Wireless wake-on-LAN power management

• US 20050047356A1
• Filed: 06/23/2004
• Published: 03/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo (United States), Inc. (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Fujii, Kazuo, Katoh, Naotaka
• Granted Patent: US 7,792,066 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/311
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3209 Monitoring remote activity, e.g. over telephone lines or network connections
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3246 by software initiated power-off
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/12 Arrangements for remote connection or disconnection of substations or of equipment thereof

Abstract

In a wireless LAN mini PCI module connected to a computer, an RF module receives through an antenna a broadcast frame and/or a multicast frame transmitted from a predetermined wireless access point in a state where a main power supply for a system main unit is not on, a magic packet included in the broadcast frame and/or the multicast frame is recognized, and a signal for turning on the main power supply is output from a base band processor to the system main unit.

Claims

1. Apparatus comprising:

a main system unit;

a wireless receiver coupled to said main system unit and configured to receive a predetermined frame transmitted from a predetermined wireless access point in a state where a main power supply for said system main unit is not on, wherein the predetermined frame is selected from the group consisting of a broadcast frame and a multicast frame; and

a power manager coupled to said wireless receiver and configured to turn on the main power supply for said system main unit on the basis of the predetermined frame received by said wireless receiver.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a scanner coupled to said wireless receiver and configured to scan access points; and

access point determiner coupled to said wireless receiver and said scanner and configured to determine an access point on which frame monitoring should be performed among the access points scanned by said scanner, wherein the wireless receiver monitors frames from the access point determined by said access point determiner to receive the predetermined frame.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said wireless receiver receives the predetermined frame without performing handshaking with the predetermined wireless access point.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said power manager turns on the main power supply if a magic packet exists in the predetermined frame.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said wireless receiver stays in a sleep mode during a time period according to an arrangement with the access point and, after the passage of the time period, receives a data packet addressed to said wireless receiver.

6. Apparatus comprising:

an access point determiner which selects a predetermined wireless access point to be monitored from amongst a plurality of wireless access points; and

a frame monitor coupled to said access point determiner and configured to enable monitoring of a frame from the predetermined wireless access point selected by said access point determiner even in a situation where handshaking with the predetermined wireless access point is not performed, wherein the frame is selected from the group consisting of a broadcast frame and a multicast frame.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said access point determiner recognizes the existence of any of the wireless access points in the air by scanning and determines the predetermined wireless access point on the basis of a predetermined selection condition.

8. Apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:

magic packet determiner coupled to said frame monitor and configured to ascertain whether a magic packet exists in the frame monitored by said frame monitor; and

a power manager coupled to said wireless receiver and configured to turn on a main system power supply if said magic packet determiner ascertains that the magic packet exists.

9. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said frame monitor enables monitoring of the frame on the basis of an IEEE802.11 related standard.

10. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said frame monitor performs monitoring according to predetermined timing based on a predetermined power save setting.

11. Apparatus comprising:

a wireless receiver which receives a signal for starting up a main power supply for a computer from a remote location via a network; and

a wireless transmitter coupled to said wireless receiver and configured to transmit a frame which includes the signal received by said wireless receiver, wherein the frame is selected from the group consisting of a broadcast frame and a multicast frame.

12. Apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the signal received by said wireless receiver is a magic packet.

13. Apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

a permission determiner coupled to said wireless transmitter and configured to ascertain permission to transmit the frame including the signal received by said wireless receiver; and

a filter coupled to said permission determiner and configured to discard the frame if said permission determiner ascertains non-permission to transmit the frame.

14. Apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said wireless transmitter transmits the frame under an IEEE802.11 related standard.

15. Apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

a buffer coupled to said wireless receiver and configured to buffer the signal received by said wireless receiver before a time according to DTIM (Delivery Traffic Indication Map) timing;

wherein said wireless transmitter transmits the frame into the air at the time according to the DTIM timing.

16. A method comprising:

monitoring a frame transmitted from wireless access points, wherein the frame is selected from the group consisting of a broadcast frame and a multicast frame;

determining whether a powering-on signal is contained in the monitored frame; and

sending to a system main unit the powering-on signal for turning on a main power supply for the system main unit if said determination is that the powering-on signal is contained.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

determining one access point to be monitored from a plurality of existing wireless access points on the basis of a set condition and a condition for selection.

18. A method comprising:

determining which of a plurality of wireless access points is a predetermined wireless access point to be monitored, wherein the determination is made on the basis of information stored in a memory in advance; and

monitoring a frame sent from the predetermined wireless access point in a state in accordance with an IEEE802.11 related standard without performing handshaking with the predetermined wireless access point.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein, in said monitoring includes monitoring the frame according to predetermined timing on the basis of a power save setting.

20. A method comprising:

waiting for a wireless frame;

obtaining a wireless frame, wherein the wireless frame is selected from the group consisting of a broadcast frame and a multicast frame;

determining whether a signal for turning on a main power supply for a predetermined station is contained in the obtained wireless frame; and

wirelessly transmitting the wireless frame according to predetermined timing in response to a determination that the signal is contained, wherein the wireless transmission is a transmission selected from the group consisting of a broadcast and a multicast.

21. A product comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code stored therein, the computer readable program code in said product being effective to;

monitor a predetermined frame transmitted from wireless access points, wherein the predetermined frame is selected from the group consisting of a broadcast frame and a multicast frame;

determine whether a powering-on signal is contained in the monitored predetermined frame; and

send to a system main unit the powering-on signal for turning on a main power supply for the system main unit in response to a determination that the powering-on signal is contained.

22. A product comprising:

a computer readable medium;

code stored on said medium accessibly to a computer system and effective to determine which of a plurality of wireless access points is a predetermined wireless access point to be monitored, wherein the determination is made on the basis of information stored in a memory in advance; and

code stored on said medium accessibly to a computer system and effective to monitor a frame sent by the predetermined wireless access point in a state in accordance with an IEEE802.11 related standard without performing handshaking with the predetermined wireless access point, wherein the sent frame is sent as a transmission selected from the group consisting of a broadcast and a multicast.

23. A product comprising:

a computer readable medium;

code stored on said medium accessibly to a computer system and effective to obtain a frame selected from the group consisting of a broadcast frame and a multicast frame;

code stored on said medium accessibly to a computer system and effective to determine whether a signal for turning on a main power supply for a predetermined station is contained in the obtained frame; and

code stored on said medium accessibly to a computer system and effective to wirelessly transmit the frame according to predetermined timing in response to a determination that the signal is contained, wherein the transmission is a transmission selected from the group consisting of broadcast and a multicast.