Method and apparatus for processing device in wireless fidelity network

Abstract

The present application provides a method and apparatus for processing a device in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) network. The method for processing the device in the WiFi network is applied to an AP. The method comprises: receiving a first signal; from STAs accessing the AP, determining a target STA associated with the first signal, the target STA being used for processing the first signal; determining whether the target STA is in a sleep mode, wherein a transmitting module of the target STA in the sleep mode is turned off; and if the target STA is in the sleep mode, transmitting a second signal to the target STA, wherein the second signal is used for instructing the target STA to enter an active mode, and the transmitting module of the target STA in the active mode is turned on. The present application solves the problem that when no person intervenes in an STA, the STA in the sleep mode cannot actively establish a WiFi connection with an AP, thereby improving the use convenience of the STA. The present application is used for waking up the STA in the sleep mode.

Description

Processing method and device for equipment in wireless fidelity network

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the China Patent Office on July 18, 2023, with application number 202310880366.1 and application name “Processing Method and Apparatus for Devices in Wireless Fidelity Networks”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of wireless fidelity technology, and in particular to a method and apparatus for processing devices in a wireless fidelity network. Background Art

[0003] Wireless fidelity (WiFi) networks interconnect various stations (STAs), enabling interoperability between objects and between people. Since low-power STAs are typically battery-powered, it's important to reduce the power consumption of the WiFi module in the STA to conserve power and improve energy efficiency.

[0004] After accessing a wireless access point (AP), a STA no longer needs to maintain a communication connection with the AP. Therefore, the STA can turn off the receiving antenna in the WiFi module, entering sleep mode. In related technologies, after entering sleep mode, a STA will only actively establish a WiFi connection with the AP, enabling communication between the AP and the STA, after a preset time interval has elapsed, requiring intervention from nearby personnel.

[0005] For example, if a STA is a smart door lock, in sleep mode, the lock will only establish a Wi-Fi connection with the AP after a nearby person enters the password. The lock can then unlock and send data such as video and images to the AP, and the AP can keep the lock alive. This means that if no one intervenes, the STA in sleep mode cannot actively establish a Wi-Fi connection with the AP, making it less convenient to use.

[0006] Summary of the Invention

[0007] The present application provides a method and apparatus for processing devices in a WiFi network, which solves the problem in the related art that a STA in sleep mode cannot actively establish a WiFi connection with an AP when no human intervention is performed on the STA, thereby improving the convenience of use of the STA.

[0008] In a first aspect, the present application provides a processing method for a device in a WiFi network, characterized in that it is applied to an AP, and the method includes: receiving a first signal; determining a target STA associated with the first signal from a STA connected to the AP, and the target STA is used to process the first signal; determining whether the target STA is in sleep mode, and turning off the sending module of the target STA in sleep mode; if the target STA is in sleep mode, sending a second signal to the target STA, and the second signal is used to instruct the target STA to enter active mode, and turning on the sending module of the target STA in active mode.

[0009] The beneficial effect is that the AP can determine the STA that needs to be awakened based on the first signal, and wake up the STA when the STA is in sleep mode. After being awakened, the STA establishes a WiFi connection with the AP, which can realize automatic awakening of the STA. Therefore, before the preset time interval is reached and without human intervention, the STA can be awakened by the AP and establish a WiFi connection with the AP, thereby improving the convenience of using the STA.

[0010] Related art also provides a solution for waking up a smart door lock through a router, but this technology must use a proprietary protocol to achieve the wake-up, which has poor applicability. However, the embodiment of the present application can use various protocols to achieve the wake-up, which has better adaptability.

[0011] In a possible implementation, the process of determining whether the target STA is in the sleep mode includes: receiving mode information sent by the target STA, where the mode information is used to indicate the mode of the target STA; and determining whether the target STA is in the sleep mode according to the mode information.

[0012] In one possible implementation, the first signal is a remote operation instruction of the STA, and the first signal carries target operation context information. The method also includes: obtaining the operation context information of each accessed STA, and establishing a corresponding relationship between the operation context information of the STA and the connection identifier of the STA; the process of determining the target STA associated with the first signal from the STAs connected to the AP includes: determining the target STA from the STAs connected to the AP based on the connection identifier corresponding to the target operation context information, and the target STA is used to execute the remote operation instruction.

[0013] The operation context information includes at least one of the following: the Media Access Control (MAC) address of the IoT device, the Internet Protocol (IP) address, the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) aging period, and the connection port identifier between the IoT device and the client.

[0014] The AP obtains the STA's running context information during the STA's registration and online process. Optionally, the AP can identify whether each accessed STA is a target type of STA and obtain the running context information of each target type of STA.

[0015] The target type of STA may include low-power STAs, such as low-power network cameras, visual doorbells, visual cat eyes, smart door locks, smart refrigerators, and smart washing machines.

[0016] In a possible implementation, the method further includes: locally keeping alive the running context information of each connected STA. In this way, after the STA subsequently enters the sleep mode, the AP can also determine the connected STA through the locally kept running context information.

[0017] In one possible implementation, the first signal is an environmental perception signal, which indicates that environmental activity has been detected. The target STA is used to monitor the environmental activity. The process of determining the target STA associated with the first signal from the STAs connected to the AP includes: determining the target event based on the environmental feature information carried by the first signal; and determining the STA corresponding to the target event as the target STA based on the event corresponding to each STA among the STAs connected to the AP.

[0018] In a possible implementation, the AP includes an optical network terminal (ONT).

[0019] In a possible implementation, the second signal is a remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame, and a power management field of the remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame is used to instruct the target STA to enter an active mode.

[0020] In a second aspect, the present application provides a processing device for a device in a WiFi network, the device comprising: a transceiver module for receiving a first signal; a processing module for determining a target STA associated with the first signal from STAs connected to the AP, the target STA being used to process the first signal; the processing module is also used to determine whether the target STA is in sleep mode, and the sending module of the target STA in sleep mode is turned off; the transceiver module is also used to send a second signal to the target STA if the target STA is in sleep mode, the second signal being used to instruct the target STA to enter active mode, and the sending module of the target STA in active mode is turned on.

[0021] In a possible implementation, the processing module is specifically configured to: receive mode information sent by a target STA, where the mode information is used to indicate a mode of the target STA; and determine whether the target STA is in a sleep mode according to the mode information.

[0022] In one possible implementation, the first signal is a remote operation instruction of an STA, and the first signal carries target operation context information. The processing module is further configured to obtain the operation context information of each connected STA, and a correspondence is established between the operation context information of the STA and the connection identifier of the STA. The processing module is specifically configured to: determine a target STA from STAs connected to the AP based on the connection identifier corresponding to the target operation context information, and the target STA is configured to execute the remote operation instruction; wherein the operation context information includes at least one of the following: a MAC address of the STA, an IP address, a DHCP aging period, and a connection port identifier between the STA and the client.

[0023] In a possible implementation, the processing module further performs local keep-alive on the running context information of each connected STA.

[0024] In one possible implementation, the first signal is an environmental perception signal, which indicates that environmental activity has been detected. The target STA is used to monitor the environmental activity. The processing module is specifically used to: determine the target event based on the environmental feature information carried by the first signal; based on the event corresponding to each STA in the STAs connected to the AP, determine the STA corresponding to the target event as the target STA.

[0025] In a possible implementation, the AP includes an ONT.

[0026] In a possible implementation, the second signal is a remote wakeup WiFi beacon control frame, and a power management field of the remote wakeup WiFi beacon control frame is used to instruct the target STA to enter an active mode.

[0027] In a third aspect, the present application provides a processing device for a device in a WiFi network, the device comprising: one or more processors; a memory for storing one or more computer programs or instructions; when the one or more computer programs or instructions are executed by the one or more processors, the one or more processors implement the method as described in any one of the first aspects.

[0028] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a processing device for a device in a WiFi network, including a processor, configured to execute the method as described in any one of the first aspects.

[0029] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a processing device for a device in a WiFi network, comprising: a processing circuit and an interface circuit; wherein the interface circuit is used to couple with a memory external to the processing device of the device in the WiFi network and provide a communication interface for the processing circuit to access the memory; the processing circuit is used to execute program instructions in the memory to implement the method as described in any one of the first aspects.

[0030] In a specific implementation, the processing device of a device in a WiFi network may be a chip, the input circuit may be an input pin, the output circuit may be an output pin, and the processing circuit may be a transistor, a gate circuit, a trigger, or various logic circuits. The input signal received by the input circuit may be, for example, but not limited to, received and input by a receiver, and the signal output by the output circuit may be, for example, but not limited to, output to and transmitted by a transmitter. The input circuit and output circuit may be the same circuit, functioning as an input circuit and an output circuit at different times. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific implementation of the processor and various circuits.

[0031] In one implementation, the processing device of a device in a WiFi network may be a wireless communication device, that is, a computer device that supports wireless communication functions. Specifically, the wireless communication device may be a terminal such as a smartphone, or a wireless access network device such as a base station. A system chip may also be referred to as a system on chip (SoC), or simply as an SoC chip. A communication chip may include a baseband processing chip and a radio frequency processing chip. A baseband processing chip is sometimes also referred to as a modem or baseband chip. A radio frequency processing chip is sometimes also referred to as a radio frequency transceiver or radio frequency chip. In a physical implementation, some or all of the chips in the communication chip may be integrated within the SoC chip. For example, the baseband processing chip is integrated into the SoC chip, while the radio frequency processing chip is not integrated with the SoC chip. The interface circuit may be the radio frequency processing chip in the wireless communication device, and the processing circuit may be the baseband processing chip in the wireless communication device.

[0032] In another implementation, the processing device of a device in a WiFi network can be a component of a wireless communication device, such as an integrated circuit product such as a system-on-chip (SoC) or a communication chip. The interface circuit can be an input / output interface, interface circuit, output circuit, input circuit, pin, or related circuit on the chip or chip system. The processor can also be embodied as a processing circuit or a logic circuit.

[0033] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a WiFi network system, which includes: an AP and multiple STAs connected to the AP; the AP is used to receive a first signal; the AP is also used to determine a target STA associated with the first signal from multiple STAs; the AP is also used to determine whether the target STA is in sleep mode, and the sending module of the target STA in sleep mode is turned off; the AP is also used to send a second signal to the target STA when the target STA is in sleep mode; the target STA is used to turn on the sending module and enter active mode based on the second signal; the target STA is also used to process the first signal.

[0034] In a possible implementation, the target STA is further configured to send mode information to the AP, where the mode information is used to indicate the mode of the target STA; and the AP is specifically configured to determine whether the target STA is in the sleep mode according to the mode information.

[0035] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which program code is stored. When the program code is executed by a processor, the method as described in any one of the first aspects is implemented.

[0036] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a chip, comprising: at least one processor. The at least one processor is configured to execute the method according to any one of the first aspects.

[0037] Optionally, the chip further includes a memory, and at least one processor is configured to execute code in the memory. When the at least one processor executes the code, the chip implements the method according to any one of the first aspects.

[0038] Optionally, the chip may also be an integrated circuit.

[0039] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to implement the method as described in any one of the first aspects. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of a WiFi network system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0041] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a protocol frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0042] FIG3 is a flow chart of a processing method for a device in a WiFi network provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0043] FIG4 is a flow chart of another processing method for a device in a WiFi network provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0044] FIG5 is a flow chart of another processing method for a device in a WiFi network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0045] FIG6 is a block diagram of a processing device for a device in a WiFi network provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0046] FIG7 is a schematic structural diagram of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] FIG8 is a schematic structural diagram of a processing device of a device in a WiFi network provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0048] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application more clear, the technical solutions of this application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of this application, not all of them. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making any creative efforts are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0049] The terms "first," "second," and the like in the description, embodiments, claims, and drawings of this application are used solely for descriptive purposes and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or order. Furthermore, the terms "including," "having," and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions, such as, for example, inclusion of a series of steps or units. A method, system, product, or apparatus is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0050] It should be understood that in this application, "at least one (item)" means one or more, and "plurality" means two or more. "And / or" is used to describe the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, "A and / or B" can mean: only A exists, only B exists, and A and B exist at the same time, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following items" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c", where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0051] Embodiments of the present application provide a WiFi network system, including an access point (AP) and multiple STAs (STAs) connected to the AP. The STAs establish a wireless or wired connection with the AP, and the communication protocol between the STAs may include at least one of the following: ZigBee, WiFi, and Bluetooth. The STAs may utilize the StarFlash interface standard.

[0052] APs can include gateways, which are also called ONTs. STAs include, but are not limited to, terminal devices (such as computers, mobile phones, and wearable devices), low-power Internet Protocol cameras (IP cameras), visual doorbells, visual peeks, smart door locks, smart refrigerators, smart washing machines, and smart cars.

[0053] STAs can connect to corresponding terminal devices through an AP, allowing users to control the STAs through the terminal devices. Please refer to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of a WiFi network system provided by an embodiment of the present application. This scenario shows an AP, multiple STAs connected to the AP, a server, and terminal devices. The AP establishes a communication connection with the server, and the server establishes a communication connection with the terminal devices. The terminal devices and STAs transmit signals through the AP and server.

[0054] Terminal devices include, but are not limited to, access terminals, terminal units, terminal stations, mobile stations, mobile stations, remote stations, remote terminals, mobile devices, wireless communication devices, terminal agents, and terminal devices. STA-specific applications (APPs) can be installed on terminal devices. These APPs enable STA management and query functions. After a STA completes user registration and authentication through the APP, the APP can connect to the corresponding server through a specific port.

[0055] Figure 1 shows three STAs: a network camera, a visual doorbell, and a smart door lock. The working principle of a STA is explained using a network camera as an example: the network camera sends the captured image data to the AP, and the AP sends the received image data to the corresponding server. The server sends the image data to the terminal device through the specific port of the app, allowing the user to view the image sent by the network camera through the app. Taking a smart door lock as an example, referring to the above process, the smart door lock can send signals to the terminal device through the AP and the corresponding server. These signals may include: signals indicating whether the door is open or closed, information about the person opening the door, etc. The terminal device can also send signals to the smart door lock through the corresponding server and AP. These signals may include: signals indicating that the door is open, as well as sound signals (such as alarm signals), etc.

[0056] The following first describes the STA registration and online process and the subsequent process of entering the sleep mode in the embodiment of the present application. First, the STA registers and goes online by exchanging frames with the AP.

[0057] Optionally, when a STA registers and goes online, the AP can intelligently identify whether the STA is a target type STA. The AP can determine the STA's device characteristics based on the interaction frames with the STA, and then determine whether the STA is a target type STA based on the device characteristics. The device characteristics may include at least one of the following information: interaction frame traffic volume, MAC address carried in the interaction frame, port number carried in the interaction frame, device identity document (ID) carried in the interaction frame, device identifier, etc. Target type STAs may include low-power STAs, such as low-power network cameras, visual doorbells, visual peeks, smart door locks, smart refrigerators, and smart washing machines.

[0058] During a STA's registration and online process, the AP assigns an IP address to the STA. This IP address can be a fixed local network segment address. For example, the AP can assign an IP address to the STA through DHCP. DHCP has an aging period, which indicates the validity period of the IP address assigned by the AP. After the IP address's validity period expires, the AP must reassign an IP address to the STA.

[0059] The AP can obtain the STA's operational context information through the STA's registration and online process. This operational context information includes at least one of the following: the STA's MAC address, IP address, DHCP aging period, and the port identifier for the STA's connection to the client. This operational context information can be considered a STA's forwarding table entry. If the target STA type is identified during the STA's online process, the AP can obtain the operational context information for the target STA type. If the target STA type is not identified, the AP can obtain the operational context information for each STA that registers and online.

[0060] After a STA registers and connects to an AP, it no longer needs to maintain a communication connection with the AP and can enter sleep mode. Before the STA enters sleep mode, the AP first keeps the STA's Wi-Fi active. The AP can periodically exchange data packets with the connected STA to ensure that the Wi-Fi connection between the STA and the AP remains active. These data packets can include heartbeat packets, Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) packets, and Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) packets.

[0061] If a STA does not receive a data packet from the AP within a preset time, it can enter sleep mode. If the STA receives a data packet within the specified time, it can continue to maintain the WiFi connection with the AP. When the connection status between the STA and the AP changes, the STA's connection status in the client is updated.

[0062] Subsequently, WiFi energy saving can be performed on the STA, causing the STA to enter sleep mode. In the embodiment of the present application, before WiFi energy saving is performed, the AP can locally keep alive the operating context information obtained for each STA. In this way, after the STA subsequently enters sleep mode, the AP can also determine the connected STA based on the locally kept operating context information.

[0063] The following describes the process of a STA entering sleep mode. In the embodiment of the present application, the transmitting module (also known as the transmitting antenna in the WiFi module) of the STA in sleep mode is turned off, and the receiving module (also known as the receiving antenna in the WiFi module) is turned on. The STA will not send protocol frames, but can receive protocol frames.

[0064] When a STA is in sleep mode, the AP buffers data frames to be sent to the STA. When the STA enters active mode from sleep mode, the AP sends the buffered frames to the STA. When the STA is in active mode, the AP sends frames to the STA. Some protocol frames sent by the STA to the AP can carry mode information, indicating the STA's mode: sleep mode or active mode.

[0065] The following describes the structure of a protocol frame that can carry mode information. For example, please refer to Figure 2, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of a protocol frame provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 uses the 802.11 standard frame defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) as an example for illustration. As shown in Figure 2, the 802.11 frame includes: a frame control field, a duration (Duration) / ID field, an address (Address) 1 field, an address2 field, an address3 field, a sequence control (seq ctl) field, an address4 field, a frame body (Frame Body), and a frame check sequence (FCS).

[0066] The Frame Control field is related to STA hibernation. It includes the following fields: Protocol, Type, Subtype, To Distributed System (To DS), From DS, More Flag, Retry, Power Management (Pwr Mgmt), More Data, Protected Frame, and Order.

[0067] The Pwr Mgmt bit carries mode information. A value of 1 indicates the STA is in sleep mode, while a value of 0 indicates the STA is in active mode. Before entering sleep mode, the STA sends an 802.11 frame with the Pwr Mgmt bit set to 1 to inform the AP that it is entering sleep mode. The STA then shuts down its transmit module and enters sleep mode. Upon receiving an 802.11 frame with the Pwr Mgmt bit set to 1, the AP changes the STA's power-saving mode (PS Mode) to sleep.

[0068] Optionally, the 802.11 frames that can effectively carry mode information may include at least one of the following: all data frames, Request To Send (RTS) frames and Power Save Poll (PS-Poll) frames in control frames, and all frames in management frames except association (Assoc) frames, retry association (reAssoc) frames, authentication (Auth) frames, and probe request (probe request, probeReq) frames.

[0069] Before entering sleep mode, a STA sets a Listen Interval, which represents the STA's sleep beacon period. After the Listen Interval, the STA must enter active mode from sleep mode. The AP buffers frames it needs to send to the STA for a duration greater than the Listen Interval. If the STA does not enter active mode after the buffering duration, the AP discards the buffered frames.

[0070] The listening interval can be carried in an Association Request frame, which occupies 2 bytes. Based on the Association Request frame, the AP sends an Association Response frame to the STA. The Association Response frame carries the Association ID (AID) assigned by the AP to the STA. The AID is used to distinguish between different connections. All frames sent by the AP to the STA carry the STA's AID.

[0071] The Association Request frame is an 802.11 Management frame, which includes a Frag Number field, a Capability Info field, a Listening Interval field, and an SSID field. The Listening Interval field is used to carry the Listening Interval.

[0072] The Association Response frame is also an 802.11 Management frame, which includes: a Frag Number field, a Capability Info field, a Status Code field, and an Association ID field. The Association ID field is used to carry the AID.

[0073] The present invention provides a method for processing devices in a WiFi network. This method can be used to wake up a STA in sleep mode without human intervention. The method can be applied to a WiFi network system, such as the network system shown in Figure 1. Please refer to Figure 3, which is a flow chart of a method for processing devices in a WiFi network provided by an embodiment of the present invention. The method can be applied to an AP, such as the AP shown in Figure 1. As shown in Figure 3, the method may include the following steps:

[0074] 101. Receive a first signal.

[0075] The first signal can be a remote operation command or an environmental awareness signal from a STA connected to the AP. The remote operation command can be sent by a client on the aforementioned WiFi network. The environmental awareness signal indicates the detection of environmental activity and carries environmental characteristic information. In indoor environments, radio waves generated by a WiFi signal transmitter propagate through multiple paths, including direct radiation, reflection, and scattering, forming a multipath superposition signal at the WiFi signal receiver. This multipath superposition signal is affected by the physical space in which it propagates and carries environmental characteristic information.

[0076] The environment refers to the physical space in which Wi-Fi signals propagate. Environmental characteristics include both human factors (such as the presence of people and their location, characteristics, posture, and movements) and other external factors. Environmental characteristics can include channel state information (CSI).

[0077] 102. Determine a target STA associated with the first signal from STAs connected to the AP, where the target STA is used to process the first signal.

[0078] When the first signal is a remote operation instruction of an STA, the first signal may carry target operation context information, and the target operation context information is associated with the target STA. Referring to the above description, the AP obtains the operation context information of the STA (or the target type of STA) during the registration and online process of the STA (or the target type of STA). Therefore, when the AP receives the first signal, it can determine the target STA associated with the first signal based on the target operation context information carried by the first signal. The target STA processing the first signal refers to executing the remote operation instruction.

[0079] When the first signal is an environmental sensing signal, the first signal may carry environmental feature information. The AP determines the target STA associated with the first signal based on the environmental feature information carried by the first signal. The target STA processes the first signal to monitor environmental activities.

[0080] 103. Determine whether the target STA is in a sleep mode. The transmitting module of the target STA in the sleep mode is turned off.

[0081] As described above, a STA sends mode information to the AP. Based on the mode information sent by the target STA, the AP can determine whether the target STA is in sleep mode. Taking the frame structure shown in Figure 2 as an example, if the Pwr Mgmt bit of a protocol frame sent by the target STA is 1, the AP determines that the target STA is in sleep mode. If the Pwr Mgmt bit is 0, the AP determines that the target STA is not in sleep mode.

[0082] 104. If the target STA is in the sleep mode, send a second signal to the target STA, where the second signal is used to instruct the target STA to enter the active mode, and the sending module of the target STA in the active mode is turned on.

[0083] Optionally, the second signal may be a remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame, and the power management field of the remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame is used to instruct the target STA to enter the active mode.

[0084] If the first signal is a remote operation command of the STA, the STA needs to execute the remote operation command after entering the active mode. If the first signal is an environmental sensing signal, the STA needs to perform environmental monitoring after entering the active mode.

[0085] In summary, the processing method for devices in a WiFi network provided in an embodiment of the present application is as follows: after receiving a first signal, the AP determines a target STA associated with the first signal from among the STAs connected to the AP. The target STA is used to process the first signal and then determines whether the target STA is in sleep mode. The transmitting module of the target STA in sleep mode is turned off. If the target STA is in sleep mode, a second signal is sent to the target STA. The second signal is used to instruct the target STA to enter active mode. The transmitting module of the target STA in active mode is turned on. The AP can determine the STA that needs to be awakened based on the first signal and awaken the STA if it is in sleep mode. After being awakened, the STA establishes a WiFi connection with the AP, enabling automatic awakening of the STA. Therefore, the STA can be awakened by the AP and establish a WiFi connection with the AP before the preset time interval is reached and without human intervention, thereby improving the convenience of using the STA.

[0086] Please refer to Figure 4, which is a flow chart of another processing method for a device in a WiFi network provided by an embodiment of the present application. This method can be applied to a WiFi network system, for example, it can be applied to the scenario shown in Figure 1. Figure 4 takes the first signal being a remote operation instruction of an STA as an example for explanation. As shown in Figure 4, the method may include the following process:

[0087] 201. The AP obtains the running context information of each connected STA. A corresponding relationship is established between the running context information of the STA and the connection identifier of the STA.

[0088] As described above, the AP can obtain the STA's running context information through the STA's registration and online process. Optionally, the AP can identify whether each accessed STA is a target type of STA and obtain the running context information of each target type of STA.

[0089] 202. The client sends a remote operation instruction of the STA to the AP. The remote operation instruction of the STA carries target operation context information.

[0090] A STA's remote operation command is an instruction that instructs the STA to perform a corresponding operation. For example, for a smart door lock, a STA's remote operation command may include a door-opening command. For a smart light, a STA's remote operation command may include a light-on command. A STA's remote operation command may be a control message from the STA.

[0091] 203. The AP determines a target STA from the STAs connected to the AP based on the connection identifier corresponding to the target operation context information. The target STA is used to execute the remote operation instruction.

[0092] The AP establishes a correspondence between the operation context information and the connection identifier of each connected STA (or target STA type), which may include an AID. The AP parses the received remote operation command from the STA to obtain the target operation context information, and then obtains the connection identifier corresponding to the target operation context information based on the aforementioned correspondence, thereby determining the target STA.

[0093] 204. The AP determines whether the target STA is in a sleep mode. The transmitting module of the target STA in the sleep mode is turned off.

[0094] This process can refer to the aforementioned process 103, and will not be described in detail in this embodiment of the present application.

[0095] 205. If the target STA is in sleep mode, the AP sends a wake-up signal to the target STA.

[0096] The wake-up signal is equivalent to the first signal in the embodiment shown in FIG3 . The wake-up signal can be a remote wake-up WiFi beacon control frame. The wake-up-related field in the remote wake-up WiFi beacon control frame is the Frame Control Flags field of the 802.11 Media Access Control Header (MAC Header).

[0097] The Frame Control Flags field occupies 8 bits. Bit 4 is the Power Management bit, which indicates whether the target STA is in sleep mode or active mode. For example, when Bit 4 = 0, the target STA is in active mode. When Bit 4 = 1, the target STA is in sleep mode. In process 205, Bit 4 = 0.

[0098] 206. The target STA enters active mode from sleep mode based on the wake-up signal

[0099] The target STA determines that Bit 4 of the Frame Control Flags field in the received remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame is 0, thereby turning on the sending module to enter the active mode and establish a WiFi connection with the AP.

[0100] The AP can then send STA operation instructions to the target STA, and the target STA performs the corresponding operation based on the received STA operation instructions. In one example, the AP directly sends the STA operation instructions to the target STA after sending the remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame. In another example, after entering active mode, the target STA sends a request frame to the AP. The request frame is used to request the AP to send, and the request frame may include a PS-Poll frame. Based on the received request frame, the AP sends the STA operation instructions to the target STA.

[0101] If the AP has frames cached to be sent to the target STA during the target STA's sleep phase, the AP may send the cached frames of the target STA to the target STA after the target STA enters active mode. The cached frames carry the connection identifier of the target STA.

[0102] In one example, the AP has a buffered unicast frame, such as a unicast data frame, that needs to be sent to the target STA. The AP can directly send the buffered unicast frame of the target STA to the target STA after sending the remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame.

[0103] In another example, the AP has a buffered broadcast frame to be sent to the target STA, such as an ARP Request frame. The AP can directly send the buffered broadcast frame of the target STA to the target STA after sending the remote wake up WiFi beacon control frame.

[0104] In another example, the AP buffers unicast and broadcast frames to be sent to a target STA. After the target STA enters active mode, it sends a request frame to the AP. Based on the received request frame, the AP may first send the target STA's buffered broadcast frames to the target STA, followed by the target STA's buffered unicast frames.

[0105] 207. The target STA executes the remote operation instruction.

[0106] The AP may forward the remote operation instruction to the target STA, and the target STA executes the remote operation instruction.

[0107] Please refer to Figure 5, which is a flow chart of another processing method for a device in a WiFi network provided by an embodiment of the present application. This method can be applied to a WiFi network system, such as the scenario shown in Figure 1. Figure 5 takes the first signal as an environment sensing signal as an example for illustration. As shown in Figure 5, the method may include the following steps:

[0108] 301. The AP receives an environment sensing signal, which carries environment feature information.

[0109] Optionally, environmental characteristic information may include CSI. During transmission, WiFi signals may be blocked and reflected by objects along the transmission path, causing signal variations. CSI is a parameter that characterizes signal variations. It uses indicators such as carrier signal strength, amplitude, phase, and signal delay to indicate phenomena such as signal scattering, reflection, and power attenuation that occur as the carrier changes over transmission distance.

[0110] 302. The AP determines a target event based on the environmental feature information carried by the environmental perception signal.

[0111] The AP has preset mappings between various environmental characteristics and events. The AP can identify events corresponding to environmental characteristics carried in environmental sensing signals as target events. Target events can include environmental change information and human activity information. Human activity information can include activity intensity, activity type, and location.

[0112] 303. The AP determines, based on the event corresponding to each STA among the STAs connected to the AP, the STA corresponding to the target event as the target STA.

[0113] The AP is pre-configured with correspondences between various events and STAs. Based on the correspondences, the AP can determine the STA corresponding to the target event and determine the STA as the target STA.

[0114] 304. The AP determines whether the target STA is in a sleep mode. The transmitting module of the target STA in the sleep mode is turned off.

[0115] This process can refer to the aforementioned process 103, and will not be described in detail in this embodiment of the present application.

[0116] 305. If the target STA is in sleep mode, the AP sends a wake-up signal to the target STA.

[0117] This process can refer to the aforementioned process 205, and will not be described in detail in this embodiment of the present application.

[0118] 306. The target STA enters the active mode from the sleep mode based on the wake-up signal.

[0119] This process can refer to the aforementioned process 206, and will not be described in detail in this embodiment of the present application.

[0120] 307. Target STA monitors environmental activities.

[0121] The AP may send an environment monitoring instruction to the target STA, and the target STA monitors the environment activities based on the environment monitoring instruction.

[0122] It should be noted that the above method flow illustrates the STA wake-up process using the target STA as an example. The wake-up process of any STA can refer to the method flow corresponding to Figures 3 to 5 above, and the embodiments of this application will not be repeated here.

[0123] The order of the methods provided in the embodiments of the present application can be adjusted appropriately, and the process can be increased or decreased accordingly. Any method that can be easily thought of by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included in the scope of protection of this application, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0124] The above mainly introduces the processing method of the device in the WiFi network provided by the embodiment of the present application from the perspective of the device. It can be understood that in order to realize the above functions, the device includes a hardware structure and / or software module corresponding to the execution of each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to be beyond the scope of this application.

[0125] The embodiment of the present application can divide the functional modules of the device according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods.

[0126] Figure 6 is a block diagram of a processing device for a device in a WiFi network provided by an embodiment of the present application. When functional modules are divided according to their respective functions, the processing device 400 for the device in the WiFi network may include a transceiver module 401 and a processing module 402. Exemplarily, the processing device for the device in the WiFi network may be an AP or STA, or a chip therein, or other combined device or component having the functions of the processing device for the device in the WiFi network. When the processing device 400 for the device in the WiFi network is an AP or STA, the transceiver module 401 may be a transceiver, which may include an antenna and a radio frequency circuit, etc.; the processing module 402 may be a processor (or processing circuit), such as a baseband processor, which may include one or more central processing units (CPUs). When the processing device 400 for the device in the WiFi network is a device or component having the functions described above, the transceiver module 401 may be a radio frequency unit; the processing module 402 may be a processor (or processing circuit), such as a baseband processor. When the processing device 400 of the device in the WiFi network is a chip system, the transceiver module 401 can be the input and output interface of the chip (e.g., a baseband chip); the processing module 402 can be the processor (or processing circuit) of the chip system, which can include one or more central processing units. It should be understood that the transceiver module 401 in the embodiment of the present application can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuit components; the processing module 402 can be implemented by a processor or processor-related circuit components (or, referred to as a processing circuit).

[0127] The transceiver module 401 can be used to perform all transceiver operations in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 5 and / or to support other processes of the technology described herein; the processing module 402 can be used to perform all operations in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 5 except for transceiver operations and / or to support other processes of the technology described herein. The transceiver module 501 can include a sending module and / or a receiving module, respectively, for performing the sending and receiving operations in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 5.

[0128] When the processing device of the device in the WiFi network is an AP, or a chip in the AP, or other combined devices, components, etc. having the functions of the processing device of the device in the WiFi network, the processing device of the device in the WiFi network includes:

[0129] A processing module, configured to determine a target STA to be awakened when a wake-up trigger condition is met, wherein the wake-up trigger condition includes: receiving a STA operation instruction and / or detecting an intrusion event;

[0130] a transceiver module, configured to receive a first signal;

[0131] a processing module, configured to determine a target STA associated with the first signal from STAs connected to the AP, the target STA being configured to process the first signal;

[0132] The processing module is further configured to determine whether the target STA is in a sleep mode, and the transmitting module of the target STA in the sleep mode is turned off;

[0133] The transceiver module is further used to send a second signal to the target STA if the target STA is in sleep mode, and the second signal is used to instruct the target STA to enter active mode, and the sending module of the target STA in active mode is turned on.

[0134] In combination with the above solution, the processing module is specifically used to: receive mode information sent by the target STA, where the mode information is used to indicate the mode of the target STA; and determine whether the target STA is in sleep mode according to the mode information.

[0135] In combination with the above solution, the first signal is a remote operation instruction of the STA, and the first signal carries target operation context information. The processing module is further used to obtain the operation context information of each connected STA, and a corresponding relationship is established between the operation context information of the STA and the connection identifier of the STA; the processing module is specifically used to: determine the target STA from the STAs connected to the AP based on the connection identifier corresponding to the target operation context information, and the target STA is used to execute the remote operation instruction; wherein the operation context information includes at least one of the following: the MAC address of the STA, the IP address, the DHCP aging period, and the connection port identifier between the STA and the client.

[0136] In combination with the above solution, the processing module also performs local keep-alive on the running context information of each connected STA.

[0137] In combination with the above scheme, the first signal is an environmental perception signal, which indicates that environmental activity has been detected. The target STA is used to monitor the environmental activity. The processing module is specifically used to: determine the target event based on the environmental feature information carried by the first signal; based on the event corresponding to each STA in the STA connected to the AP, determine the STA corresponding to the target event as the target STA.

[0138] In combination with the above solution, the AP includes an ONT.

[0139] In combination with the above solution, the second signal is a remote wakeup WiFi beacon control frame, and the power management field of the remote wakeup WiFi beacon control frame is used to instruct the target STA to enter the active mode.

[0140] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The electronic device 500 may be an AP or a chip or functional module in the AP. As shown in FIG7 , the electronic device 500 includes a processor 501 , a transceiver 502 , and a communication line 503 .

[0141] The processor 501 is used to execute any step in the method embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 5, and when executing processes such as receiving a first signal and sending a second signal, it can optionally call the transceiver 502 and the communication line 503 to complete the corresponding operations.

[0142] Furthermore, the electronic device 500 may further include a memory 504 , wherein the processor 501 , the memory 504 and the transceiver 502 may be connected via a communication line 503 .

[0143] The transceiver 502 is used to communicate with other devices or other communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access networks (RAN), wireless local area networks (WLAN), etc. The transceiver 502 can be a module, a circuit, a transceiver, or any device capable of implementing communication.

[0144] The transceiver 502 is mainly used for sending and receiving signals, etc., and may include a transmitter and a receiver for sending and receiving signals, etc. respectively; operations other than sending and receiving signals, etc. are implemented by the processor, such as determining the target STA, etc.

[0145] The communication line 503 is used to transmit information between the components included in the electronic device 500.

[0146] In one design, the processor can be considered as the logic circuit and the transceiver as the interface circuit.

[0147] The memory 504 is used to store instructions, where the instructions may be computer programs.

[0148] It should be noted that the memory 504 can exist independently of the processor 501 or can be integrated with the processor 501. The memory 504 can be used to store instructions, program code, or some data. The memory 504 can be located inside the electronic device 500 or outside the electronic device 500, without limitation. The processor 501 is configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory 504 to implement the methods provided in the above embodiments of the present application.

[0149] In one example, the processor 501 may include one or more processors, such as processor 0 and processor 1 in FIG. 7 .

[0150] As an optional implementation, the electronic device 500 includes multiple processors. For example, in addition to the processor 501 in FIG. 7 , it may also include a processor 507 .

[0151] As an optional implementation, the electronic device 500 further includes an output device 505 and an input device 506. For example, the input device 506 is a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, a joystick, or the like, and the output device 505 is a display screen, a speaker, or the like.

[0152] It should be pointed out that the electronic device 500 can be a chip system or a device with a similar structure as shown in Figure 7. Among them, the chip system can be composed of chips, or it can include chips and other discrete devices. The actions, terms, etc. involved in the various embodiments of this application can refer to each other without limitation. The message names or parameter names in the messages exchanged between the various devices in the embodiments of this application are only an example. Other names can also be used in the specific implementation without limitation. In addition, the component structure shown in Figure 7 does not constitute a limitation on the electronic device 500. In addition to the components shown in Figure 7, the electronic device 500 may include more or fewer components than those shown in Figure 7, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently.

[0153] The processor and transceiver described in this application can be implemented on an integrated circuit (IC), an analog IC, a radio frequency integrated circuit, a mixed-signal IC, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a printed circuit board (PCB), an electronic device, etc. The processor and transceiver can also be manufactured using various IC process technologies, such as complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), N-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS), P-type metal oxide semiconductor (positive channel metal oxide semiconductor, PMOS), bipolar junction transistor (BJT), bipolar CMOS (BiCMOS), silicon germanium (SiGe), gallium arsenide (GaAs), etc.

[0154] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a processing device for a device in a WiFi network, provided in an embodiment of the present application. This processing device for a device in a WiFi network can be applied to the scenarios described in the above-described method embodiments. For ease of illustration, Figure 8 only illustrates the main components of the processing device for the device in a WiFi network, including a processor, memory, control circuitry, and input / output devices. The processor is primarily used to process communication protocols and communication data, execute software programs, and process data from software programs. The memory is primarily used to store software programs and data. The control circuitry is primarily used to provide power and transmit various electrical signals. The input / output devices are primarily used to receive user input and output data to the user.

[0155] When the processing device of a device in the WiFi network is an AP or STA, the control circuit can be a motherboard. The memory includes a hard disk, RAM, ROM, and other storage media. The processor can include a baseband processor and a central processing unit. The baseband processor is primarily responsible for processing communication protocols and communication data, while the central processing unit is primarily responsible for controlling the processing devices of the devices in the entire WiFi network, executing software programs, and processing software program data. Input and output devices include a display screen, keyboard, and mouse. The control circuit can further include or be connected to a transceiver circuit or transceiver, such as a network cable interface, for sending or receiving data or signals, such as for data transmission and communication with other devices. Furthermore, it can also include an antenna for transmitting and receiving wireless signals for data / signal transmission with other devices.

[0156] According to the method provided in the embodiments of the present application, the present application also provides a computer program product, which includes computer program code. When the computer program code runs on a computer, it enables the computer to execute any of the methods described in the embodiments of the present application.

[0157] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium. All or part of the processes in the above-mentioned method embodiments can be executed by a computer or a device with the processing power of a device in a WiFi network to control the relevant hardware. The computer program or the set of instructions can be stored in the above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium. When executed, the computer program or the set of instructions can include the processes of the above-mentioned method embodiments. The computer-readable storage medium can be an internal storage unit of the AP or STA in any of the above-mentioned embodiments, such as the hard disk or memory of the AP or STA. The above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium can also be an external storage device of the above-mentioned AP or STA, such as a plug-in hard disk equipped on the above-mentioned AP or STA, a smart media card (SMC), a secure digital (SD) card, a flash card, etc. Furthermore, the above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium can also include both the internal storage unit of the above-mentioned AP or STA and an external storage device. The above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium is used to store the above-mentioned computer program or instructions and other programs and data required by the above-mentioned AP or STA. The above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium can also be used to temporarily store data that has been output or is to be output.

[0158] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0159] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working process of the device described above can refer to the corresponding process in the aforementioned method embodiment, and will not be repeated here.

[0160] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely schematic. For example, the division of the units is merely a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0161] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0162] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0163] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or the part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling a computer device (personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0164] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included in the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for processing a device in a wireless fidelity WiFi network, characterized in that: Applied to a wireless access point AP, the method comprises: receiving a first signal; Determine, from STAs accessing the AP, a target STA associated with the first signal, where the target STA is used to process the first signal; Determine whether the target STA is in a sleep mode, and turn off the sending module of the target STA in the sleep mode; If the target STA is in the sleep mode, a second signal is sent to the target STA, where the second signal is used to instruct the target STA to enter the active mode, and the sending module of the target STA in the active mode is turned on.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The determining whether the target STA is in a sleep mode includes: receiving mode information sent by the target STA, where the mode information is used to indicate a mode of the target STA; According to the mode information, it is determined whether the target STA is in a sleep mode.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The first signal is a remote operation instruction of the STA, and the first signal carries target operation context information. The method further includes: Acquire the running context information of each of the accessed STAs, where a corresponding relationship is established between the running context information of the STA and the connection identifier of the STA; The determining, from the STAs connected to the AP, a target STA associated with the first signal includes: Determine the target STA from the STAs connected to the AP based on the connection identifier corresponding to the target operation context information, and the target STA is used to execute the remote operation instruction; The operation context information includes at least one of the following: a media access control MAC address, an Internet Protocol IP address, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol DHCP aging period, and a connection port identifier between the STA and the client.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The method further comprises: The running context information of each of the accessed STAs is kept alive locally.

5. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The first signal is an environment perception signal, the environment perception signal indicates that an environment activity is detected, the target STA is used to monitor the environment activity, and determining the target STA associated with the first signal from the STAs connected to the AP includes: determining a target event according to the environmental feature information carried by the first signal; Based on an event corresponding to each STA among the STAs accessing the AP, the STA corresponding to the target event is determined as the target STA.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The AP includes an optical network device ONT.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The second signal is a remote wakeup WiFi beacon control frame, and the power management field of the remote wakeup WiFi beacon control frame is used to instruct the target STA to enter the active mode.

8. A processing device for a device in a wireless fidelity WiFi network, characterized in that: The device comprises: A transceiver module, configured to receive a first signal; A processing module, used to determine a target STA associated with the first signal from STAs connected to the AP, and the target STA is used to process the first signal; The processing module is further used to determine whether the target STA is in a sleep mode, and the sending module of the target STA in the sleep mode is turned off; The transceiver module is further used to send a second signal to the target STA if the target STA is in the sleep mode, wherein the second signal is used to instruct the target STA to enter the active mode, and the sending module of the target STA in the active mode is turned on.

9. A processing device for a device in a wireless fidelity WiFi network, characterized in that: The device comprises: one or more processors; a memory for storing one or more computer programs or instructions; When the one or more computer programs or instructions are executed by the one or more processors, the one or more processors implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

10. A wireless fidelity WiFi network system, characterized in that: The system comprises: Wireless access point AP and multiple stations STA connected to AP; The AP is used to receive a first signal; The AP is further used to determine a target STA associated with the first signal from a plurality of STAs; The AP is further used to determine whether the target STA is in a sleep mode, and the sending module of the target STA in the sleep mode is turned off; The AP is further configured to send a second signal to the target STA when the target STA is in the sleep mode; The target STA is configured to enable the sending module to enter an active mode based on the second signal; The target STA is further used to process the first signal.

11. The system according to claim 11, characterized in that The target STA is further used to send mode information to the AP, where the mode information is used to indicate a mode of the target STA; The AP is specifically configured to determine whether the target STA is in the sleep mode according to the mode information.

12. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores program code, and when the program code is executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 is implemented.

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