Uplink broadcast service in wireless local area network (WLAN)

Abstract

The present disclosure provides systems, devices, apparatuses, and methods for providing uplink broadcast service connections via a wireless local area network (WLAN), including computer programs encoded on storage media. In some implementations, a wireless device may send uplink communications to an access point (AP) that supports uplink broadcast services, and the AP may forward the uplink communications to a remote destination indicated in the uplink communications. In some implementations, the wireless device may be in an unassociated state and may send uplink communications without establishing a formal wireless session with the AP. The uplink communications may include requesting the AP to embed data provided by the AP into the uplink communications before forwarding the uplink communications to the remote destination. The present disclosure includes techniques for preventing flooding and unauthorized uplink communications from being used for denial of service attacks against remote destinations.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This patent application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 16 / 880,742 filed on May 21, 2020, U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 857,213 filed on June 4, 2019, and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 960,674 filed on January 13, 2020. All of these applications are entitled "UPLINK BROADCAST SERVICE IN AWIRELESS LOCAL AREA NETWORK (WLAN)" and are assigned to the assignee of this patent application. The disclosures of the prior applications are considered part of this patent application and are incorporated by reference into this patent application. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates generally to the field of wireless communications, and more particularly to service access via a wireless local area network. Background Art

[0004] A wireless local area network (WLAN) can be formed by one or more access points (APs) that provide a shared wireless communication medium for use by multiple client devices, also called stations (STAs). The basic building block of a WLAN that complies with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 series of standards is the basic service set (BSS), which is managed by the AP and includes one or more wirelessly connected STAs. In the associated state, when the STA has authenticated and established a wireless session with the AP, it can have a wireless connection (called a wireless association, or simply "association"). In the unassociated state, the STA can attempt to wirelessly communicate with the AP without an authenticated wireless session.

[0005] A variety of devices can operate as STAs in a wireless network. For example, Internet of Things (IoT) devices may include traditional STAs as well as devices that are not traditionally network-operating. Examples of IoT devices include cameras, drones, wearable devices, home appliances, lighting systems, security system components, speakers, smart refrigerators, TVs, sensors, tracking devices, etc. IoT devices can be endpoints in a wireless network that generate or consume data. Recently, the IEEE is considering new capabilities and new connection protocols brought about by IoT deployments, as well as new applications for traditional STAs. Summary of the invention

[0006] The systems, methods and devices of the present disclosure each have several innovative aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for the desirable attributes disclosed herein.

[0007] An innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure can be implemented in a method for wireless communication. In some implementations, the method can be performed by an apparatus of a first wireless device. The method may include determining that a first access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) supports an uplink broadcast service that enables uplink data transmission to a remote destination using unsolicited uplink broadcast communications. The method may include preparing an unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to be sent to a remote destination via the first AP. The method may include outputting an unsolicited uplink broadcast communication for transmission to a remote destination via the first AP based on the uplink broadcast service.

[0008] In some implementations, determining that the first AP supports uplink broadcast services may include receiving broadcast service capability information from the first AP.The broadcast service capability information may indicate that the first AP is capable of forwarding unsolicited uplink broadcast communications based on the uplink broadcast service.

[0009] In some implementations, receiving the broadcast service capability information may include receiving a beacon frame or a probe response frame including the broadcast service capability information from the first AP.

[0010] In some implementations, receiving the broadcast service capability information may include receiving the broadcast service capability information on a common channel designated for uplink broadcast services.

[0011] In some implementations, receiving an unsolicited uplink broadcast communication prepared for transmission to a remote destination may include receiving a transmission from one or more WLAN devices in proximity to the first wireless device. The method may include determining a detected identifier from the received transmission and including the detected identifier in a payload field of the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

[0012] In some implementations, the detected identifier may include a basic service set (BSS) identifier (BSSID), a service set identifier (SSID), a cell identifier, a media access control (MAC) address, an Internet Protocol (IP) address, or any combination thereof.

[0013] In some implementations, the remote destination can use the detected identifier to determine an approximate location of the first wireless device.

[0014] In some implementations, the method may include determining a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) for the one or more transmissions and including the RSSI with the detected identifier in a payload field.

[0015] In some implementations, the method may include including a destination network address of the remote destination in an unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

[0016] In some implementations, the method may include including in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication before forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to the remote destination.

[0017] In some implementations, the one or more types of AP-provided data can be an AP-provided location, an AP-provided timestamp, an AP-provided network address, or any combination thereof.

[0018] In some implementations, the method may include including a device certificate associated with the apparatus in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication. The first AP may use the device certificate to determine that the apparatus is authorized to cause unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to be sent to a remote destination via the first AP.

[0019] In some implementations, unsolicited uplink broadcast communications may be formatted as public action frames or general advertisement service (GAS) frames.

[0020] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure can be implemented in an apparatus for a wireless device. In some implementations, the wireless device can be an IoT device. The apparatus may include one or more processors configured to determine that a first access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) supports an uplink broadcast service on a wireless channel. The uplink broadcast service may enable uplink data to be sent to a remote destination using unsolicited uplink broadcast communications. One or more processors may be configured to prepare unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to be sent to a remote destination via a first AP. The apparatus may include an interface configured to output unsolicited uplink broadcast communications for transmission to a remote destination via a first AP based on the uplink broadcast service.

[0021] In some implementations, the interface may be further configured to obtain broadcast service capability information from the first AP.The broadcast service capability information may indicate that the first AP is capable of forwarding unsolicited uplink broadcast communications based on an uplink broadcast service.

[0022] In some implementations, the interface may be further configured to obtain a beacon frame or a probe response frame including the broadcast service capability information from the first AP.

[0023] In some implementations, the interface may be further configured to obtain the broadcast service capability information via a common channel designated for uplink broadcast services.

[0024] In some implementations, the interface may be further configured to obtain transmissions from one or more WLAN devices in proximity to the first wireless device. The one or more processors may also be configured to determine a detected identifier from the received transmission and include the detected identifier in a payload field of the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

[0025] In some implementations, the detected identifier includes at least one member selected from the group consisting of: a basic service set (BSS) identifier (BSSID), a service set identifier (SSID), a cell identifier, a media access control (MAC) address, and an Internet Protocol (IP) address.

[0026] In some implementations, the remote destination can use the detected identifier to determine an approximate location of the first wireless device.

[0027] In some implementations, the one or more processors may also be configured to determine a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) for the one or more transmissions and include the RSSI with the detected identifier in the payload field.

[0028] In some implementations, the one or more processors may also be configured to include a destination network address of the remote destination in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

[0029] In some implementations, one or more processors may also be configured to include in an unsolicited uplink broadcast communication a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication before forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to a remote destination.

[0030] In some implementations, the one or more types of AP-provided data are selected from the group consisting of: an AP-provided location, an AP-provided timestamp, and an AP-provided network address.

[0031] In some implementations, the one or more processors may be further configured to include a device certificate associated with the apparatus in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication. The first AP may use the device certificate to determine that the apparatus is authorized to cause unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to be sent to a remote destination via the first AP.

[0032] In some implementations, unsolicited uplink broadcast communications are formatted as public action frames or general advertisement service (GAS) frames.

[0033] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure can be implemented in a method for wireless communication by a first AP. The method can include advertising an uplink broadcast service that enables an apparatus of a first wireless device to send unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to a remote destination. The method can include receiving one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications from the apparatus according to the uplink broadcast service. The method can include forwarding at least a portion of the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to the remote destination.

[0034] In some implementations, announcing the uplink broadcast service may include sending broadcast service capability information.The broadcast service capability information may indicate that the first AP is capable of forwarding unsolicited uplink broadcast communications based on the uplink broadcast service.

[0035] In some implementations, sending the broadcast service capability information may include broadcasting a beacon frame or a probe response frame including the broadcast service capability information from the first AP.

[0036] In some implementations, the method may include, before forwarding at least a portion of the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications, determining that the device is authorized to cause the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to be sent to a remote destination via the first AP based at least in part on a digital certificate in the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications.

[0037] In some implementations, the method may include determining that the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications include a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications before forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to the remote destination. The method may include embedding the AP-provided data in the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications before forwarding the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to the remote destination.

[0038] In some implementations, the data provided by the AP includes location data, a date stamp, a time stamp, an identifier of the first AP, a network address of the first AP, received signal strength data, or any combination thereof.

[0039] In some implementations, the method may include implementing a throttling feature to limit the number or frequency of unsolicited uplink broadcast communications forwarded to a remote destination.

[0040] In some implementations, announcing the uplink broadcast service may include indicating a throttling feature used by the first AP. The throttling feature may include no throttling, per-destination throttling, explicit throttling based on the uplink broadcast service, or implicit throttling based on uplink resource scheduling.

[0041] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in the present disclosure can be implemented in an apparatus for a first AP. The apparatus may include one or more processors configured to announce an uplink broadcast service that enables an apparatus of a first wireless device to send unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to a remote destination. The apparatus may include an interface configured to obtain one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications based on the uplink broadcast service. The interface may be configured to output at least a portion of the one or more uplink communications for transmission to a remote destination.

[0042] In some implementations, the interface may also be configured to output a beacon frame or a probe response frame for transmission to the wireless network of the first AP. The beacon frame or the probe response frame may include broadcast service capability information. The broadcast service capability information may indicate that the first AP is capable of forwarding unsolicited uplink broadcast communications based on an uplink broadcast service.

[0043] In some implementations, the one or more processors may also be configured to determine that the device is authorized to cause unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to be sent to a remote destination via the first AP based at least in part on a digital certificate in the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications before causing the interface to output at least a portion of the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications.

[0044] In some implementations, the one or more processors are further configured to determine that the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications include a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications prior to outputting the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications for transmission to the remote destination. The one or more processors may be configured to embed the AP-provided data in the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications prior to outputting the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications for transmission to the remote destination.

[0045] In some implementations, the data provided by the AP includes at least one member of the group consisting of: location data, a date stamp, a time stamp, an identifier of the first AP, a network address of the first AP, and received signal strength data.

[0046] In some implementations, the one or more processors are further configured to implement a throttling feature to limit the number or frequency of unsolicited uplink broadcast communications forwarded to a remote destination.

[0047] In some implementations, the throttling characteristics are selected from the group consisting of: no throttling, per-destination throttling, explicit throttling based on uplink broadcast services, and implicit throttling based on uplink resource scheduling.

[0048] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented as a computer-readable medium having instructions stored therein, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform any of the above-described methods.

[0049] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented as a system having components for implementing any of the above-described methods.

[0050] Details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the following description. Other features, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. Note that the relative sizes of the following drawings may not be drawn to scale. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0051] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an example wireless local area network (WLAN) supporting uplink broadcast services is shown.

[0052] Figure 2A A schematic diagram of an example system supporting uplink broadcasts is shown.

[0053] Figure 2B A schematic diagram of an example system for enabling uplink communications with multiple destination services is shown.

[0054] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of an example system with service profiles is shown.

[0055] Figure 4 A block diagram of an example access point (AP) for uplink broadcast services is shown.

[0056] Figure 5 A block diagram of an example wireless device for uplink broadcast services is shown.

[0057] Fig. 6A A schematic diagram of an example wireless communication network using a Neighbor Awareness Network (NAN) protocol for service connectivity is shown.

[0058] Figure 6BA schematic diagram is shown in which an example NAN network may include different NAN data links (NDLs) to support different applications or services.

[0059] Figure 6C A schematic diagram of an example wireless communication network using an independent basic service set (IBSS) for service connectivity is shown.

[0060] Fig.6D A schematic diagram of an example wireless communication network using an Out of Context of a Basic Service Set (OCB) protocol for service connectivity is shown.

[0061] Figure 7 A message flow diagram illustrating an example service connection technique is shown.

[0062] Figure 8 A flow diagram illustrating an example process of connecting to a service is shown.

[0063] Fig. 9 A flow chart illustrating another example process for providing a service connection to a service is shown.

[0064] Fig. 10A A schematic diagram showing an example use case for a mobile tracking sensor utilizing an uplink broadcast service.

[0065] Fig. 10B A schematic diagram is shown in which an example AP can embed additional information into a forwarded uplink message.

[0066] Fig. 10C A schematic diagram is shown in which an example wireless device may transmit detected identifiers for identifier fingerprinting.

[0067] Fig.11A A schematic diagram is shown in which multiple example APs can support uplink broadcast services.

[0068] Fig. 11B A schematic diagram is shown in which different example APs may differ in their support for uplink broadcast services.

[0069] Fig. 11C A schematic diagram is shown in which different example APs may advertise their support for uplink broadcast services.

[0070] Fig.11D A schematic diagram is shown in which an example common channel may be used for broadcast services.

[0071] Fig.12 A message flow diagram illustrating an example uplink service connection technique in an environment with multiple APs is shown.

[0072] Fig.13 A conceptual diagram depicting an example frame of a broadcast service.

[0073] Fig.14A A conceptual diagram of an example enhanced broadcast service (eBCS) uplink (UL) capabilities element that may be sent from an AP to a STA is depicted.

[0074] Fig. 14B A conceptual diagram depicting an example eBCS UL Capabilities element that may be sent from a STA to an AP.

[0075] Fig.15 Depicted is a conceptual diagram of an example eBCS UL frame that may be sent from a STA to an AP.

[0076] Fig.16 A block diagram of an example wireless communication device for wireless communications is shown.

[0077] The same reference numbers and designations in different drawings indicate the same elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0078] To describe the innovative aspects of the present disclosure, the following description is directed to certain implementations. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that the teachings herein can be applied in a variety of different ways. The implementations described may be implemented in a manner that is capable of being implemented in accordance with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, the IEEE 802.15 standard, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) defined The described implementations may be implemented in any device, system, or network capable of sending and receiving radio frequency (RF) signals according to one or more of the following standards or long term evolution (LTE), 3G, 4G, or 5G standards, etc. The described implementations may be implemented in any device, system, or network capable of sending and receiving RF signals according to one or more of the following processes or technologies: code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), single user (SU) multiple input multiple output (MIMO), and multi-user (MU) MIMO. The described implementations may also be implemented using other wireless communication protocols or RF signals suitable for use in one or more of a wireless personal area network (WPAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless wide area network (WWAN), or an Internet of Things (IoT) network.

[0079] As new uses and applications for wireless devices (such as wireless stations, STAs, and IoT devices) are developed, such devices require user-friendly and efficient uplink service connections. Previous technologies for establishing wireless connections (wireless associations) between wireless devices and APs may be ineffective, slow, or otherwise undesirable for certain applications. Broadcast services or other improvements in wireless communications can enable new options for the guidance, configuration, and management of wireless devices. The IEEE has recently begun working on a draft standard specification for enhanced broadcast services (eBCS), known as IEEE 802.11bc, which can support uplink services for wireless devices (such as STAs or IoT devices acting as STAs).

[0080] In the present disclosure, various technologies for providing uplink broadcast services via WLAN are described. STA can use uplink broadcast services to send data to a remote destination server. For the sake of brevity, the remote destination server may be referred to as a remote server, a remote destination, or a destination service, and these terms may be used interchangeably in the present disclosure. The remote destination may be associated with a server-based application (including a cloud-based application) hosted by a service provider (including a third-party service provider). The uplink broadcast service may be referred to as an eBCS program, an eBCS uplink operation, or an uplink forwarding service. The uplink broadcast service may enable a wireless device to send uplink communications to a remote destination via an AP. In some examples, the remote destination may be a server or application associated with sensor data, tracking data, distribution services, transportation, home security, home automation, information services, etc.

[0081] The eBCS procedure may allow a wireless device to send an uplink communication with the expectation that one or more nearby eBCS-compatible APs may forward the contents of the frame to a remote destination specified in the uplink communication. In some implementations, an uplink communication from a wireless device may include a request for a forwarding AP to append additional information to the uplink communication before forwarding the uplink communication to the remote destination. In some examples, the uplink forwarding service may be a best effort service, but there is no guarantee that the content is delivered to the remote destination identified in the STA's uplink communication. In some implementations, the techniques used to provide uplink broadcast services may also be used for subsequent downlink communications. A service connection may refer to any communication between a remote destination (e.g., at a remote service provider) and a wireless device, including any combination of uplink or downlink communications.

[0082] The uplink broadcast service can enable uplink access for a wireless device that may or may not be wirelessly associated with an AP. For example, in some implementations, an unassociated wireless device may send unsolicited uplink communications (as eBCS uplink frames) that are intended to be forwarded by the AP to a remote destination. Therefore, in some implementations, a wireless device may send uplink communications intended for a service provider without establishing a wireless association with the AP (this may be referred to as an "unassociated state"). The wireless device may expect or want an eBCS-compatible AP to forward UL communications to the service provider. For example, a wireless device may try to utilize any nearby AP, regardless of which AP receives and forwards uplink communications. This scheme may be referred to as blind uplink broadcast (performed by a wireless device) and blind forwarding (performed by an AP). In addition to providing service connections for wireless devices, it is also desirable to provide some security for the WLAN. In some implementations, the broadcast service protocol described herein may provide source authentication and enable service connections for specific destination services.

[0083] The uplink broadcast service may enable a wireless device to communicate with a remote destination service via any eBCS-compatible AP that supports the eBCS specification. The AP may be owned, operated, or managed by another entity that is different from the destination service provider. In some implementations, the wireless device may establish a communication link with the AP in coordination with the authentication, authorization, or accounting (AAA) provided by the destination service. In addition, the AP may implement a service profile associated with the destination service. The service profile may implement security policies or connection settings specific to the destination service. For example, a security policy may control the level of access, the amount of bandwidth, or the type of traffic that may be sent to the destination service via the AP.

[0084] In some implementations, a wireless device may observe or scan a wireless channel (or channel set) to determine an eBCS-compatible AP that supports the uplink broadcast technology in the present disclosure. In addition, in some implementations, an eBCS-compatible AP may signal one or more capabilities (referred to as eBCS capabilities) supported by the AP. For example, an AP supporting eBCS may send an eBCS capability element in a beacon frame or a probe response frame. The eBCS capability element may notify a remote server (such as a destination service) of the capabilities of the AP associated with the forwarding service. The eBCS capability element may describe the attributes of an uplink broadcast service, such as authentication mode, throttling, support for embedding additional data, or other attributes that define how to use an uplink broadcast service. A wireless device may determine whether the eBCS capabilities of a nearby AP support specific destination services and attributes of an uplink broadcast service.

[0085] In some implementations, the AP may embed AP-provided data into the uplink communication received from the wireless device before forwarding the uplink communication to the remote destination. Although described as embedding data, it should be understood that the AP-provided data may be appended, prepended, encoded, hashed, or otherwise used to modify the original uplink communication to include the AP-provided data. As used herein, the words "embedded" or "appended" may interchangeably refer to any method by which the AP may attach the AP-provided data to the uplink communication before forwarding the uplink communication to the remote destination. The wireless device may send the original uplink communication to the AP with the network address of the remote destination (such as a service provider) and a request for the AP to embed specific information into the uplink communication before forwarding. Examples of additional information may include location information, date or timestamp, access point identifier or network address, and other possible information. In some implementations, if the AP cannot embed the requested AP-provided data, the wireless device may indicate that the uplink communication should not be forwarded.

[0086] In some implementations, the technology can be used to track the location of a sensor. For example, a wireless device (which may be referred to as a tracker or sensor in this example) may broadcast an uplink communication so that any available AP forwards it to a destination service that provides a location tracking application. When forwarding the uplink communication to the destination service, the AP may embed data provided by the AP (such as location information, physical address, global positioning system (GPS) data, etc.) into the uplink communication. Other examples of data provided by the AP may include timestamps or other data useful to the service provider. The data provided by the AP may be pre-provided at the AP (such as by the operator of the AP) or may be determined by the AP using the capabilities of the AP. For example, the AP may use the AP's onboard GPS unit to determine the data provided by the AP. In some implementations, the AP may retrieve the data provided by the AP from a central resource (such as an operator website or database). The service provider may be able to track the location of the tracker (and any related equipment) based on the data provided by the AP embedded in the uplink communication.

[0087] In some implementations, the AP may embed data provided by the AP based on a request from the wireless device. For example, the wireless device may include an element, field, bit, or other indicator in an uplink communication to the AP to inform the AP that the wireless device requires additional services from the AP. The element, field, bit, or other indicator may enable the AP to embed specific information into the uplink communication before forwarding the uplink communication to the service provider. In some implementations, the element, field, bit, or other indicator may specify the type of data provided by the AP that the wireless device wishes the AP to embed. For example, a first value of "0" may indicate that additional data should not be embedded, a second value of "1" may indicate a request for the AP to embed location data, a third value of "2" may indicate a request for the AP to embed a date stamp or timestamp, and a fourth value of "3" may indicate a request for the AP to embed received signal strength indicator (RSSI) information. The meaning of the example values ​​and definitions may change in various implementations. Other types of AP-provided data may be indicated by other values.

[0088] In some implementations, the AP may determine the type of AP-provided data to be embedded based on the destination service to which the packet is to be forwarded. For example, the AP may determine that the destination service is a first entity that utilizes a particular type of AP-provided data. The AP may determine the first entity based on, for example, the destination network address of the uplink communication. The AP may determine the type of AP-provided data to be embedded in the uplink communication based on a predetermined configuration, relationship, or service profile associated with the first entity. For example, when forwarding uplink communications to a first entity, the AP may embed location data, but when forwarding uplink communications to a second entity, the AP may embed a timestamp. In some implementations, the wireless device may not indicate the exact type of information to be embedded, but may include an indication that it requires the AP to embed a baseline set of AP-provided data, such as a date stamp, a timestamp, an RSSI value, or any combination thereof, as well as other examples.

[0089] In some implementations, the media access control (MAC) layer on the AP can be used to forward uplink communications to a destination service. For example, the MAC layer of the AP can provide data provided by the AP as service parameters to a higher layer (such as through a MAC Service Access Point (MAC-SAP) interface). The higher layer can then embed the information provided by the AP into the uplink communication before forwarding the uplink communication to the destination service. In some implementations, the AP can embed the data provided by the AP into a MAC Service Data Unit (MSDU) that is passed to the higher layer. In such an implementation, the higher layer can process the MSDU as if it came from an originating wireless device. The format in which the AP provides the data provided by the AP can be standardized, or can be specific to the destination service. In some implementations, the MAC layer of the AP can provide some authentication or service provider features before forwarding the uplink communication to the destination service.

[0090] In some implementations, uplink communications from wireless devices may be encapsulated in a container header. For example, a STA may prepare a higher layer protocol (HLP) packet for a remote destination server. The STA may send an HLP packet to the AP so that the AP forwards the HLP packet to the remote destination server. The HLP packet may be included in a container element of an uplink (UL) frame from the STA to the AP. In some implementations, the format and content type of the HLP packet may be defined by a communication protocol specification such as the IEEE 802.11bc specification or other revisions of the IEEE 802.11 series of wireless standards. The format of the UL frame may include fields defined for various indicators associated with the HLP packet. Examples of fields of the UL frame may include an uplink frame control field, a payload data field, a network address of a remote destination, a certificate or public key of a sending STA, a certificate or public key of a remote server, a timestamp, a packet counter value, and a frame signature, etc.

[0091] In some implementations, the wireless device may be a low power or low complexity device. For example, a wireless device may not include a location determination unit (such as a GPS module). However, using the techniques in the present disclosure, a service provider may be able to determine the location of the wireless device. For example, the service provider may use identifier fingerprinting using detected identifiers or use information provided by the AP to determine the approximate location of the wireless device.

[0092] In some implementations, before sending uplink communications, the wireless device may observe or scan a wireless channel (or set of channels) to obtain data from nearby devices (such as an AP or other STA). For example, the wireless device may listen for a broadcast message (such as a beacon frame) that includes a detectable identifier of a nearby BSS. Examples of detectable identifiers may include a BSS identifier (BSSID), a media access control (MAC) address, an Internet Protocol (IP) address, a cell identifier, a frequency modulation (FM) broadcast message, an amplitude modulation (AM) broadcast message, a Bluetooth TM The wireless device may include a portion of the detected identifier in an uplink broadcast message to an AP that supports forwarding to a destination service. The destination service may use the detected identifier for identifier fingerprinting to determine more information about the location of the wireless device or the environment in which the wireless device is located.

[0093] In some examples described in the present disclosure, wireless devices can be used for asset tracking, shipping tracking, personnel tracking, and the like. For example, the technology in the present disclosure can be used to track the location of personal equipment, appliances, commodity shipping, and the like. Examples of services may include manufacturers that provide online services to configure or update software for wireless devices (such as networked appliances, smart vehicles, industrial machines, and the like). Some wireless devices may be able to provide status updates, error status information, location information, or utilization information to the service for subsequent analysis or viewing by users of the service. For example, wireless devices can be used to track the location of assets, shipping, personnel, and the like. Another example of a service may be provided by a taxi service provider. For example, a wireless device (such as an information kiosk, an IoT device, a wearable device, a user device, and the like) can access the service to schedule a taxi pick-up or check the status. Other examples of services may include a home automation platform, a home security monitoring and control service, a digital personal assistant, a gateway service, and the like. In some implementations, the wireless device may be a headless device. A wireless device that lacks a graphical user interface may be referred to as a headless device. Examples of headless devices may include sensors, light bulbs, cameras, actuators, appliances, game controllers, audio devices, tracking devices, or other communication devices that can communicate via a network but may not have a graphical user interface due to design. The examples in this disclosure are used to help readers understand potential uses of the described techniques, but these techniques can be used with other potential implementations.

[0094] For brevity, the technical examples and descriptions in this disclosure relate to IoT devices. Although IoT devices may provide the initial motivation for this description, the techniques in this disclosure may be used with other types of devices including traditional STAs. In some implementations, the use of terms such as STA, IoT device, client device, or wireless device may be interchangeable. Similarly, these techniques may be described in terms of IoT services, but these techniques may also be used with other types of services from a destination service provider.

[0095] The present disclosure includes some features that an AP can use to limit excessive uplink broadcasts. In various implementations, an AP can implement different types of restriction modes (also referred to as throttling). Examples of restriction modes may include per-destination restrictions, remote domain-based restrictions, explicit throttling, and implicit throttling, etc. The AP may have a relationship with one or more destination service providers (which may be referred to as domains). In some implementations, the AP may use domain-based restrictions to apply a restriction mode specified by a destination service provider (such as a remote server of a destination domain). Explicit throttling may occur when the AP limits the number or frequency of uplink broadcast messages based on an explicit throttling value. The AP may use implicit throttling by controlling the scheduling of uplink broadcasts. For example, the AP may allocate resources for uplink broadcasts. By managing the number of allocated resources, the AP can throttle uplink broadcast traffic. In some implementations, one or more APs may coordinate to prevent repeated uplink broadcasts from being forwarded to a destination service by multiple APs. The AP may implement some features to prevent denial of service (DoS) or injection attacks against remote destinations. For example, in some implementations, the AP may perform source authentication (of the wireless device sending the UL frame) and verify the frame signature in the UL frame before forwarding the contents of the UL frame to a remote destination.

[0096] In some implementations, a technical standard may specify a specific channel (or channel set) for broadcast services. For example, the IEEE 802.11bc specification may require an AP to use a specific channel (or channel set) when announcing the service providers supported by the AP. The channel (or channels) that support uplink broadcasts may be referred to as common channels because they are predetermined by the specifications for broadcast services. Wireless devices can scan common channels to determine whether nearby APs support uplink broadcasts. Limiting the channel quality used to announce broadcast services can improve service detection and reduce power utilization of wireless devices (which may be ultra-low power sensors). In some implementations, an AP may broadcast a detectable identifier or other information on a common channel so that a wireless device can obtain and collect information before sending uplink communications via an AP that supports uplink broadcast services.

[0097] In some implementations, an AP may announce that it has the ability to provide a connection to a specific destination service. For example, an AP may send a service advertisement or other message indicating which destination service it supports. A wireless device may select an appropriate AP based on the relationship between the wireless device and the destination service announced by the AP. In some implementations, an AP may provide uplink broadcast services to authenticated wireless devices that have an established affiliation or subscription relationship with a destination service supported by the AP. In some implementations, an AP may not operate a basic service set (BSS) or may utilize broadcast services without establishing a BSS association. In some implementations, an AP may use a general advertisement service (GAS) message to indicate one or more destination services supported by the AP. In some implementations, a wireless device may use a GAS message to communicate an uplink broadcast message to the AP. The GAS message format may be extended or modified to support uplink broadcast services.

[0098] Different broadcast services may be adjusted or modified to support wireless services (including services that may be specific to IoT devices). For example, in some implementations, a broadcast connection may include the use of a pre-configured association, a Neighbor Awareness Network (NAN) protocol, an "out of context of the BSS" (OCB) protocol, or an Independent BSS (IBSS) protocol. The protocol may be modified to support a broadcast connection between an AP and a wireless device or between two peer wireless communication devices (such as between two IoT devices or between an IoT device and a STA). Some implementations of broadcast services may support uplink broadcast transmissions from an IoT device (e.g., a sensor) to an AP. For example, in some implementations, the broadcast connection technology may utilize pre-configured settings to establish a communication link. The wireless device may broadcast uplink data to the AP via a communication link, and the AP may be configured to forward the uplink data to a central resource (such as a service provider network, a central controller, a server, etc.).

[0099] Certain implementations of the subject matter described in this disclosure may be performed to achieve one or more of the following potential advantages. Wireless devices may be deployed using new bootstrapping and uplink broadcast service technologies. Employing new wireless devices (such as sensors or tracking devices) may be more user friendly due to uplink broadcast services. Security may be implemented at the AP based on destination service profiles. Some implementations may enable seamless bootstrapping with little or no user configuration.

[0100] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an example WLAN supporting uplink broadcast services is shown. Figure 1A block diagram of an example wireless communication network 100 is included. According to some aspects, the wireless communication network 100 may be an example of a wireless local area network (WLAN) such as a Wi-Fi network (hereinafter referred to as WLAN 100). For example, WLAN 100 may be a network that implements at least one IEEE 802.11 series standard (such as the standards defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its revisions). WLAN 100 may include a number of wireless communication devices, such as an access point (AP) 102 and a plurality of stations (STAs) 104 that are wirelessly associated with AP 102. Each STA 104 may also be referred to as a mobile station (MS), a mobile device, a mobile handset, a wireless handset, an access terminal (AT), a user equipment (UE), a subscriber station (SS), or a subscriber unit, etc. STA 104 may represent various devices, such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), other handheld devices, netbooks, notebook computers, tablet computers, laptop computers, display devices (e.g., televisions, computer monitors, navigation systems, etc.), music or other audio or stereo equipment, remote control devices ("remote controls"), printers, kitchen or other household appliances, electronic key chains (e.g., for passive keyless entry and start (PKES) systems), etc. Although AP 102 is described as an access point using infrastructure mode, in some implementations, AP 102 may be a STA operating as an AP. For example, AP 102 may be a STA capable of operating in peer-to-peer mode or standalone mode. In other examples, AP 102 may be a software AP (SoftAP) operating on a computer system.

[0101] A single AP 102 and associated STAs 104 may be referred to as a basic service set (BSS), which is managed by the corresponding AP. "Unassociated STAs" may not be considered part of the BSS because they do not establish a wireless session at the AP. The BSS is identified by a service set identifier (SSID) advertised by the AP 102. The AP 102 periodically broadcasts beacon frames ("beacons") to enable any STA 104 within the wireless range of the AP 102 to establish or maintain a corresponding communication link 106 (hereinafter also referred to as a "Wi-Fi link" or "wireless association") with the AP. Each STA 104 in the WLAN can communicate with an external network and with each other via the AP 102 and the corresponding communication link 106. In order to establish a communication link 106 with the AP 102, each STA 104 is configured to perform a passive or active scanning operation ("scanning") on a frequency channel of one or more frequency bands (e.g., 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz, or 60 GHz bands). To perform passive scanning, the STA 104 listens for beacons that are sent by the corresponding AP 102 at periodic time intervals called target beacon transmission time (TBTT) (measured in time units (TUs), where one TU is equal to 1024 microseconds). To perform active scanning, the STA 104 generates and sequentially sends probe requests on each channel to be scanned, and listens for probe responses from the AP 102. Each STA 104 can be configured to identify or select an AP 102 to associate with it based on the scanning information obtained through passive or active scanning, and perform authentication and association operations to establish a Wi-Fi link with the selected AP.

[0102] Figure 1Also shown is an example coverage area 108 of the AP 102, which may represent a basic service area (BSA) of the WLAN 100. Although only one AP 102 is shown, the WLAN 100 may include multiple APs 102. Due to the increasing popularity of wireless networks, a STA 104 may have the opportunity to select one of many BSSs within the STA range, or to select from multiple APs 102, which together form an extended service set (ESS) including multiple connected BSSs. Extended network stations associated with the WLAN 100 may be connected to a wired or wireless distribution system that may allow multiple APs 102 to connect in such an ESS. In this way, a STA 104 may be covered by more than one AP 102 and may be associated with different APs 102 at different times for different transmissions. In addition, after associating with an AP 102, the STA 104 may also be configured to periodically scan its surroundings to find a more suitable AP to associate with. For example, a STA 104 that is moving relative to its associated AP 102 may perform a "roaming" scan to find another AP with more desirable network characteristics, such as a greater received signal strength indicator (RSSI).

[0103] The AP 102 and the STA 104 may operate and communicate (via corresponding communication links 106) in accordance with the IEEE 802.11 family of standards (such as those defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its revisions, including but not limited to 802.11aa, 802.11ah, 802.11aq, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, 802.11bc, and 02.11be, etc.). These standards define WLAN radio and baseband protocols at the physical (PHY) and media access control (MAC) layers. The AP 102 and the STA 104 send and receive frames to each other in the form of physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data units (PPDUs) (hereinafter also referred to as "Wi-Fi communications"). Each PPDU is a composite frame that includes a PLCP preamble and header and one or more MAC protocol data units (MPDUs).

[0104] The AP 102 and STA 104 in the WLAN 100 may send PPDUs on an unlicensed spectrum, which may be a portion of a spectrum that includes frequency bands traditionally used by Wi-Fi technology, such as the 2.4 GHz band, the 5 GHz band, the 60 GHz band, the 3.6 GHz band, and the 900 MHz band. Some implementations of the AP 102 and STA 104 described herein may also communicate in other frequency bands, such as the 6 GHz band, which may support licensed and unlicensed communications. The AP 102 and STA 104 may also be configured to communicate on other frequency bands, such as shared licensed bands, where multiple operators may have licenses to operate on the same or overlapping frequency band or bands.

[0105] Figure 1 A wireless device 144 is shown that is capable of communicating data to a remote destination network 140 via AP 102. For example, the wireless device 144 may be a STA, an IoT device, etc. In some implementations, the remote destination network 140 may be operated by a service provider associated with a particular service. Although illustrated and described as a remote destination network 140, it is apparent that references to the remote destination network 140 may refer to a remote destination server or host application within the remote destination network 140. In addition, the remote destination network 140 may refer to a service provider operating a remote destination server or host application. The wireless device 144 may send uplink data to the AP 102 via the broadcast signal 116, expecting that the AP 102 may forward the uplink data to the remote destination network 140. The AP 102 may have a connection 148 between the AP 102 and the remote destination network 140. The connection 148 may be wired or wireless, and may include one or more intermediate networks (not shown). In some implementations of the present disclosure, the remote destination network 140 may include an authentication server 142. Authentication server 142 may be used to process service request messages from wireless devices 144 (via AP 102). AP 102 may coordinate with authentication server 142 to implement authentication or other security features specific to the remote destination network.

[0106] The AP 102 may include a service support unit 120 configured to implement enhanced broadcast services (such as eBCS). The service support unit 120 may provide forwarding services for wireless devices to communicate with remote destination networks associated with one or more service providers. The service support unit 120 may include a service advertising unit 122. For example, the service advertising unit 122 may provide advertisements (also referred to as announcements) about which remote destinations the AP 102 can support. The service support unit 120 may also include a connection unit 124. The connection unit 124 may implement a service connection protocol to support access of wireless devices to remote destinations. In some implementations, the service connection protocol may include a broadcast service protocol. For example, the connection unit 124 may implement a NAN protocol, an OCB protocol, or an IBSS protocol and modifications to support broadcast services. The service support unit 120 may include one or more destination service profiles 126. In some implementations, the destination service profile 126 may be configured on the AP 102 in response to establishing a service connection for the wireless device 144. In some implementations, the destination service profile 126 may be pre-configured on the AP 102 before establishing a service connection, and may include settings for establishing a service connection for the wireless device 144. The destination service profile 126 may include security policies, configuration settings, etc., and may be specific to each remote destination supported by the AP 102. For example, the destination service profile 126 may restrict the access level or type that the wireless device 144 may use on the AP 102. The destination service profile 126 may set bandwidth utilization restrictions, data type filters, etc. The destination service profile 126 may also indicate when and where messages may be forwarded by the AP 102 to the remote destination network 140. The service support unit 120 may also include an uplink broadcast support unit 128. The uplink broadcast support unit 128 may be configured to receive uplink broadcasts from the wireless device 144 and forward uplink data to the remote destination network 140. In some implementations, the uplink broadcast support unit 128 may coordinate with the connection unit 124 to implement pre-configured service parameters to support uplink broadcasts.

[0107] In some implementations, the connection unit 124 may also perform source authentication of the wireless device 144. For example, a unique private key may be provided for each client device (e.g., wireless device 144). The remote service provider may obtain the key from the cloud service during installation / configuration of the client device. In some implementations, each client device may locally generate its own private key (and determine the public key based on the generated private key). The client device may then send its public key to the cloud service during installation, configuration, or subscription setup so that a certificate with the public key may be digitally signed. For example, the certificate of the client device may be signed by the public key of the cloud service. The uplink communication from the client device may include a signed certificate or signature that may be confirmed using the public key of the cloud service. The connection unit 124 of the AP 102 receiving the uplink communication may verify that there is a certificate signed by the public key of the cloud service that is trusted by the AP 102. Therefore, before forwarding the uplink communication, the connection unit 124 may perform source authentication to verify that the client device (such as the wireless device 144) is authorized to communicate with the remote destination network 140. In some implementations, the connection unit 124 can obtain the public key of the cloud service via an intermediary proxy server that maintains or manages relationships with various remote destination networks.

[0108] The wireless device 144 may include an application support unit 150 to implement one or more features described herein. The application support unit 150 may include a service identification and selection unit 152, a connection unit 154, an authentication unit 156, and a sending unit 158. The service identification and selection unit 152 may determine whether the AP 102 is capable of providing a connection to the remote destination network 140. In some implementations, there may be multiple APs (not shown) that provide one or more service connection options to the remote destination network 140. For example, a wireless device may find multiple APs (not shown) at an airport that advertise service connection options for transportation services (such as taxis, airlines, car rental companies, etc.). In another example, a smart home appliance may be deployed in a residence, where multiple APs (possibly including APs deployed in adjacent locations) are capable of providing service connections for the smart home appliance to communicate with a remote destination network associated with a smart home appliance service provider. In an implementation where the wireless device may have multiple APs available for service connection, the service identification and selection unit 152 may select which AP to use to access the remote destination network. The selection may be based on signal strength, user preference, history of previous connections, channel utilization, or other criteria. For example, the service identification and selection unit 152 may maintain a history of previous connections and give greater preference to the most used or recently used APs. In some implementations, the selection of which AP to use may be based on the signal quality of the service without regard to the previous relationship between the wireless device and the AP.

[0109] Alternatively or additionally, the environment may have one or more APs that support service connections to different remote destination networks. The service identification and selection unit 152 may determine which AP(s) provide service connections to the remote destination network that the wireless device 144 is configured to use. For example, a single AP at an airport may advertise service connections for different remote destination networks corresponding to different car rental or taxi companies. The AP may forward the uplink communication to the requested remote destination indicated in the uplink communication. The wireless device may connect to the selected remote destination network based on which the car rental or taxi company application is being executed on the wireless device.

[0110] The connection unit 154 may establish a connection for the wireless device to communicate with a remote destination network via the AP 102. For example, the connection unit 154 may implement a modified connection protocol supported by the connection unit 124. The authentication unit 156 may support authentication of the authentication server 142 via the AP 102. For example, the authentication unit 156 may send a service request message (or one or more message exchanges) including authentication information via the broadcast signal 116. The service request message may include a network access identifier (NAI) realm and a client identification of the wireless device 144. In some implementations, the NAI realm may be pre-configured on the wireless device 144. In some implementations, the AP 102 may provide the NAI as part of a service advertisement.

[0111] In some implementations, the service support unit 120 can provide traffic separation. For example, the service support unit 120 can forward traffic destined for a particular remote destination network to the remote destination while maintaining separation of traffic destined for different remote destination networks. The service support unit 120 can restrict access to a particular remote destination network unless the AP 102 can verify that the wireless device 144 is authorized to generate uplink broadcast communications to the remote destination network. In some implementations, a service provider associated with the remote destination network can compensate the owner or operator of the AP 102 to enable uplink broadcast services to the wireless device. For example, the service provider can pay for Internet services, security software costs, commissions, or other compensation in exchange for the AP 102 providing access to its services.

[0112] In some implementations, AP 102 may provide a "common channel" that is known to support uplink service connections to service providers. For example, an IEEE standard specification may specify one or more common channels assigned to support uplink service connections. For example, there may be a subset of wireless channels (from multiple wireless channels in a channel map) that are assigned for eBCS, or otherwise available for APs to establish uplink service connections described in this application. In some implementations, because the wireless channel subset is a fixed list, a wireless device can scan the wireless channel subset to quickly locate an uplink service connection (for forwarding uplink communications to a service provider). Optionally, a wireless device may send an unsolicited broadcast (from a subset of wireless channels assigned for the service) on a common channel so that any AP that supports uplink services can receive the unsolicited broadcast. The use of a common channel (or common channel set) can increase the likelihood that a wireless device 144 can find an AP 102 that supports uplink communication forwarding. In some implementations, this technology can be used with blind forwarding and authenticated or verified access.

[0113] Figure 2A A schematic diagram of an example system 200 supporting UL broadcasts is shown. Example system 201 includes wireless device 144 and AP 102. Initially, wireless device 144 may not have association or authorization to access AP 102. AP 102 and wireless device 144 may support eBCS uplink service to enable wireless device 144 to send uplink broadcast messages to remote server 256 via AP 102. For example, wireless device 144 may use communication link 216 to send uplink broadcasts to AP 102. AP 102 may have connection 148 to remote server 256. Figure 2A As shown, the remote server 256 can be located at the remote destination network 140.

[0114] The uplink broadcast service may be referred to as an eBCS UL service. The eBCS UL service procedure allows a STA (such as wireless device 144) to send an UL frame 296, expecting one or more eBCS-capable APs (such as AP 102) in the vicinity of the STA to forward the contents of the UL frame 296 (shown as data 297) to a remote destination (such as remote server 256) specified in the UL frame 296. As described elsewhere in this disclosure, the STA may include a request for the forwarding AP to embed additional information before forwarding to the remote server 256.

[0115] The AP 102 may support a UL forwarding service by which it may forward the contents of a UL frame 296 received from a wireless device 144 to a remote server 256 identified in the UL frame 296. An eBCS AP (e.g., the AP 102) that supports the forwarding service may include an eBCS UL capability element in a service announcement, a broadcast beacon frame, a probe response frame, or other message that the wireless device 144 may observe.

[0116] The AP 102 may provide an embedding service by which the AP 102 may embed metadata (such as location, date / time, IP address, or other data) before forwarding the data 297 to the remote server 256, if requested by the wireless device 144. The AP 102 may indicate this capability by setting a predefined value in the Embedded Services subfield of the eBCS UL Capability element.

[0117] The AP 102 may provide a mechanism to authenticate the sender of a packet before forwarding the packet to the remote server 256. For example, the AP 102 may establish a relationship with one or more service providers (also referred to as "domains") that it supports forwarding. The AP 102 may support authenticating the sender of frames destined for each domain. In some implementations, the AP 102 may identify the domains it supports by including a hash of the domain in the eBCS UL capabilities element it sends. If the AP 102 supports domain-based authentication, the AP 102 may not forward the contents of the eBCS UL frame 296 if the AP 102 has not yet established a relationship with the domain identified in the eBCS UL frame 296. Upon receiving the eBCS UL frame 296, which identifies the domain with which the AP has established a relationship, the AP 102 may authenticate the sending STA (such as the wireless device 144) based on the relationship with the remote server 256.

[0118] The AP 102 may provide a mechanism to limit the number of UL frames that it processes and forwards to the remote server 256. For example, the AP 102 may do this to prevent a DoS attack on the remote server 256, or to prevent too many frames from being flooded onto the backhaul network. The AP 102 may provide an indication of the throttling scheme in the Restriction Mode subfield of the eBCS UL Capability element sent to the STA.

[0119] In some implementations, the AP 102 may implement and indicate domain-specific throttling. For example, the remote server 256 may indicate a limit on the amount of data (per STA) that the remote server 256 will allow the AP to forward to it.

[0120] In some implementations, the AP 102 may explicitly throttle the amount or frequency of UL traffic from a particular STA to any remote server. The AP 102 may indicate explicit throttling in the Throttling field in the eBCS UL Capabilities element that it sends.

[0121] In some implementations, the AP 102 can restrict the amount or frequency of UL broadcasts by managing the allocation of UL resources. For example, the AP 102 can solicit UL frames from unassociated STAs by following an uplink OFDMA random access (UORA) procedure.

[0122] In some implementations, the UL forwarding service is a best effort service and the AP 102 may not be required to forward the wireless device 144 's data to the remote server 256 .

[0123] The wireless device 144 may send an eBCS UL frame 296 to the AP 102. The eBCS UL frame 296 may include data destined for the remote server 256. The wireless device may include an eBCS capability element in the eBCS UL frame 296 to indicate its capabilities to the AP 102. The wireless device 144 may request the AP 102 to embed metadata before forwarding the data 297 to the remote server 256. In some implementations, such as when domain-based authentication is used, the wireless device 144 may include a hash value of a domain associated with the remote destination network 140 or a hash value of the network address of the remote server 256.

[0124] In some implementations, the wireless device 144 may monitor the wireless medium to collect capabilities of neighboring eBCS APs and, if supported, conform to the capabilities of neighboring eBCS APs that support the forwarding service.

[0125] In some implementations, the wireless device 144 may follow the UORA procedure to send the eBCS UL frame 296 in a trigger-based PPDU as a response to a trigger frame carrying a random access resource unit (RA-RU) of an unassociated STA.

[0126] Figure 2B A schematic diagram of an example system 201 for enabling uplink communications with multiple destination services is shown. Example system 201 includes wireless device 144 and AP 102. Initially, wireless device 144 may not have association or authorization to access AP 102. Figure 2B In the example of , AP 102 can have relationships with multiple service providers. Each service provider can operate a corresponding remote destination network 254, 264, and 274. Examples of service providers can include telecommunications entities, consumer technology entities, cloud-based service providers, etc. Figure 2BA first remote destination network 254, a second remote destination network 264, and a third remote destination network 274 are shown. Each remote destination network 254, 264, and 274 can have a different authentication server 252, 262, and 272, respectively. The AP 102 can isolate traffic associated with each remote destination network 254, 264, and 274.

[0127] Figure 2B Some example network design options are also shown to facilitate establishing a relationship between the AP 102 and one or more service providers. For example, the AP 102 can be an AP in a home, apartment, coffee shop, hotel, or other location. The AP 102 can be operated and managed separately from the service provider. For example, a scenario can include that the AP 102 is located in an individual's home and is owned or managed by the individual, while the service provider can be a separate entity (such as an alarm monitoring company, a home assistance service, a smart home service provider, etc.). The AP 102 can utilize a proxy server 240 to help authenticate or guide multiple service providers. The AP 102 can have a connection 248 with the proxy server 240, and the proxy server 240 can have different connections to remote destination networks 254, 264, and 274.

[0128] The wireless device 144 may determine that the AP 102 supports a particular service provider with which the wireless device 144 has a relationship. For example, if the wireless device 144 has a relationship with a first service provider, the wireless device 144 may be configured to send data to (or receive data from) a first remote destination network 254. The wireless device 144 may determine whether the AP 102 is capable of providing a service connection to the first remote destination network 254. In some implementations, the wireless device 144 may broadcast a first message to request a response from any AP that is capable of providing uplink operations, including forwarding uplink communications to a particular remote destination network. In some implementations, the wireless device 144 may observe a broadcast message or an advertisement message from the AP 102 to determine whether the AP 102 supports forwarding to a desired remote destination network.

[0129] During the authentication phase, the wireless device 144 may send a service request message that triggers authentication between the wireless device 144 and the first remote destination. For example, the service request message may be an authentication message, an EAP response / identity, or other type of message that initiates access to a remote destination. In some implementations, the service request message may include a client identifier associated with the wireless device 144. The service request message may also include an NAI realm (or domain name) that identifies the first remote destination network 254. The AP 102 may be configured to send the service request message to the proxy server 240. In some implementations, the AP 102 may modify the service request message or append information to the service request message. For example, the AP 102 may include some identity information, certificates, or signatures to identify, register, or authenticate the AP 102 to the proxy server 240 or the first remote destination network 254. The proxy server 240 may forward the service request message to the appropriate remote destination network. For example, the proxy server 240 may check the NAI realm and determine to forward the service request message to the authentication server 252 associated with the first remote destination network 254. In some implementations, the service request message may be formatted according to the Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) protocol. In some implementations, the authentication phase may include an Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) with message exchanges to perform secure authentication of the wireless device 144. When the proxy server 240 receives the service response message, the proxy server 240 may forward the service response message to the AP 102. In some implementations, there may be one or more message exchanges between the wireless device 144 and the proxy server 240 or the authentication server 252 before the service response message indicates that the remote destination service has been approved. Based on the service response message, the AP 102 may establish a communication link 216 to the wireless device 144 to provide the wireless device 144 with a service connection to the first remote destination network 254.

[0130] In addition to receiving the service response message, the AP 102 may also receive communication parameters (referred to herein as a service profile). The service profile may include information for establishing the communication link 216. For example, the service profile may include security parameters corresponding to pre-configured settings on the wireless device 144. In another example, the service profile may include information about how the AP 102 communicates with the first remote destination network 254. For example, the service profile may include a forwarding destination address, bandwidth or rate limits, filter settings (regarding the type of data that may be forwarded), etc.

[0131] Many variations of network design are possible. For example, a first variation 242 shows that the proxy server 240 may include multiple proxy AAA servers, such as a first proxy AAA server 244 and a second proxy AAA server 246. The multiple proxy AAA servers may be redundant proxy servers, or may be organized in a hierarchical manner. For example, the first proxy AAA server 244 may be implemented at a local Internet service provider (local ISP), while the second proxy AAA server 246 may be implemented at an upstream ISP. Multiple proxy AAA servers may forward service request messages and service response messages in a hierarchical topology to provide an authentication path between the AP 102 and the authentication servers 252, 262, and 272.

[0132] The second variation 280 shows that multiple service providers (and their corresponding remote destination networks) can be organized in a hierarchical manner. For example, the first service provider 282 can process service request messages on behalf of the second service provider 284 or the third service provider 286. The first service provider 282 can also coordinate the exchange of information to the wireless device 144 (via the AP 102 and the first service provider 282) or from the wireless device 144 (via the AP 102 and the first service provider 282) to the second service provider 284 or the third service provider 286.

[0133] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of an example system 300 with a service profile is shown. Figure 3 The AP 102, the wireless device 144, the first remote destination network 254, the second remote destination network 264, and the third remote destination network 274 are included as described above. Figure 3 , service providers associated with the remote destination networks 254, 264, and 274 may install or share or otherwise provide service profiles to the AP 102. In some implementations, the AP 102 may request the service profiles from the profile proxy 340 or directly from the profile servers 352, 362, and 372 corresponding to the remote destination networks 254, 264, and 274, respectively. In some implementations, the profile servers 352, 362, and 372 may send the service profiles directly to the AP 102 (without using the profile proxy 340) in response to a user request or service activation. In some implementations, the AP 102 may obtain (such as during a software update) a list of service providers and uniform resource locations (URLs) to obtain corresponding service profiles.

[0134] In some implementations, the AP 102 may use a service profile to enable the service connection techniques of the present disclosure. For example, the service profile may include communication links or security information, such as NAI realms, predetermined SSIDs, service security keys, etc. The AP 102 may use the communication link or security information to advertise that it supports service connections to service providers. Wireless devices configured for a specific service provider may be pre-configured with corresponding communication links or security information, which may be used to establish a communication link via the AP 102 to a remote destination network operated by a specific service provider.

[0135] Figure 4 A block diagram of an example AP 400 for uplink broadcast services is shown. For example, the AP 400 may be a reference Figure 1-3 An example of aspects of the AP 102 is described. The AP 400 is capable of sending and receiving wireless communications (e.g., in the form of wireless packets), as well as encoding and decoding the communications. For example, the wireless communications may include Wi-Fi packets that include frames that conform to the IEEE 802.11 standard (such as the standard defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its revisions, including but not limited to 802.11ah, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, and 802.11be, etc.). The AP 400 includes at least one processor 410 (collectively referred to as "processor 410"), at least one memory 420 (collectively referred to as "memory 420"), at least one modem 430 (collectively referred to as "modem 430"), at least one antenna 440 (collectively referred to as "antenna 440"), at least one external network interface 450 (collectively referred to as "network interface 450"), and in some cases also includes a user interface (UI) 460. Reference Figure 4 Each component (or "module") described may communicate directly or indirectly with other components via at least one bus 405. Although illustrated as being coupled to the bus 405, the memory 420 may be coupled to the processor 410.

[0136] The processor 410 may include an intelligent hardware device, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA), etc. The processor 410 processes information received through the modem 430 and the external network interface 430. The processor 410 may also process information to be sent to the modem 430 for transmission through the antenna 440, and process information to be sent to the external network interface 430. The processor 410 may generally be configured to perform various operations related to generating and sending downlink frames and receiving uplink frames.

[0137] The memory 420 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 420 may also store processor or computer executable software (SW) code containing instructions that, when executed by the processor 410, cause the processor to perform various functions described herein for wireless communications, including the generation and transmission of downlink frames and the reception of uplink frames.

[0138] The modem 430 is generally configured to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the antenna 440 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antenna 440 to provide demodulated packets. The modem 430 generally includes or is coupled with at least one radio frequency (RF) transmitter and at least one RF receiver, which may be combined into one or more transceivers and, in turn, coupled to one or more antennas 440. For example, in some AP implementations, the AP 400 may include multiple transmit antennas (each with a corresponding transmit chain) and multiple receive antennas (each with a corresponding receive chain). The modem 430 may communicate with at least one wireless device (such as a reference 400) via the antenna 440. Figure 1 STA 104 or wireless device 144) described for bidirectional communication.

[0139] The modem 430 may include a digital processing circuit, an automatic gain control (AGC), a demodulator, a decoder, and a demultiplexer. The digital signal received from the transceiver is provided to a digital signal processing circuit, which is configured to acquire the received signal, for example, by detecting the presence of the signal and estimating the initial timing and frequency offset. The digital signal processing circuit is also configured to digitally adjust the digital signal, for example, using channel (narrowband) filtering, analog impairment adjustment, such as correcting I / Q imbalance, and applying digital gain to finally obtain a narrowband signal. The output of the digital signal processing circuit is fed to the AGC, which is configured to determine the appropriate gain using information extracted from the digital signal, for example, in one or more received training fields. The output of the digital signal processing circuit is also coupled to a demodulator, which is configured to extract modulation symbols from the signal and reversely map the symbols to points in the modulation constellation to provide demodulated bits. The demodulator is coupled to a decoder, which is configured to decode the demodulated bits to provide decoded bits, which are then fed to the demultiplexer for demultiplexing. The demultiplexed bits may then be provided to processor 410 for processing, evaluation, or interpretation, for example, by one or more host applications executing on the processor.

[0140] AP 400 can communicate with a core or backhaul network to gain access to an external network including the Internet through an external network interface 450. For example, external network interface 450 may include one or both of a wired (e.g., Ethernet) network interface or a wireless (e.g., LTE, 4G, or 5G) network interface.

[0141] AP 400 may include Figure 1 The service support unit 120. The service support unit 120 can implement any service connection technology described in this disclosure. In some implementations, the service support unit 120 can be distributed within the processor 410, the memory 420, and the bus 405. The memory 420 may include computer instructions executable by the processor 410 to implement the functions of the service support unit 120. Any of these functions can be implemented in part (or in whole) in hardware or on the processor 410.

[0142] Figure 5 A block diagram of an example wireless device 500 for uplink broadcast services is shown. For example, the wireless device 500 may be a reference Figure 1-3 Examples of various aspects of the wireless device 144 described. The wireless device 500 is capable of sending and receiving wireless communications, as well as encoding and decoding the communications. The wireless communications may conform to any of a variety of different wireless communication protocols. For example, the wireless device 500 may be capable of sending and receiving Wi-Fi packets including frames conforming to the IEEE 802.11 standard (such as a standard defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its revisions, including but not limited to 802.11ah, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, 802.11be, etc.). Additionally or alternatively, the wireless device 500 may be capable of sending and receiving Bluetooth packets conforming to Bluetooth standards (such as those defined in IEEE 802.15 or defined by the Bluetooth SIG). Additionally or alternatively, the wireless device 500 may be capable of sending and receiving wireless packets associated with Long Term Evolution (LTE), International Mobile Telecommunications Advanced (IMT-Advanced) 4G or 5G standards.

[0143] The wireless device 500 includes at least one processor 510 (collectively referred to as “processor 510”), at least one memory 520 (collectively referred to as “memory 520”), at least one modem 530 (collectively referred to as “modem 530”), and at least one antenna 540 (collectively referred to as “antenna 540”). In some implementations, the wireless device 500 additionally includes some or all of the following: a user interface (UI) 550 (such as a touch screen or a keypad), one or more sensors 570 (such as one or more inertial sensors, accelerometers, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, or altitude sensors), and a display 580. Reference Figure 5 Each of the components (or “modules”) described may communicate with each other directly or indirectly via at least one bus 505. Although illustrated as being coupled to the bus 505, the memory 520 may be coupled to the processor 510.

[0144] The processor 510 includes an intelligent hardware device such as a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC or a PLD such as an FPGA, etc. The processor 510 processes information received through the modem 530 and information to be sent to the modem 530 for transmission through the antenna 540. The processor 510 may be configured to perform various operations related to receiving a downlink frame and generating and sending an uplink frame.

[0145] The memory 520 may include RAM and ROM. The memory 520 may also store processor or computer executable SW code containing instructions that, when executed, cause the processor 510 to perform various functions described herein for wireless communications, including the reception of downlink frames and the generation and transmission of uplink frames.

[0146] The modem 530 is generally configured to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the antenna 540 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antenna 540 to provide demodulated packets. The modem 530 generally includes at least one radio frequency (RF) transmitter and at least one RF receiver, which may be combined into one or more transceivers and, in turn, coupled to one or more antennas 540. For example, in some implementations, the wireless device 500 may include multiple transmit antennas (each with a corresponding transmit chain) and multiple receive antennas (each with a corresponding receive chain). The modem 530 may communicate with at least one AP (such as reference 540, respectively) via the antenna 540. Figure 1 and 4 As described above, in some implementations, the modem may also communicate bidirectionally with other base stations directly via antenna 540 without using an intermediate AP.

[0147] The modem 530 may include a digital processing circuit, an automatic gain control (AGC), a demodulator, a decoder, and a demultiplexer. The digital signal received from the transceiver is provided to a digital signal processing circuit, which is configured to acquire the received signal, for example, by detecting the presence of the signal and estimating the initial timing and frequency offset. The digital signal processing circuit is also configured to digitally adjust the digital signal, for example, using channel (narrowband) filtering, analog impairment adjustment, such as correcting I / Q imbalance, and applying digital gain to finally obtain a narrowband signal. The output of the digital signal processing circuit is fed to the AGC, which is configured to determine the appropriate gain using information extracted from the digital signal, for example, in one or more received training fields. The output of the digital signal processing circuit is also coupled to a demodulator, which is configured to extract modulation symbols from the signal and reversely map the symbols to points in the modulation constellation to provide demodulated bits. The demodulator is coupled to a decoder, which is configured to decode the demodulated bits to provide decoded bits, which are then fed to the demultiplexer for demultiplexing. The demultiplexed bits may then be provided to processor 510 for processing, evaluation, or interpretation, for example, by one or more host applications executing on the processor.

[0148] The wireless device 500 may include Figure 1 The application support unit 150 described herein. The application support unit 150 may implement any service connection technology described in the present disclosure. In some implementations, the application support unit 150 may be distributed within the processor 510, the memory 520, and the bus 505. The memory 520 may include computer instructions executable by the processor 510 to implement the functions of the application support unit 150. Any of these functions may be implemented partially (or entirely) in hardware or on the processor 510.

[0149] Fig. 6A A schematic diagram of an example wireless communication network 601 using the NAN protocol for uplink broadcast services is shown. According to some aspects, the wireless communication network 601 can be an example of a WLAN. For example, the wireless communication network 601 can be a network that implements at least one IEEE 802.11 series standard. The wireless communication network 601 can include multiple wireless devices (e.g., wireless device 144).

[0150] Before explaining the modification of the Neighbor Awareness Network (NAN) protocol to support uplink broadcast services, it may be useful to describe the NAN protocol. The NAN protocol is not currently implemented in IEEE 802.11 networks. Instead, the NAN protocol is defined by the Wi-Fi Alliance (WFA) Neighbor Awareness Network (also referred to as NAN) standard specification. NAN-compliant devices (hereinafter also referred to as "NAN devices") send and receive NAN communications (e.g., in the form of Wi-Fi packets including frames that comply with IEEE 802.11 standards (such as those defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or its revisions)) to each other via a NAN data link (NDL) 610 (hereinafter also referred to as a "NAN link"). A NAN network generally refers to a group of NAN devices that share a common set of NAN parameters, including: the time period between consecutive discovery windows (DWs), the duration of the discovery window, the NAN beacon interval, and (one or more) NAN discovery channels. The NAN ID is an identifier that represents a specific set of NAN parameters used within the NAN network. The NAN network is dynamically self-organizing and self-configuring. Each NAN device can be configured to send two types of beacons: NAN discovery beacons and NAN synchronization beacons. When a NAN device is turned on, or otherwise when the NAN function is enabled, the NAN device periodically sends NAN discovery beacons (e.g., every 100 TUs, every 128 TUs, or another suitable period) and NAN synchronization beacons (e.g., every 512 TUs or another suitable period). Discovery beacons are management frames transmitted between discovery windows to facilitate the discovery of NAN clusters. A NAN cluster is a group of NAN devices within a NAN network that are synchronized with the same clock and discovery window schedule using a time synchronization function (TSF). In order to join a NAN cluster, a NAN device passively scans for discovery beacons from other NAN devices. When two NAN devices enter each other's transmission range, they will discover each other based on such discovery beacons. In a traditional implementation, the corresponding master preference value determines which NAN device will become the master device. If a NAN cluster is not found, the NAN device may start a new NAN cluster. When a NAN device starts a NAN cluster, it will assume the master role and broadcast a discovery beacon. In addition, a NAN device can choose to participate in more than one NAN cluster within a NAN network.

[0151] The links between NAN devices in a NAN cluster are associated with a discovery window, i.e., the time and channel where NAN devices converge. At the beginning of each discovery window, one or more NAN devices may send a NAN synchronization beacon, which is a management frame used to synchronize the timing of NAN devices within the NAN cluster with the timing of the master device. Then, during the discovery window, within the service discovery threshold and in the same NAN cluster, the NAN device may send multicast or unicast NAN service discovery frames directly to other NAN devices. The service discovery frame indicates the services supported by the corresponding NAN device.

[0152] In some such implementations, the NAN device may advertise the ability to provide such access point services to other NAN devices in a service discovery frame. There are two general NAN service discovery messages: publish messages and subscribe messages. In general, publishing is a mechanism for an application on a NAN device to make selected information about the capabilities and services of the NAN device available to other NAN devices, while subscription is a mechanism for an application on a NAN device to collect selected types of information about the capabilities and services of other NAN devices. The NAN device may generate and send a subscription message when requesting other NAN devices operating within the same NAN cluster to provide a specific service. For example, in active subscriber mode, a subscriber function executed within a NAN device may send a NAN service discovery frame to actively seek the availability of a specific service. The publishing function executed within a publishing NAN device that is capable of providing the requested service may, for example, send a publish message in response to satisfying the criteria specified in the subscription message to reply to the subscribing NAN device. The publish message may include a range parameter indicating a service discovery threshold, which represents the maximum distance at which the subscribing NAN device can utilize the services of the publishing NAN device. NAN can also use publish messages in an unsolicited manner, for example, a publishing NAN device can generate and send publish messages to make its services discoverable to other NAN devices operating within the same NAN cluster. In passive subscriber mode, the subscription function does not initiate the transmission of any subscription messages, instead, the subscription function looks for matches in the received publication messages to determine the availability of the required service.

[0153] The discovery window is followed by a transmit opportunity period. The period includes a number of resource blocks. A NAN Data Link (NDL) refers to a resource block negotiated between NAN devices for NAN operation. NDL can contain more than one "hop". The number of hops depends on the number of devices between the device providing the service and the device consuming or subscribing to the service. An example of a two-hop NDL includes three NAN devices: a provider, a subscriber, and an agent that relays information between the provider and the subscriber. In such a configuration, the first hop refers to the information communication between the provider and the agent, while the second hop refers to the information communication between the agent and the subscriber. NDL may refer to a subset of NAN devices capable of one-hop service discovery, but NDL may also be capable of service discovery and subscription over multiple hops (multi-hop NDL).

[0154] There are generally two types of NDL: paging NDL (P-NDL) and synchronization NDL (S-NDL). Each common resource block (CRB) of P-NDL includes a paging window (PW) followed by a transmit window (TxW). All NAN devices participating in P-NDL operate in a state of receiving frames during the paging window. In general, participating NAN devices wake up during the paging window and listen to the paging channel to determine whether there is any traffic buffered for the corresponding device. For example, a NAN device with data to be sent to another NAN device can send a traffic announcement message to another NAN device during the paging window to notify the other NAN device of the buffered data. If there is data available, the NAN device remains awake during the transmit window to exchange data. If there is no data to send, the NAN device can switch back to sleep during the transmit window to save power. If the NAN device buffers data available for its NDL peer, the NAN device sends a paging message to the peer during the paging window. The paging message includes, for example, the MAC address or identifier of the destination device where the data is available. A NAN device listed as a recipient in a received paging message sends a trigger frame to the sending device and remains awake to receive data during the subsequent send window. The NDL sender device sends buffered data to the receiving device during the send window and receives the trigger frame from the receiving device. A NAN device that establishes S-NDL with a peer NAN device can send data frames to the peer from the beginning of each S-NDL CRB without sending a paging message in advance.

[0155] Some NAN networks may be peer-to-peer (P2P), ad hoc, or mesh networks. NAN devices may communicate with each other directly via P2P wireless links (without the use of an intermediate AP). In some implementations, the mesh network may use a data packet routing protocol, such as the Hybrid Wireless Mesh Protocol (HWMP), for path selection. Each NAN device may be configured to relay data for the NAN network so that various NAN devices may collaborate in data distribution within the network. Thus, a message may be sent from a source NAN device to a destination NAN device by propagating along a path, jumping from one NAN device to the next until the destination is reached.

[0156] After a general description of the NAN protocol, the following describes Fig. 6A , to explain how the NAN protocol is modified and used in an IEEE 802.11 network to support service connectivity. For example, AP 102 can create (or join) a NAN cluster to provide synchronization, service discovery, and NDL formation. AP 102 can establish a communication link 610 with a wireless device. In some implementations, the NAN network 620 may be a one-to-many NDL. AP 102 may announce the existence of a broadcast communication link 610 for a broadcast service. In some implementations, a one-to-many NDL may be used for uplink broadcast frames, downlink broadcast frames, or both. In some implementations, such as mesh networks, the concepts of "uplink" or "downlink" may not be fixed, and the terms may be used interchangeably.

[0157] In some implementations, the same one-to-many NDL can be shared by more than one broadcast service or more than one wireless device. A wireless device can participate in a NAN cluster and subscribe to a broadcast service using the broadcast communication link 610.

[0158] There may be multiple NDLs operating in a NAN network. A wireless device can determine which NDL(s) to join based on the type of content. For example, a first wireless device that is executing an application that sends data to a first service provider can join the NDL associated with the service provider. Similarly, a second wireless device can execute an application associated with a second service provider and can join the NDL associated with the second service provider. Each wireless device can select which NDL(s) to join based on the application executed at the wireless device or can join an AP for unicast or broadcast (or both).

[0159] Figure 6BA schematic diagram 602 is shown in which an example NAN network 620 may include different NDLs to support different applications or services. For example, the NAN network 620 may include multiple devices (such as the wireless device 144). Within the NAN network 620, there may be different NDLs (such as a first NDL 622, a second NDL 624, and a third NDL 626). Each NDL may be associated with a different application or service (such as a different service provider). In some implementations, the NDLs may form a NAN data link cluster (NDC), or may be referred to as a separate NDL network. In some implementations, the NDLs may operate on different channels or different time blocks (or both).

[0160] Figure 6C A schematic diagram 603 of an example wireless communication network using an independent basic service set (IBSS) for service connection is shown. IBSS is a communication mode in which peer devices (such as STA or IoT devices) can communicate directly with each other. Independent BSSs can use universal or group addresses instead of using unique BSSIDs (such as for infrastructure mode BSSs). Broadcast signals 116 can be sent from any peer device via the IBSS as an IBSS addressed frame 630. It is apparent that peer devices in an IBSS can include APs, wireless devices (such as STA or IoT devices, etc.), or any combination thereof. In an IBSS, each participating peer device can have a loose association with one or more other peer devices.

[0161] The initiator of the IBSS (such as an AP or STA 632) can use the IBSS mode to establish an IBSS and broadcast frames. Any device (such as a wireless device 144) can operate in the IBSS mode to send or receive broadcast data. For example, the wireless device 144 can enable the IBSS mode in response to determining that the AP or STA 632 uses the IBSS to provide a service connection to the service provider. In some implementations, each device participating in the IBSS mode is expected to compete to send a beacon transmission. However, this may cause beacon conflicts or hidden beacons in larger networks. In some implementations, when the IBSS is used for broadcast services, the beacon behavior in the IBSS can be modified. For example, the initiator of the broadcast IBSS can send a beacon, and the receiver of the broadcast can avoid sending a beacon in the IBSS mode. Other techniques can be used to determine which receivers (if any) can send beacons to maintain synchronization in the IBSS. In some implementations, the IBSS mode can be modified for broadcast services so that it is not confused with a traditional IBSS. For example, addressing, association, or other security functions may be used to prevent legacy STAs from attempting to join the IBSS unless they are interested in receiving broadcast transmissions.

[0162] Fig.6D A schematic diagram of an example wireless communication network 604 using the OCB protocol for service connection is shown. The OCB protocol defined in IEEE802.11p can allow a STA to transmit data frames outside the context of a BSS. For example, in a traditional use case of IEEE802.11p, the STA is not a member of the BSS. The OCB protocol may expect the STA to communicate directly over the wireless medium without the delays that may be associated with establishing a BSS. The STA uses settings in a management frame to indicate that it supports the OCB protocol. The data frame has a wildcard BSS identifier (BSSID) value in the BSSID field that would otherwise identify the BSS. For example, the wildcard BSSID may be all "1".

[0163] In the example wireless communication network 604, the AP 102 may send a broadcast frame 640 having a data frame formatted according to the OCB protocol. For example, the BSSID field may be set to a wildcard BSSID value. Alternatively, another reserved BSSID value may be used to indicate that the broadcast frame 640 contains broadcast data. Each wireless device (such as the wireless device 144) may receive the broadcast frame 640. In some implementations, the AP 102 may not establish a BSS and may avoid sending a beacon frame or a probe response frame. The wireless device 144 may enable the OCB mode to establish a communication link with the AP 102 to communicate with the service provider network via the AP 102.

[0164] Other variations of service connection are also possible. For example, an AP may operate a dedicated BSS for uplink broadcast transmissions from wireless devices. In some implementations, a dedicated BSS may provide a fixed, always available BSS for a first type of wireless device (such as an IoT device associated with a specific vendor or entity). In some implementations, a dedicated BSS may be a concurrent BSS different from another BSS operated for other user devices (different from the first type of wireless device). The configuration of the dedicated BSS may be predetermined so that the first type of wireless device may be preconfigured by a manufacturer or vendor. Optionally, the configuration of the dedicated BSS may be provided to the first type of wireless device during booting. In some implementations, the configuration of the dedicated BSS may be difficult or impractical for a homeowner or consumer to modify. The beacon interval of a dedicated BSS may be much longer than the normal beacon interval associated with a non-IoT BSS. In some implementations, a short FILS discovery (FD) frame may replace a beacon frame because the configuration is fixed and there may not be much information in the beacon frame. The AP 102 may be configured to reject wireless association requests for a dedicated BSS received from a second type of wireless device (different from a first type of wireless device served by the dedicated BSS).For example, a frame from a wireless device may identify the device type.

[0165] In some implementations, a wireless device may access services via a WLAN using pre-configured settings. For example, a first type of wireless device may be shipped or sold in a pre-authenticated (or pre-associated) state. The wireless device may send periodic "hello" frames. The hello frame may be a vendor-specific public action frame. A new client may be in state 1, and frames may be limited to only Class 1 frames. For example, an IEEE standard may define which frames may be exchanged between an AP and a wireless device at different stages of association. State 1 may refer to an unassociated state, and frames may be limited to Class 1 frames as defined in the IEEE standard.

[0166] The techniques in the present disclosure can be used by APs that also provide service connections for other devices in the WLAN. For example, in addition to operating a private home BSS, an AP can also create or join a NAN cluster. The NAN cluster can be set up using default (predefined) parameters. The NAN protocol can provide synchronization, service discovery, and NDL settings. In some implementations, the AP can advertise an "IoT Gateway" service to give new IoT devices a path to send IoT sensor data (or other IoT communications) to another device via AP 102. New IoT devices in a pre-authenticated state may periodically send "hello" subscription messages during the NAN discovery window (DW). Client devices can establish an NDL with the AP to access other devices. The AP can forward IoT communications from the IoT device to the appropriate IoT service provider network (associated with the NDL). In some implementations, the AP can also forward downlink frames from the IoT service provider network to the IoT device (based on mapping).

[0167] Figure 7A message flow diagram illustrating an example service connection technique is shown. The first service connection technique 701 illustrates an example uplink broadcast communication that can be used when the AP is configured to forward uplink traffic from an unassociated wireless device. For example, the wireless device 144 may send a hello message 733 to indicate that the wireless device 144 supports pre-configured service parameters for the communication link to the remote destination network 140. If the AP 102 does not yet have a service profile of the service provider, the AP 102 may obtain the service profile from the remote destination network 140. For example, the AP 102 may establish an on-demand relationship with the remote destination network 140. In another example, the AP 102 may obtain the service profile before receiving the hello message 733. The service profile message 723 may include one or more messages between the AP 102 and the remote destination network 140 so that the AP 102 obtains the service profile. The service profile may include pre-configured service parameters or corresponding parameters. In message 743, the AP 102 and the wireless device 144 may establish a session based on the pre-configured service parameters. In some implementations, the hello message 733 and the message 743 may be omitted. For example, the wireless device 144 may be configured to send unsolicited uplink broadcast communications that may be forwarded by any nearby APs that support uplink broadcast service.

[0168] The wireless device 144 may send an uplink broadcast frame 793 to the AP 102. In process 794, the AP 102 may determine where to forward the uplink broadcast frame. For example, the AP 102 may forward the uplink broadcast frame to the first remote destination network 140 via communication 797 (a combination of wired, wireless, or links). In some implementations, the uplink broadcast frame includes a network address or identifier associated with the remote destination. If the AP 102 supports the eBCS technology described herein, it may be referred to as an eBCS AP. The eBCS technology includes a forwarding service, in which the AP 102 may support forwarding the content of a UL frame received from an eBCS STA (such as the wireless device 144) to a remote destination identified in the UL frame. The AP 102 may indicate its ability to forward UL frames by including an eBCS UL capability element in a beacon or broadcast probe response frame that it sends. In some implementations, the AP 102 may authenticate the wireless device 144 before forwarding the UL frame to the remote destination. If the AP 102 is configured to authenticate wireless devices, the AP 102 may provide an indication of the authentication scheme in the eBCS Capabilities element that it sends.

[0169] The second service connection technology 702 shows another example broadcast communication link that can be used for uplink traffic. At (one or more) service profile messages 723, AP 102 can obtain a service profile from a remote destination network 140. The service profile may include pre-configured service parameters or corresponding parameters to help establish a communication link for a wireless device. AP 102 may send a service advertisement message 732 to indicate that the remote destination network 140 supports the pre-configured service parameters of the communication link. In process 734, the wireless device 144 may determine that the service advertisement message 732 indicates support for a service provider associated with the wireless device 144. In (one or more) messages 743, the wireless device 144 may establish a session with AP 102 based on the pre-configured service parameters. Thereafter, the wireless device 144 may send an uplink broadcast frame 793 to AP 102. In process 794, AP 102 may determine where to forward the uplink broadcast frame. For example, AP 102 may forward the uplink broadcast frame to the first remote destination network 140 via communication 797 (a combination of wired, wireless, or links).

[0170] The third service connection technique 703 shows another example broadcast communication link that can be used for uplink traffic. At (one or more) service profile messages 723, AP 102 can obtain a service profile from remote destination network 140. At message 731, wireless device 144 can determine that AP 102 is able to provide a service connection to remote destination network 140. Message 731 can be a broadcast from AP 102 or wireless device 144, or can be some other message that can indicate support for service connection. Wireless device 144, AP 102, and remote destination network 140 can exchange service request and response messages 751, 753, and 757 to establish a communication link between AP 102 and wireless device 144. For example, wireless device 144 can send a service request message to AP 102, and AP 102 can forward the service request message to remote destination network 140. Once approval is received from remote destination network 140, AP 102 can respond to wireless device 144 with approval. The service request and response messages 751, 753, and 757 may include exchanging multiple messages, such as an EAP authentication procedure, a challenge-response authentication, or another authentication technique. In some implementations, the service request and response messages 751, 753, and 757 may include using a certificate or a certificate signature message to verify the sender of the service request and response messages 751, 753, and 757. After completing the authentication phase, the wireless device 144 and the AP 102 may have established a communication link. Thereafter, the wireless device 144 may send an uplink broadcast frame 793 to the AP 102. In process 794, the AP 102 may determine where to forward the uplink broadcast frame. For example, the AP 102 may forward the uplink broadcast frame to the first remote destination network 140 via communication 797 (wired, wireless, or a combination of links).

[0171] As described above, wireless devices and APs may use different service connection technologies than those previously used for WLAN wireless associations. For example, the time and messaging associated with establishing wireless associations may be impractical for certain services. In some deployments, the establishment of communication links may benefit from new types of service connection technologies, including broadcast services.

[0172] Various implementations generally relate to wireless communications. Some implementations more specifically relate to service connection techniques in wireless networks. In some implementations, communication protocols may be modified or adjusted to enable service connection using broadcast services. Service profiles may be used to establish or enforce policies at an AP. Service profiles may also enable establishment of a communication link for a wireless device and may enable security features associated with uplink broadcast services.

[0173] Figure 8A flowchart illustrating an example process 800 for connecting to a service is shown. In some implementations, the process 800 may be performed by a wireless device, such as a wireless device, such as a wireless device, and a wireless device. Figure 1-3 and Figure 5 One of the STA 104, wireless device 144, or wireless device 500 described.

[0174] In block 810, the wireless device may determine that a first access point (AP) of a wireless local area network (WLAN) supports an uplink broadcast service that enables uplink data transmission to a remote destination using unsolicited uplink broadcast communications. In some implementations, the uplink broadcast service enables the first wireless device to send uplink data to a remote destination associated with a service provider without establishing a wireless association with the first AP.

[0175] In block 820, the wireless device may prepare an unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to send to a remote destination via the first AP.

[0176] In block 830, the wireless device may output unsolicited uplink broadcast communications for transmission to a remote destination via the first AP based on the uplink broadcast service.

[0177] In some implementations, the wireless device may receive a service advertisement indicating that the first AP is capable of forwarding unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to a remote destination. For example, the service advertisement may be in the form of a beacon frame, a probe response frame, a GAS message, etc.

[0178] In some implementations, the wireless device may receive transmissions from one or more WLAN devices in the vicinity of the wireless device and determine the detected identifier from the received transmissions. The wireless device may include the detected identifier in a data field of an unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to help a service provider determine the location or other information about the environment in which the wireless device is located. For example, the service provider may use the detected identifier and an identifier fingerprinting database to determine the location of nearby WLAN devices. In some implementations, the wireless device may also include an RSSI associated with the detected identifier, which the service provider may use to approximate the location of the wireless device relative to nearby WLAN devices.

[0179] In some implementations, service advertisements, uplink communications, or both may be communicated on a common channel associated with an uplink broadcast service. For example, the common channel may be specified by a technical standard for the broadcast service.

[0180] Fig. 9A flowchart illustrating another example process 900 for providing a service connection to a service is shown. In some implementations, the process 900 can be performed by a wireless device, such as the wireless device described in the accompanying drawings. Figure 1-4 One of AP 102 and AP 400 is depicted.

[0181] In block 910, the AP may advertise an uplink broadcast service that enables an apparatus of a first wireless device to send unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to a remote destination. In some implementations, the remote destination may be associated with a service provider. In some implementations, the uplink broadcast service enables an apparatus of the first wireless device to send unsolicited uplink broadcast communications without establishing a wireless association with the first AP.

[0182] In block 920, the AP may receive one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications from a device in accordance with the uplink broadcast service.

[0183] In block 930, the AP may forward at least a portion of the one or more uplink communications to a remote destination.

[0184] In some implementations, the AP may send a service advertisement (such as a beacon frame, a probe response frame, a GAS message, etc.) to indicate that the access point supports uplink broadcast services. For example, the service advertisement may indicate which remote destinations or service providers the AP supports connections to.

[0185] In some implementations, a MAC layer or upper layers of the AP may process the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications before forwarding the communications to the first service. For example, the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications may be sent to a MAC-SAP interface. The upper layers of the AP may process the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications based on the destination service provider before forwarding the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to the service provider. In some implementations, the AP may append data provided by the AP to the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications.

[0186] Fig. 10A A schematic diagram 1001 is shown of an example use case of a mobile tracking sensor utilizing an uplink broadcast service. In the schematic diagram 1001, the wireless device 144 may be a tracking device for tracking merchandise. For example, the wireless device 144 may be associated with luggage, merchandise, shipping, etc. Fig. 10AIn the example of , wireless device 144 is associated with luggage that may be transported through one or more airports. Other examples may include tracking devices for inventory that is in transit through shipping and distribution facilities. For example, a manufacturer or distributor may include a tracking device with items shipped to a retail store, home, or business location.

[0187] When the wireless device 144 is at the first airport 1010, the wireless device 144 may send an uplink broadcast communication, which may then be received by the first AP 102. The first AP 102 may forward the uplink communication to the remote destination network 140 of the service provider operating the baggage tracking application. For example, the uplink communication from the wireless device 144 may include a network address associated with the remote destination network 140. As described above, the AP 102 may perform some authentication or establishment of services associated with the remote destination network 140.

[0188] Subsequently, when the wireless device 144 (referred to as wireless device 144') moves to the second airport 1020, the wireless device 144' may again broadcast the uplink communication. At the second airport 1020, the second AP 112 may receive the uplink communication and forward the uplink communication to the remote destination network 140. Based on the uplink communication, the remote destination network 140 may be able to determine the status or location of the wireless device 144. For example, the uplink communication may include location data determined by the wireless device 144. Alternatively or additionally, the APs 102 and 112 may be configured to embed AP-provided data into the uplink communication, such as Fig. 10B For example, the data provided by the APs 102 and 112 may include location data, a date stamp, a time stamp, or a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) determined by the APs 102 and 112.

[0189] Fig. 10B A diagram 1002 is shown in which an example AP can embed additional information into a forwarded uplink message. Fig. 10B Can be similar to Fig. 10A For the sake of brevity, the second AP 112 is omitted, and Fig. 10BThe wireless device 144 is shown sending an uplink communication via the first AP 102. The uplink communication 1030 from the wireless device 144 may include an identifier (such as a tag ID 1032) associated with the wireless device 144. Because the wireless device 144 is a tracking device, it may be a low-cost and low-power transmitter with limited capabilities. For example, the wireless device 144 may not include GPS or other location determination capabilities. However, the AP 102 may embed AP-provided data into the uplink communication 1030. For example, the AP 102 may have a GPS receiver, or may be configured with the geographic or other physical location of the AP 102. When forwarding the uplink communication 1030, the AP 102 may embed the AP-provided data (shown as GPS data 1042) into the tag ID 1032. The forwarded communication 1040 includes both the tag ID 1032 and the embedded AP-provided data.

[0190] In some other implementations, the network addresses or identifiers of the APs 102 and 112 may be used by the remote destination network 140 to determine the location of the wireless device 144. For example, the Internet Protocol (IP) addresses of the APs 102 and 112 may be included in the uplink communications forwarded to the remote destination network 140. The IP address may be embedded as data provided by the AP or may be used as a source address in a header of a packet including the forwarded uplink communications. For example, the AP may generate an IP packet including the IP address of the AP as the source network address, and the payload of the IP packet may be the content of the uplink communications from the wireless device 144. Alternatively, the AP identifier may be embedded as data provided by the AP or embedded in a wrapper or header of a packet including the forwarded uplink communications. The remote destination network 140 may determine the location of the APs 102 and 112 based on the IP address or the AP identifier. In some implementations, the remote destination network 140 may retrieve the location of the AP from a database that cross-references the IP address or AP identifier of the AP with the location of the AP. In some implementations, the remote destination network 140 may have a partnership or other relationship with the vendor that deployed the APs 102 and 112. The partnership or other relationship may include access to a database that cross-references the IP address or AP identifier of the AP with the location of the AP (e.g., using an identifier fingerprinting database). Alternatively, the remote destination network 140 may determine the location of the AP based on registration of the IP address or based on a routing table entry (such as a Border Gateway Protocol (BGP-4) routing update or another inter-domain routing protocol update). The remote destination network 140 may determine the approximate or exact location of the APs 102 and 112 using other techniques. The remote destination network 140 may use the obtained location data in conjunction with the forwarded uplink communications to determine the approximate or exact location of the wireless device 144.

[0191] In some implementations, the data provided by the AP can be protected or hidden for security or privacy. For example, the data provided by the AP can be digitally signed by the AP so that the remote destination network 140 can verify that the data provided by the AP is from an authorized AP. The signed AP-provided data can be signed or encrypted based on security credentials shared between the authorized AP and the remote destination network 140. In some implementations, the data provided by the AP can be formatted according to a format defined in a technical standard. Alternatively, the data provided by the AP can be formatted according to a proprietary format used by the remote destination network 140 and the authorized AP. In some implementations, the data provided by the AP can be standard-defined, specific to a particular service or sensor device class, or can be based on a partnership between the remote destination network 140 and a vendor that has deployed the AP 102.

[0192] Fig. 10C Schematic diagram 1003 is shown in which an example wireless device can send detected identifiers for identifier fingerprinting. The wireless device 144 can observe one or more wireless channels before sending uplink communications. For example, the wireless device 144 can scan the wireless channels for transmissions from APs (or other STAs) in the vicinity of the wireless device 144. Fig. 10C In the example of , the wireless device 144 may receive transmissions 1062 (such as beacon frames, probe response frames, service advertisements, etc.) from multiple APs 102, 112, and 114. The wireless device 144 may also receive transmissions from another STA 104. In some implementations, the wireless device 144 may observe the transmissions 1062 in an unassociated state. For example, the wireless device 144 may decode transmissions between the APs 102, 112, and 114 and other STAs. Alternatively or additionally, the wireless device 144 may decode broadcasts from the APs 102, 112, and 114. In some implementations, the wireless device 144 may decode unencrypted headers of transmissions 1062 directed to other devices. In some implementations, the transmissions 1062 may be formatted as broadcasts from the APs 102, 112, and 114, and the transmissions 1062 may include information intended for observation by the wireless device 144 (or any other device) without wireless association.

[0193] The wireless device 144 may obtain an identifier or other information from the transmission 1062. For example, the wireless device 144 may determine one or more BSSIDs, MAC addresses, IP addresses, or other identifiers from the transmission 1062. The uplink communication 1050 from the wireless device 144 may include an identifier associated with the wireless device 144 (such as the tag ID 1032) and the detected identifier 1052. The AP 102 may be configured to forward the uplink communication 1050 to the remote destination network 140, and the AP-provided data may or may not be embedded in the uplink communication 1050. The uplink communication 1050 may indicate a request (or lack of request) for the AP 102 to embed the AP-provided data. However, in this example, if the wireless device 144 already includes an identifier or other information collected by observing the transmission 1062, the AP-provided data may be redundant. The remote destination network 140 may use the identifier 1052 detected in the uplink communication 1050 to determine an approximate location or information about the environment in which the wireless device 144 is located. For example, the remote destination network 140 may use the detected identifier 1052 and the identifier fingerprint database 1055 to obtain more information about the APs 102, 112, and 114. In one example, the detected identifier 1052 may include the BSSIDs from the APs 102, 112, and 114. The identifier fingerprint database 1055 may be a BSSID fingerprint resource (also known as an access point fingerprint resource). Examples of the identifier fingerprint database 1055 may include a public location database such as a combined positioning service, LocationAPI.org, Mozilla location service, etc. The remote destination network 140 may obtain location data about one or more APs 102, 112, and 114 by looking up the detected identifier 1052 in the identifier fingerprint database 1055.

[0194] In some implementations, uplink communication 1050 may also include RSSI information (not shown) about transmission 1062. Remote destination network 140 may use detected identifier 1052 and identifier fingerprinting database 1055 to determine the locations of APs 102, 112, and 114. Remote destination network 140 may then determine the location of wireless device 144 using a positioning calculation that uses the RSSI information from uplink communication 1050. For example, remote destination network 140 may determine the location of wireless device 144 relative to three or more APs based on the RSSI of transmission 1062 and the locations of APs 102, 112, and 114.

[0195] Fig.11AA schematic diagram 1101 is shown in which multiple example APs can support uplink broadcast services. The wireless device 144 can be located in a location where multiple APs 102A and 102B can forward uplink communications. If both APs 102A and 102B are configured to append timestamp data to uplink communications, the remote destination network 140 can be configured to ignore earlier or duplicate uplink communications. In some configurations, APs 102A and 102B can be connected via a single switch or network element (not shown) that can filter duplicate copies of uplink communications so that only a single copy of the uplink communication can be forwarded to the remote destination network 140.

[0196] Fig. 11B A schematic diagram 1102 is shown in which different example APs may differ in their support for uplink broadcast services. For example, a first AP 102A may support the uplink broadcast services described in the present disclosure, while a second AP 102B may not support the uplink broadcast services. The wireless device 144 may blindly send uplink communications to any AP in the vicinity of the wireless device 144. Optionally, protocol messages may help the wireless device 144 and multiple APs 102A and 102B determine which AP supports (or is best suited for) the uplink broadcast technology in the present disclosure. For example, a GAS message frame may carry information about which services the AP supports.

[0197] Fig. 11C A schematic diagram 1103 is shown in which different example APs can advertise their support for uplink broadcast services. The first AP 102 can support forwarding to the first remote destination network 254 and the second remote destination network 264. The AP 102 can announce which remote destinations are supported via one or more advertisement messages 1054. At the same time, the second AP 112 can only support connections to the second remote destination network 264, while the third AP 114 can only support connections to the first remote destination network 254. APs 112 and 114 can each announce which remote destinations are supported in advertisement messages 1152 and 1156, respectively. In some implementations, the advertisement messages 1152, 1154, and 1156 can be communicated via a common channel so that the wireless device 144 can quickly determine the services provided by each of the APs 102, 112, and 114.

[0198] exist Fig. 11C, the wireless device 144 may have uplink data to communicate to the first remote destination network 254. The wireless device 144 may observe the advertisement messages 1152, 1154, and 1156 to determine which APs support the first remote destination network 254. Since the second AP 112 does not support the first remote destination network 254, the wireless device 144 may direct the uplink communication to the first AP 102 or the third AP 114. In some implementations, the selection between the first AP 102 and the third AP 114 may be based on the RSSI of the advertisement messages 1154 and 1156, respectively. In some implementations, the wireless device 144 may broadcast the uplink communication so that either of the first AP 102 and the third AP 114 may receive the uplink communication and forward it to the first remote destination network 254.

[0199] Fig.11D Schematic diagram 1104 is shown, where an example common channel can be used for broadcast services. A common channel can be one or more wireless channels that are predetermined to support uplink broadcast services. In some implementations, a common channel can be reserved for uplink broadcast services. Optionally, if no AP nearby is using a common channel for uplink broadcast services, the AP can use the common channel to establish the AP.

[0200] In some implementations, at least one AP may broadcast a service advertisement message on a common channel to indicate which remote destinations are supported. If there are multiple APs in the environment, these APs may share the common channel and send service advertisement messages at different times. In some implementations, a first AP may aggregate service advertisement information from multiple neighboring APs and send the aggregated service advertisement message on a common channel.

[0201] The wireless device 144 may scan the common channels for a short amount of time to determine if there are any APs available to send uplink communications to the service provider via the common channels. The wireless device 144 may use the common channels for uplink broadcast messages. In some implementations, an AP (such as AP 102) may be configured to receive broadcasts via the common channels and forward the broadcasts to a destination service provider (not shown).

[0202] In some implementations, a common channel may be reserved for a specific remote destination, service class, or client device class. For example, a common channel may be reserved for use by a tracking device to send updates about the status or location of the tracking device. In another example, a common channel may be reserved for use by devices with eBCS capabilities. In another example, a service provider (not shown) may notify any subscriber of a service (such as wireless device 144) to use a specific common channel. The service provider may establish a relationship with an AP operator to have their APs (such as AP 102) operate on a common channel to perform their services.

[0203] The use of common channels may reduce power consumption or increase battery life of the wireless device 144. For example, if the wireless device 144 scans the common channels and determines that there are no APs nearby, the wireless device 144 may reduce the periodicity of uplink broadcast transmissions. Additionally, if the wireless device 144 determines that the same AP (such as the first AP 102) and RSSI are detected, the wireless device 144 may determine that it is stationary and may reduce the periodicity of sending uplink broadcast location updates.

[0204] Fig.12 A message flow diagram illustrating an example uplink service connection technique in an environment with multiple APs, including a first AP 102A and a second AP 102B, is shown. In a first example 1201, a wireless device 144 may trigger a procedure for determining and selecting an AP that supports an uplink service connection. The wireless device 144 may send a service request message 1233 to indicate that the wireless device 144 is looking for an AP that supports a forwarding service to communicate with a remote destination network 140. The service request message 1233 may be a broadcast message, such as a general advertising service (GAS) message with an extension or new frame type defined for eBCS. The service request message 1233 may indicate or include information identifying the desired remote destination network 140. If the first AP 102A supports uplink services and forwards to the remote destination network 140, the first AP 102A may send a response message 1243 to the wireless device 144 to confirm that the first AP 102A supports uplink services to the remote destination network 140. If the first AP 102A does not already have a service profile for the service provider operating the remote destination network 140, the first AP 102A may obtain a service profile from the remote destination network 140, such as Figure 7 In some implementations, the first AP 102A may include a challenge nonce in the response message 1243 .

[0205] The wireless device 144 may communicate an uplink communication 1293 to the first AP 102A. In some implementations, the uplink communication 1293 may include uplink data and a response to the challenge random number. The response to the challenge random number may be used as a basic authentication while also allowing the wireless device 144 to send uplink communications without establishing a full wireless association with the first AP 102A. The present disclosure includes several mechanisms for source authentication that can be performed by APs 102A and 102B without establishing a full wireless association for the wireless device 144. For example, the wireless device 144 may include a STA certificate signed by the remote destination network 140, and the AP may verify the STA certificate using the public key of the remote destination network 140.

[0206] In reference Fig.12 In one example described, the second AP 102B may not support uplink services or may not support a particular remote destination network 140. In another example, if both the first AP 102A and the second AP 102B send response messages (not shown), the wireless device 144 may select one of the first AP 102A and the second AP 102B based on, for example, the received signal strength of the response messages. For example, the wireless device 144 may select the AP that sent the response message with the strongest RSSI because this may be the closest AP.

[0207] Returning to the first example 1201, the first AP 102A may receive the uplink communication 1293 and forward at least a portion of the uplink communication 1293 to the remote destination network 140 in a forward message 1297. In some implementations, the first AP 102A may embed AP-provided data into the uplink communication 1293 before forwarding the uplink communication 1293 in the forward message 1297 (as shown in operation 1294).

[0208] In a second example 1202, APs 102A and 102B may trigger uplink services by announcing that they support the uplink services described herein. In this example, both first and second APs 102A and 102B support uplink services to a remote destination network 140. They may announce that they support uplink services. For example, both APs may broadcast beacon frames (such as beacon frames 1234 and 1235 from first and second APs 102A and 102B, respectively). In some implementations, each beacon frame may include a query random number. The wireless device 144 may select (as shown in operation 1254) the first AP 102A based on the beacon frame. For example, the wireless device 144 may determine that the first AP 102A is closest by comparing RSSI values ​​associated with beacon frames 1234 and 1235. Alternatively or additionally, the wireless device 144 may select the first AP 102A based on other content or indicators in the beacon frame 1235 indicating that the first AP 102A supports the desired remote destination network 140 .

[0209] After selecting the first AP 102A, the wireless device 144 may send an uplink communication 1293 to the first AP 102A. The first AP 102A may receive the uplink communication 1293 and forward at least a portion of the uplink communication 1293 to the remote destination network 140 in a forward message 1297. In some implementations, the first AP 102A may embed AP-provided data into the uplink communication 1293 before forwarding the uplink communication 1293 in the forward message 1297 (as shown in operation 1294).

[0210] Fig.13 A conceptual diagram of an example frame for a broadcast service is depicted. For example, an example frame 1301 may be sent from an AP to a wireless device, or from a wireless device to an AP. In some implementations, the example frame 1301 may include or be included in a configuration message. The example frame 1301 may be defined by the IEEE 802.11 specification. In some implementations, the example frame 1301 may be based on a general advertising service (GAS) message frame format that is modified or extended to include capabilities or configuration information that support uplink broadcast services. In some other implementations, the example frame 1301 may be a new frame format created to facilitate broadcast services. In some implementations, the example frame 1301 may be a beacon frame (similar to a beacon frame defined for IEEE 802.11ax). Another example of the example frame 1301 may be a synchronization frame or other short frames that may be defined for other technologies (such as IEEE 802.11be or later).

[0211] The example frame 1301 may include a header 1324 and a payload 1310. In some implementations, the header 1324 may include a source address (such as a network address of a sending AP), a length of a data frame, or other frame control information. The payload 1310 may be used to transmit broadcast service capabilities or configuration information. The broadcast service capabilities or configuration information may be organized or formatted in a variety of ways.

[0212] In some implementations, the example frame 1303 may include a preamble 1322. For example, when a transmission is not triggered or scheduled, the preamble 1322 may be used. In some implementations, the preamble may be omitted for a triggered or scheduled transmission. When the preamble is present, the preamble 1322 may include one or more bits to establish synchronization. The example frame 1301 may include an optional frame check sequence (FCS) 1326 (such as a cyclic redundancy check (CRC)). The payload 1311 may be organized in a message format and may include information elements 1332, 1336, and 1338.

[0213] Several examples of information element 1360 are shown in Fig.13 . Information element 1360 may include service advertisement 1362. For example, service advertisement 1362 may indicate which service providers, service types, or eBCS services are available from the AP. In some implementations, the AP may send data 1364 provided by the AP, which may be observed by the wireless device. Other example information elements 1360 may be included in uplink communications from the wireless device. For example, information element 1360 may include a device identifier (1372) (such as a tag ID or other identifier identified by a service provider), a detected identifier 1374, and RSSI 1376 of nearby WLAN devices. For example, a service provider may use the detected identifier 1374 to determine more information about nearby WLAN devices from an identifier fingerprinting database. RSSI may be used to improve location determination of a wireless device.

[0214] Fig.13 Another example information element shown in FIG. 1 is an eBCS UL Capability element 1380. One type of eBCS UL Capability element 1380 may be included in a message from an AP to a STA, such as a beacon or a probe response frame. Another type of eBCS UL Capability element 1380 may be included in a message from a STA to an AP, such as a configuration message or a UL frame. Fig.14A and 14B Some example fields that may be included in different types of eBCS UL Capabilities elements 1380 are depicted.

[0215] The following are provided as examples for purposes of illustration. Other variations and alternatives are possible.

[0216] Fig.14A A conceptual diagram of an example eBCS UL Capabilities element that can be sent from an AP to a STA is depicted. The eBCS UL Capabilities element 1400 contains fields for advertising the capabilities of an eBCS-compatible AP related to forwarding services to a remote destination server. An eBCS AP can declare that it supports forwarding services by transmitting this element in beacon and probe response frames. In addition, this element provides the ability of the eBCS AP to forward services.

[0217] The example eBCS UL Capabilities element 1400 may include a UL AP Control field 1412. Other fields may be included in some implementations. For example, the UL AP Control field 1412 may include one or more domain identifiers (not shown) or per-domain settings (such as per-domain throttling or authentication options).

[0218] Fig.14A 14. An example format of the UL AP Control field 1412 is also shown in FIG. 14. For example, the UL AP Control field 1412 may include an authentication mode subfield 1421, a restriction mode subfield 1422, a location embedding support subfield 1423, a date time embedding support subfield 1424, and an IP address embedding support subfield 1425. These described subfields are examples, and one or more of the example subfields may be omitted in some implementations. In addition, other subfields may be included in some implementations. In some implementations, Fig.14A The order of the example subfields depicted in may be arranged in a different order than shown. The subfields may also be referred to as indicators, such as when their values ​​are binary 1 or 0.

[0219] An example encoding of the authentication mode subfield 1421 is shown in Table 1 (Encoding of the authentication mode subfield).

[0220]

[0221] Table 1 - Coding of the Authentication Mode Subfield The coding of the Restriction Mode subfield 1422 is shown in Table 2 (Coding of the Restriction Mode Subfield).

[0222]

[0223]

[0224] Table 2 - Encoding of the restriction mode subfield

[0225] In some implementations, when the Authentication Mode subfield 1421 in the UL AP Control field 1412 is set to 1, the eBCS UL Capabilities element may include a Number of Domain Identifiers subfield (not shown). The Number of Domain Identifiers subfield lists the number of domain identifiers present in the eBCS UL Capabilities element. For example, a maximum of 64 domain identifiers may be carried in the eBCS UL Capabilities element. Values ​​0 or greater than 64 are reserved.

[0226] When the Authentication Mode field in the UL AP Control field is set to 1, there may be (one or more) domain identifier fields. For example, the domain identifier field may include a hash value of the domain with which the AP has a relationship. The hash value may be calculated as described in FILS Authentication and Higher Layer Setup Capability Indication.

[0227] One or more per-domain throttling subfields (not shown) may be present in the eBCS UL Capability element. Each per-domain throttling subfield may indicate throttling information for each remote server that the AP supports authentication and forwarding.

[0228] When the Restricted Mode subfield 1422 in the UL AP Control field 1412 is set to 2, a Throttling subfield (not shown) may be present. The Throttling subfield may indicate the number / frequency of UL forwarding allowed from the STA to the remote server.

[0229] Fig. 14B A conceptual diagram of an example eBCS UL Capabilities element that can be sent from a STA to an AP is depicted. The example eBCS UL Capabilities element 1401 may include a UL STA Control field 1432. Other fields may be included in some implementations. The UL STA Control field 1432 may include a No Embedding No Forwarding subfield 1441. The No Embedding No Forwarding subfield 1441 may be set to 1 to indicate that the AP is not required to forward the contents of a frame sent by the STA to a remote destination if the AP cannot append the requested information before forwarding. Otherwise, this subfield is set to 0.

[0230] The UL STA control field 1432 may include a location embedding request subfield 1443, a date time embedding request subfield 1444, and an IP address embedding request subfield 1445. These described subfields are examples, and one or more of the example subfields may be omitted in some implementations. In addition, other subfields may be included in some implementations. In some implementations, Fig. 14B The order of the example subfields depicted in may be arranged in a different order than shown. The subfields may also be referred to as indicators, such as when their values ​​are binary 1 or 0.

[0231] A value of 1 in the Location Embedding Request subfield 1443 may indicate that the STA sending this element is requesting that its content be forwarded to the remote eBCS AP to append location information before forwarding. Otherwise, this subfield is set to 0.

[0232] A value of 1 in the Date-Time Embedding Request subfield 1444 may indicate that the STA sending this element is requesting that its content be forwarded to the remote eBCS AP to append date and time information before forwarding. Otherwise, this subfield is set to 0.

[0233] A value of 1 in the IP Address Embedding Request subfield 1445 may indicate that the STA sending this element is requesting that its content be forwarded to the remote eBCS AP to append the AP's IP address information before forwarding. Otherwise, this subfield is set to 0.

[0234] Fig.15 A conceptual diagram of an example eBCS UL frame 1500 that may be sent from a STA to an AP is depicted. The STA may include a higher layer protocol (HLP) packet to be transmitted to a remote server in an eBCS UL frame action field 1516 of the eBCS UL frame. The eBCS UL frame may have other fields or parts, such as a preamble 1512 and one or more headers 1514. The format of the eBCS UL frame action field 1516 is also as shown. Fig.15 shown.

[0235] The eBCS UL frame action field 1516 may be sent as part of a common action frame. Fig.15 Several example subfields 1520 are shown that may be included in the eBCS UL frame action field 1516. The assigned value in the category subfield 1522 and the value in the public action subfield 1524 may identify the public action frame as an eBCS UL frame. The "category" field may define the message as a public action frame. The public action field may have a predefined action field value (such as "eBCS UL").

[0236] The eBCS UL frame action field 1516 may also include an eBCS UL control subfield 1526. The eBCS UL control subfield 1526 may include an indicator to indicate whether optional portions of the eBCS UL frame action field 1516 (such as the STA certificate 1544, the timestamp field 1546, the eBCS UL capability element 1552, and the frame signature field 1556) are included in the eBCS UL frame action field 1516. The HLP payload length 1528 may indicate the length of the HLP payload field 1530. The HLP payload field 1530 contains an HLP packet that carries data intended for a remote server. The HLP packet itself may be formatted to include various fields (not shown). For example, the HLP packet may include payload data, a certificate of a remote server, a public key of an eBCS STA, or other authentication type data for use by a remote server. The eBCS UL frame action field 1516 may also include a destination uniform resource identifier (URI) 1529. The destination URI element 1528 may carry the network address of the remote server.

[0237] The eBCS UL frame action field 1516 may also include optional elements depending on the indicator value in the eBCS UL Control subfield 1526. For example, when the eBCS UL Control subfield 1526 includes a value indicating the presence of STA credentials, the eBCS UL frame action field 1516 may include a STA credentials length field 1542 and a STA credentials 1544.

[0238] When the eBCS UL Control subfield 1526 includes a value indicating the presence of a timestamp, the eBCS UL Frame Action field 1516 may include a timestamp field 1546. In some implementations, the timestamp field 1546 may be used to prevent replay attacks. For example, the timestamp field may include a combination of a time value and a packet counter.

[0239] When the eBCS UL Control subfield 1526 includes a value indicating the presence of the eBCS UL Capabilities element, the eBCS UL Frame Action field 1516 may include an eBCS UL Capabilities element 1552. The eBCS UL Capabilities element 1552 may have the same Fig. 14B Similar features as described above, and can instruct the requesting AP to embed the AP-provided data before forwarding the HLP payload to the remote destination.

[0240] When the eBCS UL Control subfield 1526 includes a value indicating the presence of a frame signature, the eBCS UL Frame Action field 1516 may include a frame signature length field 1554 and a frame signature field 1556. The content of the frame signature field 1556 may prevent attacks that attempt to tamper with the frame content.

[0241] Fig.16 1 is a block diagram of an example wireless communication device 1600 for wireless communication. In some implementations, the wireless communication device 1600 may be a wireless communication device 1600, respectively. Figure 1-3 5 and 5. In some implementations, the wireless communication device 1600 may be an example of a wireless device 144 or a wireless device 500 described above. Figure 1-4 Examples of AP 102 and AP 400 described above. In some implementations, the wireless communication device 1600 is configured to respectively perform the above reference Figure 8 and 9 One or more of the processes 800 and 900 described herein. The wireless communication device 1600 includes a service connection module 1602, a broadcast service receive or transmit (RX / TX) module 1604, a protocol implementation module 1606, and a communication link module 1610. Portions of one or more of modules 1602, 1604, 1606, and 1610 may be implemented at least in part in hardware or firmware. For example, the broadcast service RX / TX module 1604 may be implemented at least in part by one or more modems (e.g., a Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11) modem). In some implementations, at least some of the modules 1602, 1604, 1606, and 1610 are implemented at least in part as software stored in a memory (such as memory 320 or memory 420). For example, portions of one or more of modules 1602, 1604, 1606, and 1610 may be implemented as non-transitory instructions (or "code") executable by at least one processor (such as processor 310 or processor 410) to perform the functions or operations of the corresponding module.

[0242] The service connection module 1602 can manage the service connection capabilities of the AP or wireless device. For example, the service connection module 1602 can manage which type of service connection technology is implemented in the WLAN. The service connection module 1602 can announce the capability indicator to inform other wireless communication devices which service connection is enabled in the wireless communication device 1600. For example, the service connection module 1602 can be similar to the above-mentioned application support unit 150 or service support unit 120. The broadcast service RX / TX module 1604 can implement the broadcast connection protocol. The protocol implementation module 1606 can implement the NAN protocol or the OCB protocol. For example, the protocol implementation module 1606 can modify the NAN protocol or the OCB protocol according to the needs of the broadcast service receiving or sending module 1604. The communication link module 1610 can maintain the wireless association or attachment state between the wireless communication device 1600 and another wireless communication device.

[0243] Figure 1-16The operations described herein are examples intended to aid in understanding example implementations and should not be used to limit potential implementations or to limit the scope of the claims. Some implementations may perform additional operations, fewer operations, operations in parallel or in a different order, and may perform some operations differently.

[0244] As used herein, phrases referring to "at least one" or "one or more" of a list of items refer to any combination of those items, including single members. For example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover the following possibilities: only a, only b, only c, a combination of a and b, a combination of a and c, a combination of b and c, and a combination of a, b, and c.

[0245] The various illustrative components, logic, logic blocks, modules, circuits, operations, and algorithmic processes described in conjunction with the implementations disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, firmware, software, or a combination of hardware, firmware, or software, including the structures disclosed in this specification and their structural equivalents. The interchangeability of hardware, firmware, and software has been generally described in terms of functionality and illustrated in the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and processes described above. Whether such functionality is implemented in hardware, firmware, or software depends on the specific application and design constraints on the overall system.

[0246] The hardware and data processing apparatus for implementing the various illustrative components, logic, logic blocks, modules and circuits described in conjunction with the various aspects disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose single-chip or multi-chip processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination of the foregoing items designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a DSP core, or any other such configuration. In some implementations, specific processes, operations and methods may be performed by circuits specific to a given function.

[0247] As described above, in some aspects, the implementation of the subject matter described in this specification can be implemented as software. For example, the various functions of the components disclosed herein, or the various boxes or steps of the methods, operations, processes or algorithms disclosed herein can be implemented as one or more modules of one or more computer programs. Such a computer program may include a non-transitory processor or computer executable instructions encoded on one or more tangible processors or computer-readable storage media for executing or controlling its operation by a data processing device including a component of the device described herein. As an example and not a limitation, such a storage medium may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store program code in the form of instructions or data structures. The above combination should also be included in the scope of the storage medium.

[0248] Various modifications to the implementations described in this disclosure will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein, but are to be consistent with the broadest scope consistent with the disclosure, principles, and novel features disclosed herein.

[0249] In addition, various features described in this specification in the context of separate implementations may also be implemented in combination in a single implementation. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single implementation may also be implemented separately in multiple implementations or in any suitable sub-combination. Thus, although features may be described above as functioning in a particular combination, and even initially claimed as such, in some cases, one or more features from a claimed combination may be deleted from that combination, and a claimed combination may be directed to a sub-combination or variation of a sub-combination.

[0250] Similarly, although the operations are described in a particular order in the accompanying drawings, this should not be understood as requiring the operations to be performed in the particular order shown or in a continuous order, or requiring the execution of all the operations shown to obtain the desired result. In addition, the accompanying drawings may schematically depict one or more example processes in the form of a flow chart or a flow chart. However, other operations not depicted may be combined in the schematically illustrated example processes. For example, one or more additional operations may be performed before, after, simultaneously or between any illustrated operations. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. In addition, the separation of various system components in the above-described implementations should not be understood as requiring such separation in all implementations, and it should be understood that the described program components and systems may generally be integrated in a single software product or encapsulated in multiple software products.

Claims

1. A method performed by a first wireless device, comprising: determining that a first access point AP of a wireless local area network WLAN supports an uplink broadcast service, the uplink broadcast service enabling uplink data transmission to a remote destination using unsolicited uplink broadcast communications; preparing the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication for transmission to the remote destination via the first AP; including in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication prior to forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to the remote destination; as well as The unsolicited uplink broadcast communication is output for transmission to the remote destination via the first AP based on the uplink broadcast service.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the first AP supports the uplink broadcast service comprises receiving broadcast service capability information from the first AP, the broadcast service capability information indicating that the first AP is capable of forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication based on the uplink broadcast service. 3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein receiving the broadcast service capability information comprises receiving a beacon frame or a probe response frame including the broadcast service capability information from the first AP. 4 . The method of claim 2 , wherein receiving the broadcast service capability information comprises receiving the broadcast service capability information on a common channel designated for the uplink broadcast service.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein preparing the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication for transmission to the remote destination comprises: receiving a transmission from one or more WLAN devices in proximity to the first wireless device; determining a detected identifier from the received transmission; as well as The detected identifier is included in a payload field of the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the detected identifier comprises at least one member selected from the group consisting of: a basic service set (BSS) identifier (BSSID), a service set identifier (SSID), a cell identifier, a media access control (MAC) address, and an Internet protocol (IP) address.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the remote destination is able to determine an approximate location of the first wireless device using the detected identifier.

8. The method according to claim 5, further comprising: determining a received signal strength indicator, RSSI, of one or more of said transmissions; as well as The RSSI and the detected identifier are included in the payload field.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: A destination network address of the remote destination is included in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more types of AP-provided data are selected from the group consisting of: AP-provided location, AP-provided timestamp, and AP-provided network address.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: A device certificate associated with the first wireless device is included in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication, and the first AP can use the device certificate to determine that the first wireless device is authorized to cause the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to be sent to the remote destination via the first AP.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication is formatted as a Public Action Frame or a Generic Advertising Service (GAS) frame.

13. A method performed by a first access point AP of a wireless local area network WLAN, comprising: announcing an uplink broadcast service that enables a first wireless device to send unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to a remote destination; receiving one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications from the first wireless device in accordance with the uplink broadcast service; determining that the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications comprises a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications prior to forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to the remote destination; embedding the AP-provided data into the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications prior to forwarding the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to the remote destination; as well as At least a portion of the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications are forwarded to the remote destination.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein advertising the uplink broadcast service comprises sending broadcast service capability information indicating that the first AP is capable of forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications based on the uplink broadcast service. 15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein sending the broadcast service capability information comprises broadcasting a beacon frame or a probe response frame including the broadcast service capability information from the first AP.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising, prior to forwarding at least a portion of the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications: Based at least in part on digital certificates in the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications, it is determined that the first wireless device is authorized to cause the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to be sent via the first AP to the remote destination.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the data provided by the AP comprises at least one member of the group consisting of: location data, a date stamp, a time stamp, an identifier of the first AP, a network address of the first AP, and received signal strength data.

18. The method according to claim 13, further comprising: A throttling feature is implemented to limit the amount or frequency of unsolicited uplink broadcast communications forwarded to the remote destination.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein announcing the uplink broadcast service comprises: The throttling characteristic used by the first AP is indicated, wherein the throttling characteristic is selected from the group consisting of: no throttling, per-destination throttling, explicit throttling based on uplink broadcast services, and implicit throttling based on uplink resource scheduling.

20. A wireless device comprising: One or more processors configured to: determining that a first access point AP of a wireless local area network WLAN supports an uplink broadcast service on a wireless channel, the uplink broadcast service enabling uplink data to be sent to a remote destination using unsolicited uplink broadcast communications; preparing the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication for transmission to the remote destination via the first AP; including in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication prior to forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to the remote destination; as well as An interface configured to output the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication for transmission to the remote destination via the first AP based on the uplink broadcast service.

21. The wireless device of claim 20, wherein the interface is further configured to obtain broadcast service capability information from the first AP, the broadcast service capability information indicating that the first AP is capable of forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication based on the uplink broadcast service.

22. The wireless device of claim 21, wherein the interface is further configured to obtain a beacon frame or a probe response frame including the broadcast service capability information from the first AP.

23. The wireless device of claim 22, wherein the interface is further configured to obtain the broadcast service capability information via a common channel designated for the uplink broadcast service.

24. The wireless device according to claim 20, wherein the interface is further configured to obtain transmissions from one or more WLAN devices in proximity to the wireless device; and The one or more processors are further configured to: determining a detected identifier from the received transmission; and The detected identifier is included in a payload field of the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

25. The wireless device of claim 24, wherein the detected identifier comprises at least one member selected from the group consisting of: a basic service set (BSS) identifier (BSSID), a service set identifier (SSID), a cell identifier, a media access control (MAC) address, and an Internet Protocol (IP) address.

26. The wireless device of claim 24, wherein the remote destination is capable of using the detected identifier to determine an approximate location of the wireless device.

27. The wireless device of claim 24, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: determining a received signal strength indicator, RSSI, for one or more of said transmissions; and The RSSI and the detected identifier are included in the payload field.

28. The wireless device of claim 20, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to include a destination network address of the remote destination in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication.

29. The wireless device of claim 20, wherein the one or more types of AP-provided data are selected from the group consisting of: an AP-provided location, an AP-provided timestamp, and an AP-provided network address.

30. A wireless device according to claim 20, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to include a device certificate associated with the wireless device in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication, and the first AP is able to use the device certificate to determine that the wireless device is authorized to cause the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication to be sent to the remote destination via the first AP.

31. The wireless device of claim 20, wherein the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication is formatted as a public action frame or a general advertisement service (GAS) frame.

32. A first access point AP, comprising: One or more processors configured to: announcing an uplink broadcast service that enables a first wireless device to send unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to a remote destination; interface, which is configured as: obtaining one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications according to the uplink broadcast service; as well as outputting at least a portion of the one or more uplink communications for transmission to the remote destination, The one or more processors are further configured to: determining the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications comprises a request for the first AP to embed one or more types of AP-provided data in the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications prior to outputting the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications for transmission to the remote destination; as well as The AP-provided data is embedded in the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications prior to outputting the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications for transmission to the remote destination.

33. A first AP according to claim 32, wherein the interface is also configured to output a beacon frame or a probe response frame for transmission to the wireless network of the first AP, the beacon frame or the probe response frame including broadcast service capability information, and wherein the broadcast service capability information indicates that the first AP is capable of forwarding the unsolicited uplink broadcast communication based on the uplink broadcast service.

34. The first AP of claim 32, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: Prior to causing the interface to output at least a portion of the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications, determining that the first wireless device is authorized to cause the unsolicited uplink broadcast communications to be sent to the remote destination via the first AP based at least in part on a digital certificate in the one or more unsolicited uplink broadcast communications.

35. The first AP of claim 32, wherein the data provided by the AP comprises at least one member of the group consisting of: location data, a date stamp, a time stamp, an identifier of the first AP, a network address of the first AP, and received signal strength data.

36. The first AP of claim 32, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: A throttling feature is implemented to limit the amount or frequency of unsolicited uplink broadcast communications forwarded to the remote destination.

37. The first AP of claim 36, wherein the throttling characteristics are selected from the group consisting of: no throttling, throttling by destination, explicit throttling based on uplink broadcast services, and implicit throttling based on uplink resource scheduling.

38. A tangible computer-readable storage medium comprising non-transitory processor-executable code, which, when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to implement the method of any one of claims 1-12.

39. A tangible computer-readable storage medium comprising non-transitory processor-executable code, which, when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to implement the method of any one of claims 13-19.

40. A first wireless device, comprising: Means for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1-12.

41. A first access point AP, comprising: Means for implementing the method according to any one of claims 13-19.

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