Access and power management for centralized networks
First Claim
1. A method for managing power in a device, comprising:
- operating the device in a low-power state in which the device is not required to transmit or receive frames during certain intervals of a beacon period;
maintaining a list of allocation intervals designated for the device, the allocation intervals including scheduled allocations, polled allocations, and posted allocations;
determining when a beacon frame transmission is scheduled to occur in the beacon period;
operating the device in an active state in which the device is capable of transmitting and receiving frames during the allocation intervals and the beacon transmission period;
identifying a posted allocation interval from a post frame; and
maintaining the device in the active state at a time scheduled for the posted allocation.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for managing power in a subnet having a hub in communication with one or more nodes is disclosed. The hub and nodes communicate using one or more non-contention access methods, such as scheduled, polled or posted access. The node may enter a sleep or hibernation state while no scheduled, polled or posted allocation interval is pending. The hibernation state allows the node to hibernate through one or more entire beacon periods. In the sleep state, the node may be asleep between any scheduled, polled and posted allocation intervals for the node or during another node'"'"'s scheduled allocation interval in a current beacon period. By selecting which access scheme is in use, the node and hub can increase the node'"'"'s chances to be in hibernation or sleep state and minimize power consumption.
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Citations
29 Claims
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1. A method for managing power in a device, comprising:
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operating the device in a low-power state in which the device is not required to transmit or receive frames during certain intervals of a beacon period; maintaining a list of allocation intervals designated for the device, the allocation intervals including scheduled allocations, polled allocations, and posted allocations; determining when a beacon frame transmission is scheduled to occur in the beacon period; operating the device in an active state in which the device is capable of transmitting and receiving frames during the allocation intervals and the beacon transmission period; identifying a posted allocation interval from a post frame; and maintaining the device in the active state at a time scheduled for the posted allocation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method of controlling communications between devices in a network, comprising:
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receiving a beacon frame from a network hub during a beacon frame interval, the beacon frame identifying a beacon shift sequence and a current beacon period; transmitting a connection request frame to the network hub, the connection request frame comprising a list of one or more scheduled allocation requests; receiving a connection assignment frame from the network hub, the connection assignment designating one or more allocation intervals in a beacon period in response to the scheduled allocation requests; and identifying wakeup intervals during times inside the designated allocation intervals and the beacon frame interval, wherein the beacon frame is transmitted in the beacon period, wherein the connection request frame further comprises a next wakeup field that identifies a sequence number of a beacon frame associated with a beacon period in which a node will wake up for frame reception and transmission. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for power management in a device, comprising:
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identifying non-contended access allocation intervals designated for the device from received frames, the non-contended access allocation intervals occurring during a beacon period; placing the device in a wakeup mode during the beacon period at times during the non-contended access allocation intervals; and sending a connection request frame including a next wakeup field that identifies a sequence number of a beacon frame associated with a beacon period in which the device will wake up for frame reception and transmission. - View Dependent Claims (17)
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18. A network node, comprising:
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a transceiver circuit for transmitting frames to and receiving frames from a network hub; a memory for storing allocation intervals designated for the node, the allocation intervals identified from the frames received from the network hub, and corresponding to at least one of a scheduled allocation interval, polled allocation interval, posted allocation interval, or contended allocation interval; a power management circuit for controlling power consumed by the node, the power management circuit not enabling the transceiver circuit to transmit or receive frames during sleep intervals, the sleep intervals identified as time during a beacon period between the allocation intervals; and a processor adapted to process frames received from the network hub, the frames including a connection assignment frame further having a wakeup interval field that identifies a duration between a start of successive wakeups for the node. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method for managing power in a device, comprising:
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operating the device in a low-power state in which the device is not required to transmit or receive frames during portions of superframes; maintaining a list of allocation intervals designated for the device, the allocation intervals including scheduled allocations, polled allocations, and posted allocations; determining when a beacon frame transmission is scheduled to occur in the beacon period; operating the device in an active state in which the device is capable of transmitting; receiving frames during the allocation intervals and the beacon transmission period, identifying a posted allocation interval from a post frame; and maintaining the device in the active state at a time scheduled for the posted allocation. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29)
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Specification