WIRELESS NETWORK INTERFACE WITH INFRASTRUCTURE AND DIRECT MODES
First Claim
1. A computing device (310), comprising:
- a radio (354) for wireless communication;
a driver (344) for controlling the radio to implement a plurality of ports (382, 284, 386, 388, 390), the plurality of ports comprising;
at least one port for operation in an infrastructure mode (382, 384);
a control port for controlling a peer-to-peer connection (386); and
at least one peer-to-peer communication port (388, 390); and
an operating system (320) configured to interact with the driver for establishing a peer-to-peer connection using the control port and to communicate over the peer-to-peer connection through the peer-to-peer communication port.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An architecture for a computing device to enable the computing device to support peer-to-peer communications using a wireless radio also configured for infrastructure-based communication. The architecture includes a driver for the wireless radio that supports ports for communication in accordance with the peer-to-peer protocol. A port may act as a control port through which action frames that control the formation of a peer-to-peer group may be sent and received. One or more other ports may be used for exchanging data with other devices in the group. Each of these ports may be configured in accordance with its role in the group, such that each port may be configured for operation as a group owner or a client. Additionally, after establishing a group, the control port may be used as a side channel for controlling a device in a group associated with another port.
83 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A computing device (310), comprising:
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a radio (354) for wireless communication; a driver (344) for controlling the radio to implement a plurality of ports (382, 284, 386, 388, 390), the plurality of ports comprising; at least one port for operation in an infrastructure mode (382, 384); a control port for controlling a peer-to-peer connection (386); and at least one peer-to-peer communication port (388, 390); and an operating system (320) configured to interact with the driver for establishing a peer-to-peer connection using the control port and to communicate over the peer-to-peer connection through the peer-to-peer communication port. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method of operating a computing device (310) having a wireless radio (354) controlled by a driver (344), the method comprising:
with at least one processor; providing a command to the driver to supply a control port for establishing wireless communication using a peer-to-peer protocol (414); sending through the control port at least one command for the driver to control the wireless radio to send an action frame (510, 518, 524); receiving through the control port a reply to one or more of the at least one commands for the driver to control the wireless radio to send an action frame (512, 522); based on the reply to the one or more of the at last one commands, determining to establish a wireless connection with at least one remote device and a role for the computing device in the wireless connection (522); providing at least one command to the driver to supply a communication port and to configure the communication port for the determined role of the computing device in the wireless connection (622,624); and exchanging data packets with the at least one remote device through the communication port (634). - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. At least one computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, implement a driver for controlling a wireless radio, the driver comprising an operating system interface, and the computer-executable instructions of the driver for:
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receiving through the interface a request to establish wireless communication in accordance with a peer-to-peer communication protocol; associating a first MAC address with a control port for the communication in accordance with a peer-to-peer communication protocol; receiving through the interface one or more requests related to forming a group; in response to the one or more requests related to forming a group; controlling the wireless radio to transmit control frames; and reporting responses to the control frames through the interface, the responses being associated with the control port; receiving through the interface, a request to establish a second port for communication in accordance with the peer-to-peer communication protocol; associating a second MAC address with the second port; receiving through the interface data packets for communication in accordance with the peer-to-peer communication protocol, the data packets being received in association with the second port; and providing through the interface data packets received from the wireless radio and having the second MAC address, the data packets being provided with an association with the second port; - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification