Abstract:
The present invention relates to a transmission method of wireless virtual channels and in particular to the data transmission between wireless host device and child devices. Both of the child device and the host device store a number of sets of family ID and security ID. The child device is the emitter and the host device is the receiver. The child device sends out a set of family ID and security ID by using at least one key or activation unit to the host device that receives and identifies the family ID and security ID. Insertion of the family ID and the security ID to each string of wireless data transmitted between the child device and the host device serves as the certification purpose so that one or multiple data transmission channels can be virtually created.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention relates to a transmission method of wireless virtual channels, in particular to a method that construct communication channels for wireless data transmission.  
           [0002]    Wireless transmission is a very popular method for digital data transmission on computers and electronic equipment, such as, signal and data transmission between a wireless keyboard, a wireless mouse, a wireless joystick and the computer, data transmission between two wireless USB devices, and control data and command transmission between the host and child device of a wireless controller. Conventional wireless transmission method for computers and electronic equipments is based on the circuit designs of the emitter and the receiver, which can produce wireless signals at the same frequency. If the transmission frequencies are set to be the same or tuned at a common channel, a computer and a single wireless keyboard can smoothly transmit data to each other. However, if more than one computer or more than one wireless keyboard are operated in the same area, data transmission may be mistakenly altered or exchanged due to interrupted channels or overlapped frequencies.  
           [0003]    Therefore, for overcoming the above-mentioned drawback of miscommunication, some conventional computers are equipped with channel switches or circuit jumpers so that several channels, instead of one, can be selected from and thus chances of miscommunication can be reduced. In order to produce computers with such channel switches or circuit jumpers, the circuit design is inevitably complicated and the manufacturing cost is increased. Furthermore, for users in an interior space where multiple computers and wireless keyboards are used, great efforts must be placed on properly arrangement and distribution of limited channels. This conventional wireless transmission method between host and child devices by channel switches and circuit jumpers will be very troublesome to operate properly when the number of wireless devices in a same area is large. This situation might finally reach a limit and the operation cost will then be increased due to the need of purchase of new wireless transmission interfaces in computers and wireless keyboards.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a transmission method of virtual channels where the channel of wireless transmission can be defined freely in order to prevent the channel overlapping and interruption.  
           [0005]    It is another object of the present invention to provide a transmission method of virtual channels in which the user can change the transmission channel without the need of changing the circuit or hardware of the transmission interface so that the manufacturing cost and the market price of the product can be significantly reduced.  
           [0006]    It is a further object of the present invention to provide a transmission method of virtual channels with which users do not need to arrange, assign, memorize and switch channels so that the operation of the wireless equipments can be simplified.  
           [0007]    It is a further object of the present invention to provide a transmission method of virtual channels where the number of transmission channels can be unlimitedly expanded and the transmission will not be degraded by the increased number of wireless devices.  
           [0008]    For accomplishing the above object, the present invention provides a transmission method of virtual channels, which is characterized in that both the host device and the child device store a large number of family ID and security ID, in which the child device is the emitter, and the host device is the receiver. Once the child device emits one set of family ID and security ID by pressing at least one key or other activation unit, the host device will receive and identify such IDs and then define these IDs as the authorized identity for further wireless transmission. These agreed family and security IDs will be added into the top of data string created in each wireless transmission emitted either by the host or the child device so that the receiving device can check the identity of each data string and determine if such data string is meant for the checking device to receive. By this approach, one or multiple virtual channels of wireless transmission can be established.  
           [0009]    Other objects, advantages and constructions of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description and the drawings.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DISCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]    The present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art by reading the following description of preferred embodiments thereof, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the hardware system of the present invention;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the setting procedure of the family and security IDs for the host and child devices in the first embodiment;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the setting procedure of family and security IDs for host and child devices in the second embodiment;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the setting procedure of family and security IDs for the host and child devices in the third embodiment; and  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing wireless two-way data transmission of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0016]    Referring to FIG. 1, the hardware system of the present invention comprises the child device  10  and the host device  20 , which both are electronic equipments capable of conducting wireless data transmission. The child device  10  and the host device  20 , such as the wireless keyboard and the host computer, both store a number of sets of family ID (FID)  30  and security ID (SID)  40 . At least one key  50  or activation unit  60  is installed on the child device  10 , and similarly at least one key  50 ′ or activation unit  60 ′ is installed on the host device  20  so that the child device  10  as the emitter and the host device  20  as the receiver can conduct wireless data transmission through the setting of both FID  30  and SID  40 . The keys  50  and  50 ′ can be a number or character key and the activation units  60  and  60 ′ can be photo-sensor, touch, card-reading apparatuses, or any other device that can be used as an input unit.  
         [0017]    Referring to FIG. 2, the first embodiment of the present invention shows how the FID  30  and the SID  40  are implemented between the child device  10  and the host device  20  in which the child device  10  is the emitter and the host device  20  is the receiver. The procedure of implementation of the FID  30  and SID  40  between two devices is defined as follows:  
         [0018]    ( 100 ) The host device  20  after being turned on its power is always in a ready status for receiving a new SID  40  from the child device  10  that is the emitter;  
         [0019]    ( 110 ) During the FID  30  and SID  40  setting stage, at least one key  50  or activation unit  60  on the child device  10  is touched or activated so that a new set of FID  30  and SID  40  can be produced;  
         [0020]    ( 120 ) The child device  10  sends data string containing the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  to the host device  20 ;  
         [0021]    ( 130 ) The host device  20  uses the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  emitted from the child device  10  as the renewed set of FID  30  and SID  40 ; and  
         [0022]    ( 140 ) Both the child device  10  and the host device  20  mutually conduct wireless data transmission through the new set of FID  30  and SID  40 .  
         [0023]    The first embodiment details the implementation of FID  30  and SID  40  between the child device  10  and the host device  20  in which the child device  10  is the one on which the implementation of transmission setting is mainly conducted. Such practice provides the users of personal computers and industrial computers advantages of active implementation of new settings and ease of operation  
         [0024]    Referring to FIG. 3, the second embodiment of the present invention shows how the FID  30  and the SID  40  are implemented between the child device  10  and the host device  20  in which, contrary to the first embodiment, the host device  20  is now the emitter and the child device  10  is the receiver. The procedure of implementation of the FID  30  and SID  40  between two devices is defined as follows:  
         [0025]    ( 200 ) Edit and define the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  on the host device  20 ;  
         [0026]    ( 210 ) The new set of FID  30  and SID  40  will be stored and displayed on the host device  20 ;  
         [0027]    ( 220 ) The host device  20  sends data string containing the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  to the child device  10 ;  
         [0028]    ( 230 ) The child device  10  uses the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  emitted from the host device  20  as the renewed set of FID  30  and SID  40 ; and  
         [0029]    ( 240 ) Both the child device  10  and the host device  20  mutually conduct wireless data transmission through the new set of FID  30  and SID  40 .  
         [0030]    The second embodiment uses the host device  20  as the device in which the setting of FID  30  and SID  40  is implemented. For example, if the computer and the wireless keyboard represents the host device  20  and the child device  10 , respectively, the computer is installed with a software which is used for editing and defining the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  by the use of a number of compound keys, and the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  are then stored and displayed on the host device  20 . The new set of FID  30  and SID  40  are then emitted to the child device  10  so as to initiate the wireless data transmission between the host device  20  and the child device  10  based on the common setting of FID  30  and SID  40 .  
         [0031]    Referring to FIG. 4, the third embodiment of the present invention shows how the FID  30  and SID  40  are implemented between the child device  10  and the host device  20  in which, the child device  10  is the emitter and the host device  20  is the receiver between which a data transmission setting control mechanism is implemented and the child device  10  contains a memory  11 . The procedure of implementation of the FID  30  and SID  40  between two devices is defined as follows:  
         [0032]    ( 300 ) At least one key or activation unit on the child device  10  is operated;  
         [0033]    ( 310 ) The child device  10  emits data string containing a set of FID  30  and SID  40  for a period of time;  
         [0034]    ( 320 ) At least one key or activation unit on the host device  20  is operated;  
         [0035]    ( 330 ) The host device  20  receives the new set of FID  30  and SID  40 ;  
         [0036]    ( 340 ) The child device  10  stores the new set of FID  30  and SID  40  in the memory  11 ; and  
         [0037]    ( 350 ) Both child device  10  and host device  20  conduct wireless data transmission based on the set of FID  30  and SID  40 .  
         [0038]    In the above-described embodiment, the key  50  or activation unit  60  of the child device  10 , and the key  50 ′ or activation unit  60 ′ of the host device  20  are used to implement the certification when the FID  30  and SID  40  for data transmission are defined. The more precise certification of FID  30  and SID  40  between the host device  20  and the child device  10  as in the third embodiment can avoid transmission errors that often happen when more than one child device  10  attempt to conduct the certification of the FID  30  and SID  40  with the host device  20 .  
         [0039]    Referring to FIG. 5, the data transmission procedure of the present invention comprises the following steps:  
         [0040]    ( 400 ) Select an identical set of FID  30  and SID  40  on both child device  10  and host device  20 ;  
         [0041]    ( 410 ) Use the child device  10  as the emitter to send data;  
         [0042]    ( 420 ) Insert FID  30  and SID  40  to each string of data;  
         [0043]    ( 430 ) Use the host device  20  as the receiver to receive data;  
         [0044]    ( 440 ) Detect each string of data if a matching set of FID  30  and SID  40  are included. If included, proceed to ( 450 ); if not included, proceed to ( 440 A);  
         [0045]    ( 450 ) Receive and handle the string of data; and  
         [0046]    ( 440 A) Abandon the string of data.  
         [0047]    In the above data transmission procedure, the setting implementation of FID  30  and SID  40  between the child device  10  and the host device  20  can be achieved according to methods defined in either of the three embodiments as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and  4 . The insertion of FID  30  and SID  40  to each data string as in ( 420 ) of FIG. 5 can be implemented in a form of serial data strings or firmware.  
         [0048]    Referring to FIGS.  1  to  5  which reveal the present invention, the touch implementation of a key  50  or activation unit  60  on the child device  10  and a key  50 ′ or activation unit  60 ′ on the host device  20  produces a number of FID  30  and SID  40  combinations that are used to virtually set an unlimited number of wireless transmission channels so that a multiple number of child devices  10  can conduct wireless data transmission with the host device  20  in the same region without the chance of losing data strings due to channel interference. Furthermore, without the need of changing circuit designs, the present invention enables users to easily select a wireless transmission channel represented by a set of FID  30  and SID  40  so that the cost of the product is reduced and the operation of the wireless transmission is made easier.  
         [0049]    Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.