbersome operations.

[0060] To avoid such complicated operations, the following configurations can be considered. For example, each device targeted by the connection configuration application has an access point with the same SSID. The connection configuration application then stores this identical SSID in advance and instructs the OS to establish a connection between the access point with the identical SSID and the terminal device 101.

[0061] However, this configuration presents a challenge: all devices subject to connection setup processing by the connection setup application must have access points with the same SSID, which reduces the security of the connectivity of each device.

[0062] This embodiment describes a configuration that solves these problems. Specifically, in this embodiment, each device targeted by the connection setting process using the connection setting application has an access point having an SSID that includes both a common string among the devices and a string specific to each device. The connection setting application pre-stores the common string among the devices within the application. In other words, the connection setting application does not need to accept input of the common string from the user. The connection setting application then instructs the OS to search for an access point having an SSID that includes at least the common string. Then, it instructs the OS to establish a connection between the discovered access point and the terminal device 101. This configuration suppresses a decrease in security regarding the connectivity of each device targeted by the connection setting process, while performing a highly convenient connection setting that does not require the user to perform complicated operations.

[0063] Figure 3 is a sequence diagram showing the processes executed by the connection setting application installed on the terminal device 101 and the embedded OS stored in the ROM 104 during the process of searching for a communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode. This process is executed when the connection setting application is running in the foreground and the screen displayed by the connection setting application is shown on the display unit 108.

[0064] In S301, the embedded OS searches for access points that the terminal device 101 can connect to. Specifically, the embedded OS searches for access points that are present around the terminal device 101 and are transmitting beacons containing SSIDs, etc., by receiving these beacons. The embedded OS then stores a list of access points found through the search (AP list) in memory. The search for access points is performed by the embedded OS at any time as needed.

[0065] In S302, the connection setting application issues a connection instruction to the embedded OS to instruct it to connect to the access point. Two types of connection instructions can be issued to the embedded OS. The first connection instruction specifies a string and instructs the terminal device 101 to connect to an access point having an SSID that exactly matches the specified string. In other words, an SSID that exactly matches the specified string contains only the specified string and does not contain any other strings. The second connection instruction specifies a string and instructs the terminal device 101 to connect to an access point having an SSID that at least contains the specified string. In other words, an SSID that at least contains the specified string contains, for example, both the specified string and other strings. In this embodiment, the latter type of connection instruction is issued in S302. In the connection instruction, a specific string is specified. In this embodiment, the specific string is a string included in the SSID of an internal access point that is enabled by the communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode. Furthermore, this is a string that is commonly included in the SSIDs of each access point owned by each device subject to the connection setting process by the connection setting application. In other words, the strings other than the specific string included in the SSID of each access point owned by each device subject to the connection setting process by the connection setting application are different for each device. Note that which access point with which SSID is enabled by each communication device 151 when operating in connection setting mode is determined by, for example, the vendor, model number, and type of device of the communication device 151. For example, all devices of a certain type (e.g., printers) provided by the vendor that provides the connection setting application will enable access points with SSIDs that contain both a common string among the devices and a string that is different for each device when operating in connection setting mode. In this case, the method of specifying the SSID is not limited to specifying by the leading string, but any method of specifying a part of it is acceptable. For example, it may be specified by the trailing string, by a string containing wildcards, or by a method using regular expressions.Furthermore, when the embedded OS receives a second connection instruction, it can also establish a connection between the terminal device 101 and an access point having an SSID that contains only the specified string and does not contain any other strings. In this embodiment, all devices targeted by the connection setting process by the connection setting application will enable access points having an SSID that contains both the specified string and any other strings.

[0066] In S303, the embedded OS searches the AP list stored in memory for access points with SSIDs containing a specific string specified by the connection configuration application. If an access point with an SSID containing the specific string is found through this search, the embedded OS identifies the found access point as the access point to connect to and proceeds to S304. Note that there may be multiple access points in the AP list with SSIDs containing the specific string specified by the connection configuration application. In this case, for example, one access point determined by a specific priority order may be identified as the access point to connect to. In this case, a specific priority order may be determined based on the order in which the access points were discovered, the level of signal strength, etc. In this embodiment, if there are multiple access points in the AP list with SSIDs containing the specific string specified by the connection configuration application, the access point at the beginning of the list among the relevant access points is identified. More specifically, the access point that was first discovered in the search by the embedded OS among the relevant access points is identified. On the other hand, if this search does not find any access points with an SSID containing the specific string, the embedded OS notifies the connection configuration application that no access points with an SSID containing the specific string were found, and terminates the process.

[0067] In S304, the embedded OS displays a confirmation area as a pop-up on the notification screen shown by the connection setting application to confirm permission to connect terminal device 101 to the access point identified as the target access point. For example, the SSID of the access point identified as the target access point is displayed in the confirmation area. If the user provides input to the confirmation area indicating that it is OK to connect terminal device 101 to the access point, the embedded OS proceeds to S305. On the other hand, if the user provides input to the confirmation area indicating that it is OK not to connect terminal device 101 to the access point, the embedded OS terminates the process without establishing a connection between the access point and terminal device 101. In this case, the embedded OS also notifies the connection setting application that the establishment of a connection between the access point and terminal device 101 has failed. At this time, the embedded OS and the connection setting application may also display an area to successfully establish a connection between the access point and terminal device 101. This area includes, for example, a message prompting the user to bring the terminal device 101 closer to an access point of the user's choice, other than the access point with the SSID displayed on the confirmation screen. This is because access points located closer to the terminal device 101 are more likely to be discovered quickly by the embedded OS during a search. It also includes, for example, a message prompting the user to disable the access point with the SSID displayed on the confirmation screen. Furthermore, it includes, for example, a message prompting the user to connect the terminal device 101 to an access point of the user's choice, other than the access point with the SSID displayed on the confirmation screen, using a settings application compatible with the embedded OS.

[0068] In S305, the embedded OS executes a process (connection process) to establish a connection between the access point identified as the target access point and the terminal device 101. The connection established by the connection process is, in other words, the connection between the communication device 151 that has enabled the access point identified as the target access point and the terminal device 101. In S306, the embedded OS sends the execution result of the connection process in S305 to the connection application. This execution result may include not only the status such as success or failure, but also information such as the cause of failure if it fails. The connection application that receives the execution result displays a screen showing the execution result as the screen of the connection application via the display unit 108. As explained in S206, the process in Figure 3 establishes a Wi-Fi connection between the terminal device 101 and the connection setting AP inside the communication device 151.

[0069] <Regarding the processing of the connection settings application> Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the process executed by the connection setup application during the Wi-Fi connection setup process. The process in Figure 4 is achieved, for example, by the CPU 103 of the terminal device 101 reading the connection setup application from the ROM 104 and executing it.

[0070] In S401, the CPU 103 receives a command from the user to execute a connection setting process via a screen displayed on the display unit 108 by a connection setting application. This process corresponds to S203.

[0071] In S402, when the CPU 103 receives an execution command, it stores information about the AP (e.g., AP131) to which the terminal device 101 is connected in memory using a connection setting application. This process corresponds to S204. If the terminal device 101 is not connected to an AP, this process is omitted.

[0072] In S403, the CPU 103 specifies a particular string to the embedded OS using a connection configuration application. The CPU 103 then instructs the embedded OS to establish a Wi-Fi connection between the terminal device 101 and an access point having an SSID that contains at least the specific string. This process corresponds to S302.

[0073] In S404, the CPU 103 determines, using a connection setting application, whether a Wi-Fi connection has been successfully established between the terminal device 101 and an access point with an SSID that satisfies the specified conditions. An SSID that satisfies the specified conditions is an SSID containing a specific string. This process is executed based on the execution result notified by the embedded OS. If the OS notifies that no access point with an SSID containing the specific string was found, it is determined that the Wi-Fi connection has not been established successfully. If it is determined that the Wi-Fi connection has not been established successfully, the process shown in Figure 4 is terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined that the Wi-Fi connection has been established successfully, the process proceeds to S405.

[0074] In S405, the CPU 103 sends a command to start the connection setup process to the communication device 151 via the established Wi-Fi connection using the connection setup application. This process corresponds to S207. As mentioned above, the command to start the connection setup process serves as a request command for the AP list.

[0075] In S406, the CPU 103 obtains the AP list from the communication device 151 as a response to the command sent in S405 using the connection setting application. This process corresponds to S208. If the AP list could not be received at this time, an error message may be displayed on the display unit 108 and the process shown in Figure 4 may be terminated.

[0076] In S407, the CPU 103 sends an infrastructure configuration command to the communication device 151 via the Wi-Fi connection of the terminal device 101 using a connection configuration application. This process corresponds to S209. As mentioned above, the infrastructure configuration command includes connection information for connecting to the access point to be connected to the communication device 151.

[0077] In S407, the CPU 103 may also send a P2P configuration command via the connection configuration application. In this case, the CPU 103 receives connection information from the communication device 151 via the connection configuration application to connect to the communication device 151 operating in P2P mode, and uses this connection information to instruct the embedded OS to establish a new Wi-Fi connection between the access point enabled by the communication device 151 operating in P2P mode and the terminal device 101. At this time, the connection configuration application has already identified the string contained in the SSID of the access point enabled by the communication device 151 operating in P2P mode using the connection information. Therefore, by specifying all the strings contained in the SSID of the access point enabled by the communication device 151 operating in P2P mode, the CPU 103 issues the first connection instruction to the OS. As a result, the Wi-Fi connection between the access point enabled by the communication device 151 operating in connection configuration mode and the terminal device 101 is disconnected. Then, a Wi-Fi connection is established between the access point enabled by the communication device 151, which is operating in P2P mode, and the terminal device 101.

[0078] In S407, it can be arbitrarily decided whether to send an infrastructure configuration command or a P2P configuration command. For example, when receiving an instruction to execute a connection configuration process, the user may be asked to select on a selection screen whether to establish an infrastructure connection or a P2P connection, and the configuration command corresponding to the selected connection may be sent. Alternatively, for example, if the terminal device 101 is connected to any access point when an instruction to execute a connection configuration process is received, the system may be controlled to send an infrastructure configuration command. And if the terminal device 101 is not connected to any access point when an instruction to execute a connection configuration process is received, the system may be controlled to send a P2P configuration command.

[0079] Thus, in this embodiment, each device targeted by the connection setting application has an access point with an SSID that includes both a common string among the devices and a string specific to each device. The connection setting application does not obtain an AP list from the OS. That is, the connection setting application does not search for access points in the AP list that have an SSID containing at least the common string. Instead, the connection setting application instructs the OS to search for access points in the AP list obtained by the OS that have an SSID containing at least the common string. Then, it instructs the OS to establish a connection between the access point with an SSID containing at least the common string and the terminal device 101. With this configuration, a connection can be established between any access point and the terminal device 101 without the connection setting application having to obtain an AP list. Furthermore, it performs a highly convenient connection setting that does not require the user to perform complicated operations, while suppressing a decrease in security regarding the connectivity of each device targeted by the connection setting application.

[0080] [Second Embodiment] The following describes the differences between this embodiment and the first embodiment. In this embodiment, if the OS does not find an access point having an SSID containing a specific string, the connection setting application polls at regular intervals by sending an access point search instruction or connection instruction to the OS again. With such a configuration, for example, even if the start of operation in connection setting mode by the communication device 151 is delayed and the OS does not find an access point having an SSID containing a specific string in the first search, the possibility of completing the connection setting process can be increased.

[0081] Figure 5 is a sequence diagram showing the process of searching for a communication device 151 operating in connection setting mode.

[0082] In S501, the embedded OS searches for access points that the terminal device 101 can connect to. The embedded OS then stores the list of access points obtained through the search (AP list) in memory. This process is the same as in S301.

[0083] In S502, the connection configuration application instructs the embedded OS to connect terminal device 101 to an access point having an SSID containing a specific string, by specifying a particular string. This process is the same as in S302.

[0084] In S503, the embedded OS searches the AP list stored in memory for access points whose SSIDs contain a specific string specified by the connection configuration application. If an access point with an SSID containing the specific string is found in this search, the embedded OS proceeds to S504; otherwise, the OS proceeds to S508.

[0085] In S504 containing a specific string, the embedded OS displays a section via the display unit 108 to confirm whether it is permissible to connect the terminal device 101 to the access point found in the list through the search in S503. This process is the same as in S304.

[0086] In S505, the embedded OS executes a process (connection process) to establish a connection between the access point found in the list by the search in S303 and the terminal device 101. This process is the same as in S305. In S506, the embedded OS sends the result of the connection process in S505 to the connection application. The result may include not only the status such as success or failure, but also information such as the cause of failure if it fails. The connection application that receives the result displays a screen showing the result as the screen of the connection application via the display unit 108. This process is the same as in S306. Subsequently, as explained in S206, a Wi-Fi connection is established between the terminal device 101 and the connection setting AP inside the communication device 151.

[0087] Meanwhile, in S508, the embedded OS sends a notification to the connection configuration application indicating that an error has occurred where the SSID could not be found. Upon receiving the error notification from the embedded OS, the connection configuration application enters a sleep state for a certain period of time in S509. After the period of time has elapsed and the application has woken up, the process from S502 is repeated. In S510, the embedded OS executes the same process as in S501 again. That is, the embedded OS searches for an access point that the terminal device 151 can connect to and stores the result in memory. This process is executed while the connection configuration application is in sleep mode.

[0088] Thus, according to this embodiment, if the OS does not find an access point having an SSID containing a specific string, the connection configuration application performs polling at regular intervals. As a result, the likelihood of completing the connection configuration process can be increased.

[0089] The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that implements one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or storage medium, and by having one or more processors in the computer of that system or device read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., an ASIC) that implements one or more functions.

[0090] The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, claims are attached to disclose the scope of the invention. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0091] 101 Terminal device: 103, 154 CPU: 104, 152 ROM: 105, 152 RAM: 131 Access point: 151 Communication device

Claims

[Claim 1] It is a program, An information processing device having an operating system (OS) different from the aforementioned program, An instruction step to execute on the OS by notifying the OS of the specific string, instructing the OS to connect a communication device that has enabled a predetermined access point having identification information including both a specific string and a string other than the specific string, with the information processing device, When a connection is established between the communication device that has enabled the predetermined access point and the information processing device, a communication step is performed to communicate information about an access point different from the predetermined access point via the connection between the communication device that has enabled the predetermined access point and the information processing device. A program characterized by causing the execution of a specific action.

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