Saving a connection profile when unable to connect to a wireless local area network

• US 8,874,764 B2
• Filed: 02/15/2011
• Issued: 10/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Scott, Sherryl Lee Lorraine, Somani, Zaheen, Reif, Alexander Jordan
• Primary Examiner(s): WINDER, PATRICE L
• Application Number:
  US13/027,823
• Publication Number:
  US 20110238847A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,351 Days
• Field of Search: 709227-228, 715735-736
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/75 Indicating network or usage conditions on the user display
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

Various connection parameters of a wireless local area network ‘WLAN’ may be saved in a WLAN client device in a connection profile, even if the WLAN client device is unable to connect to the WLAN.

Claims

1. A method for saving a connection profile of a wireless local area network ‘

WLAN’

, the method comprising;

obtaining information regarding a particular WLAN for which a connection profile is not stored in a WLAN client device;

attempting to connect to the particular WLAN using the information;

displaying via a display of the WLAN client device an indication that the attempt was unsuccessful due to the WLAN client device being out of range of the particular WLAN; and

responsive to the unsuccessful attempt to connect to the particular WLAN, displaying a prompt to save the information in a connection profile in the WLAN client device,

wherein the information includes a network name of the particular WLAN.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving the network name via a user input element of the WLAN client device.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

gleaning the network name from a signal received at the WLAN client device over the particular WLAN.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the connection profile is a persistent connection profile requiring user intervention to be deleted from the WLAN client device, the method further comprising:

receiving, via a user input element of the WLAN client device, an indication to save the information in the persistent connection profile.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the connection profile is a transient connection profile that has a limited lifetime, the method further comprising:

receiving, via a user input element of the WLAN client device, an indication not to save the information in a persistent connection profile requiring user intervention to be deleted from the WLAN client device.

6. A wireless local area network ‘

WLAN’

client device comprising;

a processor;

an antenna;

a WLAN communication interface coupled to the processor and to the antenna;

a display coupled to the processor; and

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory able to save connection profiles of wireless local area networks, the memory storing code which, when executed by the processor, obtains information regarding a particular WLAN for which a connection profile is not stored in the memory, and if an attempt via the WLAN communication interface and the antenna to connect to the particular WLAN using the information is unsuccessful due to the WLAN client device being out of range of the particular WLAN, displays via the display an indication that the attempt was unsuccessful due to the WLAN client device being out of range of the particular WLAN, and responsive to the unsuccessful attempt, displays a prompt to save the information in a connection profile in the memory,

wherein the information includes a network name of the particular WLAN.

7. The WLAN client device of claim 6, further comprising:

a user input element coupled to the processor,

wherein the code, when executed by the processor, receives the network name via the user input element.

8. The WLAN client device of claim 6, wherein the code, when executed by the processor, gleans the network name from a signal received over the particular WLAN via the antenna and the WLAN communication interface.

9. The WLAN client device of claim 6, further comprising:

a user input element coupled to the processor,

wherein the connection profile is a persistent connection profile requiring user intervention to be deleted from the WLAN client device and the code, when executed by the processor, receives via the user input element an indication to save the information in the persistent connection profile.

10. The WLAN client device of claim 6, further comprising:

a user input element coupled to the processor,

wherein the connection profile is a transient connection profile that has a limited lifetime and the code, when executed by the processor, receives via the user input element an indication not to save the information in a connection profile.