JP7238011B2 - Information processing device, application, control method and program for information processing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus capable of wireless communication.

Mobile terminals such as smartphones and tablet PCs have a wireless communication function. As an application of this wireless communication function, for example, there is an application in which a photograph or an electronic document stored in a portable terminal is sent to a printer using wireless communication and printed by the printer.

In order for a mobile terminal to perform wireless communication with an external device such as a printer, the mobile terminal needs to establish wireless communication by connecting to an access point. Handover using NFC (Near Field Communication) is known as a method for establishing this wireless communication (Patent Document 1). Handover is a method of acquiring connection information necessary for executing wireless communication using close proximity wireless communication such as NFC, and establishing wireless communication based on the acquired connection information. With this handover, the user can establish wireless communication between the mobile terminal and the external device simply by bringing the mobile terminal close to the external device such as a printer (just by touching).

In addition, mobile terminals such as smartphones and tablet PCs have Wi-Fi settings for setting whether or not to use a wireless communication function. When using the wireless communication function, the user enables the Wi-Fi setting (turns on the Wi-Fi setting). On the other hand, when wireless communication is not used, for example, when going out, the Wi-Fi setting is disabled (the Wi-Fi setting is turned off) in order to reduce power consumption.

JP 2013-157736 A

As described above, the Wi-Fi setting of the mobile terminal is not always enabled, and the Wi-Fi setting may be disabled. Even if the user brings the mobile terminal closer to the printing device to perform handover when the Wi-Fi setting is disabled, the connection between the mobile terminal and the external device will be blocked because the Wi-Fi setting is disabled. radio communication is not established. Also, even if the user notices that the Wi-Fi setting is disabled, the user has to manually change the Wi-Fi setting to enabled.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to automatically change settings related to wireless communication.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the information processing apparatus provided by the present invention is an information processing apparatus in which the Wi-Fi setting can be changed to ON setting or OFF setting on the setting screen provided by the OS. means for acquiring connection information including an SSID via short-range wireless communication while the screen is displayed; A process of changing the Wi-Fi setting from the OFF setting to the ON setting and a process of establishing a Wi-Fi connection based on the acquired connection information are automatically executed without user operation , and the application program performs and means for automatically changing the Wi-Fi setting from the ON setting to the OFF setting after completion of predetermined data communication via the Wi-Fi connection without user instruction on the setting screen . It is characterized by

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the setting regarding wireless communication can be changed automatically.

It is a figure which shows the structure of a communication system. 2 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of mobile terminal 100. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a software configuration of mobile terminal 100. FIG. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a setting screen for Wi-Fi settings; 3A and 3B are diagrams showing screens provided by the print application 300. FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing a process for automatically changing Wi-Fi settings. 4 is a flowchart showing processing for automatically restoring Wi-Fi settings. 4 is a flowchart showing processing for automatically restoring Wi-Fi settings. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing processing executed when an application termination operation is received; FIG.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential to the solution of the invention.

(Embodiment 1)
First, with reference to FIG. 1, the configuration of the communication system according to this embodiment will be described. A communication system according to the present embodiment includes a mobile terminal 100 , a printing device 110 and an access point 120 .

The printing device 110 performs wireless communication such as Wi-Fi with the access point 120 . Note that the communication between the access point 120 and the printing device 110 may be wired communication using a LAN cable or the like.

The mobile terminal 100 is capable of wireless communication such as Wi-Fi. When the user inputs the SSID and security key of the access point 120 into the mobile terminal 100 , the mobile terminal 100 connects to the access point 120 and the mobile terminal 100 can communicate with the printing apparatus 110 via the access point 120 . can. The mobile terminal 100 can transmit a print job to an external device such as the printing device 110 via the access point 120 . The printing device 110 that has received the print job executes printing.

Also, the mobile terminal 100 and the printing device 110 can perform close proximity wireless communication such as NFC. In this embodiment, the printing device 110 has an NFC tag, and the NFC tag stores information for connecting to the access point 120 (SSID and security key of the access point 120). The mobile terminal 100 can acquire information on the NFC tag of the printing device 110 using NFC, and connect to the access point 120 based on the acquired information. Switching the connection to wireless communication such as Wi-Fi using information obtained by close proximity wireless communication such as NFC is called handover. Handover eliminates the need for the user to input information for connecting to the access point 120 (the SSID and security key of the access point 120 ) into the mobile terminal 100 .

Next, with reference to FIG. 2, the hardware configuration of the mobile terminal 100 will be described. Note that the mobile terminal 100 of the present embodiment is assumed to be a device such as a smart phone or a tablet PC, but may be another device as long as it is an information processing device capable of executing wireless communication.

The CPU 201 reads control programs stored in the ROM 202 and executes various processes for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 100 . The ROM 202 stores control programs. A RAM 203 is used as a main memory of the CPU 201 and a temporary storage area such as a work area. The HDD 204 stores various data such as photographs and electronic documents. The HDD 204 also stores an OS (Operating System) 310 and a print application 300, which will be described later. An RTC (Real Time Clock) 205 keeps time. A flash memory may be provided instead of the HDD 204 .

Note that, in the case of the mobile terminal 100, one CPU 201 executes each process shown in a flow chart to be described later, but other modes may also be used. For example, a plurality of CPUs may work together to execute each process shown in a flowchart to be described later.

The operation panel 206 has a touch panel function capable of detecting a user's touch operation, and displays various screens provided by the OS 310 and the print application 300 . A user can input a desired operation instruction to the mobile terminal 100 by inputting a touch operation on the operation panel 206 . The mobile terminal 100 has hardware keys (not shown), and the user can use the hardware keys to input operation instructions to the mobile terminal 100 .

A speaker 207 and a microphone 208 are used when the user calls other mobile terminals or landlines. The camera 209 takes an image according to the user's imaging instruction. A photograph taken by camera 209 is stored in a predetermined area of HDD 204 .

The close proximity wireless communication unit 210 performs close proximity wireless communication such as NFC. In this embodiment, the printing device 110 has an NFC tag. When the user brings the mobile terminal 100 close to the NFC tag of the printing device 110, close proximity wireless communication is established between the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 and the NFC tag of the printing device 110, and the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 receives the information of the NFC tag. to get The close proximity wireless communication performed by the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 is not limited to NFC, and may be Bluetooth (registered trademark), for example.

The wireless communication unit 211 performs wireless communication such as Wi-Fi. In the case of the mobile terminal 100, by using handover, it is possible for the user to realize wireless communication by the wireless communication unit 211 with a simple operation. Specifically, the wireless communication unit 211 can connect to the access point 120 by using the connection information (SSID and security key of the access point 120) acquired by the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 from the NFC tag of the printing device 110. can.

Next, the software configuration of the mobile terminal 100 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of software implemented by the CPU 201 reading the control program stored in the ROM 202 or HDD 204. As shown in FIG.

The OS 310 is software for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 100 as a whole. Various applications including a print application 300 to be described later can be installed in the mobile terminal 100 . The OS 310 exchanges information with these applications, changes the screen displayed on the operation panel 206, and executes wireless communication by the wireless communication unit 211 according to instructions received from the applications.

A print application 300 is an application installed in the mobile terminal 100 . Various applications are installed in the mobile terminal 100 in addition to the print application 300, but the description thereof will be omitted.

A software configuration of the print application 300 will be described in more detail. A screen control unit 301 controls screens displayed on the operation panel 206 via the OS 310 . A screen shown in FIG. 5, which will be described later, is displayed on the operation panel 206 by the screen control unit 301 . The screen control unit 301 also determines an operation instruction input by the user via the operation panel 206 . The communication unit 302 controls close proximity wireless communication by the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 and wireless communication by the wireless communication unit 211 via the OS 310 .

The Wi-Fi setting changing unit 303 changes the Wi-Fi settings related to wireless communication of the mobile terminal 100 via the OS 310 . The OS 310 includes a program for managing Wi-Fi settings, and the Wi-Fi setting changer 303 of the print application 300 instructs this program to change the Wi-Fi settings. Wi-Fi setting will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

The clock unit 304 clocks time. Timing of this time is performed by using the RTC 205 via the OS 310 . A print job generation unit 305 generates a print job. The print job generated by the print job generation unit 305 is transmitted to the printing apparatus 110 by the wireless communication unit 211, and printed. A storage unit 306 temporarily stores various information in a memory such as the RAM 203 .

A setting screen 400 in FIG. 4A is a screen provided by the OS 310 and displayed on the operation panel 206 . The setting screen 400 is a screen for setting whether to execute wireless communication by the wireless communication unit 211 or not.

When "OFF" is set by the button 401, the Wi-Fi setting related to wireless communication is set to invalid setting indicating that wireless communication is not executed. When the Wi-Fi setting is disabled, the operation of the wireless communication unit 211 is stopped, so the power consumption of the mobile terminal 100 is reduced. When wireless communication by the wireless communication unit 211 is not used, such as when going out, it is preferable to turn off the Wi-Fi setting, that is, disable the setting. The setting screen 400 shows a state in which the Wi-Fi setting is OFF, that is, disabled.

A setting screen 410 in FIG. 4B shows a state in which the Wi-Fi setting is set to "ON". When set to "ON" like the button 411, the Wi-Fi setting related to wireless communication is set to a valid setting indicating that wireless communication is to be performed. When the Wi-Fi setting is turned ON, ie, enabled, the wireless communication unit 211 starts operating to search for an access point. When an access point that has been connected in the past is found, it connects to that access point. Alternatively, wireless communication unit 211 connects to an access point specified by the user. 412 displays the SSID of the currently connected access point. Also, 413 displays the SSID of the access point found as a result of the search.

An example in which the user manually changes the Wi-Fi settings has been described with reference to FIG. In the case of the mobile terminal 100 , the Wi-Fi setting changing unit 303 can change the Wi-Fi settings via the OS 310 . The change of the Wi-Fi setting by the Wi-Fi setting changing unit 303 will be described later in detail with reference to the flow charts of FIGS. 6 and 7. FIG. 4 (whether wireless communication is enabled or disabled) is stored in a memory such as the HDD 204 or the like.

Next, an overview of the print function realized by the print application 300 and screen transitions will be described with reference to FIG. Each screen shown in FIG. 5 is a screen displayed on the operation panel 206 by the screen control unit 301 of the print application 300 .

A print screen 500 in FIG. 5A is a screen that displays a list of photos stored in the HDD 204 . A print screen 500 shows a case where four photographs 501 to 504 are displayed as an example. On the print screen 500, the user selects the photos to be printed.

When the user selects a photo on print screen 500, print screen 510 in FIG. 5B is displayed. A print screen 510 shows a case where the photo 501 is selected as an example. In 511, the photo selected by the user on the print screen 500 is displayed in a large size, and the user can confirm the selected photo. If the user wishes to change the print settings, the user can select icon 512 . If the user wants to return to the photo list screen (print screen 500), the user can select the icon 513. FIG.

When the user brings the mobile terminal 100 close to the NFC tag of the printing device 110 while the print screen 510 is being displayed, the proximity wireless communication unit 210 reads the information stored in the NFC tag of the printing device 110 . In this embodiment, the NFC tag of the printing device 110 includes connection information (SSID of the access point 120, security key for connecting to the access point 120) for the wireless communication unit 211 to perform wireless communication with the printing device 110 , IP address of the printing device 110) are stored. The wireless communication unit 211 can perform wireless communication with the printing device 110 based on the connection information acquired by the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 reading the NFC tag of the printing device 110 . Note that the connection information may include the MAC address of the printing device 110 instead of the IP address of the printing device 110 .

However, if the Wi-Fi setting is disabled on the setting screen 400, the wireless communication unit 211 will not perform wireless communication even if the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 acquires the connection information. If the user manually changes the Wi-Fi setting to enabled before bringing the mobile terminal 100 close to (touching) the NFC tag of the printing device 110, handover using NFC is executed, and the wireless communication unit 211 Wireless communication can be performed. However, it takes time and effort for the user to manually change the Wi-Fi setting to the valid setting, and a user who is not familiar with the operation of the mobile terminal 100 does not realize that the Wi-Fi setting is changed to the valid setting. Sometimes not. Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the mobile terminal 100 is brought close to the NFC tag of the printing device 110, in other words, when the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 acquires the connection information from the NFC tag, the Wi-Fi setting is changed from the disabled setting. Automatically change to enabled settings. This eliminates the need for the user to manually change the Wi-Fi setting to the valid setting, and even if the user is not familiar with the operation of the mobile terminal 100, the user can set the Wi-Fi without making the user aware of it. It can be automatically changed to a valid setting.

When the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 acquires the connection information from the NFC tag, the Wi-Fi setting change unit 303 changes the Wi-Fi setting from disabled to enabled. Using the acquired connection information, the communication unit 302 instructs the wireless communication unit 211 to connect to the access point 120 . When the wireless communication unit 211 connects to the access point 120, the print job generation unit 305 generates a print job and transmits the generated print job to the IP address included in the acquired connection information, that is, to the printing apparatus 110. At this time, a print screen 520 in FIG. 5C is displayed on the operation panel 206 by the screen control unit 301 . When transmission of the print job is completed, a print screen 530 shown in FIG. 5D is displayed on the operation panel 206 by the screen control unit 301 .

Next, processing executed when the mobile terminal 100 transmits a print job to the printing device 110 will be described using the flowchart of FIG. Each step shown in the flowchart of FIG. 6 is processed by the CPU 201 expanding the control program stored in the memory such as the ROM 202 into the RAM 203 and executing the control program.

When the user brings the mobile terminal 100 close to the NFC tag of the printing device 110 while selecting a photo to be printed (with the print screen 510 displayed), the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 performs close proximity wireless communication in step S601. to obtain connection information from the NFC tag. The NFC tag of the printing device 110 stores information indicating the SSID of the access point 120, the security key for connecting to the access point 120, and the IP address of the printing device 110 as connection information.

When the close proximity wireless communication unit 210 acquires the connection information from the NFC tag, the storage unit 306 initializes the variable WiFi_Flag in step S602.

Next, in step S603, the CPU 201 determines whether the Wi-Fi setting is disabled. This determination is executed by the CPU 201 referring to information stored in a memory such as the HDD 204 or the like.

If the CPU 201 determines in step S603 that the Wi-Fi setting is invalid, the process proceeds to step S604. In step S604, the Wi-Fi setting changing unit 303 changes the Wi-Fi setting from disabled to enabled (changes the Wi-Fi setting from OFF to ON). Through the process of step S604, the wireless communication unit 211 transitions to a state in which wireless communication can be performed. Then, in step S605, the storage unit 306 substitutes 1 for the variable WiFi_Flag. The variable WiFi_Flag is a variable for managing whether or not the Wi-Fi setting is changed. The reason why 1 is substituted for the variable WiFi_Flag in step S605 is that the print application 300 stores that the Wi-Fi setting change unit 303 has automatically changed the Wi-Fi setting.

In this manner, the Wi-Fi setting changing unit 303 automatically changes the Wi-Fi setting from disabled to enabled, which saves the user the trouble of manually changing the Wi-Fi setting. Also, even if the user is not familiar with the operation of the mobile terminal 100, the Wi-Fi setting can be automatically changed to the valid setting without making the user aware of it.

On the other hand, if the CPU 201 determines in step S603 that the Wi-Fi setting is not disabled, the process proceeds to step S606. If the process proceeds to step S606, the Wi-Fi setting is valid, so there is no need to change the Wi-Fi setting as in step S604. However, since the connection destination is switched to the access point 120, it is preferable to return the connection destination to the access point that was already connected before switching to the access point 120 later. Therefore, in step S606, the storage unit 306 stores information indicating the access point being connected. For example, if the wireless communication unit 211 is connected to the access point with the SSID "wi-fi_network_001", the storage unit 306 stores this SSID in step S606. Note that the mobile terminal 100 may be originally connected to the access point 120 . In this case, the SSID included in the connection information acquired in step S601 matches the SSID of the access point to which the mobile terminal 100 is connected. Even in this case, the access point switching described in step S607 occurs.

Next, step S607 will be described. In step S<b>607 , the wireless communication unit 211 connects to the access point indicated by the connection information acquired in step S<b>601 , that is, the access point 120 . Specifically, the communication unit 302 controls the wireless communication unit 211 via the OS 310 so as to establish wireless communication using the SSID and security key included in the acquired connection information.

When the wireless communication unit 211 connects to the access point 120, the wireless communication unit 211 transmits a print job in step S608. Specifically, first, the print job generation unit 305 generates a print job for printing the photograph selected by the user. Then, the communication unit 302 controls the wireless communication unit 211 via the OS 310 so that the print job is sent to the IP address included in the acquired connection information, that is, to the printing apparatus 110 . While the print job is being sent, the print screen 520 in FIG. 5C is displayed on the operation panel 206 by the screen control unit 301 . Processing executed after the print job is transmitted will be described later in detail with reference to FIG.

As described above, even if the Wi-Fi setting is disabled when the mobile terminal 100 is brought close to the NFC tag of the printing device 110, the Wi-Fi setting is changed from disabled to enabled by the processing in step S604. can be automatically changed to Therefore, from the user's point of view, the trouble of manually changing the Wi-Fi settings is eliminated. Also, even if the user is not familiar with the operation of the mobile terminal 100, the Wi-Fi setting can be automatically changed to the valid setting without making the user aware of it.

Next, the process of automatically returning the Wi-Fi setting changed to the valid setting to the invalid setting and the process of returning the connection destination access point to the original access point will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. Each step shown in the flowchart of FIG. 7 is processed by the CPU 201 expanding the control program stored in the memory such as the ROM 202 into the RAM 203 and executing the control program.

The processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 7 is executed as a continuation of step S608 of FIG. The communication unit 302 monitors whether the transmission of the print job executed in step S608 has been completed. When the communication unit 302 detects that the print job has been sent, that is, when the print job has been sent in step S708, the CPU 201 notifies the user that the print job has been sent in step S701. Specifically, the screen control unit 301 of the print application 300 displays the print screen 530 (screen for notifying the completion of transmission of the print job) in FIG. 5D on the operation panel 206 .

Next, in step S702, the timer unit 304 of the print application 300 starts counting the timer. This processing is executed by the timer unit 304 controlling the RTC 205 via the OS 310 . This timer counts the process of automatically returning the Wi-Fi setting that was changed to the enabled setting to the disabled setting when there is no user operation for a predetermined period of time after the print job has been sent, and the process based on the access point of the connection destination. is executed to perform the process of returning to the access point of

Next, in step S703, the CPU 201 determines whether or not a user operation has been received. When the CPU 201 determines that a user operation has been received, in step S704 the CPU 201 executes processing according to the user operation. For example, if the user operation instructs to change the displayed screen, the screen control unit 301 displays the changed screen on the operation panel 206 . If the user operation is a print execution instruction, the wireless communication unit 211 is controlled so that the communication unit 302 transmits the print job. When the process corresponding to the user's operation is executed in step S704, the timer unit 304 of the print application 300 resets the count of the timer in step S705. On the other hand, if no user operation has been received, the process proceeds to step S706.

Note that in the case of a smartphone or a tablet PC, which are given as examples of the mobile terminal 100, processing can be executed by multitasking, so an application such as the print application 300 may be running in the background. In other words, the print application 300 may be running in the background while the user is actually operating other applications (email application, phonebook application). As described above, even if a user operation is accepted while the print application 300 is running in the background, the operation is not a user operation for the print application 300, so it is not determined that the user operation has been accepted in step S703. Also, the resetting of the count in step S705 is not executed.

Next, step S706 will be described. In step S706, the CPU 201 determines whether or not the counting timer has passed a predetermined time. In this embodiment, the timer starts counting after the print job is transmitted (step S702), and resets every time the user performs any operation (step S705). When a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes) elapses without receiving a user operation, the CPU 201 determines in step S706 that the predetermined time has elapsed, and proceeds to step S707. On the other hand, if the predetermined time has not elapsed, the CPU 201 determines in step S706 that the predetermined time has not elapsed, and returns to step S703. In the present embodiment, it is determined that the predetermined time has passed in step S706 when 5 minutes have passed without any user operation. A user may be able to set a desired time on a setting screen (not shown).

Next, step S707 will be described. In step S707, the CPU 201 determines whether or not to return the Wi-Fi setting to the disabled setting. This determination is performed by referring to the value of variable WiFi_Flag stored in storage unit 306 .

If the value of the variable WiFi_Flag is 1, the Wi-Fi setting is automatically changed from disabled to enabled in step S604 to perform handover. Therefore, in step S707, the CPU 201 determines that the Wi-Fi setting should be returned to the invalid setting, and proceeds to step S708. Then, in step S708, the Wi-Fi setting changing unit 303 changes the Wi-Fi setting from valid to invalid (changes the Wi-Fi setting from ON to OFF). Note that the reason why the Wi-Fi setting is returned from the valid setting to the invalid setting on the condition that there is no user operation for a predetermined period of time is that the user continuously transmits a plurality of print jobs to the printing apparatus 110. It is because From the user's point of view, after the handover is executed once, the Wi-Fi setting is enabled and the printing apparatus 110 is specified as the destination of the print job. It eliminates the need for multiple touch operations when sending a job.

On the other hand, if the value of the variable WiFi_Flag is 0, the Wi-Fi setting has been enabled since before handover execution, so there is no need to change the Wi-Fi setting to disabled. Therefore, in step S707, the CPU 201 determines that the Wi-Fi setting should not be returned to the disabled setting, and proceeds to step S709. Then, in step S<b>709 , the communication unit 302 controls to change the connection destination access point to the access point stored in the storage unit 306 . When the process of step S709 is executed, the mobile terminal 100 was originally connected to an access point before executing handover, and has changed the access point to which it is connected due to handover. The process of step S709 is executed to restore the connection destination changed by the handover.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, even if the Wi-Fi setting is disabled, the Wi-Fi setting is disabled when handover is executed (when connection information is acquired using NFC). It can be automatically changed from the setting to the valid setting. This eliminates the need for the user to manually change the Wi-Fi setting to the valid setting. Also, even if the user is not familiar with the operation of the mobile terminal 100, the Wi-Fi setting can be automatically changed to the valid setting without making the user aware of it.

Further, according to the present embodiment, when the Wi-Fi setting is automatically changed from the disabled setting to the enabled setting at the time of handover execution, the condition is that no user operation is received for a predetermined time after the print job is sent. Wi-Fi settings can be automatically reverted to disabled settings. The fact that the Wi-Fi setting was disabled before the execution of the handover means that, from the user's point of view, the Wi-Fi setting was disabled in order to reduce power consumption, for example. According to this embodiment, the power consumption of the mobile terminal 100 can be reduced because the Wi-Fi setting is automatically changed to the disabled setting after the print job is transmitted.

Further, according to the present embodiment, if the mobile terminal 100 was originally connected to an access point before execution of handover, the user's operation is not performed for a predetermined period of time after transmission of the print job. Access points can be restored. As a result, even if the access point of the connection destination is temporarily changed for printing, the access point of the connection destination can be restored without making the user aware of it.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, Embodiment 2 will be described as a modified example of Embodiment 1. FIG. In the first embodiment, as described in step S705 of FIG. 7, an example of resetting the count of the timer each time a user operation is received has been described. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, a configuration will be described in which the timer count is reset on the condition that the next print job is transmitted instead of being uniformly reset by a user operation.

The flowchart in FIG. 8 shows the processing executed as a continuation of step S608 in FIG. 6, and is a modification of the flowchart in FIG. Steps with the same numbers as those in FIG. 7 execute the same processing as in the flowchart of FIG. 7, so description thereof will be omitted. Each step shown in the flowchart of FIG. 8 is processed by the CPU 201 expanding the control program stored in the memory such as the ROM 202 into the RAM 203 and executing the control program.

If the CPU 201 determines in step S703 that a user operation has been received, the process advances to step S801. In step S801, the CPU 201 determines whether or not processing indicated by a user operation is transmission of a print job. If the CPU 201 determines that the process indicated by the user operation is to send a print job, the process advances to step S802. Then, in step S<b>802 , the communication unit 302 controls the wireless communication unit 211 to transmit the print job, and the wireless communication unit 211 transmits the print job to the printing apparatus 110 . Next, in step S803, the timer unit 304 of the print application 300 resets the count of the timer.

On the other hand, if the CPU 201 determines in step S801 that the process indicated by the user's operation is not to send a print job, the process advances to step S804. Then, in step S804, the CPU 201 executes processing according to the user's operation. For example, if the user operation instructs to change the displayed screen, the screen control unit 301 displays the changed screen on the operation panel 206 . If the process corresponding to the user's operation is executed in step S804, the process returns to step S703 without resetting the timer count.

As described above, in the case of the present embodiment, the timer count is not uniformly reset by the user's operation, but is reset on the condition that the transmission of the print job is instructed. In other words, even if the user performs some kind of operation, the timer continues to count unless the operation instructs transmission of a print job. Then, on the condition that the transmission of the next print job has not been executed for a predetermined time, the processes of steps S708 and S709 are executed.

(Embodiment 3)
An application such as the print application 300 may be terminated by the user in order to end activation of the application. This operation is performed, for example, to reduce the processing load on the CPU 201 . In the present embodiment, processing that is executed when this termination operation is performed will be described.

The flowchart in FIG. 9 shows the processing that is executed when an end operation is performed to end activation of the print application 300 . Each step shown in the flowchart of FIG. 9 is processed by the CPU 201 expanding the control program stored in the memory such as the ROM 202 into the RAM 203 and executing the control program.

First, in step S<b>901 , the CPU 201 receives an end operation from the user for ending activation of the print application 300 . The CPU 201 that has received the end operation determines whether or not to return the Wi-Fi setting to the disabled setting in step S902. This determination is performed by referring to the value of variable WiFi_Flag stored in storage unit 306 .

When the value of the variable WiFi_Flag is 1, the CPU 201 determines to return the Wi-Fi setting to the disabled setting, and proceeds to step S903. Then, in step S903, the Wi-Fi setting changing unit 303 changes the Wi-Fi setting from valid to invalid (changes the Wi-Fi setting from ON to OFF).

On the other hand, if the value of the variable WiFi_Flag is 0, the CPU 201 determines in step S902 that the Wi-Fi setting should not be returned to the disabled setting, and proceeds to step S904. Then, in step S<b>904 , the communication unit 302 controls to change the connection destination access point to the access point stored in the storage unit 306 .

As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a termination operation for terminating activation of an application is received from the user, the Wi-Fi setting is returned to the disabled setting, or the connection destination access point is restored. can be returned. Even if the Wi-Fi settings and the access point of the connection destination are changed at the time of executing handover as in Embodiment 1, the Wi-Fi settings and the access point of the connection destination are restored as processing when terminating the application. be able to.

Note that the timing at which the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 9 is executed is not limited to when the print application 300 is terminated. For example, it may be executed when the print application 300 switches to background activation.

(Other embodiments)
In each of the embodiments described above, an example in which the mobile terminal 100 transmits a print job to the printing device 110 has been described, but data communication executed between the mobile terminal 100 and the printing device 110 is not limited to transmission of a print job. For example, it may be data communication for storing photos and electronic documents stored in the mobile terminal 100 in the HDD of an external device such as the printing device 110 . Alternatively, the data communication may be data communication for the portable terminal 100 to acquire a scanned image generated by the printing apparatus 110 scanning a document from the printing apparatus 110 . After the execution of these data communications is completed, on the condition that no user operation is received for a predetermined period of time, or that the next data communications are not executed, the Wi-Fi settings and the access point of the connection destination are can be changed back to

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, an example was described in which the Wi-Fi setting and the access point of the connection destination were restored after waiting for a predetermined period of time after the data communication was completed. Wi-Fi settings and connection destination access points may be restored. Also, when the data communication is completed, the user may be asked whether to restore the Wi-Fi settings and the access point of the connection destination.

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the function of automatically restoring the Wi-Fi settings and the access point of the connection destination after the completion of data communication has been described. The user may be allowed to set on the setting screen.

Further, the present invention supplies a program that implements one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in the computer of the system or device executes the program. It can also be realized by a process of reading and executing. It can also be implemented by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that implements one or more functions.

100 mobile terminal 110 printer 120 access point 201 CPU
202 ROMs
203 RAM
204 HDDs
205 RTCs
206 operation panel 210 proximity wireless communication unit 211 wireless communication unit 300 print application

Claims (15)

In an information processing device that can change the Wi-Fi setting to ON setting or OFF setting on the setting screen provided by the OS ,
means for acquiring connection information including an SSID via short-range wireless communication in a state where a screen provided by an application program is displayed ;
When the short-range wireless communication is executed in the state where the Wi-Fi setting is the OFF setting, the Wi-Fi setting is automatically changed from the OFF setting to the ON setting without a user instruction on the setting screen. Execute a process of establishing a Wi-Fi connection based on the process and the acquired connection information, and after completion of predetermined data communication via the Wi-Fi connection by the application program , regardless of the user's instruction on the setting screen means for automatically changing the Wi-Fi setting from the ON setting to the OFF setting;
An information processing device comprising: A program to be executed by an information processing device capable of changing Wi-Fi setting to ON setting or OFF setting on a setting screen provided by an OS ,
a step of acquiring connection information including an SSID via short-range wireless communication in a state in which a screen provided by an application program is displayed ;
When the short-range wireless communication is executed in the state where the Wi-Fi setting is the OFF setting, the Wi-Fi setting is automatically changed from the OFF setting to the ON setting without user operation on the setting screen. Execute a process of establishing a Wi-Fi connection based on the process and the acquired connection information, and after completion of predetermined data communication via the Wi-Fi connection by the application program , regardless of the user's instruction on the setting screen automatically changing the Wi-Fi setting from the ON setting to the OFF setting;
A program with 3. The information processing device according to claim 2, wherein the information processing device has a first communication circuit for performing Wi-Fi wireless communication, and a second communication circuit for performing the short-range wireless communication. program. 4. The program according to claim 2, wherein said Wi-Fi connection is terminated upon termination of a predetermined data communication via said Wi-Fi connection. 4. The program according to claim 2, wherein said Wi-Fi connection is terminated based on the passage of time. 6. The program according to claim 5, wherein the passage of time is passage of time specified in advance by a user. the connection information further comprises address information of the printing device;
5. The program according to claim 4 , wherein said predetermined data communication is data communication for transmitting print data to said printer. 8. The program according to any one of claims 2 to 7, further comprising the step of displaying a screen prompting a user to perform an operation of bringing said information processing device closer to said image processing device on said display unit of said information processing device. 9. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 8, further comprising displaying a preview screen of image data to be transmitted to the image processing device via the Wi-Fi connection on a display unit of the information processing device. program. 10. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 9, further comprising displaying a transmission status of data to be transmitted to the image processing device via the Wi-Fi connection on a display unit of the information processing device. program. 11. The program according to any one of claims 2 to 10, wherein the program is an application executed on the OS of the information processing apparatus. 12. The program according to any one of claims 2 to 11 , wherein the setting screen is a screen displaying the SSID of the access point found as a result of the search . 13. The program according to any one of claims 2 to 12, wherein said near field communication is NFC. 14. The program according to claim 13, wherein the connection information is acquired via the short-range wireless communication from an NFC circuit provided in the printing device. 15. The program according to claim 14, wherein said connection information indicates that said NFC circuit is an NFC tag.

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