Polling Beacon

• US 20140241226A1
• Filed: 02/28/2013
• Published: 08/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Jia, Zhanfeng, HomChaudhuri, Sandip, Raissinia, Alireza
• Granted Patent: US 9,807,691 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/311
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/14 using user query or user detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0216 using a pre-established activity schedule, e.g. traffic indication frame
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Beacon-poll frames are transmitted from a station (STA) to a wireless AP in an opportunistic manner. In response to receiving a beacon-poll frame, the wireless AP transmits a unicast beacon frame to the STA, thereby eliminating the need for the STA to periodically wake up to receive broadcast beacon frames from the AP. The wireless AP may transmit the unicast beacon frame at a higher speed than a conventional broadcast beacon frame. As a result, the time that the STA must be awake to receive the unicast beacon frame is significantly less than the time that the STA must be awake to receive a conventional broadcast beacon frame, thereby resulting in significant power savings within the STA. The wireless AP may aggregate downlink (DL) data packets to be transmitted to the STA with the unicast beacon frame, resulting in further power savings within the STA.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

identifying a transmission opportunity with a wireless station (STA);

transmitting a beacon poll frame from the STA to a wireless access point (AP) during the identified transmission opportunity; and

receiving by the STA a unicast beacon frame transmitted from the AP.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the beacon poll frame from the STA to the AP at a first rate; and

receiving the unicast beacon frame transmitted by the AP to the STA at a second rate that is faster than the first rate.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the AP transmits only one unicast beacon frame to the STA during a beacon interval of the AP.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising preventing the AP from sending unicast beacon frames if the AP becomes associated with more than a predetermined number of STAs.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the unicast beacon frame comprises downlink data.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting a probe request from the STA to the AP, wherein the probe request indicates that the STA is capable of participating in beacon polling; and

receiving a probe response with the STA, wherein the probe response is transmitted by the AP, and indicates the AP is capable of participating in beacon polling.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving an information element with the STA, wherein the information element is transmitted by the AP, and indicates whether the AP currently responds to beacon poll frames.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising receiving a second information element with the STA, wherein the second information element is transmitted by the AP, and indicates that the ability of the AP to respond to a beacon poll frame is changing.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving an information element with the STA, wherein the information element is transmitted by the AP, and indicates a maximum number of beacon poll frames the AP will respond to over a predetermined number of beacon intervals.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving an information element with the STA, wherein the information element is transmitted by the AP, and indicates whether the AP will respond to the beacon poll frame with a regular beacon frame or a modified beacon frame.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the modified beacon frame comprises a reduced beacon frame having fewer fields and/or information elements than a regular beacon frame.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the modified beacon frame comprises an incremental beacon frame having different fields and information elements than a regular beacon frame.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the modified beacon frame comprising a compressed beacon frame, which compresses one or more of the fields and information units of a regular beacon frame.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving an information element with the STA, wherein the information element is transmitted by the AP, and indicates that the AP will treat a first PS-Poll and/or a first trigger frame received from the STA during a beacon interval as a beacon poll frame.

15. A method comprising:

receiving by a wireless access point (AP) a beacon poll frame from a wireless station (STA) during an identified transmission opportunity for the STA; and

in response to receiving the beacon poll frame, transmitting a unicast beacon frame from the wireless AP to the STA.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

receiving the beacon poll frame with the wireless AP at a first rate; and

transmitting the unicast beacon frame from the wireless AP at a second rate that is faster than the first rate.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the wireless AP transmits only one unicast beacon frame to the STA during a beacon interval of the AP.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

monitoring a number of stations capable of transmitting beacon poll frames to the AP; and

preventing the AP from sending unicast beacon frames if the number of stations capable of transmitting beacon poll frames to the AP exceeds a predetermined number.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising including downlink data for the STA in the unicast beacon frame.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising limiting a number of unicast beacon frames the AP can transmit to the STA over a first time period.

21. A wireless station (STA) comprising:

a controller to identify a transmission opportunity on a wireless medium;

a transmitter to transmit a beacon poll frame from the STA to a wireless access point (AP) during the identified transmission opportunity; and

a receiver to receive a unicast beacon frame transmitted from the AP.

22. The STA of claim 21, wherein the transmitter to transmit the beacon poll frame from the STA to the AP at a first rate, and the receiver to receive the unicast beacon frame from the STA at a second rate that is faster than the first rate.

23. The STA of claim 21, wherein the receiver to receive a beacon polling duty (BP_DUTY) value transmitted by the AP, wherein the BP_DUTY value indicates how many beacon poll frames the AP will respond to during a certain number of beacon intervals.

24. The STA of claim 21, wherein the transmitter to transmit a probe request to the AP, wherein the probe request indicates that the STA is capable of participating in beacon polling.

25. The STA of claim 24, wherein the receiver to receive a probe response transmitted by the AP, the probe response indicating that the AP is capable of participating in beacon polling.

26. The STA of claim 21, wherein the receiver to receive an information element transmitted by the AP, the information element indicating whether the AP is enabled to respond to the beacon poll frame.

27. The STA of claim 26, wherein the receiver further to receive a second information element transmitted by the AP, the second information element indicating that the ability of the AP to respond to the beacon poll frame is changing.

28. The STA of claim 21, wherein the receiver to receive an information element transmitted by the AP, the information element indicating whether the AP will respond to the beacon poll frame with a first type of unicast beacon frame or a second type of unicast beacon frame.

29. A wireless access point (AP) comprising:

a receiver to receive a beacon poll frame transmitted from a wireless station (STA) during an identified transmission opportunity of the STA; and

a transmitter to transmit a unicast beacon frame to the STA in response to the beacon poll frame.

30. The AP of claim 29, wherein the receiver to receive the beacon poll frame at a first rate, and the transmitter is configured to transmit the unicast beacon frame at a second rate that is faster than the first rate.

31. The AP of claim 29, further comprising a controller to limit a number of unicast beacon frames transmitted to the STA during a predetermined number of beacon intervals of the AP.

32. The AP of claim 29, wherein the controller to monitor a number of stations (STAs) capable of transmitting beacon poll frames to the AP and stop the AP from transmitting unicast beacon frames if the number of STAs capable of transmitting beacon poll frames to the AP exceeds a predetermined number.

33. The AP of claim 29, wherein the controller to monitor traffic on a channel used to communicate with the STA, wherein the channel has a bandwidth, and stop the AP from transmitting unicast beacon frames if the traffic on the channel exceeds a predetermined percentage of the bandwidth.

34. The AP of claim 29, wherein the controller to include downlink data for the STA with the unicast beacon frame.

35. The AP of claim 29, wherein the transmitter to transmit a beacon polling duty (BP_DUTY) value, that indicates to the STA how many beacon poll frames the AP will respond to during a certain number of beacon intervals.

36. The AP of claim 29, wherein the receiver to receive a probe request from the STA, wherein the probe request indicates that the STA is capable of participating in beacon polling, and the transmitter is configured to transmit a probe response to the STA, the probe response indicating that the AP is capable of participating in beacon polling.

37. The AP of claim 29, wherein the transmitter to transmit an information element indicating whether the AP is enabled to respond to the beacon poll frame.

38. The AP of claim 37, wherein the transmitter to transmit a second information element indicating that the ability of the AP to respond to the beacon poll frame is changing.

39. The AP of claim 29, wherein the transmitter to transmit an information element indicating whether the AP will respond to the beacon poll frame with a first type of unicast beacon frame or a second type of unicast beacon frame.

40. A method of implementing a beacon-polling process between a wireless station (STA) and a wireless access point (AP), comprising

providing a frame in accordance with the IEEE 802.11 standard with the wireless STA, the frame including a frame subtype field having a bit set to identify the frame as a beacon-polling frame;

and

transmitting the frame from the wireless STA to the wireless AP.

41. The method of claim 40, further comprising receiving a unicast beacon frame with the wireless STA, wherein the unicast beacon frame is transmitted by the wireless AP in response to receiving the frame and identifying the frame as a beacon-polling frame.