STANDBY TIME IMPROVEMENTS FOR STATIONS IN A WIRELESS NETWORK

• US 20120176949A1
• Filed: 03/23/2012
• Published: 07/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Meylan, Arnaud, Deshpande, Manoj M., Nanda, Sanjiv
• Granted Patent: US 8,611,970 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/311
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0216 using a pre-established activity schedule, e.g. traffic indication frame
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0225 using monitoring of external events, e.g. the presence of a signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A method includes receiving, at a station, a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval. The first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval. The first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM. The method further includes receiving the group-addressed traffic during the beacon interval.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a station, a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

receiving the group-addressed traffic during the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring, and wherein the group-addressed traffic is buffered.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second DTIM corresponds to second group-addressed traffic that includes at least one of application broadcast traffic and application multicast traffic.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first DTIM is sent by an access point at times according to the first delivery interval, wherein the second DTIM is sent by the access point at times according to the second delivery interval, and wherein the second delivery interval is selected by the access point.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first delivery interval is a multiple of the second delivery interval.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first DTIM is sent during each listen interval associated with the station and wherein the group addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the station is in a power save mode and configured to wake from a sleep state at times according to the first delivery interval to receive the first DTIM and the group-addressed traffic in the beacon interval and configured to ignore other DTIMs while the station is in the sleep state.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the station is associated with a wireless local area network (WLAN).

9. An apparatus comprising:

a processor configured to;

receive a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

receive the group-addressed traffic during the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring and wherein the group-addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the second DTIM corresponds to second group-addressed traffic that includes at least one of application broadcast traffic and application multicast traffic.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processor is in a power save mode and configured to wake from a sleep state at times according to the first delivery interval to receive the first DTIM and to ignore other DTIMs while the processor is in the sleep state.

13. An apparatus comprising:

means for receiving a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

means for receiving the group-addressed traffic during the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring and wherein the group-addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the second DTIM corresponds to second group-addressed traffic that includes at least one of application broadcast traffic and application multicast traffic.

16. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the means for receiving the first DTIM is in a power save mode and configured to wake from a sleep state at times according to the first delivery interval to receive the first DTIM and to ignore other DTIMs while the means for receiving the first DTIM is in the sleep state.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including program code that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to:

receive a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

receive the group-addressed traffic during the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring and wherein the group-addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the second DTIM corresponds to second group-addressed traffic that includes at least one of application broadcast traffic and application multicast traffic.

20. A method comprising:

sending, by an access point, a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery in a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

sending the group-addressed traffic in the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising sending the second DTIM, wherein the second DTIM corresponds to second group-addressed traffic.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising sending the second group-addressed traffic.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the second group-addressed traffic includes at least one of application broadcast traffic and application multicast traffic.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring.

25. The method of claim 20, wherein the second DTIM is sent by the access point at times according to the second delivery interval and wherein the second delivery interval is selected by the access point.

26. The method of claim 20, wherein the group-addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode, and wherein the first DTIM is sent during each listen interval associated with a at least one of the stations that is in the power save mode.

27. The method of claim 20, wherein the access point is associated with a wireless local area network (WLAN).

28. An apparatus comprising:

a processor configured to;

send a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

send the group-addressed traffic during in the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the processor is further configured to send the second DTIM, wherein the second DTIM corresponds to second group-addressed traffic.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising sending the second group-addressed traffic.

31. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the second group-addressed traffic includes at least one of application broadcast traffic and application multicast traffic.

32. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring and wherein the group-addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode.

33. An apparatus comprising:

means for sending, by an access point, a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

means for sending the group-addressed traffic during the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

34. The apparatus of claim 33, further comprising means for sending the second DTIM, wherein the second DTIM corresponds to second group-addressed traffic.

35. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring and wherein the group-addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode.

36. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including program code that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to:

send a first delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) assigned to a first delivery interval, wherein the first DTIM is configured to indicate whether group-addressed traffic is scheduled for delivery during a beacon interval and wherein the first delivery interval is larger than a second delivery interval associated with a second DTIM; and

send the group-addressed traffic during the beacon interval, wherein the group-addressed traffic includes at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic.

37. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 36, wherein the at least one of broadcast traffic and multicast traffic includes traffic associated with managing network connectivity and network monitoring and wherein the group-addressed traffic is available for delivery to one or more stations that are in a power save mode.