JP4331051B2 - COMMUNICATION DEVICE, COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, COMMUNICATION METHOD, COMMUNICATION PROGRAM AND ITS RECORDING MEDIUM - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication device, a communication system, a communication method, a communication program, and a recording medium thereof that can switch between a wired communication function and a wireless communication function.

  Conventionally, there is a communication system having a wired communication function and a wireless communication function. In such a communication system, for example, a wireless communication function is used when a degree of freedom of a place of use is required, a broadband application is required, or a radio wave becomes unstable for some reason, or The wired communication function can be used when connected to a device that supplies power due to a decrease in the power of the charging function that is held.

  In such a communication system, various proposals have been made to improve user convenience by automatically and appropriately switching between a wired communication function and a wireless communication function.

For example, Patent Document 1 describes a communication terminal device including a switching unit that switches between a wired communication I / F (interface) and a wireless communication I / F. Patent Document 2 also provides a wired LAN function and a wireless LAN function that can be connected to a LAN (Local Area Network) of a wired and wireless transmission medium to a computer, detects the connection status of the wired LAN cable, and performs wired or wireless. A computer communication method for automatically changing the transmission medium to the computer is described. Further, Patent Document 3 is a portable wireless device having a wireless modem and a wired modem and having a rechargeable secondary power source as a main power source, detecting connection of a charger and according to the detection result. A portable wireless device that switches between a wired modem and a wireless modem is described.
JP-A-9-305508 (Publication date: November 28, 1997) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-164114 (Publication date: June 19, 1998) JP 11-146456 A (publication date: May 28, 1999)

  However, the above-described techniques of Patent Documents 1 to 3 are based on the premise that a wired communication unit that controls wired communication and a wireless communication unit that controls wireless communication are provided independently.

  That is, in any communication system having a conventional wired communication function and a wireless communication function, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, a data control unit 101 that performs data generation / analysis and a communication selection that switches between wireless communication and wired communication In addition to the unit 102, it is necessary to include a wired communication unit 103 that performs wired communication via the wired connection connector 104 and a wireless communication unit 105 that performs wireless communication via the antenna 106.

  As described above, in the configuration in which the wired communication unit and the wireless communication unit are provided independently, for example, a time required for switching between the wired communication and the wireless communication as in a wireless video transfer system including a transmitter and a receiver. When applying to a system that uses an application in which the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication are not limited to the communication speed, the following 1. ~ 3. There are the following problems.

  1. When the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication affect functions other than the communication speed, it is necessary to newly provide means (mechanism) for adjusting the affected function (application). For example, in order to realize the video transfer function, a unique mechanism in each communication protocol, for example, the wireless LAN standard IEEE Std. When adopting 802.11-1999 as a wireless communication means and using a value of a TSF (Timing Synchronization Function) timer, which is defined in this wireless LAN standard and is synchronized between wireless terminals, in an application, wired communication When switching to, it is necessary to add means for synchronizing these timers with high accuracy.

  2. Since the data to be transmitted is distributed between the wireless communication unit and the wired communication unit, there is a possibility that duplicate data transmission or data loss may occur when switching between wireless communication and wired communication, in order to avoid the occurrence It is necessary to add the means. For example, it is conceivable to avoid this problem by buffering data in the data control unit and the communication selection unit. In this case, however, storage corresponding to the amount of video data to be transferred before the communication switching is stabilized. There is a problem that a memory having a capacity is required and a time delay is caused by buffering video data.

  3. The wireless communication unit and the wired communication unit control independent communication protocols, and the problems 1. And 2. In order to solve this problem, the number of mounting parts increases, and the mounting area and cost increase.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to switch both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function and use both communication functions according to the communication function to be used. COMMUNICATION DEVICE, COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, COMMUNICATION METHOD, COMMUNICATION PROGRAM, AND COMMUNICATION DEVICE WITHOUT NEEDING PROVIDING FOR ADJUSTING FUNCTIONS USED IN COMMON It is to provide a recording medium.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the communication device of the present invention is a communication device that can switch both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, and a communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception; A modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal is provided in common for both communication functions.

  According to the above configuration, even when the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication affect functions other than the communication speed, the function is appropriately set without newly providing means for adjusting the function. Can be used.

  In addition, since the communication control unit and the modulation / demodulation unit are commonly provided for each communication function, it is not necessary to distribute data to be communicated according to each communication function. For this reason, it is possible to prevent a delay or loss of data transmission without providing means (a management mechanism) for avoiding the occurrence of duplicate data transmission or data loss (loss) when switching communication functions.

  Also, there are means for adjusting functions depending on the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication, and means for avoiding the occurrence of redundant data transmission or data loss when switching between the wireless communication function and the wired communication function. Since there is no need, functions that are affected by communication characteristics other than the communication speed can be used appropriately without increasing the number of mounting parts, mounting area, and cost, and with wired and wireless communication functions. Data transmission delays and omissions at the time of switching can be prevented.

  The modulation / demodulation unit modulates data to be transmitted into a baseband signal and demodulates the received baseband signal. A signal transmitted to and received from the baseband signal by wireless communication with the baseband signal. A common analog processing unit that generates an intermediate analog signal that is a signal subjected to all or part of analog processing for mutual conversion with a wireless analog signal, and the intermediate analog signal is converted into the both communication functions. It is good also as a structure used about in common.

  According to said structure, the communication apparatus of this invention is realizable using the existing LSI which provides the radio | wireless communication function in which the communication control part, the digital modulation / demodulation part, and the analog processing part are integrated.

  Also, it has amplification means for amplifying the signal, and at the time of wireless communication, the intermediate analog signal subjected to the above-mentioned analog processing is subjected to amplification processing to generate a wireless analog signal, and the received wireless analog signal is amplified. The wireless analog processing unit for generating the intermediate analog signal may be provided, and the common analog processing unit may be configured to perform processing excluding the amplification processing from the analog processing as part of the analog processing.

  According to the above configuration, the signal before the signal intensity is amplified by the amplifying unit is used as an intermediate analog signal in common in both communication functions. For this reason, since the signal level transmitted / received in wired communication can be made constant, the configuration for converting the intermediate analog signal into a wired analog signal which is a signal transmitted / received in wired communication can be omitted or simplified.

  In addition, there is a synthesis means for performing a synthesis process on the carrier wave of the signal to be transmitted and an inverse process of the above synthesis process on the received signal, and the synthesis process is performed on the intermediate analog signal subjected to a part of the analog process at the time of wireless communication To generate a wireless analog signal, and to perform a reverse processing of the synthesis process on the received wireless analog signal to generate the intermediate analog signal, the common analog processing unit of the analog processing As a part, it may be configured to perform processing that excludes the synthesis processing and the reverse processing from the analog processing.

  According to the above configuration, the signal before the synthesis process to the carrier wave by the synthesizing unit or the signal subjected to the inverse process of the synthesizing process by the synthesizing unit is used as an intermediate analog signal in both communication functions. Used for. For this reason, since a signal having a frequency lower than the frequency of the carrier wave can be used as a signal transmitted / received in wired communication, the intermediate analog signal is converted into a wired analog signal that is a signal transmitted / received in wired communication. The configuration can be omitted or simplified.

  Further, the intermediate analog signal may be used as a wired analog signal that is a signal transmitted and received by wired communication.

  In this case, since the intermediate analog signal is used as a wired analog signal that is a signal transmitted / received by wired communication, a configuration for converting the intermediate analog signal into a wired analog signal that is a signal transmitted / received by wired communication is added. There is no need, and the configuration of the communication apparatus of the present invention can be simplified.

  In addition, a detection unit that detects whether or not wired communication is possible is provided, and the communication control unit uses either a wired communication function or a wireless communication function for communication based on a detection result by the detection unit. It is good also as composition which chooses.

  According to the above configuration, the communication control unit can automatically switch the communication function appropriately without giving an instruction for switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function.

  In addition, when the wireless communication function is selected, when the wireless communication function is selected, when the wireless communication function is detected, the communication control unit detects the wired communication is possible. It is good also as a structure which measures the elapsed time after the said detection, and switches to a wired communication function when the state which can perform wired communication continues for the predetermined time after the said detection.

  According to the above configuration, in a state where the wireless communication function is selected, when the state in which wired communication is possible continues for a predetermined time or more, the communication control unit determines that wired communication is possible, Switch to wired communication function. Thereby, when the communication availability state of wired communication is unstable, the wireless communication function can be preferentially used and the wired communication function can be avoided from being enabled, so that stable communication can be continued.

  The communication control unit may be configured to switch to the wireless communication function when the detection unit detects that wired communication is not possible when the wired communication function is selected.

  According to the above configuration, when wired communication becomes impossible, the wireless communication is automatically switched, so that stable communication can be continued without being interrupted.

  In addition, the modulation / demodulation unit can perform modulation / demodulation processing using a plurality of modulation schemes having different transfer data amounts, and the communication control unit performs modulation / demodulation processing in the modulation / demodulation unit when wireless communication is selected. Alternatively, the modulation / demodulation method having a larger transfer data amount than that in the case where is selected may be used.

  According to said structure, the communication efficiency by a wired communication function can be improved, and the more stable wired communication is attained. In addition, for example, when the wireless communication environment is bad for some reason, only data that has undergone modulation / demodulation processing in the modulation / demodulation unit with a modulation / demodulation method with a small amount of transfer data can be wirelessly communicated. Alternatively, when it is desired to communicate a large amount of data, it is possible to perform stable communication with high communication efficiency by switching to wired communication.

  In addition, when only one of the communication functions is used, a circuit used only for the other communication function may be set in a low power consumption state. Thereby, the power consumption in the communication apparatus of this invention can be reduced.

  The communication control unit includes a wired reception detection unit that detects a reception signal of wired communication and a wireless reception detection unit that detects a reception signal of wireless communication, and the communication control unit detects the reception signal by any of the reception detection units. In this case, reception from a communication function in which a reception signal is detected may be selected.

  According to said structure, the said communication control part selects the communication function corresponding to the detected received signal. As a result, even if the signal is transmitted using either the wireless communication function or the wired communication function, the communication control unit automatically performs the instruction without switching the wired communication function and the wireless communication function. It is possible to switch to an appropriate communication function.

  The communication control unit may be configured to transmit a signal using both wired communication and wireless communication at the time of signal transmission. As a result, not only a communication device that can use both wired communication and wireless communication, but also a communication device that can perform communication using only a wireless communication function or a wired communication function, from the communication device of the present invention. The transmitted signal can be received.

  In addition, in a communication device that can select and switch between signal reception and wired communication function and wireless communication function, the same data can be received from any communication function. It is possible to avoid interruption of data or data loss due to interruption.

  In addition, when the communication control unit performs communication by either wired communication or wireless communication, before starting the communication, the communication control unit notifies the start using both the wireless communication and the wired communication, or the communication period of the communication. It is good also as a structure which transmits information.

  Thereby, for example, when the communication device on the receiving side can use both the wireless communication function and the wired communication function, when communicating using one communication function, the communication device of the present invention and the communication device on the receiving side In both cases, the other communication function can be stopped. Therefore, power consumption can be reduced in both communication apparatuses.

  Further, for example, when the communication device on the receiving side can communicate only with the other communication function, even if the communication device on the receiving side cannot detect the communication signal by one communication function, the communication device of the present invention Therefore, it is possible to prevent the communication apparatus of the present invention from starting useless communication.

  In addition, for example, even in a communication device that can communicate with only one of the wireless communication function and the wired communication function, communication using the other communication function in the communication system to which the communication device belongs The device and its communication period can be recognized. For this reason, a communication device that can communicate only with one communication function described above recognizes another communication device that is communicating with the other communication function during that period even though the other received signal cannot be detected. Transmission to the communication device can be avoided.

  In order to solve the above problems, a communication system according to the present invention includes any one of the communication devices described above.

  According to the above configuration, both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function can be switched and used, and a means for adjusting a function commonly used for both communication functions according to the communication function to be used, and It is possible to realize a communication system that does not require provision of means for preventing duplicate transmission and loss of data when switching communication functions.

  Further, the communication system of the present invention uses the above-described communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, in common for both communication functions. The device or the modulation / demodulation unit modulates data to be transmitted into a baseband signal and demodulates the received baseband signal. The baseband signal is transmitted / received to / from the baseband signal through wireless communication. A common analog processing unit that generates an intermediate analog signal that is a signal that has been subjected to all or part of the analog processing for mutually converting the wireless analog signal that is a signal to be transmitted to the both communication A communication device used in common for functions or an amplifying means for amplifying a signal. A wireless analog processing unit that performs amplification processing on the intermediate analog signal generated to generate a wireless analog signal, performs amplification processing on the received wireless analog signal to generate the intermediate analog signal, and the common analog processing unit includes: As a part of the analog processing, a communication device that performs processing excluding the amplification processing from the analog processing, or combining means that performs combining processing of a signal to be transmitted on a carrier wave and reverse processing of the combining processing on a received signal A wireless analog signal is generated by performing a synthesis process on the intermediate analog signal subjected to a part of the analog processing during wireless communication, and a reverse process of the synthesis process is performed on the received wireless analog signal. A wireless analog processing unit for generating an intermediate analog signal, the common analog processing unit A communication device that performs processing excluding the synthesis processing and its inverse processing from the analog processing, or a communication device that uses the intermediate analog signal as a wired analog signal that is transmitted and received by wired communication, or reception of wired communication A wired reception detection means for detecting a signal and a wireless reception detection means for detecting a reception signal of wireless communication, wherein the communication control unit receives the reception signal when the reception signal is detected by any of the reception detection means. A communication device that selects reception from a communication function in which detection is performed, or the communication control unit transmits a signal using both wired communication and wireless communication during signal transmission, and the communication control unit includes: When communication is performed using either wired communication or wireless communication, before starting the communication, start notification using both wireless communication and wired communication, or May include two or more communication devices of any one of the communication devices that transmit the communication period information of the communication, and may include a communication device having only one of the wireless communication function and the wired communication function.

  According to the above configuration, it is possible to configure a communication system in which a communication device having both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function and a communication device capable of communicating only with either the wired communication function or the wireless communication function are mixed. It becomes possible.

  In addition, a communication device having both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function capable of switching, a communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and modulation / demodulation that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal The modem is commonly used for both communication functions, the modem can perform modulation / demodulation processing using a plurality of modulation schemes having different transfer data amounts, and the communication controller is selected for wired communication. A communication device that performs modulation / demodulation processing in the modulation / demodulation unit with a modulation / demodulation method having a larger transfer data amount than when wireless communication is selected is used as a communication device that manages other communication devices included in the communication system. It may be used.

  According to the above configuration, in a communication system including an STA (Station, communication device) capable of only wireless communication and an STA capable of wired communication, digital modulation / demodulation having a larger transfer data amount than that during wireless communication during wired communication. By using a communication apparatus that uses the method as an AP (Access Point, communication apparatus) that is a communication apparatus that manages STA communication, the communication efficiency of the AP in the communication system can be improved. Further, since communication within the communication system managed by the AP is basically performed via the AP, the communication efficiency of the entire communication system can be improved by improving the communication efficiency of the AP.

  In addition, a communication device having both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function capable of switching, a communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and modulation / demodulation that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal The communication control unit includes a communication device configured to transmit a signal using both wired communication and wireless communication at the time of signal transmission. You may use as a communication apparatus which manages these communication apparatuses.

  According to said structure, it becomes possible to transmit the same signal simultaneously with respect to the communication apparatus which can communicate only by a wireless communication function, and the communication apparatus which can communicate only by a wired communication function. Thereby, for example, even in a communication system that requires that signal transmission from an AP be received by all STAs, only the STA and wireless communication that can perform only wired communication by using the above communication device as an AP. It is possible to construct a communication system capable of communicating with STAs capable of communication.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the communication method of the present invention is a communication method for performing communication by switching both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, and includes a modulation process of a signal to be transmitted and a received signal The demodulation process is performed as a process common to the two communication functions.

  According to the above method, even when the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication affect functions other than the communication speed, the function is appropriately set without newly providing means for adjusting the function. Can be used.

  In addition, since there is no need to distribute the data to be communicated according to each communication function, there is no provision (a management mechanism) for avoiding the occurrence of duplicate data transmission or data loss (loss) when switching communication functions. , Data transmission delays and omissions can be prevented.

  Also, there are means for adjusting functions depending on the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication, and means for avoiding the occurrence of redundant data transmission or data loss when switching between the wireless communication function and the wired communication function. Since there is no need, functions that are affected by communication characteristics other than the communication speed can be used appropriately without increasing the number of mounting parts, mounting area, and cost, and with wired and wireless communication functions. Data transmission delays and omissions at the time of switching can be prevented.

  In order to solve the above problems, a communication program of the present invention is for causing a computer provided in a communication device to function as a communication control unit in the communication device described above.

  By causing the computer as described above to read these communication programs, the processing of the communication control unit in the communication apparatus of the present invention can be realized by the computer.

  Further, by storing these communication programs in a computer-readable recording medium, the program can be easily stored and distributed. Furthermore, by reading this recording medium, the computer can execute the processing of the communication control unit in the communication apparatus of the present invention.

  As described above, the communication apparatus according to the present invention includes the communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission / reception and the modulation / demodulation unit that modulates the signal to be transmitted and demodulates the received signal for both the communication functions. Yes.

  Therefore, even when the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication affect functions other than the communication speed, the functions should be used appropriately without newly providing means for adjusting the functions. Can do.

  Further, it is possible to prevent a delay or loss of data transmission without providing means (a management mechanism) for avoiding the occurrence of duplicate data transmission or data loss (loss) when switching communication functions.

  In addition, functions that are affected by communication characteristics other than communication speed can be used appropriately without increasing the number of mounted parts, mounting area, and cost, and when switching between wired and wireless communication functions. Data transmission delays and omissions can be prevented.

  The communication system of the present invention includes any one of the communication devices described above. Therefore, it is possible to realize a communication system that can perform communication by switching between a wired communication function and a wireless communication function, and can prevent duplicate transmission and omission of data when the communication function is switched.

  In the communication method of the present invention, the modulation process of the signal to be transmitted and the demodulation process of the received signal are performed as a common process for the above two communication functions.

  Therefore, even when the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication affect functions other than the communication speed, the functions should be used appropriately without newly providing means for adjusting the functions. Can do.

  Further, it is possible to prevent a delay or loss of data transmission without providing means (a management mechanism) for avoiding the occurrence of duplicate data transmission or data loss (loss) when switching communication functions.

  In addition, functions that are affected by communication characteristics other than communication speed can be used appropriately without increasing the number of mounted parts, mounting area, and cost, and when switching between wired and wireless communication functions. Data transmission delays and omissions can be prevented.

  The communication program of the present invention is for causing a computer provided in a communication device to function as a communication control unit in the communication device described above.

  By causing the computer as described above to read these communication programs, the processing of the communication control unit in the communication apparatus of the present invention can be realized by the computer.

  Further, by storing these communication programs in a computer-readable recording medium, the program can be easily stored and distributed. Furthermore, by reading this recording medium, the computer can execute the processing of the communication control unit in the communication apparatus of the present invention.

[Embodiment 1]
An embodiment of the present invention will be described. A communication device according to the present embodiment (a communication device 100 described later) has a wired communication function and a wireless communication function, and controls a signal transmission and reception operation, and digitally modulates transmission data. A digital modulation / demodulation unit that converts the received signal into a baseband signal and digitally demodulates the received baseband signal is shared by both communication functions.

  Further, the communication device 100 determines whether or not wired communication is possible according to the connection state of the communication cable, and automatically performs switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function based on the determination result. It is like that.

  In the communication device 100 and a communication system including the communication device 100, IEEE Std. The analog signal transmitted / received between the digital modulation / demodulation method and the communication apparatus is adopted as IEEE Std. 802.11-1999, IEEE Std. 802.11a, IEEE Std. 802.11b or IEEE Std. The one that conforms to the regulations of 802.11g is adopted.

  IEEE Std. The communication control method according to 802.11-1999 detects whether or not to start transmission according to whether or not communication is performed by detecting radio waves in the wireless band before starting transmission of data to the wireless band. CSMA / CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access With Collision Aviation) is determined as a basis.

  In addition, a basic series of communication operations is a signal including the data content that is sent back from the communication device (reception side) that is the data destination immediately after the transmission end of the signal including the data content is completed. Is completed by receiving a signal notifying that it has been received. Note that a unit of a signal transmitted and received in this wireless communication is called a frame, a frame including data is a data frame, and a frame for notifying a data transmission source that the data has been normally received is an ACK frame. Call. Further, the Frame includes information (Duration) indicating a period necessary to complete the remaining series of communication operations immediately after the transmission of the Frame. Communication device that is not the destination) or destination (reception side) can recognize that the wireless band is occupied by another communication device during this period using this Duration. This mechanism for determining whether or not the radio band is occupied by another communication device is called a NAV mechanism (Network Allocation Vector). Thus, even if radio wave signal detection becomes unstable due to some factor, a series of communications once started is not interfered with by other communication terminals, and communication reliability is improved.

  In addition, the communication apparatus 100 is configured as IEEE Std. Time information of a TSF (Timing Synchronization Function) timer that is required by all STAs (Stations) and APs (Access Points) in the communication system and needs to be synchronized, as defined in 802.11-1999 The video transfer function used is implemented. Here, the STA is a communication device capable of only communication (wireless communication and / or wired communication), and the AP is a communication device capable of managing communication of the STA.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of the communication apparatus 100. As shown in this figure, a communication device 100 includes a data control unit 1, a communication control unit (MAC: Media Access Control) 2, a digital modulation / demodulation unit (modulation / demodulation unit, BB: Base Band) 3, a selection unit 4, and wired analog processing. Unit 5, connector unit 6, wireless analog processing unit 7, antenna unit 8, connector connection detection unit (detection unit) 9, and timer (timer unit) 10.

  The data control unit 1 generates data to be communicated and transmits the data to the communication control unit 2, and processes data received from the communication control unit 2 via the connector unit 6 or the antenna unit 8.

  The communication control unit 2 controls all operations related to signal transmission and reception, that is, all operations related to communication. Note that the communication control unit 2 handles communication data in a frame format, and issues a frame transmission / reception timing instruction. The communication control unit 2 controls switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function in the selection unit 4 according to the detection result of the connector connection detection unit 9. More specifically, the connector connection detection unit 9 detects whether or not a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6, and determines whether or not wired communication is possible from the detection result. When it is determined that wired communication is possible, a wired communication mode (wired communication function) is selected. That is, the wired communication function is enabled. On the other hand, when it is determined that wired communication is impossible, the wireless communication mode (wireless communication function) is selected and the wireless communication function is enabled.

  The digital modulation / demodulation unit 3 digitally modulates transmission data (Frame) delivered from the communication control unit 2 to convert it into a baseband signal, and digitally converts the baseband signal received via the connector unit 6 or the antenna unit 8. Demodulated and converted into received data (Frame) that can be analyzed by the communication control unit 2.

  The selection unit 4 is a wired analog processing unit 5 that performs analog processing corresponding to the wireless communication function on the baseband signal converted by the digital modulation / demodulation unit 3, or wired communication on the baseband signal. The wireless analog processing unit 6 that performs the analog processing corresponding to the function is switched to which of the wireless analog processing units 6 transmits the analog processing.

  The wired analog processing unit 5 converts the baseband signal into a wired analog signal for wired communication. The wired analog processing unit 5 converts the wired analog signal received via the connector unit 6 into a baseband signal. Note that a baseband signal may be used as the wired analog signal. In this case, the wired analog processing unit 5 may be omitted and the baseband signal may be transmitted between the selection unit 4 and the connector unit 6. .

  The connector unit 6 transmits the wired analog signal converted by the wired analog processing unit 5 to another communication device. Further, the connector unit 6 receives a wired analog signal transmitted from another communication device and transmits it to the wired analog processing unit 5.

  The wireless analog processing unit 6 converts the baseband signal into a wireless analog signal for wireless communication. Further, the wireless analog processing unit 6 converts the wireless analog signal received via the antenna unit 8 into a baseband signal.

  The antenna unit 8 transmits the wireless analog signal converted by the wireless analog processing unit 6 to another communication device. In addition, the antenna unit 8 receives a wireless analog signal transmitted from another communication device and transmits it to the wireless analog processing unit 7.

  The connector connection detection unit 9 detects whether or not a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6 and transmits the detection result to the communication control unit 2.

  The timer 10 measures time according to an instruction from the communication control unit 2. The measurement time in the timer 10 can be reset in accordance with an instruction from the communication control unit 2.

  As described above, in the communication device 100, the communication control unit for controlling the operation related to transmission / reception in the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, and the transmission data are modulated into the baseband signal, and the received baseband signal is digitally converted. The digital modulation / demodulation unit to demodulate is shared. In other words, in the communication device 100, operations related to transmission / reception in the wired communication function and the wireless communication function are controlled by the communication control unit 2 which is a communication control unit common to both communication functions. Data modulation / demodulation unit common to both communication functions for modulation of data to be transmitted to the baseband signal by the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, and digital demodulation of the baseband signal received by the wired communication function and the wireless communication function This is performed by the data modulation / demodulation unit 3.

  As a result, in the communication device 100, although a management function for a TSF timer (application) specific to a wireless LAN used for video transfer is implemented, a part of the wireless communication function can be used even during wired communication. There is no need to add means for synchronizing a TSF timer. That is, even when the communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication affect functions (applications) other than the communication speed, there is no need to newly provide means (mechanism) for adjusting the affected functions.

  In addition, since the communication device 100 includes the common communication control unit 2 and digital modulation / demodulation unit 3 for the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, it is not necessary to distribute data to be communicated according to each communication function. For this reason, it is not necessary to provide means (a management mechanism) for avoiding the occurrence of duplicate data transmission or data loss (loss) when switching communication functions. Further, without providing such means, it is possible to prevent delays and omissions in data transmission and video disturbances associated therewith.

  In addition, as described above, means for adjusting functions depending on communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication, and means for avoiding occurrence of redundant data transmission or data loss when switching between wireless communication and wired communication Therefore, there is no increase in mounting parts, mounting area and cost. That is, without causing an increase in the number of parts, an increase in mounting area and cost, adjustment of functions depending on communication characteristics of wireless communication and wired communication, and redundant transmission of data at the time of switching between wireless communication and wired communication Alternatively, data loss can be prevented.

  Next, the switching operation of the wired communication function and the wireless communication function in the communication apparatus 100 will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a flow of communication function switching processing in the communication apparatus 100.

  When the communication device 100 is activated, the communication control unit 2 first detects whether or not a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6 (S1). That is, the communication control unit 2 determines whether or not the connector connection detection unit 9 has detected that a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6.

  When the communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6, the communication control unit 2 controls the selection unit 4 to switch to the wired communication mode (S2). That is, the communication control unit 2 enables the wired communication function when a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6 and wired communication is possible. When the communication cable is not connected to the connector unit 6, that is, when the wired communication is not possible, the communication control unit 2 performs the processing after S5 described later.

  Even after switching to the wired communication mode in S2, the communication control unit 2 continues to monitor whether or not a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6 (S3).

  When a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6, the communication control unit 2 continues the wired communication mode and waits for a power-off instruction for the communication device 100 from the user (S4). Note that the communication apparatus 100 includes a power switch (not shown), and the user can transmit a power-off instruction to the communication control unit 2 via the power switch.

  When the power-off instruction is not issued in S4, the communication control unit 2 continues the wired communication mode and continues the processes after S3. On the other hand, when a power-off instruction is given in S4, the communication control unit 2 ends the process.

  In S1 and S3, when a communication cable is not connected to the connector unit 6, the communication control unit 2 determines that wired communication is impossible and switches to the wireless communication mode (S5).

  Further, after switching to the wireless communication mode in S5, the communication control unit 2 monitors whether a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6 (S6).

  When the connector connection detection unit 9 detects that the communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6, the communication control unit 2 resets the timer 10 and starts measuring time (S7). When the communication cable is not connected to the connector unit 6, the communication control unit 2 performs the process of S10 described later.

  Moreover, the communication control part 2 continues monitoring whether the communication cable is connected to the connector part 6 after performing the process of S7 (S8).

  Here, when the connector connection detection unit 9 stops detecting the connection of the communication cable to the connector unit 6, that is, when the connection of the communication cable to the connector unit 6 is released, the communication control unit 2 performs the process of S10 described later. Process.

  On the other hand, when the connector connection detection unit 9 continues to detect the connection of the communication cable to the connector unit 6, that is, when the connection state of the communication cable to the connector unit 6 is continued, the communication control unit 2 It is determined whether or not the measurement time by has exceeded a predetermined time set in advance (S9).

  And when the measurement time by the timer 11 exceeds predetermined time, the communication control part 2 performs the process after S2. That is, the communication control unit 2 determines that the wired communication is possible and controls the selection unit 4 to switch the communication function from the wireless communication mode to the wired communication mode.

  If the time measured by the timer 11 does not reach the predetermined time in S9, the communication control unit 2 continues the processing from S8.

  When the communication cable is not connected to the connector unit 6 in S6 or when the connection of the communication cable to the connector unit 6 is released in S8, the communication control unit 2 continues the wireless communication mode and the user Waits for a power-off instruction of the communication apparatus 100 from (S10).

  If the power-off instruction has not been issued, the communication control unit 2 continues the wireless communication mode and continues the processes after S6. On the other hand, when a power-off instruction is given, the communication control unit 2 ends the process.

  As described above, in the communication device 100, the switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function is performed by the connector connection detection unit 9 as a result of detecting whether or not the communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6 (connector insertion / extraction state). Detection result), that is, the detection result of whether or not wired communication is possible. Accordingly, the communication control unit 2 can automatically switch the communication function appropriately without giving an instruction for switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function.

  In the communication device 100, when the wireless communication function is selected, after detecting that the communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6, the connection state is continued for a predetermined time (a certain period). Then, it is determined that wired communication is possible, and the function is switched to the wired communication function.

  Thereby, when switching from the wireless communication function to the wired communication function, the wireless communication is performed in a time when the connector contact (contact state of the communication cable with respect to the connector part 6) is unstable when the communication cable is inserted into or removed from the connector part 6 Since the function can be used preferentially and the wired communication function can be prevented from being enabled, stable communication can be continued.

  Further, in the state where the wired communication function is selected, the communication device 100 immediately switches to the wireless communication function when it is detected that the communication cable is not connected to the connector unit 6. That is, when it is detected from the detection result of the connection state of the communication cable to the connector unit 6 that the wired communication is impossible, the wireless communication function is immediately switched. As a result, when wired communication becomes impossible, the wireless communication is automatically switched immediately, so that stable communication can be continued without being interrupted.

  In the communication apparatus 100, the IEEE Std. The analog signal transmitted / received between the digital modulation / demodulation method and the communication apparatus is adopted as IEEE Std. 802.11-1999, IEEE Std. 802.11a, IEEE Std. 802.11b or IEEE Std. Although a signal conforming to the regulations of 802.11g is adopted, the communication control method, the digital modulation / demodulation method, and the analog signal transmitted / received between the communication devices in the communication device 100 are not limited to the above-mentioned rules.

  For example, only a part of the above rules may be adopted, and other methods may be adopted otherwise. Further, as long as the communication control method and the digital modulation / demodulation method can be shared in the wireless communication function and the wired communication function, all of them may be different methods.

  Further, in the communication apparatus 100, the digital modulation / demodulation performed by the digital modulation / demodulation unit at the time of wired communication may be performed by a modulation / demodulation method having a larger transfer data amount than at the time of wireless communication. In this case, for example, if the wireless communication environment is poor for some reason, only data that has been subjected to digital modulation / demodulation using a modulation / demodulation method with a small amount of data to be transferred can be communicated. When it is desired to communicate data, switching to wired communication makes it possible to perform stable communication with high communication efficiency. It should be noted that means for detecting the deterioration of the wireless communication environment is provided, and when the wireless communication environment deteriorates below a predetermined standard, the communication control unit 2 controls the selection unit 4 to change from the wireless communication function to the wired communication function. You may make it switch automatically.

  Further, in the communication device 100, when communication is alternately performed in a time division manner with respect to both a communication terminal (communication device) that performs communication using a wired communication function and a communication terminal that performs communication using a wireless communication function, the wireless communication is performed during wired communication. By using a digital modulation / demodulation method having a larger transfer data amount than that during communication, the period occupied by wired communication, that is, the period during which wired communication is performed becomes shorter, and the period during which wireless communication is possible becomes longer. The communication efficiency can be improved.

  Further, in a communication system (network) in which an STA (Station) capable of only wireless communication and an STA capable of wired communication exist, a communication apparatus using a digital modulation / demodulation method with a larger transfer data amount at the time of wired communication than at the time of wireless communication By using 100 as an AP (Access Point) which is a communication device that manages STA communication, the communication efficiency of the AP in the network can be improved. In addition, since communication within the network managed by the AP is basically performed via the AP, the communication efficiency of the entire network can be improved by improving the communication efficiency of the AP.

  For example, when the present invention is applied to a wireless LAN, there is an STA (Station, communication device) capable of only wireless communication and an STA capable of wired communication, and an AP (Access) that is a communication device that manages communication of the STA When the Point) can use the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, the communication within the network managed by the AP is basically performed via the AP. Communication efficiency can be improved.

  Further, in the communication device 100, when only one of the communication functions is used, a circuit used only with the other communication function may be set in a low power consumption state. Thereby, power consumption can be reduced. For example, at the time of wired communication, the communication control unit 2 may place a circuit used only at the time of wireless communication in a low power consumption state. Thereby, power consumption can be reduced when the wired communication function is selected. In this case, as a circuit for setting a low power consumption state, a part of the wireless analog processing unit 7, for example, a PA (Power Amplifier) that amplifies a signal when transmitting a radio wave in wireless communication, amplifying a weak received radio signal LNA (Low Noise Amplifier) that is a circuit that performs the above. By stopping the power supply to these circuits, the power consumption can be reduced.

  Further, in the communication device 100, the communication control unit 2 performs all switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function in accordance with the connection state of the communication cable to the connector unit 6, but the present invention is not limited to this. Absent. For example, a means for accepting an instruction related to selection of a communication function from the user may be provided, and when there is an instruction from the user, switching may be performed according to the instruction. Thereby, for example, even when a communication cable is connected to the connector unit 6 and wired communication is possible, it is possible to perform wireless communication when the user desires wireless communication.

[Embodiment 2]
Another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, a communication device that detects a connection state in the connector unit 6 and switches between a wired communication function and a wireless communication function so as to perform wired communication without performing wireless communication when wired communication is possible. 100 has been described. In this configuration, a communication system configured by two communication devices that are connected via a communication cable and can use a wired communication function with each other, or all communication devices that constitute the communication system have a wired communication function and a wireless communication function. It is effective when applied to a communication system that can use both.

  However, it is not always effective when the communication system is composed of two or more communication devices, and the communication system includes a communication device capable of communication only by a wired communication function or a wireless communication function. There is a case. For example, in the communication device 100 according to the first embodiment, the wired communication function is selected when wired communication is possible. In this configuration, the communication device 100 is in a state capable of wired communication. If the communication device of the communication destination can only perform wireless communication, communication cannot be performed.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, a communication device capable of communicating with a communication device capable of only wireless communication even in a state where wired communication is possible, and a communication system including the communication device will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the communication apparatus (communication apparatus 200) according to the present embodiment. The communication device 200 can communicate with a communication device capable of only wireless communication even when wired communication is possible. For convenience of explanation, functional blocks having the same functions as those of the communication device 100 in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the communication device 200 includes a data control unit 1, a communication control unit (MAC) 2a, a digital modulation / demodulation unit 3, a selection unit 4a, a wired analog processing unit 5a, a connector unit 6, a wireless analog processing unit 7a, An antenna unit 8 is provided. Further, in the communication device 200 and the communication system including the communication device, as in the communication device 1 in the first embodiment, the IEEE Std. The analog signal transmitted / received between the digital modulation / demodulation method and the communication apparatus is adopted as IEEE Std. 802.11-1999, IEEE Std. 802.11a, IEEE Std. 802.11b or IEEE Std. The one that conforms to the regulations of 802.11g is adopted.

  When performing frame transmission, the selection unit 4a outputs a baseband signal to both the wired analog processing unit and the wireless analog processing unit. That is, in the communication device 200, when performing frame transmission, the communication control unit 2a controls the selection unit 4a to perform both wired communication and wireless communication. Thereby, the Frame transmitted from the communication device 200 can be received also by a terminal (communication device) that can communicate only with either the wireless communication function or the wired communication function.

  The wired analog processing unit 5a converts the baseband signal into a wired analog signal for wired communication. The wired analog processing unit 5a converts the wired analog signal received via the connector unit 6 into a baseband signal. The wired analog processing unit 5 a includes a connector reception intensity measuring unit 21. The connector reception strength measurement unit 21 measures the reception strength at the connector unit 6 and transmits the measurement result to the communication control unit 2a when performing frame reception.

  The wireless analog processing unit 7a converts the baseband signal into a wireless analog signal for wireless communication. The wireless analog processing unit 7a converts a wireless analog signal received via the antenna unit 8 into a baseband signal. The wireless analog processing unit 7 a includes an antenna reception intensity measurement unit 22. When receiving the frame, the antenna reception intensity measurement unit 22 measures the reception intensity at the antenna unit 8 and transmits the measurement result to the communication control unit 2a.

  The communication control unit 2a controls all operations related to signal transmission and reception. Note that the communication control unit 2a handles communication data in a frame format, and issues a frame transmission / reception timing instruction.

  In addition, when performing frame reception, the communication control unit 2a switches between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function in the selection unit 4 according to the measurement results of the connector reception strength measurement unit 21 and the antenna reception strength measurement unit 22. Control. More specifically, the communication control unit 2a determines whether Frame reception is started in wired communication or wireless communication from the strength of the received signal measured in the connector unit 6 and the antenna unit 8, and the wired communication function Select which of the wireless communication functions is used for reception processing. Thereby, it is possible to receive a frame transmitted using either the wireless communication function or the wired communication function.

  Here, a description will be given of a method for selecting whether to perform frame reception using the communication method of the wired communication function or the wireless communication function in the communication apparatus 200. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing for selecting a communication function for frame reception in the communication apparatus 200.

  When the communication device 200 is activated, the communication control unit 2a monitors whether a received signal is detected (received) in the connector unit 6 or the antenna unit 8 (S101). That is, it is monitored that a received signal is detected in the wired communication function or the wireless communication function.

  If a received signal is detected in either the wired communication function or the wireless communication function, the communication control unit 2a determines whether the received signal is a wired communication signal (S102). That is, it is determined whether the received signal is detected in the wired communication function or the wireless communication function.

  If a reception signal is detected in the wired communication function, frame reception from the wired communication function is selected (S103). Thereafter, the communication control unit 2a continues the frame reception from the wired communication function until the frame reception from the wired communication function ends (S104).

  In addition, when the frame reception from the wired communication function is completed, the communication control unit 2a determines whether or not there is a power-off instruction from the user (S105). If there is no power off instruction, the processing from S101 is performed again. On the other hand, when there is a power-off instruction, the communication control unit 2a ends the process. Note that the user can give a power-off instruction for the communication apparatus 100 to the communication control unit 2a via an input unit (not shown).

  On the other hand, when the received signal is not a wired communication signal in S102, that is, when the received signal is detected by the wireless communication function, the communication control unit 2a selects frame reception from the wireless communication function (S106). Thereafter, the communication control unit 2a continues the frame reception from the wireless communication function until the frame reception from the wireless communication function ends (S107).

  In addition, when frame reception from the wireless communication function is completed, the communication control unit 2a determines whether or not a power-off instruction has been given (S108). If there is no power off instruction, the processing from S101 is performed again. On the other hand, when there is a power-off instruction, the communication control unit 2a ends the process.

  As described above, in the communication device 200 according to the present embodiment, when performing frame transmission, the communication control unit 2a controls the selection unit 4a to perform both wired communication and wireless communication. That is, in the communication device 200, when both wired communication and wireless communication are communicable, and when a signal is transmitted from the communication device 200, the selection unit 4a responds to an instruction from the communication control unit 2a. The baseband signal modulated by the data modulation / demodulation unit 2 is transmitted to both the wired analog processing unit 5a and the wireless analog processing unit 7a.

  Thereby, the frame transmitted from the communication device 200 is not limited to a communication device that can use both wired communication and wireless communication, but also in a communication device that can communicate only with either the wireless communication function or the wired communication function. Can receive.

  Therefore, a communication device capable of selecting and switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function for signal reception can receive the same data from any communication function, so communication at the time of switching the communication function It is possible to avoid interruption of data or data loss due to interruption.

  Further, the same signal can be simultaneously transmitted to a communication device that can communicate only with a wireless communication function and a communication device that can communicate only with a wired communication function. Thereby, for example, even in a wireless LAN network in which signal transmission from an AP needs to be received by all STAs, by using the communication device 200 as an AP, an STA or wireless communication capable of only wired communication. It is possible to construct a network (communication system) capable of communicating with STAs that can only perform communication.

  In the communication apparatus 200, the communication control unit 2a constantly monitors the reception signal for wired communication and the reception signal for wireless communication via the connector reception strength measurement unit 21 and the antenna reception strength measurement unit 22, and the reception signal Switching between the wired communication function and the wireless communication function is performed so as to perform reception from the communication function that has detected.

  Thereby, both the received signal transmitted by wired communication and the received signal transmitted by wireless communication can be received appropriately. Therefore, in a state in which the communication device 200 can communicate both with the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, appropriate communication is performed with respect to both other communication devices capable of wireless communication or other communication devices capable of wired communication. Can be performed.

  In the communication apparatus 200, when it is determined whether the destination communication apparatus can communicate by wired communication or wireless communication at the time of Frame transmission, only the wired communication function or the wireless communication function is provided. The frame may be transmitted by operating.

  In this case, it is only necessary to operate a communication function necessary for performing communication with the communication apparatus of the transmission destination, so that power consumption can be suppressed.

  In addition, when it is possible to predict that a frame will be received subsequently immediately after transmission or reception of the frame, and whether it is possible to predict whether the frame predicted to be received will be transmitted by wired communication or wireless communication Regardless of the reception signal detection results from the connector unit 6 and the antenna unit 8, the communication function for which Frame reception is predicted may be selected for a certain period. For example, after data frame transmission is transmitted only in the wired function, reception of ACK frame in wired communication is predicted. In this case, before reception of ACK frame is started in wired communication, wireless communication is predicted. Even if signal reception is detected for some reason in communication, frame reception with a wired communication function instead of a wireless communication function may be selected. Thereby, for example, a series of communication operations relating to frame transmission and reception of an ACK frame predicted thereafter can be reliably performed.

  In such a configuration, when the ACK frame is not received for some reason, it is preferable to end the selection of the wired communication function when a certain period has elapsed since the end of the transmission of the data frame. Further, as the fixed period, for example, ACK Timeout, which is a period for ending the ACK Frame reception waiting state for the Data Frame after transmitting the Data Frame in the wireless LAN standard, may be used.

  In addition, in the communication device 200, when performing a series of communication operations using only one of the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, the wireless communication function is performed before starting communication using either the wired communication function or the wireless communication function. The start notification itself or the communication period by one of the communication functions may be notified by both the wired communication function and the wired communication function.

  Thereby, for example, when the communication device on the reception side can use both the wireless communication function and the wired communication function, both the communication device 200 and the communication device on the reception side can communicate with each other when communicating using one communication function. The other communication function can be stopped. Therefore, power consumption can be reduced in both communication apparatuses.

  In addition, for example, when the communication device on the receiving side can communicate only with the other communication function, even if this communication device on the receiving side cannot detect an actual communication signal (communication signal by one communication function), It is determined that communication is not possible, and it is possible to prevent the communication device 200 in communication from starting useless communication.

  In addition, a communication device capable of communicating with only one of the wireless communication function and the wired communication function is a communication device that performs communication using the other communication function in a communication system (network) to which the communication device belongs, and The communication period can be recognized. For this reason, a communication device that can communicate only with one communication function described above recognizes another communication device that is communicating with the other communication function during that period even though the other received signal cannot be detected. Transmission to the communication device can be avoided.

  IEEE Std. Adopted as a communication control method in the present embodiment. 802.11-1999 has a NAV mechanism that uses a duration included in a frame and prevents interference from other communication apparatuses for a period required for a series of communication operations. Therefore, the first frame transmission in a series of communication operations is transmitted by both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, and the remaining frame communication is the destination communication device of the wired communication function or the wireless communication function. Communication may be performed only with the communication function of the one that can communicate.

  In addition, in IEEE P802.11e Draft 8.0, which is a regulation of QoS (Quality of Service) function extension in the communication control system of the wireless LAN standard, the AP performs QoS CF-Poll Frame transmission using the NAV mechanism. There is a mechanism for allocating a period during which a specific STA can exclusively communicate while preventing the start of communication operations by other STAs. In this case, the Frame transmitted first in a series of communication operations is a QoS CF-Poll Frame transmitted by the AP. For this reason, in the communication apparatus 200, when the transmitted frame is a QoS CF-Poll Frame, the transmission may be performed using both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function.

  In a communication system including two or more communication devices having a wired communication function and a wireless communication function, and further including one or more communication devices having only one of the wireless communication function and the wired communication function, the wired communication function and the wireless communication The communication device 200 may be used for at least one of the communication devices having the function. As a result, in a communication system in which a communication device having a wired communication function and a wireless communication function and a communication device capable of communicating only with either the wired communication function or the wireless communication function are mixed, communication that enables appropriate communication is possible. You can build a system.

[Embodiment 3]
Still another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first and second embodiments, the configuration example of the communication device that shares the communication control unit and the digital modulation / demodulation unit with the wired communication function and the wireless communication function has been described. In contrast, in this embodiment, in both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function, in addition to the communication control unit and the digital modulation / demodulation unit, the baseband signal and the wired analog signal or the wireless analog signal are mutually transmitted. A communication apparatus sharing a part or all of analog processing to be converted and a communication system including the communication apparatus will be described.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the communication apparatus 300 according to the present embodiment. For convenience of explanation, functional blocks having the same functions as those of the communication device 100 according to the first embodiment or the communication device 200 according to the second embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in this figure, the communication device 300 includes a data control unit 1, a communication control unit (MAC) 2b, a digital modulation / demodulation unit 3, a common analog processing unit 31, a selection unit 4b, a wired analog processing unit 5b, a connector unit 6, A wireless analog processing unit 7b and an antenna unit 8 are provided.

  The common analog processing unit 31 performs a part of analog processing on the baseband signal received from the digital modulation / demodulation processing unit 3 at the time of transmission, and converts it into an intermediate analog signal. At the time of reception, conversion from the intermediate analog signal to the baseband signal is performed.

  The wired analog processing unit 5 b converts the intermediate analog signal received from the common analog processing unit 31 into a wired analog signal capable of wired communication, and transmits the signal to the connector unit 6. Thereby, wired communication with the communication apparatus of the other party (transmission destination) via the connector unit 6 becomes possible. In addition, the wired analog processing unit 5b performs part of the conversion processing to a baseband signal on the wired analog signal received from another communication device, and converts it to an intermediate analog signal.

  The wireless analog processing unit 7 b converts the intermediate analog signal received from the common analog processing unit 31 into a wireless analog signal capable of wireless communication, and transmits the wireless analog signal to the antenna unit 8. Thereby, wireless communication with the communication apparatus of the other party via the antenna unit 8 becomes possible. In addition, the wireless analog processing unit 5b performs a part of conversion processing to a baseband signal on a wireless analog signal received from another communication device, and converts it into an intermediate analog signal.

  The selection unit 4b selects whether to transmit or receive using a wired communication function or a wireless communication function in accordance with an instruction from the communication control unit 2b. That is, the intermediate analog signal is switched between transmission to the wired analog processing unit 5a used for the wired communication function and transmission to the wireless analog processing unit 7a used for the wireless communication function.

  As described above, in the communication apparatus 300, the communication control unit 2b, the digital modulation / demodulation unit 3, and the common analog processing unit 31 are commonly used for both the wired communication function and the wireless communication device. As a result, a wireless LAN LSI (communication control unit, digital modulation / demodulation unit, and analog processing unit are integrated with each other), where the communication control unit 2b, the digital modulation / demodulation unit 3, and the common analog processing unit 31 are mounted on one LSI. The communication device of the present invention, that is, the wired communication function and the wireless communication function can be switched by using the existing LSI that provides the function, and communication that can prevent duplicate transmission and omission of data at the time of switching the communication function A device can be realized.

  The configuration of the communication device 300 is not limited to the configuration using such a wireless LAN LSI for wireless communication. For example, a PA that is a component that amplifies a transmission radio signal or an LNA that is a component that amplifies a reception radio signal may be used as the wireless analog processing unit 5b. In this case, a signal obtained by performing signal amplification on the received signal, that is, a signal obtained by subjecting the baseband signal to analog processing other than signal amplification immediately before signal transmission and signal amplification immediately after reception in the wired analog processing unit 5b. This is used as an intermediate analog signal.

  In general, in wired communication, it is desirable that the signal strength is electrically at a constant level. For this reason, by using the signal before the signal intensity is amplified by the amplifier as the intermediate analog signal, the signal level transmitted and received in the wired communication can be made constant, and the signal processing unit (wired analog processing unit 5a) of the wired function can be provided. This can be realized with an electric circuit having a simpler configuration.

  Further, a signal before being combined with a carrier wave in the wireless analog processing unit 5b may be used as an intermediate analog signal. In other words, the common analog processing unit 31 may perform analog processing before combining with the carrier wave in the wireless analog processing unit 5b, and the wireless analog processing unit 5b may perform combining processing with the carrier wave. As a result, the signal handled by the wired analog processing unit 5a has a frequency lower than that of the carrier wave, and design restrictions such as noise countermeasures are facilitated.

  In the wireless analog processing unit 7b, analog signal amplification, carrier wave synthesis, or direct signal synthesis is performed, and other analog processing is performed by the common analog processing unit 31 (first processing unit). Also good.

  Moreover, when communicating with another communication apparatus using a wired communication function, an intermediate | middle analog signal can also be used as a signal transmitted / received between the connector parts of both communication apparatuses. In this case, the wired analog processing unit 5a may be omitted, and an intermediate analog signal may be transmitted between the selection unit 4b and the connector unit 6.

  In the above description, the common analog processing unit 31 has described a configuration in which a part of analog processing for mutually converting a baseband signal and a wired analog signal or a wireless analog signal is performed in common for both communication functions. Not limited to this, the common analog processing unit 31 may perform all analog processing in common for both communication functions. In this case, the wired analog processing unit 5a and the wireless analog processing unit 5b can be omitted.

  In each of the above-described embodiments, all operations related to signal transmission and reception in the communication devices 100, 200, and 300 are performed under the control of the communication control units 2, 2a, and 2b. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and a program for performing these processes may be recorded on a recording medium, and an information processing apparatus capable of reading the program may be used instead of the communication control units 2, 2a, 2b. Good.

  In this configuration, the arithmetic unit (CPU or MPU) of the information processing apparatus reads the program recorded on the recording medium and executes the process. Therefore, it can be said that this program itself realizes the processing.

  Here, as the information processing apparatus, in addition to a general computer (workstation or personal computer), a function expansion board or a function expansion unit mounted on the computer can be used.

  The above program is a program code (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program, etc.) of software that realizes processing. This program may be used alone or in combination with other programs (such as OS). The program may be read from the recording medium, temporarily stored in a memory (RAM or the like) in the apparatus, and then read and executed again.

  The recording medium for recording the program may be easily separable from the information processing apparatus, or may be fixed (attached) to the apparatus. Furthermore, it may be connected to the apparatus as an external storage device.

  Such recording media include magnetic tapes such as video tapes and cassette tapes, magnetic disks such as floppy (registered trademark) disks and hard disks, and optical disks such as CD-ROM, MO, MD, DVD and CD-R (magneto-optical). Disc), memory cards such as IC cards and optical cards, semiconductor memories such as mask ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, and flash ROM can be applied.

  Also, a recording medium connected to the information processing apparatus via a network (intranet / Internet) may be used. In this case, the information processing apparatus acquires the program by downloading via the network. That is, the above program may be acquired via a transmission medium (a medium that dynamically holds the program) such as a network (connected to a wired line or a wireless line). The program for downloading is preferably stored in advance in the apparatus (or in the transmission side apparatus / reception side apparatus).

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope shown in the claims, and can be obtained by appropriately combining technical means disclosed in different embodiments. Embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  The present invention can be applied to all communication devices including a switchable wired communication function and a wireless communication function. Further, the communication device of the present invention can be applied to a communication system including a communication device that can communicate with a wired communication function and / or a wireless communication function. Moreover, the communication apparatus of this invention can also be applied to the communication apparatus used as AP in these communication systems.

It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the communication apparatus concerning one embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of operation | movement in the communication apparatus concerning one embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the outline of a structure of the communication apparatus in Example 3 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of operation | movement in the communication apparatus concerning other embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the process for selecting the communication function which performs Frame reception in the communication apparatus concerning other embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the communication apparatus concerning further another embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the communication apparatus which has the conventional wired communication function and wireless communication function.

Explanation of symbols

1 Data control unit 2, 2a, 2b Communication control unit 3 Digital modulation / demodulation unit (modem / demodulation unit)
4, 4a, 4b Selection unit 5, 5a, 5b Wired analog processing unit 6 Connector unit 7, 7a, 7b Wireless analog processing unit 8 Antenna unit 9 Connector connection detection unit (detection means)
11 Timer (time measuring means)
21 Connector reception strength measurement unit (wired reception detection means)
22 Antenna reception strength measurement unit (wireless reception detection means)
31 Common analog processing unit 100, 200, 300 Communication device

Claims (17)

A communication device that is capable of switching both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function,
A communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, are provided in common for both communication functions ,
Detecting means for detecting whether or not wired communication is possible;
A time measuring means for measuring elapsed time,
The communication control unit
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
When the wireless communication function is selected and the detection means detects that the wired communication is possible, the time measurement means measures the elapsed time after the detection, and wired communication is possible after the detection. A communication apparatus that switches to a wired communication function when a certain state continues for a predetermined time . The modulation / demodulation unit modulates data to be transmitted into a baseband signal, and demodulates the received baseband signal.
An intermediate analog signal that is a signal obtained by performing all or part of analog processing for mutually converting the baseband signal and a wireless analog signal that is transmitted and received by wireless communication with respect to the baseband signal, A common analog processing unit for generating
The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate analog signal is used in common for both the communication functions. Amplifying means for amplifying the signal, generating a wireless analog signal by amplifying the intermediate analog signal subjected to a part of the above analog processing during wireless communication, and amplifying the received wireless analog signal; Wireless analog processing unit for generating the intermediate analog signal
The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the common analog processing unit performs processing excluding the amplification processing from the analog processing as part of the analog processing. Combining means for synthesizing a signal to be transmitted into a carrier wave and performing reverse processing of the above synthesizing process on the received signal. A wireless analog signal is generated, and a wireless analog processing unit that generates the intermediate analog signal by performing a reverse process of the synthesis process on the received wireless analog signal,
The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the common analog processing unit performs processing excluding the synthesis processing and the reverse processing from the analog processing as part of the analog processing. The communication apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the intermediate analog signal is used as a wired analog signal that is a signal transmitted and received by wired communication. A communication device that is capable of switching both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function,
A communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, are provided in common for both communication functions,
Provided with detecting means for detecting whether or not wired communication is possible,
The communication control unit
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
A communication apparatus, wherein when the wired communication function is selected, the wireless communication function is switched to the wireless communication function when the detection unit detects that wired communication is impossible. A communication device that is capable of switching both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function,
A communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, are provided in common for both communication functions,
The modulation / demodulation unit can perform modulation / demodulation processing with a plurality of modulation schemes having different transfer data amounts,
The communication control unit
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
A communication apparatus characterized in that, when wired communication is selected, modulation / demodulation processing in the modulation / demodulation unit is performed by a modulation / demodulation method having a larger transfer data amount than when wireless communication is selected. A communication device that is capable of switching both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function,
A communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, are provided in common for both communication functions,
The communication control unit
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
A communication apparatus characterized in that when only one of the communication functions is used, a circuit used only for the other communication function is set in a low power consumption state. A communication device that is capable of switching both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function,
A communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, are provided in common for both communication functions,
Wired reception detection means for detecting a reception signal of wired communication;
Wireless reception detection means for detecting a reception signal of wireless communication,
The communication control unit
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
A communication apparatus that selects reception from a communication function in which a reception signal is detected when a reception signal is detected by any of the reception detection means. A communication device that is capable of switching both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function,
A communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, are provided in common for both communication functions,
The communication control unit
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
A communication apparatus that transmits a signal using both wired communication and wireless communication at the time of signal transmission. A communication device that is capable of switching both a wired communication function and a wireless communication function,
A communication control unit that controls operations related to transmission and reception, and a modulation / demodulation unit that modulates a signal to be transmitted and demodulates a received signal, are provided in common for both communication functions,
The communication control unit
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
When performing communication by either wired communication or wireless communication, before starting the communication, the start notification or the communication period information of the communication is transmitted using both wireless communication and wired communication. Communication device. Communication system including a communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 11. It comprises claims 1 to 5, 9 to 11 or two or more communication apparatus according to one of, and communication, characterized in that it comprises a communication device having only either wireless or wired communication function System . Communication system of claim 12, the communication device according to claim 7 or 10, characterized by using as a communication device for managing other communication apparatus included in the communication system. A communication method for performing communication by switching both the wired communication function and the wireless communication function,
There line demodulation processing of modulation processing and the received signal of the signal to be transmitted as a common process for the both communication function,
Handles both data transmitted / received using the wired communication function and data transmitted / received using the wireless communication function in a format used in the wireless communication function, and
Synchronize with other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wired communication function and other communication devices that transmit and receive data using the wireless communication function using a TSF timer, and
When it is detected that wired communication is possible when the wireless communication function is selected, the elapsed time after the detection is measured, and after the detection, the state in which wired communication is possible continues for a predetermined time. A communication method characterized by switching to a wired communication function . The communication program for functioning the computer with which the communication apparatus was equipped as the said communication control part with which the communication apparatus of any one of Claim 1 to 11 is equipped . A recording medium on which the program according to claim 16 is recorded.

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