Communication system, communication relay apparatus, and recording medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9762756-B2
Application number	US-201615182180-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 14, 2016
Priority date	Jun 15, 2015
Publication date	Sep 12, 2017
Grant date	Sep 12, 2017

Abstract

A communication system includes a plurality of communication relay apparatuses relaying communication between the plurality of devices provided inside a LAN and an external server provided outside the LAN. A first communication relay apparatus performs a device search process of searching the LAN for a device, acquires information on a first management target device which is a device whose communication relay process is managed by a second communication relay apparatus, and determines a second management target device which is a device whose communication relay process is managed by the first communication relay apparatus. The first communication relay apparatus determines the second management target device after removing at least partial duplication of the second management target device and the first management target device, by excluding at least some of the first management target device from two or more devices which are retrieved in the device search process.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A communication system comprising:
a plurality of devices provided inside a LAN; and
a plurality of communication relay apparatuses provided inside the LAN and that relay communication between the plurality of devices and an external server provided outside the LAN,
wherein the plurality of communication relay apparatuses comprises a first communication relay apparatus and a second communication relay apparatus,
the first communication relay apparatus comprises:
a search processor that performs a device search process of searching the LAN for a device;
an acquisition processor that acquires information on at least one first management target device which is a device whose communication relay process with the external server is managed by the second communication relay apparatus; and
a determination processor that determines at least one second management target device which is a device whose communication relay process with the external server is managed by the first communication relay apparatus,

the determination processor determines the at least one second management target device after removing at least partial duplication of the at least one second management target device and the at least one first management target device, by excluding at least some of the at least one first management target device from two or more devices which are retrieved in the device search process, on the basis of the two or more devices and management device information which is the information on the at least one first management target device, and
the first communication relay apparatus compiles a device list that lists the at least one second management target device based on the determination by the determination processor.

2. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein the determination processor determines the at least one second management target device by at least excluding all of the at least one first management target device from the two or more devices.

3. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein the determination processor determines the at least one second management target device by at least excluding some of the at least one first management target device from the two or more devices.

4. The communication system according to claim 3 , wherein the determination processor determines the at least one second management target device by at least excluding some of the at least one first management target device from the two or more devices, allowing partial duplication of the at least one second management target device and the at least one first management target device, on the condition that a number of the at least one second management target device is not larger than a predetermined upper limit number.

5. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein the determination processor notifies the second communication relay apparatus that a device which is included in the management device information and is not retrieved in the device search process should be excluded from at least one management target device of the second communication relay apparatus.

6. The communication system according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a management server provided outside the LAN, receiving an access request for a specific device among the plurality of devices from the external server,
wherein the first communication relay apparatus sends information on the at least one second management target device to the management server,
the management server comprises:
a storage that stores therein registration information of at least one management target device of each of the plurality of communication relay apparatuses, the registration information including information on at least one management target device of the first communication relay apparatus;
a relay apparatus determination processor that determines a communication relay apparatus which is capable of relaying communication with the specific device on the basis of the registration information when the access request for the specific device is received from the external server; and
a communication processor that sends a tunnel connection request to the communication relay apparatus that is determined by the relay apparatus determination part, the tunnel connection request indicating that a tunnel connection with the external server should be established,
and wherein the communication relay apparatus determined by the relay apparatus determination processor establishes the tunnel connection with the external server in response to the tunnel connection request, and relays communication between the external server and the specific device by using the tunnel connection.

7. The communication system according to claim 6 , wherein
the communication processor of the management server establishes a communication session with the first communication relay apparatus in advance, and
sends the tunnel connection request to the first communication relay apparatus by using the communication session when the first communication relay apparatus is determined as a communication relay apparatus for the specific device by the relay apparatus determination processor.

8. The communication system according to claim 6 , wherein
the first communication relay apparatus performs communication between the first communication relay apparatus and the external server with a first communication protocol,
the first communication relay apparatus performs communication between the first communication relay apparatus and the specific device with a second communication protocol, and
when the first communication relay apparatus receives first data for the specific device from the external server, the first communication relay apparatus converts the first data into second data with conversion of the first communication protocol into the second communication protocol, and sends the second data to the specific device.

9. The communication system according to claim 6 , wherein the acquisition processor acquires the management device information by sending a transmission request of the management device information to the management server and receiving information sent from the management server in response to the transmission request.

10. The communication system according to claim 6 , wherein the external server and the management server are provided inside the same apparatus.

11. The communication system according to claim 1 , wherein the acquisition processor acquires the management device information by sending a transmission request of the management device information to the second communication relay apparatus and receiving information sent from the second communication relay apparatus in response to the transmission request.

12. A communication relay apparatus which is one communication relay apparatus among a plurality of communication relay apparatuses which relay communication between an external server provided outside a LAN and a plurality of devices provided inside the LAN, comprising:
a search processor that performs a device search process of searching the LAN for a device;
an acquisition processor that acquires information on at least one first management target device which is a device whose communication relay process with the external server is managed by a second communication relay apparatus which is a communication relay apparatus other than the one communication relay apparatus among the plurality of communication relay apparatuses provided inside the LAN; and
a determination processor that determines at least one second management target device which is a device whose communication re

Assignees

• Konica Minolta Inc

Inventors

• Anezaki Kazuya
• Kubota Hirokazu
• Matsuhara Kenji
• Masuda Satoshi
• Sakiyama Daisuke
• Asai Yuki

Classifications

• H04W8/005

  Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals · CPC title

• H04L67/141

  Setup of application sessions (admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70) · CPC title

• H04W88/04

  adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user · CPC title

• H04L12/4633

  Interconnection of networks using encapsulation techniques, e.g. tunneling · CPC title

• H04N1/00244 Primary

  with a server, e.g. an internet server (fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324) · CPC title