Repeater WPS Connection Method and Apparatus

• US 20130107796A1
• Filed: 12/19/2012
• Published: 05/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Device Company Limited (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Device Company Limited (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Wang, Weihong, Du, Wei
• Granted Patent: US 8,929,276 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/315
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/50 Secure pairing of devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/047 using dedicated repeater stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention provide a Repeater WPS connection method and apparatus, which relate to the field of wireless networks and can complete WPS connections of a Client side and an AP side of a Repeater device in one Repeater WPS PBC operation, thereby simplifying the flow of a WPS connection operation. The method of the present invention includes: when a WPS button on a wireless Repeater device is activated, first establishing a connection between a Client side of the Repeater device and an uplink AP device, and obtaining wireless configuration information of the uplink AP device; and synchronizing the wireless configuration information to an AP side of the Repeater device, and then establishing a connection between the AP side of the Repeater device and an STA device. The present invention is mainly applied in the process of the Repeater WPS connection.

Claims

1. A repeater Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) method comprising:

establishing a connection between a client side of a wireless repeater device and an uplink access point (AP) device when a WPS button on the wireless repeater device is activated;

obtaining wireless configuration information of the uplink AP device;

synchronizing the wireless configuration information to an AP side of the wireless repeater device;

enabling a WPS negotiation of the AP side of the wireless repeater device; and

establishing a connection between the AP side of the wireless repeater device and an enrollee station (STA) device.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

determining a WPS working manner of the wireless repeater device when the WPS button on the wireless repeater device is activated, wherein the WPS working manner comprises a client mode or an AP-client mode,

wherein establishing the connection between the client side of the wireless repeater device and the uplink AP device comprises enabling a WPS negotiation of the client side of the wireless repeater device and establishing the connection between the client side of the wireless repeater device and the uplink AP device when the WPS working manner is the client mode,

wherein establishing the connection between the client side of the wireless repeater device and the uplink AP device comprises enabling both a WPS negotiation of the client side and the WPS negotiation of the AP side of the wireless repeater device at a same time when the WPS working manner is the AP-client mode, and

wherein establishing the connection between the client side of the wireless repeater device and the uplink AP device comprises disabling the WPS negotiation of the AP side of the wireless repeater device and establishing the connection between the client side of the wireless repeater device and the uplink AP device when the client side of the wireless repeater device identifies that the uplink AP device intends to perform the connection first.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the WPS working manner comprises the AP-client mode, and wherein the method further comprises disabling a WPS negotiation of the client side of the wireless repeater device, restoring the connection between the client side of the repeater device and the uplink AP device, and establishing a connection between the AP side of the wireless repeater device and the STA device when the AP side of the wireless repeater device identifies that the STA device intends to perform the connection first.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising setting a WPS working manner according to an authentication mode of a repeater access device.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein setting the WPS working manner according to the authentication mode of the repeater access device comprises:

determining, according to the authentication mode of the repeater access device, whether the repeater access device supports a WPS;

setting the WPS working manner to the AP-client mode when the repeater access device supports the WPS; and

setting the WPS working manner to the client mode when the repeater access device does not support the WPS.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein determining, according to the authentication mode of the repeater access device, whether the repeater access device supports the WPS comprises determining that the repeater access device supports the WPS when the authentication mode of the repeater access device is a Wi-Fi Protected Access Pre-Shared Key (WPA-PSK) mode or a Wi-Fi Protected Access II (WPA2-PSK) mode.

7. A repeater WPS connection apparatus comprising:

a first connection unit configured to establish a connection between a client side of a repeater device and an uplink AP device when a WPS button on the repeater device is activated;

an obtaining unit configured to obtain wireless configuration information of the uplink AP device; and

a second connection unit configured to synchronize the wireless configuration information obtained by the obtaining unit to an AP side of the repeater device, enable a WPS negotiation of the AP side of the repeater device, and establish a connection between the AP side of the repeater device and an STA device.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising:

a first determination unit configured to determine a WPS working manner when the WPS button on the wireless repeater device is activated,

wherein the WPS working manner comprises a client mode or an AP-client mode,

wherein the first connection unit is further configured to enable a WPS negotiation of the client side of the repeater device and establish the connection between the client side of the repeater device and the uplink AP device when the first determination unit determines that the WPS working manner is the client mode,

wherein the first connection unit is further configured to enable both a WPS negotiation of the client side and the WPS negotiation of the AP side of the repeater device at a same time when the first determination unit determines that the WPS working manner is the AP-client mode, and

wherein the first connection unit is further configured to disable the WPS negotiation of the client side of the repeater device and establish the connection between the client side of the repeater device and the uplink AP device when the repeater device side identifies that the uplink AP device intends to perform a connection first.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a third connection unit configured to disable the WPS negotiation of the client side of the repeater device, restore the connection between the client side of the repeater device and the uplink AP device, and establish the connection between the AP side of the repeater device and the STA device when the first determination unit determines that the WPS working manner is the AP-client mode and the AP side of the repeater device identifies that the STA device intends to perform a connection first.

10. The apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising a second determination unit configured to set the WPS working manner according to an authentication mode of a repeater access device.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the second determination unit comprises:

a first determination module configured to determine, according to the authentication mode of the repeater access device, whether the repeater access device supports a WPS; and

a second determination module configured to set the WPS working manner to the AP-client mode when the first determination module determines that the repeater access device supports the WPS, and

wherein the second determination module is further configured to set the WPS working manner to the client mode when the first determination module determines that the repeater access device does not support the WPS.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the first determination module is configured to determine that the repeater access device supports the WPS when the authentication mode of the repeater device is a WPA-PSK mode or a WPA2-PSK mode.