Methods, apparatuses, electronic devices, and media for controlling broadcasts of wireless devices

Abstract

This disclosure provides a method, apparatus, electronic device, and medium for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device. The method includes generating a discovery delay associated with broadcast intervals in a set of broadcast intervals based on multiple scanning modes. The discovery delay includes the time required for a broadcast signal emitted by the wireless device at a broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the multiple scanning modes. The method includes determining one or more broadcast intervals from the set of broadcast intervals based on the discovery delay, generating at least one candidate broadcast mode based on the determined one or more broadcast intervals, and determining a broadcast mode for the wireless device from the at least one candidate broadcast mode. In this manner, a broadcast mode with higher overall performance is provided to the wireless device, which can achieve a lower overall discovery delay across multiple scanning modes, facilitating faster discovery of the wireless device and thus optimizing the user experience of discovering a specific wireless device using a device that supports different scanning modes.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of this disclosure primarily relate to the field of communication technology, and more specifically, to wireless communication technology. The embodiments of this disclosure provide methods, apparatus, electronic devices, computer-readable storage media, and computer program products for controlling the broadcasting of wireless devices. Background Technology

[0002] With the rise of the Internet of Things (IoT) technology, various wireless communication technologies are being applied to interconnected applications. For example, communication modules such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Wi-Fi, and 5G are being deployed on a wide variety of devices, enabling them to communicate wirelessly.

[0003] Some IoT applications offer offline retrieval capabilities to help users find lost devices. This functionality primarily relies on broadcast signals emitted by the lost device and scanning by a "helpful" scanning device. For example, when a user's device / item / accessory is lost, the lost device enters a lost state and broadcasts a signal indicating its loss to the surrounding area. The scanning device, acting as a "helpful" scanning device, then checks the surrounding environment to detect if the lost device is present. Due to power consumption considerations, neither the broadcast signal from the lost device nor the scanning by the scanning device is constantly active; rather, they are transmitted and scanned intermittently. This results in a delay between the start of the broadcast signal and its discovery. This presents a challenge for offline retrieval functions. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of this disclosure provide a scheme for controlling the broadcasting of wireless devices to provide improved discovery latency performance.

[0005] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, a method for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device is provided. The method includes: generating a discovery delay associated with broadcast intervals in a set of broadcast intervals based on multiple scanning modes, the discovery delay including the time required for a broadcast signal emitted by the wireless device at the broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the multiple scanning modes; determining one or more broadcast intervals from the set of broadcast intervals based on the discovery delay; generating at least one candidate broadcast mode based on the determined one or more broadcast intervals; and determining a broadcast mode for the wireless device from the at least one candidate broadcast mode. In this manner, a broadcast mode with higher overall performance is provided for the wireless device, which can achieve a lower overall discovery delay across multiple scanning modes, facilitating faster discovery of the wireless device by the scanning device, thereby optimizing the user experience of discovering a specific wireless device using devices with different scanning modes.

[0006] In some embodiments of the first aspect, determining one or more broadcast intervals from a set of broadcast intervals may include: determining a threshold for discovery delay for each of a plurality of scanning modes; determining at least one candidate broadcast interval from the set of broadcast intervals based on the threshold; and determining one or more broadcast intervals based on at least one candidate broadcast interval from the plurality of scanning modes. The data relationship between broadcast intervals and discovery delays differs across scanning modes. Based on this approach, broadcast intervals with low discovery delays across different scanning modes can be obtained. That is, their corresponding invention delays are low across these scanning modes.

[0007] In some embodiments of the first aspect, determining one or more broadcast intervals may include determining one or more broadcast intervals based on the intersection of at least one candidate broadcast intervals from multiple scanning modes. In some standard protocols, the allowed broadcast intervals are discrete, for example, integer multiples of a certain time interval. Based on this, a common broadcast interval that accommodates multiple scanning modes and achieves a smaller discovery latency can be obtained through set operations.

[0008] In some embodiments of the first aspect, determining the threshold for the discovery delay may include determining the threshold based on a tolerance parameter and a minimum discovery delay for the scanning mode. In this manner, a performance range for the discovery delay can be specified, thereby selecting a corresponding broadcast interval. For example, a larger tolerance parameter allows for a greater number of candidate broadcast intervals in the set of broadcast intervals, and vice versa.

[0009] In some embodiments of the first aspect, generating candidate broadcast patterns may include generating at least one of the following: an alternating pattern, which instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at different broadcast intervals among one or more broadcast intervals; and an overlay pattern, which instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at multiples of the one or more broadcast intervals. In some embodiments, the generated candidate broadcast patterns may also include a single pattern, which instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at one of the one or more broadcast intervals. Based on this, a regularly varying broadcast pattern is provided, using multiple broadcast intervals with smaller discovery delays to broadcast signals, in order to obtain a smaller overall discovery delay across multiple scanning modes.

[0010] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the method may further include: determining an equivalent broadcast interval for at least one candidate broadcast mode; and filtering the at least one candidate broadcast mode based on the equivalent broadcast interval and power consumption constraints of the wireless device. In this manner, the power consumption of the wireless device using the broadcast mode is constrained to meet power consumption requirements.

[0011] In some embodiments of the first aspect, determining a broadcast mode for a wireless device from at least one candidate broadcast mode may include: for each of the at least one candidate broadcast modes, determining the overall discovery delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to a plurality of scanning modes; and selecting the candidate broadcast mode with the minimum overall discovery delay from the at least one candidate broadcast modes as the broadcast mode for the wireless device. Based on this approach, it is possible to further select a broadcast mode with a lower overall discovery delay from the candidate broadcast modes.

[0012] In some embodiments of the first aspect, determining the overall discovery delay of a candidate broadcast mode relative to multiple scanning modes may include: determining the discovery delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to each scanning mode through simulation; and determining the overall discovery delay based on the weights of the multiple scanning modes and the determined discovery delay. In this manner, it is possible to take into account the usage environment of the wireless device, such as the probability that multiple scanning modes are used, and to use a broadcast mode with a lower overall discovery delay in a specific environment.

[0013] In some embodiments of the first aspect, the scanning modes among multiple scanning modes may include a scanning interval and a scanning window within the scanning interval, and the scanning mode can be applied to the scanning device such that the scanning device listens for broadcast signals from the wireless device within the scanning window. In this way, the wireless device can intermittently transmit broadcast signals, and the scanning device only needs to intermittently scan the broadcast signals, thereby controlling the power consumption level of the device.

[0014] In some embodiments of the first aspect, determining the discovery delay associated with a broadcast interval in a set of broadcast intervals based on multiple scan modes may include: for each of the multiple scan modes, determining the discovery delay corresponding to the broadcast interval in the scan mode by performing a simulation. The discovery delay may be associated with a given percentile value. In this way, the numerical relationship between the broadcast interval and the discovery delay in each scan mode can be obtained for selecting the broadcast interval with the smaller discovery delay.

[0015] According to a second aspect of this disclosure, an electronic device is provided, comprising: a processing unit and a memory, wherein the processing unit executes instructions in the memory to cause the electronic device to perform actions, the actions including: generating a discovery delay associated with broadcast intervals in a set of broadcast intervals based on a plurality of scanning modes, the discovery delay including the time required for a broadcast signal emitted by a wireless device at the broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the plurality of scanning modes; determining one or more broadcast intervals from the set of broadcast intervals based on the discovery delay; generating at least one candidate broadcast mode based on the determined one or more broadcast intervals; and determining a broadcast mode for the wireless device from the at least one candidate broadcast mode.

[0016] According to a third aspect of this disclosure, an apparatus for controlling broadcasting by a wireless device is provided, comprising: a discovery delay generation unit configured to generate a discovery delay associated with a broadcast interval in a set of broadcast intervals based on a plurality of scanning modes, the discovery delay including the time required for a broadcast signal emitted by the wireless device at the broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the plurality of scanning modes; a broadcast interval determination unit configured to determine one or more broadcast intervals from the set of broadcast intervals based on the discovery delay; a broadcast mode generation unit configured to generate at least one candidate broadcast mode based on the determined one or more broadcast intervals; and a broadcast mode determination unit configured to determine a broadcast mode for the wireless device from the at least one candidate broadcast mode.

[0017] According to a fourth aspect of this disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores one or more computer instructions thereon, wherein the one or more computer instructions are executed by a processor to cause the processor to perform the method according to a first aspect of this disclosure.

[0018] According to a fifth aspect of this disclosure, a computer program product is provided, including machine-executable instructions that, when executed by a device, cause the device to perform a method according to a first aspect of this disclosure. Attached Figure Description

[0019] The above and other features, advantages, and aspects of the embodiments of this disclosure will become more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description. In the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements, wherein:

[0020] Figure 1A A schematic diagram of an example environment in which several embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented is shown;

[0021] Figure 1B A schematic block diagram of a device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0022] Figure 2A A schematic diagram illustrating the timing relationship between broadcasting and scanning by a wireless device is shown.

[0023] Figure 2B A graph showing the numerical relationship between the broadcast interval and discovery latency of an example wireless device is provided.

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic flowchart of a method for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0025] Figure 4 A schematic flowchart illustrating the process of generating discovery latency according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0026] Figure 5 A schematic flowchart illustrating the process of selecting a broadcast interval according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0027] Figure 6 A schematic flowchart illustrating the process of generating a broadcast pattern according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0028] Figure 7 A schematic flowchart illustrating the process of selecting a broadcast mode according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0029] Figure 8 A schematic block diagram of an apparatus for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0030] Figure 9 A schematic block diagram of an example device that can be used to implement embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0031] Embodiments of this disclosure will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. While some embodiments of this disclosure are shown in the drawings, it should be understood that this disclosure can be implemented in various forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided to provide a more thorough and complete understanding of this disclosure. It should be understood that the accompanying drawings and embodiments of this disclosure are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this disclosure.

[0032] In the description of embodiments of this disclosure, the term "comprising" and similar terms should be understood as open-ended inclusion, i.e., "including but not limited to". The term "based on" should be understood as "at least partially based on". The term "one embodiment" or "this embodiment" should be understood as "at least one embodiment". The terms "first", "second", etc., may refer to different or the same objects. Other explicit and implicit definitions may also be included below. It should be noted that the numbers or numerical values ​​used herein are exemplary and do not limit the scope of protection of this disclosure.

[0033] Some IoT applications offer offline discovery functionality for wireless devices (e.g., Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) devices). A crucial performance characteristic of offline discovery is the time it takes for a scanning device (e.g., a mobile phone or other device with a BLE communication module) to detect the broadcast signal sent by a lost device (which may also be referred to as a broadcasting device in this context), i.e., the "discovery latency." Due to power consumption and other considerations, broadcasting devices emit broadcast signals at intervals that comply with power constraints, and the scanning window of the scanning device is not always open but opens and closes at regular intervals depending on the scanning mode. The scanning interval and scanning window settings will differ depending on the scanning device's state (e.g., a mobile phone in on, off, or sleep mode, or different brands or manufacturers of mobile phones). The matching between the scanning mode of the scanning device and the broadcast interval of the broadcasting device significantly impacts the discovery latency.

[0034] Traditional methods reduce discovery latency by modifying the scanning interval of scanning devices. However, modifying scanning devices involves multiple constraints, such as power consumption and the use of wireless communication modules for other services, making it quite difficult. Other methods modify the broadcast interval of broadcast devices, for example, by optimizing for a single scanning mode to obtain a broadcast interval that meets power consumption constraints and has the minimum discovery latency. However, in real-world scenarios, multiple scanning modes may exist. If only one scanning mode is considered, the obtained broadcast interval value may not achieve global optimization for the broadcast device, leading to a "trade-off" situation in broadcast interval optimization: when the broadcast interval is optimized based on only one scanning mode, the resulting broadcast interval value may cause the broadcast device to have a higher discovery latency in another scanning mode.

[0035] In view of this, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a scheme for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device, and more specifically, a scheme for providing an efficient broadcasting mode for a wireless device. In this scheme, firstly, a discovery delay associated with a broadcast interval in a set of broadcast intervals is generated for each of a plurality of scanning modes, thereby determining a numerical relationship between the broadcast interval and the discovery delay under a specific scanning mode. Then, one or more broadcast intervals are determined from the set of broadcast intervals based on the discovery delays under the plurality of scanning modes. For example, the selected broadcast intervals result in lower discovery delays for the broadcasting device across multiple scanning modes. In this scheme, at least one candidate broadcast mode is generated based on the determined one or more broadcast intervals. For example, the candidate broadcast mode may be a broadcast mode obtained by combining these broadcast intervals. Then, a broadcast mode for the wireless device is determined from the at least one candidate broadcast mode. Based on this approach, a broadcast mode with higher overall performance is provided to the wireless device, which can achieve lower overall discovery delays across multiple scanning modes, helping the wireless device to be discovered by the scanning device more quickly, thereby optimizing the user experience of discovering a specified wireless device using different scanning modes.

[0036] The following is for reference Figures 1A to 9 Embodiments of this disclosure are described.

[0037] Figure 1A A schematic diagram of an example environment 100 in which various embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented is shown. As shown, in environment 100, wireless device 120 may be an electronic device with wireless communication capabilities (e.g., Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Wi-Fi, 5G, etc.). In some embodiments, wireless device 120 may be an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a tagged device, a sensor, a wearable device, etc., such as a smart bracelet, smartwatch, earphone, stylus, mobile phone, laptop, tablet, etc. Wireless device 120 may be configured as a data transmitter to emit a radio broadcast signal 140 on a designated channel. Wireless device 120 may also include a battery and trigger the radio broadcast signal 140 by consuming the energy stored in the battery. Considering limitations such as power consumption, wireless device 120 emits the broadcast signal 140 at certain points in time according to a configured broadcast interval or broadcast pattern, rather than continuously emitting the broadcast signal 140. In this document, wireless device 120 is sometimes also referred to as a broadcast device, and the two terms are used interchangeably.

[0038] Environment 100 includes scanning devices 130-1 to 130-4 (collectively referred to as scanning device 130). Scanning device 130 can be, for example, a mobile phone, laptop, tablet, smartwatch, smart bracelet, stylus, earphones, etc. Scanning device 130 can be an electronic device with wireless communication capabilities similar to wireless device 120, and can be configured as a data receiver to discover nearby wireless devices by listening for radio broadcast signals on a designated channel. Scanning device 130 can support multiple scanning modes. For example, considering power consumption limitations, scanning device 130 can switch between two states—on and off scanning—during scanning, such as periodic scanning. The time length between the start and end of scanning is called the scanning window, and the interval between the opening of two adjacent scanning windows is called the scanning interval. As an example, scanning modes can include custom low-power modes, equalization modes, low-latency modes, etc., each with its own scanning interval and scanning window. It is understood that environment 100 includes any number of scanning devices, and is not limited to the situation shown in the figure.

[0039] Control device 110 is used to control the broadcast mode of radio broadcast signals emitted by wireless device 120. Control device 110 can be, for example, a device with computing capabilities, such as a desktop computer, laptop, mobile phone, server, cluster, cloud server, etc. Control device 110 can determine and configure the broadcast mode of wireless device 120, causing wireless device 120 to emit broadcast signals 140 according to the broadcast mode. For example, according to the configured broadcast mode, wireless device 120 emits broadcast signals 140 at some times and remains silent at other times, thereby saving energy and enabling the wireless device to be detected by scanning device 130 as early as possible.

[0040] Wireless device 120 and scanning device 130 can cooperate to achieve the offline search function mentioned above. Once wireless device 120 detects that it is lost (e.g., it has not been accessed or operated by a user for a period of time, or its location or orientation has not changed), it can trigger the offline search function. In this case, wireless device 120 can broadcast a signal 140 according to a configured broadcast mode. The broadcast signal 140 can carry the device information of wireless device 120 or the user information it is associated with. During this period, if scanning device 130 is near wireless device 120 and detects the broadcast signal 140, scanning device 130 can upload the device information or user information of wireless device 120 to the server, which will then push the relevant information to the owner.

[0041] In some embodiments, wireless device 120 may be a device with BLE broadcast capability, and scanning device 130 may be a device with BLE scanning capability. The embodiments of this disclosure will be described below based on BLE. It should be understood that the embodiments of this disclosure are not limited to scenarios involving device discovery using other radio broadcasts, such as Wi-Fi, 5G, etc.

[0042] Figure 1B A schematic block diagram of a device 101 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Device 101 may be... Figure 1A An exemplary implementation of the wireless device 120 and the scanning device 130 shown.

[0043] As shown in the figure, the application 102, Bluetooth host module 103 and Bluetooth control module 104 in device 101 are software modules, while the Bluetooth transceiver module 106 and antenna 107 are hardware modules.

[0044] In some cases, application 102 can detect that device 101 is lost, thereby triggering Bluetooth host module 103 to generate instructions according to the configured broadcast mode and send them to Bluetooth controller module 104. That is, device 101 operates as a broadcast device. The broadcast mode can be pre-stored in application 102 or the Bluetooth host module itself. Device 101 can have multiple broadcast modes and can select the broadcast mode based on factors such as power consumption and device status. Some BLE standard protocols require that the broadcast interval value of BLE devices must be an integer multiple of a specific time (e.g., 0.625 milliseconds) and within a given range (e.g., 20 milliseconds to 10.24 seconds).

[0045] In some cases, the Bluetooth host module 103 can determine the scanning mode from the application 102 or other sources. Depending on the scanning mode, the device 101 can listen for broadcast signals on a specified channel. That is, the device 101 will operate as a scanning device 130. The device 101 can support multiple scanning modes and can determine the scanning mode to use, the size of the scanning window, and the scanning interval based on power consumption, device status, etc. For example, the scanning window for low-power mode is 512 milliseconds and the scanning interval is 5120 milliseconds; the scanning window for balanced mode is 1024 milliseconds and the scanning interval is 4096 milliseconds; and the scanning window for low-latency mode is 4096 milliseconds and the scanning interval is 4096 milliseconds. It should be understood that the parameters for the above scanning modes are exemplary and not limiting.

[0046] Therefore, the Bluetooth host module 103 can send Host Control Interaction (HCI) commands to the Bluetooth controller module 104. The Bluetooth controller module 104, based on the commands, controls the timing of broadcast triggering and scanning triggering of the Bluetooth transceiver module 106, thereby controlling the broadcast interval of the broadcasting device or the scanning window and scanning interval of the scanning device.

[0047] As mentioned above, wireless device 120 broadcasts signals according to the broadcast interval, and scanning device 130 scans for possible broadcast signals within the scanning window according to the scanning mode. Given this situation, the broadcast signal may not necessarily fall within the scanning window. The broadcast signal may only be detected by scanning device 130 after wireless device 120 has broadcast multiple times, or it may remain undetected for a considerable period. In this document, the time required for scanning device 130 to detect the broadcast signal sent by wireless device 120 through scanning is also referred to as the detection delay.

[0048] Figure 2A This diagram illustrates the timing relationship between broadcasting and scanning. As shown, given that the distance between the wireless device and the scanning device satisfies the communication conditions, the wireless device begins broadcasting signals at the designated broadcast intervals. Some BLE standard protocols require that the broadcast interval value of BLE broadcasting devices include a random delay within a range (e.g., 0 to 10 milliseconds). It is understandable that a smaller broadcast interval makes the broadcast signal easier to detect; however, due to power consumption constraints, the broadcast interval cannot be set too small.

[0049] Meanwhile, the scanning device scans according to the scanning mode, opening and closing the scanning window at regular intervals. The scanning interval and the size of the scanning window determine the scanning characteristics. Understandably, the larger the scanning window, the stronger the scanning device 102's ability to detect broadcast signals. Similarly, for power consumption constraints, the scanning window's size is generally not set too large.

[0050] exist Figure 2A In the process, the wireless device, after a random delay t advdelay Then, broadcast signal 201 is emitted. This is followed by a broadcast interval of 211 and another random delay t. advdelay Then, the wireless device broadcasts signal 202. Following this, after a broadcast interval of 213 and a random delay t... advdelaySubsequently, the wireless device broadcasts signal 203. Simultaneously, the scanning device scans according to the scanning windows 221, 223, and 225 and the scanning interval 222 specified by the scanning mode, listening for broadcast signals on the designated channel. Once a broadcast signal is detected within the scanning window, the wireless device is discovered. As shown, broadcast signals 201 and 202 of the wireless device miss, while broadcast signal 203 falls within scanning window 225. Therefore, the wireless device is discovered by the scanning device at the time of broadcast signal 203. The time interval from activation to broadcast signal hit is the discovery delay 230.

[0051] Given a BLE scanning pattern, different BLE broadcast intervals have their own broadcast scan discovery delays. In fact, a smaller broadcast interval and more frequent broadcasts do not necessarily mean faster detection. Figure 2B A graph showing the numerical relationship between the broadcast interval and discovery latency of an example wireless device is presented. Figure 2B In the diagram, the scanning window of the scanning device is 60 milliseconds, and the scanning interval is 600 milliseconds. The horizontal axis represents the broadcast interval value of the broadcasting device, and the vertical axis represents the maximum detection delay for a given percentile value. Under any circumstances, as long as the maximum detection delay is reached, the broadcast signal at the corresponding percentile value among all broadcast signals can be detected.

[0052] As can be seen, the broadcast interval and detection delay exhibit a "peak-trough" pattern. As mentioned above, some traditional methods can find a better broadcast interval for a specific scanning mode through simulation, i.e., a broadcast interval value near the trough. Using this broadcast interval value to transmit broadcast signals results in lower detection delay for the wireless device. However, the broadcast interval determined in this way may only be applicable to a specific scanning mode, and may have a larger detection delay in another scanning mode. The embodiments of this disclosure provide an improved solution that, by controlling the broadcast mode of the wireless device transmitting the broadcast signal, makes the wireless broadcast signal transmitted according to this broadcast mode more generally applicable to more scanning modes, with a smaller overall detection delay.

[0053] Figure 3 A schematic flowchart of a method 300 for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Method 300 can be, for example, by... Figure 1A The control device 110 shown is implemented. It should be understood that method 300 may also include additional actions not shown and / or the actions shown may be omitted, and the scope of this disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0054] In block 310, a discovery delay associated with a broadcast interval in a set of broadcast intervals is generated based on multiple scanning modes. The steps in block 310 can be performed after confirming the possible scanning modes in the scenario. Here, the scanning device performs a scan according to one of the possible scanning modes, and the wireless device continuously broadcasts a signal at one of the broadcast intervals in the set of broadcast intervals. The discovery delay can be determined by simulation as the time required for the broadcast signal emitted by the wireless device to be discovered by the scanning device. The discovery delay is determined by performing simulations multiple times. The discovery delay can be associated with a percentile value. In some embodiments, the discovery delay can be the time that ensures the broadcast signal is discovered under any circumstances. The discovery delay can also be the time that the broadcast signal can be discovered under a given percentile value p (e.g., 85%, 90%, 95%, etc.).

[0055] Figure 4 A schematic flowchart of a process 400 for generating discovery latency according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Process 400 may be an example implementation of step 310. In block 410, a set of scan modes and a set of broadcast intervals are input. The set of scan modes includes possible scan modes in the scenario, each scan mode having its own scan interval and scan window. The set of broadcast intervals may include a set of discrete broadcast intervals conforming to a criterion within the range of available broadcast intervals.

[0056] In box 420, a scan mode is selected from the set of scan modes. Specifically, the control device 110 obtains the scan window and scan interval of the selected scan mode and inputs them into the simulation program.

[0057] In box 430, the discovery delay corresponding to the broadcast interval under this scanning mode is obtained. The control device 110 can obtain the time obtained from each simulation by repeatedly running the simulation program. Specifically, the scanning mode is applied to the scanning device, causing it to listen for broadcast signals from the wireless device within the scanning window, and the broadcast interval is applied to the wireless device, causing it to broadcast signals according to the broadcast interval. A random delay for transmitting the broadcast signal can be set in the simulation program. The random delay can be set according to relevant standards (e.g., the BLE standard).

[0058] Therefore, the discovery delay corresponding to the broadcast interval in this scanning mode is determined, for example, the discovery delay satisfying a given percentile value p. By traversing all broadcast intervals in the set, the discovery delay corresponding to each broadcast interval is obtained. This allows us to obtain the numerical relationship between the broadcast interval and the discovery delay. This numerical relationship can be presented as... Figure 2B A similar graph.

[0059] In box 440, determine if all scan modes have been selected. If not, return to box 420 and select the next scan mode from the scan mode set. If all have been selected, proceed to box 450 and output the broadcast interval and corresponding detection delay for all scan modes. The output can be a curve showing the numerical relationship between the broadcast interval and detection delay for each scan mode.

[0060] Continue to refer to Figure 3 In box 320, one or more broadcast intervals are determined from the set of broadcast intervals based on the discovery latency. The input to this step may include the set of broadcast intervals and corresponding discovery latencies for each scan mode, and the output includes the broadcast intervals in the scene for which a "smaller discovery latency" (i.e., a "trough") can be obtained in each scan mode. That is, the output one or more broadcast intervals have a "smaller discovery latency" in each scan mode.

[0061] Figure 5 A schematic flowchart of a process 500 for selecting a broadcast interval according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Process 500 may be an example implementation of step 320.

[0062] In box 510, input the tolerance parameter, scan mode set, broadcast interval set, and corresponding discovery delay. The tolerance parameter adjusts the precision of the broadcast interval value for obtaining a "smaller discovery delay." The larger α is, the more broadcast interval values ​​are obtained, and the coarser the precision; the smaller α is, the fewer broadcast interval values ​​are obtained, but the more precise the precision. In other words, the tolerance parameter can be used as a standard to judge whether the broadcast interval is "good," i.e., producing a smaller discovery delay. α can be a number greater than or equal to 1 and can be adjusted according to the needs of the actual scenario. This will be explained in more detail below.

[0063] In box 520, select one scan mode from multiple scan modes. By selecting a scan mode, obtain the correspondence between all broadcast intervals and discovery delays in the broadcast interval set under that scan mode.

[0064] In box 530, a threshold for the detection latency for this scanning mode is determined. In some embodiments, the lower bound of the detection latency, also known as the minimum detection latency, can be determined according to the following equation:

[0065]

[0066] Where A is the broadcast interval, T is the scan interval, W is the scan window, and p is the percentage value used to obtain the percentile value. It should be noted that when p equals 100%, as long as L... min All broadcast signals (100%) can be detected; however, when p is less than 100%, L is satisfied. min In such cases, a corresponding proportion of broadcast signals can be detected.

[0067] In some embodiments, the threshold for detecting delay can be determined as α·L min The tolerance parameter α can be greater than or equal to 1. Then, in box 540, at least one candidate broadcast interval is determined from the set of broadcast intervals based on a threshold for the detection delay. For example, broadcast intervals with a detection delay less than the threshold α·L can be selected from the set of broadcast intervals. min The broadcast interval is used as a candidate broadcast interval, where the discovery delay is the discovery delay obtained in box 310. The selected candidate broadcast interval is regarded as the "valley broadcast interval" and added to the candidate broadcast interval set for the current scan mode.

[0068] In box 550, it is determined whether all scan modes have been selected. If there are still unselected scan modes, proceed to box 520 and repeat boxes 520 through 540 for the unselected scan modes. If all scan modes have been selected, proceed to box 560 and determine one or more broadcast intervals based on the candidate broadcast intervals for all scan modes. According to boxes 520 through 540, a set of candidate broadcast intervals is generated for each scan mode. In some embodiments, one or more broadcast intervals can be determined by determining the intersection of these scan modes with the set of candidate broadcast intervals.

[0069] In box 570, output one or more determined broadcast intervals. Each of the determined broadcast intervals produces a small detection delay in any scan mode. Use these broadcast intervals to generate new broadcast patterns.

[0070] Continue to refer to Figure 3 In block 330, at least one candidate broadcast pattern is generated based on one or more determined broadcast intervals. In some embodiments, the candidate broadcast patterns are generated using one or more broadcast intervals determined in block 320. Since multiple broadcast intervals may exist in the intersection of broadcast interval values, different broadcast interval values ​​can be combined to generate different candidate broadcast patterns.

[0071] Figure 6 A schematic flowchart of a process 600 for generating a broadcast pattern according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Process 600 may be an example implementation of block 330.

[0072] In box 610, a broadcast pattern is generated based on one or more determined broadcast intervals. If the broadcast interval determined in box 320 is a unique broadcast interval a, then that unique broadcast interval a can be generated as a single broadcast pattern for the broadcast interval. If the broadcast interval determined in box 320 includes more than one broadcast interval, then some of these broadcast intervals can be combined to generate a new broadcast pattern.

[0073] In some embodiments, the new broadcast mode may include an alternating mode. The alternating mode instructs the broadcast device to emit broadcast signals at different broadcast intervals. As an example, if two different broadcast intervals are selected: broadcast interval a and broadcast interval b, the generated broadcast mode may be such that the broadcast device emits broadcast signals in the pattern of a, b, a, b. Alternatively, in the alternating mode, one broadcast interval value may be used one or more times and then replaced with another broadcast interval value. In other words, there is a certain proportional relationship between the different broadcast intervals. For example, in a 1:2 ratio, the broadcast device may emit broadcast signals in the pattern of a, b, b, a, b, b. It should be understood that the number of different broadcast intervals selected and the ratio between them can be arbitrary, and the present disclosure places no restrictions on this.

[0074] The new broadcast mode may also include a superimposed mode. The superimposed mode instructs the broadcast device to emit broadcast signals at times that are multiples of one or more broadcast intervals. As an example, if two different broadcast intervals are selected: broadcast interval a and broadcast interval b (assuming a < b < 2a), the generated broadcast intervals may be such that the broadcast device emits broadcast signals in sequence at times a, b, 2a, 2b. It should be understood that the number of different broadcast intervals selected can be arbitrary, and the present disclosure places no restrictions on this.

[0075] In block 620, determine the equivalent broadcast interval of the broadcast mode. The equivalent broadcast interval can be determined as follows. For a single mode using a unique broadcast interval, its equivalent broadcast interval is itself. For an alternating mode using different broadcast intervals, its equivalent broadcast interval is the arithmetic mean of these broadcast intervals. For a superimposed mode using different broadcast intervals, its equivalent broadcast interval is the harmonic mean of these broadcast intervals. The following lists exemplary calculation methods for the equivalent broadcast interval:

[0076] A 单一 = a

[0077]

[0078] where a and b are the broadcast intervals constituting the broadcast mode.

[0079] In block 630, determine whether the broadcast mode meets the power consumption constraint. Specifically, the equivalent broadcast interval can be used to determine whether the power consumption constraint is met, and broadcast modes that do not meet the power consumption constraint can be filtered out.

[0080] The larger the equivalent broadcast interval in broadcast mode, the lower the power consumption; conversely, the smaller the equivalent broadcast interval, the higher the power consumption. Power consumption constraints can be determined based on the configuration and status of the wireless device. For example, a low-power constraint is used when it is desirable for the wireless device to remain online for as long as possible, while a more lenient power consumption constraint can be used when it is desirable for the wireless device to be discovered as quickly as possible.

[0081] If the broadcast pattern is determined to meet the power consumption constraints, proceed to box 640 and add the broadcast pattern to the broadcast pattern set as a candidate broadcast pattern. If the broadcast pattern is determined to not meet the power consumption constraints, proceed to box 650 in process 600 and delete the broadcast pattern that does not meet the power consumption constraints.

[0082] In some embodiments, the above-described operations regarding power consumption constraints can be standalone and not implemented as a specific implementation of action 330. That is, after the broadcast patterns are generated, the actions shown in blocks 620 to 650 above are applied separately to filter the candidate broadcast patterns generated in block 330.

[0083] Continue to refer to Figure 3 In block 340, a broadcast mode for the wireless device is determined from at least one candidate broadcast mode. In some embodiments, a broadcast mode to be deployed to the wireless device is selected from at least one candidate broadcast mode in a set of candidate broadcast modes. In some embodiments, the action of block 340 may be performed after all broadcast modes that meet power consumption constraints have been generated.

[0084] Figure 7 A schematic flowchart of a process 700 for selecting a broadcast mode according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Process 700 may be an example implementation of block 340.

[0085] In box 710, a candidate broadcast mode is selected, and the discovery delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to each scan mode is determined through simulation. Specifically, each possible scan mode in the scenario and the selected broadcast mode are input during simulation, thereby generating the discovery delay of the candidate broadcast mode under that scan mode.

[0086] In box 720, the overall detection latency is determined based on the weights of multiple scanning modes and the determined detection latency. The weights of scanning modes can depend on the likelihood of using that scanning mode in the scenario. For example, if 50% of devices support or use the first scanning mode, then the weight of the first scanning mode is determined to be 50%, and so on, to obtain the weights of other scanning modes. The specific calculation method for the overall detection latency is as follows:

[0087]

[0088] Where, ω iLet L be the weight of the i-th scanning mode. i Let be the detection delay in the i-th scanning mode.

[0089] In block 730, it is determined whether all candidate broadcast patterns have been processed. If there are still unprocessed candidate broadcast patterns, process 700 returns to block 710 and repeats the actions in blocks 710 and 720. If all candidate broadcast patterns have been processed, process 700 proceeds to block 740 to determine the broadcast pattern for the wireless device. In some embodiments, the broadcast pattern with the lowest overall discovery latency is selected as the broadcast pattern to be applied to the wireless device.

[0090] return Figure 3 The illustrated method 300 may further include a control device 110 transmitting a broadcast pattern defined in block 340 to a wireless device 120. The wireless device 120 receives the broadcast pattern and stores it in its device. Subsequently, the wireless device 120 may broadcast a signal at an appropriate time according to the stored broadcast pattern upon detecting that it is in a lost state. Specifically, the BLE host module 103 may derive the broadcast time defined by the broadcast pattern and send it to the Bluetooth controller module 104 via HCI, which then controls the Bluetooth transceiver module 106 to broadcast according to the broadcast pattern. In some embodiments, the Bluetooth host module 103 may also add a random delay when the broadcast time defined by the broadcast pattern arrives.

[0091] The foregoing has described in detail a scheme for controlling the broadcasting of wireless devices according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. More specifically, a scheme for generating broadcast patterns for wireless devices is provided. In some scenarios, there are scanning devices that scan broadcast signals according to scanning patterns to discover wireless devices. To enable wireless devices to be discovered in a timely manner, this scheme proposes to comprehensively consider the existence of multiple possible scanning patterns in the scenario and utilize the characteristics of broadcast intervals and discovery delays to generate a broadcast pattern with better performance. Based on this approach, the generated broadcast pattern can achieve a lower overall discovery delay, helping scanning devices to discover peer devices faster and optimizing the user experience of discovering a specified wireless device using scanning devices with different scanning patterns. In some embodiments, embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a regularly varying broadcast scheme that combines more than one broadcast interval with low discovery delay to form alternating broadcast patterns and superimposed broadcast patterns, thereby combining multiple broadcast interval values ​​with low discovery delays for broadcasting under a given power consumption constraint. Thus, this new broadcast pattern better utilizes the characteristic that different broadcast interval values ​​have different discovery delays under different scanning patterns, making the overall discovery delay better than simply using a single broadcast interval value.

[0092] Figure 8A schematic block diagram of an apparatus 800 for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. The apparatus 800 can be implemented in, for example... Figure 1A The control device 110 is shown. As shown, the device 800 includes a detection delay generation unit 910, a broadcast interval determination unit 820, a broadcast mode generation unit 830, and a broadcast mode determination unit 840.

[0093] The discovery delay generation unit 910 is configured to generate a discovery delay associated with a broadcast interval in a set of broadcast intervals based on multiple scanning modes. The discovery delay includes the time required for a broadcast signal emitted by a wireless device at a broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the multiple scanning modes. The broadcast interval determination unit 820 is configured to determine one or more broadcast intervals from the set of broadcast intervals based on the discovery delay. The broadcast pattern generation unit 830 is configured to generate at least one candidate broadcast pattern based on the determined one or more broadcast intervals. The broadcast pattern determination unit 840 is configured to determine a broadcast pattern for the wireless device from at least one candidate broadcast pattern.

[0094] In some embodiments, the apparatus 800 further includes a communication unit (not shown) configured to transmit the determined broadcast pattern to a wireless device.

[0095] In some embodiments, the scanning mode among multiple scanning modes specifies a scanning interval and a scanning window within the scanning interval. The scanning mode can be applied to the scanning device so that the scanning device listens for broadcast signals from the wireless device within the scanning window.

[0096] In some embodiments, the discovery delay generation unit 910 can be configured to determine the discovery delay corresponding to the broadcast interval in each of a plurality of scan modes by performing simulation. The discovery delay can be associated with a given percentile value.

[0097] In some embodiments, the broadcast interval determination unit 820 may be configured to: determine a threshold for the discovery delay for each of a plurality of scanning modes; determine at least one candidate broadcast interval from a set of broadcast intervals based on the threshold; and determine one or more broadcast intervals based on at least one candidate broadcast interval for each of the plurality of scanning modes.

[0098] In some embodiments, the broadcast interval determination unit 820 may also be configured to determine one or more broadcast intervals by the intersection of at least one candidate broadcast intervals for each of a plurality of scanning modes.

[0099] In some embodiments, the broadcast interval determination unit 820 may also be configured to determine a threshold based on a tolerance parameter and the minimum discovery delay for the scanning mode.

[0100] In some embodiments, the broadcast mode generation unit 830 may also be configured to generate at least one of the following: an alternating mode, which instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at different broadcast intervals in one or more broadcast intervals; and an overlay mode, which instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at multiples of one or more broadcast intervals.

[0101] In some embodiments, the apparatus 800 may further include a filtering unit. The filtering unit may be configured to determine the equivalent broadcast interval of at least one candidate broadcast mode; and to filter the at least one candidate broadcast mode based on the equivalent broadcast interval and the power consumption constraints of the wireless device.

[0102] In some embodiments, the broadcast mode determination unit 840 may also be configured to: determine the overall discovery delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to a plurality of scanning modes for each of at least one candidate broadcast mode; and select the candidate broadcast mode with the minimum overall discovery delay among at least one candidate broadcast modes as the broadcast mode for the wireless device.

[0103] In some embodiments, the broadcast mode determination unit 840 may also be configured to: determine the discovery delay of candidate broadcast modes relative to each scan mode through simulation; and determine the comprehensive discovery delay based on the weights of multiple scan modes and the determined discovery delay.

[0104] Figure 9 A schematic block diagram of an example device 900 that can be used to implement embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Device 900 can be used to implement, for example... Figure 1A The control device 110 is shown. As shown, device 900 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 901, which can perform various appropriate actions and processes according to computer program instructions stored in read-only memory (ROM) 902 or loaded from storage unit 908 into random access memory (RAM) 903. RAM 903 can also store various programs and data required for the operation of device 800. CPU 901, ROM 902, and RAM 903 are interconnected via bus 904. Input / output (I / O) interface 905 is also connected to bus 904.

[0105] Multiple components in device 900 are connected to I / O interface 905, including: input unit 906, such as keyboard, mouse, etc.; output unit 907, such as various types of displays, speakers, etc.; storage unit 908, etc.; and communication unit 909, such as various types of wireless communication transceivers, etc. Communication unit 909 allows device 800 to exchange information / data with other devices through computer networks such as the Internet and / or various telecommunications networks.

[0106] The various processes and procedures described above, such as processes or methods 300, 400, 500, 500, 600, and / or 700, may be executed by processing unit 901. For example, in some embodiments, method processes 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, and / or 600 may be implemented as computer software programs tangibly contained in a machine-readable medium, such as storage unit 908. In some embodiments, part or all of the computer program may be loaded and / or installed on device 900 via ROM 902 and / or communication unit 909. When the computer program is loaded into RAM 903 and executed by CPU 901, one or more actions of processes 200, 300, 400, 500, and / or 600 described above may be performed.

[0107] This disclosure can be a method, apparatus, system, and / or computer program product. A computer program product may include a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program instructions loaded thereon for performing various aspects of this disclosure.

[0108] Computer-readable storage media can be tangible devices capable of holding and storing instructions for use by an instruction execution device. Computer-readable storage media can be, for example—but not limited to—electrical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, optical storage devices, electromagnetic storage devices, semiconductor storage devices, or any suitable combination thereof. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of computer-readable storage media include: portable computer disks, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), static random access memory (SRAM), portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital multifunction disc (DVD), memory sticks, floppy disks, mechanical encoding devices, such as punch cards or recessed protrusions storing instructions thereon, and any suitable combination thereof. The computer-readable storage media used herein are not to be construed as transient signals themselves, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through waveguides or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses through fiber optic cables), or electrical signals transmitted through wires.

[0109] The computer-readable program instructions described herein can be downloaded from computer-readable storage media to various computing / processing devices, or downloaded via a network, such as the Internet, local area network, wide area network, and / or wireless network, to an external computer or external storage device. The network may include copper transmission cables, fiber optic transmission, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers, and / or edge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing / processing device receives the computer-readable program instructions from the network and forwards them to the computer-readable storage media in the respective computing / processing device.

[0110] Computer program instructions used to perform the operations of this disclosure may be assembly instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state setting data, or source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Smalltalk, C++, etc., and conventional procedural programming languages ​​such as "e" languages ​​or similar programming languages. The computer-readable program instructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partially on the user's computer, as a standalone software package, partially on the user's computer and partially on a remote computer, or entirely on a remote computer or server. In cases involving a remote computer, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer via any type of network—including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or may be connected to an external computer (e.g., via the Internet using an Internet service provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry, such as programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or programmable logic arrays (PLAs), is personalized by utilizing state information from the computer-readable program instructions to implement various aspects of this disclosure.

[0111] Various aspects of this disclosure are described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of this disclosure. It should be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer-readable program instructions.

[0112] These computer-readable program instructions can be provided to a processing unit of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine such that, when executed by the processing unit of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, they create means for implementing the functions / actions specified in one or more blocks of the flowchart and / or block diagram. These computer-readable program instructions can also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium that causes a computer, programmable data processing apparatus, and / or other device to operate in a particular manner. Thus, the computer-readable medium storing the instructions comprises an article of manufacture that includes instructions for implementing aspects of the functions / actions specified in one or more blocks of the flowchart and / or block diagram.

[0113] Computer-readable program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby causing the instructions executed on the computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to perform the functions / actions specified in one or more boxes of a flowchart and / or block diagram.

[0114] The flowcharts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. In this regard, each block in a flowchart or block diagram may represent a module, segment, or portion of an instruction, which contains one or more executable instructions for implementing a specified logical function. In some alternative implementations, the functions marked in the blocks may occur in a different order than those marked in the drawings. For example, two consecutive blocks may actually be executed substantially in parallel, and they may sometimes be executed in reverse order, depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each block in the block diagrams and / or flowcharts, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and / or flowcharts, may be implemented using a dedicated hardware-based system that performs the specified function or action, or using a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0115] Various embodiments of this disclosure have been described above. These descriptions are exemplary and not exhaustive, nor are they limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein is chosen to best explain the principles, practical applications, or improvements to the technology in the market, or to enable others skilled in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device, comprising: A discovery delay is generated based on multiple scanning modes and associated with broadcast intervals in a set of broadcast intervals. The discovery delay includes the time required for the broadcast signal emitted by the wireless device at the broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the multiple scanning modes. Based on the discovery delay associated with the broadcast interval, at least one candidate broadcast interval is determined for each of the plurality of scanning modes; Based on the at least one candidate broadcast interval of each of the plurality of scanning modes, one or more broadcast intervals are determined; At least one candidate broadcast pattern is generated based on one or more determined broadcast intervals; as well as A broadcast mode for the wireless device is determined from the at least one candidate broadcast modes.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Determining at least one candidate broadcast interval for each of the plurality of scan modes includes: Determine the threshold for the detection delay for the scanning mode; and Based on the threshold and the discovery delay associated with the broadcast interval, at least one candidate broadcast interval is determined from the set of broadcast intervals.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Determining the one or more broadcast intervals includes: The one or more broadcast intervals are determined based on the intersection of the at least one candidate broadcast interval of each of the multiple scanning modes.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein, Determining the threshold for the detection delay for the scanning mode includes: The threshold is determined based on the tolerance parameter and the minimum detection delay for the scanning mode.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Generating at least one candidate broadcast pattern includes generating at least one of the following: An alternating mode, wherein the alternating mode instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at different broadcast intervals among the one or more broadcast intervals; as well as Overlay mode, which instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at multiples of the one or more broadcast intervals.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Determine the equivalent broadcast interval for the at least one candidate broadcast pattern; as well as The at least one candidate broadcast mode is filtered based on the equivalent broadcast interval and the power consumption constraints of the wireless device.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Determining the broadcast mode for the wireless device from the at least one candidate broadcast mode includes: For each of the at least one candidate broadcast patterns, determine the combined discovery delay of the candidate broadcast pattern relative to the plurality of scanning patterns; and The candidate broadcast mode with the minimum integrated discovery delay among the at least one candidate broadcast modes is selected as the broadcast mode for the wireless device.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein, Determining the overall detection delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to the plurality of scanning modes includes: The detection delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to each scan mode was determined through simulation; and The overall detection delay is determined based on the weights of the multiple scanning modes and the determined detection delay.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The scanning mode of the plurality of scanning modes specifies a scanning interval and a scanning window within the scanning interval, and the scanning mode can be applied to the scanning device such that the scanning device listens for broadcast signals from the wireless device within the scanning window.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Determining the discovery delay associated with broadcast intervals in the broadcast interval set based on multiple scanning patterns includes: For each of the plurality of scanning modes, a detection delay corresponding to the broadcast interval under that scanning mode is determined by performing a simulation, the detection delay being associated with a given percentile value.

11. An electronic device, comprising: Processing unit and memory, The processing unit executes instructions stored in the memory, causing the electronic device to perform actions, including: A discovery delay is generated based on multiple scanning modes and associated with broadcast intervals in a set of broadcast intervals. The discovery delay includes the time required for a broadcast signal emitted by a wireless device at the broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the multiple scanning modes. Based on the discovery delay associated with the broadcast interval, at least one candidate broadcast interval is determined for each of the plurality of scanning modes; Based on the at least one candidate broadcast interval of each of the plurality of scanning modes, one or more broadcast intervals are determined; At least one candidate broadcast pattern is generated based on one or more determined broadcast intervals; and A broadcast mode for the wireless device is determined from the at least one candidate broadcast modes.

12. The electronic device according to claim 11, wherein, Determining at least one candidate broadcast interval for each of the plurality of scan modes includes: Determine the threshold for the detection delay for the scanning mode; and Based on the threshold and the discovery delay associated with the broadcast interval, at least one candidate broadcast interval is determined from the set of broadcast intervals.

13. The electronic device according to claim 11, wherein, Determining the one or more broadcast intervals includes: The one or more broadcast intervals are determined based on the intersection of the at least one candidate broadcast interval of each of the multiple scanning modes.

14. The electronic device according to claim 12, wherein, The thresholds for determining the detection delay include: The threshold is determined based on the tolerance parameter and the minimum detection delay for the scanning mode.

15. The electronic device according to claim 11, wherein, Generating at least one candidate broadcast pattern includes generating at least one of the following: An alternating mode, wherein the alternating mode instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at different broadcast intervals among the one or more broadcast intervals; as well as Overlay mode, which instructs the wireless device to broadcast signals at multiples of the one or more broadcast intervals.

16. The electronic device according to claim 11, further comprising: Determine the equivalent broadcast interval for the at least one candidate broadcast pattern; as well as The at least one candidate broadcast mode is filtered based on the equivalent broadcast interval and the power consumption constraints of the wireless device.

17. The electronic device according to claim 11, wherein, Determining the broadcast mode for the wireless device from the at least one candidate broadcast mode includes: For each of the at least one candidate broadcast patterns, determine the combined discovery delay of the candidate broadcast pattern relative to the plurality of scanning patterns; and The candidate broadcast mode with the minimum integrated discovery delay among the at least one candidate broadcast modes is selected as the broadcast mode for the wireless device.

18. The electronic device according to claim 17, wherein, Determining the overall detection delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to the plurality of scanning modes includes: The detection delay of the candidate broadcast mode relative to each scan mode was determined through simulation; and The overall detection delay is determined based on the weights of the multiple scanning modes and the determined detection delay.

19. An apparatus for controlling the broadcasting of a wireless device, comprising: The discovery delay generation unit is configured to generate a discovery delay associated with a broadcast interval in a set of broadcast intervals based on multiple scanning modes. The discovery delay includes the time required for the broadcast signal emitted by the wireless device at the broadcast interval to be discovered by a scanning device having one of the multiple scanning modes. The broadcast interval determination unit is configured to determine at least one candidate broadcast interval for each of the plurality of scanning modes based on the discovery delay associated with the broadcast interval, and to determine one or more broadcast intervals based on the at least one candidate broadcast interval for each of the plurality of scanning modes. The broadcast pattern generation unit is configured to generate at least one candidate broadcast pattern based on one or more determined broadcast intervals; as well as The broadcast mode determination unit is configured to determine a broadcast mode for the wireless device from the at least one candidate broadcast modes.

20. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon one or more computer instructions, wherein the one or more computer instructions are executed by a processor to cause the processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

21. A computer program product comprising machine-executable instructions that, when executed by a device, cause the device to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

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