JP2010130228A - Communication system, communication device, and communication method - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to make it intuitive and easy to select a service and confirm an identity.
A receiving means of a transceiver includes a BPSK demodulating unit and an OOK demodulating unit, so that a user holding the transceiver has an electrode in addition to data demodulated by the BPSK demodulating unit. When touching intermittently, data based on the touch can be acquired by on-off keying. Accordingly, the user 100 can not only perform data communication by touching the electrode 10, but also can select a service by changing the way of touching the electrode 10, and the user 100 can perform only the operation of touching the electrode 10. You can get a variety of services.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for inducing an electric field based on information to be transmitted in an electric field transmission medium and transmitting and receiving information by detecting the induced electric field.

  There has been proposed a transceiver (hereinafter simply referred to as a transceiver) using electric field communication in which an electric field is induced in an electric field transmission medium such as a human body and data communication is performed using the induced electric field. For example, when unlocking a door by transmitting and receiving an ID between transceivers, the ID is transmitted and the door is unlocked simply by the user holding the transceiver contacting the electrode of the transceiver arranged on the door. . When the data to be transmitted is determined by one type of service provided in this way, the user can receive the service only by touching the electrode, which is very convenient.

On the other hand, for example, when using a transceiver using electric field communication for exchanging electronic money, there are a wide variety of services such as payment, balance inquiry, and history display, so users first receive before sending and receiving data You need to select a service. In order to select the service to receive, other operations than touching the electrode are required, such as pressing a button for selecting a service. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228688 discloses a technique for operating a transceiver held by a user and specifying the type of service by changing the strength of an electric field to be transmitted.
JP 2006-304373 A

  As described above, in order to select a service, an operation different from the operation of touching the electrode is required. Even when the technique described in Patent Document 1 is used, since the transmitting transceiver is operated while being in contact with the electrode of the receiving transceiver, an operation different from the operation of contacting the electrode is required.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and it is an object of the present invention to make service selection and identity verification intuitive and easy in a communication system using electric field communication.

  A communication system according to a first aspect of the present invention is a communication system that performs communication by an electric field induced in an electric field transmission medium between a first transceiver and a second transceiver, wherein the first transceiver oscillates a carrier wave. Means for modulating the carrier wave with the data to be transmitted and for inducing an electric field in the electric field transmission medium based on the modulated carrier wave; detecting the electric field induced in the electric field transmission medium by the second transceiver; Receiving means for demodulating the contained data, wherein the second transceiver detects the electric field induced by the first transceiver via the electrode and converts the electric signal into an electric signal via the electrode. And a first demodulating means for demodulating the electric signal, a second demodulating means for demodulating the electric signal by on-off keying, and inducing an electric field in the electric field transmission medium by modulating the data to be transmitted. And having a transmission unit for, a.

  In the communication system, the second transceiver includes a determination unit that determines a service to be provided or performs personal authentication based on data demodulated by the second demodulation unit.

  In the communication system, the transmission means of the first transceiver transmits the carrier wave without modulation until a response from the second transceiver is received.

  A communication device according to a second aspect of the present invention is a communication device that performs communication by an electric field induced in an electric field transmission medium based on a carrier wave modulated by data to be transmitted, and includes an electrode for electric field communication, and an electrode And receiving means for detecting an electric field and converting it into an electric signal, first demodulating means for demodulating the electric signal, and second demodulating means for demodulating the electric signal by on-off keying.

  The communication apparatus includes a determination unit that determines a service to be provided or performs personal authentication based on data demodulated by the second demodulation unit.

  A communication method according to a third aspect of the present invention is a communication method in which communication is performed by an electric field induced in an electric field transmission medium based on a carrier wave modulated by data to be transmitted, and the electric field is transmitted via an electrode for electric field communication. A step of detecting and converting to an electric signal; a step of demodulating the electric signal; and a step of demodulating the electric signal by on-off keying.

  The communication method further includes a step of determining a service to be provided or performing personal authentication based on data demodulated by on-off keying.

  According to the present invention, in a communication system that performs communication using an electric field induced in an electric field transmission medium, the second transceiver includes a receiving unit that converts the electric field induced in the electric field transmission medium into an electric signal, and demodulates the electric signal. In addition to the data demodulated by the first demodulating means, the electric field transmission medium is intermittently applied to the electrodes by providing the first demodulating means and the second demodulating means for demodulating the electric signal by on-off keying. Data based on how to touch when touching can be acquired. Thus, if the electric field transmission medium is a user's finger, the user selects the service by touching the electrode, that is, the user intermittently touches the electrode, and then touches the electrode to perform data. Therefore, the user can select a service and receive the service simply by touching the electrode. In addition to selecting a service, it is also possible to verify the identity by touching the electrodes.

  Thus, according to the present invention, in a communication system using electric field communication, service selection, identity verification, and the like can be made intuitive and easy.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows transmission means of a first transceiver and reception means of a second transceiver in the communication system according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, a transceiver 2 is connected to a computer 2 that provides a service. The transceiver 3 is held by the user 100. The transceivers 1 and 3 each have transmission means and reception means by electric field communication. When data is transmitted from the transceiver 3 to the transceiver 1, the transmission means of the transceiver 3 induces an electric field in the user 100, which is an electric field transmission medium, and the reception means of the transceiver 1 transmits the electric field induced in the user 100. This is done by detecting. On the other hand, when transmitting data from the transceiver 1 to the transceiver 3, the transmitting means (not shown) of the transceiver 1 induces an electric field in the user 100, and the receiving means (not shown) of the transceiver 3 is the electric field. This is done by detecting

  As shown in FIG. 1, the transceiver 1 includes an electrode 10, a receiving unit 11, an OOK demodulating unit 12, and a BPSK demodulating unit 13 as receiving means.

  The reception unit 11 includes an electric field detection unit 111, a signal processing circuit 112, and a waveform shaping circuit 113. The electric field induced in the user 100 by the transmission means of the transceiver 3 is received by the electrode 10 and supplied to the electric field detector 111. The electric field detector 111 detects the electric field received by the electrode 10 and converts it into an electric signal. The signal processing circuit 112 performs signal processing such as amplification and noise removal on the electrical signal. The waveform shaping circuit 113 shapes the electrical signal and supplies it to the OOK demodulator 12 and the BPSK demodulator 13.

  The OOK demodulator 12 performs OOK (On-Off Keying) demodulation based on the presence or absence of detection of the electric field induced by the transmission means of the transceiver 3. The presence or absence of detection of the electric field occurs when the user 100 touches the electrode 10 intermittently. That is, when the user 100 touches the electrode 10 with a tone like “two-to-two”, an intermittent electric field is detected by the receiving unit 11 and converted into an electric signal. The OOK demodulator 12 demodulates the intermittent electrical signal by on-off keying.

  The BPSK demodulator 13 detects a carrier wave modulated by information to be transmitted by the transmission means of the transceiver 3, and performs BPSK (Binary Phase Shift Keying) demodulation. When the user 100 touches the electrode 10, the carrier wave modulated and transmitted by the transmission means of the transceiver 3 is received by the receiving unit 11 and demodulated by the BPSK demodulating unit 13.

  The computer 2 connected to the transceiver 1 as a host device that provides a service includes a determination unit 21 and a data processing unit 22.

  The determination unit 21 determines a service to be provided based on the data demodulated by the OOK demodulation unit 12. The determination unit 21 includes a storage device that stores pattern data of how to touch the electrode 10 by the user 100 and service contents in association with each other. For example, “balance inquiry” is stored in association with the pattern data of how to touch “two-to-two”. As a result, when the user 100 touches the electrode 10 with “two-to-two”, the pattern data based on the touch is demodulated by the OOK demodulator 12 and the “balance inquiry” corresponding to the pattern data is displayed. Can receive service.

  The data processing unit 22 performs various processes by inputting data corresponding to the service determined by the determination unit 21. The data input to the data processor 22 is data demodulated by the BPSK demodulator 13, and the electrical signal demodulated by the BPSK demodulator 13 is a carrier wave modulated based on information to be transmitted by the transmission means of the transceiver 3. And, it is transmitted by electric field communication through the user 100 and the electrode 10. Data corresponding to a service is data necessary for providing the service. For example, when the service is “balance inquiry”, “account number” is used.

  FIG. 2 shows an equivalent circuit of the transmission means of the transceiver 3 and the reception means of the transceiver 1. As shown in the figure, the user 100 between the transmission means of the transceiver 3 and the reception means of the transceiver 1 can be represented by a capacitance, a resistance, and a switch. A switch 101 is configured by the user 100 and the electrode 10. The switch 101 is on when the user 100 is in contact with the electrode 10, and the switch 101 is off when the user 100 is away from the electrode 10. Therefore, when the user 100 taps the electrode 10, the on / off state of the switch 101 is controlled. When the switch 101 is on, a transmission path is established between the transceivers 1 and 3, and the electric field induced in the user 100 by the transmission means of the transceiver 3 is received by the reception means of the transceiver 1.

  The transmission means of the transceiver 3 includes a carrier oscillation unit 31 that oscillates a carrier wave of a predetermined frequency, and a modulation switch 32 that is switched based on information to be transmitted. When the user 100 selects a service depending on how the electrode 10 is touched, the modulation switch 32 is set to the 1 side and an unmodulated continuous carrier wave is transmitted. On the other hand, when the transceiver 3 transmits data, BPSK modulation is performed by switching to the 1 side or 0 side according to the data transmitted from the modulation switch 32. The transceiver 3 transmits a carrier wave to the transceiver 1 by inducing an electric field in the user 100.

  Next, the operation of the communication system will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram showing a flow of operations in which the communication system selects a service.

  First, the transmitting means of the transceiver 3 sends a non-modulated continuous carrier wave with the modulation switch 32 set to 1 side to induce an electric field in the user 100 (step S101). The user 100 touches the electrode 10 intermittently with a touch corresponding to the desired service (step S102). When the user 100 intermittently touches the electrode 10, a transmission path is intermittently established between the transceivers 1 and 3, and the receiving means of the transceiver 1 intermittently causes the electric field induced by the transmitting means of the transceiver 3 to the user 100. And receive.

  Subsequently, the receiving means of the transceiver 1 that has received the intermittent electric field performs OOK demodulation based on the presence or absence of detection of the intermittently received electric field, and transmits the demodulated data to the computer 2 (step S103). The computer 2 collates the demodulated data with the touch pattern data previously registered in the storage device or the like to search for matching pattern data, and specifies the service desired by the user 100 (step S104). The specified service is transmitted to the user 100 by a lamp or a display device provided in the computer 2. Thereafter, in order to transmit and receive data corresponding to the specified service between the transceivers 1 and 3, a message for prompting the user 100 to continue touching the electrode 10 may be displayed.

  The computer 2 specifying the service transmits a response to the receiving means of the transceiver 3 by the transmitting means of the transceiver 1 (step S105). The response transmitted from the transmission means of the transceiver 1 is transmitted to the reception means of the transceiver 3 via the user 100 by electric field communication. At this time, the user 100 is touching the electrode 10.

  The transceiver 3 that has received the response modulates the carrier wave based on the data to be transmitted by a predetermined modulation method, and transmits the data by inducing an electric field to the user 100 (step S106). In this embodiment, BPSK is used as a modulation / demodulation method. Information about the service selected by the user 100 is included in the response of the transceiver 1, and the transceiver 3 can specify data to be transmitted corresponding to the service.

  When the user 100 continues to touch the electrode 10, communication is performed using the user 100 as a transmission path (step S <b> 107), and the receiving means of the transceiver 1 converts the electric field received via the user 100 into an electrical signal. Then, BPSK demodulation is performed (step S108). The data obtained by demodulation is received and processed by the computer 2 to provide a service (step S109).

  In addition to the selection of the service, the determination unit 21 can register personal touch pattern data as authentication data to authenticate the user based on how the user 100 touches.

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the receiving means of the transceiver 1 includes the BPSK demodulator 13 and the OOK demodulator 12 so that the transceiver 3 can be used in addition to the data demodulated by the BPSK demodulator 13. When the person 100 contacts the electrode 10 intermittently, data based on the touch method can be acquired by on-off keying, so that the user 100 not only performs data communication by touching the electrode 10 but also the electrode 10. The service can be selected by changing the way of touching, and the user 100 can receive various services only by touching the electrode 10.

1 is an overall configuration diagram showing a configuration of a communication system in an embodiment. It is an equivalent circuit diagram of the communication system. It is a sequence diagram which shows the flow of operation | movement of the said communication system.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,3 ... Transceiver 2 ... Computer 10 ... Electrode 11 ... Reception part 111 ... Electric field detection part 112 ... Signal processing circuit 113 ... Waveform shaping circuit 12 ... OOK demodulation part 13 ... BPSK demodulation part 21 ... Determination part 22 ... Data processing part 31 ... Carrier oscillator 32 ... Modulation switch 100 ... User 101 ... Switch

Claims (7)

A communication system for performing communication between an electric field induced in an electric field transmission medium between first and second transceivers,
The first transceiver is
An oscillation means for oscillating a carrier wave;
Transmitting means for modulating the carrier wave with data to be transmitted and inducing an electric field in the electric field transmission medium based on the modulated carrier wave;
Receiving means for detecting an electric field induced in the electric field transmission medium by the second transceiver and demodulating data included in the electric field;
The second transceiver is
An electrode for electric field communication;
Receiving means for detecting the electric field induced by the first transceiver via the electrode and converting it into an electrical signal;
First demodulation means for demodulating the electrical signal;
Second demodulation means for demodulating the electrical signal by on-off keying;
Transmission means for modulating data to be transmitted and inducing an electric field in the electric field transmission medium.   2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the second transceiver includes a determination unit that determines a service to be provided or performs personal authentication based on data demodulated by the second demodulation unit.   3. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission means of the first transceiver transmits the carrier wave without modulation until a response from the second transceiver is received. A communication device for performing communication by an electric field induced in an electric field transmission medium based on a carrier wave modulated by data to be transmitted,
An electrode for electric field communication;
Receiving means for detecting the electric field through the electrodes and converting it into an electrical signal;
First demodulation means for demodulating the electrical signal;
Second demodulation means for demodulating the electrical signal by on-off keying;
A communication apparatus comprising:   5. The communication apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a determination unit that determines a service provided based on data demodulated by the second demodulation unit or performs personal authentication. A communication method for performing communication by an electric field induced in an electric field transmission medium based on a carrier wave modulated by data to be transmitted,
Detecting the electric field through an electrode for electric field communication and converting it into an electrical signal;
Demodulating the electrical signal;
Demodulating the electrical signal by on-off keying;
A communication method characterized by comprising:   7. The communication method according to claim 6, further comprising a step of determining a service to be provided or performing personal authentication based on data demodulated by on-off keying.