Concurrent association with multiple wireless networks

• US 8,750,241 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2007
• Issued: 06/10/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: SiBEAM, Inc. (Lattice Semiconductor Corporation)
• Inventors: Mahesh, Kumar, Gllbert, Jeffrey M., Gilb, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Renner, Brandon
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sciacca, Scott M
• Application Number:
  US11/999,810
• Publication Number:
  US 20080137555A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,377 Days
• Field of Search: 370/331, 370/334
• US Class Current: 370/331
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/20 Master-slave selection or change arrangements

Abstract

A wireless station has a media access controller (MAC) and a concurrent association manager. The concurrent association manager concurrently associates the wireless station with two or more wireless coordinators. Each wireless coordinator forms its respective wireless network. The concurrent association manager sets the wireless station in a sleep mode operation with respect each wireless network and detects a selection for operation with respect to one of the wireless coordinator.

Claims

1. A station comprising:

a media access controller (MAC); and

a concurrent association manager coupled to the MAC, the concurrent association manager comprising a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions to concurrently associate the station with a first set of plural coordinators, with each coordinator in the first set forming its respective wireless network,

wherein the instructions of the concurrent association manager when executed by the processor are operable to;

set the station in a sleep mode operation with respect to each wireless network, coordinate synchronized sleep modes between the terminal and each of the first set of plural coordinators so that wake times of the station with respect to each of the coordinators do not completely overlap and each of the coordinators is operable to transmit a connection request to the station based on the wake times,

during the sleep mode operation, detect that the station has been selected, as indicated by a connection request, connection indication or user input, for an active operation with respect to one of the coordinators in the first set,

upon detection that the station has been selected for the active operation, dissociate the station with all other coordinators in the first set and relinquish the sleep mode operation with respect to the one of the coordinators in the first set to thereby perform the active operation, and

upon completion of the active operation, re-associate the station with a second set of plural coordinators and operate the station in the sleep mode operation with respect to wireless network formed by the second set of plural coordinators, wherein the first set of plural coordinators are available to the station before the active operation and the second set of plural coordinators are available to the station after the active operation at the time of re-association.

2. The station of claim 1 wherein the MAC is configured to generate a packet to carry audio, video, and data traffic.

3. The station of claim 1 wherein the station includes a wireless high definition station, and the first set of plural coordinators and the second set of plural coordinators include a plurality of wireless high definition coordinators.

4. The station of claim 1 wherein the wireless network includes a wireless video area network (WVAN) or a wireless local area network (WLAN).

5. The station of claim 1 wherein the wireless network operates in a frequency band of 60 GHz.

6. The station of claim 1 wherein the wireless network includes beam-forming wireless networks.

7. The station of claim 6 further comprising:

a storage configured to cache multiple beam vectors.

8. The station of claim 1 further comprising:

an audio video processor coupled to the MAC;

a physical device interface (PHY) coupled to the MAC, the PHY to encode and decode between a digital signal and a modulated analog signal, the PHY comprising a high rate physical layer circuit (HRP) and a low rate physical layer circuit (LRP); and

a radio frequency (RF) transmitter coupled to the PHY to transmit data.

9. A method comprising:

detecting a plurality of wireless networks with a station, each wireless network associated with a respective coordinator in a first set of plural coordinators;

concurrently associating the station with each coordinator in the first set while the station is in a sleep mode operation with respect to each wireless network;

coordinating synchronized sleep modes between the terminal and each of the first set of plural coordinators so that wake times of the station with respect to each of the coordinators do not completely overlap and each of the coordinators is operable to transmit a connection request to the station based on the wake times;

detecting that the station has been selected, as indicated by a connection request, connection indication or user input, for an active operation with respect to one of the coordinators in the first set;

upon detection that the station has been selected for the active operation, dissociating the station with all other coordinators in the first set and relinquishing the sleep mode operation with respect to the one of the coordinators in the first set to thereby perform the active operation, and

upon completion of the active operation, re-associating the station with a second set of plural coordinators and operating the station in the sleep mode operation with respect to each wireless network formed by the second set of plural coordinators, wherein the first set of plural coordinators are available to the station before the active operation and the second set of plural coordinators are available to the station after the active operation at the time of re-association.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the station includes a wireless high definition station, and each coordinator in the first set and the second set includes a wireless high definition coordinator.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the wireless network includes a wireless video area network (WVAN) or a wireless local area network (WLAN).

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the wireless network operates in a frequency band of 60 GHz.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the wireless network includes beam-forming wireless networks.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising:

caching multiple beam vectors.

15. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

arranging the sleep mode operation such that wake times of the station with respect to each of the coordinators do not overlap.

16. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

renewing an association with each wireless coordinator in the first set within every association timeout period.

17. An article of manufacture comprising:

a non-transitory machine-accessible storage medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method comprising;

detecting a plurality of wireless networks, each wireless network associated with a respective coordinator in a first set of plural coordinators;

concurrently associating with each wireless network while the station is in a sleep mode operation with respect to each wireless network;

coordinating synchronized sleep modes between the terminal and each of the first set of plural coordinators so that wake times of the station with respect to each of the coordinators do not completely overlap and each of the coordinators is operable to transmit a connection request to the station based on the wake times;

detecting that the station has been selected, as indicated by a connection request, connection indication or user input, for an active operation with respect to one of the coordinators in the first set;

upon detection that the station has been selected for the active operation, dissociating the station with all other coordinators in the first set and relinquishing the sleep mode operation with respect to the one of the coordinators in the first set to thereby perform the active operation; and

upon completion of the active operation, re-associating the station with a second set of plural coordinators and operating the station in the sleep mode operation with respect to each wireless network formed by the second set of plural coordinators, wherein the first set of plural coordinators are available to the station before the active operation and the second set of plural coordinators are available to the station after the active operation at the time of re-association.

18. The article of manufacture of claim 17 wherein the station includes a wireless high definition station, each coordinator includes a wireless high definition coordinator, the wireless network includes a wireless video area network (WVAN) or a wireless local area network (WLAN) operating in a frequency band of 60 GHz.