Channel switching method, apparatus, and system

• US 9,048,984 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2013
• Issued: 06/02/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Device Company Limited (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Device Company Limited (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Yao, Wenfeng, Wang, Zaixian
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Minh D
• Application Number:
  US13/944,580
• Publication Number:
  US 20140024403A1
• Time in Patent Office: 685 Days
• Field of Search: 455/3.04, 455/436, 455/437, 455/63.3, 455/560, 455/191.3, 455/199.1, 370/389, 370/357, 370/360
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0037 Inter-user or inter-terminal allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0055 Transmission or use of information for re-establishing the radio link
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0064 of control information between different access points
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A channel switching method, apparatus, and system are disclosed. A mobile terminal sends a channel switching command to a first access point, so that the first access point parses the channel switching command and sends a parsed channel switching command to a second access point and the second access point performs channel switching according to the parsed channel switching command. The mobile terminal receives a feedback message from the first access point. When the feedback message indicates that channel switching preparation of the second access point is ready, the mobile terminal breaks a connection to the first access point and sets up a connection to the second access point to complete the channel switching.

Claims

1. A channel switching method applied at a mobile terminal side, the method comprising:

sending, by a mobile terminal, a channel switching command to a first access point, so that the first access point parses the channel switching command and sends a parsed channel switching command to a second access point and the second access point performs channel switching according to the parsed channel switching command;

receiving, by the mobile terminal, a feedback message from the first access point; and

when the feedback message indicates that channel switching preparation of the second access point is ready, breaking, by the mobile terminal, a connection to the first access point and setting up a connection to the second access point to complete the channel switching.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

after the mobile terminal sets up the connection to the first access point, testing, by the mobile terminal, a current connection rate; and

when the current connection rate is lower than a set rate threshold, performing, by the mobile terminal, a step of initiating a channel switching command to the first access point.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the channel switching command comprises the set rate threshold and a frequency scan interval;

and

wherein the second access point performs channel scan and switching processing according to the set rate threshold and the frequency scan interval.

4. The method according to claim 3, the method wherein the feedback message indicates that a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after the second access point performs channel scan, further comprising:

sending, by the mobile terminal, a frequency scan interval adjustment command to the first access point, so that the first access point sends the frequency scan interval adjustment command to the second access point and the second access point performing channel scan and switching processing according to an updated frequency scan interval.

5. The method according to claim 2, the method wherein the feedback message indicates that a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after the second access point performs channel scan, and a maximum rate value carried in the feedback message is higher than the current connection rate value further comprising:

sending, by the mobile terminal, a frequency adjustment command to the first access point, so that the first access point sends the frequency adjustment command to the second access point and the second access point performs, according to the maximum rate value carried in the frequency adjustment command, frequency adjustment to complete the channel switching, wherein, the maximum rate value is a maximum channel transmission rate obtained when the second access point performs channel scan.

6. A channel switching method, applied at a wireless access device side, wherein the wireless access device comprises a first access point and a second access point, the first access point is connected to a mobile terminal, the method comprising:

receiving, by the first access point, a channel switching command sent by the mobile terminal,

parsing the channel switching command,

sending a parsed channel switching command to the second access point, so that the second access point performs channel switching according to the parsed channel switching command;

when channel switching preparation of the second access point is ready, sending, by the first access point, a feedback message to the mobile terminal, wherein the feedback message is sent by the second access point to the first access point;

receiving a request for breaking a connection to the first access point sent by the mobile terminal,

breaking the connection between the first access point and the mobile terminal in response to the request;

receiving, a request for setting up a connection to the second access point sent by the mobile terminal; and

setting up the connection between the second access point and the mobile terminal.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the second access point performs channel switching according to the parsed channel switching command by performing channel scan and switching processing according to a set rate threshold and a frequency scan interval that are carried in the channel switching command.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

when a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after the second access point performs channel scan, automatically adjusting, by the second access point, the frequency scan interval and performing channel scan and switching processing according to an adjusted frequency scan interval;

or

when a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after the second access point performs channel scan, sending, by the second access point, the feedback message, and forwarding, by the first access point, the feedback message to the mobile terminal;

adjusting the frequency scan interval according to a frequency scan interval adjustment command that is sent by the mobile terminal and forwarded by the first access point; and

performing channel scan and switching processing according to an adjusted frequency scan interval.

9. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

when a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after the second access point performs channel scan, sending the feedback message from the first access point to the mobile terminal, wherein the feedback message carries a maximum channel transmission rate obtained when the second access point performs channel scan; and

receiving, by the second access point, a frequency adjustment command that is sent by the mobile terminal and forwarded by the first access point; and

adjusting, according to a maximum rate value carried in the frequency adjustment command, a working frequency to complete the channel switching.

10. A mobile terminal, comprising:

a first sending unit, configured to send a channel switching command to a first access point, so that the first access point parses the channel switching command and sends a parsed channel switching command to a second access point and the second access point performs channel switching according to the parsed channel switching command; and

a switching unit, configured to receive a feedback message from the first access point, wherein when the feedback message indicates that channel switching preparation of the second access point is ready, the mobile terminal breaks a connection to the first access point and sets up a connection to the second access point to complete the channel switching.

11. The mobile terminal according to claim 10, further comprising:

a rate testing unit, configured to test a current connection rate after the mobile terminal sets up the connection to the first access point and, when the current connection rate is lower than a set rate threshold, to use a sending unit.

12. The mobile terminal according to claim 11, wherein the channel switching command comprises the set rate threshold and a frequency scan interval and wherein the second access point performs channel scan and switching processing according to the set rate threshold and the frequency scan interval.

13. The mobile terminal according to claim 11, further comprising:

a third sending unit, configured to, when the feedback message indicates that a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after the second access point performs channel scan and a maximum rate value carried in the feedback message is higher than the current connection rate value, the mobile terminal sends a frequency adjustment command to the first access point, so that the first access point sends the frequency adjustment command to the second access point and the second access point performs, according to the maximum rate value carried in the frequency adjustment command, frequency adjustment to complete the channel switching, wherein the maximum rate value is a maximum channel transmission rate obtained when the second access point performs channel scan.

14. The mobile terminal according to claim 10, further comprising:

a second sending unit, configured to, when the feedback message indicates that a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after the second access point performs channel scan, send a frequency scan interval adjustment command to the first access point, so that the first access point sends the frequency scan interval adjustment command to the second access point and the second access point performs channel scan and switching processing according to an updated frequency scan interval.

15. A wireless access device comprising a first access point and a second access point, the first access point being connected to a mobile terminal, wherein:

the first access point is configured to receive a channel switching command sent by the mobile terminal, parse the channel switching command, and send a parsed channel switching command to the second access point, so that the second access point performs channel switching according to the parsed channel switching command;

to receive a feedback message sent by the second access point and send the feedback message to the mobile terminal; and

to receive a request for breaking a connection sent by the mobile terminal and break a connection to the mobile terminal; and

the second access point is configured to receive the parsed channel switching command sent by the first access point and perform channel switching and, when channel switching preparation is ready, send the feedback message to the first access point; and

receive a request for setting up a connection sent by the mobile terminal and set up a connection to the mobile terminal.

16. The device according to claim 15, wherein the first access point comprises a receiving unit, a parsing unit, a feedback unit, and a breaking unit;

wherein the receiving unit is configured to receive the channel switching command sent by the mobile terminal;

wherein the parsing unit is configured to parse the channel switching command received by the receiving unit and to send the parsed channel switching command to the second access point, so that the second access point performs the channel switching according to the parsed channel switching command;

wherein the feedback unit is configured to receive the feedback message from the second access point and, when the feedback message indicates that the channel switching preparation of the second access point is ready, to send the feedback message to the mobile terminal;

wherein the breaking unit is configured to receive the request for breaking a connection sent by the mobile terminal and to break the connection to the mobile terminal;

wherein the second access point comprises a first channel switching unit, a fourth sending unit, and a connection setup unit;

wherein the first channel switching unit is configured to receive the parsed channel switching command sent by the first access point and perform the channel switching;

wherein the fourth sending unit is configured to send the feedback message to the first access point; and

wherein the connection setup unit is configured to receive the request for setting up a connection sent by the mobile terminal, and set up the connection to the mobile terminal.

17. The device according to claim 16, wherein the first channel switching unit is further configured to perform channel scan and switching processing according to a set rate threshold and a frequency scan interval that are carried in the channel switching command.

18. The device according to claim 17, wherein the second access point further comprises a first frequency adjusting unit, configured to, when a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after channel scan is performed, automatically adjust the frequency scan interval, and to perform channel scan and switching processing according to an adjusted frequency scan interval.

19. The device according to claim 17, wherein the second access point further comprises:

a fifth sending unit, configured to, when a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after channel scan is performed, send the feedback message, so that the first access point forwards the feedback message to the mobile terminal; and

a second frequency adjusting unit, configured to adjust the frequency scan interval according to a frequency scan interval adjustment command that is sent by the mobile terminal and forwarded by the first access point, and to perform channel scan and switching processing according to an adjusted frequency scan interval.

20. The device according to claim 17, wherein the second access point further comprises:

a sixth sending unit, configured to, when a channel with a rate that is higher than the set rate threshold is not found after channel scan is performed, send the feedback message to the first access point, so that the first access point forwards the feedback message to the mobile terminal, wherein the feedback message carries a maximum channel transmission rate obtained when the second access point performs channel scan; and

a second channel switching unit, configured to receive a frequency adjustment command that is sent by the mobile terminal and forwarded by the first access point, and perform, according to a maximum rate value carried in the frequency adjustment command, frequency adjustment to complete the channel switching.