Information processing device and communication method

Abstract

An information processing device (10) provides an application function to a client device (20). The information processing device (10) is equipped with an acquisition unit (161) and a communication unit (140). The acquisition unit (161) acquires characteristic information about the application function. The communication unit (140) communicates with the client device (20). The communication unit (140) changes a process regarding communication in accordance with the characteristic information.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and a communication method. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there are wireless communication technologies that use wireless communication to exchange various data. For example, in recent years, applications that access mobile network games from terminal devices such as smartphones via wireless networks have been increasing. When such applications transmit images to terminal devices, a technology is known that renders three-dimensional models into two dimensions. In this technology, a bit rate is preferentially allocated to an object on the screen that is being watched by a user, thereby transmitting high-quality images to the terminal device while reducing the processing load of the terminal device. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2007-79664 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] For example, when providing a network game service, quality is required according to the type of game, such as low latency and multiple connections for multiple players to participate in the game at the same time, rather than high image quality. However, in the case of network games, it is difficult to provide a service with stable quality in terms of latency and throughput. It is desirable to provide a service with stable quality even when the communication environment changes due to the usage of communication resources and the number of terminals connected simultaneously.

[0005] Therefore, this disclosure proposes a technique that contributes to realizing the provision of services with more stable quality.

[0006] It should be noted that the above problem or objective is merely one of several problems or objectives that can be solved or achieved by several embodiments disclosed in this specification. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] According to the present disclosure, there is provided an information processing device. The information processing device provides an application function to a client device. The information processing device includes an acquisition unit and a communication unit. The acquisition unit acquires characteristic information related to the application function. The communication unit communicates with the client device. The communication unit changes a process related to the communication in response to the characteristic information. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an overview of a proposed technique of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] 1 is a table for explaining an example of a type of service according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] 1 is a table for explaining an example of characteristic information stored in a storage unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] 11 is a table for explaining another example of characteristic information stored in the storage unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] 1 is a table for explaining an example of communication control information stored in a storage unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] 11 is a table for explaining another example of characteristic information stored in the storage unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] 11 is a table for explaining another example of characteristic information stored in the storage unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] 11 is a diagram for explaining transmission data generated by a communication unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 12] 1 is a flowchart showing a flow of a communication process executed by an information processing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 13] 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of communication processing executed by the terminal device 20 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

[0010] In addition, in this specification and drawings, similar components of the embodiments may be distinguished by adding different alphabets after the same reference numerals. However, when there is no need to particularly distinguish between the similar components, only the same reference numerals are used.

[0011] One or more embodiments (including examples and modified examples) described below can be implemented independently. Meanwhile, at least a part of the embodiments described below may be implemented in appropriate combination with at least a part of another embodiment. These embodiments may include novel features different from each other. Thus, these embodiments may contribute to solving different purposes or problems and may provide different effects.

[0012] The explanation will be given in the following order. 1. Introduction 1.1. Overview of proposed technology 2. Example of information processing system configuration 2.1.Information Processing System 2.2. Information Processing Device 2.3. Terminal Device 3.Communication Processing 3.1. Communication processing by information processing device 3.2. Communication processing by terminal device 4. Other embodiments 5. Supplementary Information

[0013] <<1. Introduction>> <1.1. Overview of proposed technology> First, an overview of the proposed technology according to the present disclosure will be described. Fig. 1 is a diagram for explaining an overview of the proposed technology according to the present disclosure. The proposed technology according to the present disclosure is implemented in an information processing system shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 1, the information processing system includes an information processing device 10, a terminal device 20, and a base station device 30.

[0014] The information processing device 10 is, for example, a game server, and provides services such as games to the terminal device 20 via the base station device 30. The information processing device 10 transmits moving images such as game images to the terminal device 20, for example.

[0015] The terminal device 20 may be, for example, a smartphone, a PC, or a game device. The terminal device 20 displays the moving image acquired from the information processing device 10 on a display unit of the terminal device 20 or a display device connected to the terminal device 20.

[0016] The base station device 30 is a wireless communication device that wirelessly communicates with the terminal device 20. The base station device 30 is, for example, a device equivalent to a wireless base station (Node B, eNB, gNB, etc.), and provides a cellular communication service such as NR (New Radio) to the terminal device 20. The base station device 30 may be a wireless relay station. The base station device 30 may be a road base station device such as an RSU (Road Side Unit). The base station device 30 may also be a radio extension device called an RRH (Remote Radio Head).

[0017] The base station device 30 is connected to the information processing device 10 via, for example, a network, and transmits information related to the services provided by the information processing device 10, such as game video images, to the terminal device 20. The base station device 30 also provides game operation information and the like by the terminal device 20 to the information processing device 10 via the network.

[0018] In this way, the information processing device 10 and the terminal device 20 transmit and receive information via the base station device 30, so that the terminal device 20 can receive services such as cloud gaming from the information processing device 10.

[0019] Note that, although FIG. 1 shows an example in which the terminal device 20 and the information processing device 10 are connected by wireless communication via the base station device 30, the terminal device 20 and the information processing device 10 may be connected by wire, for example, via a network.

[0020] Thus, in recent years, there has been an increase in network games for smartphones and PCs that connect to a game server (information processing device 10) via a network, rather than standalone games that are completed within the terminal device 20.

[0021] In network games, a key element in ensuring usability is stable communication, whether wired or wireless. However, it is not easy to obtain a stable communication environment. For example, depending on the network usage conditions, the communication bandwidth may suddenly narrow or responsiveness may deteriorate. Even when the communication conditions change, it is important to keep up with these changes in order to improve the operability and usability of the game.

[0022] 5G, which has already been partially launched, has three characteristics: large capacity, low latency, and multiple connections. By satisfying these three characteristics, it is possible to improve the operability and usability of network games, for example.

[0023] However, in an actual wireless communication environment, it is difficult to simultaneously satisfy all three of these characteristics. This is true not only for 5G, but also for wireless communication environments such as LTE and wired communication environments.

[0024] For example, in a game communication environment using 5G, some games are expected to meet the low latency characteristic of 5G. Meanwhile, other games are expected to meet the large capacity (high quality) characteristic of 5G. Thus, in a game communication environment in which many players play various games, it is considered difficult to simultaneously maintain all the characteristics required for each game. For example, it may be difficult to simultaneously meet the low latency and large capacity required for each game in all games.

[0025] Therefore, in the technology disclosed herein, a communication device (for example, the information processing device 10 or the terminal device 20) performs communication control in accordance with characteristic information of a game (for example, low delay or large capacity).

[0026] Typically, game servers perform communications without considering the characteristics required for the game, and do not control communications based on the nature of the game.

[0027] In contrast, the communication device according to the technology disclosed herein controls communication in accordance with the characteristic information of the game, thereby enabling the communication device to perform communication that satisfies the characteristics required for the game (e.g., low latency, large capacity, etc.). This enables the communication device to provide a game service of more stable quality, and further improves the operability and usability of the game.

[0028] <<2. Example of information processing system configuration>> <2.1. Information processing system> Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of an information processing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As described above, the information processing system includes an information processing device 10 and a terminal device 20. Although not shown in Fig. 2, the information processing system may include a base station device 30 as shown in Fig. 1. Alternatively, when the information processing device 10 is a MEC (Mobile Edge Computing) device, the information processing device 10 may be disposed as a server in the base station device 30.

[0029] [Information processing device 10] 2, the information processing device 10 is a client server that provides an application function to a client device. The information processing device 10 is, for example, a game server that provides a game service as an application function, and transmits moving image data to be displayed as a game screen to the terminal device 20. The information processing device 10 also receives information (scene information) related to the scene being displayed as the game screen from the terminal device 20. The scene information is information indicating a game scene, such as whether the game screen is a menu screen or a play screen.

[0030] The information processing device 10 includes an application unit 110, a rendering processing unit 120, an encoding unit 130, a communication unit 140, a storage unit 150, and a control unit 160.

[0031] (Application section 110) The application unit 110 is one or more applications that provide services to the terminal device 20 based on information acquired by the control unit 160. The application unit 110 is realized by running a program on a CPU (Central Processing Unit), for example, and provides a game service to a user who uses the terminal device 20 by displaying moving images on the terminal device 20.

[0032] More specifically, the application unit 110 controls the operation of the game. For example, the application unit 110 outputs moving image data to the rendering processing unit 120 based on the data acquired from the terminal device 20.

[0033] The services provided by the application unit 110 are not limited to game services, and various other services such as video viewing services may be provided.

[0034] (Rendering Processor 120) The rendering processing unit 120 is a drawing unit that performs rendering processing of moving images to be displayed on the terminal device 20. The rendering processing unit 120 performs processing to generate image data to be displayed as a game screen. The rendering processing unit 120 performs rendering of game scene images at a predetermined rendering resolution and frame rate in accordance with instructions from the application unit 110 and the control unit 160.

[0035] The rendering processing unit 120 is configured with a processor such as a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and the processor operates according to a predetermined program to generate moving image information. When the rendering processing unit 120 is configured with multiple GPUs, the rendering processing unit 120 appropriately divides information related to image generation and performs image processing in parallel using the multiple GPUs.

[0036] (encoding unit 130) The encoding unit 130 compresses the image data generated by the rendering processing unit 120 by encoding it, and outputs the compressed bit stream (hereinafter also referred to as compressed data) to the communication unit 140. The encoding unit 130 generates the compressed data according to an instruction from the control unit 160.

[0037] 2 includes a buffer 131. The encoding unit 130 temporarily stores compressed data and the like in the buffer 131 and performs encoding processing.

[0038] (Communication unit 140) The communication unit 140 is a communication interface (I / F) that communicates with an external device. The communication unit 140 is realized by, for example, a network interface card (NIC) or the like. For example, the communication unit 140 communicates with a core network to which the base station device 30 (see FIG. 1) is connected. The communication unit 140 converts the scene image encoded by the encoding unit 130 into a transmission signal and transmits it to the terminal device 20. The communication unit 140 also receives scene information and service information related to game services from the terminal device 20, and notifies the control unit 160 of the reception result. The communication unit 140 also transmits characteristic information generated based on the scene information and service information to the terminal device 20.

[0039] 2 includes a buffer 141. The communication unit 140 temporarily stores communication data and the like in the buffer 141 and performs communication processing.

[0040] (Storage unit 150) The storage unit 150 is a data readable / writable storage device such as a DRAM, an SRAM, a flash memory, a hard disk, etc. The storage unit 150 functions as a storage means of the information processing device 10. The storage unit 150 stores control information and the like used for communication control and buffer control by the control unit 160 described later.

[0041] 2, the encoding unit 130 and the communication unit 140 have buffer memories as the buffers 131 and 141, respectively, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the encoding unit 130 and the communication unit 140 may use a part of the storage unit 150 as the buffers 131 and 141 to perform processing.

[0042] (Control unit 160) The control unit 160 controls each unit of the information processing device 10. The control unit 160 is realized, for example, by a central processing unit (CPU), a micro processing unit (MPU), or the like executing a program stored inside the information processing device 10 using a random access memory (RAM) or the like as a working area. The control unit 160 is also realized, for example, by an integrated circuit such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a field programmable gate array (FPGA).

[0043] The control unit 160 has an acquisition unit 161, a buffer control unit 162, and a communication control unit 163, and realizes or executes the functions and actions of information processing described below. The internal configuration of the control unit 160 is not limited to the configuration shown in Fig. 2, and may be other configurations as long as they perform information processing described below. Furthermore, the connection relationship between the processing units in the control unit 160 is not limited to the connection relationship shown in Fig. 2, and may be other connection relationships.

[0044] (Acquisition part 161) The acquisition unit 161 acquires information related to game characteristics (characteristics information). The acquisition unit 161 acquires information related to the game service and information related to scenes of the game service from the terminal device 20, and acquires the characteristics information from the storage unit 150 based on the acquired information.

[0045] The characteristic information is information on characteristics required when providing, for example, a game service. The characteristic information includes information indicating required characteristics such as low latency, large capacity, and multiple access. The characteristic information is set, for example, for each service provided by the application unit 110. The characteristic information may also be set for each scene of the service. Details of the characteristic information will be described later.

[0046] (Buffer control unit 162) The buffer control unit 162 controls the buffers 131, 141 of each unit based on the characteristic information acquired by the acquisition unit 161. The buffer control unit 162 controls the buffer amounts of the buffers 131, 141 based on the characteristic information.

[0047] (Communication control unit 163) The communication control unit 163 controls the communication processing performed by the communication unit 140 based on the characteristic information acquired by the acquisition unit 161. The communication control unit 163 also controls the processing performed by the encoding unit 130, such as the frame rate and the encoding rate.

[0048] [Terminal device 20] The terminal device 20 is a client device (information processing device) that receives application functions from the information processing device 10, which is a client server. The terminal device 20 receives, for example, a game service as an application function.

[0049] The terminal device 20 receives video data relating to the game transmitted from the information processing device 10, and displays the received video data. The terminal device 20 determines a scene of the game in response to an operation performed by a user on the game, and transmits scene information relating to the determined scene to the information processing device 10.

[0050] The terminal device 20 includes a communication unit 210 , a decoding unit 220 , a rendering processing unit 230 , an input / output unit 240 , a storage unit 250 , and a control unit 260 .

[0051] (Communication unit 210) The communication unit 210 is a communication interface (I / F) that communicates with an external device. The communication unit 210 is realized by, for example, a network interface card (NIC) or the like. For example, the communication unit 210 connects to a core network by performing wireless communication with the base station device 30 (see FIG. 1). The communication unit 210 receives game video data from the information processing device 10. The communication unit 210 transmits scene information and service information related to game services to the information processing device 10. The communication unit 210 receives characteristic information from the information processing device 10.

[0052] The communication unit 210 has a buffer 211, and temporarily stores data received from the information processing device 10 in the buffer and performs a reception process. The communication unit 210 temporarily stores data to be transmitted to the information processing device 10 in the buffer and performs a transmission process.

[0053] (Decoding unit 220) The decoding unit 220 decodes the video data received by the communication unit 210. The decoding unit 220 has a buffer 221, and temporarily stores the video data and performs the decoding process.

[0054] (Rendering processing unit 230) The rendering processing unit 230 renders the video data decoded by the decoding unit 220 and displays it on a display (not shown) of the input / output unit 240.

[0055] (Input / output section 240) The input / output unit 240 has, for example, a display device (not shown) such as a display, and an input device (not shown) such as an operation device (controller). The input / output unit 240 displays the video data rendered by the rendering processing unit 230 on a display. The input / output unit 240 detects operations on the game by the user via the input device.

[0056] (Storage unit 250) The storage unit 250 is a storage device capable of reading and writing data, such as a DRAM, an SRAM, a flash memory, a hard disk, etc. The storage unit 250 functions as a storage means of the terminal device 20. The storage unit 250 stores control information and the like used for communication control and buffer control by the control unit 260, which will be described later.

[0057] 2, the communication unit 210 and the decoding unit 120 have, for example, buffer memories as the buffers 211 and 221, respectively, but are not limited to this. For example, the communication unit 210 and the decoding unit 120 may perform processing by using a part of the storage unit 250 as the buffers 211 and 221.

[0058] (Control unit 260) The control unit 260 controls each unit of the terminal device 20. The control unit 260 is realized, for example, by a central processing unit (CPU), a micro processing unit (MPU), or the like executing a program stored inside the terminal device 20 using a random access memory (RAM) or the like as a working area. The control unit 260 is also realized, for example, by an integrated circuit such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a field programmable gate array (FPGA).

[0059] The control unit 260 has an acquisition unit 261, a buffer control unit 262, and a communication control unit 263, and realizes or executes the functions and actions of information processing described below. The internal configuration of the control unit 260 is not limited to the configuration shown in Fig. 2, and may be other configurations as long as they perform information processing described below. Furthermore, the connection relationship between the processing units in the control unit 260 is not limited to the connection relationship shown in Fig. 2, and may be other connection relationships.

[0060] (Acquisition part 261) The acquisition unit 261 acquires information (characteristics information) related to application functions (game characteristics). The acquisition unit 261 acquires service information related to game services and scene information related to scenes of game services from the input / output unit 240 and the storage unit 250. The acquisition unit 261 notifies the information processing device 10 of the acquired information, thereby acquiring the characteristic information from the information processing device 10.

[0061] (Buffer control unit 262) The buffer control unit 262 controls the buffers 211, 221 of each unit based on the characteristic information acquired by the acquisition unit 261. The buffer control unit 262 controls the buffer amounts of the buffers 211, 221 based on the characteristic information.

[0062] (Communication control unit 263) The communication control unit 263 controls the communication processing performed by the communication unit 210 based on the characteristic information acquired by the acquisition unit 261. The communication control unit 263 also controls the processing performed by the decoding unit 220, such as the frame rate and the decoding rate.

[0063] <2.2. Information processing device> Next, a description will be given of details of the information processing device 10. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the information processing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0064] (Application section 110) The application unit 110 of the information processing device 10 is, for example, an application that provides a game service.

[0065] 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of a type of a service according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. When the application unit 110 provides a game service, the type of the game service may be specified by a genre and a subgenre, for example, as shown in FIG.

[0066] For example, a genre corresponds to a major classification that classifies services into "shooting" and "action" services. Services in the "shooting" genre are divided into smaller classifications, such as "bullet hell shooter" and "FPS (First Person Shooter)" services as subgenres.

[0067] (Storage unit 150) Returning to Fig. 3, storage unit 150 stores the game services provided by application unit 110 in association with the attribute information.

[0068] Fig. 5 is a diagram for explaining an example of characteristic information stored in the storage unit 150 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Fig. 5, the storage unit 150 stores sub-genres of game services in association with priorities of characteristic information. The characteristic information includes, for example, information on communication quality (low latency or large capacity) characteristics required for the service and information on characteristics (multiple access) according to the number of terminals receiving the service.

[0069] For example, the storage unit 150 stores, as characteristic information, low latency characteristics and large capacity characteristics in association with game subgenres. For example, the subgenre "FPS" has a high priority for low latency characteristics and a medium priority for large capacity characteristics. On the other hand, the subgenre "strategy game" has a low priority for low latency characteristics and a high priority for large capacity characteristics.

[0070] The storage unit 150 may store the scenes of the service in association with the attribute information. Fig. 6 is a diagram for explaining another example of the attribute information stored in the storage unit 150 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Fig. 6, the storage unit 150 stores the scenes in association with the priority of the attribute information for each sub-genre of the game service.

[0071] For example, the storage unit 150 stores characteristic information for each menu scene and play scene as a scene. For a "menu" scene in the subgenre "combat fighting game," the priority of low latency characteristics is low (Low) and the priority of large capacity characteristics is high (High). For a "play" scene in the same subgenre "combat fighting game," the priority of low latency characteristics is high (High) and the priority of large capacity characteristics is medium (Mid).

[0072] Here, the case where the storage unit 150 stores the priority of the characteristic information has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the storage unit 150 may store the characteristic information most required for the game service. In this case, the storage unit 150 stores, for example, the subgenre "FPS" and "low latency" in association with each other, and stores "strategy game" and "large capacity" in association with each other.

[0073] The storage unit 150 also stores control information used for control in the control unit 160. The control information includes communication control information used for communication control, and buffer control information used for buffer control.

[0074] The storage unit 150 stores the characteristic information and the control information in association with each other. Fig. 7 is a diagram for explaining an example of communication control information stored in the storage unit 150 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 7 illustrates a case where the storage unit 150 stores information related to network slices as communication control information.

[0075] For example, when the priority of low delay characteristics is high (High) and the priority of large capacity characteristics is low (Low), the storage unit 150 stores "Slice 5" as the corresponding network slice.

[0076] In addition to the information on the network slices, the storage unit 150 stores, as the communication control information, for example, a frame rate, an encoding rate, an encoding method, a type of communication protocol, and the like in association with characteristic information. In addition, the storage unit 150 stores, as the buffer control information, a buffer amount in association with characteristic information.

[0077] The storage unit 150 may store a game service, characteristic information, and control information in association with each other. FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining another example of characteristic information stored in the storage unit 150 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the storage unit 150 stores a subgenre of a game service, a priority of characteristic information, communication control information, and buffer control information in association with each other. FIG. 8 illustrates a case in which the storage unit 150 stores information on network slices as communication control information and stores information on buffer amount as buffer control information.

[0078] For example, in Figure 8, the subgenre "FPS" has high low latency characteristics (High), medium high capacity characteristics (Mid), the network slice is "Slice 2", and the buffer amount is "Small". Also, the subgenre "Strategy games" has low low latency characteristics (Low) and high high capacity characteristics (High). The network slice used in the subgenre "Strategy games" is "Slice 6", and the buffer amount is "Large".

[0079] In this way, the storage unit 150 stores characteristic information corresponding to the service provided to the terminal device 20. The storage unit 150 also stores control information corresponding to the characteristic information. This allows the information processing device 10 to perform communication control and buffer control in accordance with the characteristic information required for the service.

[0080] In this embodiment, the storage unit 150 stores low delay characteristics and large capacity (high image quality) characteristics as characteristic information, but is not limited thereto. For example, the storage unit 150 may store multiple access characteristics as characteristic information. For example, in a game in which many players participate simultaneously, the multiple access characteristics have a high priority.

[0081] Fig. 9 is a diagram for explaining another example of characteristic information stored in the storage unit 150 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In Fig. 9, the storage unit 150 stores the priority of the characteristic information in association with information on the network slice as communication control information. For example, when the low latency characteristic is low (Low), the large capacity characteristic is low (Low), and the multiple access characteristic is high (High), "Slice 10" is used as the network slice.

[0082] (Control unit 160) Returning to Fig. 3, the acquisition unit 161 of the control unit 160 includes a service information acquisition unit 161a, a scene information acquisition unit 161b, and a characteristic information acquisition unit 161c.

[0083] The service information acquisition unit 161a acquires service information related to the service provided by the application unit 110 from the terminal device 20. For example, when the application unit 110 provides a game service, the service information acquisition unit 161a acquires information related to the subgenre of the game from the terminal device 20 via the communication unit 140.

[0084] The scene information acquisition unit 161b acquires scene information from the terminal device 20 via the communication unit 140. The scene information acquisition unit 161b acquires, for example, information indicating whether a scene image displayed on the screen of the terminal device 20 is a menu scene that is a menu image or a play scene that is a play image.

[0085] The characteristic information acquisition unit 161c acquires characteristic information based on the service information and the scene information. For example, when the service information is a "fighting game" and the scene information is "play", the characteristic information acquisition unit 161c refers to the storage unit 150 and acquires information that the low latency characteristic is high (High) and the large capacity characteristic is low (Low) (see FIG. 6).

[0086] 3 controls the buffer amounts of the buffers 131 and 141 based on the characteristic information acquired by the characteristic information acquisition unit 161c. The buffer control unit 162, for example, refers to the storage unit 150 and determines the buffer amount corresponding to the priority of the characteristic information.

[0087] The buffers 131 and 141 temporarily store data for encoding processing and communication processing. Therefore, the longer the data is stored, the longer the data transmission delay, which leads to a transmission delay. Therefore, in order to reduce the data transmission delay, it is sufficient to reduce the buffer amount of the buffers 131 and 141.

[0088] However, in reality, to transmit and receive data, the information processing device 10 needs to convert data into various formats and adjust the timing of transmitting or receiving data, and therefore buffers 131, 141 with a certain amount of buffer capacity are required.

[0089] For example, when low delay characteristics are given high priority, the buffer control unit 162 controls the buffers 131 and 141 to have a small buffer amount, that is, a first buffer amount B1. By reducing the buffer amount, the transmission data can be divided into smaller pieces, the storage time in the buffers 131 and 141 can be shortened, and the transmission speed can be made shorter.

[0090] When the priority of the large-capacity (high-image quality) characteristic is high, the buffer control unit 162 controls the buffers 131 and 141 so that they have a second buffer amount B2 with a larger buffer amount (B1 < B2). When the priority of the large-capacity characteristic is high, in order to efficiently transmit data, it is better to process the data in batches to a certain extent. Therefore, when the priority of the large-capacity characteristic is high, the buffer control unit 162 increases the buffer amount compared to the case where the priority of the low-latency characteristic is high. As a result, the information processing apparatus 10 can transmit high-image quality image data.

[0091] When the priority of the multi-connection characteristic is high, since a large number of players (terminal devices 20) play games, the data to be transmitted is often small, and the buffer amount for data processing may be small. However, the control of the communication timing for communicating with a large number of terminal devices 20 becomes important. Therefore, there is a possibility that a waiting time for adjusting the communication timing may occur, and a certain buffer amount is required to cope with this waiting time.

[0092] Therefore, when the priority of the multi-connection characteristic is high, the buffer control unit 162 controls the buffers 131 and 141 so that they have a third buffer amount B3 with a medium buffer amount (B1 < B3 < B2). As a result, the information processing apparatus 10 can transmit small data while controlling the communication timing.

[0093] Note that, as will be described later, the communication unit 140 includes first to third communication processing units 140a to 140c, and each of the first to third communication processing units 140a to 140c has buffers 141a to 141c. The buffer control unit 162 controls the buffer amount for each of the buffers 141a to 141c.

[0094] The communication control unit 163 controls the processing related to the communication performed by the communication unit 140 based on the characteristic information acquired by the characteristic information acquisition unit 161c.

[0095] The communication control unit 163 refers to the storage unit 150 and selects a network slice to be used for communication according to the characteristic information.

[0096] In addition, the communication control unit 163 selects the bandwidth to be used for communication. For example, when the priority of the low-latency characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 narrows the bandwidth to be used for communication so that it becomes the first bandwidth W1. As a result, the information processing apparatus 10 can easily secure a bandwidth and can easily stabilize communication.

[0097] When the priority of the large-capacity characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 widens the bandwidth to be used for communication so that it becomes the second bandwidth W2 (W1 < W2). As a result, the information processing apparatus 10 can increase the amount of data that can be transmitted at one time.

[0098] When the priority of the multi-connection characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 narrows the bandwidth to be used for communication so that it becomes the third bandwidth W3 (W1 < W3). As a result, the information processing apparatus 10 can easily secure a bandwidth and can easily stabilize communication.

[0099] In addition, the communication control unit 163 selects a protocol to be used in the communication unit 140 based on the characteristic information. An example of the protocol used in the communication unit 140 will be described later.

[0100] Note that the communication control unit 163 can control the encoding process in the encoding unit 130 and the rendering process in the rendering processing unit 120 in addition to the communication process in the communication unit 140.

[0101] For example, if the compression rate of the scene image performed by the encoding unit 130 is large or the resolution of the scene image is high and the image quality is high, the encoding process takes time and the transmission delay becomes large.

[0102] Therefore, when the priority of the low-latency characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 reduces the compression ratio of the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to the first compression ratio C1. Further, the communication control unit 163 reduces the resolution after the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to the first resolution R1 (lowers the resolution). Thereby, the information processing apparatus 10 can shorten the time of the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 and reduce the transmission delay.

[0103] When the priority of the large-capacity characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 increases the compression ratio of the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to the second compression ratio C2 (C1 < C2). Further, the communication control unit 163 increases the resolution after the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to the second resolution R2 (R1 < R2) (increases the resolution). Thereby, the information processing apparatus 10 can transmit high-quality image data.

[0104] When the priority of the multi-connection characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 sets, for example, the compression ratio of the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to a small or medium third compression ratio C3 (C1 ≤ C3 < C2). Further, the communication control unit 163 sets the resolution after the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to, for example, a small or medium third resolution R3 (R1 ≤ R3 < R2). Thereby, the information processing apparatus 10 can transmit image data of a small or medium size and reduce the transmission delay.

[0105] In addition to the compression ratio and resolution described above, the communication control unit 163 can control, for example, the frame rate and bit rate according to the characteristic information.

[0106] For example, when the frame rate is increased, the time interval per frame becomes shorter and the transmission delay becomes smaller. On the other hand, when the frame rate increases, the bit rate also increases, and the encoding process and communication process take time.

[0107] Therefore, when the priority of the low-latency characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 increases, for example, the frame rate after the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to the first frame rate FR1. Further, the communication control unit 163 decreases, for example, the bit rate to the first bit rate BR1. For example, the communication control unit 163 reduces the bit rate by reducing the resolution of the image data.

[0108] When the priority of the large-capacity characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 reduces, for example, the frame rate after the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to the second frame rate FR2 (FR1>FR2). Further, the communication control unit 163 increases, for example, the bit rate to the second bit rate BR2 (BR1<BR2). For example, the communication control unit 163 increases the bit rate by increasing the resolution of the image data.

[0109] When the priority of the multi-connection characteristic is high, the communication control unit 163 sets, for example, the frame rate after the compression process performed by the encoding unit 130 to the third frame rate FR3 (FR1≧FR3>FR2) at a medium or large level. Further, the communication control unit 163 sets, for example, the bit rate to the third bit rate BR3 (BR1≦BR3<BR2) at a small or medium level. For example, the communication control unit 163 adjusts the bit rate by adjusting the resolution of the image data.

[0110] (Rendering processing unit 120) The rendering processing unit 120 generates image data according to an instruction from the control unit 160. The rendering processing unit 120 outputs the generated image data to the encoding unit 130.

[0111] (Encoding unit 130) The encoding unit 130 is a video encoder that performs a compression process on, for example, the image data generated by the rendering processing unit 120. The encoding unit 130 compresses the image data at a compression rate, a frame rate, and a bit rate according to the characteristic information in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 160, and generates compressed data. The encoding unit 130 outputs the generated compressed data to the communication unit 140.

[0112] (Communication unit 140) The communication unit 140 processes the compressed data according to a communication protocol appropriate for transmitting the compressed data, and generates transmission data. The communication unit 140 has first to third communication processing units 140a to 140c. For example, the first and second communication processing units 140a and 140b perform communication processing for video transmission, and the third communication processing unit 140c performs communication processing according to the transmission path.

[0113] The first communication processing unit 140a generates a video transmission stream according to, for example, RTP (Real-time Transport Protocol). RTP is a protocol that is often used for audio / video transmission. In actual video transmission, RTP is often used in combination with other protocols such as RTCP (RTP Control Protocol) that performs communication quality control, but for the sake of simplicity, the case where RTP is used will be described here.

[0114] RTP is a protocol that basically puts video data (compressed data) into a fixed format and converts it into a format that is easy to transmit. In RTP, in addition to the video data, the format also includes a timestamp that indicates the time when the video data was sampled and a sequence number that indicates the order of the RTP packets. The timestamp and sequence number are used by the receiving side to determine, for example, data loss during transmission and the timing of video playback.

[0115] The first communication processing unit 140a temporarily stores video data and the like using the buffer 141a whose buffer capacity has been adjusted by the control unit 160, and generates a video transmission stream (RTP packets).

[0116] The first communication processing unit 140a outputs the generated first communication data (for example, a video transmission stream) to the second communication processing unit 140b.

[0117] The second communication processing unit 140b generates transmission data (second communication data) according to a communication protocol. For example, image data is transmitted to the terminal device 20 via an IP network. The IP network is the so-called Internet. RTP packets are usually transmitted to the terminal device 20 using TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) or UDP (User Datagram Protocol) and then IP (Internet Protocol).

[0118] Both TCP and UDP are protocols designed to reliably transmit data from a sender to a receiver via the Internet using information such as a sender address and a receiver address required for Internet communication via IP. Between TCP and UDP, TCP is capable of more reliable data transmission. UDP is capable of data transmission with less delay than TCP. When RTP is used, UDP is generally used in many cases, so the following describes a case where the second communication processing unit 140b generates transmission data using UDP.

[0119] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining transmission data generated by the communication unit 140 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0120] 10, first communication processing unit 140a performs RTP processing on the compressed data string generated by encoding unit 130, and generates RTP packets by attaching an RTP header to the compressed data string. The RTP packets are output to second communication processing unit 140b.

[0121] The second communication processing unit 140b generates a UDP packet by adding a UDP header to the RTP packet. The UDP header includes information about a port for Internet transmission, for example. The port is an entrance / exit number for data inside the device (information processing device 10).

[0122] Next, the second communication processing unit 140b generates an IP packet by adding an IP header to the UDP packet. The IP header includes, for example, a source address and a destination address for Internet transmission.

[0123] Second communications processing unit 140b temporarily stores packets and the like using buffer 141b whose buffer capacity has been adjusted by control unit 160, and generates IP packets. Second communications processing unit 140b outputs the generated IP packets to third communications processing unit 140c.

[0124] In this embodiment, the second communication processing unit 140b generates a UDP packet using UDP, but is not limited to this. For example, the second communication processing unit 140b may generate a TCP packet using TCP. In this case, the first communication processing unit 140a may generate the first communication data using a protocol other than RTP.

[0125] Alternatively, the second communication processing unit 140b may change the protocol based on the characteristic information. For example, the second communication processing unit 140b may select UDP when low latency characteristics are given high priority, and select TCP when large capacity characteristics are given high priority. In this case, the first communication processing unit 140a may change the protocol to be used depending on the protocol selected by the second communication processing unit 140b.

[0126] Returning to Fig. 3, the third communication processing unit 140c processes the IP packets in accordance with the physical transmission medium, and generates a transmission signal. The third communication processing unit 140c transmits the generated transmission signal to the terminal device 20.

[0127] Here, the transmission physical medium is a network to which the information processing device 10 and the terminal device 20 are connected, and examples of such a medium include Ethernet, 5G, and 4G. The third communication processing unit 140c performs signal processing on the IP packet according to the type of network, and generates and transmits a transmission signal. For example, in a 5G network, communication that satisfies low-delay characteristics and large-capacity characteristics is performed by using the above-mentioned network slice technology. The third communication processing unit 140c transmits a transmission signal using, for example, a network slice selected by the control unit 160.

[0128] The third communication processing unit 140c temporarily stores packets and the like using the buffer 141c whose buffer amount has been adjusted by the control unit 160, and generates a transmission signal. The third communication processing unit 140c transmits the generated transmission signal to the terminal device 20.

[0129] Conventional application servers did not perform communication control that took into account the characteristics of the services they provided, making it difficult to perform efficient communication control that matches the characteristics of the services. As a result, congestion occurred when the amount of communication increased, and there was a risk that delays would occur in data communication or data would be lost mid-communication. As such, conventional application servers (information processing devices) sometimes had difficulty providing services with stable quality.

[0130] Therefore, the information processing device 10 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure acquires characteristic information of the service to be provided from the terminal device 20, and changes the process related to communication based on the acquired characteristic information. This allows the information processing device 10 to perform communication processing according to the characteristic information, and to perform efficient communication control. Therefore, the information processing device 10 can provide the terminal device 20 with a service of stable quality.

[0131] Furthermore, the information processing device 10 controls the encoding process and buffer amount in the encoding unit 130 based on the characteristic information, in addition to the communication process of the communication unit 140. For example, even if the information processing device 10 only controls communication related to the network, the characteristics caused by the transmission path (network) are improved, but the characteristics caused by, for example, encoding process are not improved. Specifically, even if the information processing device 10 selects a network slice to reduce the delay on the network, if the encoding process takes a long time, the delay in the data transmission itself cannot be reduced.

[0132] Therefore, the information processing device 10 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure controls, as a communication control process, not only the communication process by the communication unit 140 but also the buffer amount, encoding process, and the like based on the characteristic information. This allows the information processing device 10 to perform communication that satisfies the characteristics required for the service, and to provide the terminal device 20 with a service of stable quality.

[0133] <2.3. Terminal Device> FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a terminal device 20 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0134] (Storage unit 250) The storage unit 250 stores the game services provided by the application unit 110 .

[0135] (Control unit 260) The acquisition unit 261 of the control unit 260 includes a service information acquisition unit 261a, a scene information acquisition unit 261b, and a characteristic information acquisition unit 261c.

[0136] The service information acquisition unit 261a acquires service information related to a service provided by the application unit 110, for example, from the storage unit 250. For example, when the application unit 110 provides a game service, the service information acquisition unit 261a acquires information related to a subgenre of the game. The service information acquisition unit 261a notifies the information processing device 10 of the acquired service information.

[0137] The scene information acquisition unit 261b acquires scene information. For example, the scene information acquisition unit 261b acquires the scene information from the input / output unit 240. The scene information acquisition unit 261b notifies the information processing device 10 of the acquired scene information. The characteristic information acquisition unit 261c acquires characteristic information from the information processing device 10.

[0138] The buffer control unit 262 controls the buffer amounts of the buffers 211 and 221 based on the characteristic information acquired by the characteristic information acquisition unit 261c. The buffer control unit 262 determines the buffer amount corresponding to the priority of the characteristic information, for example, by referring to the storage unit 250. Note that the specific buffer control is the same as the control performed by the buffer control unit 162 of the information processing device 10, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0139] As described later, the communication unit 210 has first to third communication processing units 210a to 210c, and the first to third communication processing units 210a to 210c have buffers 211a to 211c, respectively. The buffer control unit 262 controls the buffer amount for each of the buffers 211a to 211c.

[0140] The communication control unit 263 controls the process related to the communication performed by the communication unit 210 based on the characteristic information acquired by the characteristic information acquisition unit 261c.

[0141] The communication control unit 263 selects a protocol to be used in the communication unit 210 based on the characteristic information. The communication control unit 263 selects the protocol used in the information processing device 10.

[0142] In addition to the communication processing in the communication unit 210 , the communication control unit 263 can also control the encoding processing in the decoding unit 220 and the rendering processing in the rendering processing unit 230 .

[0143] For example, the communication control unit 263 selects a compression ratio to be used in the decoding unit 220 based on the characteristic information. The communication control unit 263 selects a compression ratio used in the encoding process of the information processing device 10. Similarly, the communication control unit 263 selects a frame rate and a bit rate used in the encoding process of the information processing device 10 based on the characteristic information.

[0144] (Communication unit 210) The communication unit 210 processes a signal received from the information processing device 10 in accordance with an appropriate communication protocol to generate compressed data. The communication unit 210 has first to third communication processing units 210a to 210c. For example, the first communication processing unit 210a performs communication processing according to the transmission path, and the second and third communication processing units 210b and 210c perform communication processing for video transmission.

[0145] The first communications processing unit 210a processes the received signal in accordance with the physical transmission medium, and generates an IP packet. The first communications processing unit 210a outputs the generated IP packet to the second communications processing unit 210b.

[0146] The first communication processing unit 210a temporarily stores received signals and the like using the buffer 211a whose buffer capacity has been adjusted by the control unit 260, and generates IP packets.

[0147] The second communication processing unit 210b generates the first communication data (video stream) from the IP packets according to the communication protocol. As described above, when the information processing device 10 generates the IP packets using IP and UDP, the second communication processing unit 210b also generates the first communication data from the IP packets based on IP and UDP.

[0148] The second communication processing unit 210b generates a UDP packet based on, for example, the IP header added to the IP packet. The second communication processing unit 210b generates an RTP packet based on the UDP header added to the UDP packet.

[0149] Second communications processing unit 210b temporarily stores packets and generates RTP packets using buffer 211b whose buffer capacity has been adjusted by control unit 260. Second communications processing unit 210b outputs the generated RTP packets to third communications processing unit 210c.

[0150] The third communication processing unit 210c generates compressed data according to, for example, RTP. The third communication processing unit 210c temporarily stores RTP packets and the like using a buffer 211c whose buffer capacity is adjusted by the control unit 260, and generates compressed data.

[0151] (Decoding unit 220) The decoding unit 220 is a video decoder that performs decompression processing to decompress the compressed data generated by the communication unit 210, for example, and generates image data. The decoding unit 220 decompresses the compressed data at a compression ratio, frame rate, and bit rate according to the characteristic information in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 160, and generates image data. The decoding unit 220 outputs the generated image data to the rendering processing unit 230.

[0152] (Rendering processing unit 230) The rendering processing unit 230 performs rendering processing on the image data in accordance with instructions from the control unit 260 , and outputs the result to the input / output unit 240 .

[0153] In this way, the terminal device 20 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure acquires characteristic information of the service to be provided, and changes the process related to communication based on the acquired characteristic information. This allows the terminal device 20 to perform communication processing according to the characteristic information, and to perform efficient communication control. Therefore, the terminal device 20 can enjoy a stable quality of service.

[0154] Furthermore, as a communication control process, the terminal device 20 controls not only the communication process by the communication unit 210 but also the buffer amount, the decoding process, and the like, based on the characteristic information. This allows the terminal device 20 to perform communication that satisfies the characteristics required for the service, and allows the user to enjoy a service with stable quality.

[0155] <<3. Communication processing>> <3.1. Communication processing by information processing device> Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow of communication processing executed by the information processing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The information processing device 10 repeatedly executes the communication processing shown in Fig. 12 at a predetermined cycle while providing a service to the terminal device 20. Alternatively, the information processing device 10 may execute the communication processing shown in Fig. 12 at the timing when the scene is changed.

[0156] 12, the information processing device 10 acquires scene information (step S101). The information processing device 10 acquires scene information related to a game scene from, for example, the terminal device 20. The information processing device 10 may acquire service information indicating a type of game from the terminal device 20 in addition to the scene information.

[0157] The information processing device 10 acquires characteristic information required for providing the service based on the scene information and the service information (step S102). The characteristic information includes, for example, low delay characteristics, large capacity characteristics, and multiple access characteristics. Alternatively, the characteristic information may be information indicating the priority of these characteristics.

[0158] The information processing device 10 changes the buffer amounts of the buffers 131, 141 used for data transmission based on the characteristic information (step S103). The information processing device 10 changes the communication processing for data transmission (step S104). The information processing device 10 changes parameters used for communication, such as network slices and bandwidth. The information processing device 10 also changes parameters related to communication data generation, such as compression ratio and data rate.

[0159] The information processing device 10 generates transmission data using the changed buffer, parameters, etc. (step S105), and transmits the generated transmission data (step S106).

[0160] <3.2. Communication processing by terminal device> Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing a flow of communication processing executed by the terminal device 20 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The terminal device 20 repeatedly executes the communication processing shown in Fig. 13 at a predetermined cycle while receiving a service from the information processing device 10. Alternatively, the terminal device 209 may execute the communication processing shown in Fig. 13 at the timing when the scene is changed.

[0161] 13, the terminal device 20 acquires scene information (step S201). The terminal device 20 acquires scene information related to a game scene, for example, from the input / output unit 240. The terminal device 20 may acquire service information indicating a type of game from the storage unit 250 in addition to the scene information.

[0162] The terminal device 20 acquires characteristic information from the information processing device 10 (step S102). The characteristic information includes, for example, low delay characteristics, large capacity characteristics, and multiple access characteristics. Alternatively, the characteristic information may be information indicating the priority of these characteristics. The terminal device 20 acquires the characteristic information by notifying the information processing device 10 of the scene information and service information acquired in step S201.

[0163] The terminal device 20 changes the buffer capacity of the buffers 131 and 141 used for data reception based on the characteristic information (step S203). The terminal device 20 changes the communication process for data reception (step S204). The terminal device 20 also changes parameters related to data decoding, such as the compression ratio and data rate.

[0164] The terminal device 20 receives the reception data using the changed buffer, parameters, etc. (step S205), and decodes the received reception data (step S206).

[0165] <<4. Other embodiments>> The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and various modifications and applications are possible.

[0166] In the above embodiment, the menu and play are described as examples of game scenes, but the game scenes are not limited to these. For example, the game scenes may include "explanatory video" scenes that explain the game operation method and the story.

[0167] In the above embodiment, the terminal device 20 transmits scene information related to the scene to the information processing device 10. In this case, the terminal device 20 may transmit the scene information using TCP. The scene information is also information indicating the progress of the game, and although the amount of data is small, it is information that should be transmitted more reliably. Therefore, unlike video transmission using UDP, the terminal device 20 transmits the scene information using TCP. As described above, TCP is a protocol for transmitting data more reliably compared to UDP. Therefore, the terminal device 20 can transmit the scene information to the information processing device 10 more reliably by IP transmitting the scene information using TCP.

[0168] In the above embodiment, the control units 160 and 260 control the buffer amount of each processing unit based on the scene information, but this is not limited to the above. Each processing unit may acquire scene information and control the buffer amount. For example, in the information processing device 10, the encoding unit 140 and the communication unit 140 may each acquire scene information and control the buffer amount of the buffers 131 and 141.

[0169] In the above embodiment, the terminal device 20 determines a scene based on image data presented to a user, operation information performed by the user, and the like, and generates and transmits scene information, but this is not limited to the above. For example, the terminal device 20 may transmit operation information performed by the user to the information processing device 10. In this case, for example, the application unit 110 of the information processing device 10 determines a scene based on the operation information and generates scene information. The control unit 160 of the information processing device 10 and the control unit 260 of the terminal device 20 acquire the scene information from the application unit 110.

[0170] In the above embodiment, the information processing device 10 is a game server and provides a game service to the user as an application function, but the present invention is not limited to this. The information processing device 10 may be an application server that provides an application function other than a game. The information processing device 10 may be a moving object such as a robot or a drone.

[0171] In this case, the information processing device 10 transmits image data captured by the moving object to the terminal device 20 that controls the moving object. The user controls the moving object while checking the image displayed on the terminal device 20. The information processing device 10 may perform communication control separately for a case where the moving object is moving at a predetermined speed or faster (moving scene) and a case where the moving object is stopped at zero speed or moving slowly at less than the predetermined speed (stopped scene). For example, the information processing device 10 performs communication control so as to transmit image data with a high priority of low latency characteristics in a moving scene, and transmit image data with a high priority of large capacity (high image quality) characteristics in a stopped scene.

[0172] In the above embodiment, the information processing device 10 generates characteristic information from the service information, scene information, and the like acquired from the terminal device 20, but this is not limited to the above. For example, the information processing device 10 may acquire information related to a service to be provided to the terminal device 20, such as service information and scene information, from the application unit 110.

[0173] Furthermore, the terminal device 20 may acquire the characteristic information from the service information, scene information, etc. In this case, the storage unit 250 of the terminal device 20 stores the same characteristic information, etc. (see FIGS. 5, 6, etc.) as the storage unit 150 of the information processing device 10. The terminal device 20 refers to the storage unit 250 based on the acquired service information and scene information, and acquires the characteristic information.

[0174] The storage unit 250 may store the association of the service information and the characteristic information in advance, or may obtain it from the information processing device 10 via the control unit 260 and store it.

[0175] The control device that controls the information processing device 10 or the terminal device 20 of this embodiment may be realized by a dedicated computer system or a general-purpose computer system.

[0176] For example, a program for executing the above-mentioned operations is stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as an optical disk, a semiconductor memory, a magnetic tape, or a flexible disk and distributed. Then, for example, the program is installed in a computer and the above-mentioned processing is executed to configure a control device. In this case, the control device may be a device external to the information processing device 10 or the terminal device 20 (for example, a personal computer). Also, the control device may be a device internal to the information processing device 10 or the terminal device 20 (for example, the control unit 160 or the control unit 260).

[0177] The communication program may be stored in a disk device provided in a server device on a network such as the Internet, and may be downloaded to a computer. The above-mentioned functions may be realized by cooperation between an OS (Operating System) and application software. In this case, the parts other than the OS may be stored on a medium and distributed, or the parts other than the OS may be stored in a server device and may be downloaded to a computer.

[0178] Furthermore, among the processes described in the above embodiments, all or part of the processes described as being performed automatically can be performed manually, or all or part of the processes described as being performed manually can be performed automatically by a known method. In addition, the information including the processing procedures, specific names, various data and parameters shown in the above documents and drawings can be changed arbitrarily unless otherwise specified. For example, the various information shown in each drawing is not limited to the illustrated information.

[0179] In addition, each component of each device shown in the figure is a functional concept, and does not necessarily have to be physically configured as shown in the figure. In other words, the specific form of distribution and integration of each device is not limited to that shown in the figure, and all or part of them can be functionally or physically distributed and integrated in any unit according to various loads, usage conditions, etc.

[0180] The above-described embodiments can be combined as appropriate in the areas where the processing contents are not contradictory. The order of each step shown in the sequence diagram or flow chart of the present embodiment can be changed as appropriate.

[0181] Furthermore, for example, the present embodiment can be implemented as any configuration that constitutes an apparatus or system, such as a processor as a system LSI (Large Scale Integration), a module using multiple processors, a unit using multiple modules, a set in which other functions are added to a unit, etc. (i.e., a configuration of a part of an apparatus).

[0182] In this embodiment, a system means a collection of multiple components (devices, modules (parts), etc.), regardless of whether all the components are in the same housing. Therefore, multiple devices housed in separate housings and connected via a network, and a single device in which multiple modules are housed in a single housing, are both systems.

[0183] Also, for example, this embodiment can have a cloud computing configuration in which one function is shared and processed jointly by a plurality of devices via a network.

[0184] <<5. Supplementary Information>> Although the preferred embodiment of the present disclosure has been described in detail above with reference to the attached drawings, the technical scope of the present disclosure is not limited to such examples. It is clear that a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field of the present disclosure can conceive of various modified or amended examples within the scope of the technical ideas described in the claims, and it is understood that these also naturally belong to the technical scope of the present disclosure.

[0185] In addition, the effects described in this specification are merely descriptive or exemplary and are not limiting. In other words, the technology according to the present disclosure may achieve other effects that are apparent to a person skilled in the art from the description of this specification, in addition to or in place of the above effects.

[0186] The present technology can also be configured as follows. (1) An information processing device that provides an application function to a client device, an acquisition unit for acquiring characteristic information relating to the application function; A communication unit that communicates with the client device; Equipped with The communication unit changes a process related to the communication in accordance with the characteristic information. Information processing device. (2) The communication unit is The information processing device according to (1), further comprising: a processor for executing the processing for the application function according to the characteristics information of the application function; (3) The communication unit is The information processing device according to (2), which changes the processing related to the communication according to the characteristics of communication quality required for each of the scenes. (4) The communication unit is The information processing device according to (2), further comprising: a processor for changing the communication-related processing in accordance with the number of client devices that receive the application function. (5) A storage unit that stores the characteristic information, The acquisition unit is acquiring the characteristic information from the storage unit; An information processing device according to any one of (1) to (4). (6) The communication unit is narrowing the bandwidth used for the communication when low delay is required based on the characteristic information, and widening the bandwidth when large capacity is required. An information processing device according to any one of (1) to (5). (7) The communication unit is changing at least one of a frame rate and a bit rate of data to be transmitted to the client device in response to the characteristic information; An information processing device according to any one of (1) to (6). (8) The communication unit is changing a buffer amount of a buffer used for processing related to the communication according to the characteristic information; An information processing device according to any one of (1) to (7). (9) The communication unit is Based on the characteristic information, when low delay is required, the buffer amount is reduced, and when large capacity is required, the buffer amount is increased. (8) An information processing device. (10) An information processing device that receives an application function from a client server, an acquisition unit for acquiring characteristic information relating to the application function; A communication unit that communicates with the client server; Equipped with The communication unit changes a process related to the communication in accordance with the characteristic information. Information processing device. (11) A communication method for performing communication in an information processing device that provides an application function to a client device, comprising: obtaining characteristic information regarding the application function; communicating with the client device; Including, In the communication with the client device, a process related to the communication is changed in accordance with the characteristic information. Communication methods. (12) A communication method for performing communication in an information processing device that receives an application function from a client server, comprising: obtaining characteristic information regarding the application function; communicating with the client server; Including, In the communication with the client server, a process related to the communication is changed in accordance with the characteristic information. Communication methods. [Explanation of symbols]

[0187] 10. Information processing device 20 Terminal Equipment 30 Base station equipment 110 Application Section 120, 230 Rendering processing unit 130 Encoding section 140, 210 Communications Department 150, 250 storage section 160, 260 Control unit 161, 261 Acquisition Department 162, 262 Buffer control section 163, 263 Communication control unit 220 Decoding section 240 Input / output section

Claims

1. An information processing device that provides an application function to a client device, an acquisition unit for acquiring characteristic information relating to the application function; A communication unit that communicates with the client device; Equipped with the communication unit narrows a bandwidth used for the communication when low latency is required based on the characteristic information, and widens the bandwidth when large capacity is required. Information processing device.

2. The communication unit is The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising: a processor configured to change a process relating to the communication based on the characteristic information corresponding to a scene of the application function.

3. The communication unit is The information processing device according to claim 2 , wherein the communication-related process is changed in accordance with characteristics of communication quality required for each of the scenes.

4. The communication unit is The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , further comprising: a processor configured to change the communication-related process in accordance with the number of client devices that receive the application function.

5. A storage unit that stores the characteristic information, The acquisition unit is acquiring the characteristic information from the storage unit; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

6. The communication unit is changing at least one of a frame rate and a bit rate of data to be transmitted to the client device in response to the characteristic information; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

7. The communication unit is changing a buffer amount of a buffer used for processing related to the communication according to the characteristic information; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

8. The communication unit is Based on the characteristic information, when low delay is required, the buffer amount is reduced, and when large capacity is required, the buffer amount is increased. The information processing device according to claim 7.

9. An information processing device that receives an application function from a client server, an acquisition unit for acquiring characteristic information relating to the application function; A communication unit that communicates with the client server; Equipped with the communication unit narrows a bandwidth used for the communication when low latency is required based on the characteristic information, and widens the bandwidth when large capacity is required. Information processing device.

10. A communication method for performing communication in an information processing device that provides an application function to a client device, comprising: obtaining characteristic information regarding the application function; communicating with the client device; Including, narrowing a bandwidth used for the communication with the client device when low latency is required based on the characteristic information, and widening the bandwidth when large capacity is required. Communication methods.

11. A communication method for performing communication in an information processing device that receives an application function from a client server, comprising: obtaining characteristic information regarding the application function; communicating with the client server; Including, In the communication with the client server, when low latency is required based on the characteristic information, the bandwidth used for the communication is narrowed, and when large capacity is required, the bandwidth is widened. Communication methods.

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