THROTTLING ACCESS POINTS

• US 20100195549A1
• Filed: 02/04/2009
• Published: 08/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Trapeze Networks Incorporated (Juniper Networks Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Trapeze Networks Incorporated (Juniper Networks Incorporated)
• Inventors: Aragon, David Bradburn, Gast, Matthew Stuart
• Granted Patent: US 8,203,986 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/311
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0232 according to average transmission signal activity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A technique for controlling the amount of power consumed by access points (APs) of a wireless network involves implementing throttleable APs (TAPs). It would be desirable for the TAPs to be in a relatively low power mode during periods of low activity, and switch to a high power mode in response to increased wireless activity. To that end, a throttling engine can be implemented to throttle TAPs up in power in response to increases in wireless activity, and throttle TAPs down in power in response to decreases in wireless activity.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

monitoring wireless activity in a wireless domain;

determining a power level appropriate for the wireless activity;

adjusting a throttle setting of a throttleable access point (TAP) from a first throttle setting associated with a low power (LP) mode to a second throttle setting associated with a high power (HP) mode, wherein the second throttle setting corresponds to the power level determined to be appropriate for the wireless activity, and wherein adjusting the throttle setting to the second throttle setting causes the TAP to enter the HP mode.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring the wireless domain to obtain the wireless activity data;

estimating wireless activity using the wireless activity data.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving at least a portion of the wireless activity data from the TAP.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the TAP is a first AP in the wireless domain, further comprising receiving at least a portion of the wireless activity data from a second AP in the wireless domain.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a first antenna is active at the TAP, further comprising activating a second antenna at the TAP in response to entering the HP mode.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising supplying power over Ethernet (PoE) to the TAP.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising using a single spatial stream when the TAP is in the LP mode and using multiple spatial streams when the TAP is in the HP mode.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising spatially multiplexing multiple independent data streams, transferred at least approximately simultaneously within one spectral channel of bandwidth, when the TAP is in the HP mode.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising at least approximately simultaneously transmitting over multiple non-overlapping channels when the TAP is in the HP mode.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising operating the TAP in compliance with at least a portion of the IEEE 802.11n standard.

11. A system comprising:

an access point (AP) interface;

a wireless activity threshold module;

a wireless activity analysis module, coupled to the AP interface and to the wireless activity threshold module, wherein in operation the wireless activity analysis module receives wireless activity data associated with a wireless domain from the AP interface, receives a wireless activity threshold from the wireless activity threshold module, compares estimated wireless activity associated with the wireless activity data to the wireless activity threshold, and provides throttleable AP (TAP) throttling data to the AP interface for output to a TAP when the estimated wireless activity exceeds the wireless activity threshold.

12. The system of claim 11, further comprising the TAP coupled to the AP interface, wherein in operation the TAP provides at least a portion of the wireless activity data.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the TAP is a first AP, further comprising a second AP coupled to the AP interface, wherein in operation the second AP provides at least a portion of the wireless activity data.

14. The system of claim 11, further comprising the TAP coupled to the AP interface, wherein in operation the TAP receives the TAP throttling data or a command derived from the TAP throttling data, and switches from a low power mode to a higher power mode in response to the TAP throttling data or the command derived from the TAP throttling data.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the wireless activity data is associated with IEEE 802.11n communications.

16. A system comprising:

a power interface;

low power (LP) access point (AP) components, including a first antenna, coupled to the power interface, wherein, in operation, the LP AP components receive power from the power interface and provide functionality sufficient for a device to operate as an AP in a wireless domain using the first antenna;

a throttle coupled to the power interface, wherein a first throttle setting of the throttle is associated with a LP mode and a second throttle setting of the throttle is associated with a high power (HP) mode;

a second antenna, coupled to the power interface, wherein, in the LP mode, in operation, the second antenna is not used to transmit in the wireless domain, and wherein, in the HP mode, in operation, the second antenna is used to transmit in the wireless domain simultaneously with the first antenna in one spectral channel of bandwidth.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising a controller interface coupled to the throttle, wherein, in operation, a TAP throttling signal received on the controller interface causes the throttle to increase or decrease the amount of power supplied from the power interface to the second antenna.

18. The system of claim 16, further comprising a controller interface coupled to the throttle, wherein, in operation, TAP throttling data received on the controller interface causes the throttle to calculate an appropriate throttle setting, and increase or decrease the amount of power supplied from the power interface to the second antenna in accordance with the calculation.

19. The system of claim 16, further comprising HP AP components coupled to the power interface, wherein the second antenna is included in the HP AP components.

20. The system of claim 16, wherein, in the HP mode, the first antenna and second antenna operate in compliance with at least a portion of the IEEE 802.11n standard.