Apparatus and method for integrating short-range wireless personal area networks for a wireless local area network infrastructure
Patent No. US11252659 (titled "Apparatus and method for integrating short-range wireless personal area networks for a wireless local area network infrastructure") on Oct 30, 2019. The application was issued on Feb 15, 2022.
What is this patent about?
'659 is related to the field of wireless communication, specifically the integration of short-range Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs) into longer-range Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs). The background involves the increasing prevalence of WLANs (like Wi-Fi) and the desire to connect low-power devices typically found in WPANs to these larger networks. Prior solutions suffered from high power consumption when WPAN devices attempted to directly connect to WLANs.
The underlying idea behind '659 is to use a wireless hub as a bridge between a WLAN and a WPAN. This hub maintains simultaneous connections to both networks, allowing low-power WPAN devices to communicate with the WLAN without the power overhead of directly implementing the WLAN protocol. The hub handles the WLAN communication, while the WPAN devices use a simplified, lower-power protocol to communicate with the hub.
The claims of '659 focus on a method for facilitating data communications with a first node in a WLAN and a second node in a WPAN via a wireless radio circuit. This involves maintaining a first association with the WLAN using a WLAN protocol and maintaining a second association with the WPAN using a WPAN protocol. The WPAN protocol uses a WLAN protocol frame including a field adapted to support at least one feature of the WPAN protocol that is not part of the WLAN protocol. The method also includes coordinating data exchanges with the first node over the WLAN connection and with the second node over the WPAN connection, while maintaining both associations.
In practice, the wireless hub contains both a standard WLAN radio and the logic to communicate with the WPAN devices. The WPAN protocol is modified to reduce power consumption on the WPAN devices, for example, by reducing transmit power or simplifying the communication protocol. The hub can be implemented as a standalone device or integrated into existing infrastructure like a power outlet. This allows battery-powered sensors or peripherals to seamlessly connect to a Wi-Fi network without significantly impacting their battery life.
This approach differs from prior solutions by offloading the power-intensive WLAN communication to the hub, which is typically mains-powered. Instead of requiring each WPAN device to implement the full WLAN stack, they only need to communicate with the hub using a lightweight protocol. The hub then acts as a translator, relaying data between the WPAN devices and the WLAN. This enables a wide range of applications, such as remote monitoring of sensors, control of home automation devices, and wireless connection of peripherals, all while preserving battery life in the WPAN devices.
How does this patent fit in bigger picture?
Technical Landscape
In the mid-2000s when ’659 was filed, wireless networking was typically implemented using distinct, siloed hardware for different ranges, such as separate chipsets for local area networks and short-range personal area networks. At a time when systems commonly relied on dedicated access points to bridge device traffic to a wider infrastructure, hardware and software constraints made it non-trivial to maintain simultaneous, persistent connections across different protocol layers using a single radio circuit. Engineering practices generally required devices to disconnect from one network type before associating with another, as managing concurrent synchronization and addressing across heterogeneous wireless standards often exceeded the processing and power budgets of mobile or embedded hardware.
Prosecution Position
The examiner allowed the claims because the prior art did not demonstrate a system capable of maintaining a connection to a personal area network (WPAN) while simultaneously staying connected to a local area network (WLAN) through a shared radio circuit. Specifically, the examiner noted that while existing technologies could share an antenna or facilitate data transfer between different network types, they lacked the specific mechanism of using a WLAN-compliant frame that is modified with a special field to support WPAN-specific features. This unique frame structure allows the system to coordinate data exchanges and maintain both network associations at the same time without requiring the WPAN devices to go through a standard WLAN access point.
Claims
This patent contains 30 claims, with claim 1 being the only independent claim. Independent claim 1 is directed to a method for facilitating data communications with a first node in a first wireless network and with a second node in a second wireless network via a wireless radio circuit. The dependent claims generally elaborate on and refine the method described in the independent claim, adding details and features related to synchronization, interference reduction, protocol layering, application software usage, power management, frame types, and data exchange coordination.
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US11252659
- Application Number
- US16668999A
- Filing Date
- Oct 30, 2019
- Publication Date
- Feb 15, 2022
- External Links
- Slate, USPTO, Google Patents