JP7602120B2 - CONTROL DEVICE, WIRELESS COMMUNICATION DEVICE, WIRELESS SYSTEM, AND NETWORK PROFILE SETTING METHOD - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a control device, a wireless communication device, a wireless system, and a network profile setting method.

The communication system includes multiple communication terminals connected via a network. Each communication terminal is configured with information for connecting to the network, such as a service set ID (SSID) and a password for connecting to a wireless local area network (LAN).

When the communication terminal does not have a display screen, as in the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1, a setting terminal with a display screen is connected to the communication terminal by wire, and information for connecting to the network is set in the communication terminal.

JP 2016-197439 A

The method disclosed in Patent Document 1 requires a setting terminal with a display screen to be connected to a communication terminal via a wired connection, and the task of setting information for connecting to a network is cumbersome.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a control device, a wireless communication device, a wireless system, and a network profile setting method that make it possible to simplify the task of setting information for connecting to a network in a wireless communication device.

In order to achieve the above object, a control device according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises:
A control device capable of communicating with a wireless communication device via a wireless local area network,
a control communication unit that, when detecting a beacon transmitted from the wireless communication device that is not connected to the wireless local area network, establishes a connection with the wireless communication device by transmitting a connection request to the wireless communication device and transmits to the wireless communication device a network profile for connecting to the wireless local area network;
Equipped with.

Preferably, when the control side communication unit receives a notification from the wireless communication device that transmitted the network profile that the network profile has been set, it transmits a switching command to the wireless communication device to instruct the wireless communication device to switch to a device side station mode that connects to the wireless local area network based on the network profile.

Preferably, the network profile for connecting to an access point device provided in the wireless local area network is set in the control side communication unit,
The control communication unit transmits the set network profile to the wireless communication device.

Preferably, the wireless communication device further includes a control side operation switching unit for switching between a control side access point mode for accepting a connection request from the wireless communication device and a control side station mode for transmitting a connection request to the wireless communication device,
In the control side access point mode, the control side communication unit accepts a connection request from the wireless communication device, and in the control side station mode, it detects the beacon transmitted from the wireless communication device and transmits a connection request to the wireless communication device, thereby establishing a connection with the wireless communication device and transmitting the network profile for connecting to the control device to the wireless communication device.

Preferably, the control side operation switching unit switches to the control side access point mode after the control side communication unit transmits the network profile to the wireless communication device.

A wireless communication device according to a second aspect of the present invention comprises:
A wireless communication device capable of communicating with a control device via a wireless local area network,
a device-side operation switching unit that switches between a device-side access point mode that accepts a connection request from the control device and a device-side station mode that connects to the wireless local area network based on a network profile;
a device-side communication unit that transmits a beacon in the device-side access point mode, establishes a connection with the control device by accepting a connection request from the control device that detects the beacon, receives a network profile for connecting to the wireless local area network from the control device, sets the network profile based on the received network profile, and connects to the wireless local area network based on the set network profile in the device-side station mode;
Equipped with
If the network profile has not been set, the device-side operation switching unit switches to the device-side access point mode.

Preferably, when the device-side communication unit receives the network profile from the control device, it sets the network profile based on the received network profile and transmits a notification to the control device that the network profile has been set.

Preferably, the device-side communication unit receives a switching command from the control device to instruct switching to the device-side station mode,
When the device side communication unit receives the switching command, the device side operation switching unit switches to the device side station mode.

Preferably, the device-side operation switching unit switches to the device-side access point mode if the network profile has not been set when a power-on command is issued by a power operation on the wireless communication device.

A wireless system according to a third aspect of the present invention comprises:
The control device;
At least one of the wireless communication devices;
Equipped with.

Preferably, the system further comprises an access point device,
the control device transmits the network profile for connecting to the access point device to the wireless communication device;
The control device and at least one of the wireless communication devices communicate via the access point device.

A network profile setting method according to a fourth aspect of the present invention comprises:
A network profile setting method for setting a network profile for connecting the wireless communication device to the wireless local area network, the network profile setting method being performed by a wireless system including a wireless communication device capable of communicating via a wireless local area network and a control device, the method comprising:
when a network profile of the wireless communication device has not been set, switching the wireless communication device to a device-side access point mode in which the wireless communication device transmits a beacon and receives a connection request from the control device;
having the control device detect the beacon and transmit a connection request to the wireless communication device to establish a connection between the control device and the wireless communication device, and having the control device transmit the network profile to the wireless communication device;
The wireless communication device that has received the network profile is caused to set the network profile.

When a control device according to the present invention detects a beacon transmitted from a wireless communication device that is not connected to a wireless local area network, it establishes a connection with the wireless communication device by transmitting a connection request to the wireless communication device, and transmits a network profile for connecting to the wireless local area network to the wireless communication device. By transmitting the network profile from the control device to the wireless communication device, it is possible to simplify the task of setting information for connecting to the wireless local area network in the wireless communication device.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a wireless system according to a first embodiment; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device according to a first embodiment. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a control device according to a first embodiment. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a wireless communication device according to a first embodiment; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a wireless communication device according to a first embodiment; FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a network profile setting operation performed by a wireless system according to a first embodiment; FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a wireless system according to a second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device according to a second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a network profile setting operation performed by a wireless system according to a second embodiment. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a modified example of a wireless system according to an embodiment.

The control device, wireless communication device, wireless system, and network profile setting method according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that in the drawings, the same or equivalent parts are given the same reference numerals.

(Embodiment 1)
The wireless system 1 shown in Fig. 1 includes a control device 10 and a wireless communication device 20. The control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20 can communicate with each other via a wireless LAN (Local Area Network) 30. In the first embodiment, the wireless communication device 20 connects to the control device 10, which operates as an access point in the wireless LAN 30, based on a set network profile, and operates as a station in the wireless LAN 30. Then, the wireless communication device 20 transmits a registration request to the control device 10, with the control device 10 as a master device. When the wireless communication device 20 is registered in the connected device list of the control device 10, data communication between the control device 10, which is the master device, and the wireless communication device 20 becomes possible.

To perform communication as described above, the wireless communication device 20 needs to have a network profile set for connecting to the wireless LAN 30. In particular, the wireless communication device 20 needs to have a network profile set for connecting to the control device 10. If a network profile is not set in the wireless communication device 20, the control device 10 transmits the network profile to the wireless communication device 20. Therefore, there is no need to set the network profile by connecting a terminal for setting the network profile to the wireless communication device 20 via a wired connection, and the task of setting the network profile for the wireless communication device 20 is simplified.

In the first embodiment, the wireless system 1 is installed on a ship, and the wireless communication device 20 is a VHF (Very High Frequency) wireless station. The control device 10 is provided in the wheelhouse, and the wireless communication device 20 is provided at a location remote from the control device 10, for example, at the stern. Input/output devices, for example, a speaker 41 and a microphone 42, are connected to the control device 10. The microphone 42 is provided with an operation unit such as a PTT (Push To Talk) switch that is pressed when transmitting, and a switch for remotely controlling the control device 10. An external device, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) antenna 43, and an input/output device, for example, a horn speaker 44, are connected to the wireless communication device 20.

For example, the control device 10 extracts data from a VHF signal received from a VHF radio station installed on another ship, and transmits the extracted data to the speaker 41 and the wireless communication device 20. The speaker 41 outputs the audio contained in the data acquired from the control device 10. The wireless communication device 20 transmits the data acquired from the control device 10 to the horn speaker 44. The horn speaker 44 outputs the audio contained in the data acquired from the wireless communication device 20.

For example, the control device 10 generates a VHF signal based on the voice data acquired from the microphone 42 and transmits it to a VHF radio station installed on another ship. The control device 10 acquires data from the wireless communication device 20, such as location information acquired by the wireless communication device 20 from the GPS antenna 43, and displays the location of the ship on the display screen.

Details of each part of the control device 10 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the control device 10 includes a control side operation switching unit 11 that switches between a control side access point mode and a control side station mode, and a control side communication unit 12 that communicates with the wireless communication device 20. To transmit and receive VHF signals, the control device 10 includes a VHF antenna 13 that transmits and receives VHF signals, and a VHF communication unit 14 that generates a VHF signal from data to be transmitted or extracts data from the VHF signal. The control device 10 further includes an input/output unit 15 that outputs data extracted by the VHF communication unit 14 or accepts input of data to be transmitted.

The control side operation switching unit 11 switches between the control side access point mode and the control side station mode in response to an operation on the control device 10. An operation on the control device 10 means that a user operation, for example, an operation of a switch provided on the main body of the control device 10, is used to instruct the start of network configuration. The control side access point mode is a mode in which the control device 10 accepts a connection request from the wireless communication device 20. The control side station mode is a mode in which the control device 10 transmits a connection request to the wireless communication device 20.

In detail, when the start of network configuration is instructed by operating a switch provided on the main body of the control device 10, the control side operation switching unit 11 switches to the control side station mode. When the end of network configuration is instructed by operating a switch provided on the main body of the control device 10, the control side operation switching unit 11 switches from the control side station mode to the control side access point mode.

When operating in the control side access point mode, the control side communication unit 12 accepts a connection request from the wireless communication device 20, establishes a connection, and then accepts a registration request. When the control side communication unit 12 receives a registration request from the wireless communication device 20, it registers the wireless communication device 20 in the connected device list and transmits a registration response. This enables data transmission and reception between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20.

When the control side communication unit 12 operates in the control side station mode, upon detecting a beacon transmitted by the wireless communication device 20, it transmits a connection request to the wireless communication device 20 that transmitted the beacon. A beacon is a LAN frame transmitted and received on a specified channel in the band of the wireless LAN 30. Specifically, the control side communication unit 12 transmits a probe request, which is a connection request, to the wireless communication device 20. Thereafter, when the control side communication unit 12 receives a probe response, which is a connection response, from the wireless communication device 20, it starts an authentication procedure. The beacon and probe response include information for connecting to the wireless communication device 20, such as the SSID (Service Set ID) and the MAC (Media Access Control) address of the wireless communication device 20. The probe request includes information about the control device 10, such as the MAC address of the control device 10.

In the authentication procedure, the control side communication unit 12 transmits an authentication request to the wireless communication device 20 and receives an authentication response from the wireless communication device 20. Specifically, the control side communication unit 12 performs a four-way handshake authentication procedure with the wireless communication device 20. When the control side communication unit 12 receives the authentication response from the wireless communication device 20, it transmits an IP (Internet Protocol) address request. When the control side communication unit 12 receives the IP address response from the wireless communication device 20, an IP address is assigned to the control device 10, and a connection between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20 is established.

When a connection between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20 is established as described above, the control side communication unit 12 transmits a network profile to the wireless communication device 20. The network profile is information for connecting to the control device 10, and includes the SSID, password, MAC address of the control device 10, etc. Then, the control side communication unit 12 transmits a switch command to the wireless communication device 20 to instruct it to switch to the device side station mode.

When the control side communication unit 12 receives a registration request from a wireless communication device 20 operating in device side station mode, it registers the wireless communication device 20 in the connected device list and sends a registration response to the wireless communication device 20.

When the wireless communication device 20 is registered in the connected device list of the control device 10 as described above, voice data, such as data that does not include voice, such as location information, can be transmitted and received between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20. For example, the control side communication unit 12 generates a LAN frame that includes voice data, data that does not include voice, etc. in a data field and conforms to the standard of the wireless LAN 30, and transmits the LAN frame to the wireless communication device 20.

For example, the control communication unit 12 receives a LAN frame transmitted from the wireless communication device 20. When the control communication unit 12 acquires the LAN frame from the wireless communication device 20, it extracts voice data, data not including voice, etc., contained in the data field. Then, the control communication unit 12 transmits data used for VHF communication, for example, voice data, from the extracted data, to the VHF communication unit 14.

The VHF communication unit 14 performs signal processing such as frequency conversion, amplification, filtering, and demodulation on the VHF signal received by the VHF antenna 13 to extract data from the VHF signal. The VHF communication unit 14 sends the extracted data to the control side communication unit 12 and the input/output unit 15. The VHF communication unit 14 performs signal processing such as modulation, filtering, amplification, and frequency conversion on the data for transmission obtained from the control side communication unit 12 or the input/output unit 15 to generate a VHF signal, and transmits the VHF signal via the VHF antenna 13.

The input/output unit 15 transmits data acquired from the VHF communication unit 14 to the speaker 41. The speaker 41 plays back the audio included in the data acquired from the input/output unit 15. The input/output unit 15 transmits data acquired from the microphone 42 to the VHF communication unit 14.

An example of a hardware configuration for realizing the above-mentioned control device 10 shown in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIG. 3. The hardware configuration of the control device 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 61, a memory 62, a LAN communication IF (Interface) 63, a VHF communication IF 64, and an input/output IF 65. The CPU 61, the memory 62, the LAN communication IF 63, the VHF communication IF 64, and the input/output IF 65 are connected to each other via a bus 60.

The functions of each part of the control device 10 are realized by the CPU 61 executing the programs stored in the memory 62. The LAN communication IF 63 is an interface for enabling connection to the wireless LAN 30 and communication with the wireless communication device 20. The VHF communication IF 64 is an interface for enabling communication with other VHF radio stations. The control device 10 is connected to the speaker 41 and microphone 42 via the input/output IF 65.

In the example of FIG. 3, the control device 10 has one CPU 61 and one memory 62, but may have multiple CPUs 61 and multiple memories 62. In this case, the multiple CPUs 61 and multiple memories 62 may work together to realize the functions of each part of the control device 10.

Details of each part of the wireless communication device 20 capable of communicating with the above-mentioned control device 10 via the wireless LAN 30 are described below. As shown in FIG. 4, the wireless communication device 20 includes a device-side operation switching unit 21 that switches between a device-side access point mode and a device-side station mode, a device-side communication unit 22 that communicates with the control device 10, and an input/output unit 23 that outputs data acquired by the device-side communication unit 22, accepts input of data to be transmitted, acquires position information, etc.

The device-side operation switching unit 21 switches between device-side access point mode and device-side station mode depending on the setting state of the network profile or a switching command sent from the control device 10. The device-side access point mode is a mode in which the wireless communication device 20 transmits a beacon and accepts a connection request from the control device 10 that detects the beacon. The device-side station mode is a mode in which the wireless communication device 20 connects to the control device 10 based on the network profile and transmits a registration request.

When a network profile has not been set, the device-side operation switching unit 21 switches to the device-side access point mode. In detail, when a power-on command is issued by a power operation on the wireless communication device 20, the device-side operation switching unit 21 switches to the device-side access point mode if a network profile has not been set. The power operation on the wireless communication device 20 is, for example, the operation of a power switch provided on the main body of the wireless communication device 20. When the device-side communication unit 22 receives a switching command from the control device 10, the device-side operation switching unit 21 switches to the device-side station mode.

When the device side operation switching unit 21 switches to the device side access point mode because the network profile has not been set, the device side communication unit 22 transmits a beacon at regular intervals, for example, at intervals of 100 milliseconds, and accepts a connection request from the control device 10 that detects the beacon. Specifically, when the device side communication unit 22 receives a probe request, which is a connection request, from the control side communication unit 12 of the control device 10, it transmits a probe response, which is a connection response. After that, when the device side communication unit 22 receives an authentication request from the control side communication unit 12, it transmits an authentication response. Specifically, the device side communication unit 22 performs a four-way handshake authentication procedure with the control side communication unit 12. After the authentication procedure is completed, when the device side communication unit 22 receives an IP address request from the control side communication unit 12, it transmits an IP address response. As a result, an IP address is assigned to the control device 10, and a connection is established between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20.

When the device-side communication unit 22 receives the network profile from the control-side communication unit 12, it sets the network profile based on the received network profile. This enables connection to the control device 10. When the network profile setting is complete, the device-side communication unit 22 sends a notification to the control-side communication unit 12 that the network profile has been set.

When the device-side communication unit 22 receives a switching command from the control-side communication unit 12, it sends the received switching command to the device-side operation switching unit 21. When the device-side operation switching unit 21 switches to the device-side station mode in response to the switching command, the device-side communication unit 22 connects to the control-side communication unit 12 based on the network profile and transmits a registration request to the control-side communication unit 12. When the device-side communication unit 22 then receives a registration response from the control-side communication unit 12, a connection is established between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20.

When a connection is established between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20 as described above, it becomes possible to transmit and receive voice data, such as data that does not include voice, such as location information, between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20. For example, the device-side communication unit 22 generates a LAN frame that includes voice data, data that does not include voice, etc. in a data field and conforms to the standards of the wireless LAN 30, and transmits the LAN frame to the control device 10.

For example, the device-side communication unit 22 receives a LAN frame transmitted from the control device 10. When the device-side communication unit 22 acquires the LAN frame from the control device 10, it extracts voice data, data that does not contain voice, etc., contained in the data field. Then, the device-side communication unit 22 transmits the extracted voice data and data that does not contain voice to the input/output unit 23.

The input/output unit 23 transmits the location information acquired from the GPS antenna 43 to the device-side communication unit 22. The input/output unit 23 transmits the data acquired from the device-side communication unit 22 to the horn speaker 44. The horn speaker 44 plays the audio included in the data acquired from the input/output unit 23.

An example of a hardware configuration for realizing the wireless communication device 20 shown in FIG. 4 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. The hardware configuration of the wireless communication device 20 includes a CPU 71, a memory 72, a LAN communication IF 73, and an input/output IF 74. The CPU 71, the memory 72, the LAN communication IF 73, and the input/output IF 74 are connected to each other via a bus 70.

The functions of each part of the wireless communication device 20 are realized by the CPU 71 executing the programs stored in the memory 72. The LAN communication IF 73 is an interface that enables connection to the wireless LAN 30 and communication with the control device 10. The wireless communication device 20 is connected to the GPS antenna 43 and the horn speaker 44 via the input/output IF 74.

In the example of FIG. 5, the wireless communication device 20 has one CPU 71 and one memory 72, but may have multiple CPUs 71 and multiple memories 72. In this case, the multiple CPUs 71 and multiple memories 72 may work together to realize the functions of each part of the wireless communication device 20.

A network profile setting method performed by the wireless system 1 including the control device 10 and wireless communication device 20 described above will be described with reference to FIG. 6. The wireless system 1 starts the process of FIG. 6 when an operation is performed on the control device 10 to instruct the start of network profile setting in a state where a network profile for the wireless communication device 20 has not been set.

When the control device 10 detects that a switch provided on the control device 10 is operated to start network profile setting (sequence Sq11), the control device operation switching unit 11 switches to the control device station mode (sequence Sq12).

On the other hand, when the wireless communication device 20 is powered on by a power operation, the device-side operation switching unit 21 of the wireless communication device 20 detects that a network profile has not been set (sequence Sq31) and switches to the device-side access point mode (sequence Sq32). When the processing of sequence Sq32 is completed, the device-side communication unit 22 starts transmitting beacons at regular intervals (sequence Sq33).

When the control communication unit 12 detects the beacon transmitted in sequence Sq33, it transmits a connection request to the wireless communication device 20 that transmitted the beacon (sequence Sq13).
Upon receiving the connection request transmitted in sequence Sq13, device-side communication unit 22 transmits a connection response (sequence Sq34).

Upon receiving the connection response transmitted in sequence Sq34, the control communication unit 12 transmits an authentication request to the wireless communication device 20 (sequence Sq14).
When the device-side communication unit 22 receives the authentication request transmitted in sequence Sq14, it transmits an authentication response (sequence Sq35). In detail, the control-side communication unit 12 and the device-side communication unit 22 perform an authentication procedure by a four-way handshake.

Upon receiving the authentication response transmitted in sequence Sq35, the control side communication unit 12 transmits an IP address request (sequence Sq15).
Upon receiving the IP address request transmitted in sequence Sq15, device-side communication unit 22 transmits an IP address response (sequence Sq36).

When the control side communication unit 12 receives the IP address response sent in sequence Sq36, a connection is established between the control device 10, which is a station, and the wireless communication device 20, which is an access point. After that, the control side communication unit 12 transmits to the wireless communication device 20 a network profile for connecting to the control device 10 and the MAC address of the control device 10, which will be the master device (sequence Sq16).

When the device-side communication unit 22 receives the network profile transmitted in sequence Sq16, it sets the network profile based on the received network profile (sequence Sq37). When the processing of sequence Sq37 is completed, the device-side communication unit 22 transmits a notification to the control device 10 that the network profile has been set (sequence Sq38).

When the control side communication unit 12 receives a notification that the network profile has been set, it sends a switching command to the wireless communication device 20 to instruct it to switch to the device side station mode (sequence Sq17). After that, when the control side operation switching unit 11 detects that an instruction to end the network profile setting has been given by operating a switch provided on the control device 10 (sequence Sq18), it switches from the control side station mode to the control side access point mode (sequence Sq19). When the processing of sequence Sq19 is completed, the control side communication unit 12 waits for a registration request from the wireless communication device 20.

When the device-side communication unit 22 receives the switching command sent in sequence Sq17, it disconnects from the control device 10 and sends the received switching command to the device-side operation switching unit 21. When the device-side operation switching unit 21 receives the switching command, it switches from the device-side access point mode to the device-side station mode (sequence Sq39).

Then, the device-side communication unit 22 transmits a registration request to the control device 10. In detail, the device-side communication unit 22 connects to the control device 10 based on the network profile set in sequence Sq37, and transmits a broadcast frame to search for the master device (sequence Sq40). The device-side communication unit 22 repeats transmitting the broadcast frame at regular intervals until a response is received from the control device 10 that is to become the master device.

When the control side communication unit 12 receives the broadcast frame transmitted in sequence Sq40, it transmits information about the control device 10 that will be the master device to the wireless communication device 20 (sequence Sq20).

The device-side communication unit 22 determines whether the sender of the information sent in sequence Sq20 matches the MAC address sent in sequence Sq16, and if they match, sends a registration request to the control device 10 that is to become the master device, requesting registration in the connected device list (sequence Sq41).

When the control side communication unit 12 receives the registration request sent in sequence Sq41, it registers the wireless communication device 20 that sent the registration request in the connected device list (sequence Sq21). When the processing of sequence Sq21 is completed, the control side communication unit 12 sends a registration response (sequence Sq22).

As described above, when a connection is established between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20, data can be transmitted and received between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20.

As described above, when the control device 10 provided in the wireless system 1 according to the first embodiment detects a beacon transmitted from a wireless communication device 20 that is not connected to the wireless LAN 30, the control device 10 establishes a connection with the wireless communication device 20 by transmitting a connection request to the wireless communication device 20, and transmits a network profile for connecting to the control device 10 to the wireless communication device 20. Therefore, if the wireless communication device 20 does not have a display screen, it is not necessary to connect a setting terminal having a display screen to the wireless communication device 20 by wire to set the network profile of the wireless communication device 20. This makes it possible to simplify the task of setting information for connecting to a network in the wireless communication device 20.

(Embodiment 2)
The configuration of the wireless system 1 is not limited to the above example. A wireless system 2 including an access point device 50 in addition to the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20 will be described in the second embodiment. The wireless system 2 shown in Fig. 7 includes an access point device 50 in addition to the configuration of the wireless system 1 according to the first embodiment. The control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20 communicate with each other via the access point device 50.

The control device 10 shown in FIG. 8 has a configuration in which the control device 10 according to the first embodiment does not include the control side operation switching unit 11. Therefore, the control device 10 always operates as a station in the wireless LAN 30. The configuration of the wireless communication device 20 is the same as that of the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, the control side operation switching unit 11 detects an operation to start or end the network profile setting, but in the second embodiment, the control side communication unit 12 detects an operation to start or end the network profile setting. The network profile transmitted by the control side communication unit 12 is a network profile that has already been set in the control side communication unit 12, and is a network profile for connecting to the access point device 50.

The network profile setting method performed by the wireless system 2 having the above-described configuration will be described below with reference to FIG. 9. As in the first embodiment, the wireless system 2 starts the process of FIG. 9 when an operation is performed on the control device 10 to instruct the start of network profile setting in a state where a network profile has not been set for the wireless communication device 20. In the second embodiment, the network profile includes an SSID and a password for connecting to the access point device 50.

When the control unit 12 of the control device 10 detects that the start of network profile setting has been instructed by operating a switch provided on the control device 10 (sequence Sq11), it disconnects the connection to the access point device 50 (sequence Sq51).

The subsequent processing of sequences Sq13 to Sq18 performed by the control device 10 and the processing of sequences Sq31 to Sq39 performed by the wireless communication device 20 are the same as in embodiment 1.

When the control side communication unit 12 detects that an instruction to end the network profile setting has been given by operating a switch provided on the control device 10 (sequence Sq18), it connects to the access point device 50 (sequence Sq52).

The device-side communication unit 22 connects to the access point device 50 based on the network profile set in sequence Sq37 (sequence Sq61).

The processes of sequences Sq20 to Sq22 performed by the subsequent control device 10 and sequences Sq40 and Sq41 performed by the wireless communication device 20 are the same as those in the first embodiment. However, these communications are performed via the access point device 50.

As described above, when setting a network profile, the control device 10 provided in the wireless system 2 according to the second embodiment disconnects the connection to the access point device 50, and upon detecting a beacon transmitted from the wireless communication device 20, establishes a connection with the wireless communication device 20 by transmitting a connection request to the wireless communication device 20. After establishing the connection, the control device 10 transmits a network profile for connecting to the access point device 50 to the wireless communication device 20. Therefore, if the wireless communication device 20 does not have a display screen, it is not necessary to connect a terminal having a display screen to the wireless communication device 20 by wire to configure the wireless communication device 20. This makes it possible to simplify the task of setting information for connecting to a network in the wireless communication device 20.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the above-described hardware configuration and flow chart are merely examples, and can be changed and modified as desired.
10, the wireless system 1 may include a plurality of wireless communication devices 20a, 20b. Similarly, the wireless system 2 may include a plurality of wireless communication devices 20a, 20b. The configuration and operation of the wireless communication devices 20a, 20b are the same as those of the wireless communication device 20. In this case, the control device 10 sequentially receives beacons output by each of the wireless communication devices 20a, 20b, sequentially issues connection requests to each of the wireless communication devices 20a, establishes a connection, and transmits a network profile.

The devices that can be connected to the control device 10 are not limited to the wireless communication devices 20, 20a, and 20b. As shown in FIG. 10, a mobile terminal 40 may be connected to the control device 10 via a wireless LAN 30. The mobile terminal 40 is, for example, a smartphone, and can remotely control the control device 10 and provide information such as air pressure and ambient light to the control device 10.

The method of establishing a connection between the control device 10 and the wireless communication device 20 is not limited to the above example, and is arbitrary. Specifically, in the above embodiment, the control device 10 performs passive scanning to wait for a beacon, but active scanning may also be performed.

The control device 10 is not limited to a VHF radio station, but may be a radio station that communicates at any frequency, or any communication device that performs wireless LAN communication.
The input/output devices connected to the control device 10 are not limited to the above examples and may be any devices. The input/output unit 15 of the control device 10 may acquire audio data from a microphone built into the control device 10, or may output audio from a speaker built into the control device 10.

The external device connected to the wireless communication device 20 is not limited to the above examples and can be any device.

Radio systems 1 and 2 are not limited to being installed on a ship, but may be installed on any mobile body. Radio systems 1 and 2 are not limited to being installed on a mobile body, but may be any wireless system.

1, 2 Wireless System
10 Control device
11 Control side operation switching unit
12 Control side communication unit
13 VHF antenna
14 VHF communication section
15 Input/output unit 20, 20a, 20b wireless communication equipment
21 Device side operation switching unit
22 Device side communication unit
23 Input/Output Unit
30 Wireless LAN
40 Mobile terminal
41 Speaker
42 Microphone
43 GPS antenna
44 Horn speaker
50 Access point device
60, 70 Bus
61, 71 CPU
62,72 memory
63, 73 LAN communication IF
64 VHF communication IF
65, 74 Input/Output IF

Claims (12)

A control device capable of communicating with a wireless communication device via a wireless local area network,
a control communication unit that, when detecting a beacon transmitted from the wireless communication device that is not connected to the wireless local area network, establishes a connection with the wireless communication device by transmitting a connection request to the wireless communication device and transmits to the wireless communication device a network profile for connecting to the wireless local area network;
A control device comprising: when the control-side communication unit receives a notification from the wireless communication device that has transmitted the network profile that the network profile has been set, the control-side communication unit transmits to the wireless communication device a switching command for instructing the wireless communication device to switch to an equipment-side station mode for connecting to the wireless local area network based on the network profile.
The control device according to claim 1 . the control side communication unit is set with the network profile for connecting to an access point device provided in the wireless local area network,
The control communication unit transmits the set network profile to the wireless communication device.
The control device according to claim 1 or 2. a control side operation switching unit that switches between a control side access point mode that accepts a connection request from the wireless communication device and a control side station mode that transmits a connection request to the wireless communication device,
the control side communication unit establishes a connection with the wireless communication device by accepting a connection request from the wireless communication device in the control side access point mode, and by detecting the beacon transmitted from the wireless communication device and transmitting a connection request to the wireless communication device in the control side station mode, and transmits the network profile for connecting to the control device to the wireless communication device.
The control device according to claim 1 or 2. the control-side operation switching unit switches to the control-side access point mode after the control-side communication unit transmits the network profile to the wireless communication device.
The control device according to claim 4. A wireless communication device capable of communicating with a control device via a wireless local area network,
a device-side operation switching unit that switches between a device-side access point mode that accepts a connection request from the control device and a device-side station mode that connects to the wireless local area network based on a network profile;
a device-side communication unit that transmits a beacon in the device-side access point mode, establishes a connection with the control device by accepting a connection request from the control device that detects the beacon, receives a network profile for connecting to the wireless local area network from the control device, sets the network profile based on the received network profile, and connects to the wireless local area network based on the set network profile in the device-side station mode;
Equipped with
If the network profile has not been set, the device-side operation switching unit switches to the device-side access point mode.
Wireless communication equipment. When the device-side communication unit receives the network profile from the control device, the device-side communication unit sets the network profile based on the received network profile and transmits a notification that the network profile has been set to the control device.
7. The wireless communication device according to claim 6. the device-side communication unit receives a switching command from the control device instructing switching to the device-side station mode;
the device-side operation switching unit switches to the device-side station mode when the device-side communication unit receives the switching command;
8. A wireless communication device according to claim 6 or 7. the device-side operation switching unit switches to the device-side access point mode if the network profile has not been set when a power-on command is issued by a power operation of the wireless communication device;
A wireless communication device according to any one of claims 6 to 8. A control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5;
At least one wireless communication device according to any one of claims 6 to 9;
A wireless system comprising: An access point device is further provided,
the control device transmits the network profile for connecting to the access point device to the wireless communication device;
the control device and at least one of the wireless communication devices communicate via the access point device;
11. The wireless system of claim 10. A network profile setting method for setting a network profile for connecting the wireless communication device to the wireless local area network, the network profile setting method being performed by a wireless system including a wireless communication device capable of communicating via a wireless local area network and a control device, the method comprising:
when a network profile of the wireless communication device has not been set, switching the wireless communication device to a device-side access point mode in which the wireless communication device transmits a beacon and receives a connection request from the control device;
having the control device detect the beacon and transmit a connection request to the wireless communication device to establish a connection between the control device and the wireless communication device, and having the control device transmit the network profile to the wireless communication device;
having the wireless communication device that has received the network profile set the network profile;
How to set up a network profile.

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