Wireless communication switching device, method for switching wireless communication, and computer program

Abstract

To improve network connectivity and stability in mobile communications. [Solution] The wireless communication switching device includes a switching unit that determines the mobile communication carrier to be used by a terminal performing mobile communication and transmits a switching instruction to the terminal to the wireless access network of the determined mobile communication carrier.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for switching wireless communications.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, against the backdrop of successive communication failures by mobile network operators (MNOs), discussions on network connectivity and, by extension, high reliability have become active. Large-scale communication failures by MNOs have a significant impact not only on personal use but also on social infrastructure, so the construction of a communication system that enables multi-communication using multiple MNOs or allows switching to an MNO in case of an emergency is desired. Although the business form of mobile communications has diversified with the emergence of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that provide mobile communication services by borrowing wireless communication equipment from MNOs, there is still no service that ensures network connectivity.

[0003] Also, in recent years, research and development of Beyond 5G (B5G) and 6G, which are next-generation mobile communications, have been actively carried out. It is said that by using such next-generation mobile communications, it may be possible to realize connected services that have not been achievable until now, such as remote driving systems and remote autonomous driving systems. Here, a remote driving system refers to a system in which a driver at a remote location manually controls a vehicle based on video, position information, etc. transmitted from the vehicle. A remote autonomous driving system refers to a system in which a cloud or edge server performs autonomous driving based on video, position information, etc. transmitted from the vehicle. Hereinafter, services that control a target device such as a vehicle or provide some information used in the target device via a network, such as a remote driving system and a remote autonomous driving system, are collectively referred to as "next-generation connected services". To realize such next-generation connected services, in addition to the network connectivity described above, network stability is required.

[0004] However, in next-generation connected services such as remote driving systems and remote autonomous driving systems, the terminals are mounted or embedded in the vehicle, and because the terminals are constantly moving, ensuring network connectivity and network stability becomes more difficult. "Network connectivity" refers to the ease of connecting to the network, i.e., reliability, and "high connectivity" means high reliability, i.e., resistance to failures. "Network stability" refers to the stability of communication quality within the network, and "high stability" means high communication quality.

[0005] In this regard, Patent Documents 1 to 5 disclose a vehicle wireless communication device configured to be able to use multiple wireless communication services with different APNs (Access Point Names), and to select these multiple wireless communication services according to conditions. Patent Document 1 discloses preferential allocation of wireless communication services with a large power headroom, which represents the remaining transmission power relative to a predetermined maximum transmission power. Patent Document 2 discloses switching between narrow-area communication and cellular communication depending on the movement state of the vehicle. Patent Document 3 discloses preferential allocation of wireless communication services with a large transmission power value to in-vehicle devices with a small delay tolerance. Patent Document 4 discloses preferential allocation of wireless communication services with a large received power measurement value to in-vehicle devices with a small delay tolerance. Patent Document 5 discloses preferential allocation of wireless communication services with a small delay characteristic setting value to in-vehicle devices with a small delay tolerance. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-062549 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-062548 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-046196 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-045246 [Patent Document 5] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-039801 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] However, the vehicle wireless communication devices disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 5 all select wireless communication services based only on information that the device itself can acquire, and therefore have the problem of not being able to select wireless communication services according to the communication status, communication quality, congestion status, etc., of the "entire network". Furthermore, in the vehicle wireless communication devices disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 5, each device individually selects a wireless communication service that is convenient for that device, so it cannot be said that the optimal wireless communication service is allocated to the "entire network", and in some cases there is a risk of degrading network connectivity. In addition, in the vehicle wireless communication devices disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 5 all frequently perform handover (switching of connection destination) as the vehicle moves, which may lead to a decrease in communication quality and a decrease in network connectivity and security.

[0008] This invention was made to solve at least some of the problems described above, and aims to improve network connectivity and stability in mobile communications. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present invention has been made to solve at least some of the above-mentioned problems and can be realized in the following forms.

[0010] (1) According to one embodiment of the present invention, a wireless communication switching device is provided. This wireless communication switching device includes a switching unit that determines the mobile communications carrier to be used by a terminal performing mobile communications and transmits a switching instruction to the wireless access network of the determined mobile communications carrier to the terminal.

[0011] In this configuration, the wireless communication switching device includes a switching unit that determines the mobile communication carrier to be used by the terminal performing mobile communication and transmits a switching instruction to the terminal for the determined mobile communication carrier's wireless access network. Therefore, compared to the case where the terminal (vehicle wireless communication device) selects the wireless access network to connect to, it becomes possible to determine the wireless access network according to the communication status, communication quality, congestion status, etc., of the "entire network" consisting of wireless access networks of multiple different mobile communication carriers. As a result, network connectivity can be improved (fault tolerance) and network stability can be improved (high quality). Furthermore, with this configuration, compared to the case where each terminal individually selects a wireless access network, it becomes possible to assign the optimal wireless access network for the "entire network" to each terminal (overall optimization).

[0012] (2) The wireless communication switching device of the above form may further include a data communication unit corresponding to each of the multiple mobile communication carriers that the wireless communication switching device can control, which realizes data transmission and reception via the wireless access network of each mobile communication carrier, and a terminal information management unit that manages information of the multiple terminals for each of the mobile communication carriers to which each terminal is connected. In this configuration, the wireless communication switching device comprises a data communication unit corresponding to each of several controllable mobile communication carriers, a data communication unit that realizes data transmission and reception via the wireless access network of each mobile communication carrier, and a terminal information management unit that manages information of multiple terminals for each mobile communication carrier to which each terminal is connected. Therefore, terminals can transmit and receive data using the wireless access network of the mobile communication carrier to which they have been instructed to switch, via the wireless communication switching device, without having to connect to the carrier gateway (CPF, UPF) provided by each mobile communication carrier.

[0013] (3) In the wireless communication switching device of the above form, the switching unit may acquire communication information from at least one of the data communication unit and the terminal information management unit, and use the communication information to determine the mobile communication carrier. With this configuration, the switching unit uses information about communications to determine the mobile communications carrier, thereby enabling further fault tolerance, higher quality, and overall optimization of the network.

[0014] (4) The wireless communication switching device of the above form further includes an application information management unit that collects information about the application being run on each of the multiple terminals, and the switching unit may obtain the application information from the application information management unit and determine the mobile communication carrier using the application information in addition to the communication information. With this configuration, the switching unit uses information about the application in addition to information about the communication to determine the mobile network operator. This allows for greater fault tolerance, higher quality, and overall optimization of the network, and enables the assignment of a wireless access network suitable for the application running on each terminal.

[0015] (5) In the above-described form of wireless communication switching device, the application is an application that utilizes a driving route from a departure point to a destination, the information relating to the application includes route information representing the driving route, and the switching unit may determine the mobile communication carrier by evaluating the communication quality of each mobile communication carrier on the driving route using the route information. In this configuration, the switching unit uses route information to evaluate the communication quality of each mobile network operator along the travel route and determines the mobile network operator to use. Since the travel route includes the terminal's location at a time in the future, this configuration allows for the determination of the mobile network operator while also considering future communication quality, thus enabling further fault tolerance, higher quality, and overall optimization of the network.

[0016] (6) In the wireless communication switching device of the above form, the switching unit may divide the travel route into a plurality of sections, and evaluate the communication quality for each mobile communication carrier for each section, thereby determining the mobile communication carrier for each section. According to this configuration, the switching unit divides the travel route into a plurality of sections, and evaluates the communication quality for each mobile communication carrier for each section, thereby determining the mobile communication carrier for each section. Therefore, even for a travel route that extends over a long distance, the mobile communication carrier can be finely switched for each section.

[0017] (7) In the wireless communication switching device of the above form, the switching unit may determine two or more of the mobile communication carriers used in one of the terminals, and transmit a switching instruction to the wireless access network of the determined two or more mobile communication carriers to the terminal. According to this configuration, the switching unit determines two or more of the mobile communication carriers used in one terminal, and transmits a switching instruction to the wireless access network of the determined two or more mobile communication carriers to the terminal. Therefore, the wireless communication switching device can also handle a terminal that can simultaneously connect to the wireless access networks of two or more mobile communication carriers.

[0018] Note that the present invention can be realized in various modes. For example, a wireless communication switching device, an information processing device, a communication system including these devices, a method executed in an information processing device to realize the functions of these devices and systems, a computer program for realizing the functions of these devices and systems, a server device for distributing the computer program, a non-temporary storage medium storing the computer program, and the like.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0019] [Figure 1] It is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of a communication system as an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2]It is a diagram showing a specific example of the communication system shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 3] It is a sequence diagram showing an example of the switching control process. [Figure 4] It is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system of the second embodiment. [Figure 5] It is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system of the third embodiment. [Figure 6] It is a diagram for explaining the determination of the mobile communication carrier. [Figure 7] It is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system of the fourth embodiment. [Figure 8] It is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system of the fifth embodiment. [Figure 9] It is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system of the sixth embodiment.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0020] <First Embodiment> FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of a communication system 1 as an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific example of the communication system 1 shown in FIG. 1. The communication system 1 is used as a communication infrastructure for any service, for example, a next-generation connected service. The communication system 1 can improve network connectivity and network stability by a wireless communication switching device 100 described later.

[0021] Here, "network connectivity" refers to the ease of connecting to a network, i.e., reliability, and "high connectivity" means high reliability, i.e., resistance to failures. Furthermore, "network stability" refers to the stability of communication quality within the network, and "high stability" means high communication quality. In addition, "next-generation connected services" refer to services that control target devices such as vehicles via a network (for example, remote driving systems or remote autonomous driving systems), or services that provide some kind of information used by a target device (not limited to vehicles) via a network.

[0022] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the communication system 1 comprises a wireless communication switching device 100, n wireless access networks 10a to 10n, and m terminals 20a to 20m. n and m are arbitrary natural numbers, and the number of wireless access networks and terminals can be changed arbitrarily. A wireless access network is also called a "RAN". Hereafter, when referring to a specific RAN from 10a to 10n, the suffix letter will be added, for example, "RAN10a", and when not referring to a specific RAN from 10a to 10n (for example, when describing properties common to RAN10a to 10n), it will simply be called "RAN10". Similarly, for terminals 20a to 20m, when referring to a specific terminal, the suffix letter will be added, for example, "Terminal 20a", and when not referring to a specific terminal (for example, when describing properties common to terminals 20a to 20m), it will simply be called "Terminal 20".

[0023] Wireless access networks 10a to 10n (RAN10a to 10n) are mobile communication networks owned by different mobile communication carriers. In other words, RAN10a to 10n are wireless access networks for each mobile communication carrier. For example, RAN10a is the mobile communication network provided by mobile communication carrier 1, RAN10b is the mobile communication network provided by mobile communication carrier 2, and RAN10n is the mobile communication network provided by mobile communication carrier N. That is, the difference in the last letter indicates a difference in mobile communication carriers. For example, "RAN10a" includes all the mobile communication networks provided by mobile communication carrier 1 for different areas (Kanto area, Tokai area, Kansai area, etc.) and mobile communication networks for different systems (4G, 5G, etc.). Hereafter, mobile communication carriers will also be simply referred to as "carriers".

[0024] As shown in Figure 1, RAN10 includes multiple routers R that are connected to each other in a communicative manner, and a base station 11. Although only two routers and one base station 11 are shown in Figure 1, in reality, RAN10a to 10n include any number of routers and base stations 11 corresponding to the communication area covered by each mobile network operator. As shown in Figure 2, RAN10 constitutes the wireless network layer.

[0025] As shown in Figure 2 (solid line), RAN10a to 10n are each connected to carrier gateways 12a to 12n for each mobile network operator via edge routers. Specifically, RAN10a is connected to carrier gateway 12a of mobile network operator 1. Similarly, RAN10b is connected to carrier gateway 12b of mobile network operator 2, and RAN10n is connected to carrier gateway 12 of mobile network operator N.

[0026] Carrier gateways 12a to 12n are network devices owned by different mobile communication operators. Carrier gateway 12 includes CPF 121 and UPF 122 and is connected to the Internet (INT). CPF 121 is a functional unit that functions as a C-plane (Control plane) that performs a series of control processes for establishing communication (establishing and disconnecting sessions). UPF 122 is a functional unit that functions as a U-plane (User plane) that performs user data transmission and reception processing (packet forwarding). Carrier gateway 12, together with the wireless communication switching device 100 described later, constitutes the core network layer.

[0027] In normal communication without using the wireless communication switching device 100 of the present invention, for example, terminal 20a can connect to the carrier gateway 12a via RAN 10a from base station 11a, and after control processing by CPF 121a, can connect to the Internet INT through data transmission and reception processing by UPF 122a. Similarly, when using RAN 10b, terminal 20a can connect to the carrier gateway 12b via RAN 10b from base station 11b, and after control processing by CPF 121b, can connect to the Internet INT through data transmission and reception processing by UPF 122b. Thus, each mobile communication carrier has its own carrier gateways 12a to 12n for each mobile communication carrier 1 to N. Note that in Figure 1, for ease of illustration, the carrier gateways 12a to 12n are omitted from the illustration.

[0028] Terminals 20a to 20m are terminals used by users of communication system 1. In Figure 1, a smartphone is used as an example for terminal 20. However, terminal 20 is not limited to a smartphone; it may be an in-vehicle device (navigation system, vehicle control device, etc.), a wearable device, a personal computer, or any other device. Furthermore, multiple devices of different types may be used together for each of terminals 20a to 20m.

[0029] As shown in Figure 1, terminal 20 comprises a wireless communication unit 21 and a terminal information storage unit 22. The wireless communication unit 21 is a functional unit that connects to one of the RANs 10a to 10n to send and receive data, in other words, performs wireless communication (mobile communication). In the example in Figure 1, for example, the wireless communication unit 21 of terminal 20a connects to RAN 10a from base station 11a, thereby performing mobile communication using RAN 10a. Furthermore, upon receiving a switching instruction, which will be described later, the wireless communication unit 21 switches its connection to another RAN 10 (RAN 10b in the illustrated example), as indicated by the white arrow, and performs mobile communication using the other RAN 10 (RAN 10b). The terminal information storage unit 22 is a functional unit that stores which RAN 10 terminal 20 is connected to.

[0030] The wireless communication switching device 100 is a device that switches the RANs 10a to 10n used by terminals 20a to 20m. As shown in Figure 1, the wireless communication switching device 100 comprises a switching unit 110, an external gateway 120, terminal information management units 130a to 130n corresponding to each mobile communication carrier, and data communication units 140a to 140n corresponding to each mobile communication carrier.

[0031] The switching unit 110 is a functional unit that determines the mobile communications carrier to be used by terminals 20a to 20m and transmits a switching instruction to the determined mobile communications carrier's wireless access network 10a to 10n (RAN 10a to 10n) to terminals 20a to 20m. Details will be described later. The external gateway 120 is connected to the data communication units 140a to 140n, respectively. The external gateway 120 is a functional unit that realizes data transmission and reception (routing) between the wireless communication switching device 100 and the Internet INT.

[0032] Terminal information management units 130a to 130n are functional units that manage information for terminals 20a to 20m for each mobile network operator 1 to N to which each terminal 20a to 20m is connected (in other words, for each individual RAN 10a to 10n). Specifically, terminal information management unit 130a manages information for terminal 20 connected to RAN 10a of mobile network operator 1. Similarly, terminal information management unit 130b manages information for terminal 20 connected to RAN 10b of mobile network operator 2, and terminal information management unit 130n manages information for terminal 20 connected to RAN 10n of mobile network operator N. Terminal information may include not only the terminal ID, which is the identifier of terminal 20, but also arbitrary information such as subscriber information for each terminal ID.

[0033] The data communication units 140a to 140n are functional units that realize data transmission and reception via the wireless access networks 10a to 10n (RAN10a to 10n) for each mobile communication carrier. The data communication units 140a to 140n are provided in accordance with the mobile communication carriers 1 to N that can be controlled by the wireless communication switching device 100. Specifically, the data communication unit 140a realizes data transmission and reception with terminals 20 connected to RAN10a via RAN10a. Similarly, the data communication unit 140b realizes data transmission and reception with terminals 20 connected to RAN10b via RAN10b, and the data communication unit 140n realizes data transmission and reception with terminals 20 connected to RAN10n via RAN10n.

[0034] As shown in Figure 2, the wireless communication switching device 100 is configured to include master gateways 101 to 103, an edge server 104, and an edge router 105. Master gateways 101 to 103 each have the same functions as carrier gateways 12a to 12n. Specifically, master gateway 101 is connected to RAN 10a as shown in Figure 2 (dashed line) and has the same functions as carrier gateway 12a. Master gateway 102 is connected to RAN 10b and has the same functions as carrier gateway 12b. Master gateway 103 is connected to RAN 10n and has the same functions as carrier gateway 12n.

[0035] The CPF1 to N of master gateways 101 to 103 implement the functions of terminal information management units 130a to 130n as described in Figure 1, respectively. The UPF1 to N of master gateways 101 to 103 implement the functions of data communication units 140a to 140n as described in Figure 1, respectively. The edge server 104 implements the functions of the switching unit 110 as described in Figure 1. The edge router 105 implements the functions of the external gateway 120 as described in Figure 1. The wireless communication switching device 100, together with the carrier gateways 12a to 12n of each mobile communication carrier, constitutes the core network layer (Figure 2). That is, in communication using the wireless communication switching device 100, terminals 20 use the RAN10a to 10n of each mobile communication carrier, while being able to connect to the Internet INT via the wireless communication switching device 100 (specifically, the master gateways 101 to 103 of the wireless communication switching device 100) without going through the carrier gateways 12a to 12n of each mobile communication carrier.

[0036] Figure 3 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a switching control process. The switching control process is performed by the wireless communication switching device 100, and involves sending a switching instruction for RAN 10a to 10n to terminals 20a to 20m, causing terminals 20a to 20m to switch to the connected RAN 10a to 10n. The switching control process can be started at any trigger. These triggers can be arbitrarily determined, for example, when instructed by an administrator, periodically after a predetermined time has elapsed since the last execution of the switching control process, when a failure is detected in any of RAN 10a to 10n, or when the communication load of any of RAN 10a to 10n exceeds a predetermined threshold.

[0037] In Figure 3, for illustrative purposes only, only terminal 20a is shown among terminals 20a to 20m, but the switching control process in Figure 3 can be performed on all terminals 20a to 20m. At the start of the process, terminal 20a is assumed to be connected to the Internet INT via the RAN 10a of the mobile communications carrier 1 by the data communication unit 140a (without using the carrier gateway 12a) (Figure 3: shown as an arrow "communication" pointing to the external gateway 120). Also, in Figure 3, for illustrative purposes only, only the terminal information management units 130a and 130b and the data communication units 140a and 140b are shown as examples, and the terminal information management units 130a and 130b are referred to as "management units 130a and 130b," and the data communication units 140a and 140b are referred to as "communication units 140a and 140b."

[0038] In step S10, the switching unit 110 obtains "communication-related information" from terminal information management units 130a to 130n, respectively. The communication-related information that the switching unit 110 obtains from the terminal information management unit 130 may include, for example, either of the following pieces of information a1 or a2. (a1) Information indicating the mobile carrier to which terminals 20a to 20m are connected: Specifically, the switching unit 110 obtains information from the terminal information management unit 130a about terminal 20 which is connected to mobile carrier 1 (RAN10a). The same applies to terminal information management units 130b to 130n. (a2) Information indicating the base station 11 to which terminals 20a to 20m are connected: Specifically, the switching unit 110 obtains information from the terminal information management unit 130a about the terminals 20 connected to the base station 11a owned by the mobile communications carrier 1 (RAN10a). The same applies to the terminal information management units 130b to 130n.

[0039] In step S12, the switching unit 110 obtains "information related to communication" from each of the data communication units 140a to 140n. The information related to communication that the switching unit 110 obtains from the data communication unit 140 may include, for example, the following information a3. (a3) Information indicating the amount of communication traffic for each terminal 20a to 20m: Specifically, the switching unit 110 obtains the amount of communication traffic for terminal 20 using mobile carrier 1 (RAN10a) from the data communication unit 140a. The same applies to data communication units 140b to 140n.

[0040] In step S20, the switching unit 110 determines the mobile carrier to which terminal 20a should be connected. Specifically, the switching unit 110 determines the mobile carrier to be used for each terminal 20a to 20m using at least one of the following criteria A1 to A4.

[0041] (A1) Using information a1 to a3 regarding communications, the mobile communications carrier to be used at each terminal 20a to 20m is determined so that the load on each mobile communications carrier 1 to N (RAN 10a to 10n) and each mobile communications carrier's base station 11 (base station 11a to 11n) is leveled. This reduces the concentration of processing load on a specific mobile communications carrier or a specific base station 11, and ensures uniform communication quality at each mobile communications carrier. (A2) Using the information a1 to a3 regarding communications, the mobile network operator to be used for each terminal 20a to 20m is determined in such a way that the connection cost (fee) to the mobile network operator is minimized. In this way, if a mobile network operator is a VMNO (Virtual Mobile Network Operator) that leases wireless communication equipment (RAN10) from other mobile network operators to provide services to users, and the usage cost of the wireless communication equipment is charged on a pay-as-you-go basis, the VMNO's profitability can be improved without impairing the user experience of terminal 20. (A3) Using the communication information a1 to a3, the mobile carrier to be used for each terminal 20a to 20m is determined according to the amount of communication traffic and characteristics of each terminal 20a to 20m. For example, mobile carrier 1 is assigned to terminal 20 that performs high-capacity communication, and mobile carrier 2 is assigned to terminal 20 that performs many simultaneous connections. In this way, communication resources for each mobile carrier can be optimized compared to a case where terminals 20 for various purposes are mixed under one mobile carrier. (A4) Considering the information a1-a3 regarding communication and the priority of mobile carriers, the mobile carrier to be used for each terminal 20a-20m is determined so that more terminals 20 are allocated to the mobile carrier with higher priority. The priority of mobile carriers can be determined, for example, according to the number of base stations 11 that each mobile carrier has. This is because a larger number of base stations 11 can be considered to indicate a wider communication area and better communication quality. This reduces the number of times mobile carriers are switched when terminals 20a-20m move.

[0042] In step S22, the switching unit 110 transmits a switching instruction to the mobile communication carrier's radio access network 10 (RAN10) determined in step S20 to terminals 20a to 20m (only terminal 20a is shown in Figure 3). The switching instruction is transmitted from the switching unit 110 via data communication units 140a to 140n and RAN10a to 10n corresponding to the mobile communication carrier used by each terminal 20a to 20m. Steps S20 and S22 correspond to the "switching process".

[0043] In step S24, terminal 20a, having received the switching instruction, disconnects communication (disconnects session) with the RAN 10a of the mobile network operator 1 to which it is currently connected. In step S26, terminal information management unit 130a updates the information and removes terminal 20a from terminals 20 connected to it. Alternatively, instead of the explicit disconnection in step S24, step S26 may be executed after waiting for the session timeout.

[0044] In step S30, terminal 20a switches its connection destination to the mobile network operator instructed in step S22. For example, consider the case where terminal 20a receives an instruction to switch to mobile network operator 2 (RAN10b). In this case, terminal 20a performs authentication processing with terminal information management unit 130b (Figure 2: CPF2 of master gateway 102) and establishes a communication session. After successful authentication, in step S32, terminal information management unit 130b updates the information and adds terminal 20a to the terminals 20 connected to it. Then, in step S34, terminal 20a connects to the Internet INT via RAN10b of mobile network operator 2 by data communication unit 140b (without using carrier gateway 12b) (Figure 3: arrow to external gateway 120). Similarly, the above-described disconnection and connection destination switching are performed for terminals 20a to 20m.

[0045] As described above, according to the communication system 1 of the first embodiment, the wireless communication switching device 100 includes a switching unit 110 that determines the mobile communication carriers 1 to N to be used by the terminals 20a to 20m that perform mobile communication, and transmits a switching instruction to the wireless access network 10 (i.e., RAN 10) of the determined mobile communication carrier to the terminals 20a to 20m. Therefore, compared to the case where the terminals 20a to 20m (vehicle wireless communication devices) select one of the wireless access networks 10a to 10n to connect to, it becomes possible to determine the wireless access network 10 according to the communication status, communication quality, congestion status, etc., of the "entire network" consisting of wireless access networks 10a to 10n of multiple different mobile communication carriers 1 to N. As a result, network connectivity can be improved (fault tolerance) and network stability can be improved (higher quality). Furthermore, according to the communication system 1 of the first embodiment, compared to the case where each terminal 20a to 20m individually selects a wireless access network 10, it becomes possible to assign the optimal wireless access network 10 as the "entire network" to each terminal 20a to 20m (overall optimization).

[0046] Furthermore, according to the communication system 1 of the first embodiment, the wireless communication switching device 100 includes data communication units 140a to 140n, each corresponding to a controllable number of mobile communication carriers 1 to N, and which realize data transmission and reception via the wireless access networks 10a to 10n (i.e., RAN 10a to 10n) for each mobile communication carrier 1 to N. The wireless communication switching device 100 also includes terminal information management units 130a to 130n that manage information for multiple terminals 20a to 20m for each mobile communication carrier to which each terminal 20a to 20m is connected. As a result, terminals 20a to 20m can transmit and receive data using the wireless access network 10 of the mobile communication carrier to which they have been instructed to switch, via the wireless communication switching device 100, without having to connect to the carrier gateways 12a to 12n (CPF 121a to 121n, UPF 122a to 122n) provided by each mobile communication carrier 1 to N (Figure 2).

[0047] Furthermore, according to the communication system 1 of the first embodiment, the switching unit 110 of the wireless communication switching device 100 determines the mobile communication carrier using the communication information a1 to a3, thereby enabling even greater fault tolerance, higher quality, and overall optimization of the network.

[0048] Thus, according to communication system 1, the wireless communication switching device 100 can centrally control switching instructions to terminals 20a to 20m without going through the Internet INT. Compared to switching processing that goes through the Internet INT, which is a public network and where it is difficult to predict the available communication bandwidth and communication delay, network connectivity and network stability can be improved. Furthermore, since the mobile communication carrier to which each terminal 20a to 20m is connected is determined using communication information a1 to a3, the impact of communication interruptions can be suppressed by switching to a mobile communication carrier with fewer handovers, either in advance or dynamically. As a result, network connectivity and network stability can be improved.

[0049] <Second Embodiment> Figure 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system 1A of the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, a configuration is described in which the RAN 10a to 10n, which are the connection destinations of terminals 20a to 20m, are determined using "information related to the application" in addition to the configuration described in the first embodiment. The wireless communication switching device 100A of the second embodiment further includes an application information management unit 150 in addition to the configuration described in the first embodiment, and a switching unit 110A is provided in place of the switching unit 110. Furthermore, the terminals 20aA to 20mA of the second embodiment further include an application information storage unit 23 in addition to the configuration described in the first embodiment.

[0050] The application information storage unit 23 stores information about applications running on terminals 20aA to 20mA. This application can be any application that provides various services to users of terminals 20aA to 20mA. For example, the application could be a remote driving application or a remote autonomous driving application to provide the next-generation connected services mentioned above.

[0051] The application information management unit 150 collects and stores information about the applications running on each terminal 20aA to 20mA (in other words, information stored in the application information storage unit 23) from the terminals 20aA to 20mA. If the application information received from the terminals 20aA to 20mA is encrypted, the application information management unit 150 decrypts it before storing the information.

[0052] In steps S10 and S12 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110A acquires "application-related information" from the application information management unit 150, in addition to communication-related information a1 to a3. The application-related information acquired by the switching unit 110A from the application information management unit 150 may include, for example, any of the following information b1 to b4. (b1) Terminal type of terminal 20aA~20mA: For example, information indicating whether the terminal is a smartphone, an in-vehicle device (navigation device, vehicle control device, etc.), a wearable device, or a sensor with communication capabilities. (b2) Vehicle type in which terminals 20aA~20mA are installed: For example, information indicating vehicle type = emergency, vehicle type = autonomous driving (requiring high-reliability communication), vehicle type = normal, etc. Note that "terminals 20aA~20mA are installed in a vehicle" includes not only cases where terminals 20aA~20mA are in-vehicle devices, but also cases where a user of terminals 20aA~20mA is in the vehicle. (b3) The movement speed of terminals 20aA to 20mA, and the location information of terminals 20aA to 20mA. (b4) Performance requirements from the application running on terminals 20aA~20mA.

[0053] In step S20 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110A determines the mobile carrier to be used in terminals 20aA to 20mA by using at least one of the following criteria B1 to B4 in addition to the criteria A1 to A4 described in the first embodiment.

[0054] (B1) Using information b1 regarding the application, the mobile carrier to be used for terminals 20aA to 20mA is determined based on the terminal's movement characteristics indicated by the terminal type. For example, if the terminal type is a smartphone, the movement speed can be considered low, so a mobile carrier with many millimeter-wave base stations 11 in the vicinity is assigned. For example, if the terminal type is an in-vehicle device, the movement speed can be considered high, so a mobile carrier capable of connecting over a wide area is assigned. In this way, the optimal mobile carrier can be assigned considering the characteristics of terminals 20aA to 20mA and mobile carriers 1 to N, thereby maximizing the user experience. (B2) Using the application information b2, the mobile carrier to be used in terminals 20aA~20mA is determined according to the vehicle priority derived from the vehicle type. For example, if the vehicle type is emergency or autonomous driving (requiring high-reliability communication), a mobile carrier reserved in advance for high-reliability communication is assigned, and if the vehicle type is normal, another mobile carrier is assigned. This ensures that the quality of priority communication is improved. (B3) Using the application information b3, the mobile carrier to be used for terminals 20aA to 20mA is determined based on the mobile speed of terminals 20aA to 20mA (whether they are moving, stationary, or, if moving, their driving speed). For example, stationary terminals are assigned a mobile carrier in multiple access mode, and moving terminals are assigned a mobile carrier in high reliability mode. This optimizes the communication resources for each mobile carrier compared to a situation where terminals with various uses are mixed under a single mobile carrier. (B4) Using the information b4 regarding the application, the mobile carrier to be used for each terminal 20aA-20mA is determined in order to satisfy the performance requirements from the application running on each terminal 20aA-20mA. This maximizes the user experience.

[0055] In this second embodiment of the communication system 1A, the same effects as those of the first embodiment described above can be achieved. Furthermore, according to the second embodiment of the communication system 1A, the switching unit 110A determines the mobile communication carrier using information about the application in addition to information about the communication, thereby enabling further fault tolerance, high quality, and overall optimization of the network, and assigning a wireless access network 10 (i.e., RAN 10) suitable for the application being executed at each terminal 20aA to 20mA to each terminal 20aA to 20mA.

[0056] In addition, the switching unit 110A of the second embodiment may determine the mobile communication carrier to be used in terminals 20aA to 20mA by using at least one of the criteria B1 to B4 instead of criteria A1 to A4.

[0057] <Third Embodiment> Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system 1B of the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, the case in which the application is an application that utilizes a driving route from the starting point to the destination will be described in the configuration described in the second embodiment. In the third embodiment, the wireless communication switching device 100B is equipped with an application information management unit 150B instead of the application information management unit 150, and a switching unit 110B instead of the switching unit 110A. Furthermore, the terminals 20aB to 20mB of the third embodiment are equipped with a route information acquisition unit 24 in addition to the configuration described in the second embodiment.

[0058] The route information acquisition unit 24 is a functional unit that acquires route information from a route search application installed in each terminal (hereinafter also referred to as the "route search app") or from a route search server on the Internet INT. Here, "route information" refers to information representing the driving route from the starting point to the destination. The starting point and destination for deriving the driving route may be specified by the user of terminals 20aB to 20mB, or they may be automatically set by the route search app or route search server based on past driving route history. The current location may also be used as the starting point.

[0059] The application information management unit 150B collects and stores route information (in other words, information acquired by the route information acquisition unit 24) as information related to applications from terminals 20aB to 20mB.

[0060] In steps S10 and S12 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110B acquires, in addition to communication-related information a1 to a3 and application-related information b1 to b4, the application-related information shown in b5 below from the application information management unit 150. (b5) Route information for terminals 20aB to 20mB.

[0061] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating the determination of the mobile network operator. In step S20 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110B determines the mobile network operator to be used in terminals 20aB to 20mB using either the following criteria B5 or criterion B6, in addition to the criteria A1 to A4 described in the first embodiment and the criteria B1 to B4 described in the second embodiment. Figure 6(A) is a diagram illustrating criterion B5. Figure 6(B) is a diagram illustrating criterion B6.

[0062] (B5) Using routing information related to the application, a communication quality score on the travel route RT is calculated for each mobile carrier, as shown in Figure 6(A). The communication quality score can be obtained from a pre-prepared communication quality map (a map in which communication quality is assigned to each predetermined area). Here, "communication quality" refers to the quality of communication set based on criteria such as the number of handovers, the signal strength map, the placement of base stations 11, and the availability of physical resource blocks (PRBs). The switching unit 110B assigns the mobile carrier with the highest communication quality score on the travel route RT. In the illustrated example, mobile carrier 1 is selected. (B6) As shown in Figure 6(B), the travel route RT is divided into multiple sections (sections 1 to 3 in the illustrated example). Then, using the route information of the application information, a communication quality score for each section is calculated for each mobile carrier. The switching unit 110B assigns the mobile carrier with the highest communication quality score to each section. In the illustrated example, section 1 is assigned to mobile carrier 1, section 2 is assigned to mobile carrier 3, and section 3 is assigned to mobile carrier 2.

[0063] In this third embodiment of the communication system 1B, the same effects as those of the first and second embodiments described above can be achieved. Furthermore, according to the third embodiment of the communication system 1B, the switching unit 110B determines the mobile communication carrier by evaluating the communication quality of each mobile communication carrier 1 to N on the travel route RT using route information. Since the travel route RT includes the positions of terminals 20aB to 20mB at a time in the future, the communication system 1B can determine the mobile communication carrier while also considering future communication quality, thereby further improving the fault tolerance, quality, and overall optimization of the network.

[0064] Furthermore, according to standard B6 of the communication system 1B of the third embodiment, the switching unit 110B divides the travel route RT into multiple sections and evaluates the communication quality of each mobile communication carrier 1 to N for each section, thereby determining the mobile communication carrier for each section. Therefore, even for long-distance travel routes RT, the mobile communication carrier can be switched precisely for each section.

[0065] Furthermore, in the third embodiment, the switching unit 110B may determine the mobile carrier used in terminals 20aB to 20mB by using either standard B5 or standard B6 instead of standards A1 to A4 and standards B1 to B4. In addition, in addition to standards A1 to A4, the mobile carrier used in terminals 20aB to 20mB may be determined by using either standard B5 or standard B6 (without using standards B1 to B4). Furthermore, in addition to standards B1 to B4, the mobile carrier used in terminals 20aB to 20mB may be determined by using either standard B5 or standard B6 (without using standards A1 to A4).

[0066] <Fourth Embodiment> Figure 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system 1C of the fourth embodiment. In the fourth embodiment, a case is described in which the configuration described in the second embodiment is capable of supporting terminals 20aC to 20mC that can simultaneously connect to multiple mobile communication carriers. In the wireless communication switching device 100C of the fourth embodiment, in the configuration described in the second embodiment, an application information management unit 150C is provided in place of the application information management unit 150, and a switching unit 110C is provided in place of the switching unit 110. Furthermore, in the configuration described in the second embodiment, terminals 20aC to 20mC are provided with wireless communication units 21x and 21y in place of the wireless communication unit 21, terminal information storage units 22x and 22y in place of the terminal information storage unit 22, and application information storage unit 23C in place of the application information storage unit 23. Note that for convenience of illustration, terminals 20bC to 20mC are not shown in Figure 7.

[0067] The wireless communication unit 21x and the wireless communication unit 21y each have the same functions as the wireless communication unit 21 described in Figure 1. The terminal information storage unit 22x and the terminal information storage unit 22y each have the same functions as the terminal information storage unit 22 described in Figure 1. The wireless communication unit 21x and the terminal information storage unit 22x enable the terminal to communicate via the RAN10 (e.g., RAN10a) of any one mobile communication carrier. Furthermore, the wireless communication unit 21y and the terminal information storage unit 22y enable the terminal to communicate via the RAN10 (e.g., RAN10b) of another mobile communication carrier. Hereafter, the wireless communication unit 21x and the terminal information storage unit 22x will also be referred to as the "first communication unit," and the wireless communication unit 21y and the terminal information storage unit 22y will also be referred to as the "second communication unit." In this way, terminals 20aC to 20mC can communicate via the RAN10 of multiple mobile communication carriers by having multiple communication units (first communication unit, second communication unit).

[0068] Similar to the application information storage unit 23, the application information storage unit 23C stores information about applications running on terminals 20aC to 20mC.

[0069] The application information management unit 150C, like the application information management unit 150, collects and stores information about applications running on terminals 20aC to 20mC (in other words, information stored in the application information storage unit 23C).

[0070] In steps S10 and S12 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110C acquires, in addition to communication-related information a1 to a3 and application-related information b1 to b4, the application-related information shown in b6 below from the application information management unit 150C. (b5) Information indicating the type of application used for each line: for example, application type = braking control (e.g., autonomous driving application), application type = content playback (e.g., video viewing application), etc.

[0071] In step S20 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110C determines the mobile carriers to be used by the first communication unit and the second communication unit of the terminals 20aC to 20mC, respectively, using at least one of the following criteria B7 and criterion B8, in addition to the criteria A1 to A4 described in the first embodiment and the criteria B1 to B4 described in the second embodiment.

[0072] (B7) Using the application information b5, the mobile carriers to be used by the first communication unit and the second communication unit of terminals 20aC to 20mC are determined according to the application priority derived from the application type. For example, if the application type is braking control (e.g., an autonomous driving application), highly reliable communication is required, so within a single terminal, mobile carriers are assigned to the first communication unit and the second communication unit, respectively. For example, mobile carrier 1 (RAN10a) is assigned to the first communication unit of a terminal (e.g., terminal 20aC), and mobile carrier 2 (RAN10b) is assigned to the second communication unit of the same terminal (e.g., terminal 20aC). On the other hand, if the application type is content playback (e.g., video viewing), a mobile carrier is assigned only to the first communication unit within a single terminal, and no mobile carrier is assigned to the second communication unit. In this way, the communication quality can be changed according to the application type, and the quality of priority communication can be reliably improved. (B8) Using information b3 regarding the application, the mobile carriers to be used by the first communication unit and the second communication unit of terminals 20aC to 20mC are determined based on the mobile speed of terminals 20aC to 20mC. For example, if the mobile speed is faster than a predetermined threshold, in order to suppress communication interruptions, mobile carriers are assigned to the first communication unit and the second communication unit within a single terminal. For example, mobile carrier 1 (RAN10a) is assigned to the first communication unit of a terminal (e.g., terminal 20aC), and mobile carrier 2 (RAN10b) is assigned to the second communication unit of the same terminal (e.g., terminal 20aC). On the other hand, if the mobile speed is below a predetermined threshold, a mobile carrier is assigned only to the first communication unit within a single terminal, and no mobile carrier is assigned to the second communication unit. This optimizes communication resources.

[0073] In this fourth embodiment of the communication system 1C, the same effects as those of the first and second embodiments described above can be achieved. Furthermore, according to the fourth embodiment of the communication system 1C, the switching unit 110C determines two or more mobile communication carriers to be used by one terminal 20aC and transmits a switching instruction to the terminal 20aC to the wireless access network 10 (RAN10) of the two or more determined mobile communication carriers. For this reason, the wireless communication switching device 100C can also support terminals 20aC to 20mC that can simultaneously connect to the wireless access networks 10a to 10n (RAN10a to 10n) of two or more mobile communication carriers 1 to N.

[0074] Furthermore, in the fourth embodiment, the switching unit 110C may determine the multiple mobile carriers to be used in terminals 20aC to 20mC by using at least one of criteria B7 or criterion B8 instead of criteria A1 to A4 and criteria B1 to B4. Also, in addition to criteria A1 to A4, the multiple mobile carriers to be used in terminals 20aC to 20mC may be determined by using at least one of criteria B7 or criterion B8 (without using criteria B1 to B4). Furthermore, in addition to criteria B1 to B4, the multiple mobile carriers to be used in terminals 20aC to 20mC may be determined by using at least one of criteria B7 or criterion B8 (without using criteria A1 to A4). In addition, in these cases, criteria B5 or criterion B6 described in the third embodiment may be adopted in combination.

[0075] <Fifth Embodiment> Figure 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system 1D of the fifth embodiment. In the fifth embodiment, a configuration is described in which the RAN 10a to 10n, which are the connection destinations of terminals 20a to 20m, are determined without using the communication information or application information described above. The wireless communication switching device 100D of the fifth embodiment is equipped with a switching unit 110D in place of the switching unit 110 in the configuration described in the first embodiment.

[0076] The switching unit 110D does not perform steps S10 and S12 in Figure 3. In step S20 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110D determines the mobile carrier to be used at each terminal 20a to 20m according to the instructions from the system administrator. The system administrator can grasp or estimate the state of the entire network from communications from mobile carriers 1 to N or from arbitrary information sources such as news bulletins (e.g., disaster bulletins, earthquake forecasts, etc.) and determine the instructions to be given to the switching unit 110D according to the state of the network. Alternatively, the switching unit 110D may determine the mobile carrier to be used at each terminal 20a to 20m without relying on instructions from the system administrator by automatically analyzing news bulletins or arbitrary web pages.

[0077] Thus, the switching unit 110D may determine the RANs 10a to 10n, which are the connection destinations for terminals 20a to 20m, without using information related to communication or applications. Furthermore, in the example in Figure 8, the terminal information management units 130a to 130n may be omitted. The same effects as those of the first embodiment described above can be achieved in this fifth embodiment of the communication system 1D.

[0078] <Sixth Embodiment> Figure 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the configuration of the communication system 1E according to the sixth embodiment. The case in which the wireless communication switching device 100E is configured without using the external gateway 120, terminal information management units 130a to 130n, and data communication units 140a to 140n in the communication system 1E according to the sixth embodiment will be described. The wireless communication switching device 100E according to the sixth embodiment has a switching unit 110E instead of a switching unit 110D in the configuration described in the fifth embodiment (Figure 8), and does not have the external gateway 120, terminal information management units 130a to 130n, and data communication units 140a to 140n. Furthermore, the wireless communication switching device 100E according to the sixth embodiment does not have the master gateways 101 to 103 and edge router 105 described in Figure 2.

[0079] The switching unit 110E does not perform steps S10 and S12 in Figure 3. In step S20 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110E, similar to the switching unit 110D in the fifth embodiment, determines the mobile carrier to be used by each terminal 20a to 20m according to the instructions from the system administrator. In step S22 of Figure 3, the switching unit 110E transmits a switching instruction to terminals 20a to 20m not through the data communication units 140a to 140n, but via the carrier gateways 12a to 12n. In step S30 of Figure 3, terminals 20a to 20m switch their connection destination to the mobile carrier instructed in step S22. At this time, terminals 20a to 20m perform authentication processing with the carrier gateways 12a to 12n of the instructed mobile carriers 1 to N, rather than with the terminal information management units 130a to 130n, and establish a communication session.

[0080] Thus, the wireless communication switching device 100E only needs to have a switching unit 110E, and does not need to have an external gateway 120, terminal information management units 130a to 130n, and data communication units 140a to 140n. The same effects as those of the fifth embodiment described above can be achieved in this sixth embodiment of the communication system 1E.

[0081] <Modified form of this embodiment> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be implemented in various forms without departing from its spirit. For example, the following modifications are possible. In addition, in the above embodiments, some of the configurations implemented by hardware may be replaced with software, and conversely, some of the configurations implemented by software may be replaced with hardware.

[0082] [Example 1] The above embodiment shows an example of the configuration of communication systems 1, 1A to 1E. However, the configuration of communication system 1 is merely an example, and any configuration can be adopted. For example, mobile network operators 1 to N may include a mix of VMNOs (Virtual Mobile Network Operators) that lease wireless communication equipment (RAN10) from other mobile network operators to provide services to users, and MNOs (Mobile Network Operators) that own their own wireless communication equipment (RAN10).

[0083] [Differentiation 2] The above embodiment shows an example of the configuration of the wireless communication switching devices 100, 100A to 100E. However, the configuration of the wireless communication switching device 100 is merely an example, and any configuration can be adopted. For example, the terminal information management units 130a to 130n may be configured as a single functional unit rather than individual functional units. Similarly, the data communication units 140a to 140n may also be configured as a single functional unit rather than individual functional units. Furthermore, for example, the wireless communication switching device 100 may have multiple switching units 110. In this case, the criteria A1 to A4 and B1 to B8 adopted in one switching unit 110 may differ from the criteria A1 to A4 and B1 to B8 adopted in the other switching units 110.

[0084] Figure 3 illustrates an example of the processing procedure for switching control. However, the procedure shown in Figure 3 is merely an example, and the processing procedure can be modified in various ways. For example, the processing content in each step may be added, omitted, or changed, and the execution order of the steps (procedures) may also be changed.

[0085] [Difference 3] The configurations of the communication systems 1, 1A to 1E and wireless communication switching devices 100, 100A to 100E in the above embodiment, and the configurations of the communication systems 1, 1A to 1E and wireless communication switching devices 100, 100A to 100E in the above modified examples 1 and 2, may be combined as appropriate.

[0086] The embodiments of this specification have been described above based on the embodiments and modifications described above. The embodiments described above are for the purpose of facilitating understanding of this specification and do not limit it. This specification may be modified and improved without departing from its spirit and the scope of the claims, and equivalents thereof are included in this specification. Furthermore, any technical features that are not described as essential in this specification may be deleted as appropriate.

[0087] The present invention can also be realized in the following forms. [Application Example 1] Wireless communication switching device, A wireless communication switching device comprising a switching unit that determines the mobile communications carrier to be used by a terminal performing mobile communications and transmits a switching instruction to the terminal for switching to the wireless access network of the determined mobile communications carrier. [Application Example 2] The wireless communication switching device described in Application Example 1, further, A data communication unit corresponding to each of the multiple mobile communication carriers controllable by the wireless communication switching device, comprising a data communication unit that realizes data transmission and reception via the wireless access network of each mobile communication carrier, A terminal information management unit manages information on multiple terminals for each mobile communication carrier to which each terminal is connected, A wireless communication switching device equipped with the following features. [Application Example 3] A wireless communication switching device as described in Application Example 1 or Application Example 2, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that acquires communication information from at least one of the data communication unit and the terminal information management unit, and uses the communication information to determine the mobile communication carrier. [Application Example 4] A wireless communication switching device described in any one of Application Examples 1 to 3, further comprising: The system includes an application information management unit that collects information about the applications running on each of the multiple terminals, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that obtains information about the application from the application information management unit and determines the mobile communication carrier using the information about the application in addition to the information about the communication. [Application Example 5] A wireless communication switching device described in any one of Application Examples 1 to 4, The aforementioned application is an application that utilizes the driving route from the starting point to the destination. The information relating to the application includes route information representing the driving route, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that determines the mobile communication carrier by evaluating the communication quality of each mobile communication carrier on the travel route using the route information. [Application Example 6] A wireless communication switching device described in any one of Application Examples 1 to 5, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that divides the travel route into multiple sections and evaluates the communication quality of each mobile communication carrier for each section, thereby determining the mobile communication carrier for each section. [Application Example 7] A wireless communication switching device according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 6, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that determines two or more mobile communication carriers to be used in one terminal and transmits a switching instruction to the terminal for the two or more determined mobile communication carriers' wireless access networks. [Application Example 8] A method for switching wireless communication, in which an information processing device A method comprising a switching step of determining a mobile communications carrier to be used in a terminal performing mobile communications, and transmitting a switching instruction to the terminal for the determined mobile communications carrier's wireless access network. [Application Example 9] A computer program, for use in an information processing device. A computer program that performs a switching function to determine the mobile communications carrier to be used in a terminal performing mobile communications, and to send a switching instruction to the terminal to switch to the wireless access network of the determined mobile communications carrier. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0088] 1, 1A~1E…Communication Systems 10, 10a~10n… Wireless access networks 11,11a~11n…Base station 12, 12a~12n... Carrier Gateway 20, 20a~20m, 20aA~20mA, 20aB~20mB, 20aC~20mC… terminal 21,21x,21y…Wireless communication department 22, 22x, 22y… Terminal information storage section 23,23C...App information storage section 24...Route information acquisition unit 100, 100A~100E… Wireless communication switching device 101, 102, 103… Master Gateway 104…Edge Server 105…Edge Router 110, 110A~110E…Switching section 120…External Gateway 130…Terminal Information Management Department 130a~130n...Terminal Information Management Department 140a~140n...Data communication section 150, 150B, 150C… App Information Management Department

Claims

1. Wireless communication switching device, A wireless communication switching device comprising a switching unit that determines the mobile communications carrier to be used by a terminal performing mobile communications and transmits a switching instruction to the terminal for switching to the wireless access network of the determined mobile communications carrier.

2. A wireless communication switching device according to claim 1, further, A data communication unit corresponding to each of the multiple mobile communication carriers controllable by the wireless communication switching device, comprising a data communication unit that realizes data transmission and reception via the wireless access network of each mobile communication carrier, A terminal information management unit manages information on multiple terminals for each mobile communication carrier to which each terminal is connected, A wireless communication switching device equipped with the following features.

3. A wireless communication switching device according to claim 2, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that acquires communication information from at least one of the data communication unit and the terminal information management unit, and uses the communication information to determine the mobile communication carrier.

4. A wireless communication switching device according to claim 3, further, The system includes an application information management unit that collects information about the applications running on each of the multiple terminals, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that obtains information about the application from the application information management unit and determines the mobile communication carrier using the information about the application in addition to the information about the communication.

5. A wireless communication switching device according to claim 4, The aforementioned application is an application that utilizes the driving route from the starting point to the destination. The information relating to the application includes route information representing the driving route, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that determines the mobile communication carrier by evaluating the communication quality of each mobile communication carrier on the travel route using the route information.

6. A wireless communication switching device according to claim 5, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that divides the travel route into multiple sections and evaluates the communication quality of each mobile communication carrier for each section, thereby determining the mobile communication carrier for each section.

7. A wireless communication switching device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The switching unit is a wireless communication switching device that determines two or more mobile communication carriers to be used in one terminal and transmits a switching instruction to the terminal for the two or more determined mobile communication carriers' wireless access networks.

8. A method for switching wireless communication, in which an information processing device A method comprising a switching step of determining a mobile communications carrier to be used in a terminal performing mobile communications, and transmitting a switching instruction to the terminal for the determined mobile communications carrier's wireless access network.

9. A computer program, for use in an information processing device. A computer program that performs a switching function to determine the mobile communications carrier to be used in a terminal performing mobile communications, and to send a switching instruction to the terminal to switch to the wireless access network of the determined mobile communications carrier.

Images