Patent Publication Number: US-2017366965-A1

Title: Communication device, communication system and method therefor

Description:
FIELD 
     The disclosure generally relates to communication systems, and particularly to a device-to-device (D2D) communication device, system and method used in public security. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Communication devices today can communicate data and multimedia files or streams beyond simple audio communications. A display has become one of the most important components of the communication devices to display data and multimedia streams or files. People working in public safety organizations such as police stations and fire departments, when working in a dark or dim environment, may require a display which can reduce dark adaptation effect, where the dark adaptation refers to an adaptability degree of the eyes for the change of surrounding luminance from light to dark conditions as time goes by and may negatively affect execution of the mission and even risk harm in a dark environment. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Many aspects of the present disclosure can be better understood with reference to the drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the disclosure. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the views. 
         FIG. 1  is a system architecture of one embodiment of a device-to-device (D2D) communication system. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of one embodiment of a communication device of the D2D communication system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a system architecture of another embodiment of the communication system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3 , according to a first exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic view of connections between a first device and a plurality of second devices. 
         FIG. 6  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3 , according to a second exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3 , according to a third exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 8  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3 , according to a fourth exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 9  is a block diagram of another embodiment of the communication device of the D2D communication system of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, where appropriate, reference numerals have been repeated among the different figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements. In addition, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments described herein. However, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiment described herein can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the related relevant feature being described. Also, the description is not to be considered as limiting the scope of the embodiments described herein. The drawings are not necessarily to scale and the proportions of certain parts may be exaggerated to better illustrate details and features of the present disclosure. 
       FIG. 1  shows a system architecture of one embodiment of a D2D communication system  100 . The communication system  100  includes a headquarter  10 , a base station  20 , a command center  30 , at least one mobile base station  40  (one is shown in  FIG. 1 ), and a plurality of communication devices  50 . The mobile base station  40  is configured to wirelessly serve the communication devices  50 . In one embodiment, the system architecture can be implemented in public safety organizations, such as police stations, fire departments, emergency management agencies, rescue squads, or the like. In one embodiment, the communication system  100  can be implemented by a communication system, e.g. LTE system, defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards organization. 
     When the headquarter  10  receives a mission, the headquarter  10  sends a mission command to the command center  30  via the base station  20 . The command center  30  receives the mission command from the headquarter  10  and sends the mission command to the communication devices  50  via the mobile base stations  40 . The mission command is configured to switch the communication devices  50  from a normal mode to a mission mode. The mission command can include at least one of a mission region and a mission time. 
     In other embodiment, the headquarter  10  can directly send the mission command to a server (not shown), replacing the command center  30 , and the server then sends the mission command to the communication devices  50  via the mobile base stations  40 . 
       FIG. 2  illustrates that, in an exemplary embodiment, the communication device  50  includes a processor  501 , a display  502 , a sensor  503 , a speaker  504 , a microphone  505 , a first transceiver  506 , a second transceiver  507 , and a positioning module  508 . The display  502 , the sensor  503 , the speaker  504 , the microphone  505 , the first transceiver  506 , the second transceiver  507 , and the positioning module  508  are electronically connected to the processor  501 . 
     The processor  501  is configured to switch the communication device  50  between the normal mode and the mission mode. The display  502  is configured to display information. The sensor  503  is configured to sense brightness of the surroundings of the communication device  50 . The speaker  504  and the microphone  505  are configured to output and input audio signals. In this exemplary embodiment, the first transceiver  506  may be a BLUETOOTH (BT) transceiver or a WiFi transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless signals using BT or WiFi protocol. The second transceiver  507  may be a second generation (2G) transceiver, a third generation (3G) transceiver, or a fourth generation (4G) transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless signals using 2G (e.g. CDMA/GSM), 3G (e.g. CDMA2000/WCDMA/TD-SCDMA) or 4G (e.g. LTE) protocol. The positioning module  508  may be a GPS module configured to obtain a current position of the wireless communication device  50 . 
     The communication device  50  can operate in and switch between a normal mode and a mission mode. In this embodiment, the communication device  50  can switch from the normal mode to the mission mode when the second transceiver  507  receives a mission command from the base station  20 . In the mission mode, at least one portion of the display  502  of the wireless communication device  50  emits visible light in the 500 nm to 700 nm spectrum which may include monochromatic light such as red light and orange light. In addition, the speaker  504  of the communication device  50  is controlled by the processor  501  to be muted in the mission mode so that the second transceiver  507  of the communication device  50  can receive an incoming call and a message without audible warning generated by the speaker  504  during the mission mode. In other embodiment, in the mission mode, the processor  501  can further control a vibrator (not shown) to generate a vibration warning without audible warning when the second transceiver  507  of the communication device  50  receives an incoming call and a message. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates that, in one embodiment, the communication devices  50  includes at least one first device  51  and at least one second devices  53 . For simplicity of illustration, one first device  51  and two second devices  53  are shown in  FIG. 3 . In addition, the first device  51  and the second device  53  can be implemented by the communication device  50  as shown in  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 4  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3 , according to a first exemplary embodiment. The headquarter  10  sends the mission command to the first device  51  via the base station  20 , the command center  30  and the mobile base station  40 . In other embodiment, the headquarter  10  can send the mission command to the first device  51  directly via the base station  20  or the mobile base station  40  without the command center  30 . Alternatively, the command center  30  can receive a mission and send a corresponding mission command to the first device  51  via the mobile station  40  directly without any headquarter  10 . In one embodiment, the mobile base station  40  may be a movable base station mounted in a vehicle, e.g., a police car. In another embodiment, the mobile base station  40  may be replaced by a base station fixed in a specific location. The second transceiver  507  of the first device  51  receives the mission command from the mobile base station  40 , and the first device  51  then switches from the normal mode into the mission mode in response to the mission command. In one embodiment, the first device  51  can switch from the normal mode into the mission mode by changing a setting of the display  502  from a first value to a second value in response to the mission command. In this embodiment, the processor  501  is configured to change the setting of the display and switch the first device  51  from the normal mode into the mission mode or switch from the mission mode to the normal mode. The setting can be a value representing a wavelength of light emitted by the display  502 ; and the first value (e.g., 400 nm) can be outside of a range between 500 nm and 700 nm and the second value (e.g. 600 nm) can be within the range between 500 nm and 700 nm. In another embodiment, the setting can be a value representing a color of light emitted by the display  502 ; and the first value can represent, for example, blue light and the second value can represent, for example, orange or red light. After receiving the mission command and/or switching from the normal mode into the mission mode, the first device  51  then sends a corresponding switching command to the second devices  53 . The second transceiver  507  of the second device  53  receives the switching command from the first device  51 , and the second device  53  then switches from the normal mode into the mission mode in response to the switching command. Similarly, the second device  53  can switch from the normal mode into the mission mode by changing a setting of its display  502  from a third value, representing a wavelength (e.g. 400 nm) or a color of light (e.g. blue light), to a forth value, representing another wavelength (e.g. 600 nm) or another color of light (e.g. orange light), in response to the switching command. After switching into the mission mode, the second device  53  sends an acknowledgement (ACK) signal to the first device  51  in response to the switching command. In this embodiment, the switching command can be sent by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the first device  51  and received by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the second device  53 . In addition, the ACK signal can be sent by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the second device  53  and received by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the first device  51 . 
     The first device  51  and the second device  53  can communicate with each other by a device-to-device (D2D) wireless communication protocol. In one embodiment, the D2D wireless communication protocol can be ProSe (Proximity based Services) protocol defined by the 3GPP standards organization. The D2D wireless communication protocol can include, but is not limited to, a search mechanism, a listening mechanism, a negotiation mechanism, a security setting mechanism, an address setting mechanism, a particular message communication mechanism, etc.  FIG. 5  illustrates that, a topographical representation as to connections between the first device  51  and the second devices  53  can be, but is not limited to, ring-shaped, mesh-shaped, star-shaped, line-shaped, and tree-shaped. 
     In other embodiment, the first device  51  can also send any type of data or control commands to the second devices  53 . The control commands can be, but are not limited to, a volume adjusting command for adjusting a sound volume of the speaker  504  of the second devices  53  or a mode controlling command for switching the second devices  53  from the normal mode to other mode, such as a power saving mode. 
       FIG. 6  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3 , according to a second exemplary embodiment. The headquarter  10  sends the mission command to the mobile base station  40 . The mobile base station  40  sends the mission command to the first device  51  and the second devices  53 , respectively. The second transceiver  507  of the first device  51  receives the mission command from the mobile base station  40 , and the first device  51  then switches from the normal mode into the mission mode. After switching into the mission mode, the first device  51  sends an ACK signal to the mobile base station  40  in response to the mission command. The mobile base station  40  then sends the ACK signal to the headquarter  10  so as to notify the headquarter that the first device  51  has received the mission command. 
     The second transceiver  507  of the second device  53  receives the mission command from the mobile base station  40 , and the second device  53  then detects, in response to the mission command, whether the first device  51  is close to the second device  53 . If the second device  53  detects that the first device  51  is close to the second device  53 , the second device  53  switches from the normal mode to the mission mode by changing a setting of its display  502 . In one embodiment, if the second device  53  detects that the first device  51  is close to the second device  53 , the second device  53  sends a switching requirement to the first device  51 . The first device  51  receives the switching requirement from the second device  53  and sends mode information to the second device  53  in response to the switching requirement. The mode information can include a setting, e.g., a wavelength or a color of light, of the display  502  or a setting of the speaker  504  of the first device  51  operating in the mission mode. The second device  53  receives the mode information, e.g., the setting of the display  502  or the setting of the speaker  504 , from the first device  51  and switches from the normal mode to the mission mode by changing the setting of its display  502  or the setting of its speaker  504  according to the mode information. After switching into the mission mode, the second devices  53  also sends the ACK signal to the mobile base station  40 . The mobile base station  40  then sends the ACK signal to the headquarter  10  so as to notify the headquarter  10  that the second device  53  has received the mission command. In one embodiment, the second device  53  detects whether the first device  51  is close to it according to a measured strength of a signal received from the first device  51 . For example, the second device  53  can detect that the first device  51  is close to it when it determines that the measured strength of the signal received from the first device  51  is greater than a threshold. In this embodiment, the mode information can be sent by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the first device  51  and received by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the second device  53 . In addition, the switching requirement can be sent by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the second device  53  and received by the first transceiver  506  or the second transceiver  507  of the first device  51 . 
       FIG. 7  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3 , according to a third exemplary embodiment. The headquarter  10  sends the mission command to the mobile base station  40 . The mobile base station  40  sends the mission command to the first device  51  and the second devices  53 , respectively. After receiving the mission command, the first device  51  and the second devices  53  automatically switch from the normal mode into the mission mode according to a local time and/or ambient brightness sensed by the sensor  503 . For example, if the local time is at evening, night or midnight or if the ambient brightness is less than a predetermined value, the first device  51  and the second devices  53  can automatically switch from the normal mode into the mission mode. After switching into the mission mode, the first device  51  and the second devices  53  send the ACK signals to the mobile base station  40 . The mobile base station  40  then sends the ACK signals to the headquarter  10  so as to notify the headquarter  10  that the first device  51  and the second device  53  have received the mission command. In this embodiment, the first device  51  and the second device  53  can switch from the normal mode into the mission mode by changing the settings of their displays  502  in the same manner described above, and the ACK signals can be sent by the second transceiver  507  of the first and second devices  51 ,  53  to the mobile base station  40 . 
       FIG. 8  is a protocol diagram for illustrating a communication method for the communication system of  FIG. 3  according to a fourth exemplary embodiment. The headquarter  10  sends the mission command to the mobile base station  40 . The mobile base station  40  sends the mission command to the first device  51  and the second devices  53 , respectively. After receiving the mission command, the first device  51  and the second device  53  switch from the normal mode into the mission mode according to a current position. For example, if the current position obtained by the positioning module  508  is within the mission region, the first device  51  and the second devices  53  automatically switch from the normal mode into the mission mode. After switching into the mission mode, the first device  51  and the second devices  53  send the ACK signals to the mobile base station  40 . The mobile base station  40  then sends the ACK signals to the headquarter  10  so as to notify the headquarter  10  that the first device  51  and the second device  53  have received the mission command. In this embodiment, the first device  51  and the second device  53  can switch from the normal mode into the mission mode by changing the settings of their displays  502  in the same manner described above, and the ACK signals can be sent by the second transceiver  507  of the first and second devices  51 ,  53  to the mobile base station  40 . 
     After the mission is finished, the first device  51  can switch back from the mission mode into the normal mode by changing the setting of its display  502  from the second value (e.g. 600 nm) to the first value (e.g. 400 nm) and send a recovery command to the second devices  53 . The second devices  53  receive the recovery command from the first device  51  and also switch back from the mission mode into the normal mode by changing the setting of its display  502  from the forth value (e.g. 600 nm) to the third value (e.g. 400 nm) in response to the recovery command. 
       FIG. 9  illustrates another embodiment of the communication device of  FIG. 1 . The first device  51  and the second device  53  shown in  FIG. 3  can also be implemented by the communication device of  FIG. 9 . The communication device further includes a power amplifier  509  electronically connected between the processor  501  and the first and second transceivers  506 ,  507 . A transmission power of the amplifier  509  of the first device  51  is increased before the first device  51  sends the commands and information (e.g. the switching command, the mode information, the controlling commands, and the recovering command) to the second devices  53 , to ensure that the second devices  53  can receive the commands. 
     In addition, the communication device further includes a button  510  electronically connected to the processor  501  and positioned outside a housing (not shown) of the communication device. The button  510  can manually switch the communication device  50  from a normal mode to a mission mode. 
     The D2D communication system in the present application as described in the above embodiments can be applied to a plurality of public safety organizations. For example, in a police station, the first device  51  can be used by a supervisor at the police station and the second devices  53  can be used by others. When the headquarter  10  receives a mission, the headquarter  10  sends the mission command to the first device  51  via the mobile base station  40 . The first device  51  receives the mission command from the mobile base station  40  and switches from the normal mode into the mission mode. The first device  51  sends the corresponding switching command to the second devices  53 . The second device  53  receives the switching command from the first device  51  and also switches from the normal mode into the mission mode in response to the switching command. After the mission is finished, the first device  51  switches back from the mission mode into the normal mode and sends the recovery command to the second devices  53 . The second devices  53  receive the recovery command from the first device  51  and also switch back from the mission mode into the normal mode in response to the recovery command. 
     When the headquarter  10  accepts a mission, the headquarter  10  sends a mission command to the communication devices  50  to switch the communication device  50  from the normal mode to the mission mode in which at least one portion of the display  502  of the communication device  50  emits monochromatic light such as red light and orange light. Therefore, the display  502  can reduce eye adaptation effect and thus avoid risk harm during execution of a mission. 
     It is to be understood, however, that even through numerous characteristics and advantages of the present disclosure have been set fourth in the foregoing description, together with details of assembly and function, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in details, especially in the matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the disclosure to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.