Electronic apparatus for wireless LAN communication and operating method thereof

Abstract

An embodiment of the present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for wireless LAN communication in an electronic apparatus. The electronic apparatus comprises: a communication circuit; a processor; and a memory. The memory may store instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the electronic apparatus to: identify channels of a first group for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol and channels of a second group for scanning a first external electronic apparatus; on the basis of a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the first group, perform second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic apparatus; perform a scan related to the channels of the first group; and perform, on the basis of the second scheduling, NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic apparatus. Other embodiments may also be possible.

Description

Electronic device for wireless LAN communication and its operating method

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to an electronic device for wireless LAN communication and an operating method thereof.

[0002] A wireless local area network (WLAN) system can support wireless connections of various electronic devices, such as smartphones, tablet personal computers, or notebooks, using a designated frequency band (e.g., approximately 2.4 GHz band, approximately 5 GHz band, and / or approximately 6 GHz band).

[0003] Wireless LAN systems can be installed not only in private spaces like homes, but also in public spaces like airports, train stations, offices, and department stores. Wireless LAN systems are defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard. For example, the IEEE 802.11 standard is continuously evolving, including IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11n, IEEE 802.11ac, IEEE 802.11ax, and IEEE 802.11be.

[0004] The above information may be provided as background art to aid in understanding the present disclosure. No claim or determination is made as to whether any of the above-described matters constitute prior art related to the present disclosure.

[0005] Electronic devices can perform wireless LAN communication by utilizing various protocols based on wireless LAN. For example, the electronic device can perform wireless LAN communication (e.g., Wi-Fi legacy) that transmits and / or receives data with an access point (AP) through a wireless connection to the AP. The electronic device can perform wireless LAN communication (e.g., Wi-Fi direct) that transmits and / or receives data with external electronic devices without network infrastructure equipment (e.g., access point (AP), hotspot, or router). The electronic device can transmit and / or receive data with external electronic devices included in a cluster based on low-power short-range communication technology based on neighbor awareness networking (NAN) (or Wi-Fi aware). For example, a cluster may represent a set of electronic devices that form a proximity network.

[0006] An electronic device may substantially simultaneously perform wireless LAN communications in different frequency bands if the chipset for wireless LAN communications (e.g., a Wi-Fi chipset) includes multiple cores (or multiple baseband cores). For example, the electronic device may perform wireless LAN communications in a first frequency band based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., NAN) through a first core, while performing wireless LAN communications in a second frequency band based on a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi direct or Wi-Fi legacy) through a second core. For example, the multi-core may include multiple cores that process signals of wireless LAN communications transmitted and / or received through different frequency bands.

[0007] However, electronic devices may have limitations in simultaneous wireless LAN communication due to limitations in the operating system (OS) or the chipset for wireless LAN communication. For example, if multiple wireless LAN protocols use different channels in the same frequency band, the electronic device may perform wireless LAN communication based on different wireless LAN protocols through different channels in a single core. If the electronic device performs wireless LAN communication based on different wireless LAN protocols through different channels in a single core, the electronic device may perform wireless LAN communication based on different wireless LAN protocols through different time intervals. In this case, the electronic device is limited in wireless LAN communication based on the second wireless LAN protocol during the time interval in which it performs wireless LAN communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol.

[0008] When an electronic device performs a search (e.g., search or scan) based on a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi direct) during data communication with an external electronic device based on NAN communication, the electronic device may allocate at least a portion of the time resource (or time interval) for performing data communication with the external electronic device based on NAN communication as a time resource for the search based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device may be restricted from data communication with the external electronic device based on NAN communication during the time interval for the search based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0009] One embodiment of the present invention discloses a device and method for performing a search based on a heterogeneous protocol during NAN communication in an electronic device.

[0010] The technical problems to be achieved in this document are not limited to the technical problems mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned can be clearly understood by a person having ordinary skill in the technical field to which the present invention belongs from the description below.

[0011] According to one embodiment, an electronic device may include a communication circuit for performing wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, at least one processor, and a memory operatively connected to the at least one processor. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform data communication based on neighbor awareness networking (NAN) with a first external electronic device based on a first scheduling. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to identify an event related to scanning a plurality of channels of a heterogeneous WLAN protocol during data communication based on NAN with the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to identify, based on an event, a first group of channels among channels for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol and a second group of channels among channels for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for performing a scan in a first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to set a time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the first group of channels. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on the setting of the time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol.According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to transmit information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for a second group of channels to a first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform a scan associated with the first group of channels based on a setting of a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to obtain a scan result associated with a second group of channels from the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on a second scheduling.

[0012] According to one embodiment, an operating method of an electronic device may include an operation of performing NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device based on a first scheduling. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of identifying an event related to a scan of a plurality of channels of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol during NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of identifying a first group of channels among channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol and a second group of channels among channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for performing a scan in the first external electronic device based on the event. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of setting a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on the first group of channels. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of performing a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on the setting of the time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of transmitting information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for channels of a second group to a first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of performing a scan related to channels of the first group based on a setting of a time interval for scanning of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of obtaining a scan result related to channels of the second group from the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of performing data communication based on NAN with the first external electronic device based on a second scheduling.

[0013] According to one embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium (or computer program product) storing one or more programs may be described. According to one embodiment, one or more programs, when executed by a processor of an electronic device, perform data communication based on a NAN with a first external electronic device based on a first scheduling, identify an event related to a scan for a plurality of channels of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol during the data communication based on the NAN with the first external electronic device, and identify a first group of channels among the channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol and a second group of channels for performing a scan in the first external electronic device among the channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on the event, set a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on the channels of the first group, and perform a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on the setting of the time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, and transmit information requesting a scan of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the second group to the first external electronic device, and The method may include instructions for performing a scan related to channels of the first group based on setting a time interval for scanning, obtaining a scan result related to channels of the second group from the first external electronic device, and performing NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on the second scheduling.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the present invention, when an electronic device performs a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi direct or Wi-Fi legacy) during data communication with an external electronic device based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., NAN), the electronic device performs a search for channels related to the second wireless LAN protocol in a divided manner with the external electronic device, thereby relatively increasing the efficiency of data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol and relatively increasing the search speed based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0015] In addition, various effects may be provided, either directly or indirectly, through this document.

[0016] The effects that can be obtained from the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects that are not mentioned can be clearly understood by a person having ordinary skill in the technical field to which the embodiments of the present invention belong from the description below.

[0017] In connection with the description of the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals may be used for the same or similar components.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device within a network environment, according to one embodiment.

[0019] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a NAN cluster according to one embodiment.

[0020] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a protocol for transmitting signals of electronic devices included in a NAN cluster according to one embodiment.

[0021] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of data transmission and / or reception within a NAN cluster according to one embodiment.

[0022] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an electronic device for wireless LAN communication according to one embodiment.

[0023] FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a communication circuit for wireless LAN communication according to one embodiment.

[0024] FIG. 7 is a flowchart for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0025] FIG. 8A is a flowchart for identifying a channel for performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0026] FIG. 8b is a flowchart for identifying a channel for performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0027] FIG. 8c is a flowchart for identifying a channel for performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0028] FIG. 9 is a flowchart for performing scheduling based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0029] FIG. 10 is a flowchart for outputting a scan result based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0030] FIG. 11 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0031] FIG. 12 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0032] FIG. 13 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0033] FIG. 14 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0034] FIG. 15 is an example of performing a search based on an external electronic device and a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0035] FIG. 16 is an example of performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol with external electronic devices in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0036] FIG. 17 is a flowchart for restoring scheduling for data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0037] The following examples are described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0038] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device (101) within a network environment (100) according to one embodiment. Referring to FIG. 1, in the network environment (100), the electronic device (101) may communicate with the electronic device (102) via a first network (198) (e.g., a short-range wireless communication network), or may communicate with at least one of the electronic device (104) or the server (108) via a second network (199) (e.g., a long-range wireless communication network). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may communicate with the electronic device (104) via the server (108). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may include a processor (120), a memory (130), an input module (150), an audio output module (155), a display module (160), an audio module (170), a sensor module (176), an interface (177), a connection terminal (178), a haptic module (179), a camera module (180), a power management module (188), a battery (189), a communication module (190), a subscriber identification module (196), or an antenna module (197). In some embodiments, the electronic device (101) may omit at least one of these components (e.g., the connection terminal (178)), or may have one or more other components added. In some embodiments, some of these components (e.g., the sensor module (176), the camera module (180), or the antenna module (197)) may be integrated into one component (e.g., the display module (160)).

[0039] The processor (120) may, for example, execute software (e.g., a program (140)) to control at least one other component (e.g., a hardware or software component) of the electronic device (101) connected to the processor (120) and perform various data processing or calculations. According to one embodiment, as at least a part of the data processing or calculations, the processor (120) may store commands or data received from other components (e.g., a sensor module (176) or a communication module (190)) in a volatile memory (132), process the commands or data stored in the volatile memory (132), and store result data in a non-volatile memory (134). According to one embodiment, the processor (120) may include a main processor (121) (e.g., a central processing unit or an application processor) or a secondary processor (123) (e.g., a graphics processing unit, a neural processing unit (NPU), an image signal processor, a sensor hub processor, or a communication processor)) that can operate independently or together therewith. For example, if the electronic device (101) includes a main processor (121) and a secondary processor (123), the secondary processor (123) may be configured to use less power than the main processor (121) or to be specialized for a specified function. The secondary processor (123) may be implemented separately from the main processor (121) or as a part thereof.

[0040] The auxiliary processor (123) may control at least a portion of functions or states associated with at least one component (e.g., a display module (160), a sensor module (176), or a communication module (190)) of the electronic device (101), for example, on behalf of the main processor (121) while the main processor (121) is in an inactive (e.g., sleep) state, or together with the main processor (121) while the main processor (121) is in an active (e.g., application execution) state. In one embodiment, the auxiliary processor (123) (e.g., an image signal processor or a communication processor) may be implemented as a part of another functionally related component (e.g., a camera module (180) or a communication module (190)). In one embodiment, the auxiliary processor (123) (e.g., a neural network processing unit) may include a hardware structure specialized for processing artificial intelligence models. The artificial intelligence models may be generated through machine learning. This learning can be performed, for example, on the electronic device (101) itself where the artificial intelligence model is executed, or can be performed through a separate server (e.g., server (108)). The learning algorithm can include, for example, supervised learning, unsupervised learning, semi-supervised learning, or reinforcement learning, but is not limited to the examples described above. The artificial intelligence model can include multiple artificial neural network layers.The artificial neural network may be one of, but is not limited to, a deep neural network (DNN), a convolutional neural network (CNN), a recurrent neural network (RNN), a restricted Boltzmann machine (RBM), a deep belief network (DBN), a bidirectional recurrent deep neural network (BRDNN), a deep Q-network, or a combination of two or more thereof. In addition to, or alternatively to, a hardware structure, an artificial intelligence model may also include a software structure.

[0041] The memory (130) can store various data used by at least one component (e.g., a processor (120) or a sensor module (176)) of the electronic device (101). The data can include, for example, software (e.g., a program (140)) and input data or output data for commands related thereto. The memory (130) can include a volatile memory (132) or a non-volatile memory (134).

[0042] The program (140) may be stored as software in memory (130) and may include, for example, an operating system (142), middleware (144), or an application (146).

[0043] The input module (150) can receive commands or data to be used in a component of the electronic device (101) (e.g., a processor (120)) from an external source (e.g., a user) of the electronic device (101). The input module (150) can include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, a keyboard, a key (e.g., a button), or a digital pen (e.g., a stylus pen).

[0044] The audio output module (155) can output audio signals to the outside of the electronic device (101). The audio output module (155) can include, for example, a speaker or a receiver. The speaker can be used for general purposes, such as multimedia playback or recording playback. The receiver can be used to receive incoming calls. In one embodiment, the receiver can be implemented separately from the speaker or as part of the speaker.

[0045] The display module (160) can visually provide information to an external party (e.g., a user) of the electronic device (101). The display module (160) may include, for example, a display, a holographic device, or a projector and a control circuit for controlling the device. In one embodiment, the display module (160) may include a touch sensor configured to detect a touch, or a pressure sensor configured to measure the intensity of a force generated by a touch.

[0046] The audio module (170) can convert sound into an electrical signal, or vice versa, convert an electrical signal into sound. According to one embodiment, the audio module (170) can acquire sound through the input module (150), output sound through the sound output module (155), or an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102)) (e.g., speaker or headphone) directly or wirelessly connected to the electronic device (101).

[0047] The sensor module (176) can detect the operating status (e.g., power or temperature) of the electronic device (101) or the external environmental status (e.g., user status) and generate an electrical signal or data value corresponding to the detected status. According to one embodiment, the sensor module (176) can include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyro sensor, a barometric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an IR (infrared) sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illuminance sensor.

[0048] The interface (177) may support one or more designated protocols that may be used to directly or wirelessly connect the electronic device (101) with an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102)). In one embodiment, the interface (177) may include, for example, a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI), a universal serial bus (USB) interface, an SD card interface, or an audio interface.

[0049] The connection terminal (178) may include a connector through which the electronic device (101) may be physically connected to an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102)). According to one embodiment, the connection terminal (178) may include, for example, an HDMI connector, a USB connector, an SD card connector, or an audio connector (e.g., a headphone connector).

[0050] A haptic module (179) can convert electrical signals into mechanical stimuli (e.g., vibration or movement) or electrical stimuli that a user can perceive through tactile or kinesthetic sensations. In one embodiment, the haptic module (179) can include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectric element, or an electrical stimulation device.

[0051] The camera module (180) can capture still images and videos. According to one embodiment, the camera module (180) may include one or more lenses, image sensors, image signal processors, or flashes.

[0052] The power management module (188) can manage power supplied to the electronic device (101). According to one embodiment, the power management module (188) can be implemented, for example, as at least a part of a power management integrated circuit (PMIC).

[0053] A battery (189) may power at least one component of the electronic device (101). In one embodiment, the battery (189) may include, for example, a non-rechargeable primary battery, a rechargeable secondary battery, or a fuel cell.

[0054] The communication module (190) may support the establishment of a direct (e.g., wired) communication channel or a wireless communication channel between the electronic device (101) and an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102), electronic device (104), or server (108)), and the performance of communication through the established communication channel. The communication module (190) may operate independently from the processor (120) (e.g., application processor) and may include one or more communication processors that support direct (e.g., wired) communication or wireless communication. According to one embodiment, the communication module (190) may include a wireless communication module (192) (e.g., a cellular communication module, a short-range wireless communication module, or a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communication module (194) (e.g., a local area network (LAN) communication module, or a power line communication module). Among these communication modules, the corresponding communication module can communicate with an external electronic device (104) via a first network (198) (e.g., a short-range communication network such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) direct, or IrDA (infrared data association)) or a second network (199) (e.g., a long-range communication network such as a legacy cellular network, a 5G network, a next-generation communication network, the Internet, or a computer network (e.g., a LAN or WAN)). These various types of communication modules can be integrated into a single component (e.g., a single chip) or implemented as multiple separate components (e.g., multiple chips). The wireless communication module (192) can verify or authenticate the electronic device (101) within a communication network such as the first network (198) or the second network (199) by using subscriber information (e.g., an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI)) stored in the subscriber identification module (196).

[0055] The wireless communication module (192) can support 5G networks and next-generation communication technologies following the 4G network, such as NR access technology (new radio access technology). The NR access technology can support high-speed transmission of high-capacity data (eMBB (enhanced mobile broadband)), minimization of terminal power and connection of multiple terminals (mMTC (massive machine type communications)), or high reliability and low latency (URLLC (ultra-reliable and low-latency communications)). The wireless communication module (192) can support, for example, a high-frequency band (e.g., mmWave band) to achieve a high data transmission rate. The wireless communication module (192) can support various technologies for securing performance in a high-frequency band, such as beamforming, massive multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO), full dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antenna, analog beam-forming, or large scale antenna. The wireless communication module (192) can support various requirements specified in the electronic device (101), an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (104)), or a network system (e.g., the second network (199)). According to one embodiment, the wireless communication module (192) can support a peak data rate (e.g., 20 Gbps or more) for eMBB realization, a loss coverage (e.g., 164 dB or less) for mMTC realization, or a U-plane latency (e.g., 0.5 ms or less for downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) each, or 1 ms or less for round trip) for URLLC realization.According to one embodiment, the subscriber identification module (196) may include multiple subscriber identification modules. For example, the multiple subscriber identification modules may store different subscriber information.

[0056] The antenna module (197) can transmit or receive signals or power to or from an external device (e.g., an external electronic device). In one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may include an antenna including a radiator formed of a conductor or a conductive pattern formed on a substrate (e.g., a PCB). In one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may include a plurality of antennas (e.g., an array antenna). In this case, at least one antenna suitable for a communication method used in a communication network, such as the first network (198) or the second network (199), may be selected from the plurality of antennas by, for example, the communication module (190). A signal or power may be transmitted or received between the communication module (190) and an external electronic device through the selected at least one antenna. In some embodiments, in addition to the radiator, another component (e.g., a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC)) may be additionally formed as a part of the antenna module (197).

[0057] In one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may form a high-frequency (e.g., mmWave) antenna module. In one embodiment, the high-frequency (e.g., mmWave) antenna module may include a printed circuit board, an RFIC positioned on or adjacent a first side (e.g., a bottom side) of the printed circuit board and capable of supporting a designated high-frequency band (e.g., a mmWave band), and a plurality of antennas (e.g., an array antenna) positioned on or adjacent a second side (e.g., a top side or a side side) of the printed circuit board and capable of transmitting or receiving signals in the designated high-frequency band. For example, the plurality of antennas may include patch array antennas and / or dipole array antennas.

[0058] At least some of the components can be interconnected and exchange signals (e.g., commands or data) with each other via a communication method between peripheral devices (e.g., a bus, general purpose input and output (GPIO), serial peripheral interface (SPI), or mobile industry processor interface (MIPI)).

[0059] According to one embodiment, commands or data may be transmitted or received between the electronic device (101) and an external electronic device (104) via a server (108) connected to a second network (199). Each of the external electronic devices (102 or 104) may be the same or a different type of device as the electronic device (101). According to one embodiment, all or part of the operations executed in the electronic device (101) may be executed in one or more of the external electronic devices (102, 104, or 108). For example, when the electronic device (101) is to perform a certain function or service automatically or in response to a request from a user or another device, the electronic device (101) may, instead of or in addition to executing the function or service itself, request one or more external electronic devices to perform the function or at least a part of the service. One or more external electronic devices that receive the request may execute at least a portion of the requested function or service, or an additional function or service related to the request, and transmit the result of the execution to the electronic device (101). The electronic device (101) may process the result as is or additionally and provide it as at least a portion of a response to the request. For this purpose, cloud computing, distributed computing, mobile edge computing (MEC), or client-server computing technology may be used, for example. The electronic device (101) may provide an ultra-low latency service by using distributed computing or mobile edge computing, for example. In another embodiment, the external electronic device (104) may include an Internet of Things (IoT) device. The server (108) may be an intelligent server utilizing machine learning and / or a neural network. According to one embodiment, the external electronic device (104) or the server (108) may be included in the second network (199).The electronic device (101) can be applied to intelligent services (e.g., smart home, smart city, smart car, or healthcare) based on 5G communication technology and IoT-related technology.

[0060] An electronic device according to an embodiment disclosed in this document may take various forms. The electronic device may include, for example, a portable communication device (e.g., a smartphone), a computer device, a portable multimedia device, a portable medical device, a camera, a wearable device, or a home appliance. The electronic device according to an embodiment of this document is not limited to the aforementioned devices.

[0061] It should be understood that the embodiments of this document and the terminology used herein are not intended to limit the technical features described in this document to a specific embodiment, but rather to encompass various modifications, equivalents, or substitutes of the embodiment. In connection with the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals may be used for similar or related components. The singular form of a noun corresponding to an item may include one or more of the item, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this document, each of the phrases "A or B", "at least one of A and B", "at least one of A or B", "A, B, or C", "at least one of A, B, and C", and "at least one of A, B, or C" can include any one of the items listed together in the corresponding phrase among those phrases, or all possible combinations thereof. Terms such as "first," "second," or "first" or "second" may be used merely to distinguish one component from another, and do not limit the components in any other respect (e.g., importance or order). When a component (e.g., a first component) is referred to as "coupled" or "connected" to another (e.g., a second component), with or without the terms "functionally" or "communicatively," it means that the component can be connected to the other component directly (e.g., wired), wirelessly, or through a third component.

[0062] The term "module" used in one embodiment of this document may include a unit implemented in hardware, software, or firmware, and may be used interchangeably with terms such as logic, logic block, component, or circuit. It may be a module, an integrally formed component, or a minimum unit or portion of the component that performs one or more functions. For example, according to one embodiment, a module may be implemented in the form of an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

[0063] An embodiment of the present document may be implemented as software (e.g., a program (140)) including one or more instructions stored in a storage medium (e.g., an internal memory (136) or an external memory (138)) readable by a machine (e.g., an electronic device (101)). For example, a processor (e.g., a processor (120)) of the machine (e.g., an electronic device (101)) may call at least one instruction among the one or more instructions stored from the storage medium and execute it. This enables the machine to operate to perform at least one function according to the at least one called instruction. The one or more instructions may include code generated by a compiler or code executable by an interpreter. The machine-readable storage medium may be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Here, 'non-transitory' simply means that the storage medium is a tangible device and does not contain signals (e.g., electromagnetic waves), and the term does not distinguish between cases where data is stored semi-permanently or temporarily on the storage medium.

[0064] According to one embodiment, the method according to one embodiment disclosed in the present document may be provided as a computer program product. The computer program product may be traded between sellers and buyers as a product. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a device-readable storage medium (e.g., compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)) or may be provided through an application store (e.g., Play Store). TM ) or directly between two user devices (e.g., smart phones), online distribution (e.g., downloading or uploading). In the case of online distribution, at least a portion of the computer program product may be at least temporarily stored or temporarily created in a machine-readable storage medium, such as the memory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or an intermediary server.

[0065] According to one embodiment, each component (e.g., a module or a program) of the above-described components may include one or more entities, and some of the entities may be separated and placed in other components. According to one embodiment, one or more components or operations of the aforementioned components may be omitted, or one or more other components or operations may be added. Alternatively or additionally, a plurality of components (e.g., a module or a program) may be integrated into a single component. In such a case, the integrated component may perform one or more functions of each of the plurality of components identically or similarly to those performed by the corresponding component among the plurality of components prior to the integration. According to one embodiment, the operations performed by a module, program, or other component may be executed sequentially, in parallel, iteratively, or heuristically, or one or more of the operations may be executed in a different order, omitted, or one or more other operations may be added.

[0066] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a neighbor awareness network (NAN) cluster according to one embodiment.

[0067] According to one embodiment, FIG. 2 may illustrate an example configuration of a neighbor awareness networking (NAN) cluster (200) for a proximity network. For example, the NAN cluster (200) may refer to a set of electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) that form a proximity network so that each electronic device (or NAN device) (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) can transmit and / or receive data to and from each other.

[0068] According to one embodiment, a NAN cluster (200) may be composed of a plurality of electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230). The electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster (200) may transmit and / or receive a beacon (or synchronization beacon, discovery beacon), a service discovery frame (SDF) and / or a NAN action frame (NAF) within a synchronized time duration (or communication period) (e.g., a discovery window (DW)).

[0069] According to one embodiment, the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) within the NAN cluster (200) may have their time clocks synchronized with each other. For example, the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) may be synchronized based on the time clock of one electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (101)) and may transmit and / or receive beacons, SDFs, and / or NAFs in synchronized (or identical) discovery windows (DWs).

[0070] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (101) supporting a low-power short-range communication technology based on NAN may broadcast a search signal (e.g., a beacon) to discover at least one of the external electronic devices (210, 220, and / or 230) every preset first period (e.g., about 100 msec). The electronic device (101) may perform scanning every preset second period (e.g., about 10 msec) to receive a search signal broadcast from at least one of the external electronic devices (210, 220, and / or 230).

[0071] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can detect at least one of external electronic devices (210, 220 and / or 230) located around the electronic device (101) based on a detection signal received through scanning. The electronic device (101) can perform NAN cluster synchronization with at least one of the external electronic devices (210, 220 and / or 230) detected to be located around the electronic device (101). The NAN cluster synchronization can include an operation of receiving time clock information of an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) representing a NAN cluster so that the electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster transmit and / or receive data over the same channel and / or during the same time.

[0072] According to one embodiment, each of a plurality of electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) can form a NAN cluster (200) that operates according to a synchronized time clock by transmitting a beacon and receiving a beacon from other electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230). The electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster (200) can perform NAN cluster synchronization (e.g., time and / or channel synchronization).

[0073] According to one embodiment, NAN cluster synchronization may be performed based on the time and channel of an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) with the highest master preference within the NAN cluster (200). For example, electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in a NAN cluster (200) formed through discovery may exchange signals regarding master preference information indicating a preference for operating as an anchor master device. Electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster (200) may determine an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) with the highest master preference as an anchor master device (or master electronic device) through signals related to master preference information.

[0074] According to one embodiment, an anchor master device (e.g., electronic device (101)) may refer to an electronic device that serves as a reference for time and channel synchronization of electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in a NAN cluster (200). The anchor master device may be changed according to the master preference of the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230). Each of the time and channel synchronized electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) may transmit a beacon and / or SDF within a discovery window (or search section) that is repeated according to a preset cycle, and may receive beacons and SDFs from other electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) within the NAN cluster (200). For example, a beacon may be periodically transmitted and / or received at each discovery window to maintain time and channel synchronization of electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in a NAN cluster (200). An SDF may be transmitted and / or received at each discovery window as needed to provide services to discovered electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230). For example, among electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) whose time and channel are synchronized, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) operating as an anchor master device may transmit a beacon (e.g., discovery beacon) to detect a new electronic device during a period between discovery windows.

[0075] According to one embodiment, each of the NAN cluster-synchronized (e.g., time and / or channel-synchronized) electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) can transmit a NAN Action Frame (NAF) and receive NAFs from other electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) within the NAN cluster (200) within a discovery window (or search interval) that repeats according to a preset cycle. For example, the NAF can include at least one of information related to setting up a NAN data path (NDP), information related to scheduling update, or information related to NAN ranging to enable data communication in the interval between discovery windows. For example, the NAF can control scheduling of radio resources for coexistence of NAN operations and non-NAN operations (e.g., Wi-Fi Direct, mesh, IBSS, WLAN, Bluetooth, or NFC). NAF may contain time and / or channel information available for NAN communication.

[0076] According to one embodiment, each of the electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster (200) operates in an active state only during a discovery window, and operates in a low-power state (e.g., a sleep state) during the remaining period other than the discovery window, thereby reducing current consumption.

[0077] According to one embodiment, the discovery window is a time (e.g., milliseconds) during which the electronic device (101, 210, 220, or 230) is in an active state (or wake state) and consumes a lot of current, whereas outside the discovery window, the electronic device (101, 210, 220, or 230) remains in a sleep state, thereby enabling low-power discovery.

[0078] According to one embodiment, electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in a NAN cluster (200) can be simultaneously activated at the start time of a synchronized discovery window (e.g., DW start) and simultaneously transition to a sleep state at the end time of the discovery window (e.g., DW end).

[0079] According to one embodiment, each of the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster (200) can transmit and / or receive data not only in the discovery window period but also in the period between the discovery windows. The electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster (200) can perform additional communication by setting an active time slot in the period between the discovery windows. For example, the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in the NAN cluster (200) can transmit and / or receive an SDF that was not transmitted and / or received within the discovery window period through the active time slot. For example, electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in a NAN cluster (200) can perform NAN communication and / or non-NAN communication during an active time slot by setting (or designating) a NAN communication operation section and / or a non-NAN communication operation section during an active time slot.

[0080] According to one embodiment, electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in a NAN cluster (200) may perform discovery, synchronization, and / or data exchange operations using the protocol illustrated in FIG. 3 described below.

[0081] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a protocol for transmitting a signal of an electronic device included in a NAN cluster according to one embodiment. According to one embodiment, FIG. 3 may represent an exemplary diagram for a discovery window. FIG. 3 may explain, by way of example, that electronic devices (e.g., electronic devices 101, 210, 220, and / or 230 of FIG. 2) included in one NAN cluster (e.g., NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2) transmit signals through a specific channel (e.g., channel 6 (Ch6) and / or channel 149 (CH149)) based on a NAN standard.

[0082] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 3, electronic devices (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) included in one NAN cluster (e.g., NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2) can transmit a synchronization beacon (310) and an SDF (320) in a synchronized discovery window (DW) (325). A discovery beacon (330) can be transmitted by at least one electronic device (101, 210, 220 and / or 230) in a period (340) other than the discovery window (325) (e.g., an interval between discovery windows). For example, the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) may transmit the synchronization beacon (310) and the SDF (320) on a contention basis. For example, the synchronization beacon (310) and the SDF (320) may be transmitted on a contention basis between the respective electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) belonging to a NAN cluster (e.g., the NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2).

[0083] According to one embodiment, electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) included in one NAN cluster (e.g., NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2) may transmit and / or receive NAFs in discovery windows (DWs) (325). For example, the NAF may include at least one of information related to setting up a NAN data path (NDP), information related to scheduling update, or information related to NAN ranging to enable data communication in a period (340) between discovery windows (325).

[0084] According to one embodiment, the discovery window (325) may be a period during which the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) are activated from a communication standby state (e.g., a sleep state) in a power-saving mode to a communication state (e.g., a wake-up state) for data exchange between the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230). For example, the discovery window (325) may be divided into time units (TU) in milliseconds. For example, a discovery window (325) for transmitting and / or receiving a synchronization beacon (310) and an SDF (320) may occupy 16 time units (TUs) (16 TUs) and may have a cycle (or interval) that repeats at 512 time units (512 TUs).

[0085] According to one embodiment, the discovery beacon (330) may represent a signal transmitted so that other electronic devices that have not joined the NAN cluster (e.g., the NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2) can discover the NAN cluster (e.g., the NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2). For example, the discovery beacon (330) is a signal for notifying the existence of the NAN cluster, and electronic devices that have not joined the NAN cluster can perform a passive scan to receive the discovery beacon (330), thereby discovering and joining the NAN cluster.

[0086] According to one embodiment, the discovery beacon (330) may include information necessary to synchronize with a NAN cluster (e.g., the NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2). For example, the discovery beacon (330) may include at least one of a frame control (FC) field indicating a function of a signal (e.g., a beacon), a broadcast address, a media access control (MAC) address of a transmitting electronic device, a cluster identifier (ID), a sequence control field, a time stamp for a beacon frame, a beacon interval indicating a transmission interval of the discovery beacon (330), or capability information for an electronic device transmitting the discovery beacon (330).

[0087] In one embodiment, the discovery beacon (330) may include at least one proximity network (or NAN cluster) related information element. In one embodiment, the proximity network related information may be referred to as attribute information.

[0088] According to one embodiment, a synchronization beacon (310) may represent a signal for maintaining synchronization between synchronized electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) within a NAN cluster (e.g., a NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2). The synchronization beacon (310) may be transmitted by a synchronization device among the electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) within the NAN cluster. For example, the synchronization device may include an anchor master device, a master device, or a non-master sync device as defined in the NAN standard.

[0089] According to one embodiment, the synchronization beacon (310) may include information necessary for electronic devices (101, 210, 220, and / or 230) to synchronize within a NAN cluster (e.g., the NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2). For example, the synchronization beacon (310) may include at least one of an FC field indicating a function of the signal (e.g., a beacon), a broadcast address, a MAC address of the transmitting electronic device, a cluster identifier, a sequence control field, a timestamp for the beacon frame, a beacon interval indicating an interval between start points of the discovery window (325), or capability information for the transmitting electronic device. According to one embodiment, the synchronization beacon (310) may include at least one proximity network (or cluster) related information element. For example, the proximity network related information may include contents for a service provided through the proximity network.

[0090] According to one embodiment, the SDF (320) may represent a signal for exchanging data over a proximity network. For example, the SDF (320) represents a vendor-specific public action frame and may include various fields. For example, the SDF (320) may include a category or action field, and may include at least one piece of proximity network-related information.

[0091] According to one embodiment, the synchronization beacon (310), the SDF (320), and the discovery beacon (330) may include proximity network related information. For example, the proximity network related information may include an identifier indicating the type of information, a length of the information, and a body field which is corresponding information. For example, the corresponding information may include at least one of master indication information, cluster information, service identifier list information, service descriptor information, connection capability information, wireless LAN infrastructure information, peer to peer (P2P) operation information, independent basic service set (IBSS) information, mesh information, additional proximity network service discovery information, further availability map information, country code information, ranging information, cluster discovery information, or vendor specific information.

[0092] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of data transmission and / or reception within a NAN cluster according to one embodiment.

[0093] According to one embodiment, FIG. 4 may illustrate an example in which an electronic device (101), an external electronic device 1 (210), and an external electronic device 2 (220) form a single NAN cluster (e.g., the NAN cluster (200) of FIG. 2) via a wireless short-range communication technology. For example, each of the electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220) may transmit and / or receive a beacon, an SDF, and / or an NAF to each other. For example, FIG. 4 may illustrate an example in which, among the electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220) constituting the NAN cluster, the electronic device (101) serves as a master device.

[0094] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit a beacon, an SDF, and / or an NAF within a discovery window (450). The electronic device (101) may broadcast the beacon, an SDF, and / or an NAF within the discovery window (450) that repeats at preset intervals (e.g., intervals (460)).

[0095] According to one embodiment, external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220) can receive beacons, SDFs and / or NAFs transmitted by electronic device (101). According to one embodiment, external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220) can each receive beacons, SDFs and / or NAFs broadcast by electronic device (101) within a discovery window (450).

[0096] According to one embodiment, a beacon transmitted within a discovery window (450) may include a synchronization beacon and may include information for maintaining synchronization between electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220). For example, at least one of external electronic device 1 (210) or external electronic device 2 (220) may perform NAN cluster synchronization based on time clock information of the electronic device (101) included in a beacon transmitted by the electronic device (101) operating as a master device. At least one of external electronic device 1 (210) or external electronic device 2 (220) may be synchronized based on the time clock information of the electronic device (101) and thus may recognize the discovery window (450) at the same time.

[0097] According to one embodiment, in a period (e.g., interval (460)) other than the discovery window (450), the electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220) may maintain a communication standby state (e.g., sleep state) to reduce current consumption. For example, the electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220) may operate in a communication state (e.g., wake state) only during the discovery window (450) based on a synchronized time clock to reduce current consumption.

[0098] According to one embodiment, in a period other than the discovery window (450) (e.g., interval (460)), the electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220) can perform additional communication by setting an active time slot. For example, the electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220) can transmit and / or receive SDFs that were not transmitted and / or received within the discovery window (450) period through the active time slot. For example, the electronic devices (101, 210, and / or 220) can perform a connection or discovery operation to Wi-Fi legacy through the active time slot by designating an operation for Wi-Fi Direct, mesh, IBSS, WLAN, Bluetooth, or NFC connection in the active time slot.

[0099] In the following description, the electronic device (101) performs a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210), but is not limited thereto, and may perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with a plurality of external electronic devices.

[0100] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an electronic device for wireless LAN communication according to one embodiment. FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a communication circuit for wireless LAN communication according to one embodiment. For example, the electronic device (101) of FIG. 5 may be at least partially similar to the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, or FIG. 4, or may include another embodiment of the electronic device. For example, the external electronic device may include the same components as the electronic devices of FIG. 5 and / or FIG. 6, or may include at least some similar components.

[0101] According to one embodiment referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, the electronic device (101) may include at least one of a processor (500), a communication circuit (510), and a memory (520). For example, the processor (500) may be substantially the same as the processor (120) of FIG. 1 or may be included in the processor (120). The communication circuit (510) may be substantially the same as the wireless communication module (192) of FIG. 1 or may be included in the wireless communication module (192). The memory (520) may be substantially the same as the memory (130) of FIG. 1 or may be included in the memory (130). For example, the processor (500) may include at least one of an application processor or a communication processor. For example, the processor (500) may be operatively, functionally, and / or electrically connected to at least one of the communication circuit (510) or the memory (520). For example, the processor (500) may include at least one processor including a processing circuit.

[0102] According to one embodiment, the communication circuit (510) may support wireless LAN communication between the electronic device (101) and an external electronic device (e.g., the external electronic device (210, 220, and / or 230) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, or FIG. 4). For example, the communication circuit (510) may include one core for processing a baseband signal for wireless LAN communication and one radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) for processing a radio frequency (RF) signal for wireless LAN communication. For example, the core of the communication circuit (510) may process a baseband signal of at least one frequency band of about 2.4 GHz band, about 5 GHz band, or about 6 GHz band. For example, the RFIC of the communication circuit (510) may process an RF signal of at least one frequency band of about 2.4 GHz band, about 5 GHz band, or about 6 GHz band transmitted and / or received through at least one antenna.

[0103] For example, the communication circuit (510) may include a plurality of cores (600 and 602) for processing baseband signals for wireless LAN communication and a plurality of radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) (610 and 612) for processing RF (radio frequency) signals for wireless LAN communication, as shown in FIG. 6. For example, the communication circuit (510) of FIG. 6 may include two cores (600 and 602). However, the number of cores included in the communication circuit (510) is not limited thereto, and may include three or more cores.

[0104] For example, the first core (or first communication circuit) (600) and the second core (or second communication circuit) (602) can process baseband signals for wireless LAN communication transmitted and / or received through different frequency bands. For example, the first core (600) can process baseband signals of about 2.4 GHz band and / or about 5 GHz band. For example, the second core (602) can process baseband signals of about 5 GHz band and / or about 6 GHz band. For example, the first core (600) and the second core (602) can be logically (e.g., software) separated within a single hardware device. For example, the first core (600) and the second core (602) can be configured with different circuits or different hardware.

[0105] For example, the first RFIC (610) and the second RFIC (612) may process RF signals for wireless LAN communication transmitted and / or received through different frequency bands. For example, the first RFIC (610) may process RF signals of about 2.4 GHz band and / or about 5 GHz band transmitted and / or received through the first antenna (620). For example, the second RFIC (612) may process RF signals of about 5 GHz band and / or about 6 GHz band transmitted and / or received through the second antenna (622). For example, the first RFIC (610) and the second RFIC (612) may be configured with different circuits or different hardware.

[0106] According to one embodiment, the communication circuit (510) can support a plurality of wireless LAN protocols. For example, the communication circuit (510) can perform wireless LAN communication with an external electronic device based on a first wireless LAN protocol. For example, the first wireless LAN protocol can include NAN communication. For example, the communication circuit (510) can perform wireless LAN communication with an external electronic device based on a second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second wireless LAN protocol is a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol different from the first wireless LAN protocol, and can include at least one of direct communication based on wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi direct), a mobile hotspot, or Wi-Fi legacy. For example, Wi-Fi legacy can include a communication method in which the electronic device (101) performs wireless LAN communication through an access point (AP). For example, the electronic device (101) can operate in STA mode (station mode) connected to an AP (access point) in Wi-Fi legacy.

[0107] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform data communication with an external electronic device based on a first wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to set up a NAN data path (NDP) through first scheduling using a NAN action frame (NAF) within a discovery window with an external electronic device 1 (210) included in the same NAN cluster as the electronic device (101). For example, the NAN data path may be set up based on information related to the set up of the NAN data path (NDP) transmitted and / or received by the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) through the NAN action frame. For example, a NAN data path may represent a path (e.g., time resource and / or frequency resource) for data communication between an electronic device (101) and an external electronic device 1 (210) included in the same NAN cluster in the interval between discovery windows.

[0108] For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data to or from an external electronic device 1 (210) through a NAN data path (NDP) (e.g., time resource and / or frequency resource) established between discovery windows.

[0109] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) can determine whether an event related to a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device based on a first wireless LAN protocol. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol can be generated based on execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0110] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may determine whether the external electronic device 1 (210) in data communication with the electronic device (101) based on the first wireless LAN protocol can perform a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, if the external electronic device 1 (210) in data communication with the electronic device (101) based on the first wireless LAN protocol supports a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that the external electronic device 1 (210) can perform a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports the cooperative scan may be determined before or after an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol occurs. For example, the cooperative scan may include a series of operations in which the external electronic device 1 (210) and the electronic device (101) perform a scan together based on a second wireless LAN protocol, in which the electronic device (101) performs a search for channels included in a first group among channels (or frequencies) for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, and the external electronic device 1 (210) performs a search for channels included in a second group different from the first group.

[0111] For example, the processor (500) can determine whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the processor (500) can obtain the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210) from the external electronic device 1 (210) through NAN communication or OOB (out of band) communication between the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the OOB communication is a different communication method from the NAN communication, and can include at least one of Bluetooth, BLE (Bluetooth low energy), NFC (near field communication), QR (quick response), or a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi legacy, Wi-Fi direct (or Wi-Fi P2P), or mobile hotspot).

[0112] For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to transmit a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning to the external electronic device 1 (210). The processor (500) may determine whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the response message related to cooperative scanning. For example, the confirmation request message and / or the response message may be transmitted and / or received via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0113] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to perform a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on at least one of channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) or a distance with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channel state information may include at least one of received signal strength indication (RSSI), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), reference signal received power (RSRP), signal to noise ratio (SNR), signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR), quality of service (QoS), or bit error rate (BER). For example, the distance with the external electronic device 1 (210) may be estimated based on the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) or may be estimated through a location estimation sensor.

[0114] For example, the processor (500) may determine that a cooperative scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol can be performed with external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, a state of satisfying a specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0115] For example, if the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) does not satisfy a specified reference channel condition, the processor (500) may determine that it is not possible to perform a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the state of not satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) is lower than or equal to a specified reference channel value.

[0116] For example, the processor (500) may determine that a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol can be performed with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to a specified reference distance.

[0117] For example, if the distance to external electronic device 1 (210) does not satisfy a specified reference distance condition, the processor (500) may determine that it is not possible to perform a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with external electronic device 1 (210). For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is not satisfied may include a state in which channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference distance.

[0118] According to one embodiment, when the processor (500) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) can perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with the electronic device (101), the processor (500) may check (or determine) a channel for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the processor (500) may check (or determine) a channel for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) through negotiation with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the processor (500) may select at least some of the channels (e.g., the first group of channels) consecutively among the channels on which the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is performed (or should be performed) as channels for performing a search in the electronic device (101). For example, the remaining channels (e.g., channels of the second group) excluding at least some channels may be selected as channels for performing a search in the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channels for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected randomly. For example, the channels for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected by frequency band. For example, the channels for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected based on at least one of the load, the remaining battery level, or the capability (e.g., the frequency support information) of the electronic device (101) and / or the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0119] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may set a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may set a time interval (or a size of a time interval) for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), a type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or a type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, setting a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of a size of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or an acquisition time of a scan result in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, scan end time, scan cycle, or scan result acquisition time can be set based on (or based on) the discovery window.

[0120] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to transmit setting information of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol to the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication. For example, the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include at least one of a channel for the external electronic device 1 (210) to perform a scan (e.g., a channel of the second group), a size of a time interval for a scan, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a time of acquisition of a scan result in the electronic device (101).

[0121] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may update scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on setting information of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may perform second scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol in the remaining interval excluding the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the remaining interval may include at least a portion of the remaining interval excluding the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol among the time intervals between discovery windows.

[0122] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to transmit scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) to an external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) may be transmitted via NAN communication.

[0123] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on setting information of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform a scan for channels included in the first group during the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may control an output device of the electronic device (101) to output a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may include at least one of a display, a speaker, or a vibration module operatively connected to the electronic device (101).

[0124] According to one embodiment, when the processor (500) receives a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol from the external electronic device 1 (210), the processor (500) may control the output device of the electronic device (101) to output the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the processor (500) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol being output through the output device based on the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be obtained from the external electronic device 1 (210) through NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0125] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the scheduling update information (or the second scheduling result). For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) through an NDP path set based on the second scheduling.

[0126] According to one embodiment, the processor (500) may update the scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the termination of the scan associated with the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may restore the scheduling associated with data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol to the time before performing the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., the first scheduling).

[0127] According to one embodiment, the memory (520) may store various data used by at least one component (e.g., the processor (500) or the communication circuit (510)) of the electronic device (101). For example, the memory (520) may store various instructions that may be executed by the processor (500). For example, the instructions may be executed individually or collectively by the processor (500) (e.g., at least one processor).

[0128] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) after transmitting setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210).

[0129] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) to the external electronic device 1 (210), and then transmit setting information for a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0130] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may substantially simultaneously transmit setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol and scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) to the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0131] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may merge and output a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol obtained from an external electronic device 1 (210).

[0132] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6) may include a communication circuit that performs wireless LAN communication (e.g., wireless communication module (192) of FIG. 1 or communication circuit (510) of FIG. 5), at least one processor including a processing circuit (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5), and a memory (e.g., memory (130) of FIG. 1 or memory (520) of FIG. 5) operatively connected to the at least one processor. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform data communication based on neighbor awareness networking (NAN) with a first external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, or FIG. 4) based on a first scheduling. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause an electronic device to identify an event associated with a scan of a plurality of channels of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol during NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to identify, based on an event, a first group of channels among channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol and a second group of channels among channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for performing a scan at the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to set a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on channels for the first group of channels.According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device based on a setting of a time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to transmit information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for a second group of channels to the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform a scan associated with a first group of channels based on a setting of a time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to obtain a scan result associated with a second group of channels from the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when individually or collectively executed by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to perform NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device based on a second scheduling.

[0133] According to one embodiment, information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol may include at least one of information related to a channel included in the second group, the size of a time interval for scanning, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a time of acquisition of a scan result in an electronic device.

[0134] According to one embodiment, information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted to the first external electronic device via NAN communication or OOB (out of band) communication.

[0135] According to one embodiment, scan results related to the channels of the second group can be obtained from the first external electronic device via NAN communication or OOB (out of band) communication.

[0136] According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when executed individually or collectively by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to output at least one of a scan result associated with a first group of channels or a scan result associated with a second group of channels.

[0137] According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when executed individually or collectively by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to set a size of a time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of a NAN-based service type with respect to a first external electronic device or a service type associated with the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol.

[0138] According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when executed individually or collectively by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to set at least one of a size of a time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, a scan end time, or a scan period based on at least one of the channels included in the first group or the channels included in the second group.

[0139] According to one embodiment, the memory may store instructions that, when executed individually or collectively by at least one processor, cause the electronic device to restore the second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device to the first scheduling when a scan of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol is terminated.

[0140] According to one embodiment, the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol may include at least one of direct communication based on a wireless LAN or Wi-Fi legacy.

[0141] FIG. 7 is a flowchart (700) for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment. In the following embodiments, the respective operations may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the respective operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel. For example, the electronic device of FIG. 7 may be the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6.

[0142] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 7, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5) may perform data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3 or FIG. 4) based on a first wireless LAN protocol in operation 701. For example, the processor (500) may obtain information related to setting up a NAN data path (NDP) through first scheduling using a NAN action frame (NAF) transmitted and / or received within a discovery window with an external electronic device 1 (210) included in the same NAN cluster as the electronic device (101). The processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to set up a NAN data path (NDP) for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on information related to the setup of the NAN data path (NDP). For example, the NAN data path may indicate a path for data communication between an electronic device (101) included in the same NAN cluster and the external electronic device 1 (210) in a period between discovery windows. For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data with the external electronic device 1 (210) through the NAN data path (NDP) (e.g., time resource) set up between discovery windows. For example, the first wireless LAN protocol may include NAN communication.

[0143] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may determine, in operation 703, whether to perform a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol during data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) based on a first wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may determine whether an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, if an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The processor (500) may determine not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol if an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol does not occur during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on the execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or the reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0144] According to one embodiment, if the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or the processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'No' in operation 703), the processor may terminate one embodiment for performing data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol and searching based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data to or from the external electronic device 1 (210) through a NAN data path (NDP) (e.g., time resource and / or frequency resource) set between discovery windows through the first scheduling.

[0145] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines to perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'Yes' in operation 703), in operation 705, the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) and an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) may check (or determine) a channel for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may check whether the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) in data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol support cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol. If the processor (500) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol, it may determine that the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol can be performed in cooperation with the electronic device (101). For example, whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning may be checked before or after an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol occurs. For example, the cooperative scanning may include a series of operations in which the electronic device (101) performs a search for channels included in a first group among channels (or frequencies) for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in a manner in which the external electronic device 1 (210) and the electronic device (101) perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol together, and the external electronic device 1 (210) performs a search for channels included in a second group different from the first group.

[0146] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol can be performed with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on at least one of the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) or the distance with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, if the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition, the processor (500) may determine that a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol can be performed with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, a state in which the specified reference channel condition is satisfied may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value. For example, if the distance with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition, the processor (500) may determine that a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol can be performed with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, a state that satisfies a specified reference distance condition may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to a specified reference distance.

[0147] For example, if the processor (500) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) can perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with the electronic device (101), the processor (500) may check (or determine) a channel for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channel for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) may include consecutive channels included in a first group among the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the channel for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the external electronic device 1 (210) may include consecutive channels included in a second group different from the first group among the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the channels included in the first group may include at least some of the consecutive channels among the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the channels included in the second group may include the remaining consecutive channels excluding at least some of the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101). For example, the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected randomly. For example, the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected by frequency band. For example, a channel for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected based on at least one of the load, battery level, or capability (e.g., frequency support information) of the electronic device (101) and / or the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0148] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may set a time interval for a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol based on a channel for a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) and an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)), at operation 707. For example, the processor (500) may set a time interval (e.g., scan duration) (or size of the time interval) for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., number of channels in the second group), a type of service provided via the first wireless LAN protocol, or a type of service provided via the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, when the number of channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group) is different from the number of channels for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), the processor (500) may set a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on a relatively larger number of channels. For example, setting the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of a size of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a scan result acquisition time in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the scan result acquisition time may be set based on (or based on) a discovery window.

[0149] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may perform a second scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) based on a first wireless LAN protocol based on setting information of a time interval for a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol at operation 709. For example, the processor (500) may update the scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol to the second scheduling in the remaining interval excluding the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the remaining interval may include the remaining interval excluding the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol among the time intervals between discovery windows.

[0150] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may transmit, in operation 711, information (or a message) related to a request for a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the information (or a message) related to a request for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication. For example, the information (or a message) related to a request for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include setting information for a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the setting information for the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include at least one of a channel for performing scanning by the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., a channel of the second group), the size of the time interval, the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the acquisition time of the scan result in the electronic device (101).

[0151] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may perform a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol based on setting information of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, at operation 713. For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform a scan for channels included in a first group during the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may control an output device of the electronic device (101) to output a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may include at least one of a display, a speaker, or a vibration module operatively connected to the electronic device (101).

[0152] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may, at operation 715, obtain a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol from an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol obtained from the external electronic device may include scan results related to channels included in a second group. For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be obtained from the external electronic device 1 (210) via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0153] For example, the processor (500) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol being output through the output device based on the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the update of the scan result may include a series of operations of additionally outputting, through the output device, a scan result different from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device in the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0154] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may perform data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) associated with a first wireless LAN protocol based on a second scheduling result associated with the first wireless LAN protocol, at operation 717. For example, the processor (500) may control a communication circuit (510) to perform data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) associated with the first wireless LAN protocol based on the second scheduling result when a periodic scan associated with the second wireless LAN protocol is not terminated (or completed).

[0155] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may merge a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol performed by the electronic device (101) and a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 1 (210) and output the merged result through an output device of the electronic device (101). For example, when the electronic device (101) obtains a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol from an external electronic device 1 (210) through operation 715 of FIG. 7, the electronic device (101) may merge and output the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed by the electronic device (101) and the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0156] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) after transmitting setting information for a time interval for a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the setting information for a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB (out of band) communication. For example, the scheduling update information (or the second scheduling result) may be transmitted via NAN communication.

[0157] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) to the external electronic device 1 (210), and then transmit setting information for a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0158] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may substantially simultaneously transmit setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol and scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) to the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0159] FIG. 8A is a flowchart (800) for identifying a channel for performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment. For example, at least a portion of FIG. 8A may include detailed operations of operations 703 to 705 of FIG. 7. In the following embodiments, the operations may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel. For example, the electronic device of FIG. 8A may be the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6.

[0160] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 8A, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5) performs data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3 or FIG. 4) based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 701 of FIG. 7), in operation 801, it may determine whether to perform a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol during the data communication with the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, if an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is to be performed. If an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol does not occur during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is not to be performed. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on the execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or the reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0161] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines that a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol is to be performed (e.g., 'Yes' in operation 801), in operation 803, it may check whether an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the cooperative scanning may include a series of operations in which the electronic device (101) performs a search for channels included in a first group among channels (or frequencies) for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol, and the external electronic device 1 (210) performs a search for channels included in a second group different from the first group, in a manner in which the external electronic device 1 (210) and the electronic device (101) perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol together. For example, the channels included in the first group may include at least some of the continuous channels among the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the channels included in the second group may include the remaining continuous channels, excluding at least some of the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101), among the channels for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0162] For example, the processor (500) can determine whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210) can be acquired through NAN communication or OOB communication. For example, the OOB communication is a different communication method from the NAN communication, and can include at least one of Bluetooth, BLE (Bluetooth low energy), NFC (near field communication), QR (quick response), or a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi legacy, Wi-Fi direct (or Wi-Fi P2P), or mobile hotspot).

[0163] For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to transmit a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning to the external electronic device 1 (210). The processor (500) may determine whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the response message related to cooperative scanning. For example, the confirmation request message and / or the response message may be transmitted and / or received via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0164] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines not to perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'No' in operation 801) or when an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) does not support a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'No' in operation 803), the processor may terminate one embodiment for checking a channel for performing a search based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, when the processor (500) determines not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, the processor may control the communication circuit (510) to perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data to or from the external electronic device 1 (210) through a NAN data path (NDP) set between discovery windows. For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) when the external electronic device 1 (210) does not support cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0165] According to one embodiment, when an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) supports cooperative scanning related to a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'Yes' in operation 803), in operation 805, the electronic device (e.g., electronic device 101)) or the processor (e.g., processor 120 or 500) may determine (or determine) channels for cooperative scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (e.g., electronic device 101) and the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)). For example, the processor (500) may determine (or determine) consecutive channels included in a first group among channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol as channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101). For example, the channels in the first group may include a plurality of consecutive channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101).

[0166] For example, the processor (500) may determine (or determine) the consecutive channels included in the second group among the channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol as channels for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channels in the second group may include the remaining consecutive channels excluding the channels (e.g., the channels in the first group) for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) among the channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0167] For example, the channel for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can be randomly selected.

[0168] For example, channels for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can be selected by frequency band.

[0169] For example, a channel for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected based on at least one of the load, the remaining battery capacity, or the capability (e.g., frequency support information) of the electronic device (101) and / or the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, if the electronic device (101) supports about 2.4 GHz band, about 5 GHz band, and about 6 GHz band, and the external electronic device 1 (210) supports about 2.4 GHz band and about 5 GHz band, the processor (500) may determine (or determine) at least some of the continuous channels included in about 2.4 GHz band and about 5 GHz band excluding about 6 GHz band among the channels (e.g., all channels) for performing scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol as channels for performing scanning in the external electronic device 1 (210). The processor (500) can determine (or determine) the remaining consecutive channels, excluding the channels for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210), as channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101).

[0170] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may determine to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) when the external electronic device 1 (210) does not support cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) may set a time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval (e.g., scan duration) (or size of the time interval) for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) may perform the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0171] For example, the electronic device (101) can update the scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) can perform data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the updated scheduling.

[0172] According to one embodiment, when the electronic device (101) cooperates with an external electronic device 1 (210) to perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the time required for the scan may be shorter than when the electronic device (101) alone performs the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol. As the number of external electronic devices performing scans related to the second wireless LAN protocol increases, the time required for the electronic device (101) to perform the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be relatively shorter. As the time required for the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol becomes relatively shorter, the electronic device (101) may increase the efficiency of the data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol because the time during which data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol is at least partially restricted by the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol becomes shorter.

[0173] FIG. 8B is a flowchart (810) for identifying a channel for performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment. For example, at least a portion of FIG. 8B may include detailed operations of operations 703 to 705 of FIG. 7. In the following embodiments, the operations may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel. For example, the electronic device of FIG. 8B may be the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6.

[0174] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 8b, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5) performs data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3 or FIG. 4) based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 701 of FIG. 7), in operation 811, it may determine whether to perform a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol during the data communication with the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, if an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is to be performed. If an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol does not occur during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is not to be performed. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on the execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or the reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0175] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines that a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol is to be performed (e.g., 'Yes' in operation 811), in operation 813, the electronic device may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)). For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on at least one of channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) or a distance with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channel state information may include at least one of received signal strength indication (RSSI), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), reference signal received power (RSRP), signal to noise ratio (SNR), signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR), quality of service (QoS), or bit error rate (BER). For example, the distance to external electronic device 1 (210) may be estimated based on channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) or may be estimated through a location estimation sensor.

[0176] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, a state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0177] For example, if the channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) does not satisfy a specified reference channel condition, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the state of not satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) is lower than or equal to a specified reference channel value.

[0178] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to a specified reference distance.

[0179] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) if the distance to the external electronic device 1 (210) does not satisfy a specified reference distance condition. For example, the state of not satisfying the specified reference distance condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds the specified reference distance.

[0180] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines that a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with an external electronic device (e.g., 'yes' in operation 813), in operation 815, the processor may determine whether the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may determine whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a capability of the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210) may be acquired through NAN communication or OOB communication. For example, OOB communication is a different communication method from NAN communication, and may include at least one of Bluetooth, BLE (Bluetooth low energy), NFC (near field communication), QR (quick response), or a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi legacy, Wi-Fi direct (or Wi-Fi P2P), or mobile hotspot).

[0181] For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to transmit a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning to the external electronic device 1 (210). The processor (500) may determine whether the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the response message related to cooperative scanning. For example, the confirmation request message and / or the response message may be transmitted and / or received via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0182] According to one embodiment, if the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or the processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'No' in operation 811), determines not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with an external electronic device (e.g., 'No' in operation 813), or if the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) does not support a cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'No' in operation 815), the embodiment for checking a channel for performing a search based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be terminated. For example, if the processor (500) determines that a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is not to be performed, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data to or from the external electronic device 1 (210) through a NAN data path (NDP) set between discovery windows. For example, if the external electronic device 1 (210) does not support cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101).

[0183] According to one embodiment, when an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) supports cooperative scanning related to a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'yes' in operation 815), in operation 817, the electronic device (e.g., electronic device 101) or the processor (e.g., processor 120 or 500) may determine (or determine) channels for cooperative scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (e.g., electronic device 101) and the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)). For example, the processor (500) may determine (or determine) consecutive channels included in a first group among channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol as channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101). For example, the channels in the first group may include a plurality of consecutive channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101).

[0184] For example, the processor (500) may determine (or determine) the consecutive channels included in the second group among the channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol as channels for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channels in the second group may include the remaining consecutive channels excluding the channels (e.g., the channels in the first group) for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) among the channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0185] For example, the channel for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can be randomly selected.

[0186] For example, channels for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can be selected by frequency band.

[0187] For example, a channel for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected based on at least one of the load, battery level, or capability (e.g., frequency support information) of the electronic device (101) and / or the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0188] According to one embodiment, if the electronic device (101) determines that the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is not performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) or if the external electronic device 1 (210) does not support cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is performed. The electronic device (101) may set a time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval (e.g., scan duration) (or size of the time interval) for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) may perform the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0189] For example, the electronic device (101) can update the scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) can perform data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the updated scheduling.

[0190] FIG. 8C is a flowchart (820) for identifying a channel for performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment. For example, at least a portion of FIG. 8C may include detailed operations of operations 703 to 705 of FIG. 7. In the following embodiments, the operations may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel. For example, the electronic device of FIG. 8C may be the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6.

[0191] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 8c, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5) performs data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3 or FIG. 4) based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 701 of FIG. 7), in operation 821, it may determine whether to perform a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol during the data communication with the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, if an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is to be performed. If an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol does not occur during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is not to be performed. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on the execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or the reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0192] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines to perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'yes' in operation 821), in operation 823, the electronic device may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)). For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on at least one of channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) or a distance with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channel state information may include at least one of received signal strength indication (RSSI), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), reference signal received power (RSRP), signal to noise ratio (SNR), signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR), quality of service (QoS), or bit error rate (BER). For example, the distance to external electronic device 1 (210) may be estimated based on channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) or may be estimated through a location estimation sensor.

[0193] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, a state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0194] For example, if the channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) does not satisfy a specified reference channel condition, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the state of not satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with external electronic device 1 (210) is lower than or equal to a specified reference channel value.

[0195] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to a specified reference distance.

[0196] For example, the processor (500) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) if the distance to the external electronic device 1 (210) does not satisfy a specified reference distance condition. For example, the state of not satisfying the specified reference distance condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds the specified reference distance.

[0197] According to one embodiment, when the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or the processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., 'No' in operation 821) or not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with an external electronic device (e.g., 'No' in operation 823), the processor may terminate one embodiment for checking a channel for performing a search based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, when the processor (500) determines not to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, the processor may control the communication circuit (510) to perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data to or from the external electronic device 1 (210) through a NAN data path (NDP) set between discovery windows. For example, the processor (500) may control the communication circuit (510) to perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) when the external electronic device 1 (210) does not support cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0198] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) determines that a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with an external electronic device (e.g., 'Yes' in operation 823), in operation 825, the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) and the external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) may check (or determine) channels for cooperative scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may determine (or determine) consecutive channels included in a first group among channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol as channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101). For example, the channels in the first group may include a plurality of consecutive channels for performing a scan in the electronic device (101).

[0199] For example, the processor (500) may determine (or determine) the consecutive channels included in the second group among the channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol as channels for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the channels in the second group may include the remaining consecutive channels excluding the channels (e.g., the channels in the first group) for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) among the channels (e.g., all channels) for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0200] For example, the channel for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can be randomly selected.

[0201] For example, channels for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can be selected by frequency band.

[0202] For example, a channel for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol in the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may be selected based on at least one of the load, battery level, or capability (e.g., frequency support information) of the electronic device (101) and / or the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0203] According to one embodiment, if the electronic device (101) determines that the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is not performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may determine to perform the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) may set a time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval (e.g., scan duration) (or size of the time interval) for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) may perform the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0204] For example, the electronic device (101) can update the scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) can perform data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the updated scheduling.

[0205] FIG. 9 is a flowchart (900) for performing scheduling based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment. For example, at least a portion of FIG. 9 may include detailed operations of operation 707 of FIG. 7. In the following embodiments, the operations may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel. For example, the electronic device of FIG. 9 may be the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6.

[0206] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 9, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5) identifies a channel for cooperative scanning (e.g., operation 705 of FIG. 7, operation 805 of FIG. 8a, operation 817 of FIG. 8b, or operation 825 of FIG. 8c), in operation 901, it may identify at least one of a type of service provided through a first wireless LAN protocol or a type of service provided through a second wireless LAN protocol.

[0207] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may set a time interval for a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., number of channels in the second group), a type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or a type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol, in operation 903. For example, if the processor (500) determines that the quality of service (QoS) of data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) is important based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may determine that data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol requires a relatively large amount of time resources. The processor (500) may set the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol to be relatively small so that a relatively large amount of time resources can be allocated to data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, if the processor (500) determines that the scan speed of the second wireless LAN protocol is important based on the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol, the processor (500) may set the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol to be relatively large so that a relatively fast scan can be performed.For example, the processor (500) may determine at least one of a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a scan result acquisition time in relation to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of the size of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, channel information (e.g., number of channels) for performing a scan in the electronic device (101), or channel information (e.g., number of channels) for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, at least one of the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the scan result acquisition time may be set based on (or based on) a discovery window.

[0208] FIG. 10 is a flowchart (1000) for outputting scan results based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment. In the following embodiments, the respective operations may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the respective operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel. For example, the electronic device of FIG. 10 may be the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6.

[0209] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 10, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5) cooperates with an electronic device and an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) to perform a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 711 of FIG. 7), in operation 1001, the electronic device (101) may check a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed. For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may include at least one external electronic device with which the electronic device (101) is capable of performing wireless LAN communication based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0210] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may output a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) at operation 1003. For example, the processor (500) may control an output device of the electronic device (101) to output a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101). As an example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may include at least one of a display, a speaker, or a vibration module operatively connected to the electronic device (101).

[0211] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may, at operation 1005, determine whether a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol is received from an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)).

[0212] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may terminate an embodiment for outputting a scan result based on the second wireless LAN protocol when a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol is not received from an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) (e.g., 'No' in operation 1005).

[0213] According to one embodiment, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) receives a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol from an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) (e.g., 'Yes' in operation 1005), in operation 1007, the processor may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the processor (500) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol that is being output through an output device based on the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the updating of the scan result may include a series of operations of additionally outputting, through the output device, a scan result different from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device in the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0214] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol is received from the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the acquisition time of the scan result set by the first scheduling. When the electronic device (101) receives the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) can generate the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210) and the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101). The electronic device (101) can output the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the outside through an output device. For example, the generation of the scan result may include a series of operations for removing duplicate scan results from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0215] FIG. 11 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0216] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 11, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication based on NAN communication based on the first scheduling result (e.g., operation 1111). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication based on NAN communication through a first channel of a first frequency band. For example, the first frequency band may include a band of about 2.4 GHz, a band of about 5 GHz, or a band of about 6 GHz. For example, the data communication based on NAN communication may include a series of operations in which the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) included in the same NAN cluster transmit or receive data through an NDP set between discovery windows.

[0217] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether an event related to a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second wireless LAN protocol is a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol different from the first wireless LAN protocol, and may include at least one of direct communication based on wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi direct), a mobile hotspot, or Wi-Fi legacy. For example, Wi-Fi legacy may include a communication method in which an electronic device (101) performs wireless LAN communication via an access point (AP). For example, the electronic device (101) may operate in STA mode (station mode) connected to an access point (AP) in Wi-Fi legacy.

[0218] According to one embodiment, when an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication (e.g., operation 1113), the electronic device (101) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, when the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210) may be acquired from the external electronic device 1 (210) through NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB (out of band) communication. For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning and a response message corresponding to the confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning, the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the confirmation request message and / or the response message may be transmitted and / or received via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0219] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the electronic device (101) cooperatively performs a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, the state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0220] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to the specified reference distance.

[0221] For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that it is cooperating with the external electronic device 1 (210) to perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can check (or determine) a channel for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0222] For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, when the electronic device (101) requires a relatively fast scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol, the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be set to be relatively large for a relatively fast scan. For example, setting a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a scan result acquisition time in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the scan result acquisition time may be set based on (or based on) a discovery window.

[0223] For example, the electronic device (101) may perform a second scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second scheduling may include a series of operations for updating the first scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0224] In one embodiment, when the electronic device (101) determines to cooperatively perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol with an external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may transmit a second scheduling result to the external electronic device 1 (210) to secure a time interval for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1115). For example, the second scheduling result may be transmitted via NAN communication.

[0225] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scan request information (or scan request message) including setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1117). For example, the scan request information (or scan request message) may be transmitted via NAN communication or OOB communication.

[0226] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1119). For example, when a start time of a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the first group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol may include time resources allocated for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0227] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1123). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the second group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0228] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the second scheduling result (e.g., operations 1121 and 1125). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol through at least a portion of the remaining time interval excluding the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0229] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101) based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1127). For example, when the acquisition time of the scan result set based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0230] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device, a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol generated based on a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and / or a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device of the electronic device (101), a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101). When the electronic device (101) receives a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol from an external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device based on the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, updating the scan result may include a series of operations for additionally outputting, through the output device, a scan result different from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may include at least one of a display, a speaker, or a vibration module operatively connected to the electronic device (101).

[0231] For example, the electronic device (101) can merge the scan results related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and the scan results related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210) and output them through the output device of the electronic device (101).

[0232] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) after transmitting setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210).

[0233] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may substantially simultaneously transmit setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol and scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) to the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0234] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can update (or restore) the scheduling for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the termination of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, when the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) terminate the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the scheduling related to data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol can be restored to the time before performing the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., the first scheduling).

[0235] FIG. 12 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0236] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 12, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication based on NAN communication based on the first scheduling result (e.g., operation 1211). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication based on NAN communication through a first channel of a first frequency band. For example, the first frequency band may include a band of about 2.4 GHz, a band of about 5 GHz, or a band of about 6 GHz.

[0237] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether an event related to a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second wireless LAN protocol is a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol different from the first wireless LAN protocol, and may include at least one of direct communication based on wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi direct), a mobile hotspot, or Wi-Fi legacy.

[0238] According to one embodiment, when an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication (e.g., operation 1213), the electronic device (101) may determine whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, when the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning and a response message corresponding to the confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning, the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0239] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the electronic device (101) cooperatively performs a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, the state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0240] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to the specified reference distance.

[0241] For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that it is cooperating with the external electronic device 1 (210) to perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can check (or determine) a channel for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0242] For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the quality of service (QoS) of data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) is important based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) may determine that data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol requires a relatively large amount of time resources. The electronic device (101) may set the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol to be relatively small so that a relatively large amount of time resources can be allocated to data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, setting the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a scan result acquisition time in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the scan result acquisition time may be set based on (or as a reference to) a discovery window.

[0243] For example, the electronic device (101) may perform a second scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second scheduling may include a series of operations for updating the first scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0244] In one embodiment, when the electronic device (101) determines to cooperatively perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may transmit a second scheduling result to the external electronic device 1 (210) to secure a time interval for performing the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1215). For example, the second scheduling result may be transmitted via NAN communication.

[0245] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scan request information (or scan request message) including setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1217). For example, the scan request information (or scan request message) may be transmitted via NAN communication or OOB communication.

[0246] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1219). For example, when a start time of a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first group of channels during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol may include time resources allocated for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0247] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1223). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the second group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0248] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the second scheduling result (e.g., operations 1221 and 1225). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol through at least a portion of the remaining time interval excluding the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0249] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101) based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1227). For example, when the acquisition time of the scan result set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0250] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device, a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol generated based on a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and / or a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device of the electronic device (101), a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101). When the electronic device (101) receives a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol from an external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device based on the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, updating the scan result may include a series of operations for additionally outputting, through the output device, a scan result different from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may include at least one of a display, a speaker, or a vibration module operatively connected to the electronic device (101).

[0251] For example, the electronic device (101) can merge the scan results related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and the scan results related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210) and output them through the output device of the electronic device (101).

[0252] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) after transmitting setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210).

[0253] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may substantially simultaneously transmit setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol and scheduling update information (or a second scheduling result) to the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0254] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can update (or restore) the scheduling for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the termination of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, when the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) terminate the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, the scheduling related to data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol can be restored to the time before performing the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., the first scheduling).

[0255] According to one embodiment, when the electronic device (101) requires a relatively fast scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol, as shown in FIG. 11, the size of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol can be set relatively large for the relatively fast scan. When the electronic device (101) determines that the QoS of the data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) is important based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, as shown in FIG. 12, the size of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol can be set relatively small so that a relatively large amount of time resources can be allocated to the data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol.

[0256] For example, when the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively large, as in FIG. 11, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can quickly obtain the scan result based on the second wireless LAN protocol compared to when the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively small, as in FIG. 12. For example, the number of scans of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 11 may be less than the number of scans of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 12. For example, the scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 11 may be completed faster than the scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 12.

[0257] For example, when the size of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively small, as in FIG. 12, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can secure a large amount of time resources available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows compared to when the size of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively large, as in FIG. 11. When the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) perform a scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 12, they can guarantee a higher QoS of data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol than when they perform a scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 11.

[0258] FIG. 13 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0259] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 13, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may include a plurality of cores as in FIG. 6. For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform NAN communication through a first channel (e.g., channel 149) of a first frequency band (e.g., about 5 GHz band) and a second channel (e.g., channel 6) of a second frequency band (e.g., about 2.4 GHz band). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication based on NAN communication based on a first scheduling result through a first channel (e.g., channel 149) of a first frequency band (e.g., about 5 GHz band) (e.g., operation 1111). For example, data communication based on NAN communication may include a series of operations in which an electronic device (101) and an external electronic device 1 (210) included in the same NAN cluster transmit or receive data through an NDP set between discovery windows.

[0260] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether an event related to a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second wireless LAN protocol is a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol different from the first wireless LAN protocol, and may include at least one of direct communication based on wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi direct), a mobile hotspot, or Wi-Fi legacy.

[0261] According to one embodiment, when an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication (e.g., operation 1113), the electronic device (101) may determine whether to perform a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol for a first frequency band used for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, when the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a capability of the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may determine to perform a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning and a response message corresponding to the confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning, the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0262] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the electronic device (101) cooperatively performs a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, the state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0263] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to the specified reference distance.

[0264] For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) is cooperating with the external electronic device 1 (210) to perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol for a first frequency band used for data communication, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can check (or determine) a channel of the first frequency band for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0265] For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, when the electronic device (101) requires a relatively fast scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol, the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be set to be relatively large for a relatively fast scan. For example, setting a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a scan result acquisition time in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the scan result acquisition time may be set based on (or based on) a discovery window.

[0266] For example, the electronic device (101) may perform a second scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second scheduling may include a series of operations for updating the first scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0267] In one embodiment, when the electronic device (101) determines to cooperatively perform a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol with an external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may transmit a second scheduling result to the external electronic device 1 (210) to secure a time interval for performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1115). For example, the second scheduling result may be transmitted via NAN communication.

[0268] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scan request information (or scan request message) including setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1117). For example, the scan request information (or scan request message) may be transmitted via NAN communication or OOB communication.

[0269] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1119). For example, when a start time of a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels of the first frequency band included in the first group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol may include time resources allocated for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0270] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band based on the setting information of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1123). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting information of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels of the first frequency band included in the second group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0271] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the second scheduling result (e.g., operations 1121 and 1125). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol through at least a portion of the remaining time interval excluding the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows in the first frequency band.

[0272] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101) based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1127). For example, when the acquisition time of the scan result set based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0273] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device, a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol generated based on a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and / or a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device of the electronic device (101), a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101). When the electronic device (101) receives a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol from an external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device based on the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, updating the scan result may include a series of operations for additionally outputting, through the output device, a scan result different from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol output through the output device from the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may include at least one of a display, a speaker, or a vibration module operatively connected to the electronic device (101).

[0274] For example, the electronic device (101) can merge the scan results related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and the scan results related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from the external electronic device 1 (210) and output them through the output device of the electronic device (101).

[0275] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can perform a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol independently of the first frequency band for the second frequency band (e.g., operation 1300). For example, if the electronic device (101) can simultaneously perform wireless communication for the first frequency band and wireless communication for the second frequency band through a plurality of cores, the electronic device (101) can perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band independently of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band. If the electronic device (101) does not perform data communication based on NAN communication through the second frequency band, the electronic device (101) can perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol using a time resource other than a discovery window in the second frequency band.

[0276] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band together with the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band through the output device. For example, the electronic device (101) may output the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol through the output device of the electronic device (101) whenever at least one of the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) or the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band performed by the electronic device (101) is confirmed. For example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol whenever at least one of the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) or the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band performed by the electronic device (101) is confirmed.

[0277] For example, when the scanning of the second wireless LAN protocol of the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the scanning of the second wireless LAN protocol of the second frequency band performed in the electronic device (101) are terminated, the electronic device (101) can merge the scanning result of the second wireless LAN protocol of the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the scanning result of the second wireless LAN protocol of the second frequency band performed in the electronic device (101) and output them through an output device.

[0278] FIG. 14 is an example for performing data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol and search based on a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0279] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 14, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may include a plurality of cores as in FIG. 6. For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform NAN communication through a first channel (e.g., channel 149) of a first frequency band (e.g., about 5 GHz band) and a second channel (e.g., channel 6) of a second frequency band (e.g., about 2.4 GHz band). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication based on NAN communication through a first channel (e.g., channel 149) of a first frequency band (e.g., about 5 GHz band) (e.g., operation 1211). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can perform data communication based on NAN communication based on the first scheduling result through the first channel of the first frequency band.

[0280] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether an event related to a scan (or search) based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second wireless LAN protocol is a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol different from the first wireless LAN protocol, and may include at least one of direct communication based on wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi direct), a mobile hotspot, or Wi-Fi legacy.

[0281] According to one embodiment, when an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on NAN communication (e.g., operation 1213), the electronic device (101) may determine whether to perform a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol for a first frequency band used for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, when the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a capability of the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may determine to perform a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning and a response message corresponding to the confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning, the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0282] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the electronic device (101) cooperatively performs a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, the state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0283] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to the specified reference distance.

[0284] For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) performs a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol for a first frequency band used for data communication in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can check (or determine) a channel of the first frequency band for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0285] For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the quality of service (QoS) of data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) is important based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) may determine that data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol requires a relatively large amount of time resources. The electronic device (101) may set the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol to be relatively small so that a relatively large amount of time resources can be allocated to data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, setting the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a scan result acquisition time in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the scan result acquisition time may be set based on (or as a reference to) a discovery window.

[0286] For example, the electronic device (101) may perform a second scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second scheduling may include a series of operations for updating the first scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0287] In one embodiment, when the electronic device (101) determines to cooperatively perform a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may transmit a second scheduling result to the external electronic device 1 (210) to secure a time interval for performing the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1215). For example, the second scheduling result may be transmitted via NAN communication.

[0288] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scan request information (or scan request message) including setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to an external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1217). For example, the scan request information (or scan request message) may be transmitted via NAN communication or OOB communication.

[0289] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1219). For example, when a start time for a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol set based on the first scheduling result arrives, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels of the first frequency band included in the first group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol may include time resources allocated for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0290] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band based on the setting information of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1223). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting information of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels of the first frequency band included in the second group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0291] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the second scheduling result (e.g., operations 1221 and 1225). For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol through at least a portion of the remaining time interval excluding the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows in the first frequency band.

[0292] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101) based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1227). For example, when the acquisition time of the scan result set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0293] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device, a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol generated based on a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and / or a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 1 (210).

[0294] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can perform a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol independently of the first frequency band for the second frequency band (e.g., operation 1400). For example, if the electronic device (101) can simultaneously perform wireless communication for the first frequency band and wireless communication for the second frequency band through a plurality of cores, the electronic device (101) can perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band independently of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band. If the electronic device (101) does not perform data communication based on NAN communication through the second frequency band, the electronic device (101) can perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol using a time resource other than a discovery window in the second frequency band.

[0295] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band together with the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band through the output device. For example, the electronic device (101) may output the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol through the output device of the electronic device (101) whenever at least one of the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) or the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band performed by the electronic device (101) is confirmed. For example, the output device of the electronic device (101) may update the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol whenever at least one of the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) or the scan result of the second wireless LAN protocol for the second frequency band performed by the electronic device (101) is confirmed.

[0296] For example, when the scanning of the second wireless LAN protocol of the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the scanning of the second wireless LAN protocol of the second frequency band performed in the electronic device (101) are terminated, the electronic device (101) can merge the scanning result of the second wireless LAN protocol of the first frequency band in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the scanning result of the second wireless LAN protocol of the second frequency band performed in the electronic device (101) and output them through an output device.

[0297] According to one embodiment, if the electronic device (101) requires a relatively fast scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol, as shown in FIG. 13, the size of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol can be set relatively large for the relatively fast scan. If the electronic device (101) determines that the QoS of the data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) is important based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, as shown in FIG. 14, the size of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol can be set relatively small so that a relatively large amount of time resources can be allocated to the data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol.

[0298] For example, when the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively large, as in FIG. 13, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can quickly obtain the scan result based on the second wireless LAN protocol compared to when the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively small, as in FIG. 14. For example, the number of scans of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 13 may be less than the number of scans of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 14. For example, the scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 13 may be completed faster than the scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 14.

[0299] For example, when the size of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively small, as in FIG. 14, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can secure a large amount of time resources available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows compared to when the size of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol is set relatively large, as in FIG. 13. When the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) perform a scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 14, they can guarantee a higher QoS of data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol than when they perform a scan of the second wireless LAN protocol based on FIG. 13.

[0300] FIG. 15 is an example of performing a search based on an external electronic device and a second wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0301] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 15, the electronic device (101) may set up a NAN data path (NDP) based on a first scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., NAN communication) (e.g., operation 1511). For example, the NAN data path may be set up based on information related to setting up the NAN data path (NDP) obtained through a NAN action frame (NAF) transmitted and / or received within a discovery window. For example, the NAN data path may include wireless resources for data communication between the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) included in the same NAN cluster in the interval between discovery windows.

[0302] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data to or from an external electronic device 1 (210) through a NAN data path (NDP) established based on a first scheduling between discovery windows (e.g., operation 1513).

[0303] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second wireless LAN protocol is a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol different from the first wireless LAN protocol, and may include at least one of direct communication based on wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi direct), a mobile hotspot, or Wi-Fi legacy.

[0304] According to one embodiment, when an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1515), the electronic device (101) may determine (or determine) whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, when the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the capability of the external electronic device 1 (210), the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210). For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) supports cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning and a response message corresponding to the confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning, the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210).

[0305] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the electronic device (101) cooperatively performs a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, the state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0306] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) when the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) satisfies a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance from the external electronic device 1 (210) is less than or equal to the specified reference distance.

[0307] For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) is cooperating with the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) can check (or determine) a channel for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0308] For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or the type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the quality of service (QoS) of data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) is important based on the type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) may determine that data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol requires a relatively large amount of time resources. The electronic device (101) may set the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol to be relatively small so that a relatively large amount of time resources can be allocated to data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, setting the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of the size of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a scan result acquisition time in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, the scan end time, the scan cycle, or the scan result acquisition time may be set based on (or as a reference to) a discovery window.

[0309] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scan request information including setting information for a time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol to the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., operation 1517). For example, the scan request information may be transmitted via NAN communication or OOB communication.

[0310] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform a second scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1519). For example, the electronic device (101) may transmit resource information (e.g., time resources) available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol to the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a second scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the resource information (e.g., time resources) available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1519).

[0311] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1521). For example, when a start time of a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol arrives based on the setting of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the first group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0312] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1523). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the second group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0313] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101) based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1525). For example, when the acquisition time of the scan result set based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0314] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device, a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol generated based on a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101) and / or a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 1 (210).

[0315] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the second scheduling result while performing a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol during at least a portion of the remaining time interval excluding the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0316] FIG. 16 is an example of performing a search based on a second wireless LAN protocol with external electronic devices in an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0317] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 16, the electronic device (101) may set up a NAN data path (NDP) based on a first scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., NAN communication) (e.g., operation 1611). For example, the NAN data path may be set up based on information related to setting up the NAN data path (NDP) obtained through a NAN action frame (NAF) transmitted and / or received within a discovery window. For example, the NAN data path may include wireless resources for data communication between the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) included in the same NAN cluster in the interval between discovery windows.

[0318] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform at least one of transmitting or receiving data to or from an external electronic device 1 (210) through a NAN data path (NDP) established based on a first scheduling between discovery windows (e.g., operation 1613).

[0319] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol. For example, an event related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may be generated based on execution of an application program or function related to the second wireless LAN protocol, reception of an input (e.g., a touch input, a gesture input, or a voice input) related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, or reception of a control signal related to a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the second wireless LAN protocol is a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol different from the first wireless LAN protocol, and may include at least one of direct communication based on wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi direct), a mobile hotspot, or Wi-Fi legacy.

[0320] According to one embodiment, when an event related to a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol occurs during data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1615), the electronic device (101) may check external electronic devices (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210) and / or external electronic device 2 (220)) included in a NAN cluster based on the first wireless LAN protocol. For example, the electronic device (101) may check whether there is another external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 2 (220)) included in the same NAN cluster as the electronic device (101) in addition to the external electronic device 1 (210) performing data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol.

[0321] For example, if external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220) included in the NAN cluster are identified, the electronic device (101) can check (or determine) whether to cooperatively perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220). For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220) support cooperative scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the capabilities of the external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220), the electronic device (101) can determine to cooperatively perform a scan for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220). For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) support cooperative scanning related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on a confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning and a response message corresponding to the confirmation request message related to cooperative scanning, the electronic device (101) may determine to cooperatively perform scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220).

[0322] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scan for the second wireless LAN protocol is performed cooperatively with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) when the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) satisfies a specified reference channel condition. For example, the state of satisfying the specified reference channel condition may include a state in which the channel state information with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) exceeds a specified reference channel value.

[0323] For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the scanning for the second wireless LAN protocol is performed in cooperation with the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) when the distances between the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) satisfy a specified reference distance condition. For example, a state in which the specified reference distance condition is satisfied may include a state in which the distance between the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) and the distance between the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 2 (220) are less than or equal to the specified reference distance.

[0324] For example, if the electronic device (101) determines that the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) are cooperating with a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol, the electronic device (101), the external electronic device 1 (210) and the external electronic device 2 (220) can check (or determine) a channel for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0325] For example, the electronic device (101) may set a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of channel information for performing a scan in the electronic device (101) (e.g., the number of channels in the first group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 1 (210) (e.g., the number of channels in the second group), channel information for performing a scan in the external electronic device 2 (220) (e.g., the number of channels in the third group), a type of service provided through the first wireless LAN protocol, or a type of service provided through the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, setting the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol may include a series of operations that determine at least one of a size of a time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or an acquisition time of a scan result in the electronic device (101). For example, at least one of the scan start time, scan end time, scan cycle, or scan result acquisition time can be set based on (or based on) the discovery window.

[0326] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may transmit scan request information including setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220) (e.g., operations 1617 and 1619). For example, the scan request information may be transmitted via NAN communication or OOB communication.

[0327] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may establish a NAN data path with an external electronic device 2 (220) (e.g., operation 1621). For example, the electronic device (101) may establish a NAN data path with the external electronic device 2 (220) based on information related to the setup of a NAN data path (NDP) obtained through a NAN action frame (NAF) transmitted and / or received within a discovery window.

[0328] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may update scheduling for data communication with external electronic device 1 (210) and external electronic device 2 (220) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1623). For example, the electronic device (101) may transmit resource information (e.g., time resources) available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol to the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the setting of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) and external electronic device 1 (210) may perform second scheduling for data communication with external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the resource information (e.g., time resources) available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1623).

[0329] For example, the electronic device (101) may transmit resource information (e.g., time resources) available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol to the external electronic device 2 (220) based on the setting of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol. The electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 2 (220) may perform third scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 2 (220) based on the first wireless LAN protocol based on the resource information (e.g., time resources) available for data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1623).

[0330] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 1625). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting of the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the electronic device (101) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the first group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0331] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1627). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the second group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0332] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 2 (220) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1629). For example, when the start time of the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol, which is set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol, arrives, the external electronic device 2 (220) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the third group during the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol.

[0333] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101) based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1631). For example, when the acquisition time of the scan result set based on the setting information of the time interval for a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the external electronic device 1 (210) may transmit the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0334] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device 2 (210) may transmit a scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101) based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol received from the electronic device (101) (e.g., operation 1633). For example, when the acquisition time of the scan result set based on the setting information of the time interval for scanning based on the second wireless LAN protocol arrives, the external electronic device 2 (220) may transmit the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol to the electronic device (101). For example, the scan result related to the second wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted via NAN communication (e.g., SDF, NDP, or NAF) or OOB communication.

[0335] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may output, through an output device, a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol generated based on at least one of a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol performed in the electronic device (101), a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 1 (210), or a scan result related to a second wireless LAN protocol received from an external electronic device 2 (220).

[0336] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the second scheduling result while performing a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol. For example, the electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol during at least a portion of the remaining time interval excluding the time interval for the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol between discovery windows.

[0337] According to one embodiment, when a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol is terminated, the electronic device (101) may update (or restore) a scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol. For example, when a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol is terminated, the electronic device (101) may restore a second scheduling related to data communication based on the first wireless LAN protocol to the time before performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., a first scheduling). The electronic device (101) and the external electronic device 1 (210) may perform data communication related to the first wireless LAN protocol based on the first scheduling result (operation 1635).

[0338] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may release (or terminate) the NAN data path with the external electronic device 2 (220) when the scan associated with the second wireless LAN protocol is terminated (e.g., operation 1637).

[0339] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may update the scheduling for data communication with the external electronic device 2 (220) based on the second scheduling result for data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol.

[0340] According to one embodiment, after establishing a NAN data path with an external electronic device 2 (220), the electronic device (101) may transmit scan request information including setting information for a time interval for scanning based on a second wireless LAN protocol to the external electronic device 2 (220).

[0341] FIG. 17 is a flowchart (1700) for restoring scheduling for data communication based on a first wireless LAN protocol in an electronic device according to one embodiment. In the following embodiments, the operations may be performed sequentially, but are not necessarily performed sequentially. For example, the order of the operations may be changed, and at least two operations may be performed in parallel. For example, the electronic device of FIG. 17 may be the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5, or FIG. 6.

[0342] According to one embodiment referring to FIG. 17, when an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120) of FIG. 1 or processor (500) of FIG. 5) cooperates with an external electronic device 1 (210) to perform a scan related to a second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operation 713 of FIG. 7), in operation 1701, it may determine whether the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol is terminated. For example, the processor (500) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in a first group during data communication with the external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol (e.g., operations 701 to 717 of FIG. 7). The processor (500) may determine whether the scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol is terminated. For example, the termination of a scan associated with the second wireless LAN protocol may include a state in which the scan of all channels associated with the second wireless LAN protocol is completed or an application program or function associated with the second wireless LAN protocol is terminated.

[0343] According to one embodiment, when a scan based on a second wireless LAN protocol is terminated (e.g., 'Yes' in operation 1701), the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or the processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may restore scheduling for data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) based on a first wireless LAN protocol in operation 1703. For example, the processor (500) may restore a second scheduling related to data communication with external electronic device 1 (210) based on the first wireless LAN protocol to a time prior to performing a scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol (e.g., a first scheduling).

[0344] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may perform data communication with an external electronic device 1 (210) based on a first wireless LAN protocol based on the restored first scheduling at operation 1705.

[0345] According to one embodiment, if the scan based on the second wireless LAN protocol has not ended (e.g., 'No' in operation 1701), the electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or the processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may perform a scan related to the second wireless LAN protocol for channels included in the first group based on the setting of the time interval related to the second wireless LAN protocol in operation 1707.

[0346] According to one embodiment, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101)) or a processor (e.g., processor (120 or 500)) may perform data communication with an external electronic device (e.g., external electronic device 1 (210)) associated with a first wireless LAN protocol based on a second scheduling result associated with the first wireless LAN protocol, at operation 1709.

[0347] According to one embodiment, a method of operating an electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6) may include an operation of performing NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device (e.g., the external electronic device 1 (210) of FIG. 2, 3, or 4) based on a first scheduling. According to one embodiment, the method of operating the electronic device may include an operation of identifying an event related to a scan of a plurality of channels of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol during the NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device. According to one embodiment, the method of operating the electronic device may include an operation of identifying a first group of channels among channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol and a second group of channels among channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for performing a scan in the first external electronic device based on the event. According to one embodiment, the method of operating the electronic device may include an operation of setting a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on the first group of channels. According to one embodiment, an operating method of an electronic device may include an operation of performing a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device based on a setting of a time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of transmitting, to the first external electronic device, information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for channels of a second group. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of performing a scan related to channels of a first group based on the setting of a time interval for scanning a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol. According to one embodiment, the operating method of the electronic device may include an operation of obtaining a scan result related to channels of a second group from the first external electronic device.According to one embodiment, a method of operating an electronic device may include performing NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device based on a second scheduling.

[0348] According to one embodiment, information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol may include at least one of information related to a channel included in the second group, the size of a time interval for scanning, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a time of acquisition of a scan result in an electronic device.

[0349] According to one embodiment, information requesting a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol may be transmitted to a first external electronic device via NAN communication or OOB (out of band) communication.

[0350] According to one embodiment, scan results related to the channels of the second group can be obtained from the first external electronic device via NAN communication or OOB (out of band) communication.

[0351] According to one embodiment, a method of operating an electronic device may include outputting at least one of a scan result associated with a first group of channels or a scan result associated with a second group of channels in the electronic device.

[0352] According to one embodiment, the operation of setting a time interval for scanning of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol may include an operation of setting a size of a time interval for scanning of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of a NAN-based service type with the first external electronic device or a service type related to the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol.

[0353] According to one embodiment, the operation of setting a time interval for scanning of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol may include an operation of setting at least one of a scan end time point or a scan period based on at least one of a size of a time interval for scanning of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, channels included in a first group, or channels included in a second group.

[0354] According to one embodiment, a method of operating an electronic device may include restoring a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with a first external electronic device to a first scheduling when a scan of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol is terminated.

[0355] According to one embodiment, the channels of the first group may include at least some of the consecutive channels among the plurality of channels for scanning heterogeneous wireless LAN protocols. According to one embodiment, the channels of the second group may include the remaining consecutive channels, excluding the channels of the first group, among the plurality of channels for scanning heterogeneous wireless LAN protocols.

[0356] The embodiments of the present invention disclosed in this specification and drawings are merely specific examples presented to easily explain the technical contents according to the embodiments of the present invention and to help understand the embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the embodiments of the present invention should be interpreted to include all changes or modified forms derived based on the technical idea of ​​the embodiments of the present invention, in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. In an electronic device (101), Communication circuit performing wireless LAN communication (192 or 510), At least one processor (120 or 500) comprising a processing circuit, and When executed individually or collectively by at least one processor (120 or 500), the electronic device (101) Perform data communication based on NAN (neighbor awareness networking) based on the first external electronic device and the first scheduling, Checking an event related to scanning of multiple channels of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol during data communication based on the first external electronic device and NAN, Based on the above event, a first group of channels for performing scanning on the electronic device among a plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol and a second group of channels for performing scanning on the first external electronic device among a plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol are identified, Setting a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the first group, Performing a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on setting a time interval for scanning the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, Transmitting information requesting a scan of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the second group to the first external electronic device, Performing a scan related to the channels of the first group based on the setting of the time interval for scanning the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, Obtain scan results related to the channels of the second group from the first external electronic device, An electronic device including a memory storing instructions for performing NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on the second scheduling.

2. In paragraph 1, An electronic device including at least one of information requesting a scan of the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, information related to a channel included in the second group, the size of a time interval for scanning, a scan start time, a scan end time, a scan cycle, or a time of acquisition of a scan result in the electronic device.

3. In paragraph 1, An electronic device in which information requesting a scan of the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol is transmitted to the first external electronic device via NAN communication or OOB (out of band) communication.

4. In paragraph 1, An electronic device wherein scan results related to the channels of the second group are obtained from the first external electronic device via NAN communication or OOB (out of band) communication.

5. In paragraph 1, The above memory, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, causes the electronic device to: An electronic device storing instructions causing the device to output at least one of a scan result associated with the channels of the first group or a scan result associated with the channels of the second group obtained from the first external electronic device.

6. In paragraph 1, The above memory, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, causes the electronic device to: An electronic device storing instructions for setting the size of a time interval for scanning of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of a NAN-based service type with the first external electronic device or a service type related to the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol.

7. In paragraph 6, The above memory, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, causes the electronic device to: An electronic device storing instructions for setting at least one of a scan end time point or a scan period based on the size of a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, at least one of channels included in the first group or channels included in the second group.

8. In paragraph 1, The above memory, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, causes the electronic device to: An electronic device storing instructions for restoring the second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device to the first scheduling when the scanning of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol is terminated.

9. In the operating method of the electronic device (101), An operation of performing data communication based on neighbor awareness networking (NAN) based on a first external electronic device and a first scheduling; Checking an event related to scanning of multiple channels of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol during data communication based on the first external electronic device and NAN, An operation of checking a first group of channels among a plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on the above event and a second group of channels among a plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for performing scanning in the first external electronic device; An operation for setting a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the first group, An operation of performing a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on setting a time interval for scanning the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol; An action of transmitting information requesting a scan of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the second group to the first external electronic device; An operation of performing a scan related to the channels of the first group based on setting a time interval for scanning of the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol; An operation of obtaining scan results related to channels of the second group from the first external electronic device, and A method comprising an operation of performing NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on the second scheduling.

10. In paragraph 9, A method further comprising the action of outputting at least one of scan results related to channels of the first group or scan results related to channels of the second group obtained from the first external electronic device.

11. In paragraph 9, The operation of setting the time interval for scanning the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocols is as follows: A method comprising the action of setting the size of a time interval for scanning of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on at least one of a type of service based on a NAN with the first external electronic device or a type of service related to the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol.

12. In paragraph 11, A method further comprising: setting at least one of a scan end time point or a scan period based on the size of a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, at least one of channels included in the first group or channels included in the second group.

13. In paragraph 9, A method further comprising the action of restoring the second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device to the first scheduling when the scanning of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol is terminated.

14. In paragraph 9, The channels of the first group include at least some of the continuous channels among the plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol, A method wherein the channels of the second group include the continuous remaining channels excluding the channels of the first group among a plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol.

15. In a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium (or computer program product) storing one or more programs, The above one or more programs, when executed by a processor of an electronic device, cause the electronic device to: An operation of performing data communication based on neighbor awareness networking (NAN) based on a first external electronic device and a first scheduling; An operation of checking an event related to scanning of multiple channels of a heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol during data communication based on the first external electronic device and NAN, An operation of checking a first group of channels among a plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol based on the above event and a second group of channels among a plurality of channels for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for performing scanning in the first external electronic device; An operation for setting a time interval for scanning the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the first group, An operation of performing a second scheduling for NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on setting a time interval for scanning the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol; An action of transmitting information requesting a scan of the heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol for the channels of the second group to the first external electronic device; An operation of performing a scan related to the channels of the first group based on setting a time interval for scanning of the above heterogeneous wireless LAN protocol; An operation of obtaining scan results related to channels of the second group from the first external electronic device, and A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions for causing a NAN-based data communication with the first external electronic device based on the second scheduling.

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