A first communication apparatus may repeat a broadcast transmission of a trigger signal via a second interface, which is a signal to be used by a second communication apparatus as a trigger for sending a wireless connection request to the first communication apparatus. The wireless connection request may be for forming a first wireless network to which both the first communication apparatus and the second communication apparatus belong. The first wireless network may be a network for performing a wireless communication via a first interface The first communication apparatus may receive the wireless connection request via the first interface from the second communication apparatus which has received the trigger signal, and establish a first wireless connection via the first interface with the second communication apparatus so as to form the first wireless network.

A first communication apparatus may repeat a broadcast transmission of a trigger signal via a second interface, which is a signal to be used by a second communication apparatus as a trigger for sending a wireless connection request to the first communication apparatus. The wireless connection request may be for forming a first wireless network to which both the first communication apparatus and the second communication apparatus belong. The first wireless network may be a network for performing a wireless communication via a first interface The first communication apparatus may receive the wireless connection request via the first interface from the second communication apparatus which has received the trigger signal, and establish a first wireless connection via the first interface with the second communication apparatus so as to form the first wireless network.

The present invention provides a camera accessory that connects to a camera. The camera accessory includes a wireless antenna and can communicate on a wireless local area network with a separate wireless enabled device. The camera accessory controls and interacts with a camera through Picture Transfer Protocol. According to some embodiments the separate wireless enabled device is a smart phone, tablet or computer.

An image forming apparatus that executes information sharing among a plurality of image forming apparatuses includes a communication circuit, a set value management circuit, a storage circuit, and a distribution hold list management circuit. The communication circuit ensures communication with another image forming apparatus of the plurality of the image forming apparatuses. The set value management circuit distributes, based on a master authority as an authority for distributing a changed set value to the other image forming apparatus, the changed set value to the other image forming apparatus. The storage circuit, when the distribution fails, stores a distribution hold list that includes a combination of: an identifier of another image forming apparatus where the distribution has failed, and an item name and value of a set value where the distribution has failed. The distribution hold list management circuit manages the stored distribution hold list.

Increasing the processing load on the server is suppressed in a network system in which response requests are intermittently transmitted from a client to a server. A network system has a client configured to transmit response requests at a specific time interval, and a server configured to send a response to the client according to a received response request. The server calculates a communication interval indicating an interval at which the client is to transmit its response request based on a factor affecting the processing load of the server, and sends communication interval information indicating the calculated communication interval to the client. The client transmits its response request at the time interval indicated by the communication interval information received from the server.

A method of controlling a peer-to-peer (P2P) connection of an image forming apparatus that supports the P2P connection includes: receiving in the image forming apparatus a P2P connection request from an external wireless device; checking a device type of the wireless device by the image forming apparatus; determining whether the device type corresponds to connection restricted device types; and when the device type is the connection restricted device type, blocking a P2P connection to the wireless device by the image forming apparatus, and when the device type is not the connection restricted device type, P2P connecting the image forming apparatus to the wireless device.

An information processing device may receive first communication device identification information for identifying a first communication device that can be communicated using a first wireless communication interface. The information processing device may receive second communication device identification information for identifying a second communication device that can be communicated using a second wireless communication interface. The information processing device may display, on a display unit, a first image indicating the first communication device. The information processing device may display a second image indicating the second communication device identified by the received second communication device identification information. The displaying of the second image may be performed only in a case that particular information has not been received. The particular information may indicate that the second communication device identified by the received second communication device identification information can be communicated using the first wireless communication interface.

A system includes nodes deployable across an area and self-forming a mobile ad-hoc network. The nodes include (1) imaging circuitry for capturing an image of a local sub-area based on a triggering event, (2) image-transfer circuitry for partitioning a captured image into sub-images or image segments and transmitting them to other nodes, (3) image-transmission circuitry for transmitting a sub-image from another node on an uplink to a relay such as a satellite. The relay (1) receives transmissions of respective sub-images, in parallel on independent channels, from the nodes via respective uplinks, and (2) retransmits the sub-images to the remote location via a downlink. A central control station at the remote location (1) receives the sub-images from the relay via the downlink, (2) re-creates the captured image by combining the received sub-images, and (3) utilizes the re-created image in a monitoring or control operation of the central control station.