Method and Apparatus of Power Management

• US 20100229015A1
• Filed: 03/04/2010
• Published: 09/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: MaxLinear Communications, LLC (f/k/a Entropic Communications, LLC) (Maxlinear Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Entropic Communications Incorporated (Maxlinear Incorporated)
• Inventors: CHEN, Na, TSATSANIS, Michail, LIU, Changwen, HEBRON, Yoav
• Granted Patent: US 8,522,061 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/323
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3209 Monitoring remote activity, e.g. over telephone lines or network connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/10 Current supply arrangements

Abstract

A power management system for home entertainment networks having three power states. The network controller is empowered to move nodes within the home entertainment network between the power states.

Claims

1. A method of implementing a home entertainment network comprising:

a) entering a first of at least three power states within a node of the home entertainment network when either the node has no traffic to send or the node receives a trigger;

c) entering a second of the three power states in response to receipt of a beacon, if the node is configured for RETURN-on-MoCA;

d) entering an admission process to rejoin to the network after leaving the first power state; and

e) entering a third power state of the three power states upon receipt of a message requesting the third power state, the node monitoring beacons less frequently in the third power state than in the first power state.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first power state is a FLP state, the second power state is a normal power state and the third power state is an SLP state.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the beacon is received in response to there being at least one data packet addressed to be received by the node.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the network includes a network coordinator (NC) and the NC assigns a low power state identifier (LPID) when the node enters the FLP state.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the node, when in the FLP state, monitors beacons at fixed intervals.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the network includes an NC and the NC uses GUID in the Admission Request message to differentiate a returned node from a new node.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the node does not monitor beacons in the SLP state.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the node transmits a request to enter SLP state to the NC when the node determines that the conditions are appropriate to enter the SLP state.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the request to enter the SLP state is transmitted within a reservation request (RR).

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the RR includes RETURN options.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the RETURN options are indicated by RETURN configuration bits that indicate at least RETURN on Unicast Packet, RETURN on Magic Packet, RETURN on ARP and RETURN on IPv6 NDP.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein if a node is going to enter SLP state, it sets all the RETURN configuration bits to indicate that the node will not return to the normal power state on any of the actions.

13. The method of claim 2, wherein the node transmits a request to enter FLP state to the NC when the node determines that the conditions are appropriate to enter the FLP state.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the request to enter the FLP state is transmitted within a reservation request (RR).

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the RR includes RETURN options.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the RETURN options are indicated by RETURN configuration bits that indicate at least RETURN on Unicast Packet, RETURN on Magic Packet, RETURN on ARP and RETURN on IPv6 NDP.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein if the node is a backup NC, it cannot go to the FLP state unless all nodes are in FLP state except of itself and the NC.

18. The method of claim 9, wherein the NC responds to the request to enter FLP state by transmitting a grant in the next media access plan (MAP).

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the NC assigns a LPID to the requesting node entering FLP state and transmits the LPID in the grant.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the LPID is equal to a node ID assigned during an admission procedure.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the NC does not re-assign the ID of a node in FLP state to any newly admitted node.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein the NC specifies a beacon listening interval in the response to the request to enter FLP state.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein the grant includes the RETURN options associated with the requesting node.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the indications include configuration bits that indicate at least RETURN on Unicast Packet, RETURN on Magic Packet, RETURN on ARP and RETURN on IPv6 NDP.