1. A network apparatus that sends sound data to another network apparatus connected over a network, the network apparatus comprising:
a destination selecting part configured to select a predetermined number of network apparatuses as a destination network apparatus from network apparatuses connected to the network; and
a sound data sending part configured to broadcast sound data to the predetermined number of the network apparatuses selected in the destination selecting part.
2. The network apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a network apparatus detecting part configured to automatically detect a network apparatus connected to the network.
3. The network apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the sound data sending part has:
a shared memory in which the sound data is arranged; and
a sending means for extracting the sound data from the shared memory and for sending the sound data to the corresponding network apparatus, the sending means being provided by the predetermined number.
4. The network apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a group registration part configured to register a group configured of given network apparatuses selected from network apparatuses connected to the network,
wherein the destination selecting part selects a predetermined number of groups registered in the group registration part to select the predetermined number of the network apparatuses.
5. A sound data transmission method of a network apparatus that sends sound data to another network apparatus connected over a network, the sound data transmission method comprising the steps of:
acquiring sound data from a sound source device;
compressing and encoding sound data acquired in the sound data acquiring step;
arranging sound data compressed and encoded in the compressing and encoding step in a shared memory; and
extracting the sound data from the shared memory and broadcasting the sound data to a predetermined number of the other network apparatuses.
6. A sound data transmission program that allows a computer to function as:
a sound data acquiring means for acquiring sound data from sound source device;
an encoding means for compressing and encoding sound data acquired in the sound data acquiring means;
a sound data arranging means for arranging a sound data compressed and encoded in the encoding means in a shared memory; and
a sound data sending means for extracting the sound data from the shared memory and for broadcasting the sound data to a predetermined number of network apparatuses.
7. A monitoring apparatus that is connected to a security camera having a sound output function over a network, the monitoring apparatus comprising:
a destination selecting means for selecting a predetermined number of the security cameras as a destination from security cameras connected to the network; and
a sound data sending part configured to broadcast sound data to the predetermined number of the security cameras selected in the destination selecting means.
8. A security camera system comprising:
a security camera connected to a monitoring apparatus over a network,
wherein the security camera has:
a sound data receiving part configured to receive sound data sent from the monitoring apparatus; and
a sound output part configured to output sounds configured of sound data received in the sound data receiving part, and
the monitoring apparatus has:
a destination selecting means for selecting a predetermined number of the security cameras as a destination from security cameras connected to the network; and
a sound data sending part configured to broadcast sound data to the predetermined number of the security cameras selected in the destination selecting means.
9. A monitoring apparatus that is connected to a security camera having a sound output function over a network, the monitoring apparatus comprising:
a destination selecting unit configured to select a predetermined number of the security cameras as a destination from security cameras connected to the network; and
a sound data sending part configured to broadcast sound data to the predetermined number of the security cameras selected in the destination selecting unit.
10. A security camera system comprising:
a security camera connected to a monitoring apparatus over a network,
wherein the security camera has:
a sound data receiving part configured to receive sound data sent from the monitoring apparatus; and
a sound output part configured to output sounds configured of sound data received in the sound data receiving part, and
the monitoring apparatus has:
a destination selecting unit configured to select a predetermined number of the security cameras as a destination from security cameras connected to the network; and
a sound data sending part configured to broadcast sound data to the predetermined number of the security cameras selected in the destination selecting means.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A communication method, the method comprising:
using an RFID air interface protocol to communicate with one or more non-tag devices.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising forwarding data from the one or more non-tag devices to an RFID backscatter enabled host computer.
3. The method of claim 1, further providing one or more RFID readers in data communication with the one or more non-tag devices, the one or more RFID readers each having a corresponding interrogation zone, wherein the one or more non-tag devices appear to the one or more RFID readers as RFID tags.
4. The method of claim 3, further comprising providing one or more multiplexers to facilitate data communication between the one or more RFID readers and the one or more non-tag devices.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the one or more multiplexers contain data interrogation elements for reading data received from the one or more non-tag devices.
6. The method of claim 3, further comprising providing an RFID communication module to facilitate RFID air interface protocol communication between the non-tag devices and the one or more RFID readers.
7. The method of claim 2, wherein at least one of the one or more non-tag devices is a parent readpoint device, the method further comprising transmitting information from the RFID backscatter enabled host computer to the parent readpoint device using the RFID air interface protocol.
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising providing a child readpoint device, the parent readpoint device collecting data from the child readpoint device to create a hierarchical arrangement of parentchild readpoint devices for further data transmission.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the host computer writes data to the readpoint devices according to the hierarchical arrangement.
10. The method of claim 8, wherein at least one readpoint device is outside the interrogation zone of the one or more RFID readers.
11. The method of claim 2, wherein at least one non-tag device is a camera.
12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:
capturing an image;
storing the image as a data block, and detecting backscatter signals using the air interface protocol, the backscatter signals including the data block.
13. The method of claim 12, further comprising writing the data block to the RFID backscatter enabled host computer.
14. An RFID system comprising:
one or more RFID readers in data communication with one or more non-tag devices, each RFID reader having an interrogation zone, wherein the one or more RFID readers communicate with the non-tag devices via an RFID air interface protocol.
15. The system of claim 14, further comprising an RFID backscatter enabled host computer in data communication with the one or more RFID readers.
16. The system of claim 14, further comprising one or more multiplexers to facilitate data communication between the one or more RFID readers and the one or more non-tag devices.
17. The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more multiplexers contain data interrogation elements for reading data received from the one or more non-tag devices.
18. The system of claim 14, further comprising an RFID communication module to facilitate RFID air interface protocol communication between the non-tag devices and the one or more RFID readers.
19. The system of claim 15, wherein at least one of the one or more non-tag devices is a parent readpoint device capable of receiving information from the host computer using the RFID air interface protocol.
20. The system of claim 19, further comprising one or more child readpoint devices, the parent readpoint devices collecting data from the one or more readpoint devices creating a hierarchical arrangement of parentchild readpoint devices for further data transmission.
21. The system of claim 20, wherein the host computer writes data to the readpoint devices in the RFID system according to the hierarchical arrangement.
22. The system of claim 20, wherein at least one readpoint device is outside the interrogation zone of the one or more RFID readers.
23. The system of claim 15, wherein at least one non-tag device is a camera.
24. The system of claim 23, wherein the camera captures an image and stores the image as a data block, and wherein the RFID reader detects backscatter signals from the camera data block using the air interface protocol, the backscatter signals including the data block.
25. An RFID multiplexer, comprising:
a processing unit controlling the operation of multiplexer, the processing unit operating to interrogate one or more non-tag devices to obtain data; and
a storage unit for storing the data relating to the non-tag devices.