Method for improving wireless performance using auxiliary radio

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communication are described. A wireless device operating in a wireless local area network may include a secondary radio and a primary radio, and may operate in both a secondary radio mode and a primary radio mode. The secondary radio may support both transmission and reception or may support only reception. The wireless device may indicate a parameter associated with a secondary radio mode and / or a transition from the secondary radio mode to a primary radio mode. The secondary radio may perform an additional function when the wireless device communicates with a second wireless device over a wireless link using the primary radio. For example, the secondary radio may monitor channel metrics of the wireless link, receive and / or transmit control communications with the second wireless device, receive and / or transmit high importance data communications, or scan and / or initiate connections via other wireless channels.

Description

[0001] Cross - Reference to Related Applications

[0002] This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Patent Application No. 18 / 054,139, filed on November 9, 2022, by ASTERJADHI et al., titled "METHODS FOR IMPROVING WIRELESS PERFORMANCE USING AUXILIARY RADIOS", which is assigned to the assignee of the present application and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Background Art

[0003] The following relates to wireless communication, including methods for improving wireless performance using auxiliary radios.

[0004] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcasting, etc. These systems can be multi - access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources, such as time, frequency, and power. A wireless network (e.g., a wireless local area network (WLAN), such as a Wi - Fi (i.e., Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11) network) can include an access point (AP) that can communicate with one or more stations (STAs) or mobile devices. The AP can be coupled to a network such as the Internet and can enable mobile devices to communicate via the network (or communicate with other devices coupled to the access point). Wireless devices can communicate bidirectionally with network devices. For example, in a WLAN, an STA can communicate with an associated AP via a downlink (DL) and an uplink (UL). The DL (or forward link) can refer to the communication link from the AP to the station, while the UL (or reverse link) can refer to the communication link from the station to the AP. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The described techniques relate to improved methods, systems, devices, or apparatuses that support methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance. Generally speaking, the described techniques provide a wireless device operating in a wireless local area network (WLAN), which may include an auxiliary radio and a primary radio, and may operate in both an auxiliary radio mode and a primary radio mode. The auxiliary radio may support both transmission and reception (Tx / Rx) or may support reception only (Rx only). The wireless device may indicate (e.g., via broadcast) to other wireless devices parameters associated with the auxiliary radio mode and / or associated with transitioning from the auxiliary radio mode to the primary radio mode for a given wireless link. For example, the wireless device may indicate a message format for the auxiliary radio mode. The wireless device may indicate a transition delay associated with the time to switch from the auxiliary mode to the primary radio mode for a wireless link. A second wireless device may schedule data communication with the wireless device based on the transition delay. The transition delay may depend on whether the auxiliary radio supports Tx / Rx or Rx only. When the wireless device communicates with a second wireless device on a wireless link using the primary radio, the auxiliary radio may perform additional functions. For example, the auxiliary radio may be used to monitor channel metrics of the wireless link, receive and / or send control communication with the second wireless device, receive and / or send high-importance data communication (such as for redundancy purposes), or scan and / or initiate connections via other wireless channels. A method for wireless communication at a first wireless device is described. The method may include: transmitting, at the first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operating in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operating in a second radio mode for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device that is different from the first radio; receiving, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and receiving, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device, a data packet according to the one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0006] Describes an apparatus for wireless communication at a first wireless device. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit, at the first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; receive, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and receive, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device, a data packet according to the one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0007] Describes another apparatus for wireless communication at a first wireless device. The apparatus may include: means for transmitting, at the first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; means for receiving, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and means for receiving, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device, a data packet according to the one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0008] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a first wireless device is described. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: send, at the first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; receive, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and receive, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device, a data packet in accordance with the one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0009] In some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, receiving control information may include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, the one or more parameters including the message format.

[0010] In some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, sending an indication of one or more parameters may include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending an indication of a delay associated with the transition, the reception of the data packet being at least the delay time after the reception of the control signaling.

[0011] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending an indication that the auxiliary radio mode may be associated with the second radio being in a sleep mode, the delay being associated with the transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

[0012] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending an indication that the auxiliary radio mode may be associated with the second radio operating on a second wireless link, the delay being associated with the transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to the wireless link.

[0013] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving padding on the wireless link from the second wireless device during a period corresponding to the delay after the reception of the control signaling, the padding being included in the same packet containing the control signaling or in a subsequent packet.

[0014] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending an acknowledgment message to a second wireless device via a first radio in response to control signaling, the latency associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the first radio and having a duration of at least one short inter-frame space.

[0015] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending an acknowledgment message to a second wireless device via a second radio in response to control signaling, the latency associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the second radio and having a duration of at least a set of multiple short inter-frame spaces, the transmission time of the acknowledgment message, and the preamble duration.

[0016] In some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, a set of multiple channels is scanned via a first radio when communicating with a second wireless device over a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0017] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: performing an association process with a third wireless device via a channel in the set of multiple channels via the first radio in response to the scanning of the set of multiple channels.

[0018] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: identifying one or more channel metrics of a wireless link via the first radio when communicating with a second wireless device over a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0019] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending an indication of one or more channel metrics via the first radio when communicating with a second wireless device over a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0020] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving one or more control messages from a second wireless device over a second wireless link via a first radio when operating in an auxiliary radio mode while communicating one or more data packets with the second wireless device over a wireless link via a second radio when operating in a second radio mode.

[0021] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving, via a second radio, a set of data packets on a wireless link from a second wireless device when operating in a second radio mode, and receiving, via a first radio, a subset of the set of data packets on a second wireless link from the second wireless device when operating in an auxiliary radio mode.

[0022] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: while communicating one or more second data packets to a second wireless device via a second radio when operating in a second radio mode on a wireless link, sending one or more data packets to the second wireless device via a first radio on a second wireless link when operating in an auxiliary radio mode.

[0023] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: transitioning from operating in a second radio mode on a second wireless link to operating in an auxiliary radio mode on the second wireless link in response to control signaling, and transitioning from operating in an auxiliary radio mode on a wireless link to operating in a second radio mode on the wireless link in response to control signaling.

[0024] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving a second control signaling that triggers a second transition from a second radio mode on a wireless link to an auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link from a second wireless device when operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link, and transitioning from operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link in response to the second control signaling.

[0025] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: transitioning from operating in a second radio mode on a wireless link to operating in an auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link after receiving a data packet.

[0026] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving an indication that identifies that a second wireless device may operate in a second radio mode on a wireless link; and transitioning from operating in an auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to operating in a second radio mode on the wireless link in response to the identification.

[0027] In some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, one or more data packets in a message format associated with an auxiliary radio mode are communicated over a wireless link when a first wireless device may be in the auxiliary radio mode prior to receiving control signaling.

[0028] A method for wireless communication at a second wireless device is described. The method may include: receiving, from a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition at the first wireless device from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication over a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication over the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; sending, to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device over the wireless link, control signaling triggering a transition from the auxiliary radio mode over the wireless link to the second radio mode over the wireless link; and sending, after sending the control signaling, a data packet over the wireless link to the first wireless device via the second radio according to the one or more parameters.

[0029] An apparatus for wireless communication at a second wireless device is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus: to receive, from a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition at the first wireless device from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication over a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication over the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; to send, to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device over the wireless link, control signaling triggering a transition from the auxiliary radio mode over the wireless link to the second radio mode over the wireless link; and to send, after sending the control signaling, a data packet over the wireless link to the first wireless device via the second radio according to the one or more parameters.

[0030] Describes another apparatus for wireless communication at a second wireless device. The apparatus may include: means for receiving, from a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition at the first wireless device from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; means for sending, to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link, control signaling triggering a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and means for sending, after the sending of the control signaling, a data packet according to the one or more parameters to the first wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio.

[0031] Describes a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a second wireless device. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: receive, from a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition at the first wireless device from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; send, to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link, control signaling triggering a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and send, after the sending of the control signaling, a data packet according to the one or more parameters to the first wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio.

[0032] In some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, sending control information may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: sending control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, the one or more parameters including the message format.

[0033] In some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, receiving an indication of one or more parameters may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: receiving an indication of a delay associated with the transition, the sending of the data packet being at least the delay time after the sending of the control signaling.

[0034] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving, from a first wireless device, an indication that an auxiliary radio mode may be associated with a second radio being in a sleep mode, the latency being associated with a transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

[0035] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving, from a first wireless device, an indication that an auxiliary radio mode may be associated with a second radio operating on a second wireless link, the latency being associated with a transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to the wireless link.

[0036] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending, to the first wireless device, one or more padding frames during a period corresponding to a latency after transmission of control signaling.

[0037] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving, from the first wireless device, an indication of one or more channel metrics of a wireless link on a second wireless link when communicating with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0038] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending, to the first wireless device, one or more control messages on a second wireless link when communicating one or more data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0039] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: sending, on a wireless link, a set of data packets to the first wireless device, and sending, on a second wireless link, a subset of the set of data packets to the first wireless device.

[0040] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving, from the first wireless device, one or more data packets on a second wireless link when communicating one or more second data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0041] Figure 1 A block diagram of an example wireless communication network that illustrates an example method for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance.

[0042] Figure 2 Illustrates an example protocol data unit (PDU) that can be used for communication between a wireless access point (AP) and one or more wireless stations (STA) and supports a method for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance.

[0043] Figure 3 Illustrates an example physical PDU (PPDU) that can be used for communication between a wireless AP and one or more wireless STAs and supports a method for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance.

[0044] Figure 4 Illustrates a hierarchical format of an example PPDU that can be used for communication between a wireless AP and one or more wireless STAs and supports a method for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance.

[0045] Figure 5 Illustrates an example wireless communication system including a first wireless device and a second wireless device, where the first wireless device includes an auxiliary radio and a primary radio, and the second wireless device communicates with the first wireless device.

[0046] Figure 6A Illustrates an example timing diagram of communication through a single wireless link at a wireless device including a primary radio and a receive-only capable auxiliary radio.

[0047] Figure 6B Illustrates an example timing diagram of communication through a single wireless link at a wireless device including a primary radio and a receive-and-transmit capable auxiliary radio.

[0048] Figure 7A Illustrates an example timing diagram of communication through multiple wireless links at a wireless device including a primary radio and a receive-only capable auxiliary radio.

[0049] Figure 7B Illustrates an example timing diagram of communication through multiple wireless links at a wireless device including a primary radio and a receive-and-transmit capable auxiliary radio.

[0050] Figure 8 Illustrates an example process flow that supports communication between at least two wireless devices, where one of the wireless devices includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio).

[0051] Figure 9 and Figure 10 Illustrates a block diagram of a device including an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio) and supporting a method for using the auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance.

[0052] Figure 11A block diagram of a communication manager that illustrates a method for improving wireless performance at a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio, such as a primary radio.

[0053] Figure 12 A diagram of a system that includes a device according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure, the device including an auxiliary radio and a second radio, such as a primary radio, and supporting a method for improving wireless performance using the auxiliary radio.

[0054] Figure 13 and Figure 14 A block diagram of a device that illustrates a method for improving wireless performance using a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio, such as a primary radio.

[0055] Figure 15 A block diagram of a communication manager that illustrates a method for improving wireless performance using a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio, such as a primary radio.

[0056] Figure 16 A diagram of a system that includes a device that supports a method for improving wireless performance using a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio, such as a primary radio.

[0057] Figure 17 and Figure 18 A flowchart that illustrates a method that shows a method for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] The following description is directed to certain specific examples in an attempt to describe innovative aspects of the present disclosure. However, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that the teachings herein can be applied in many different ways. Some or all of the described examples can be in accordance with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards, IEEE 802.15 standards, as defined by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) implemented in any device, system, or network that transmits and receives radio frequency (RF) signals according to one or more of the following standards, such as the standards of the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), Long Term Evolution (LTE), 3G, 4G, or 5G (New Radio (NR)). The described examples can be implemented in any device, system, or network that can transmit and receive RF signals according to one or more of the following technologies or techniques: Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), Single Carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), Space Division Multiple Access (SDMA), Rate-Split Multiple Access (RSMA), Multi-User Sharing Access (MUSA), Single-User (SU) Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO), and Multi-User (MU) MIMO. The described examples can also be implemented using other wireless communication protocols or RF signals suitable for use in one or more of Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs), Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWANs), Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMANs), or Internet of Things (IoT) networks.

[0059] A wireless device such as a station (STA) or an access point (AP) in a WLAN communicates with other wireless devices such as other STAs or APs via the primary radio of the wireless device. To conserve power at the wireless device, the primary radio can enter a sleep mode. The wireless device can include a wake-up radio that monitors and receives wake-up signals. The reception of a wake-up signal triggers the primary radio to exit the sleep mode. However, the wake-up radio is only capable of receiving (not transmitting) and may be limited to receiving wake-up radio frames. Some wireless devices support Enhanced Multi-Link Single Radio (EMLSR) operation, where an auxiliary radio can monitor an indication to transition the primary radio from one wireless link to another wireless link. However, in EMLSR operation, the only operation of the auxiliary radio is to monitor a wireless link for a control frame indicating to switch the primary radio to that wireless link. In EMLSR operation, the auxiliary radio can thus only receive specific frames (such as an initial control frame) when monitoring and can only support a receive-only (Rx-only) mode.

[0060] Various aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to a wireless device operating in a WLAN, which may include a secondary radio and a primary radio and may operate in a secondary radio mode and a primary radio mode. The secondary radio mode may support lower data rate communications compared to the primary radio mode. For example, the message format for the secondary radio mode may be a non-high throughput (non-HT) PPDU and / or a lower data rate such as <= 24 Mbps. Some aspects more particularly relate to the operation of the secondary radio and the primary radio, and the transitions that occur between the secondary radio and the primary radio over a wireless link, in order to introduce transition rules applicable to different types of secondary radios. In some examples, the secondary radio may support both transmission and reception (Tx / Rx operation mode). In some other examples, the secondary radio may support reception only (Rx-only operation mode).

[0061] In some examples, the wireless device may support communication over a single wireless link or over multiple wireless links (the wireless device may be a multi-link device (MLD)). If the wireless device is an MLD, the wireless device may communicate over one wireless link using the primary radio and may communicate over one or more other wireless links using one or more secondary radios. In an MLD scenario, for example in response to control signaling received via a secondary radio over a second wireless link, the wireless device may transition the primary radio from the second wireless link to the first wireless link and may correspondingly transition the secondary radio from the first wireless link to the second wireless link. In an MLD scenario where the secondary radio is Rx-only (Aux-Rx mode), the wireless device may send and receive communications over the first wireless link using the primary radio and may receive communications over the second wireless link using the secondary radio. In an MLD scenario where the secondary radio has Tx / Rx capabilities (Aux-Tx / Rx), the wireless device may send and receive communications over the first wireless link using the primary radio and may send and receive communications over the second wireless link using the secondary radio. In some other examples where the wireless device is not an MLD, for example in response to control signaling received via a secondary radio over a wireless link, the wireless device may transition from the secondary radio mode to the primary radio mode over a single wireless link. The wireless device may be a STA or an AP. For example, the wireless device may be an AP MLD or a non-AP MLD (such as a STA capable of multi-link operation (MLO)).

[0062] In some examples, a wireless device may indicate (e.g., via broadcast) to other wireless devices parameters associated with an auxiliary radio mode and / or associated with transitioning from an auxiliary radio mode to a primary radio mode for a given wireless link. For example, the wireless device may indicate a message format for the auxiliary radio mode. For example, the indicated message format may indicate a PPDU format (such as a non-HT PPDU) or a supported data rate (such as <= 24 Mbps). As another example, the wireless device may indicate a transition delay associated with the time to transition from the auxiliary mode to the primary radio mode for the wireless link. In some examples, a second wireless device may schedule data communication with the wireless device based on the transition delay. The transition delay may depend on whether the auxiliary radio supports Tx / Rx or only Rx. For example, if the auxiliary radio supports Tx / Rx, the auxiliary radio may send an acknowledgment message in response to a request to transition to the primary radio mode for the wireless link, which may extend the transition delay. Additionally, the transition delay may depend on whether the primary radio is transitioning from a sleep mode or from a different wireless link.

[0063] Certain aspects of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented to realize one or more of the following potential advantages. In some examples, when a wireless device communicates with a second wireless device via a wireless link using a primary radio, an auxiliary radio that can operate with reduced power consumption and cost compared to the primary radio can perform additional functions. In some examples, when the primary radio is otherwise occupied by communicating with the second wireless device via the wireless link, the wireless communication device can use the auxiliary radio to perform seamless passive scanning and passive statistic value collection via a second wireless link. In some other examples, the auxiliary radio can be enabled to perform active scanning and roaming without the participation of the primary radio and also collect and report statistic values. In some other examples, the auxiliary radio can enable the wireless device to perform seamless active scanning and roaming. In some examples, the additional functions can further enable the wireless device to use the auxiliary radio to monitor ongoing traffic for attacks and / or conflicts. In some examples, the wireless communication device can implement auxiliary data reception in parallel with primary radio data transfer. In some other examples, the wireless communication device can implement auxiliary radio data transfer in parallel with primary radio data transfer without the participation of the primary radio. The additional functions can depend on whether the auxiliary radio supports Tx / Rx or only Rx and / or whether the wireless device is an MLD or capable of supporting communication via only a single wireless link. For example, in Aux-Rx mode, the auxiliary radio can be used to monitor the channel metrics of a wireless link, and in Aux Tx / Rx mode, the auxiliary radio can monitor the channel metrics of the wireless link and use the auxiliary radio to send a report including the channel metrics. In Aux-Rx mode, an MLD can use the auxiliary radio to receive control communication or high-importance data communication with the second wireless device using the second wireless link (such as for redundancy purposes), and in Aux-Tx / Rx mode, an MLD can use the auxiliary radio to receive and send control communication or high-importance data communication. In Aux-Rx mode, an MLD can scan for connections via other wireless channels, and in Aux-Tx / Rx mode, an MLD can use the auxiliary radio to scan and initiate connections on other wireless channels.

[0064] Aspects of the present disclosure are initially described in the context of a wireless communication network. Aspects of the present disclosure are further illustrated by and described with reference to PDUs, PPDUs, wireless communication systems, timing diagrams, and process flows. Aspects of the present disclosure are further illustrated by and described with reference to apparatus diagrams, system diagrams, and flowcharts relating to methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance.

[0065] Figure 1A block diagram illustrating an example wireless communication network that supports methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. 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) (and will be referred to hereinafter as WLAN 100). For example, WLAN 100 may be a network that implements at least one of the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standards family (such as the standards defined by the IEEE 802.11-2020 specification or its revisions, including but not limited to 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba, 802.11bd, 802.11be, 802.11bf, and the 802.11 revisions associated with Wi-Fi 8). WLAN 100 may include numerous wireless communication devices, such as wireless AP 102 and multiple wireless STAs 104. Although Figure 1 only one AP 102 is shown in Figure 1 the figure, the WLAN network 100 may also include multiple APs 102.

[0066] The AP 102 shown may represent various different types of APs, including but not limited to enterprise-level APs, single-band APs, dual-band APs, stand-alone APs, software-enabled APs (softAPs), and multi-link APs. The coverage area and capacity of a cellular network (such as LTE, 5G NR, etc.) may be further improved by small cells supported by APs acting as micro base stations. In addition, dedicated cellular networks may be set up through wireless regional networks using small cells.

[0067] A single AP 102 and the associated set of STAs 104 may be referred to as a basic service set (BSS), which is managed by the corresponding AP 102. Figure 1Additionally shown is an example coverage area 108 of the AP 102, which may represent the basic service area (BSA) of the WLAN 100. The BSS may be identified or indicated to users by a service set identifier (SSID), and to other devices by a basic service set identifier (BSSID), which may be the media access control (MAC) address of the AP 102. The AP 102 may periodically broadcast beacon frames (″beacons″) including the BSSID so that any STA 104 within the wireless range of the AP 102 can ″associate″ or re - associate with the AP 102 to establish a corresponding communication link 106 (hereinafter also referred to as a ″Wi - Fi link″) with the AP 102 or maintain the communication link 106 with the AP.

[0068] To establish a communication link 106 with the AP 102, each STA 104 is configured to perform passive or active scanning operations (″scanning″) on frequency channels in 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 sent by the corresponding AP 102 at periodic time intervals called target beacon transmission times (TBTTs) (measured in time units (TUs), where one TU may be equal to 1024 microseconds (μs)). To perform active scanning, the STA 104 generates probe requests and sequentially sends these probe requests on each channel to be scanned, and listens for probe responses from the AP 102. Each STA 104 may identify, determine, ascertain, or select the AP 102 to associate with based on the scanning information obtained through passive or active scanning, and perform authentication and association operations to establish a communication link 106 with the selected AP 102. The AP 102 assigns an association identifier (AID) to the STA 104 at the end of the association operation, and the AP 102 uses this association identifier (AID) to track the STA 104.

[0069] In some cases, STA 104 may form a network without an AP 102 or without other equipment other than STA 104 itself. An example of such a network is an ad hoc network (or wireless ad hoc network). An ad hoc network may alternatively be referred to as a mesh network or a peer-to-peer (P2P) network. In some cases, an ad hoc network may be implemented within a larger wireless network such as WLAN 100. In such an example, although STA 104 may be able to communicate with each other through AP 102 using communication link 106, STA 104 may also communicate directly with each other via direct wireless communication link 110. Additionally, two STA 104 may communicate via direct communication link 110 regardless of whether the two STA 104 are associated with and served by the same AP 102. In such an ad hoc system, one or more STA 104 may assume the role played by AP 102 in a BSS. Such STA 104 may be referred to as a group owner (GO) and may coordinate transmissions within the ad hoc network. Examples of direct wireless communication link 110 include Wi-Fi Direct connections, connections established through the use of Wi-Fi Tunnel Direct Link Setup (TDLS) links, and other P2P group connections.

[0070] AP 102 and STA 104 may operate and communicate (via respective communication links 106) according to one or more of the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standards families. These standards define the WLAN radio and baseband protocols for the PHY and MAC layers. AP 102 and STA 104 send and receive wireless communications (also referred to hereinafter as "Wi-Fi communications" or "wireless packets") to and from each other in the form of PPDUs. The AP 102 and STA 104 in WLAN 100 may send PPDUs on an unlicensed spectrum, which may be a part of a spectrum including bands traditionally used by Wi-Fi technology (such as the 2.4 GHz band, 5 GHz band, 60 GHz band, 3.6 GHz band, and 900 MHz band). Some examples of AP 102 and STA 104 described herein may also communicate in other bands (such as the 5.9 GHz band and 6 GHz band) that support both licensed and unlicensed communications. AP 102 and STA 104 may also communicate in other bands such as shared licensed bands, where multiple operators may have licenses to operate in one or more of the same or overlapping bands.

[0071] Each frequency band in the frequency band may include multiple sub - bands or frequency channels. For example, PPDUs compliant with the IEEE 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax, and 802.11be standard revisions may be transmitted on the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, or 6 GHz frequency bands, where each frequency band is divided into multiple 20 - MHz channels. Thus, these PPDUs are transmitted on physical channels with a minimum bandwidth of 20 MHz, but larger channels can be formed through channel bonding. For example, PPDUs may be transmitted on physical channels with bandwidths of 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz, or 320 MHz by bonding multiple 20 - MHz channels together.

[0072] Each PPDU is a composite structure that includes a PHY preamble and a payload in the form of a PHY service data unit (PSDU). The information provided in the preamble can be used by the receiving device to decode the subsequent data in the PSDU. In instances where the PPDU is transmitted on the bonded channels, the preamble field may be replicated and transmitted in each of the multiple component channels. The PHY preamble may include both a legacy part (or "legacy preamble") and a non - legacy part (or "non - legacy preamble"). The legacy preamble can be used for other purposes such as packet detection, automatic gain control, and channel estimation. The legacy preamble is also typically used to maintain compatibility with legacy devices. The format, decoding, and the information provided in the non - legacy part of the preamble are associated with the specific IEEE 802.11 protocol to be used for transmitting the payload.

[0073] A wireless device (such as STA 104) operating in a WLAN may include a secondary radio and a primary radio and may operate in both secondary radio mode and primary radio mode. The secondary radio may support both Tx / Rx or may support only Rx. The wireless device may indicate (e.g., via broadcast) to other wireless devices (such as other STA 104 or AP 102) parameters associated with the secondary radio mode and / or associated with transitioning from the secondary radio mode to the primary radio mode for a given wireless link. For example, the wireless device may indicate a message format for the secondary radio mode. For example, the indicated message format may indicate a PPDU format (such as a non-HT PPDU) or a supported data rate (such as <= 24 Mbps). As another example, the wireless device may indicate a transition delay associated with the time to transition from the secondary mode to the primary radio mode for a wireless link. A second wireless device may schedule data communication with the wireless device based on the transition delay. The transition delay may depend on whether the secondary radio supports Tx / Rx or only Rx. For example, if the secondary radio supports Tx / Rx, the secondary radio may send an acknowledgment message in response to a request to transition to the primary radio mode for a wireless link, which may extend the transition delay. Additionally, the transition delay may depend on whether the primary radio is transitioning from a sleep mode or from a different wireless link. When the wireless device communicates with a second wireless device via the primary radio over a wireless link, the secondary radio may perform additional functions. For example, the secondary radio may be used to monitor channel metrics of the wireless link, receive and / or send control communication with the second wireless device, receive and / or send high-importance data communication (such as for redundancy purposes), or scan and / or initiate a connection via other wireless channels.

[0074] Figure 2 An example protocol data unit (PDU) 200 is illustrated that supports a method for using a secondary radio to improve wireless performance for wireless communication between a wireless AP 102 and one or more wireless STAs 104. For example, PDU 200 may be configured as a PPDU. As shown, PDU 200 includes a PHY preamble 202 and a PHY payload 204. For example, preamble 202 may include a legacy portion that itself includes a legacy short training field (L-STF) 206 that may consist of two symbols, a legacy long training field (L-LTF) 208 that may consist of two symbols, and a legacy signal field (L-SIG) 210 that may consist of two symbols. The legacy portion of preamble 202 may be configured according to the IEEE 802.11a wireless communication protocol standard. Preamble 202 may also include a non-legacy portion that includes, for example, one or more non-legacy fields 212 that follow one or more of the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standards family.

[0075] The L-STF 206 generally enables the receiving device to perform coarse timing and frequency tracking and automatic gain control (AGC). The L-LTF 208 generally enables the receiving device to perform fine timing and frequency tracking, and can also perform an initial estimate of the wireless channel. The L-SIG 210 generally enables the receiving device to determine (e.g., obtain, select, identify, detect, ascertain, calculate, or compute) the duration of the PDU and use the determined duration to avoid sending over the PDU. The payload 204 may include a PSDU including a data field (DATA) 214, which in turn may carry higher layer data in the form of, for example, a MAC protocol data unit (MPDU) or an aggregated MPDU (A-MPDU). Two STAs 104 may communicate directly via a direct wireless link, regardless of whether the two STAs 104 are in the same coverage area 108. Examples of direct wireless links may include Wi-Fi direct connections, Wi-Fi tunneled direct link setup (TDLS) links, and other group connections. The STA 104 and the AP 102 may communicate according to WLAN radio and baseband protocols for the physical layer and the MAC layer from IEEE 802.11 and versions including, but not limited to, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11a, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ad, 802.11ah, 802.11ax, etc. In other specific implementations, peer-to-peer connections or ad hoc networks may be implemented within the WLAN 100.

[0076] In some cases, a STA 104 (or AP 102) may be able to be detected by the central AP 102, but not by other STAs 104 in the coverage area 108 of the central AP 102. For example, one STA 104 may be located at one end of the coverage area 108 of the central AP 102, while another STA 104 may be located at the other end. Therefore, the two STAs 104 can communicate with the AP 102, but may not be able to receive each other's transmissions. This may cause transmission conflicts between the two STAs 104 in a contention-based environment (such as CSMA / CA) because the STAs 104 may not refrain from transmitting at the same time and on the same frequency. A STA 104 whose transmission cannot be identified but is within the same coverage area 108 may be referred to as a hidden node. CSMA / CA may be supplemented by the exchange of a request to transmit (RTS) packet sent by a transmitting STA 104 (or AP 102) and a clear to transmit (CTS) packet sent by a receiving STA 104 (or AP 102). This can alert other devices within range of the transmitter and receiver that they are not transmitting for the duration of the primary transmission. Thus, RTS / CTS can help mitigate the hidden node problem.

[0077] Figure 3Illustrated is an example PPDU 350 that can be used for wireless communication between a wireless AP and one or more wireless STAs and supports a method for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio. The PPDU 350 can be used for SU, OFDMA, or MU-MIMO transmission. The PPDU 350 can be formatted as a very high throughput (EHT) WLAN PPDU according to the IEEE 802.11be amendment to the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standard family, or can be formatted as a PPDU of any subsequent (post-EHT) version that follows a new wireless communication protocol (follows a future IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standard such as the 802.11 amendment associated with Wi-Fi 8, or another wireless communication standard). The PPDU 350 includes a PHY preamble, which includes a legacy portion 352 and a non-legacy portion 354. The PPDU 350 may also include a PHY payload 356 (e.g., in the form of a PSDU that includes a data field 374) after the preamble.

[0078] The legacy portion 352 of the preamble includes an L-STF 358, an L-LTF 360, and an L-SIG 362. The non-legacy portion 354 of the preamble includes a repetition of the L-SIG (RL-SIG) 364 and a plurality of wireless communication protocol version-related signal fields after the RL-SIG 364. For example, the non-legacy portion 354 may include a common signal field 366 (referred to herein as "U-SIG 366") and an EHT signal field 368 (referred to herein as "EHT-SIG 368"). The presence of the RL-SIG 364 and the U-SIG 366 may indicate to an EHT or later version compatible STA 104 that the PPDU 350 is an EHT PPDU or a PPDU of any subsequent (post-EHT) version that follows a new wireless communication protocol (follows a future IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standard). One or both of the U-SIG 366 and the EHT-SIG 368 may be configured as other wireless communication protocol versions associated with amendments to the IEEE standard family above EHT and carry version-related information. For example, the U-SIG 366 can be used by a receiving device to interpret bits in one or more of the EHT-SIG 368 or the data field 374. Similar to the L-STF 358, the L-LTF 360, and the L-SIG 362, in instances involving the use of bonded channels, the information in the U-SIG 366 and the EHT-SIG 368 can be replicated and transmitted in each of the component 20 MHz channels.

[0079] The non-legacy portion 354 also includes an additional short training field 370 (referred to herein as the "EHT-STF 370", but which may also be configured for other wireless communication protocol versions above EHT and carry version-related information) and one or more additional long training fields 372 (referred to herein as the "EHT-LTF 372", but which may be configured for other wireless communication protocol versions above EHT and carry version-related information). The EHT-STF 370 can be used for timing and frequency tracking as well as AGC, and the EHT-LTF 372 can be used for more refined channel estimation.

[0080] Figure 4 Illustrated is a hierarchical format of an example PPDU 400 that can be used for communication between a wireless AP 102 and one or more wireless STAs 104 and that supports methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance. As described, each PPDU 400 includes a PHY preamble 402 and a PSDU 404. Each PSDU 404 can represent (or "carry") one or more MPDUs 416. For example, each PSDU 404 can carry an aggregated MPDU (A-MPDU) 406 that includes an aggregation of multiple A-MPDU subframes 408. Each A-MPDU subframe 406 can include an MPDU frame 410 that includes a MAC delimiter 412 and a MAC header 414 before the accompanying MPDU 416 (which includes the data portion ("payload" or "frame body") of the MPDU frame 410). Each MPDU frame 410 can also include a frame check sequence (FCS) field 418 for error detection (e.g., the FCS field can include a cyclic redundancy check (CRC)) and padding bits 420. The MPDU 416 can carry one or more MAC service data units (MSDUs) 416. For example, the MPDU 416 can carry an aggregated MSDU (A-MSDU) 422 that includes an aggregation of multiple A-MSDU subframes 424. Each A-MSDU subframe 424 contains a corresponding MSDU 430 that is preceded by a subframe header 428 and, in some cases, followed by padding bits 432. For example, a transition delay can occur between a first time when a transition from an auxiliary radio mode to a primary radio mode is triggered on a wireless link and a second time when the transition is complete (when the wireless device is ready to transmit / receive on the wireless link using the primary radio). As referenced Figure 5 and 6, padding bits 432 (such as zeros) can be transmitted during the transition delay such that no data is sent to the wireless device during the transition delay during which data may be lost.

[0081] Returning to reference MPDU frame 410, the MAC delimiter 412 can be used as a marker for the start of the associated MPDU 416 and indicates the length of the associated MPDU 416. The MAC header 414 can include multiple fields that contain information defining or indicating the characteristics or attributes of the data encapsulated within the frame body 416. The MAC header 414 includes a duration field that indicates a duration extending from at least the end of the PPDU to the end of the acknowledgment (ACK) or block ACK (BA) for the PPDU to be sent by the receiving wireless communication device. The use of the duration field is for reserving the wireless medium for the indicated duration and enables the receiving device to establish its network allocation vector (NAV). The MAC header 414 also includes one or more fields that indicate the addresses of the data encapsulated within the frame body 416. For example, the MAC header 414 can include a combination of a source address, a transmitter address, a receiver address, or a destination address. The MAC header 414 can also include a frame control field that contains control information. The frame control field can specify the frame type, such as a data frame, a control frame, or a management frame.

[0082] Some wireless communication devices (including both APs and STAs) are capable of multi-link operation (MLO). In some examples, MLO supports establishing multiple different communication links between an STA and an AP (such as a first link on the 2.4 GHz band, a second link on the 5 GHz band, and a third link on the 6 GHz band). Each communication link can support one or more sets of channels or logical entities. In some cases, each communication link associated with a given wireless communication device can be associated with a corresponding radio of the wireless communication device, which can include one or more transmit / receive (Tx / Rx) chains, include one or more physical antennas or be coupled thereto, or include other components such as signal processing components. A device with MLO capabilities can be referred to as an MLD. For example, an AP MLD can include multiple APs, each of which is configured to communicate with a corresponding one of multiple STAs of a non-AP MLD (also referred to as a "STA MLD") on a respective communication link. The STA MLD can communicate with the AP MLD through one or more of the multiple communication links at a given time.

[0083] One type of MLO is Multi-Link Aggregation (MLA), in which traffic associated with a single STA is sent in parallel across multiple communication links simultaneously to maximize the utilization of available resources to achieve higher throughput. That is, during at least some time duration, each transmission or part of a transmission can occur simultaneously in parallel over two or more links. In some examples, the parallel wireless communication links can support synchronous transmissions. In some other examples, or during some other time durations, the transmissions over the links can be parallel but not synchronous or concurrent. In some examples or time durations, two or more of these links can be used for communication between wireless communication devices in the same direction (such as all uplink or all downlink). In some other examples or time durations, two or more of these links can be used for communication in different directions. For example, one or more links can support uplink communication, and one or more links can support downlink communication. In such examples, at least one of the wireless communication devices operates in full-duplex mode. Generally speaking, full-duplex operation enables two-way communication, in which at least one of the wireless communication devices can transmit and receive simultaneously.

[0084] MLA can be implemented in various ways. In some examples, MLA can be packet-based. For packet-based aggregation, frames of a single traffic flow (such as all traffic associated with a given Traffic Identifier (TID)) can be transmitted concurrently across multiple communication links. In some other examples, MLA can be flow-based. For flow-based aggregation, a single communication link among the multiple available communication links can be used to transmit each traffic flow (such as all traffic associated with a given TID). As an example, a single STA MLD can access a web browser in parallel while streaming video. Traffic associated with the web browser access can be conveyed over a first communication link, while traffic associated with the video stream can be conveyed in parallel over a second communication link (such that at least some of the data can be sent over the first channel concurrently with the data sent over the second channel).

[0085] The MLO technique can provide multiple benefits to the WLAN. For example, MLO can improve the user-perceived throughput (UPT) (such as by quickly refreshing the per-user transmit queue). Similarly, MLO can improve throughput by improving the utilization of available channels and can increase the spectral utilization (such as increasing the bandwidth-time product). In addition, MLO can enable smooth transitions between multi-band radios (such as where each radio can be associated with a given RF band) or implement a framework for setting the separation of control channels and data channels. Other benefits of MLO include reducing the turn-on time of the modem, which can be beneficial to the wireless communication device in terms of power consumption. Another benefit of MLO is the increased multiplexing opportunities in the case of a single BSS. For example, multi-link aggregation can increase the number of users per multiplexed transmission served by the multi-link AP MLD.

[0086] Figure 5 A wireless communication system 500 is illustrated that supports a method for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio. The wireless communication system 500 may implement one or more aspects of the WLAN 100 or be implemented by it. For example, the wireless communication system 500 may include a first wireless device 504 (which may be an example of the STA 104 described herein) and a second wireless device 502 (which may be an example of the wireless AP 102). In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may be an AP102 as described herein (such as and the second wireless device 502 may be another AP 102 or STA 104). The wireless communication system 500 may represent communication between the second wireless device 502 and the first wireless device 504 over a wireless link 506, which may be an example of the communication link 106 described herein. In some examples, the wireless communication system 500 may represent communication between the second wireless device 502 and the first wireless device 504 over a single wireless link (such as the communication link 506). In some examples, the second wireless device 502 and the first wireless device 504 may be MLDs. For example, the second wireless device 502 and the first wireless device 504 may communicate via multiple wireless links (such as the communication link 506 and the communication link 516).

[0087] The first wireless device 504 and the second wireless device 502 may operate and communicate over the wireless link 506 in accordance with one or more of the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication protocol standards family. The first wireless device 504 and the second wireless device 502 may send and receive wireless communications to and from each other in the form of PPDUs. In some examples, the wireless communication may include control messages 508 (such as control signaling) and data packets 510.

[0088] In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may include a primary radio 512 and a secondary radio 514 (or multiple secondary radios). The primary radio 512 and the secondary radio 514 may be part of the same physical device or logical entity. The primary radio, such as the primary radio 512, refers to the radio used by the wireless device, such as the first wireless device 504, for primary data and control communications. The secondary radio, such as the secondary radio 514 of the first wireless device 504, refers to a radio at the wireless device that has less PHY and / or MAC capabilities than the primary radio 512 in addition to the primary radio. For example, the secondary radio 514 may have lower power consumption, lower complexity, and lower cost compared to the primary radio 512. The combination of the primary radio 512 and the secondary radio 514 may improve reliability, latency, power consumption, throughput, and spectral efficiency. For example, the secondary radio 514 may be used to improve reliability by sending / receiving redundancy for high-importance packets. As another example, the secondary radio 514 may be used to improve latency by using the secondary radio 514 to scan channels when communicating on another channel via the primary radio 512, thereby reducing the latency associated with the transition between channels by eliminating the time for the primary radio 512 to scan channels. As another example, including the secondary radio 514 may reduce power consumption by enabling the primary radio to enter a sleep mode and then monitoring the wake-up signal via the secondary radio 514 that consumes less power than the primary radio 512.

[0089] In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may include a secondary radio 514 and a primary radio 512, and may operate in both a secondary radio mode and a primary radio mode. In the secondary radio mode for the wireless link 506, the secondary radio 514 may be active and the primary radio 512 may be inactive. In the primary radio mode for the wireless link 506, the primary radio 512 may be active. In some examples, the transition rules for transitioning from the secondary radio mode to the primary radio mode may apply to different types of secondary radios. For example, the secondary radio 514 may support both transmission and reception (Tx / Rx) or may support only reception (Rx only).

[0090] In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may indicate, via message 508, parameters associated with the secondary radio mode and / or associated with transitioning from the secondary radio mode to the primary radio mode for the wireless link 506. In some examples, message 508 indicating these parameters may be broadcast. For example, the first wireless device 504 may indicate the message format for the secondary radio mode. In some examples, the indicated message format may provide a PPDU format (such as a non-HT PPDU) or supported data rates (such as <= 24 Mbps).

[0091] In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may indicate a transition delay associated with the time for transitioning from the secondary mode to the primary radio mode for the wireless link 506. The second wireless device 502 may schedule data communication with the first wireless device 504 based on the transition delay. In some examples, the transition delay may depend on whether the secondary radio 514 supports Tx / Rx or only Rx. For example, if the secondary radio 514 supports Tx / Rx, the secondary radio 514 may send an acknowledgment message in response to a request to transition to the primary radio mode for the wireless link 506, which may extend the transition delay. Additionally, the transition delay may depend on whether the primary radio 512 is transitioning from a sleep mode or from a different wireless link. Thus, the first wireless device 504 may indicate the transition delay corresponding to whether the secondary radio supports Tx / Rx or only Tx and / or whether the primary radio 512 is transitioning from a sleep mode or an operation on another wireless link. The second wireless device 502 may send control signaling on the wireless link 506 that triggers a transition from the secondary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link 506 at the first wireless device 504. The first wireless device receives the control signaling in the secondary radio mode and initiates a transition to the primary radio mode on the wireless link. The second wireless device 502 may then send a data packet 510 to the first wireless device, and the first wireless device 504 receives the data packet in the primary radio mode. The time at which the second wireless device 502 sends the data packet 510 after the transmission of the control signaling that triggers the transition at the first wireless device 504 is at least as large as the indicated transition delay.

[0092] In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may include a Wake-Up Radio (WUR) (such as instead of the secondary radio 514) as defined in the IEEE 802.11ba protocol. For example, the first wireless device 504 in the wireless communication system 500 may communicate with the second wireless device 502 via the primary radio 512. To conserve power at the first wireless device 504, the primary radio 512 may enter a sleep mode. For example, the WUR may monitor and receive WUR signals or frames as defined in the IEEE 802.11ba protocol. The WUR of the first wireless device 504 may operate in the 2.4 GHz and / or 5 GHz bands and may be capable of receiving WUR signals or frames. The reception of a WUR signal by the WUR may trigger the primary radio 512 to exit the sleep mode and wake up or perform an operation.

[0093] In some examples, the WUR may consume low power, such as less than 1 milliwatt (mW). The range of the WUR may be comparable to mainstream Wi-Fi such as IEEE 802.11a / b / g / n. The architecture or design of the Wake-Up Radio (such as the secondary radio 514) may be simple, with a small set of MAC and PHY parameters. The WUR frame may have a 6-byte long common MPDU format. The WUR frame may have a low data rate (LDR) of 62.5 kilobits per second (Kbps) or a high data rate (HDR) of 250 Kbps.

[0094] In some examples, the WUR channel may be used as a receive control channel. The WUR may be Rx-only and not capable of transmitting signals. The second wireless device 502 may transmit a WUR PPDU as a downlink transmission to the first wireless device 504. The WUR PPDU may carry information such as a WUR beacon, a WUR Wake Up, and a WUR Discovery. However, since the WUR is Rx-only, the WUR may not be able to acknowledge the received WUR PPDU (such as by transmitting another WUR PPDU). The WUR PPDU may use a large amount of airtime, such as approximately 1 millisecond (ms) in a standard setting. Additionally, some mainstream Wi-Fi devices may not natively support the WUR.

[0095] In some examples, the auxiliary radio 514 can be a sub-1 GHz (S1G) radio. The S1G radio is defined in the IEEE 802.11ah protocol, and the S1G radio can provide sub-1 GHz Wi-Fi functionality. The first wireless device 504 including the auxiliary radio 514 as an S1G radio can operate below 1 GHz and can support bandwidths of 1 MHz, 2 MHz, and up to 16 MHz. These supported narrow bandwidths may have no requirements for power amplifiers and can be protocols optimized for sensor or IoT operations. The S1G radio can be fully capable of Tx / Rx.

[0096] In some examples, the S1G radio can provide a data rate of 150 Kbps. The S1G radio can provide a longer transmit (Tx) range compared to mainstream Wi-Fi devices such as IEEE 802.11a / b / g / n. This longer Tx range can increase communication coverage, can be used to extend the control signaling delivery of the AP 102, and can help deploy or implement the cooperation of the AP 102, such as small cell deployment using a common control channel. The S1G radio can provide an additional link budget of more than 6 dB, and the link budget gain can increase with the increasing operating frequency band. The S1G radio as the auxiliary radio 514 can consume less power compared to the primary radio 512. The S1G communication link can be robust and can operate when other communication links of the MLD are unavailable.

[0097] In some examples, the S1G channel can be used as a control channel. From the perspective of IEEE 802.11, the S1G frequency band can be considered greenfield; however, in some jurisdictions, there may be limited channel availability. The S1G channel can have several restricted access protocols for control access. The S1G radio can be considered to have few legacy issues and design reviews in terms of controlled or scheduled access. The S1G radio does not operate on the same link as the primary radio 512 operating in the frequency band above 1 GHz, so the first wireless device 504 with the S1G radio as the auxiliary radio 514 may need to support MLO. The S1G radio may require new hardware for the first wireless device 504 because mainstream Wi-Fi devices (such as IEEE 802.11a / b / g / n) may not natively support the S1G radio.

[0098] In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may support EMLSR. EMLSR can be a multi-link operation mode during which a non-AP MLD (such as the first wireless device 504) may monitor a set of EMLRS wireless links (such as wireless link 506) for a control frame indicating a transition of the primary radio 512 from one wireless link (such as another wireless link 516) to another wireless link (such as wireless link 506). The control frame may be defined as an initial control frame of a multi-user request to send (MU-RTS) trigger frame or a buffer status report poll (BSRP) trigger frame. The MU-RTS trigger frame and the BSRP trigger frame may be transmitted in a non-HT replicated PPDU at a rate of 6 Mbps, 12 Mbps, or 24 Mbps on 1 spatial stream (SS). The control frame may include MPDU padding to provide a transition delay in a range between 0 and 256 microseconds (us). In some examples, the primary radio 512 may use 1 SS in transmission, full bandwidth, and a non-HT PPDU or a trigger-based (TB) PPDU to respond to the received initial control frame with a control response frame. The control response frame may be transmitted by the primary radio 512 attached to the secondary radio 514 that received the initial control frame. The responding primary radio 512 may then operate as fully Tx / Rx capable for the remainder of the frame exchange. From the perspective of the secondary radio, the eMLSR MLD (such as the first wireless device 504) may consist of one or more secondary radios 514 having only Rx capability to listen for the initial control frame. The primary radio 512 may enable the transition time delay to transition to the link being polled for transmitting a response such as a clear to send (CTS) or a TB PPDU and complete the exchange.

[0099] In some examples, the auxiliary radio 514 can be a radio defined as in the IEEE 802.11a protocol (the first revision defined for mainstream Wi-Fi). The radio defined in the IEEE 802.11a protocol can operate in the 5 GHz band and can support a 20 MHz bandwidth and 1 SS. The radio defined in the IEEE 802.11a protocol can operate with a reduced set of data rates such as up to 24 Mbps. The radio defined in the IEEE 802.11a protocol can support the PPDU format of non-HT PPDU. Additionally, compared with other mainstream Wi-Fi protocol radios such as IEEE 802.11b / g / n, the radio defined in the IEEE 802.11a protocol can provide low power consumption and a simple design. Other mainstream Wi-Fi protocol radios such as IEEE 802.11b / g / n can natively support the radio defined in the IEEE 802.11a protocol. In some examples, the radio defined in the IEEE 802.11a protocol can provide a basis for designing functionality for EMLSR operation. The auxiliary radio 514 as a radio defined as in the IEEE 802.11a protocol can have two operating modes: mode 1 with only Rx capabilities and mode 2 with Tx / Rx capabilities.

[0100] In some examples, the secondary radio 514 of the first wireless device 504 and the second wireless device 502 may have a message format for the secondary radio mode. For example, the message format may be a PPDU format (such as a non-HT PPDU) and the supported data rate (such as <= 24 Mbps). The secondary radio mode may support MPDU padding and PPDU duration. The secondary radio mode may request an on-demand transition to the primary radio mode with full Tx / Rx capabilities. In some examples, the secondary radio 514 may have two operating modes: the secondary Rx (AUX-Rx) mode and the secondary Tx / Rx (Aux-Tx / Rx) mode. In the Aux-Rx mode, the secondary radio may only receive packets and may not send packets. In the Aux-Tx / Rx mode, the secondary radio can both receive and send packets. In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may be capable of communicating only on a single wireless link, such as wireless link 506. On the single wireless link 506, the first wireless device 504 may transition between the secondary radio mode (and the corresponding sleep mode for the primary radio 512) using the secondary radio 514 for the wireless link 506 and the primary radio mode using the primary radio. In some examples, the first wireless device 504 may be capable of MLO. For example, the first wireless device 504 may be an MLD (such as an AP MLD or a non-AP MLD (such as a STA capable of MLO)). In a scenario where the first wireless device 504 is an MLD, the first wireless device 504 may communicate with the second wireless device 502 on the wireless link 506 and the wireless link 516. For example, the first wireless device 504 may communicate with the second wireless device 502 on the wireless link 506 in the primary radio mode and communicate with the second wireless device on the wireless link 516 in the secondary radio mode, or vice versa, and the first wireless device 504 may transition between the secondary radio mode and the primary radio mode on the wireless links 506 and 516.

[0101] In some examples, the AUX-Rx mode of the secondary radio 514 may support a transition from the secondary radio 514 to the primary radio 512 to occur after a short inter-frame space (SIFS) upon receipt of a request PPDU indicating that the first wireless device 504 is to transition from the secondary radio mode to the primary radio mode for the wireless link 506. In some examples, the secondary radio 514 and the primary radio 512 may operate on a single wireless link (such as wireless link 506).

[0102] In some examples, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode of the secondary radio 514 may support the transition from the secondary radio 514 to the primary radio 512 to occur within 2*SIFS + CTRL_RSP + L_PHY_DUR after the reception of a PPDU indicating that the first wireless device 504 is to transition from the secondary radio mode to the primary radio mode for the wireless link 506. CTRL_RSP refers to the time to send an acknowledgment message (such as CTS) for the solicited PPDU, and L_PHY_DUR refers to the legacy preamble duration of 20 microseconds. In the Aux-Tx / Rx mode, the secondary radio 514 may use signaling similar to EMLSR operation.

[0103] To reduce power consumption and cost, when the first wireless device 504 communicates on the wireless link 506 using the primary radio 512, the AUX-Rx mode of the secondary radio 514 may enable discovery or roaming, statistical value collection, security or collision detection, and / or an auxiliary Rx channel via the secondary radio 514. For discovery or roaming, the AUX-Rx mode may be able to perform seamless passive scanning using the secondary radio 514 outside the scan channels (such as other channels besides the wireless link 506) when communicating on the wireless link 506 via the primary radio 512, and the first wireless device 504 may identify candidate APs or new channels to switch to based on the scan via the secondary radio 514. In some examples, when the first wireless device 504 communicates on the wireless link 516 via the primary radio 512, the secondary radio 514 may operate in the anchor channel (such as on the wireless link 506) under the allowed activities such as passive scanning and group addressing delivery being limited. For statistical value collection, when the first wireless device 504 communicates on the wireless link 506 via the primary radio 512, the AUX-Rx mode may be able to perform seamless passive statistical value collection via the secondary radio for the wireless link 506, such as channel quality information, BS S load, interference profiles of adjacent BSSs, and multi-NAV multi-master maintenance. For security or collision detection, when the primary radio 512 may not be able to detect any attacks or collisions that may occur when the primary radio 512 is busy receiving or transmitting a PPDU, the AUX-Rx mode may enable the secondary radio 514 to monitor ongoing traffic for attacks or collisions on the wireless link 506. For the auxiliary Rx channel (such as on another wireless link 516), the AUX-Rx mode may enable the secondary radio 514 to receive transmissions in parallel with the data transfer of the primary radio 512. For example, the AUX-Rx mode may enable the secondary radio 514 to receive cross-link control for PPDU acknowledgments, fast link adaptation, and dynamic resource allocation on the wireless link 516 for data communication via the primary radio 512 on the wireless link 506. The AUX-Rx mode may also enable the secondary radio 514 to receive redundant transmissions on the wireless link 516, and prioritize them by receiving the redundant transmissions to increase the reliability and robustness of the ongoing primary radio communication on the wireless link 506. For example, the second wireless device may send high-priority transmissions on both the wireless link 506 and the wireless link 516 to increase reliability.

[0104] When the first wireless device 504 communicates on the wireless link 506 using the primary radio 512, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode of the secondary radio 514 may enable discovery or roaming, statistical value collection and exchange, secondary channel, and / or data transfer via the secondary radio 514. For discovery or roaming, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode may be able to implement seamless active scanning using the secondary radio 514 that actively scans outside the channels (such as other channels in addition to the wireless link 506), and the first wireless device 504 may identify a candidate AP or a new channel to switch to based on the scanning via the secondary radio 514. When the primary radio 512 is still operating with a different AP (such as communicating on the wireless link 506), the secondary radio 514 may perform association and authentication with the new AP. For statistical value collection and exchange, when the first wireless device 504 communicates on the wireless link 506 via the primary radio 512, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode may enable the secondary radio 514 to collect and report statistical values without the participation of the primary radio 512, such as channel quality information, BSS load, interference profiles of adjacent BSSs, and multi-NAV multi-master maintenance. When the first wireless device 504 communicates on the wireless link 506 via the primary radio 512, the first wireless device may use the secondary radio 514 (such as via the wireless link 516) to report statistical values to the second wireless device. For the secondary channel, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode may enable the secondary radio 514 to transmit and receive in parallel with the data transfer of the primary radio 512. For example, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode may enable the secondary radio 514 to transmit and receive cross-link control exchanges for PPDU acknowledgments, fast link adaptation, and dynamic resource allocation on the wireless link 516 for data communication on the wireless link 506 via the primary radio 512. The Aux-Tx / Rx mode may also enable the secondary radio 514 to exchange redundant information to increase the reliability and robustness of the ongoing primary radio reception and transmission. For example, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode may also enable the secondary radio 514 to transmit or receive redundant transmissions on the wireless link 516, and prioritize by transmitting or receiving redundant transmissions to increase the reliability and robustness of the ongoing primary radio communication on the wireless link 506. For data transfer, the Aux-Tx / Rx mode may enable the secondary radio 514 to exchange sporadic or low data rate frame transmissions without the participation of the primary radio 512. For example, the secondary radio 514 may transmit short frame exchanges or bursts, and may request a transition to the primary radio 512 for long frame exchanges or bursts.

[0105] Figure 6A An example of the timing diagram 601 is illustrated, which illustrates communication across a single wireless link at a wireless device, such as the one referenced Figure 5The first wireless device 504 described includes a main radio and an auxiliary radio 514 capable of operating in only Rx (operating in Aux-Rx mode). Figure 6B An example of a timing diagram 603 is illustrated, which illustrates communication across a single wireless link at a wireless device such as Figure 5 the wireless link 506, where the wireless device is such as the first wireless device 504 described with reference to Figure 5 including a main radio 512 and an auxiliary radio 514 capable of receiving and transmitting (operating in Aux-Tx / Rx mode). Aspects of timing diagrams 601 and 603 may implement or be implemented by aspects of the WLAN 100 and the wireless communication system 500. Timing diagrams 601 and 603 illustrate the timing for transitioning from the auxiliary radio mode of the auxiliary radio 514 to the main radio mode of the main radio 512 on a single communication link in the wireless communication system 500. For example, timing diagram 601 illustrates the timing for transitioning from the AUX-Rx mode of the auxiliary radio 514 to the main radio mode of the main radio 512. Timing diagram 603 illustrates the timing for transitioning from the Aux-Tx / Rx mode of the auxiliary radio 514 to the main radio mode of the main radio 512.

[0106] In Figure 6A the timing diagram 601, when the auxiliary radio 514 of the first wireless device 504 is operating in the AUX-Rx mode 614 on a single wireless link (shown as "Link 1" in Figure 6A such as Figure 5 the wireless link 506), the auxiliary radio 514 may receive an RTS 604 or a solicitation PPDU that triggers a transition from the AUX-Rx mode 614 to the main radio mode 612 for the single wireless link. In some examples, the transition delay 602 (such as the time for the main radio 512 to transition from the inactive mode to the main radio mode 612 after receiving the RTS / solicitation PPDU) may be within the SIFS after the solicitation PPDU. After the transition delay 602, the main radio 512 may send a CTS 606 indicating that it is ready to receive a data packet 608. After receiving the data packet 608, the main radio 512 may send a BA 610. In some examples, thereafter, the wireless device 504 may transition from the main radio mode 612 to the AUX-Rx mode 614 (such as to save power). As used herein, a transition refers to switching from communicating on a wireless link using one radio to communicating on the wireless link using a different radio. For example, in timing diagram 601, the wireless device 504 may transition from operating in the AUX-Rx mode 614 using the auxiliary radio 514 on the wireless link 506 to operating in the main radio mode 612 using the main radio 512 on the wireless link 506.

[0107] In Figure 6B timing diagram 603 of, when the auxiliary radio 514 operates in the AUX-Tx / Rx mode 616 on a single wireless link (shown as "Link 1" in Figure 6B ), such as the wireless link 506 of Figure 5 , the auxiliary radio 514 may receive an RTS 654 or a solicited PPDU that triggers a transition from the AUX-Tx / Rx mode 616 to the primary radio mode 612 on the single wireless link. In some examples, the transition delay 652 (such as the time for the primary radio 512 to transition from inactive to the primary radio mode after the receipt of the solicited PPDU) may be within 2*SIFS + CTRL_RSP + L_PHY_DUR after the receipt of the RTS / solicited PPDU. The auxiliary radio 514 may send a CTS 656 indicating that the wireless device 504 is ready to receive a data packet 658. After receiving the data packet 658, the primary radio 512 may send a BA 660. In some examples, thereafter, the wireless device 504 may transition from the primary radio mode 612 to the AUX-Tx / Rx mode 616 (such as to save power).

[0108] In some examples, additional transition times may be added to the expected transition delays 602 and 652. MPDU padding (such as including padding bits 432 as described with reference to Figure 4 ) may be used to provide the additional transition time. In some examples, control frames (such as trigger frames, null data packet (NDP) announcement frames, and multi-service identifier block acknowledgment request and multi-station BA frames) may support MPDU padding. The MU-RTS trigger frame may be used to send a transmit opportunity (TXOP) initiation and may solicit a CTS frame in the form of a non-HT PPDU. In some examples, the null data packet (NDP) announcement frame may support MPDU padding by adding multiple STA information fields with reserved association identifier (AID) values, and may initiate all defined probe sequences. Since the Ack may not be padded, the multi-service identifier (TID) block acknowledgment request (BAR) and multi-STA BA frames may support MPDU padding by adding multiple per-AID TID information fields with reserved AID values, and may be used for acknowledgment. In some examples, management frames may be used to support MPDU padding by adding multiple elements with zero length, and are used to transmit management information to a station in low speed (LS) mode.

[0109] In some examples, the data frame can support MPDU padding by appending multiple zero-length A-MSDU sub-frames to the A-MSDU, and can allow data to be transmitted to the STA in the LS mode. The padding can occur before the FCS, so the wireless device 504 can start transitioning to the primary radio mode before MPDU verification. If additional time is required to perform the FCS or message integrity check (MIC) before transmitting the response, this can be a problem for malicious wake-up of the primary radio or processing by the secondary radio. This can be solved by creating an FCS / MIC container that is part of the padding sequence and is located at the beginning of the padding sequence (such as in a management (MGMT) frame, in an element containing the FCS / MIC field, and in a data frame, in an A-MSDU sub-frame containing the FCS / MIC field).

[0110] In some examples, MPDU padding can be used when the secondary radio 514 is operating in the AUX-Rx mode and requests a transition of the primary radio 512. If the transition delay is greater than the SIFS and the PPDU requests an immediate response, padding of the initial PPDU may be required because the immediate response will be generated by the primary radio 512. This example may require the peer wireless device 502 to be able to append padding to the MPDU contained in the initial PPDU, and the wireless device 504 can be an ultra-high reliability (UHR) device because a non-UHR device may not be aware of this requirement of the STA. If the BSS also serves non-UHR STAs, the AP may not use the AUX-Rx mode, and if the associated UHR AP supports the AUX-Rx mode, the non-AP STA can use this AUX-Rx mode.

[0111] In some examples, MPDU padding may be used when the secondary radio 514 is operating in Aux-Tx / Rx mode and requests a transition of the primary radio 512. If the transition delay is greater than 2*SIFS + CTRL_RSP + L_PHY_DUR and the initial PPDU indicates a request for a transition of the primary radio 512, padding of the initial or response PPDU may be required. Padding may not be required for all frame exchanges specifically associated with the secondary radio. This example may require the peer wireless device 502 to be able to append padding to the MPDU. If the secondary radio requires additional time before generating the response PPDU, the peer wireless device 502 may append padding, and the wireless device 504 may be a UHR device because a non-UHR device may not be aware of this requirement of the secondary radio; otherwise, the secondary radio may include padding in the response PPDU. In some examples, the multi-STA BA frame response PPDU may contain MPDU padding, and thus the peer wireless device 502 may be a UHR device. The secondary radio 514 may indicate in the response PPDU whether the primary radio 512 has successfully transitioned, so if the primary radio 512 has not successfully transitioned during this transmission opportunity (such as the primary radio 512 being busy on another link or in coexistence mode), the peer wireless device 502 may continue to use the secondary radio parameters.

[0112] Figure 7A An example of a timing diagram 701 is illustrated that illustrates communication across multiple wireless links at a wireless device, such as a first wireless device 504 including a primary radio 512 and a secondary radio 514 capable of Rx-only (operating in Aux-Rx mode) as described with reference to Figure 5 An example of a timing diagram 703 is illustrated that illustrates communication across multiple wireless links at a wireless device, such as a first wireless device 504 including a primary radio 512 and a secondary radio 514 capable of both receiving and transmitting (operating in Aux-Tx / Rx mode) as described with reference to Figure 7B An example of a timing diagram 703 is illustrated that illustrates communication across multiple wireless links at a wireless device, such as a first wireless device 504 including a primary radio 512 and a secondary radio 514 capable of both receiving and transmitting (operating in Aux-Tx / Rx mode) as described with reference to Figure 5 Aspects of timing diagrams 701 and 703 may implement, or be implemented by, aspects of the WLAN 100 and the wireless communication system 500. Timing diagrams 701 and 703 illustrate the timing for a transition from the secondary radio mode of the secondary radio 514 to the primary radio mode of the primary radio 512 in a multi-link scenario. For example, timing diagram 701 illustrates the timing for a transition between an AUX-Rx mode 714 and a primary radio mode 712 for a first wireless link and a second wireless link. As another example, timing diagram 703 illustrates the timing for a transition between an AUX-Tx / Rx mode 716 and a primary radio mode 712 for a first wireless link and a second wireless link.

[0113] InFigure 7A In timing diagram 701, when the auxiliary radio 514 of the wireless device 504 operates in AUX-Rx mode 714 on a first wireless link (shown as "Link 1" in Figure 7A ), and the primary radio 512 of the wireless device 504 operates in primary radio mode 712 on a second wireless link (shown as "Link 2" in Figure 7A ), the auxiliary radio 514 may receive an RTS 704 or a Solicitation PPDU that triggers a transition of the first wireless link from AUX-Rx mode 714 to primary radio mode 712. In some examples, the transition delay 702 (such as the time for the primary radio 512 to transition from the second wireless link to the first wireless link after receiving the RTS / Solicitation PPDU) may be within the SIFS after the Solicitation PPDU. After the transition delay 702, the primary radio 512 may send a CTS 706 on the first wireless link indicating its readiness to receive data packet 708. After receiving the data packet 708, the primary radio 512 may send a BA 710. In response to the RTS 704 or the Solicitation PPDU, the auxiliary radio 514 may transition from the first wireless link to the second wireless link. The transition delay 720 may correspond to the time for the auxiliary radio 514 to transition from the first wireless link to the second wireless link. On the second wireless link, the auxiliary radio may receive data transmissions or perform discovery processes as described herein. In some examples, after receiving the data packet 708, the primary radio 512 may transition back to the second wireless link according to the post-transition delay 713, and the auxiliary radio 514 may transition back to the first wireless link according to the post-transition delay 722.

[0114] In Figure 7B timing diagram 703, when the auxiliary radio 514 operates in Aux-Tx / Rx mode 716 on a first wireless link (shown as "Link 1" in Figure 7B ), and the primary radio 512 operates in a second wireless link (shown as "Link 2" in Figure 7BWhen operating in the primary radio mode 712 on a first wireless link (shown as "Link 2" in the figure), the secondary radio 514 may receive an RTS 754 or a Solicitation PPDU that triggers a transition of the first wireless link from the AUX-Rx mode 714 to the primary radio mode 712. In some examples, the transition latency 752 (such as the time for the primary radio 512 to transition from inactive to the primary radio mode after the receipt of the Solicitation PPDU) may be within 2*SIFS + CTRL_RSP + L_PHY_DUR after the receipt of the RTS / Solicitation PPDU. The secondary radio 514 may send a CTS 756 indicating that the wireless device 504 is ready to receive a data packet 758. After receiving the data packet 658, the primary radio 512 may send a BA 760. In response to the RTS 754 or the Solicitation PPDU, the secondary radio 514 may transition from the first wireless link to the second wireless link. The transition latency 772 may correspond to the time for the secondary radio 514 to transition from the first wireless link to the second wireless link. On the second wireless link, the secondary radio may send or receive a data packet 778 or perform a discovery process as described herein. For example, on the second wireless link, the secondary radio may receive an RTS 774, send a CTS 776 in response, and receive a data packet 778. The secondary radio may send an Ack 780 in response to the data packet 778. In some examples, after receiving the data packet 758, the primary radio 512 may transition back to the second wireless link according to the post-transition latency 762, and the secondary radio 514 may transition back to the first wireless link according to the post-transition latency 782.

[0115] In some examples, additional transition time may be added to the expected transition latency 702 and / or 752. MPDU padding may be used to provide the additional transition time. For example, the transition latency 702 may be longer than the transition latency 602 described, for example, because transitioning from one wireless link to another may take more time than transitioning from an inactive mode to an active mode on one wireless link. Thus, the wireless device 504 may advertise (such as broadcast in the control message 508) the transition latency associated with transitioning from an inactive mode to an active mode or from one wireless link to another, and / or which transition latency applies (such as whether the primary radio is inactive or active on the other wireless link). Figure 6A When operating in the primary radio mode 712 on a first wireless link (shown as "Link 2" in the figure), the secondary radio 514 may receive an RTS 754 or a Solicitation PPDU that triggers a transition of the first wireless link from the AUX-Rx mode 714 to the primary radio mode 712. In some examples, the transition latency 752 (such as the time for the primary radio 512 to transition from inactive to the primary radio mode after the receipt of the Solicitation PPDU) may be within 2*SIFS + CTRL_RSP + L_PHY_DUR after the receipt of the RTS / Solicitation PPDU. The secondary radio 514 may send a CTS 756 indicating that the wireless device 504 is ready to receive a data packet 758. After receiving the data packet 658, the primary radio 512 may send a BA 760. In response to the RTS 754 or the Solicitation PPDU, the secondary radio 514 may transition from the first wireless link to the second wireless link. The transition latency 772 may correspond to the time for the secondary radio 514 to transition from the first wireless link to the second wireless link. On the second wireless link, the secondary radio may send or receive a data packet 778 or perform a discovery process as described herein. For example, on the second wireless link, the secondary radio may receive an RTS 774, send a CTS 776 in response, and receive a data packet 778. The secondary radio may send an Ack 780 in response to the data packet 778. In some examples, after receiving the data packet 758, the primary radio 512 may transition back to the second wireless link according to the post-transition latency 762, and the secondary radio 514 may transition back to the first wireless link according to the post-transition latency 782.

[0116] In some examples, wireless device 504 can be a non-AP MLD that includes a primary radio 512 and one secondary radio 514 capable of only Rx, and wireless device 502 can be an AP-MLD with one primary radio per link. This scenario can be similar to EMLSR, where the initiating PPDU is a MU RTS / BSRP trigger frame. The non-AP MLD (such as an STA) can transition the primary radio 512 to the wireless link that receives the PPDU. The non-AP MLD can transfer the secondary radio 514 to another wireless link (a second wireless link), as shown in timing diagram 701, where the secondary radio 514 can receive a non-HT PPDU (if the secondary radio remains on). Non-HT PPDUs not addressed to the non-AP MLD can be used for NAV setting or statistical value collection. Non-HT PPDUs addressed to the non-AP MLD can be part of only the RX secondary channel (such as for beacons, group frames, or parallel redundancy). If the non-AP MLD includes multiple (such as M) primary radios and / or multiple (such as N) secondary radios, transitions over multiple links can be implemented on the M primary radios and N secondary radios, provided that the AP has at least N + M primary radios, thus substantially enabling up to M Tx / Rx channels and up to N Rx channels. In some cases, fewer than all N or M radios can be used because the non-AP MLD can determine to use a subset of the N or M radios to reduce power consumption.

[0117] In some examples, wireless device 504 can be a non-AP MLD that includes a primary radio 512 and one secondary radio 514 capable of Tx / Rx, and wireless device 502 can be an AP-MLD with one primary radio per link. This scenario can be similar to EMLSR, where the initiating PPDU is a MU RTS / BSRP trigger frame. The non-AP MLD (such as an STA) can transition the primary radio 512 to the wireless link that receives the PPDU. The non-AP MLD can transfer the secondary radio 514 to another wireless link (a second wireless link), as Figure 7BAs shown in the timing diagram 703, the secondary radio 514 can receive a non-HT PPDU (if the secondary radio remains on). Non-HT PPDUs not addressed to a non-AP MLD can be used for NAV setting or statistic value collection. Non-HT PPDUs addressed to a non-AP MLD can be part of the RX secondary channel (such as having a lower data rate than the primary radio). Non-HT PPDUs generated by the non-AP MLD can provide real-time feedback to the AP-MLD for the ongoing primary radio transmissions on the first wireless link. If the non-AP MLD includes multiple (such as M) primary radios and / or multiple (such as N) secondary radios, transitions over multiple links can be achieved on the M primary radios and N secondary radios, provided that the AP has at least N+M primary radios, thereby substantially enabling up to M primary radio Tx / Rx channels and up to N Tx / Rx secondary channels. In some cases, fewer than all of the N or M radios can be used because the non-AP MLD can determine to use a subset of the N or M radios to reduce power consumption.

[0118] From the perspective of the non-AP-MLD, the secondary Tx / Rx implementation at the non-AP MLD can provide benefits such as a secondary secondary channel, where peer MLDs can be utilized to achieve lower data rates, which can facilitate fast feedback exchange and can increase the robustness of low-latency / high-reliability traffic. However, the secondary Tx / Rx implementation requires Tx components, which can increase the cost of the non-AP MLD. A Rx-only secondary radio can provide a Rx-only secondary channel, which can increase robustness and increase reliability.

[0119] In some examples, the wireless device 504 can be an AP MLD that includes a primary radio 512 and one secondary radio 514 capable of only Rx (such as shown in timing diagram 701). The AP MLD can include non-UHR non-AP STAs (and some UHR STAs) associated with the AP MLD operating in the primary radio link. The AP MLD can include one or more UHR non-AP MLDS that can operate on both the first and second wireless links (or can switch between them). The primary radio link can serve all primary (downlink / uplink) traffic exchanged with the AP MLD. The secondary link can be used by the UHR non-AP MLDS only as a receiving channel (from the perspective of the AP MLD). For example, when the primary radio link is busy indicating to the AP that the UHR non-AP MLDS have pending uplink traffic, the UHR non-AP MLDS can transmit an initial PPDU in the secondary link. The AP MLD can track these requests (such as RTS frames), and then when the primary radio link becomes idle, the AP MLD can trigger the UHR STAs for their uplink data. In some examples, the reception of the initial PPDU in the secondary link may not trigger the primary radio of the AP MLD to switch to the secondary link because the primary radio may become unavailable (unless the primary radio is busy due to the reception of a PPDU addressed to the AP MLD, in which case the AP MLD can discard the primary radio PPDU and transition to the secondary link). If the AP MLD transitions the primary radio to the secondary link, the STAs residing in the primary radio link may not be able to exchange frames with the AP MLD, but the AP MLD can then trigger the STAs to which it discarded the PPDU after the primary radio of the AP MLD switches back to the primary radio link. If all associated non-AP STAs are UHR MLDS operating in the same number of links as the AP MLD, a primary radio switch can be allowed (which can ensure that all devices in the MLD BSS have a similar view of the occupancy of the service link (such as if the primary radio of the AP MLD is busy, the STA may not initiate an exchange with the AP on any link)). If the AP MLD includes multiple (such as M) primary radios and / or multiple (such as N) secondary radios, transitions on multiple links can be implemented across the M primary radios and N secondary radios, thereby substantially implementing up to M Tx / Rx channels for all types of STAs and up to N Rx channels available for one class of UHR non-AP MLDS. In some cases, fewer than all of the N or M radios can be used because the AP MLD can determine to use a subset of the N or M radios to reduce power consumption.

[0120] In some examples, the wireless device 504 can be an AP MLD that includes a primary radio 512 and one secondary radio 514 capable of performing Tx / Rx (such as that shown in Example 703). The AP MLD can include non-UHR non-AP STAs (and some UHR STAs) associated with the AP MLD operating in the primary radio link, and the secondary radio link can be used for legacy 802.11a STAs. The AP MLD can include one or more UHR non-AP MLDS that can operate on both the first and second wireless links (or can switch between them). The primary radio link can serve all primary (downlink / uplink) traffic exchanged with the AP MLD. The secondary radio link can be used by the UHR non-AP MLD as a low data rate Tx / Rx channel and as a link transition channel (from the perspective of the AP MLD). For example, when the primary radio link is busy indicating to the AP MLD that the UHR non-AP MLD has pending uplink traffic, the UHR non-AP MLD can transmit an initial PPDU on the secondary link. The AP MLD can switch the primary radio to the secondary link or can respond by exchanging data on the secondary link in an auxiliary mode. The receipt of the initial PPDU on the secondary link can trigger the primary radio of the AP MLD to switch to the secondary link, during which time the primary radio link can become the secondary radio link. After the primary radio link switches to the secondary radio link, the STAs resident on the now-secondary radio link will only be able to exchange frames limited to non-HT PPDUs with the AP MLD or communication may need to be delayed (until the secondary radio link switches back to the primary radio link). Four modes can be signaled in the initial PPDU exchange: 1) here, switch the primary radio; 2) here, auxiliary mode (redux mode); 3) here, delayed primary radio mode (fully delayed) while the immediate auxiliary mode is available; or 4) no operation. Bandwidth negotiation can indicate the transmission capabilities of the secondary radio. If the AP MLD includes multiple (such as M) primary radios and / or multiple (such as N) secondary radios, transitions on multiple links can be achieved on the M primary radios and N secondary radios, thereby substantially achieving up to M Tx / Rx channels for all types of STAs and up to N Tx / Rx channels available for one class of UHR non-AP MLDS. In some cases, fewer than all of the N or M radios can be used because the AP MLD can determine to use a subset of the N or M radios to reduce power consumption.

[0121] From the perspective of AP-MLD, the auxiliary radio can provide benefits if the same number of links are available on both the AP and the STA. When all STAs share the same set of links as the AP, the STAs may have a similar view of the availability of the primary radio of the AP. STAs that do not share the same set of links as the AP may not know when the primary radio of the AP has switched to a disjoint link. As a result, uplink traffic may also not be served to the STA, even if the link is idle. The auxiliary Tx / Rx implementation at the AP MLD can help solve such problems because the auxiliary Tx / Rx enables the AP MLD to initiate PPRD in the auxiliary link and thus maintain connectivity with all STAs on all links. The auxiliary link can be used for lower data rates, which helps with fast feedback exchange and allows for increased robustness for low-latency / high-reliability traffic.

[0122] The Tx / Rx implementation at non-AP MLDs can provide benefits such as a secondary auxiliary channel where peer MLDs can be utilized for lower data rates, which can help with fast feedback exchange and can increase the robustness for low-latency / high-reliability traffic. However, the Aux Tx / Rx implementation requires a Tx component, which can increase the cost of the non-AP MLD. A Rx-only auxiliary radio can provide a Rx-only auxiliary channel, which can increase robustness and reliability. However, the Aux Tx / Rx implementation requires a Tx component, which can increase the cost of the non-AP MLD. Compared to Aux Tx / Rx, the auxiliary Rx-only at the AP MLD can reduce cost. However, the auxiliary Rx-only link can only be used for unreliable and lower data rate feedback because moving from the primary radio to the auxiliary link can make some links unavailable, which may affect the performance of legacy STAs (the legacy STA performance cannot be served unless the primary radio is brought back to the auxiliary link on which the legacy STA is served).

[0123] Figure 8 An example of a process flow 800 that supports a method for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio is illustrated. The process flow includes a first wireless device 804, which can be an example of the first wireless device 504 as described herein. The process flow includes a second wireless device 802, which can be an example of the second wireless device 502 as described herein. In the following description of the process flow 800, the operations between the first wireless device 804 and the second wireless device 802 can be sent in an order different from the order of the example shown, or the operations performed by the first wireless device 804 and the second wireless device 802 can be performed in a different order or at different times. Some operations can also be omitted from the process flow 800, and other operations can be added to the process flow 800.

[0124] At 805, a first wireless device 804 may send an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio (such as an auxiliary radio) of the first wireless device 804 and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio (such as a primary radio) of the first wireless device that is different from the first radio.

[0125] At 810, the first wireless device 804 may receive, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device 802 that communicates with the first wireless device 804 and that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link.

[0126] At 815, the first wireless device 804 may receive, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device 802, a data packet in accordance with one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0127] In some examples, receiving the signaling at 810 includes receiving control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, and the one or more parameters include the message format.

[0128] In some examples, sending an indication of one or more parameters includes sending an indication of a delay associated with the transition, and the reception of the data packet at 815 is at least the time of the delay after the reception of the control signaling.

[0129] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may send an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio being in a sleep mode, and the delay is associated with the transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

[0130] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may send an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio operating on a second wireless link, and the delay is associated with the transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to the wireless link.

[0131] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may receive padding on the wireless link from the second wireless device 802 during a period corresponding to the delay after the reception of the control signaling, where the padding is included in the same packet that contains the control signaling or in a subsequent packet.

[0132] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may send an acknowledgment message to the second wireless device 802 via a first radio in response to control signaling, the reception of the data packet is at least partially responsive to the acknowledgment message, and the latency is associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the first radio.

[0133] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may send an acknowledgment message to the second wireless device 802 via a second radio in response to control signaling, the reception of the data packet is at least partially responsive to the acknowledgment message, and the latency is associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the first radio.

[0134] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may scan a set of multiple channels via a first radio when communicating with the second wireless device 802 on a wireless link in a second radio mode. In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may perform an association process with a third wireless device via a channel among the multiple channels in response to the scanning of the multiple channels via the first radio.

[0135] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may identify one or more channel metrics of the wireless link via a first radio when communicating with the second wireless device on a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0136] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may send an indication of one or more channel metrics to the second wireless device 802 via a first radio when communicating with the second wireless device 802 on a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0137] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may receive one or more control messages from the second wireless device 802 on a second wireless link via a first radio during operation in an auxiliary radio mode while communicating one or more data packets with the second wireless device 802 on a wireless link via a second radio during operation in a second radio mode.

[0138] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may receive a set of data packets from the second wireless device 802 on a wireless link via a second radio when operating in a second radio mode; and receive a subset of the set of data packets from the second wireless device 802 on a second wireless link via a first radio when operating in an auxiliary radio mode.

[0139] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may send one or more data packets to the second wireless device 802 on a second wireless link via a first radio during operation in an auxiliary radio mode while communicating one or more second data packets with the second wireless device 802 on a wireless link via a second radio during operation in a second radio mode.

[0140] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may transition from operating in a second radio mode on a second wireless link to operating in an auxiliary radio mode on the second wireless link in response to control signaling, and may transition from operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link in response to control signaling.

[0141] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may receive second control signaling from the second wireless device 802 that triggers a second transition from the second radio mode on the wireless link to the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link when operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link. The first wireless device 804 may transition from operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link in response to the second control signaling. In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may transition from operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the second wireless link to operating in the second radio mode on the second wireless link in response to the second control signaling.

[0142] In some examples, after receiving a data packet, the first wireless device 804 may (such as automatically) transition from operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link. In some examples, after receiving a data packet, the first wireless device 804 may (such as automatically) transition from operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the second wireless link to operating in the second radio mode on the second wireless link.

[0143] In some examples, the first wireless device 804 may receive an indication identifying that the second wireless device 802 is operating in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) on the wireless link (such as based on monitoring the wireless link in the auxiliary radio mode). The first wireless device 804 may transition from operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link in response to the identification that the second wireless device 802 is operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link. In some examples, the first wireless device 804 transitions from operating in the second radio mode on the second wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the second wireless link in response to the identification that the second wireless device 802 is operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link.

[0144] In some examples, when the first wireless device 804 is in the auxiliary radio mode, the first wireless device 804 may communicate (such as send and / or receive) data packets on the wireless link with the second wireless device 802 according to a message format for the auxiliary mode.

[0145] Figure 9Block diagram 900 illustrates device 905 that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio) and supports methods for using the auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance. Device 905 may be an example of aspects of STA 104 or AP 102 as described herein. For example, device 905 may be Figure 5 an example of aspects of a first wireless device 504 or Figure 8 a first wireless device 804. Device 905 may include a receiver 910, a transmitter 915, and a communication manager 920. Device 905 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with one another (such as via one or more buses).

[0146] Receiver 910 may provide components for receiving information associated with various information channels (such as control channels, data channels, information channels related to methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance) such as packets, user data, control signaling, or any combination thereof. The information may be passed to other components of device 905. Receiver 910 may utilize a single antenna or an array of multiple antennas.

[0147] Transmitter 915 may provide components for transmitting signals generated by other components of device 905. For example, transmitter 915 may transmit information associated with various information channels (such as control channels, data channels, information channels related to methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance) such as packets, user data, control information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, transmitter 915 may be co-located with receiver 910 in a transceiver module. Transmitter 915 may utilize a single antenna or an array of multiple antennas.

[0148] Communication manager 920, receiver 910, transmitter 915, or various combinations thereof or their various components may be examples of components for performing various aspects of methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance as described herein. For example, communication manager 920, receiver 910, transmitter 915, or various combinations thereof or components may support methods for performing one or more of the functions described herein.

[0149] In some examples, the communication manager 920, the receiver 910, the transmitter 915, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (such as in a communication management circuit). The hardware may include a processor, a DSP, a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA, or other programmable logic device, a microcontroller, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof that are configured to or otherwise support components for performing the functions described in this disclosure. In some examples, the processor and the memory coupled to the processor may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (such as by the processor executing instructions stored in the memory).

[0150] Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the communication manager 920, the receiver 910, the transmitter 915, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in code executed by a processor (such as communication management software or firmware). If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functions of the communication manager 920, the receiver 910, the transmitter 915, or various combinations or components thereof may be performed by a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA, a microcontroller, or any combination of these or other programmable logic devices that are configured to or otherwise support components for performing the functions described in this disclosure.

[0151] In some examples, the communication manager 920 may be configured to use or otherwise cooperate with the receiver 910, the transmitter 915, or both to perform various operations (such as receive, obtain, monitor, output, transmit). For example, the communication manager 920 may receive information from the receiver 910, convey information to the transmitter 915, or integrate in combination with the receiver 910, the transmitter 915, or both to obtain information, output information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0152] The communication manager 920 may support wireless communication at a first wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 920 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending at the first wireless device an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from an operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to an operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio. The communication manager 920 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving via the first radio on the wireless link control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link. The communication manager 920 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device data packets according to one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0153] By including or configuring a communication manager 920 according to examples described herein, a device 905 (such as a control receiver 910, a transmitter 915, a communication manager 920, or a processor combined with or otherwise coupled to them) may support techniques for reducing power consumption and more efficiently utilizing communication resources.

[0154] Figure 10 Block diagram 1000 illustrates a device 1005 that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio) and supports methods for using the auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance. The device 1005 may be an example of aspects of the device 905, the STA 104, or the AP 102 described herein. The device 1005 may include a receiver 1010, a transmitter 1015, and a communication manager 1020. The device 1005 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with each other (such as via one or more buses).

[0155] The receiver 1010 may provide components for receiving information such as packets, user data, control signaling, or any combination thereof associated with various information channels (such as control channels, data channels, information channels related to methods for using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance). The information may be passed to other components of the device 1005. The receiver 1010 may utilize a single antenna or an array of multiple antennas.

[0156] Transmitter 1015 may provide components for transmitting signals generated by other components of device 1005. For example, transmitter 1015 may transmit information such as packets, user data, control information, or any combination thereof associated with various information channels (such as control channels, data channels, information channels related to methods for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio). In some examples, transmitter 1015 may be co-located with receiver 1010 in a transceiver module. Transmitter 1015 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0157] Device 1005 or its various components may be examples of components for performing various aspects of using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance as described herein. For example, communication manager 1020 may include a transition parameter manager 1025, a transition trigger manager 1030, a second radio mode manager 1035, or any combination thereof. Communication manager 1020 may be an example of aspects of communication manager 920 as described herein. In some examples, communication manager 1020 or its various components may be configured to use or otherwise cooperate with receiver 1010, transmitter 1015, or both to perform various operations (such as receive, obtain, monitor, output, transmit). For example, communication manager 1020 may receive information from receiver 1010, convey information to transmitter 1015, or integrate in combination with receiver 1010, transmitter 1015, or both to obtain information, output information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0158] Communication manager 1020 may support wireless communication at a first wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. Transition parameter manager 1025 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transmitting an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from an operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to an operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link at the first wireless device, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio. Transition trigger manager 1030 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link. Second radio mode manager 1035 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving, via the second radio on the wireless link, a data packet from the second wireless device according to one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0159] Figure 11 FIG. 1100 is a block diagram of a communication manager 1120 that illustrates a method for supporting wireless performance improvement at a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio). The communication manager 1120 may be an example of aspects of the communication manager 920, the communication manager 1020, or both as described herein. For example, the communication manager 1120 may be implemented as or may implement Figure 5 aspects of the first wireless device 504 or Figure 8 aspects of the first wireless device 804. The communication manager 1120 or its various components may be examples of components for performing various aspects of using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance as described herein. For example, the communication manager 1120 may include a transition parameter manager 1125, a transition trigger manager 1130, a second radio mode manager 1135, an auxiliary message format manager 1140, a transition delay manager 1145, a channel scan manager 1150, a channel metric manager 1155, an auxiliary radio mode manager 1160, an acknowledgment message manager 1165, a padding frame manager 1170, an association procedure manager 1175, or any combination thereof. Each of these components may communicate directly or indirectly with each other (such as via one or more buses).

[0160] The communication manager 1120 may support wireless communication at the first wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. The transition parameter manager 1125 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for transmitting an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link at the first wireless device, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device that is different from the first radio. The transition trigger manager 1130 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link. The second radio mode manager 1135 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device, a data packet according to one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0161] In some examples, to support receiving control signaling, the secondary message format manager 1140 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving control signaling in a message format associated with a secondary radio mode, the one or more parameters including the message format.

[0162] In some examples, to support sending an indication of one or more parameters, the transition delay manager 1145 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an indication of a delay associated with a transition, the reception of a data packet being at least the time of the delay after the reception of control signaling.

[0163] In some examples, the transition delay manager 1145 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an indication that the secondary radio mode is associated with the second radio being in a sleep mode, the delay being associated with the transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

[0164] In some examples, the transition delay manager 1145 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an indication that the secondary radio mode is associated with the second radio operating on a second wireless link, the delay being associated with the transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to a wireless link.

[0165] In some examples, the padding frame manager 1170 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving padding on a wireless link from a second wireless device during a period corresponding to the delay after the reception of control signaling, the padding being included in the same packet containing the control signaling or in a subsequent packet.

[0166] In some examples, the acknowledgment message manager 1165 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an acknowledgment message to a second wireless device via a first radio in response to control signaling, the reception of a data packet being at least partially in response to the acknowledgment message, the delay being associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the first radio.

[0167] In some examples, the acknowledgment message manager 1165 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an acknowledgment message to a second wireless device via a first radio in response to control signaling, the reception of a data packet being at least partially in response to the acknowledgment message, the delay being associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the first radio.

[0168] In some examples, the acknowledgment message manager 1165 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an acknowledgment message to a second wireless device via a second radio in response to control signaling, the reception of a data packet being at least partially in response to the acknowledgment message, the delay being associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the second radio.

[0169] In some examples, the channel scan manager 1150 may be configured to or otherwise support components for scanning a set of multiple channels via a first radio when communicating with a second wireless device over a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0170] In some examples, the association process manager 1175 may be configured to or otherwise support components for performing an association process with a third wireless device via a channel in a set of multiple channels via a first radio in response to a scan of the set of multiple channels.

[0171] In some examples, the channel metric manager 1155 may be configured to or otherwise support components for identifying one or more channel metrics of a wireless link via a first radio when communicating with a second wireless device over a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0172] In some examples, the channel metric manager 1155 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transmitting an indication of one or more channel metrics via a first radio when communicating with a second wireless device over a wireless link in a second radio mode.

[0173] In some examples, the secondary radio mode manager 1160 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving one or more control messages from a second wireless device over a second wireless link via a first radio while operating in a secondary radio mode while communicating one or more data packets with the second wireless device over a wireless link via a second radio when operating in a second radio mode.

[0174] In some examples, the second radio mode manager 1135 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving a set of data packets from a second wireless device over a wireless link via a second radio when operating in a second radio mode. In some examples, the secondary radio mode manager 1160 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving a subset of a set of data packets from a second wireless device over a second wireless link via a first radio when operating in a secondary radio mode.

[0175] In some examples, the secondary radio mode manager 1160 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transmitting one or more data packets to a second wireless device over a second wireless link via a first radio while operating in a secondary radio mode while communicating one or more second data packets with the second wireless device over a wireless link via a second radio when operating in a second radio mode.

[0176] In some examples, the secondary radio mode manager 1160 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transitioning from operation in a second radio mode on a second wireless link to operation in a secondary radio mode on the second wireless link in response to control signaling. In some examples, the second radio mode manager 1135 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transitioning from operation in a secondary radio mode on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode on the wireless link in response to control signaling.

[0177] In some examples, the transition trigger manager 1130 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving a second control signaling from a second wireless device that triggers a second transition from a second radio mode on a wireless link to a secondary radio mode on the wireless link when operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link. In some examples, the secondary radio mode manager 1160 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transitioning from operation in a second radio mode on a wireless link to operation in a secondary radio mode on the wireless link in response to the second control signaling.

[0178] In some examples, the secondary radio mode manager 1160 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transitioning from operation in a second radio mode on a wireless link to operation in a secondary radio mode on the wireless link after receiving a data packet.

[0179] In some examples, the transition trigger manager 1130 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving an indication identifying that a second wireless device is operating in a second radio mode on a wireless link. In some examples, the second radio mode manager 1135 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transitioning from operation in a secondary radio mode on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode on the wireless link in response to the identification.

[0180] In some examples, the secondary radio mode manager 1160 may be configured to or otherwise support components for communicating one or more data packets in a message format associated with the secondary radio mode on a wireless link when a first wireless device is in the secondary radio mode prior to receiving control signaling.

[0181] Figure 12FIG. illustrates a system 1200 including a device 1205 that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio) and supports methods for using the auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance. Device 1205 may be an example of device 905, device 1005, STA 104, or AP 102 as described herein or include components of these devices. Device 1205 may include components for two-way voice and data communication, including components for sending and receiving communications, such as communication manager 1220, I / O controller 1210, transceiver 1215, antenna 1225, memory 1230, code 1235, and processor 1240. These components may communicate electronically via one or more buses (such as bus 1245) or otherwise be coupled (such as operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically).

[0182] I / O controller 1210 may manage input signals and output signals of device 1205. I / O controller 1210 may also manage peripheral devices not integrated into device 1205. In some cases, I / O controller 1210 may represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral device. In some cases, I / O controller 1210 may utilize an operating system, such as or another known operating system. In some other cases, I / O controller 1210 may represent or interact with a modem, keyboard, mouse, touch screen, or similar device. In some cases, I / O controller 1210 may be implemented as part of a processor (such as processor 1240). In some cases, a user may interact with device 1205 via I / O controller 1210 or via hardware components controlled by I / O controller 1210.

[0183] In some cases, device 1205 may include a single antenna 1225. However, in some other cases, device 1205 may have more than one antenna 1225, and the more than one antenna may be capable of concurrently sending or receiving multiple wireless transmissions. Transceiver 1215 may communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas 1225, wired or wireless links as described herein. For example, transceiver 1215 may represent a wireless transceiver and may communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. Transceiver 1215 may also include a modem for modulating packets and providing the modulated packets to one or more antennas 1225 for transmission, and for demodulating packets received from one or more antennas 1225. Transceiver 1215 or transceiver 1215 and one or more antennas 1225 may be examples of transmitter 915, transmitter 1015, receiver 910, receiver 1010, or any combination thereof or components thereof as described herein.

[0184] The memory 1230 may include RAM and ROM. The memory 1230 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 1235 including instructions that, when executed by the processor 1240, cause the device 1205 to perform the various functions described herein. In some cases, among other things, the memory 1230 may also contain BIOS that may control basic hardware or software operations, such as interactions with peripheral components or devices.

[0185] The processor 1240 may include intelligent hardware devices (such as general-purpose processors, DSPs, CPUs, microcontrollers, ASICs, FPGAs, programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof). In some cases, the processor 1240 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 1240. The processor 1240 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (such as the memory 1230) to cause the device 1205 to perform various functions (such as functions or tasks supporting a method for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio). For example, the device 1205 or components of the device 1205 may include the processor 1240 and the memory 1230 coupled or coupled to the processor 1240, and the processor 1240 and the memory 1230 are configured to perform the various functions described herein.

[0186] The communication manager 1220 may support wireless communication at a first wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transmitting at the first wireless device an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from an operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to an operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio. The communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link. The communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving, via the second radio on the wireless link, a data packet from the second wireless device according to one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

[0187] By including or configuring a communication manager 1220 according to examples as described herein, the device 1205 may support techniques for improving communication reliability, reducing latency, improving the user experience associated with reduced processing, reducing power consumption, more efficiently utilizing communication resources, improving coordination between devices, and extending battery life.

[0188] Figure 13 Block diagram 1300 illustrates a device 1305 that supports a method for improving wireless performance using a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio). The device 1305 may be an example of aspects of the AP 102 or STA 104 as described herein. For example, the device 1305 may be Figure 5 an example of aspects of the second wireless device 502 or Figure 8 an example of aspects of the second wireless device 802. The device 1305 may include a receiver 1310, a transmitter 1315, and a communication manager 1320. The device 1305 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with each other (such as via one or more buses).

[0189] The receiver 1310 may provide components for receiving information associated with various information channels (such as control channels, data channels, information channels related to methods for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio) such as packets, user data, control signaling, or any combination thereof. The information may be passed to other components of the device 1305. The receiver 1310 may utilize a single antenna or an array of multiple antennas.

[0190] The transmitter 1315 may provide components for transmitting signals generated by other components of the device 1305. The transmitter 1315 may utilize a single antenna or an array of multiple antennas.

[0191] The communication manager 1320, the receiver 1310, the transmitter 1315, or various combinations thereof or their various components may be examples of components for performing various aspects of methods for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio as described herein. For example, the communication manager 1320, the receiver 1310, the transmitter 1315, or various combinations thereof or their components may support methods for performing one or more of the functions described herein.

[0192] In some examples, the communication manager 1320, the receiver 1310, the transmitter 1315, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (such as in a communication management circuit). The hardware may include a processor, a DSP, a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA, or other programmable logic device, a microcontroller, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof that are configured to or otherwise support components for performing the functions described in this disclosure. In some examples, a processor and a memory coupled to the processor may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (such as by the processor executing instructions stored in the memory).

[0193] Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the communication manager 1320, the receiver 1310, the transmitter 1315, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in code executed by a processor (such as communication management software or firmware). If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functions of the communication manager 1320, the receiver 1310, the transmitter 1315, or various combinations or components thereof may be performed by a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA, a microcontroller, or any combination of these or other programmable logic devices that are configured to or otherwise support components for performing the functions described in this disclosure.

[0194] In some examples, the communication manager 1320 may be configured to use or otherwise cooperate with the receiver 1310, the transmitter 1315, or both to perform various operations (such as receive, obtain, monitor, output, transmit). For example, the communication manager 1320 may receive information from the receiver 1310, convey information to the transmitter 1315, or integrate in combination with the receiver 1310, the transmitter 1315, or both to obtain information, output information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0195] The communication manager 1320 may support wireless communication at a second wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1320 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving, from a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from an operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to an operation in a second radio mode for wireless communication on the wireless link, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device that is different from the first radio. The communication manager 1320 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending, to a first wireless device communicating with a second wireless device on a wireless link, control signaling that triggers a transition from an auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to a second radio mode on the wireless link. The communication manager 1320 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending, after the sending of the control signaling, a data packet to the first wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio according to one or more parameters.

[0196] By including or configuring the communication manager 1320 according to examples described herein, a device 1305 (such as a control receiver 1310, a transmitter 1315, the communication manager 1320, or a processor combined with or otherwise coupled to them) may support techniques for reducing power consumption and more efficiently utilizing communication resources.

[0197] Figure 14 Block diagram 1400 illustrates a device 1405 that supports methods for improving wireless performance using a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio). The device 1405 may be an example of aspects of the device 1305, the AP 102, or the STA 104 described herein. The device 1405 may include a receiver 1410, a transmitter 1415, and a communication manager 1420. The device 1405 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with each other (such as via one or more buses).

[0198] The receiver 1410 may provide components for receiving information such as packets, user data, control signaling, or any combination thereof associated with various information channels (such as control channels, data channels, information channels related to methods for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio). The information may be passed to other components of the device 1405. The receiver 1410 may utilize a single antenna or a collection of multiple antennas.

[0199] The transmitter 1415 may provide components for sending signals generated by other components of the device 1405. The transmitter 1415 may utilize a single antenna or a collection of multiple antennas.

[0200] Device 1405 or its various components can be examples of components for performing various aspects of using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance as described herein. For example, communication manager 1420 can include a transition parameter manager 1425, a transition trigger manager 1430, a second radio mode manager 1435, or any combination thereof. Communication manager 1420 can be an example of aspects of communication manager 1320 as described herein. In some examples, communication manager 1420 or its various components can be configured to use or otherwise cooperate with receiver 1410, transmitter 1415, or both to perform various operations (such as receive, obtain, monitor, output, transmit). For example, communication manager 1420 can receive information from receiver 1410, convey information to transmitter 1415, or integrate with receiver 1410, transmitter 1415, or both to obtain information, output information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0201] Communication manager 1420 can support wireless communication at a second wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. Transition parameter manager 1425 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from an operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link at a first wireless device to an operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio. Transition trigger manager 1430 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending control signaling to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link to trigger a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link. Second radio mode manager 1435 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a data packet to the first wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio according to one or more parameters after the sending of the control signaling.

[0202] Figure 15 Block diagram 1500 illustrates communication manager 1520, which supports a method for improving wireless performance using a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio). Communication manager 1520 can be an example of aspects of communication manager 1320, communication manager 1420, or both as described herein. For example, communication manager 1520 can be implemented as or can implement Figure 5 second wireless device 502 or Figure 8Aspects of the second wireless device 802. The communication manager 1520 or its various components can be examples of components for performing various aspects of using an auxiliary radio to improve wireless performance as described herein. For example, the communication manager 1520 can include a transition parameter manager 1525, a transition trigger manager 1530, a second radio mode manager 1535, an auxiliary message format manager 1540, a transition delay manager 1545, an acknowledgment message manager 1550, an auxiliary radio mode manager 1555, a padding frame manager 1560, or any combination thereof. Each of these components can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (such as via one or more buses).

[0203] The communication manager 1520 can support wireless communication at the second wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. The transition parameter manager 1525 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operating in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link at a first wireless device to operating in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link at the first wireless device, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio. The transition trigger manager 1530 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending control signaling to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link to trigger a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link. The second radio mode manager 1535 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a data packet according to one or more parameters to the first wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio after the sending of the control signaling.

[0204] In some examples, to support sending the control signaling, the auxiliary message format manager 1540 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending the control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, and the one or more parameters include the message format.

[0205] In some examples, to support receiving an indication of one or more parameters, the transition delay manager 1545 can be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving an indication of a delay associated with the transition, and the sending of the data packet is at least the time of the delay after the sending of the control signaling.

[0206] In some examples, the transition latency manager 1545 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving an indication from a first wireless device that an auxiliary radio mode is associated with a second radio being in a sleep mode, where the latency is associated with a transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

[0207] In some examples, the transition latency manager 1545 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving an indication from a first wireless device that an auxiliary radio mode is associated with a second radio operating on a second wireless link, where the latency is associated with a transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to a wireless link.

[0208] In some examples, the padding frame manager 1560 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending one or more padding frames to a first wireless device during a period corresponding to the latency after transmission of control signaling.

[0209] In some examples, the acknowledgement message manager 1550 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving an indication of one or more channel metrics of a wireless link from a first wireless device on a second wireless link when communicating with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0210] In some examples, the auxiliary radio mode manager 1555 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending one or more control messages to a first wireless device on a second wireless link when communicating one or more data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0211] In some examples, the second radio mode manager 1535 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending a set of data packets to a first wireless device on a wireless link. In some examples, the auxiliary radio mode manager 1555 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending a subset of the set of data packets to a first wireless device on a second wireless link.

[0212] In some examples, the auxiliary radio mode manager 1555 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving one or more data packets from a first wireless device on a second wireless link when communicating one or more second data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0213] Figure 16FIG. illustrates a system 1600 including a device 1605 that supports methods for improving wireless performance using a device that includes an auxiliary radio and a second radio (such as a primary radio). Device 1605 may be an example of device 1305, device 1405, AP 102, or STA 104 as described herein or include components of these devices. Device 1605 may include components for two-way voice and data communication, including components for sending and receiving communications, such as communication manager 1620, network communication manager 1610, transceiver 1615, antenna 1625, memory 1630, code 1635, processor 1640, and inter-AP communication manager 1645. These components may communicate electronically via one or more buses (such as bus 1650) or otherwise be coupled (such as operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically).

[0214] Network communication manager 1610 may manage communication with the core network (such as via one or more wired backhaul links). For example, network communication manager 1610 may manage the delivery of data communication for client devices such as one or more STAs 104.

[0215] In some cases, device 1605 may include a single antenna 1625. However, in some other cases, device 1605 may have more than one antenna 1625, and the more than one antenna may be capable of concurrently sending or receiving multiple wireless transmissions. Transceiver 1615 may communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas 1625, wired or wireless links as described herein. For example, transceiver 1615 may represent a wireless transceiver and may communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. Transceiver 1615 may also include a modem for modulating packets and providing the modulated packets to one or more antennas 1625 for transmission, and for demodulating packets received from one or more antennas 1625. Transceiver 1615 or transceiver 1615 and one or more antennas 1625 may be an example of transmitter 1315, transmitter 1415, receiver 1310, receiver 1410, or any combination thereof or components thereof as described herein.

[0216] Memory 1630 may include RAM and ROM. Memory 1630 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 1635 including instructions that, when executed by processor 1640, cause device 1605 to perform the various functions described herein. In some cases, among other things, memory 1630 may also contain BIOS, which may control basic hardware or software operations, such as interactions with peripheral components or devices.

[0217] The processor 1640 may include intelligent hardware devices such as a general-purpose processor, DSP, CPU, microcontroller, ASIC, FPGA, programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic component, discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof. In some cases, the processor 1640 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 1640. The processor 1640 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory such as the memory 1630 to cause the device 1605 to perform various functions such as functions or tasks supporting a method for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio. For example, the device 1605 or components of the device 1605 may include the processor 1640 and the memory 1630 coupled to or coupled with the processor 1640, and the processor 1640 and the memory 1630 are configured to perform the various functions described herein.

[0218] The inter-station communication manager 1645 may manage communication with other APs 102 and may include a controller or scheduler for coordinating with other APs 102 to control communication with the STAs 104. For example, the inter-station communication manager 1645 may coordinate the scheduling of transmissions to the APs 102 for various interference mitigation techniques such as beamforming or joint transmission. In some examples, the inter-station communication manager 1645 may provide an X2 interface within the LTE / LTE-A wireless communication network technology to provide communication between the APs 102.

[0219] The communication manager 1620 may support wireless communication at a second wireless device according to examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1620 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from an operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link at a first wireless device to an operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link, where the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode is associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio. The communication manager 1620 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending control signaling to a first wireless device communicating with a second wireless device on a wireless link to trigger a transition from an auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to a second radio mode on the wireless link. The communication manager 1620 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending a data packet to the first wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio according to one or more parameters after the transmission of the control signaling.

[0220] By including or configuring a communication manager 1620 according to examples as described herein, device 1605 may support techniques for improving communication reliability, reducing latency, improving the user experience associated with reduced processing, reducing power consumption, more efficiently utilizing communication resources, improving coordination between devices, and extending battery life.

[0221] Figure 17 A flowchart of method 1700 is illustrated that exemplifies a method of supporting techniques for improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio. Operations of method 1700 may be implemented by STA 104 or AP 102 or components thereof as described herein. For example, operations of method 1700 may be performed by STA 104 or AP 102 as described with reference to Figures 1 to 12 In some examples, STA 104 or AP 102 may execute an instruction set to control functional elements of the STA to perform the described functions. Additionally or alternatively, the STA or AP 102 may use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the described functions.

[0222] At 1705, the method may include: transmitting, at a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device that is different from the first radio. The operation of 1705 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 1705 may be performed by a transition parameter manager 1125 as described with reference to Figure 11 For example, the first wireless device may be the first wireless device 504 as described herein or Figure 5 the first wireless device 804, the second wireless device may be Figure 8 the second wireless device 502 or Figure 5 the second wireless device 802, and the wireless link may be the wireless link 506 as described herein. Figure 8

[0223] At 1710, the method may include: receiving, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers a transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link. The operation of 1710 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 1710 may be performed by a transition trigger manager 1130 as described with reference to Figure 11

[0224] ​​At 1715, the method may include: receiving, via a second radio on a wireless link from a second wireless device, a data packet according to one or more parameters while the first wireless device is in a second radio mode in response to control signaling. The operation at 1715 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation at 1715 may be performed by a second radio mode manager 1135 as described with reference to Figure 11 as described.

[0225] Figure 18 FIG. 1800 is a flow diagram of an example method 1800 that illustrates a method for supporting a method of improving wireless performance using an auxiliary radio. The operations of method 1800 may be implemented by an AP or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of method 1800 may be performed by an AP as described with reference to Figures 1 to 8 and Figures 13 to 16 as described. In some examples, the AP may execute an instruction set to control functional elements of the AP to perform the described functions. Additionally or alternatively, the AP may use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the described functions.

[0226] At 1805, the method may include: receiving, from a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode (such as a primary radio mode) for wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio. The operation at 1805 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation at 1805 may be performed by a transition parameter manager 1525 as described with reference to Figure 15 as described. For example, the first wireless device may be the first wireless device 504 as described herein Figure 5 or Figure 8 the first wireless device 804, the second wireless device may be Figure 5 the second wireless device 502 as described herein Figure 8 or the second wireless device 802, and the wireless link may be the wireless link 506 as described herein.

[0227] At 1810, the method may include: sending, to a first wireless device communicating with a second wireless device on a wireless link, control signaling that triggers a transition from an auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to a second radio mode on the wireless link. The operation at 1810 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation at 1810 may be performed by a transition trigger manager 1530 as described with reference to Figure 15 as described.

[0228] At 1815, the method may include: after sending control signaling, sending a data packet according to one or more parameters to a first wireless device over a wireless link via a second radio. The operations at 1815 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations at 1815 may be performed by a second radio mode manager 1535 as described with reference to Figure 15 is described.

[0229] An overview of aspects of the present disclosure is provided below:

[0230] Aspect 1: A method for wireless communication at a first wireless device, the method including: at the first wireless device, sending an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication over a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for the wireless communication over the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; receiving, via the first radio over the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers the transition from the auxiliary radio mode to the second radio mode over the wireless link; and when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling, receiving, via the second radio over the wireless link, a data packet according to the one or more parameters.

[0231] Aspect 2: The method according to aspect 1, wherein receiving the control information includes: receiving the control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, and the one or more parameters include the message format.

[0232] Aspect 3: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 2, wherein sending the indication of the one or more parameters includes: sending an indication of a delay associated with the transition, and the receiving of the data packet is at least the delay time after the receiving of the control signaling.

[0233] Aspect 4: The method according to aspect 3, the method further including: sending an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio being in a sleep mode, and the delay is associated with the transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

[0234] Aspect 5: The method according to aspect 3, the method further comprising: sending an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the operation of the second radio on a second wireless link, the latency being associated with the transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to the wireless link.

[0235] Aspect 6: The method according to any one of aspects 3 to 5, the method further comprising: receiving padding from the second wireless device on the wireless link during a period corresponding to the latency after the reception of the control signaling, the padding being included in the same packet containing the control signaling or in a subsequent packet.

[0236] Aspect 7: The method according to any one of aspects 3 to 6, the method further comprising: sending an acknowledgment message to the second wireless device via the first radio in response to the control signaling, the latency being associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the first radio and having a duration of at least one short inter-frame space.

[0237] Aspect 8: The method according to any one of aspects 3 to 6, the method further comprising: sending an acknowledgment message to the second wireless device via the second radio in response to the control signaling, the latency being associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the second radio and having a duration of at least multiple short inter-frame spaces, the transmission time of the acknowledgment message, and the preamble duration.

[0238] Aspect 9: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 8, the method further comprising: scanning a plurality of channels via the first radio when communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link in the second radio mode.

[0239] Aspect 10: The method according to aspect 9, the method further comprising: performing an association process with a third wireless device via a channel among the plurality of channels via the first radio in response to the scanning of the plurality of channels.

[0240] Aspect 11: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 10, the method further comprising: identifying one or more channel metrics of the wireless link via the first radio when communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link in the second radio mode.

[0241] Aspect 12: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 11, the method further comprising: sending an indication of one or more channel metrics via the first radio when communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link in the second radio mode.

[0242] Aspect 13: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 12, the method further comprising: while operating in the second radio mode and communicating one or more data packets with the second wireless device over the wireless link via the second radio, receiving one or more control messages from the second wireless device over a second wireless link via the first radio while operating in the auxiliary radio mode.

[0243] Aspect 14: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 13, the method further comprising: receiving a set of data packets from the second wireless device over the wireless link via the second radio while operating in the second radio mode; and receiving a subset of the set of data packets from the second wireless device over a second wireless link via the first radio while operating in the auxiliary radio mode.

[0244] Aspect 15: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 14, the method further comprising: while operating in the second radio mode and communicating one or more second data packets with the second wireless device over the wireless link via the second radio, sending one or more data packets to the second wireless device over a second wireless link via the first radio while operating in the auxiliary radio mode.

[0245] Aspect 16: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 15, the method further comprising: transitioning from operating in the second radio mode on the second wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the second wireless link in response to the control signaling; and transitioning from operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link in response to the control signaling.

[0246] Aspect 17: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 16, the method further comprising: receiving second control signaling from the second wireless device that triggers a second transition from the second radio mode on the wireless link to the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link while operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link; and transitioning from operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link in response to the second control signaling.

[0247] Aspect 18: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 16, the method further comprising: transitioning from operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link after receiving the data packet.

[0248] Aspect 19: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 18, the method further comprising: receiving an indication that the second wireless device is operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link; and in response to the indication, transitioning from operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link.

[0249] Aspect 20: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 19, the method further comprising: when the first wireless device is in the auxiliary radio mode before receiving the control signaling, communicating one or more data packets in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link.

[0250] Aspect 21: A method for wireless communication at a second wireless device, the method comprising: receiving, from a first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operating in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operating in a second radio mode for the wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; sending, to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link, control signaling triggering the transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and after sending the control signaling, sending, via the second radio, a data packet according to the one or more parameters to the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0251] Aspect 22: The method according to Aspect 21, wherein sending the control information comprises: sending the control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, the one or more parameters including the message format.

[0252] Aspect 23: The method according to any one of Aspects 21 to 22, wherein receiving the indication of the one or more parameters comprises: receiving an indication of a delay associated with the transition, and sending of the data packet is at least the delay time after sending of the control signaling.

[0253] Aspect 24: The method according to Aspect 23, the method further comprising: receiving, from the first wireless device, an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio being in a sleep mode, the delay being associated with a transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

[0254] Aspect 25: The method according to aspect 23, the method further comprising: receiving, from the first wireless device, an indication that the secondary radio mode is associated with operation of the second radio on a second wireless link, the latency being associated with a transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to the wireless link.

[0255] Aspect 26: The method according to any one of aspects 23 to 25, the method further comprising: transmitting, to the first wireless device, one or more padding frames during a period corresponding to the latency after transmission of the control signaling.

[0256] Aspect 27: The method according to any one of aspects 21 to 26, the method further comprising: receiving, from the first wireless device on a second wireless link, an indication of one or more channel metrics of the wireless link when communicating with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0257] Aspect 28: The method according to any one of aspects 21 to 27, the method further comprising: transmitting, to the first wireless device on a second wireless link, one or more control messages when communicating one or more data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0258] Aspect 29: The method according to any one of aspects 21 to 28, the method further comprising: transmitting a set of data packets to the first wireless device on the wireless link; and transmitting a subset of the set of data packets to the first wireless device on a second wireless link.

[0259] Aspect 30: The method according to any one of aspects 21 to 29, the method further comprising: receiving, from the first wireless device on a second wireless link, one or more data packets when communicating one or more second data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

[0260] Aspect 31: An apparatus for wireless communication at a first wireless device, the apparatus comprising: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform the method according to any one of aspects 1 to 20.

[0261] Aspect 32: An apparatus for wireless communication at a first wireless device, the apparatus comprising at least one component for performing the method according to any one of aspects 1 to 20.

[0262] Aspect 33: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a first wireless device, the code including instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 20.

[0263] Aspect 34: An apparatus for wireless communication at a second wireless device, the apparatus including: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform the method according to any one of Aspects 21 to 30.

[0264] Aspect 35: An apparatus for wireless communication at a second wireless device, the apparatus including at least one component for performing the method according to any one of Aspects 21 to 30.

[0265] Aspect 36: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a second wireless device, the code including instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to any one of Aspects 21 to 30.

[0266] It should be noted that the methods described herein describe possible specific implementations, and the operations and steps may be rearranged or otherwise modified and other specific implementations are also possible. In addition, aspects from two or more of the methods may be combined.

[0267] The techniques described herein can be used in various wireless communication systems such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA), and other systems. The terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably. A Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system may implement radio technologies such as CDMA2000, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), etc. CDMA2000 covers standards such as IS-2000, IS-95, and IS-856. The IS-2000 version is commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1X, 1X, etc. IS-856 (TIA-856) is commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1xEV-DO, High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), etc. UTRA includes Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other variants of CDMA. A Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) system may implement radio technologies such as the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). An Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) system may implement radio technologies such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, etc.

[0268] One or more wireless communication systems described herein may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, stations may have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different stations may be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, stations may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different stations may not be aligned in time. The techniques described herein may be used in either synchronous or asynchronous operation.

[0269] The downlink transmissions described herein may also be referred to as forward link transmissions, and the uplink transmissions may also be referred to as reverse link transmissions. Each communication link described herein—including, for example Figure 1 wireless communication system 100—may include one or more carriers, where each carrier may be a signal composed of multiple subcarriers (such as waveform signals of different frequencies).

[0270] The description set forth herein in conjunction with the drawings describes example configurations and does not represent all examples that may be implemented or within the scope of the claims. The term “exemplary” as used herein means “serving as an example, instance, or illustration” and does not mean “superior to” or “better than” other examples. The detailed description includes specific details for providing an understanding of the described techniques. However, the techniques may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.

[0271] In the drawings, like components or features may have the same reference label. Additionally, various components of the same type may be distinguished by adding a dash and a second label used to differentiate between similar components after the reference label. If only the first reference label is used in the specification, the description applies to any one of the similar components having the same first reference label, regardless of the second reference label.

[0272] The information and signals described herein may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips referred to throughout the specification may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0273] The various illustrative blocks and modules described herein in connection with the present disclosure may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration).

[0274] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or code, or transmitted through a computer-readable medium. Other examples and specific implementations are within the scope of the present disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described herein may be implemented using software, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or any combination of these. The features implementing the functions may also be physically located at different positions, including being distributed such that portions of the functions are implemented at different physical locations. Additionally, as used herein (including in the claims), the "or" used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items followed by phrases such as "at least one of" or "one or more of") indicates an inclusive listing such that, for example, the listing of at least one of A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Moreover, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should not be construed as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, an exemplary step described as "based on condition A" may be based on both condition A and condition B. In other words, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should be interpreted in the same manner as the phrases "at least partially based on", "associated with", or "in accordance with", unless otherwise explicitly indicated. Specifically, whether it is "based on 'one'" or "at least partially based on 'one'", it may be based solely on "one" or on a combination of "one" and one or more other factors, conditions, or information, unless the phrase in context refers to "only based on 'one'" or the like.

[0275] As used herein, the terms "determine" or "determination" cover a variety of actions, and thus, "determine" can include operations, calculations, processing, derivation, research, lookups (such as via lookups in tables, databases, or other data structures), reasoning, ascertaining, measuring, and similar actions. Additionally, "determine" can include receiving (such as receiving information), accessing (such as accessing data stored in a memory), sending (such as sending information), etc. Further, "determine" can include parsing, selecting, obtaining, picking, establishing, and other such similar actions.

[0276] Computer-readable media includes both non-transitory computer storage media and communication media, including any medium that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Non-transitory storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a general or special purpose computer. By way of example, and not limitation, non-transitory computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), compact disc read-only memory (CD) ROM or other optical disc storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transitory medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a general or special purpose computer, or a general or special purpose processor. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable media. For example, if software is transmitted using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave from a web site, server, or other remote source, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of the medium. As used herein, disk and disc include CD, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc, where disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically using a laser. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0277] The description herein is provided to enable a person skilled in the art to make or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. An apparatus for wireless communication at a first wireless device, the apparatus comprising: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit, at the first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for the wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; receive, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers the transition from the auxiliary radio mode to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and receive, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device, a data packet in accordance with the one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions for receiving the control signaling are executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive the control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, the one or more parameters including the message format.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions for transmitting the indication of the one or more parameters are executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit an indication of a delay associated with the transition, the reception of the data packet being at least the delay time after the reception of the control signaling.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio being in a sleep mode, the delay being associated with a transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio operating on a second wireless link, the delay being associated with a transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to the wireless link.

6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive, on the wireless link from the second wireless device, padding during a period corresponding to the delay after the reception of the control signaling, the padding being included in the same packet containing the control signaling or in a subsequent packet.

7. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: In response to the control signaling, an acknowledgment message is sent to the second wireless device via the first radio, and the latency is associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the first radio and has a duration of at least one short inter-frame spacing.

8. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: In response to the control signaling, an acknowledgment message is sent to the second wireless device via the second radio, and the latency is associated with the transmission of the acknowledgment message via the second radio and has a duration of at least a plurality of short inter-frame spacings, the transmission time of the acknowledgment message, and the preamble duration.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Scan a plurality of channels via the first radio when communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link in the second radio mode; and In response to the scanning of the plurality of channels, perform an association process with a third wireless device via a channel among the plurality of channels via the first radio.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Send an indication of one or more channel metrics via the first radio when communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link in the second radio mode.

11. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: When operating in the second radio mode and communicating one or more data packets with the second wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio, receive one or more control messages from the second wireless device on a second wireless link via the first radio when operating in the auxiliary radio mode.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Receive a set of data packets from the second wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio when operating in the second radio mode; and Receive a subset of the set of data packets from the second wireless device on a second wireless link via the first radio when operating in the auxiliary radio mode.

13. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: When operating in the second radio mode and communicating one or more second data packets with the second wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio, send one or more data packets to the second wireless device on a second wireless link via the first radio when operating in the auxiliary radio mode.

14. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: In response to the control signaling, transition from operating in the second radio mode on the second wireless link to operating in the auxiliary radio mode on the second wireless link; and Transition from operation in the secondary radio mode on the wireless link to operation in the second radio mode on the wireless link in response to the control signaling.

15. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Receive a second control signaling from the second wireless device that triggers a second transition from the second radio mode on the wireless link to the secondary radio mode on the wireless link when operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link; and Transition from operation in the second radio mode on the wireless link to operation in the secondary radio mode on the wireless link in response to the second control signaling.

16. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Transition from operation in the second radio mode on the wireless link to operation in the secondary radio mode on the wireless link after receipt of the data packet.

17. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Receive an indication identifying that the second wireless device is operating in the second radio mode on the wireless link; and Transition from operation in the secondary radio mode on the wireless link to operation in the second radio mode on the wireless link in response to the identification.

18. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the instructions are further executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Transmit one or more data packets in a message format associated with the secondary radio mode on the wireless link when the first wireless device is in the secondary radio mode prior to receipt of the control signaling.

19. An apparatus for wireless communication at a second wireless device, the apparatus comprising: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: Receive an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition at the first wireless device from operation in a secondary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for the wireless communication on the wireless link, the secondary radio mode being associated with use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; Send a control signaling to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link that triggers the transition from the secondary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; and Transmit a data packet according to the one or more parameters to the first wireless device on the wireless link via the second radio after the sending of the control signaling.

20. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the instruction for sending the control signaling can be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: send the control signaling in a message format associated with the auxiliary radio mode, the one or more parameters including the message format.

21. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the instruction for receiving the indication of the one or more parameters can be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive an indication of a delay associated with the transition, the transmission of the data packet being at least the delay time after the transmission of the control signaling.

22. The apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the instruction can further be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive from the first wireless device an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio being in a sleep mode, the delay being associated with the transition of the second radio from the sleep mode.

23. The apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the instruction can further be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive from the first wireless device an indication that the auxiliary radio mode is associated with the second radio operating on a second wireless link, the delay being associated with the transition of the second radio from the second wireless link to the wireless link.

24. The apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the instruction can further be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: send one or more padding frames to the first wireless device during a period corresponding to the delay after the transmission of the control signaling.

25. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the instruction can further be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive from the first wireless device an indication of one or more channel metrics of the wireless link on a second wireless link when communicating with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

26. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the instruction can further be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: send one or more control messages to the first wireless device on a second wireless link when communicating one or more data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

27. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the instruction can further be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: send a set of data packets to the first wireless device on the wireless link; and send a subset of the set of data packets to the first wireless device on a second wireless link.

28. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the instruction can further be executed by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive one or more data packets from the first wireless device on a second wireless link when communicating one or more second data packets with the first wireless device on the wireless link.

29. A method for wireless communication at a first wireless device, the method comprising: Transmit, at the first wireless device, an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for the wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; Receive, via the first radio on the wireless link, control signaling from a second wireless device communicating with the first wireless device that triggers the transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; And Receive, via the second radio on the wireless link from the second wireless device, a data packet according to the one or more parameters when the first wireless device is in the second radio mode in response to the control signaling.

30. A method for wireless communication at a second wireless device, the method comprising: Receive from a first wireless device an indication of one or more parameters associated with a transition from operation in an auxiliary radio mode for wireless communication on a wireless link to operation in a second radio mode for the wireless communication on the wireless link, the auxiliary radio mode being associated with the use of a first radio of the first wireless device and the second radio mode being associated with the use of a second radio of the first wireless device different from the first radio; Transmit to the first wireless device communicating with the second wireless device on the wireless link control signaling that triggers the transition from the auxiliary radio mode on the wireless link to the second radio mode on the wireless link; And Transmit, via the second radio on the wireless link to the first wireless device, a data packet according to the one or more parameters after the transmission of the control signaling.

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