Beacon transmission device, beacon transmission method, and beacon transmission program

Abstract

This beacon transmission device includes: a transmission unit for transmitting a beacon signal; and a control unit for controlling a beacon signal transmission operation by the transmission unit. The control unit controls at least one of a beacon signal transmission interval and a transmission output level on the basis of the number of beacon signals transmitted from another beacon transmission device within a predetermined time.

Description

Beacon transmitting apparatus, beacon transmitting method and beacon transmitting program

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a beacon transmitting apparatus, a beacon transmitting method and a beacon transmitting program.

[0002] A positioning system using a beacon apparatus is known for measuring the position of a subject in an indoor environment or the like (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2023-91317

[0004] In recent years, in addition to beacon signals used in the positioning systems described above, beacon communication such as BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and beacon communication for audio commentary are frequently used. Therefore, beacon signals may interfere with each other, making it impossible to properly receive the target positioning beacon signal in some cases.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the foregoing, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a beacon transmitting apparatus, a beacon transmitting method and a beacon transmitting program capable of appropriately performing position positioning while suppressing power consumption.

[0006] The beacon transmitting apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a transmitting unit that transmits a beacon signal, and a control unit that controls a transmission operation of the beacon signal by the transmitting unit, wherein the control unit controls at least one of a transmission interval and a transmission output level of the beacon signal based on the number of the beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting apparatuses within a predetermined time.

[0007] The beacon transmitting method according to the present disclosure includes the steps of: transmitting a beacon signal; and controlling at least one of a transmission interval and a transmission output level of the beacon signal based on the number of the beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting apparatuses within a predetermined time.

[0008] The beacon transmitting program according to the present disclosure causes a computer to execute: processing of transmitting a beacon signal; and processing of controlling at least one of a transmission interval and a transmission output level of the beacon signal based on the number of the beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting apparatuses within a predetermined time.

[0009] According to this disclosure, it is possible to appropriately determine the location while suppressing power consumption.

[0010] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a positioning system according to the embodiment. Figure 2 is a functional block diagram showing an example of a beacon transmitter according to the embodiment. Figure 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation mode of the positioning system. Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation mode of the positioning system. Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation mode of the positioning system. Figure 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation mode of the positioning system. Figure 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation mode of the positioning system. Figure 8 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the operation mode of the positioning system. Figure 9 is a timing chart showing an example of a beacon signal transmitted from a beacon transmitter according to the embodiment and another beacon transmitter. Figure 10 is a timing chart showing an example of a beacon signal transmitted from a beacon transmitter according to the embodiment and another beacon transmitter. Figure 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the beacon transmitter.

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the beacon transmitting device according to this disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. However, this embodiment does not limit the present invention. Furthermore, the components in the following embodiments include those that are easily substituted or substantially identical to those that are easily substituted by those skilled in the art.

[0012] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the positioning system 100 according to this embodiment. The positioning system 100 shown in Figure 1 is used, for example, to determine the location of a target person in an augmented reality (AR) positioning area such as inside a facility.

[0013] The positioning system 100 according to this embodiment includes a positioning beacon transmitter 10, a beacon receiver 50, a transfer device 60, and a server device 70.

[0014] The positioning beacon transmitter 10 transmits a beacon signal and receives an acknowledgment signal transmitted from the beacon receiver 50. The configuration of the positioning beacon transmitter 10 will be described later.

[0015] The beacon receiver 50 transmits an acknowledgment signal and receives the beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitter 10. The beacon receiver 50 can be, for example, a device equipped with wireless communication capabilities, such as a smartphone.

[0016] The transfer device 60 receives the confirmation signal transmitted from the beacon receiver 50. The transfer device 60 then transfers the received confirmation signal to the server device 70.

[0017] The server device 70 measures the position of the beacon receiver 50 based on the information contained in the confirmation signal transmitted from the transfer device 60. Alternatively, the confirmation signal transmitted from the beacon receiver 50 may be transmitted directly to the server device 70 without going through the transfer device 60.

[0018] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram showing an example of a beacon transmitting device according to this embodiment. As shown in Figure 2, the positioning beacon transmitting device 10 comprises a communication unit 20, a control unit 30, and a battery 40.

[0019] The communication unit 20 has a transmitting unit 21 and a receiving unit 22. The transmitting unit 21 transmits a beacon signal. The receiving unit 22 receives an acknowledgment signal transmitted from the beacon receiving device 50. The acknowledgment signal is a beacon signal transmitted from the beacon receiving device 50. The receiving unit 22 also receives beacon signal congestion information from the beacon receiving device 50. The beacon signal congestion information is information generated by the beacon receiving device 50. The beacon receiving device 50 determines the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices 80 within a predetermined time and generates beacon signal congestion information based on the determination result. Other beacon transmitting devices 80 include, for example, beacon transmitting devices such as BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and beacon transmitting devices that transmit beacon signals for voice commentary. The beacon signal congestion information includes the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices 80 within a predetermined time. The beacon receiver 50 transmits the generated beacon signal congestion information to the positioning beacon transmitter 10.

[0020] The control unit 30 comprehensively controls the operation of the positioning beacon transmitter 10. The control unit 30 includes a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and memory such as ROM (Read Only Memory) and RAM (Random Access Memory). The control unit 30 may be implemented by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

[0021] The control unit 30 includes a communication control unit 31, a battery level detection unit 32, and a storage unit 33.

[0022] The communication control unit 31 controls, for example, the transmission operation of the beacon signal by the transmitting unit 21. The communication control unit 31 can control at least one of the transmission interval and the transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the transmitting unit 21. In this embodiment, the communication control unit 31 controls at least one of the transmission interval and the transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the transmitting unit 21 based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices 80 within a preset time (hereinafter referred to as the first time). The unit of the transmission interval is, for example, msec, and the unit of the transmission output level is, for example, mW or dBm. The first time can be set to a time that includes multiple cycles of the beacon signal transmitted from, for example, the positioning beacon transmitting device 10.

[0023] The communication control unit 31 controls the transmission unit 21 to transmit a beacon signal when the receiving unit 22 receives a confirmation signal. The communication control unit 31 also controls the transmission unit 21 not to transmit a beacon signal if it does not receive a confirmation signal for a predetermined time (hereinafter referred to as the second time). The second time may be the same as the first time described above, or it may be a different time.

[0024] Based on the beacon signal congestion information from the beacon receiver 50, the communication control unit 31 performs at least one of the following: the control to shorten the transmission interval of beacon signals, and the control to increase the transmission output level of beacon signals, as the number of received beacon signals increases. Furthermore, if the battery level detected by the battery level detection unit 32 (described later) is below a predetermined level, the communication control unit 31 performs at least one of the following: the control to lengthen the transmission interval of beacon signals, and the control to decrease the transmission output level of beacon signals, compared to when the battery level is above the predetermined level.

[0025] The battery level detection unit 32 detects the remaining battery level of the positioning beacon transmitter 10.

[0026] The storage unit 33 stores information such as various programs and data. The storage unit 33 includes storage such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) and an SSD (Solid State Drive). The storage unit 33 stores the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitters 80 within the first hour.

[0027] The memory unit 33 causes the computer to perform the following processes: transmitting a beacon signal and controlling at least one of the beacon signal transmission interval and transmission output level based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices 80 within the first hour.

[0028] In the control unit 30, the processor reads various programs and loads them into memory, thereby executing information processing corresponding to the functions of each of the above-mentioned parts. Examples of various programs include programs received by the receiving unit 22, programs stored in the storage unit 33, and programs recorded on an external recording medium. The control unit 30 functions as an information processing device (computer) that executes various information processing. Note that other information processing devices different from the control unit 30 may execute various programs, or the control unit 30 and other information processing devices may cooperate to execute various programs.

[0029] The battery 40 is used as the power supply for the positioning beacon transmitter 10. The battery 40 can be, for example, a button cell battery or a dry cell battery.

[0030] Next, the operation of the positioning system 100 configured as described above will be explained. In this embodiment, the explanation will be given as an example in which one or more other beacon transmitters 80 are placed in the area where the positioning beacon transmitter 10 constituting the positioning system 100 is located.

[0031] Figures 3 to 8 schematically show an example of the operation mode of the positioning system 100. Figure 3 shows an example where the beacon receiver 50 is not present in the positionable area (positioning area) of the positioning beacon transmitter 10. As shown in Figure 3, in the positioning beacon transmitter 10 of the positioning system 100, the communication control unit 31 determines whether or not it has received an acknowledgment signal from the beacon receiver 50 within a second time period. If the communication control unit 31 determines that it has not received an acknowledgment signal from the beacon receiver 50 within a second time period, it controls the transmitter not to transmit a beacon signal. This control causes the positioning beacon transmitter 10 to remain in a waiting state in a receiving state without transmitting a beacon signal. As a result, the consumption of the battery 40 can be reduced.

[0032] On the other hand, unlike the positioning beacon transmitter 10 in this embodiment, the other beacon transmitter 80 transmits beacon signals periodically. The positioning beacon transmitter 10 receives beacon signals transmitted from the other beacon transmitter 80 in its receiving unit 22. When the communication control unit 31 receives a beacon signal transmitted from the other beacon receiver 80, it stores in the storage unit 33 that a beacon signal has been received.

[0033] In this state, as shown in Figure 4, when the beacon receiver 50 transmits a confirmation signal at a predetermined interval and enters the positioning area of ​​the positioning beacon transmitter 10 within the positioning area AR, the positioning beacon transmitter 10 receives a confirmation signal from the beacon receiver 50. If the communication control unit 31 determines that it has received a confirmation signal from the beacon receiver 50 within the second time period, it controls the transmitter to transmit a beacon signal.

[0034] When controlling the transmission of a beacon signal, the communication control unit 31 controls at least one of the transmission interval and transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the transmission unit 21 based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices 80 within the first time period.

[0035] Figures 9 and 10 are timing charts showing an example of beacon signals transmitted from a positioning beacon transmitter 10 and another beacon transmitter 80 according to this embodiment. In Figures 9 and 10, the vertical axis represents the transmission output level of the beacon signal, and the horizontal axis represents the passage of time.

[0036] As shown in Figure 9, depending on the period of the beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitter 10 according to this embodiment, the positioning beacon transmitter 10 may transmit a beacon signal at a timing that overlaps with a beacon signal transmitted from another beacon transmitter 80. The beacon receiver 50 will receive both the beacon signal from the positioning beacon transmitter 10 according to this embodiment and the beacon signals from the other beacon transmitter 80. The beacon receiver 50 will then receive beacon signals from each other, which can cause collisions and make it difficult to distinguish the beacon signal from the positioning beacon transmitter 10.

[0037] In the positioning beacon transmitter 10 according to this embodiment, when controlling the transmission of a beacon signal, the communication control unit 31 controls at least one of the transmission interval and transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the transmission unit 21 based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitters 80 within a first time period. For example, as shown in Figure 10, the communication control unit 31 can control the transmission interval of the beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitter 10 so that the transmission timing does not overlap with that of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitters 80. Also, as shown by the dashed line in Figure 10, the communication control unit 31 can control the transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitter 10 so that the output level is higher than that of the beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitters 80. This control allows the beacon receiver 50 to easily distinguish the beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitter 10.

[0038] As shown in Figure 5, the communication control unit 31 controls at least one of the transmission interval and the transmission output level to cause the beacon signal to be transmitted from the transmission unit 21. When the beacon receiver 50 receives a beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitter 10, it sends a confirmation signal to the positioning beacon transmitter 10 that the signal was received successfully, as shown in Figure 6. By receiving the confirmation signal from the beacon receiver 50, the positioning beacon transmitter 10 can confirm that the beacon signal has been received by the beacon receiver 50.

[0039] Furthermore, the transfer device 60 receives an acknowledgment signal transmitted from the beacon receiver 50. The transfer device 60 transfers the received acknowledgment signal to the server device 70. The server device 70 determines the location of the beacon receiver 50 based on the information contained in the acknowledgment signal transferred from the transfer device 60. By accessing the server device 70, the beacon receiver 50 can obtain its positioning result.

[0040] If the beacon receiver 50 moves out of the area of ​​the positioning beacon transmitter 10 from the state shown in Figure 6, the positioning beacon transmitter 10 will no longer receive confirmation signals from the beacon receiver 50. If the communication control unit 31 determines that it will not receive confirmation signals from the beacon receiver 50 within the second time period, it controls the transmitter 10 not to transmit beacon signals.

[0041] In addition to the above control, the control unit 30 may also control at least one of the transmission interval and transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitter 10 according to the remaining battery level of the battery 40. Specifically, the battery level detection unit 32 detects the remaining battery level of the battery 40 at predetermined intervals. As shown in Figure 7, if the remaining battery level E1 detected by the battery level detection unit 32 is less than a predetermined remaining level E0, at least one of the following may be performed: the transmission interval of the beacon signal is lengthened, and the transmission output level of the beacon signal is reduced, compared to when the remaining battery level is E0 or greater. This control can suppress the consumption of the battery 40.

[0042] In the above explanation, the case in which the positioning beacon transmitter 10 controls at least one of the transmission interval and transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the transmission unit 21 based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitters 80 within the first hour was described as an example. However, the above control may also be performed in the beacon receiver 50. Specifically, as shown in Figure 8, the beacon receiver 50 generates beacon signal congestion information IB based on the number of beacon signals received from other beacon transmitters 80 within the first hour. The beacon receiver 50 generates beacon signal congestion information indicating that the congestion level is higher the more beacon signals received from other beacon transmitters 80 within the first hour. The beacon receiver 50 includes the generated beacon signal congestion information in the confirmation signal and transmits the confirmation signal.

[0043] In the positioning beacon transmitting device 10, the communication control unit 31 performs at least one of the following controls based on beacon signal congestion degree information included in the confirmation signal received by the receiving unit 22: shortening the transmission interval of beacon signals as the number of beacon signals received by the beacon receiving device 50 increases, and increasing the transmission output level of beacon signals. In other words, the communication control unit 31 performs at least one of the following controls based on beacon signal congestion degree information included in the confirmation signal received by the receiving unit 22: lengthening the transmission interval of beacon signals as the number of beacon signals received by the beacon receiving device 50 decreases, and reducing the transmission output level of beacon signals. Through this control, the beacon receiving device 50 can easily identify the beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitting device 10.

[0044] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the positioning beacon transmitting device 10. As shown in FIG. 11, in the positioning beacon transmitting device 10, the communication control unit 31 enters a standby state without transmitting a beacon signal from the transmitting unit 21, and the receiving unit 22 receives a beacon signal from another beacon transmitting device 80 (step S101). When a beacon signal is received from another beacon transmitting device 80, the fact that the beacon signal has been received is stored in the storage unit 33.

[0045] In the standby state, the communication control unit 31 determines whether a confirmation signal from the beacon receiving device 50 has been received (step S102). If the communication control unit 31 determines that the confirmation signal from the beacon receiving device 50 has not been received (No in step S102), it repeats the processing of step S102 while maintaining the standby state.

[0046] If the communication control unit 31 determines that the confirmation signal from the beacon receiving device 50 has been received within a second time period (Yes in step S102), it controls to transmit a beacon signal (step S103). In step S103, the communication control unit 31 controls at least one of the transmission interval and the transmission output level of the beacon signal transmitted from the transmitting unit 21 based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices 80 within a first time period.

[0047] On the other hand, when the beacon receiving device 50 receives a beacon signal transmitted from the positioning beacon transmitting device 10, it transmits a confirmation signal including information indicating that the signal has been successfully received to the positioning beacon transmitting device 10. By receiving the confirmation signal from the beacon receiving device 50 (step S104), the communication control unit 31 can recognize that the beacon signal has been properly received by the beacon receiving device 50.

[0048] The communication control unit 31 determines whether or not a confirmation signal from the beacon receiving device 50 is received within a second period after the most recent reception of the confirmation signal (step 105). If the communication control unit 31 determines that a confirmation signal has been received in step S105 (Yes in step S105), the process returns to step S103 to repeat the processing. If the communication control unit 31 determines that no confirmation signal is received in step S105 (No in step S105), the communication control unit 31 controls the transmitting unit 21 so as not to transmit a beacon signal (step S106). Thereafter, the process returns to step S101 to perform the processing.

[0049] As described above, the positioning beacon transmitting device 10 according to the present embodiment includes a transmitting unit 21 configured to transmit a beacon signal, and a control unit 30 configured to control a transmission operation of the beacon signal by the transmitting unit 21. The control unit 30 controls at least one of a transmission interval and a transmission output level of the beacon signal from the transmitting unit 21 based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from another beacon transmitting device 80 within a predetermined time.

[0050] The beacon transmission method according to the present embodiment includes the steps of: transmitting a beacon signal; and controlling at least one of a transmission interval and a transmission output level of the beacon signal based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from another beacon transmitting device 80 within a predetermined time.

[0051] The beacon transmission program according to the present embodiment causes a computer to execute: processing for transmitting a beacon signal; and processing for controlling at least one of a transmission interval and a transmission output level of the beacon signal based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from another beacon transmitting device 80 within a predetermined time.

[0052] With this configuration, by controlling at least one of the transmission interval and transmission output level of the beacon signal from the transmission unit 21 based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitters 80 within a predetermined time, it becomes possible to appropriately determine the location while suppressing power consumption compared to continuously transmitting beacon signals with a shortened transmission interval or a high transmission output level.

[0053] In the positioning beacon transmitting device 10 according to this embodiment, the device further includes a receiving unit 22 that receives a confirmation signal from a beacon receiving device 50 that receives a beacon signal from a transmitting unit 21 and transmits a confirmation signal, and the control unit 30 transmits a beacon signal from the transmitting unit 21 when the receiving unit 22 receives a confirmation signal.

[0054] With this configuration, when the receiving unit 22 receives an acknowledgment signal, the transmitting unit 21 transmits a beacon signal, making it possible to properly determine the location while suppressing power consumption.

[0055] In the positioning beacon transmitter 10 according to this embodiment, a battery level detection unit 32 is further provided, and the confirmation signal includes beacon signal congestion information determined based on the number of beacon signals received by a beacon receiver 50 that receives beacon signals from a transmitter 21 within a predetermined time, and the control unit 30 performs at least one of the following based on the beacon signal congestion information included in the confirmation signal received by the receiver 22: the more beacon signals received, the shorter the transmission interval of the beacon signals and the higher the transmission output level of the beacon signals, and if the remaining battery level of the battery 40 detected by the battery level detection unit 32 is less than a predetermined amount, the control unit 30 performs at least one of the following: the longer the transmission interval of the beacon signals and the lower the transmission output level of the beacon signals compared to when the battery level is above a predetermined amount.

[0056] With this configuration, by controlling at least one of the beacon signal transmission interval and transmission output level based on the beacon signal congestion information included in the confirmation signal and the remaining battery level of the battery 40, it becomes possible to appropriately determine the location while suppressing power consumption.

[0057] The scope of this disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above, and modifications may be made as appropriate without departing from the spirit of this disclosure.

[0058] The beacon transmitting device, beacon transmitting method, and beacon transmitting program related to this disclosure can be used, for example, in a location positioning system.

[0059] AR... Positioning area, 10... Positioning beacon transmitter, 20... Communication unit, 21... Transmitter, 22... Receiver, 30... Control unit, 31... Communication control unit, 32... Battery level detection unit, 33... Storage unit, 40... Battery, 50... Beacon receiver, 60... Transfer device, 70... Server device, 80... Other beacon transmitter, 100... Positioning system

Claims

1. A beacon transmitting device comprising a transmitting unit that transmits a beacon signal, and a control unit that controls the transmission operation of the beacon signal by the transmitting unit, wherein the control unit controls at least one of the transmission interval and the transmission output level of the beacon signal from the transmitting unit based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices within a predetermined time.

2. The beacon transmitting device according to claim 1, further comprising a receiving unit that receives the confirmation signal from a beacon receiving device that receives the beacon signal from the transmitting unit and transmits a confirmation signal, wherein the control unit transmits the beacon signal from the transmitting unit when the receiving unit receives the confirmation signal.

3. The beacon transmitting device according to claim 2, further comprising a battery level detection unit, wherein the confirmation signal includes beacon signal congestion information determined based on the number of beacon signals received by a beacon receiving device that receives the beacon signals from the transmitting unit within a predetermined time, and the control unit performs at least one of the following based on the beacon signal congestion information included in the confirmation signal received by the receiving unit: the more beacon signals received, the shorter the transmission interval of the beacon signals and the higher the transmission output level of the beacon signals, and if the battery level detected by the battery level detection unit is less than a predetermined amount, the control unit performs at least one of the following: the longer the transmission interval of the beacon signals and the lower the transmission output level of the beacon signals compared to when the battery level is equal to or greater than the predetermined amount.

4. A beacon transmission method comprising the steps of transmitting a beacon signal and controlling at least one of the transmission interval and transmission power level of the beacon signal based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices within a predetermined time.

5. A beacon transmission program that causes a computer to perform the following processes: transmitting a beacon signal, and controlling at least one of the transmission interval and transmission output level of the beacon signal based on the number of beacon signals transmitted from other beacon transmitting devices within a predetermined time.

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