Thermometer and communication system

Abstract

SOLUTION: There is provided a thermometer comprising: a single button that is pressed by a user; and a control unit that when in a power-on state where power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, the button is pressed once again within a predetermined time, starts communication processing with an external communication terminal, and when the button is not pressed for a certain period of time in the power-on state, turns off the power without starting the communication processing. The control unit may interrupt the communication processing and turn off the power when the button is pressed once again during the communication processing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a thermometer and a communication system. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 states, "Nurse 1031 holds thermometer 103 over data relay card 109 (S1018). NFC-standard wireless communication is then established between thermometer 103 and data relay card 109, and the body temperature and measurement date and time information are transferred from thermometer 103 to data relay card 109." (Paragraph 0057) [Prior art document] [Patent documents] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6291306 Summary of the Invention

[0003] A first aspect of the present invention provides a thermometer. The thermometer may include a single button that is pressed by a user. The thermometer may include a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, starts communication processing with an external communication terminal when the button is pressed once again within a predetermined time, and turns off the power without starting the communication processing when the time has elapsed without pressing the button in the power-on state.

[0004] When the button is pressed once more during the communication process, the control unit may stop the communication process and turn off the power.

[0005] The control unit may turn off the power supply when the communication process is completed without the button being pressed during the communication process.

[0006] The thermometer may further include a display unit that displays information visible to the user in the power-on state and stops displaying the information when the power is turned off. During the communication process, the control unit may cause the display unit to display the information in a display mode different from the display mode before the communication process started.

[0007] The thermometer may further include a display unit. During the communication process, the control unit may cause the display unit to display information indicating that the communication process is in progress.

[0008] If a predetermined time has elapsed after starting the communication process without receiving a response signal from the communication terminal, the control unit may cause the display unit to display information indicating that communication with the communication terminal has failed, and then turn off the power.

[0009] The thermometer may further include a temperature measurement unit. The thermometer may further include a storage unit that stores the most recent measurement result by the temperature measurement unit. In the power-on state, if the measured temperature is confirmed without the button being pressed during temperature measurement by the temperature measurement unit, the control unit may store the temperature measurement result in the storage unit as the most recent measurement result. In the communication process, if the control unit receives a signal requesting data transfer from the communication terminal, the control unit may start transmitting the most recent measurement result stored in the storage unit to the communication terminal, and may turn off the power when transmission of the most recent measurement result is completed.

[0010] Starting the communication process may include starting to send a signal to the communication terminal to establish communication, and when a response signal is received from the communication terminal in response, starting either a pairing process with the communication terminal or a data transfer process to the communication terminal in accordance with the response signal.

[0011] A second aspect of the present invention provides a communication system. The communication system may include a thermometer. The communication system may include a communication terminal. The thermometer may have a single button that is pressed by a user. The thermometer may have a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, starts transmitting a signal to the communication terminal to establish communication if the button is pressed once again within a predetermined time, and turns off the power without starting transmission of the signal to the communication terminal if the time has elapsed in the power-on state without pressing the button.

[0012] A third aspect of the present invention provides a communication system. The communication system may include a thermometer. The communication system may include a communication terminal. The communication terminal may be set, by a user's operation, to a standby state in which it is in a standby state ready to start one of a plurality of different communication processes with the thermometer. The thermometer may have a single button that is pressed by a user. The thermometer may have a control unit that, when the button is pressed once again in a power-on state in which the thermometer is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, executes the one communication process with the communication terminal in accordance with the standby state of the communication terminal.

[0013] The above summary of the invention does not list all of the features of the present invention, and subcombinations of these features may also be inventions. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication system 10. FIG. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of a thermometer 100. [Figure 3] 1 is a flow diagram of an example of a communication method by the communication system 10. FIG. [Figure 4]FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a subroutine of step S103 in FIG. 3. [Figure 5] 10A to 10C are explanatory diagrams illustrating a series of display examples on the display unit 140 of the thermometer 100. [Figure 6] 2A to 2C are explanatory diagrams illustrating a series of display examples on the display unit 210 of the communication terminal 200. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention according to the claims. Furthermore, not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0016] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication system 10. The communication system 10 includes a thermometer 100 and a communication terminal 200. Note that Fig. 1 shows an example of the internal configuration of the thermometer 100, which cannot be seen from the outside, using dashed lines.

[0017] The thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 communicate with each other wirelessly or via a wired connection. As an example, the thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 may communicate with each other wirelessly using a short-range wireless communication standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), ZigBee (registered trademark), NFC, FeliCa, or Wi-Fi (registered trademark). The users of the thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 may be the same person or different people.

[0018] The thermometer 100 includes a single button 110 that is pressed by the user. The thermometer 100 is operated by the user simply pressing the single button 110. A simple pressing operation refers to the operation of pressing the button 110, and does not refer to a complex operation such as varying the length of time the button 110 is held down, i.e., the continuous pressing time.

[0019] Thermometer 100 is an electronic thermometer that measures the user's body temperature. Thermometer 100 stores the measurement results of the user's body temperature and transmits the measurement results to communication terminal 200 in response to the user pressing button 110.

[0020] The communication terminal 200 is a communication device having a user interface, and may be, for example, a smartphone or tablet terminal equipped with a touch panel display unit 210. In response to a user's operation of the user interface, the communication terminal 200 establishes communication with the thermometer 100 and displays the measurement results received from the thermometer 100 on the user interface.

[0021] The communication system 10 having such a configuration transmits the measurement results, obtained by a user measuring the body temperature with the thermometer 100, from the thermometer 100 to the communication terminal 200, and allows the user of the communication terminal 200 to view the measurement results through the interface of the communication terminal 200. By simplifying the device configuration of the thermometer 100, the communication system 10 reduces manufacturing costs and size and improves user convenience, and also enables the thermometer 100 to execute processes that reflect the user's intentions by accepting user operations while it is executing various processes.

[0022] Fig. 2 is a block diagram of an example of a thermometer 100. The thermometer 100 includes a control unit 120. The thermometer 100 according to this embodiment may further include a power supply 130, a display unit 140, a temperature measurement unit 150, and a memory unit 160. Note that in Fig. 2, the flow of signals is indicated by solid black arrows.

[0023] The control unit 120 controls the operation of each component of the thermometer 100 when a signal is input from the button 110 in response to the user pressing the button 110.

[0024] For example, when the button 110 is pressed once and a signal is input from the button 110 while the power supply 130 is off, i.e., in the power-off state, the control unit 120 may send a signal to each component of the thermometer 100 to switch the power supply 130 to the on state, i.e., the power-on state. Here, the power-on state may mean that each component of the thermometer 100 is in an operating state, and the power-off state may mean that each component of the thermometer 100 is in a completely stopped state. Alternatively, the power-off state may mean that even if all of the components are not completely stopped and some components are operating, the display unit 140 is turned off and the current consumption of the thermometer 100 is lower than in the state before the display unit 140 was turned off.

[0025] For example, when switching from a power-off state to a power-on state, the control unit 120 may refer to data stored in the memory unit 160 and send a signal to the display unit 140 to display information corresponding to the data.

[0026] The control unit 120 may also have a timer 121. As an example, the control unit 120 may execute different processes depending on whether or not the user presses the button 110 within a predetermined time, for example, within 20 minutes, after switching to the power-on state.

[0027] For example, if button 110 is pressed once within the time period, control unit 120 may start communication processing with communication terminal 200. Alternatively, if button 110 is not pressed even once within the time period, control unit 120 may send a signal to power supply 130 to switch from the power-on state to the power-off state. Note that this process of switching to the power-off state is sometimes referred to as auto-power-off.

[0028] The power supply 130 stores power and supplies power to each component of the thermometer 100 according to control by the control unit 120, regardless of whether the power is on or off. The power supply 130 may be, for example, a battery that can be removed by the user, or a non-removable battery. The power supply 130 may be a replaceable battery or a rechargeable battery. Instead of being provided with the power supply 130, the thermometer 100 may be able to receive power from an external power source.

[0029] The display unit 140 may be, for example, a monochrome liquid crystal panel. When the power supply 130 is turned off, the display unit 140 displays information that is visible to the user. When the power supply 130 is turned off, the display unit 140 stops displaying the information.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 1, the temperature measurement unit 150 includes a temperature sensor provided on the outer surface of the thermometer 100 and measures the outer surface temperature. For example, when the thermometer is held under the armpit of a user, the temperature measurement unit 150 measures the temperature of the armpit. The temperature measurement unit 150 stores the measurement results in the storage unit 160. Note that, as an example, the measurement time by the temperature measurement unit 150 may be, for example, 10 minutes.

[0031] The storage unit 160 stores the most recent measurement result obtained by the temperature measurement unit 150. The storage unit 160 may store not only the most recent measurement result but also a temperature measurement history including measurement results from a certain period of time in the past. The storage unit 160 may also store the most recent measurement result obtained by the temperature measurement unit 150 in association with the date and time when the temperature measurement was performed by the temperature measurement unit 150. In this case, for example, the temperature measurement unit 150 may refer to the timer 121 of the control unit 120 and store the most recent measurement result in the storage unit 160 together with information on the date and time of measurement. The storage unit 160 is also referenced by the control unit 120.

[0032] In the thermometer 100 having the above configuration, when the button 110 is pressed once more within a predetermined time in the power-on state, the control unit 120 starts communication processing with the external communication terminal 200, and when the time has passed without the button 110 being pressed in the power-on state, the control unit 120 turns off the power supply 130 without starting the communication processing.

[0033] In this embodiment, the communication terminal 200 may be set by a user operation to a standby state in which it is in a state where it is ready to start one of a plurality of different communication processes with the thermometer 100. In this case, when the button 110 is pressed once more in the power-on state, the control unit 120 of the thermometer 100 according to this embodiment also executes the one communication process with the communication terminal 200 in accordance with the standby state of the communication terminal 200. The standby state referred to here may refer to, for example, a state in which the communication terminal 200 is on standby to pair with a thermometer with which pairing has not yet been performed, or a state in which the communication terminal 200 is on standby to receive measurement results from a thermometer that has already been paired, based on a user operation of the user interface of the communication terminal 200.

[0034] Fig. 3 is a flow diagram of an example of a communication method by communication system 10. As an example, the flow in Fig. 3 starts when a user presses button 110 once, causing power supply 130 to change from a power-off state to a power-on state. Note that the following description of the flow assumes that the power-on state is maintained until the flow ends, and redundant description will be omitted.

[0035] If the button 110 is pressed once more within a predetermined time period after the thermometer 100 has switched to the power-on state (step S101: YES), the thermometer 100 starts communication processing with the communication terminal 200 (step S103). If the time period has passed without the button 110 being pressed (step S101: NO), the thermometer 100 turns off the power supply 130 (step S105) without starting communication processing with the communication terminal 200, and ends the flow. As a specific example, the control unit 120 of the thermometer 100 may use the timer 121 to start measuring time from the time the thermometer 100 is switched to the power-on state, and determine whether a signal based on the pressing of the button 110 is input within, for example, 20 minutes.

[0036] In step S101, if the temperature measurement unit 150 measures the temperature before the button 110 is pressed once more within the time period, the control unit 120 stores the measurement result of the temperature measurement in the storage unit 160, that is, updates the temperature measurement result stored in the storage unit 160. As a further specific example in this case, if the button 110 is not pressed during temperature measurement by the temperature measurement unit 150 and the measured temperature is confirmed, for example, if no error occurs, the control unit 120 may store the result of the temperature measurement in the storage unit 160 as the most recent measurement result.

[0037] In step S101, if the temperature measurement unit 150 does not perform a temperature measurement before the button 110 is pressed once more within the predetermined time, the control unit 120 does not update the temperature measurement result stored in the storage unit 160. In addition, in step S101, if the temperature measurement unit 150 performs a temperature measurement but an error occurs before the button 110 is pressed once more within the predetermined time, the control unit 120 may not need to update the temperature measurement result stored in the storage unit 160.

[0038] Following step S103, if the button 110 is pressed once more during communication processing with the communication terminal 200 (step S107: YES), the thermometer 100 stops the communication processing, turns off the power supply 130 (step S109), and ends the flow. If the communication processing is completed without the button 110 being pressed during the communication processing (step S107: NO), the thermometer 100 turns off the power supply 130 (step S111), and ends the flow.

[0039] Figure 4 is a diagram showing an example of a subroutine of step S103 shown in Figure 3. As a specific example of step S103 shown in Figure 3, starting the communication process may include the thermometer 100 starting to transmit a signal for establishing communication to the communication terminal 200. Starting the communication process may further include, when the thermometer 100 receives a response signal from the communication terminal 200 in response to the start of transmission of the signal, starting one of a pairing process with the communication terminal 200 and a data transfer process to the communication terminal 200 in accordance with the response signal.

[0040] 4, the thermometer 100 transmits a signal to establish communication to the communication terminal 200 (step S201). The thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 may communicate with each other via Bluetooth (registered trademark), and in this case, the thermometer 100 may continuously transmit advertising packets to the communication terminal 200 in step S201.

[0041] When the communication terminal 200 receives a signal for establishing communication from the thermometer 100 (step S201), if the thermometer 100 is not paired (step S203: NO), the communication terminal 200 transmits a first signal to the thermometer 100 requesting the start of pairing processing with the communication terminal 200 (step S205). If the thermometer 100 is paired in step S201 (step S203: YES), the communication terminal 200 transmits a second signal to the thermometer 100 requesting data transfer (step S207).

[0042] When the thermometer 100 receives the first signal from the communication terminal 200 (step S205), it starts the pairing process with the communication terminal 200 (step S209) and proceeds to step S107 in Fig. 3. In this case, step S107: NO in Fig. 3 corresponds to the completion of pairing with the communication terminal 200 without the button 110 being pressed during the pairing process with the communication terminal 200.

[0043] When the thermometer 100 receives the second signal from the communication terminal 200 (step S207), it starts the data transfer process, i.e., starts transmitting the most recent measurement result stored in the storage unit 160 to the communication terminal 200 (step S209), and proceeds to step S107 in Fig. 3. In this case, step S107: NO in Fig. 3 corresponds to the completion of transmission of the most recent measurement result from the thermometer 100 to the communication terminal 200 without the button 110 being pressed during the transmission process to the communication terminal 200.

[0044] In addition, the most recent measurement result stored in the memory unit 160 may be linked to the date and time when the temperature measurement was performed by the temperature measurement unit 150, and in this case, the control unit 120 may transmit the most recent measurement result stored in the memory unit 160 to the communication terminal 200 together with the date and time linked to the most recent measurement result.

[0045] FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a series of display examples on the display unit 140 of the thermometer 100. For the purpose of explanation only, FIG. 5 shows corresponding square display areas 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, and 146 in display examples 140A, 140B, 140C, and 140D of the display unit 140, respectively, with dashed lines. For the same purpose, FIG. 5 also shows a state in which part or the entire display screen of the display unit 140 is flashing with multiple gray triangles. Note that FIG. 5 uses hollow arrows to indicate the order of change in the multiple display examples.

[0046] In the example of FIG. 5, the display unit 140 displays a display example 140A in response to the thermometer 100 switching from a power-off state to a power-on state. The display example 140A shows a state in which the display screen of the display unit 140 is fully lit. In the display example 140A, a display area 141 is a display area for the measured temperature, a display area 142 is a display area for the symbol °C, and a display area 143 is a display area for the symbol MR indicating that the most recent measurement result stored in the memory unit 160 is being displayed. The display area 144 is a display area for a symbol indicating that pairing processing with the communication terminal 200 has been performed and Bluetooth (registered trademark) communication has been established. The display area 145 is a display area for a symbol indicating the remaining battery level of the power source 130, and the display area 146 is a display area for a prediction symbol. The same applies to the other display examples, and redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0047] Display example 140B shows a state in which the most recent measurement result stored in memory unit 160 is displayed in display area 141 by lighting up. Display example 140C shows a state in which measurement preparation is complete, with symbol L being displayed in display area 141 by lighting up and symbol ° C being displayed by flashing in display area 142. As an example, display unit 140 may display display example 140B two seconds after displaying display example 140A, and may display display example 140C two seconds after displaying display example 140B.

[0048] Display example 140D shows a state in which the most recent measurement result stored in memory unit 160 is displayed by blinking in display area 141 and the symbol ° C. or the like in display area 142 is also displayed by blinking to notify the user that a data transfer process is being executed. The most recent measurement result may be the previous measurement result shown in display example 140B, or may be a measurement result measured by temperature measurement unit 150 and stored in memory unit 160 after display unit 140 displayed display example 140C. As an example, display unit 140 may display display example 140D when a signal is input from control unit 120 in response to the user pressing button 110 while displaying any of display example 140A, display example 140B, or display example 140C. As a more specific example, if the user does not press button 110 once more after pressing button 110 on thermometer 100, display unit 140 switches the display at intervals of several seconds between display example 140A, display example 140B, and display example 140C. If the user presses button 110 once more during this time, display unit 140 immediately switches to display example 140D, i.e., control unit 120 immediately starts communication processing.

[0049] During communication processing with communication terminal 200, control unit 120 of thermometer 100 may cause display unit 140 to display information in a display mode different from the display mode before the communication processing started. As a specific example, while display unit 140 is mainly displaying one of display examples 140A, 140B, and 140C by lighting up, control unit 120 may cause display example 140D to be displayed by flashing, which is an example of a display mode different from lighting up, in response to the start of communication processing with communication terminal 200. This allows thermometer 100 to notify the user that data transfer from thermometer 100 to communication terminal 200 has started and is currently being transferred. The user checking display unit 140 can, for example, recognize that the data transfer processing has not ended and press button 110 once more to cancel the processing.

[0050] Note that, instead of displaying the different display modes described above on the display example 140, the control unit 120 may display, during the communication processing, information indicating that the communication processing is in progress, for example, a symbol indicating that data is being transferred, on the display unit 140. Note that, as an example, the time required for data transfer from the thermometer 100 to the communication terminal 200 is, for example, as short as about 10 seconds.

[0051] Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a series of display examples on display unit 210 of communication terminal 200. For the purpose of explanation only, Fig. 6 shows corresponding square display areas 211, 212, 213, 214, and 215 by dashed lines in display examples 210A and 210B of display unit 210. Note that Fig. 6 uses hollow arrows to indicate that multiple display examples can be switched between each other.

[0052] Display example 210A shows a history screen that displays the history of temperature measurement results and measurement dates and times that communication terminal 200 receives from thermometer 100. In display example 210A, display area 211 is a display area for icons that accept a tap operation by the user to switch the display screen between display example 210A and display example 210B. Display area 213 is a display area for input fields that accept a tap operation by the user to switch between list display and graph display in display example 210A.

[0053] The communication terminal 200 may be capable of displaying a history screen configured not to update the history shown in the display example 210A when the temperature measurement result and measurement date and time newly received from the thermometer 100 are included in the history. This allows the communication terminal 200 to prevent a decrease in user convenience due to an unnecessary increase in history information. In this case, the communication terminal 200 may delete the temperature measurement result and the like newly received from the thermometer 100.

[0054] Display example 210B shows a device registration screen that distinguishes between the IDs of paired thermometers for which pairing has been completed and the IDs of unpaired thermometers for which pairing has not been completed and for which it has been confirmed that advertising packets are being transmitted. In display example 210B, display area 214 is a display area for the IDs of unpaired thermometers for which pairing has not been completed and it has been confirmed that advertising packets are being transmitted. Display area 215 is a display area for the IDs of paired thermometers for which pairing has been completed.

[0055] In response to a tap operation on display area 214 of the ID of an unpaired thermometer, communication terminal 200 may be capable of displaying a device registration screen configured to send a response signal to the unpaired thermometer to start a pairing process with communication terminal 200. More specifically, communication terminal 200 may display a list of the IDs of all unpaired thermometers that are receiving a signal to establish communication in display area 214, and may send a signal requesting the start of pairing process to a specific unpaired thermometer selected by the user by tapping on display area 214.

[0056] The communication terminal 200 may store the IDs of paired thermometers with which pairing has been completed, and display the IDs of all stored paired thermometers in the display area 215. The communication terminal 200 may display a list of the IDs of all paired thermometers from which a signal to establish communication is being received in the display area 215, and may transmit a signal requesting the start of data transfer processing to a specific paired thermometer selected by the user by tapping on the display area 215.

[0057] Examples of thermometers that can be compared to the thermometer 100 according to this embodiment include thermometers with multiple buttons that can be pressed by the user, thermometers that require the user to perform complex pressing operations by continuously pressing one or more buttons for different lengths of time, and thermometers that execute communication processing with an external terminal every time the thermometer is placed in a case. However, if a thermometer has multiple buttons, the manufacturing cost and size of the thermometer increase. Furthermore, if the thermometer requires the user to perform complex pressing operations, user convenience decreases. Furthermore, if the thermometer starts communication processing every time the thermometer is placed in a case, the communication processing may start against the user's will, and the user cannot stop the communication processing. In this case, the thermometer's battery is wasted against the user's will, and measurement results that the user does not need are recorded in the user's communication terminal.

[0058] In contrast to this, in the present embodiment, with the thermometer 100 having a single button 110, if the button 110 is pressed once more within a predetermined time in the power-on state, communication processing with the communication terminal 200 is started, and if the time elapses without the button 110 being pressed, the communication processing is not started and the power supply 130 is turned off.

[0059] A user of the thermometer 100 according to this embodiment can freely choose to either power off the thermometer 100 without starting communication processing between the thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 by pressing the single button 110 of the thermometer 100 once when the thermometer 100 is in a power-on state, or to start the communication processing by not pressing the button 110 once within a predetermined time, or by pressing the button once more. That is, the user can choose to automatically power off the thermometer 100 by leaving the thermometer 100 without pressing the button 110, or to start communication processing of the thermometer 100 by pressing the button 110 once regardless of the continuous pressing time, according to their own will. In this way, the thermometer 100 not only can reduce the size and improve user convenience by simplifying the device configuration of the thermometer 100, but also can reflect the user's will by executing different processing depending on whether the user presses the button 110 once more within a predetermined time.

[0060] Furthermore, according to the thermometer 100, for example, if the button 110 is pressed once more during communication processing with the communication terminal 200, the communication processing is stopped and the power supply 130 is turned off. Alternatively, if the communication processing is completed without the button 110 being pressed during the communication processing, the power supply 130 is turned off. The user of the thermometer 100 according to this embodiment can stop the started communication processing at their own will, even if the communication processing between the thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 is started willfully or against their will. Thus, the thermometer 100 can execute processing that reflects the user's will by accepting user operations even during communication processing. This prevents the thermometer 100 from wasting the thermometer's battery against the user's will or from recording measurement results that the user does not need on the user's communication terminal, as in the comparative example.

[0061] Furthermore, according to the communication system 10 of this embodiment, as one example, the communication terminal 200 can be set to a standby state in which it is ready to start one of a plurality of different communication processes with the thermometer 100, by a user operation. As an example of this case, when the button 110 is pressed once more while the thermometer 100 is powered on, the thermometer 100 executes the one communication process with the communication terminal 200 in accordance with the standby state of the communication terminal 200. As described above, according to the communication system 10, one of a plurality of different communication processes can be set by a user operation on the communication terminal 200. Therefore, the user's intention can be reflected in the content of the communication process between the thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 without complicating the user operation on the thermometer 100, which has a single button 110. For example, among the above-mentioned comparative examples, in a thermometer that always executes communication processing with an external terminal every time it is placed in a case, communication with the external terminal is initiated when the user finishes using the thermometer and places it in the case, that is, when the user handles the thermometer, separate from the user's button operation on the thermometer. In contrast, according to the communication system 10 of this embodiment, by being provided with the above-mentioned configuration, communication processing between the thermometer 100 and the communication terminal 200 can be started within the range of user operation of the thermometer 100, i.e., within the range of operation of a single button 110 of the thermometer 100.

[0062] In the above embodiments, the control unit 120 of the thermometer 100 has been described as being configured to stop communication processing and turn off the power supply 130 if the button 110 is pressed once more during communication processing with the communication terminal 200, and to turn off the power supply 130 if the communication processing is completed without the button 110 being pressed during the communication processing. In addition, if a predetermined time has passed after starting the communication processing without receiving a response signal from the communication terminal 200, the control unit 120 may cause the display unit 140 to display information indicating that communication with the communication terminal 200 has failed, and then turn off the power supply 130.

[0063] More specifically, the control unit 120 may use the timer 121 to measure the time until a timeout occurs, and may stop the communication process when the time has elapsed. The time may be, for example, 60 seconds.

[0064] In the above embodiments, the control unit 120 of the thermometer 100 has been described as being configured not to take into account the duration for which the user continuously presses the button 110, i.e., as being configured to execute different processes depending on the number of times and / or timing at which the button 110 is pressed within a predetermined period of time, regardless of the duration of the continuous pressing. In addition, the control unit 120 may execute different processes depending on the duration for which the user continuously presses the button 110.

[0065] For example, the control unit 120 may execute a process different from the process described in the above embodiment when the user continuously presses the button 110 to switch the thermometer 100 from a power-off state to a power-on state for a predetermined period of time or longer. As a more specific example, when the period of time is, for example, two seconds or longer, the control unit 120 may switch the display screen of the display unit 140 to a screen that allows the user to select whether to enable or disable a function for transferring data from the thermometer 100 to the communication terminal 200. Furthermore, the control unit 120 may determine whether to enable or disable the function based on the content displayed on the display screen of the display unit 140 at the time the user stops pressing the button 110. This also allows the thermometer 100 to execute a process that reflects the user's intention. Furthermore, the thermometer 100 does not include a dedicated switch for enabling and disabling the function, thereby suppressing increases in manufacturing cost and size. 5, the control unit 120 may indicate to the user that the data transfer processing function is enabled by turning on the symbol displayed in the display area 144, and may indicate to the user that the data transfer processing function is disabled by turning off the symbol. The thermometer 100 may additionally have any other function, such as a waterproof function.

[0066] Although the present invention has been described above using embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above embodiments. Furthermore, the details described for a particular embodiment can be applied to other embodiments to the extent that they are not technically inconsistent. Furthermore, each component may have the same features as other components with the same name but different reference numerals. It is apparent from the claims that such modifications and improvements can also be included within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0067] It should be noted that the execution order of each process, such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages, in the devices, systems, programs, and methods shown in the claims, specifications, and drawings is not specifically stated as "before," "prior to," etc., and that the processes can be performed in any order unless the output of a previous process is used in a subsequent process. Even if the operational flow in the claims, specifications, and drawings is described using "first," "next," etc. for convenience, this does not mean that the processes must be performed in this order. [Explanation of symbols]

[0068] 10. Communication Systems 100 Thermometer 110 Button 120 control section 121 Timer 130 Power supply 140 Display section 140A, 140B, 140C, 140D display example 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146 display area 150 Temperature measurement section 160 Storage section 200 Communication terminal 210 Display section 210A, 210B display example 211, 212, 213, 214, 215 display area

Claims

1. a single button pressed by a user; a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, starts a communication process with an external communication terminal when the button is pressed once again within a predetermined time, and turns off the power without starting the communication process when the button is not pressed in the power-on state and the time has elapsed; Equipped with When the button is pressed once more during the communication process, the control unit stops the communication process and turns off the power. thermometer.

2. A single button pressed by a user; a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, starts a communication process with an external communication terminal when the button is pressed once again within a predetermined time, and turns off the power without starting the communication process when the button is not pressed in the power-on state and the time has elapsed; Equipped with the control unit turns off the power when the communication process is completed without the button being pressed during the communication process. thermometer.

3. a display unit that displays information visible to the user in the power-on state and ends display of the information when the power is turned off; the control unit, during the communication process, causes the display unit to display the information in a display mode different from a display mode before the communication process is started. The thermometer according to claim 1 or 2.

4. Further comprising a display unit, the control unit, during the communication process, causes the display unit to display information indicating that the communication process is in progress. The thermometer according to claim 1 or 2.

5. When a predetermined time has elapsed without receiving a response signal from the communication terminal after starting the communication process, the control unit causes the display unit to display information indicating that communication with the communication terminal has failed, and then turns off the power. The thermometer according to claim 3 or 4.

6. A temperature measurement unit; a storage unit for storing the most recent measurement result by the temperature measurement unit; Further provided with The control unit In the power-on state, when the measured temperature is confirmed without the button being pressed during temperature measurement by the temperature measurement unit, the result of the temperature measurement is stored in the storage unit as the most recent measurement result; In the communication process, when a signal requesting data transfer is received from the communication terminal, the device starts transmitting the latest measurement result stored in the storage unit to the communication terminal, and turns off the power when the transmission of the latest measurement result is completed. The thermometer according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. Initiating the communication process includes: starting to transmit a signal to the communication terminal to establish communication, and when a response signal is received from the communication terminal in response to the signal, starting one of a pairing process with the communication terminal and a data transfer process to the communication terminal in accordance with the response signal. The thermometer according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A thermometer and Communication terminal and A communication system comprising: The thermometer is a single button pressed by a user; a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, starts transmitting a signal to the communication terminal to establish communication when the button is pressed once again within a predetermined time, and turns off the power without starting transmission of the signal to the communication terminal when the time has elapsed without the button being pressed in the power-on state; and when the button is pressed once more while the signal is being transmitted to the communication terminal, the control unit stops transmitting the signal to the communication terminal and turns off the power. Communication system.

9. A thermometer, Communication terminal and A communication system comprising: The thermometer is a single button pressed by a user; a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, starts transmitting a signal to the communication terminal to establish communication when the button is pressed once again within a predetermined time, and turns off the power without starting transmission of the signal to the communication terminal when the time has elapsed without the button being pressed in the power-on state; and the control unit turns off the power when the transmission of the signal to the communication terminal is completed without the button being pressed during the transmission of the signal to the communication terminal. Communication system.

10. A thermometer and Communication terminal and A communication system comprising: the communication terminal can be set to a standby state in which it is in a state where it is ready to start one of a plurality of different communication processes with the thermometer, by a user operation; The thermometer is a single button pressed by a user; a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, executes the one communication process with the communication terminal in accordance with the standby state of the communication terminal when the button is pressed once again; and When the button is pressed once more during the communication process, the control unit stops the communication process and turns off the power. Communication system.

11. A thermometer, Communication terminal and A communication system comprising: the communication terminal can be set to a standby state in which it is in a state where it is ready to start one of a plurality of different communication processes with the thermometer, by a user operation; The thermometer is a single button pressed by a user; a control unit that, in a power-on state in which the power is turned on by pressing the button once from a power-off state, executes the one communication process with the communication terminal in accordance with the standby state of the communication terminal when the button is pressed once again; and the control unit turns off the power when the communication process is completed without the button being pressed during the communication process. Communication system.

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