Data transfer system and wireless communication device

Abstract

To provide a data transfer system for transferring image data at a low cost by reducing capacity of a memory device.SOLUTION: A data transfer system includes an imaging device and a wireless communication device. The imaging device images an image and generates image data. The wireless communication device transmits / receives information to and from the imaging device, and transmits / receives information to and from an upstream device by wireless communication. The imaging device generates a plurality of divided data obtained by dividing the image data and sequentially transmits each of the plurality of generated divided data to the wireless communication device. The wireless communication device transmits first divided data that is one of the plurality of divided data, to an upstream device, and thereafter receives, from the imaging device, second divided data that is next to the first divided data among the plurality of divided data.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a data transfer system and a wireless communication device. [Background technology]

[0002] A data transfer system is known that connects sensors, etc., that monitor conditions in places without power sources or communication infrastructure, via a multi-hop network. Such a data transfer system includes a sensor node, a wireless communication device for relaying, and a gateway device for connecting to the communication infrastructure. Such a data transfer system transfers sensor information collected by the sensor to a cloud server, an on-premise server, etc., via the wireless communication device and the gateway device.

[0003] When a temperature sensor or the like is used as a sensor, such a data transfer system only needs to transfer sensor data of, for example, several bytes to several hundred bytes, so it can introduce a small, low-power wireless communication device. This allows the data transfer system to place the wireless communication device in a limited space, reduce the need to charge or replace the battery of the wireless communication device, and use a wireless communication device that operates on power generated by environmental harvesting, thereby reducing costs.

[0004] Patent Document 1 describes a technique for dividing image data into a plurality of parts, converting each of the plurality of images into an e-mail, and transmitting the converted e-mail. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-259513 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, when an imaging device is used as a sensor, the data transfer system must transfer very large image data as sensor data. In this case, the data transfer system must be equipped with a wireless communication device with a large memory capacity corresponding to the size of the data to be transferred, which increases costs and power consumption. In addition, in this case, the data transfer system must also be equipped with a gateway device with a large memory capacity.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and has as its object to provide a data transfer system and a wireless communication device that can transfer image data at low cost by reducing the capacity of a memory device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the data transfer system of the present invention comprises an imaging device that captures an image and generates image data, and a wireless communication device that sends and receives information to and from the imaging device and also sends and receives information to and from an upstream device via wireless communication, wherein the imaging device generates multiple divided data by dividing the image data and sequentially transmits each of the generated multiple divided data to the wireless communication device, and after transmitting first divided data, which is one of the multiple divided data, to the upstream device, the wireless communication device receives second divided data, which is one of the multiple divided data next to the first divided data, from the imaging device. After receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data from the upstream device, the wireless communication device returns a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data to the imaging device. After receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data from the wireless communication device, the imaging device transmits the second divided data to the wireless communication device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, the capacity of the memory device can be reduced, and image data can be transferred at low cost. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a data transfer system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2]FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional block configuration of the data transfer system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing following the processing shown in FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing following the processing shown in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of transfer of divided data in the data transfer system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system according to the fifth embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the configuration of a data transfer system according to the sixth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] (First embodiment) FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a data transfer system 10 according to the first embodiment.

[0012] The data transfer system 10 includes an imaging device 22, a wireless communication device 24, a gateway device 26, and an outgoing mail server 28. The data transfer system 10 transfers image data from the imaging device 22 on the downstream side to the outgoing mail server 28 on the upstream side.

[0013] The imaging device 22 captures an image and generates image data. The imaging device 22 may capture an image in response to an instruction from the wireless communication device 24, or may capture an image regardless of the instruction.

[0014] The wireless communication device 24 transmits and receives information to and from the imaging device 22, which is a downstream device, and is connected via wireless communication to the gateway device 26, which is an upstream device. The wireless communication device 24 may be connected to the imaging device 22 via wireless communication or wired communication. In this embodiment, the wireless communication device 24 acquires image data stored in the imaging device 22 via HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).

[0015] The wireless communication device 24 transmits and receives information to and from the gateway device 26 in accordance with a predetermined wireless communication standard. For example, the wireless communication device 24 transmits and receives information to and from the gateway device 26 in accordance with the BLE (Bluetooth (registered trademark) Low Energy) standard. Note that the wireless communication device 24 may transmit and receive information to and from the gateway device 26 in accordance with other standards such as IEEE (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.11.

[0016] The gateway device 26 communicates wirelessly with the wireless communication device 24 and connects to an external network in accordance with a cellular wireless communication standard such as LTE (Long Term Evolution) or 5G. The gateway device 26 then transmits e-mail in accordance with a predetermined e-mail transmission protocol to the sending mail server 28 via the external network. In this embodiment, the gateway device 26 transmits e-mail in accordance with SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) to the sending mail server 28.

[0017] The outgoing mail server 28 receives emails sent from the gateway device 26 via the external network. The outgoing mail server 28 then forwards the received emails to a mail server with a specified address. In this embodiment, the outgoing mail server 28 is an SMTP server.

[0018] The data transfer system 10 may further include one or more relay devices having the same configuration as the wireless communication device 24 between the wireless communication device 24 and the gateway device 26. In this case, the one or more relay devices relay the transmission and reception of information between the wireless communication device 24 and the gateway device 26 in accordance with a predetermined wireless communication standard such as BLE.

[0019] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional block configuration of the data transfer system 10 according to the first embodiment.

[0020] The imaging device 22 includes an imaging unit 32, an image storage unit 34, a request acquisition unit 36, a division unit 38, and a transmission unit 40.

[0021] The imaging unit 32 captures an image and generates image data. The image storage unit 34 stores the image data generated by the imaging unit 32. The request acquisition unit 36 ​​acquires an image acquisition request from the wireless communication device 24. In this embodiment, the request acquisition unit 36 ​​acquires the image acquisition request via HTTP.

[0022] When the request acquisition unit 36 ​​receives an image acquisition request, the division unit 38 acquires image data identified by the identifier specified in the image acquisition request from the image storage unit 34. The division unit 38 divides the acquired image data into a predetermined number of pieces to generate a plurality of divided data.

[0023] The transmission unit 40 sequentially transmits each of the multiple pieces of divided data generated by the division unit 38 to the wireless communication device 24. In this embodiment, the transmission unit 40 sequentially transmits each of the multiple pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 by HTTP.

[0024] The wireless communication device 24 includes an instruction transmission unit 42, a downstream communication unit 44, a terminal storage unit 46, and an upstream communication unit 48.

[0025] The instruction transmitting unit 42 transmits an image acquisition request to the imaging device 22. In this embodiment, the instruction transmitting unit 42 transmits the image acquisition request to the imaging device 22 by HTTP. For example, when the instruction transmitting unit 42 receives an image acquisition request from an information processing device on an external network via the gateway device 26, the instruction transmitting unit 42 transmits the image acquisition request to the imaging device 22. Furthermore, the instruction transmitting unit 42 may periodically transmit the image acquisition request to the imaging device 22, or may transmit the image acquisition request to the imaging device 22 when a predetermined event occurs.

[0026] The downstream communication unit 44 sequentially receives each of the multiple pieces of divided data from the imaging device 22 in response to transmitting the image acquisition request. The terminal storage unit 46 temporarily stores the multiple pieces of divided data received by the downstream communication unit 44. The upstream communication unit 48 sequentially transmits each of the multiple pieces of divided data received by the downstream communication unit 44 to the gateway device 26 via wireless communication in the order in which they were received. In this embodiment, the upstream communication unit 48 sequentially transmits each of the multiple pieces of divided data to the gateway device 26 in accordance with the BLE standard.

[0027] The gateway device 26 includes a wireless communication unit 50, a gateway internal storage unit 52, and a mail processing unit .

[0028] The wireless communication unit 50 sequentially receives each of the multiple pieces of divided data transmitted from the wireless communication device 24. In this embodiment, the wireless communication unit 50 sequentially receives each of the multiple pieces of divided data in accordance with the BLE standard. The gateway storage unit 52 temporarily stores the divided data received by the wireless communication unit 50.

[0029] The mail processing unit 54 includes the plurality of divided data received by the wireless communication unit 50 in an e-mail conforming to a predetermined mail transmission protocol and transmits the e-mail to the sending mail server 28. In this embodiment, the mail processing unit 54 includes the plurality of divided data received by the wireless communication unit 50 in an e-mail conforming to SMTP and transmits the e-mail to the sending mail server 28. The mail processing unit 54 sequentially transmits each of the plurality of divided mail data obtained by dividing the e-mail in one mail session for transmitting the e-mail to the sending mail server 28.

[0030] Here, the imaging device 22 transmits first divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data, and then transmits second divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data and is the data subsequent to the first divided data, to the wireless communication device 24. In this case, the imaging device 22 transmits the second divided data to the wireless communication device 24 after receiving a completion notification from the wireless communication device 24 indicating that reception of the first divided data has been completed. In other words, when transmitting a plurality of divided data sequentially to the wireless communication device 24, the imaging device 22 transmits the next divided data after receiving a completion notification from the wireless communication device 24 indicating that reception of the divided data previously transmitted has been completed.

[0031] When the wireless communication device 24 receives the first divided data from the imaging device 22, it transmits the received first divided data to the gateway device 26. Then, after transmitting the first divided data to the gateway device 26, the wireless communication device 24 receives the second divided data from the imaging device 22.

[0032] In this case, after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data from the gateway device 26, the wireless communication device 24 replies with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data to the imaging device 22. In other words, when the wireless communication device 24 sequentially transmits a plurality of divided data to the gateway device 26, the wireless communication device 24 receives a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the divided data transmitted most recently from the gateway device 26, which is the upstream device, and then replies with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the divided data transmitted most recently to the imaging device 22, which is the downstream device. This allows the wireless communication device 24 to receive the second divided data from the imaging device 22 after transmitting the first divided data to the gateway device 26.

[0033] In this embodiment, the multiple pieces of split mail data generated by gateway device 26 correspond one-to-one to the multiple pieces of split data. Furthermore, the multiple pieces of split mail data generated by gateway device 26 are data included in one email and are treated as one piece of data in sending mail server 28. When gateway device 26 receives first split data from wireless communication device 24, it transmits the first split mail data corresponding to the first split data to sending mail server 28. Then, after transmitting the first split mail data to sending mail server 28, gateway device 26 receives second split data from wireless communication device 24.

[0034] In this case, after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided mail data from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided mail data. In other words, when the gateway device 26 sequentially transmits a plurality of divided mail data to the sending mail server 28, after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the divided mail data transmitted most recently from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the divided data corresponding to the divided mail data transmitted most recently. This allows the gateway device 26 to receive the second divided mail data from the wireless communication device 24 after transmitting the first divided mail data to the sending mail server 28.

[0035] Fig. 3 is a sequence diagram showing the processing flow of the data transfer system 10 according to the first embodiment. Fig. 4 is a sequence diagram showing the processing flow following the processing shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a sequence diagram showing the processing flow following the processing shown in Fig. 4. The data transfer system 10 according to the first embodiment executes processing, for example, according to the flows shown in Figs. 3, 4, and 5.

[0036] First, in S11, the gateway device 26 wirelessly transmits an image acquisition request to the wireless communication device 24 in response to a request from an information processing device on an external network.

[0037] Next, in S12, the wireless communication device 24 transmits the image acquisition request to the imaging device 22 by HTTP in response to receiving the image acquisition request from the gateway device 26. Note that the wireless communication device 24 may transmit the image acquisition request to the imaging device 22 periodically, or may transmit the image acquisition request to the imaging device 22 when a predetermined event occurs.

[0038] Next, in S13, in response to receiving an image acquisition request from the wireless communication device 24, the imaging device 22 starts a process of outputting image data identified by the identifier specified in the image acquisition request.

[0039] Next, in S14, the imaging device 22 reads out the target image data from the image storage unit 34 and divides the read out image data to generate a plurality of divided data. In this embodiment, the imaging device 22 divides the image data of data capacity S into L pieces (L is an integer equal to or greater than 2) to generate L pieces of divided data. Note that the imaging device 22 selects L so that S / L is smaller than the capacity of the terminal storage unit 46 of the wireless communication device 24 and the gateway storage unit 52 of the gateway device 26.

[0040] Next, in S15, the imaging device 22 transmits the first piece of divided data of the L pieces of divided data by HTTP to the wireless communication device 24. Next, in S16, the wireless communication device 24 wirelessly transmits the first piece of divided data to the gateway device 26.

[0041] Next, in S17, after receiving the first divided data, the gateway device 26 starts a mail sending process to send an e-mail to the specified address. When the mail sending process starts, first, in S18, the gateway device 26 starts one mail session with the sending mail server 28 in accordance with SMTP to send an e-mail to the sending mail server 28. In the mail session start process, the gateway device 26 exchanges predetermined data in accordance with SMTP and sends the mail title, mail body, etc. to the sending mail server 28. Then, in S19, the gateway device 26 receives a notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that the mail session start process has been successfully executed.

[0042] Next, in S20, gateway device 26 transmits the first piece of divided mail data to sending mail server 28. In this embodiment, the first piece of divided mail data is the same as the first piece of divided mail data. Next, in S21, gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the first piece of divided mail data has been completed.

[0043] Next, in S22, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating that reception of the first divided email data has been completed from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the first divided email data has been completed.

[0044] Next, in S23, in response to receiving a completion notification from the gateway device 26 indicating that reception of the first divided data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the first divided data has been completed.

[0045] Next, in S24, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first piece of divided data from the wireless communication device 24, the imaging device 22 transmits the second piece of divided data of the L pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 by HTTP. Note that in this case, the wireless communication device 24 may delete the divided data before the second piece of divided data.

[0046] Subsequently, in S25, the wireless communication device 24 wirelessly transmits the second piece of divided data to the gateway device 26. In this case, the gateway device 26 may erase the divided data before the second piece of divided data.

[0047] Next, in S26, gateway device 26 transmits the second piece of divided mail data to sending mail server 28. In this embodiment, the second piece of divided mail data is identical to the second piece of divided mail data. Next, in S27, gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the second piece of divided mail data has been completed.

[0048] Next, in S28, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating that the second piece of divided email data has been received from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating that the second piece of divided email data has been received.

[0049] Next, in S29, in response to receiving a completion notification from the gateway device 26 indicating that reception of the second divided data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the second divided data has been completed.

[0050] Thereafter, the imaging device 22, wireless communication device 24, gateway device 26, and outgoing mail server 28 execute the same processes as S24 to S29 for the third to (L-1)th pieces of divided data.

[0051] Next, in S30, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the (L-1)th piece of divided data from the wireless communication device 24, the imaging device 22 transmits the Lth piece of divided data out of the L pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 by HTTP. Note that in this case, the wireless communication device 24 may erase the divided data before the (L-1)th piece of divided data.

[0052] Next, in S31, the wireless communication device 24 wirelessly transmits the Lth piece of divided data to the gateway device 26. In this case, the gateway device 26 may erase the divided data before the (L-1)th piece of divided data.

[0053] Next, in S32, gateway device 26 transmits the Lth piece of divided mail data to sending mail server 28. In this embodiment, the Lth piece of divided mail data is the same as the Lth piece of divided mail data. Next, in S33, gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the Lth piece of divided mail data has been completed.

[0054] Next, in S34, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the Lth piece of divided email data from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the Lth piece of divided email data.

[0055] Next, in S35, in response to receiving a completion notification from the gateway device 26 indicating that reception of the Lth piece of divided data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the Lth piece of divided data has been completed.

[0056] Also, following S33, in S36, gateway device 26 terminates the mail session started in S18 with sending mail server 28 in accordance with SMTP. Then, in S37, gateway device 26 receives a notification from sending mail server 28 indicating that the mail session termination process has been successfully executed. Then, in S38, gateway device 26 terminates the mail transmission process for sending an email to the specified address.

[0057] Also, in S39, the wireless communication device 24 returns a completion notification to the imaging device 22 indicating that reception of the Lth divided data, which is the last divided data of the L divided data, has been completed, and then terminates the image transfer process in response to the image acquisition request sent in S12.

[0058] In S40, the imaging device 22 ends the image output process started in S13 after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the L-th piece of divided data, which is the last piece of divided data among the L pieces of divided data, from the wireless communication device 24. Then, upon completion of the process of S40, the data transfer system 10 ends this sequence.

[0059] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of transfer of divided data in the data transfer system 10 according to the first embodiment.

[0060] 3 to 5, the wireless communication device 24 can wirelessly transmit first divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data, to the gateway device 26, and then receive second divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data, from the imaging device 22. Furthermore, the imaging device 22 can transmit the second divided data to the wireless communication device 24 after the wireless communication device 24 transmits the first divided data to the gateway device 26.

[0061] As a result, the wireless communication device 24 receives the multiple divided data pieces one by one in sequence, and transmits the previous divided data piece to the gateway device 26 before receiving the next divided data piece from the imaging device 22, so it is not necessary to store all of the image data at the same time. Therefore, the wireless communication device 24 only needs to have an internal terminal storage unit 46 with a capacity for at least one piece of divided data piece. In other words, the wireless communication device 24 can transfer image data even if it has an internal terminal storage unit 46 with a capacity smaller than the size of the image data.

[0062] 3 to 5, gateway device 26 can receive the second divided data from wireless communication device 24 after transmitting the first divided mail data corresponding to the first divided data to transmission mail server 28. Furthermore, wireless communication device 24 can transmit the second divided data to gateway device 26 after gateway device 26 transmits the first divided mail data to transmission mail server 28.

[0063] As a result, the gateway device 26 receives the multiple divided data pieces one by one in sequence, and transmits the divided mail data corresponding to the previous divided data piece to the sending mail server 28 before receiving the next divided data piece from the wireless communication device 24, so it is not necessary to store all of the image data at the same time. Therefore, the gateway device 26 only needs to have an intra-gateway storage unit 52 with a capacity for at least one piece of divided data piece. In other words, the gateway device 26 can transfer image data even if it has an intra-gateway storage unit 52 with a capacity smaller than the size of the image data.

[0064] As described above, in the data transfer system 10 according to the first embodiment, it is sufficient for the wireless communication device 24 to have an intra-terminal storage unit 46 having a capacity sufficient to store at least one piece of divided data, thereby reducing the cost of the wireless communication device 24. In the data transfer system 10 according to the first embodiment, it is sufficient for the gateway device 26 to have an intra-gateway storage unit 52 having a capacity sufficient to store at least one piece of divided data, thereby reducing the cost of the gateway device 26.

[0065] (Second embodiment) Next, a data transfer system 10 according to a second embodiment will be described. The data transfer system 10 according to the second embodiment has substantially the same functions and configuration as the first embodiment. In the description of the second embodiment, devices and components having the same functions and configuration as the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description will be omitted except for differences. The same applies to the third and subsequent embodiments.

[0066] FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system 10 according to the second embodiment.

[0067] When gateway device 26 according to the second embodiment receives first divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data, from wireless communication device 24, gateway device 26 divides the first divided data to generate M pieces of divided mail data (M is a predetermined integer of 2 or more). Then, gateway device 26 sequentially transmits the M pieces of divided mail data to sending mail server 28. That is, in the second embodiment, each of the plurality of divided mail data is one piece of data obtained by dividing one of the plurality of divided data into M pieces.

[0068] After completing the transmission process of the M pieces of divided mail data corresponding to the first divided data to the transmission mail server 28, the gateway device 26 returns a completion notification indicating the completion of reception of the first divided data. Then, the gateway device 26 receives the second divided data from the wireless communication device 24 and performs the same process on the second divided data as on the first divided data.

[0069] More specifically, the data transfer system 10 according to the second embodiment executes the same processes as S11 to S14 in the first embodiment, and thereafter executes the processes according to the flow shown in FIG. 7 from S51 onwards.

[0070] In S51, the imaging device 22 transmits an A-th piece of divided data (A is an integer greater than or equal to 1 and less than or equal to L) of L pieces of divided data via HTTP to the wireless communication device 24. Subsequently, in S52, the wireless communication device 24 wirelessly transmits the A-th piece of divided data to the gateway device 26.

[0071] Next, if A=1, that is, if the gateway device 26 has received the first divided data, it executes the processes of S53 to S55. If A is not 1, that is, if the gateway device 26 has received a data item other than the first divided data, it skips the processes of S53 to S55 and proceeds to S56.

[0072] In S53, after receiving the first divided data, gateway device 26 starts a mail sending process to send an e-mail to a specified address. When the mail sending process starts, first, in S54, gateway device 26 starts one mail session with sending mail server 28 in accordance with SMTP to send an e-mail to sending mail server 28. Then, in S55, gateway device 26 receives a notification from sending mail server 28 indicating that the mail session start process has been successfully executed.

[0073] Next, in S56, gateway device 26 divides the A-th piece of divided data into M pieces to generate M pieces of divided mail data. Next, in S57, gateway device 26 transmits the first M piece of divided mail data, i.e., the {(M(A-1)+1)}-th piece of divided mail data since the start of the mail session, to sending mail server 28. Next, in S58, gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from sending mail server 28 indicating completion of reception of the {(M(A-1)+1)}-th piece of divided mail data.

[0074] Next, the gateway device 26 repeats the same processing as S57 and S58 from the second divided mail data to the (M-1)th divided data, that is, from the {M(A-1)+2}th divided data to the {M(A-1)+(M-1)}th divided data since the start of the mail session.

[0075] Next, in S59, gateway device 26 transmits the Mth piece of divided mail data, i.e., the {(M(A-1)+M)}th piece of divided mail data since the start of the mail session, to sending mail server 28. Next, in S60, gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from sending mail server 28 indicating completion of reception of the {(M(A-1)+M)}th piece of divided mail data.

[0076] Next, in S61, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating that the {(M(A-1)+M)}th piece of divided email data has been received from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating that the Ath piece of divided email data has been received.

[0077] Next, in S62, in response to receiving a completion notification from the gateway device 26 indicating that reception of the Ath piece of divided data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the Ath piece of divided data has been completed.

[0078] When the data transfer system 10 according to the second embodiment has executed the processes of S51 to S62 for all of the L pieces of divided data, it subsequently executes the same processes as S36 to S40 in the first embodiment, and ends this sequence.

[0079] As described above, the data transfer system 10 according to the second embodiment transmits divided mail data, each of which is further divided into M pieces of divided data, to the sending mail server 28. The data transfer system 10 according to the second embodiment configured in this way can reduce the costs of the wireless communication device 24 and the gateway device 26, as in the first embodiment.

[0080] (Third embodiment) Next, a data transfer system 10 according to a third embodiment will be described.

[0081] FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system 10 according to the third embodiment.

[0082] The gateway device 26 according to the third embodiment aggregates N pieces of divided data (N is a predetermined integer of 2 or more) into one piece of divided data every time it receives N pieces of divided data from the wireless communication device 24. Then, every time it receives N pieces of divided data, the gateway device 26 transmits the N pieces of divided data aggregated into one piece of divided mail data to the sending mail server 28. That is, in the third embodiment, each of the multiple pieces of divided mail data is data obtained by aggregating N pieces of divided data into one piece of data.

[0083] When gateway device 26 receives a divided data item other than the last one of the N divided data items, gateway device 26 returns a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the corresponding divided data item to wireless communication device 24. Then, after gateway device 26 completes the transmission process of the divided mail data item to transmission mail server 28, gateway device 26 returns a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the last divided data item of the N divided data item to wireless communication device 24.

[0084] More specifically, the data transfer system 10 according to the third embodiment executes the same processes as S11 to S14 in the first embodiment, and thereafter executes the processes according to the flow shown in FIG. 8 from S71 onwards.

[0085] In S71, the imaging device 22 transmits the A-th piece of divided data out of the L pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 by HTTP. Then, in S72, the wireless communication device 24 wirelessly transmits the A-th piece of divided data to the gateway device 26. Then, in S73, the gateway device 26 temporarily stores the A-th piece of divided data received from the wireless communication device 24 in the gateway internal storage unit 52.

[0086] Next, if A=1, that is, if the gateway device 26 has received the first divided data, it executes the processes of S74 to S76. If A is not 1, that is, if the gateway device 26 has received a data item other than the first divided data, it skips the processes of S74 to S76 and proceeds to S77.

[0087] In S74, after receiving the first divided data, the gateway device 26 starts a mail sending process to send an e-mail to the specified address. When the mail sending process starts, first, in S75, the gateway device 26 starts one mail session with the sending mail server 28 in accordance with SMTP to send an e-mail to the sending mail server 28. Then, in S76, the gateway device 26 receives a notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that the mail session start process has been successfully executed.

[0088] Next, in S77, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the A-th piece of divided data. Next, in S78, in response to receiving the completion notification indicating completion of reception of the A-th piece of divided data from the gateway device 26, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the A-th piece of divided data.

[0089] Next, in S79, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the A-th piece of divided data from the wireless communication device 24, the imaging device 22 transmits the (A+1)th piece of divided data of the L pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 by HTTP. Next, in S80, the wireless communication device 24 wirelessly transmits the (A+1)th piece of divided data to the gateway device 26. Next, in S81, the gateway device 26 temporarily stores the (A+1)th piece of divided data received from the wireless communication device 24 in the gateway internal storage unit 52.

[0090] Next, in S82, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the (A+1)th piece of divided data. Next, in S83, in response to receiving the completion notification indicating completion of reception of the (A+1)th piece of divided data from the gateway device 26, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the (A+1)th piece of divided data.

[0091] Thereafter, the imaging device 22, wireless communication device 24, gateway device 26, and transmission mail server 28 execute the same processes as S79 to S83 for the third to (A+N-2)th pieces of divided data.

[0092] Next, in S84, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the (A+N-2)th piece of divided data from the wireless communication device 24, the imaging device 22 transmits the (A+N-1)th piece of divided data out of the L pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 by HTTP. Next, in S85, the wireless communication device 24 wirelessly transmits the (A+N-1)th piece of divided data to the gateway device 26. Next, in S86, the gateway device 26 temporarily stores the (A+N-1)th piece of divided data received from the wireless communication device 24 in the gateway internal storage unit 52.

[0093] Next, in S87, gateway device 26 generates divided mail data by combining N pieces of divided data from the Ath piece to the (A+N-1)th piece into one, and transmits the generated divided mail data to transmitting mail server 28. Next, in S88, gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from transmitting mail server 28 indicating that reception of the divided mail data has been completed.

[0094] Next, in S89, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating that reception of the divided email data has been completed from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the (A+N-1)th divided data has been completed.

[0095] Next, in S90, in response to receiving a completion notification from the gateway device 26 indicating that reception of the (A+N-1)th piece of divided data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the (A+N-1)th piece of divided data has been completed.

[0096] When the data transfer system 10 according to the third embodiment has executed the processes of S71 to S90 for all of the L pieces of divided data, it subsequently executes the same processes as S36 to S40 in the first embodiment, and ends this sequence.

[0097] As described above, in the data transfer system 10 according to the third embodiment, it is sufficient for the wireless communication device 24 to have an intra-terminal storage unit 46 having a capacity sufficient to store at least one piece of divided data, thereby reducing the cost of the wireless communication device 24. In the data transfer system 10 according to the third embodiment, it is sufficient for the gateway device 26 to have an intra-gateway storage unit 52 having a capacity sufficient to store at least N pieces of divided data, thereby reducing the cost of the gateway device 26.

[0098] (Fourth embodiment) Next, a data transfer system 10 according to a fourth embodiment will be described.

[0099] FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system 10 according to the fourth embodiment.

[0100] The gateway device 26 according to the fourth embodiment aggregates the N pieces of divided data into one piece every time it receives N pieces of divided data from the wireless communication device 24. Furthermore, the gateway device 26 further divides the aggregated N pieces of divided data into P pieces (P is a predetermined integer of 2 or more) to generate P pieces of divided email data. Then, every time it receives N pieces of divided data, the gateway device 26 sequentially transmits each of the P pieces of divided email data to the sending mail server 28. That is, in the fourth embodiment, each of the multiple divided email data is data obtained by dividing the N pieces of divided data into one piece.

[0101] When gateway device 26 receives any divided data other than the last of the N pieces of divided data, it returns a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the corresponding divided data to wireless communication device 24. After gateway device 26 completes the transmission process for all P pieces of divided mail data to transmission mail server 28, it returns a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the last of the N pieces of divided data to wireless communication device 24.

[0102] More specifically, the data transfer system 10 according to the fourth embodiment executes the same processes as S11 to S14 in the first embodiment, and then executes the same processes as S71 to S86 in the fourth embodiment. After completing the process of S86, the gateway device 26 advances the process to S91.

[0103] In S91, the gateway device 26 further divides the N pieces of divided data from the Ath to (A+N-1)th pieces into one piece of data into P pieces of divided mail data to generate P pieces of divided mail data.

[0104] Next, in S92, gateway device 26 transmits the first P-piece divided mail data, i.e., the {(P(A-1)+1)}th piece of divided mail data since the start of the mail session, to sending mail server 28. Next, in S93, gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from sending mail server 28 indicating completion of reception of {(P(A-1)+1)}th piece of divided mail data.

[0105] Next, the gateway device 26 repeats the same processing as S92 and S93 from the second divided mail data to the (P-1)th divided data, that is, from the {P(A-1)+2}th divided data to the {P(A-1)+(P-1)}th divided data since the start of the mail session.

[0106] Next, in S94, the gateway device 26 transmits the Pth piece of divided mail data, i.e., the {(P(A-1)+P)}th piece of divided mail data since the start of the mail session, to the sending mail server 28. Next, in S95, the gateway device 26 receives a completion notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the {(P(A-1)+P)}th piece of divided mail data has been completed.

[0107] Next, in S96, in response to receiving a completion notification indicating that the {(P(A-1)+P)}th piece of divided email data has been received from the sending mail server 28, the gateway device 26 replies to the wireless communication device 24 with a completion notification indicating that the (A+N-1)th piece of divided email data has been received.

[0108] Next, in S97, in response to receiving a completion notification from the gateway device 26 indicating that reception of the (A+N-1)th piece of divided data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the (A+N-1)th piece of divided data has been completed.

[0109] The data transfer system 10 according to the fourth embodiment executes the processes of S71 to S97 for all of the L pieces of divided data. After executing the processes of S71 to S97 for all of the L pieces of divided data, the data transfer system 10 according to the fourth embodiment executes the same processes as S36 to S40 in the first embodiment, and ends this sequence.

[0110] As described above, in the data transfer system 10 according to the fourth embodiment, it is sufficient for the wireless communication device 24 to have an intra-terminal storage unit 46 having a capacity sufficient to store at least one piece of divided data, thereby reducing the cost of the wireless communication device 24. In the data transfer system 10 according to the fourth embodiment, it is sufficient for the gateway device 26 to have an intra-gateway storage unit 52 having a capacity sufficient to store at least N pieces of divided data, thereby reducing the cost of the gateway device 26.

[0111] In the first to fourth embodiments, each time the wireless communication device 24 receives each of the plurality of divided data from the imaging device 22, the wireless communication device 24 may divide the corresponding divided data to generate a plurality of re-divided data, and sequentially transmit each of the plurality of re-divided data to the gateway device 26. For example, if the size of the packet exchanged between the wireless communication device 24 and the gateway device 26 is smaller than the size of the packet exchanged between the imaging device 22 and the wireless communication device 24, the wireless communication device 24 cannot directly include the divided data received from the imaging device 22 in a packet and transmit it to the gateway device 26. However, the wireless communication device 24 can further divide one divided data to generate a plurality of re-divided data, and thereby include the re-divided data in a packet exchanged between the wireless communication device 24 and the gateway device 26.

[0112] The gateway device 26 may sequentially receive a plurality of re-segmented data for each of a plurality of pieces of divided data and restore the corresponding divided data. Alternatively, the gateway device 26 may include each of the plurality of re-segmented data in one piece of divided mail data as described in the second embodiment. Furthermore, the gateway device 26 may include a predetermined number of the plurality of re-segmented data in one piece of divided mail data as described in the second embodiment.

[0113] (Fifth embodiment) Next, a data transfer system 10 according to a fifth embodiment will be described.

[0114] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of processing in the data transfer system 10 according to the fifth embodiment.

[0115] The data transfer system 10 according to the fifth embodiment includes an imaging device 22, a wireless communication device 24, and a sending mail server 28. In the fifth embodiment, the wireless communication device 24 further has the same functions as the gateway device 26.

[0116] That is, wireless communication device 24 connects to an external network in accordance with a cellular wireless communication standard such as LTE or 5G. Then, gateway device 26 transmits an e-mail in accordance with a predetermined e-mail transmission protocol to outgoing mail server 28 via the external network. For example, gateway device 26 transmits an e-mail in accordance with SMTP to outgoing mail server 28.

[0117] For example, the data transfer system 10 according to the fifth embodiment executes processing according to the flow shown in FIG.

[0118] First, in S101, in response to a request from, for example, an information processing device on an external network, the wireless communication device 24 transmits an image acquisition request via HTTP to the imaging device 22. Next, in S102, in response to receiving the image acquisition request from the wireless communication device 24, the imaging device 22 starts processing to output image data identified by the identifier specified in the image acquisition request.

[0119] Next, in S103, the imaging device 22 divides the target image data to generate a plurality of divided data. In this embodiment, the imaging device 22 divides the image data with a data capacity of S into L pieces of divided data to generate L pieces of divided data. Next, in S104, the imaging device 22 transmits the first piece of divided data of the L pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 via HTTP.

[0120] Next, in S105, after receiving the first divided data, the wireless communication device 24 starts a mail sending process for sending an e-mail to a specified address. When the mail sending process starts, first, in S106, the wireless communication device 24 starts one mail session with the sending mail server 28 in accordance with SMTP for sending an e-mail to the sending mail server 28. Then, in S107, the wireless communication device 24 receives a notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that the mail session start process has been successfully executed.

[0121] Next, in S108, the wireless communication device 24 transmits the first piece of divided mail data to the sending mail server 28. In this embodiment, the first piece of divided mail data is the same as the first piece of divided mail data. Next, in S109, the wireless communication device 24 receives a completion notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the first piece of divided mail data has been completed.

[0122] Next, in S110, in response to receiving a completion notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the first divided email data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the first divided email data has been completed.

[0123] Thereafter, the imaging device 22, wireless communication device 24, and transmission mail server 28 execute the same processes as S104, S108, S109, and S110 for the second to (L-1)th pieces of divided data.

[0124] Next, in S111, in response to receiving a completion notification from the wireless communication device 24 indicating that reception of the (L-1)th piece of divided data has been completed, the imaging device 22 transmits the Lth piece of divided data out of the L pieces of divided data to the wireless communication device 24 via HTTP.

[0125] Next, in S112, the wireless communication device 24 transmits the Lth piece of divided mail data to the sending mail server 28. In this embodiment, the Lth piece of divided mail data is the same as the Lth piece of divided mail data. Next, in S113, the wireless communication device 24 receives a completion notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the Lth piece of divided mail data has been completed.

[0126] Next, in S114, in response to receiving a completion notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that reception of the Lth piece of divided email data has been completed, the wireless communication device 24 replies to the imaging device 22 with a completion notification indicating that reception of the Lth piece of divided email data has been completed.

[0127] In addition, in S115, the wireless communication device 24 terminates the mail session started in S106 with the sending mail server 28 in accordance with SMTP. Then, in S116, the wireless communication device 24 receives a notification from the sending mail server 28 indicating that the mail session termination process has been successfully executed. Then, in S117, the wireless communication device 24 terminates the mail transmission process for sending an email to the specified address.

[0128] In S118, the imaging device 22 ends the image output process started in S102 after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the L-th piece of divided data, which is the last piece of divided data among the L pieces of divided data, from the wireless communication device 24. Then, upon completion of the process of S118, the data transfer system 10 ends this sequence.

[0129] The above describes an example in which the data transfer system 10 according to the fifth embodiment executes processes corresponding to the processes shown in Figures 3, 4, and 5. Instead, the data transfer system 10 according to the fifth embodiment may execute processes corresponding to the processes shown in Figures 7, 8, or 9.

[0130] (Sixth embodiment) Next, a data transfer system 10 according to a sixth embodiment will be described.

[0131] 11 is a diagram showing the configuration of a data transfer system 10 according to the sixth embodiment. The data transfer system 10 according to the sixth embodiment includes an imaging device 22, a plurality of wireless communication devices 24, a gateway device 26, and a sending mail server 28.

[0132] In the data transfer system 10 according to the sixth embodiment, image data generated by an imaging device 22 is transferred to a gateway device 26 via a plurality of wireless communication devices 24. Information is transmitted and received between the plurality of wireless communication devices 24 in accordance with a predetermined wireless communication standard such as BLE.

[0133] Each of the multiple wireless communication devices 24 executes the same processing as the wireless communication device 24 in the first to fourth embodiments. However, a wireless communication device 24 that is not directly connected to the imaging device 22 receives divided data from a wireless communication device 24 connected downstream instead of the imaging device 22, and transmits a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the divided data to the wireless communication device 24 connected downstream.

[0134] In addition, a wireless communication device 24 that is not directly connected to the gateway device 26 transmits divided data to a wireless communication device 24 connected upstream instead of the gateway device 26, and receives a completion notification from the wireless communication device 24 connected upstream indicating that reception of the divided data has been completed.

[0135] As described above, the data transfer system 10 according to the sixth embodiment can reduce the cost of each of the multiple wireless communication devices 24.

[0136] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Various modifications can be made to the embodiments. [Explanation of symbols]

[0137] 10 Data Transfer System 22 Imaging device 24 Wireless communication devices 26 Gateway device 28 Outgoing Mail Server 32 Imaging unit 34 Image storage unit 36 Request acquisition part 38 Division 40 Transmitter 42 Instruction transmission unit 44 Downstream communication section 46 Internal storage unit 48 Upstream communication section 50 Radio Communication Department 52 Gateway internal storage 54 Mail processing section

Claims

1. an imaging device that captures an image and generates image data; a wireless communication device that transmits and receives information to and from the imaging device and also transmits and receives information to and from an upstream device via wireless communication; Equipped with the imaging device generates a plurality of divided data by dividing the image data, and sequentially transmits each of the generated plurality of divided data to the wireless communication device; the wireless communication device transmits first divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data, to the upstream device, and then receives second divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data subsequent to the first divided data, from the imaging device; after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data from the upstream device, the wireless communication device returns a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data to the imaging device; The imaging device transmits the second divided data to the wireless communication device after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data from the wireless communication device. Data transfer system.

2. a gateway device that sequentially receives each of the plurality of divided data transmitted from the wireless communication device, includes the received plurality of divided data in an e-mail in accordance with a predetermined e-mail transmission protocol, and transmits the e-mail to a transmission mail server; The gateway device sequentially transmits a plurality of divided mail data pieces obtained by dividing the electronic mail in one mail session for transmitting the electronic mail to the transmission mail server.

2. The data transfer system according to claim 1.

3. the plurality of divided email data correspond one-to-one to the plurality of divided data; After the gateway device has completed the process of transmitting the divided mail data corresponding to the first divided mail data among the plurality of divided mail data to the transmission mail server, it returns a completion notification indicating that reception of the first divided mail data has been completed.

3. The data transfer system according to claim 2.

4. Each of the plurality of divided email data is one piece of data obtained by dividing one of the plurality of divided data into M pieces (M is a predetermined integer of 2 or more), After the gateway device has completed the process of transmitting the M pieces of divided mail data corresponding to the first divided data to the transmission mail server, it returns a completion notification indicating that reception of the first divided data has been completed.

3. The data transfer system according to claim 2.

5. Each of the plurality of divided email data is data obtained by combining N pieces of divided data (N is a predetermined integer of 2 or more) from the plurality of divided data, The gateway device When receiving a data segment other than the last data segment among the N data segments, return a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the corresponding data segment; After the transmission process of the divided mail data obtained by combining the N pieces of divided data into one piece to the transmission mail server is completed, a completion notice indicating the completion of reception of the last piece of divided data among the N pieces of divided data is returned.

3. The data transfer system according to claim 2.

6. Each of the plurality of divided email data is data obtained by combining N pieces of divided data (N is a predetermined integer of 2 or more) from the plurality of divided data, and dividing the combined data into P pieces of divided data (P is a predetermined integer of 2 or more), The gateway device When receiving a data segment other than the last data segment among the N data segments, return a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the corresponding data segment; After the P pieces of divided mail data have been sent to the sending mail server, a completion notice is returned indicating that the last piece of divided mail data among the N pieces of divided mail data has been received.

3. The data transfer system according to claim 2.

7. Each time the wireless communication device receives each of the plurality of divided data, the wireless communication device divides the corresponding divided data to generate a plurality of re-divided data, and sequentially transmits each of the plurality of re-divided data to the gateway device.

7. A data transfer system according to claim 2.

8. the wireless communication device functions as a gateway device that includes the received plurality of divided data in an e-mail conforming to a predetermined e-mail transmission protocol and transmits the e-mail to a transmission e-mail server as the upstream device; The gateway device sequentially transmits each of the plurality of divided mail data obtained by dividing the electronic mail in one mail session for transmitting the electronic mail to the transmission mail server.

2. The data transfer system according to claim 1.

9. a downstream communication unit that receives image data generated by the imaging device; an upstream communication unit that transmits the received image data to an upstream device by wireless communication; Equipped with the imaging device generates a plurality of divided data by dividing the image data; the downstream communication unit sequentially receives each of the plurality of divided data; the upstream communication unit transmits first divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data, to the upstream device, and then receives second divided data, which is one of the plurality of divided data subsequent to the first divided data, from the imaging device; the downstream communication unit, after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data from the upstream device, returns a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data to the imaging device; The imaging device transmits the second divided data to the downstream communication unit after receiving a completion notification indicating completion of reception of the first divided data from the downstream communication unit. Wireless communication device.

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