Home Appliance Wi-Fi Registration via Peer AP Credential Sharing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for registering home appliances with a server result in high battery consumption on mobile terminals due to scanning operations and are prone to failure from incorrect network information input, such as passwords.
Innovation Solution
A system where a pre-registered home appliance assists in discovering and transmitting network information to an unregistered appliance, reducing the need for additional user input on the mobile terminal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the mobile terminal performs scanning operations to discover home appliances, then the home appliance registration function is achieved, but the battery consumption of the mobile terminal increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
A pre-registered home appliance acts as an intermediary device between the mobile terminal and the unregistered home appliance. The pre-registered appliance performs the scanning operation on behalf of the mobile terminal, discovering unregistered appliances through its own communication module. This transfers the energy-consuming scanning task from the mobile terminal to the stationary home appliance, resolving the contradiction between registration functionality and battery consumption.
2Ease of operation
If users manually input network information for AP connection, then the registration process can be completed, but the process is prone to failure from incorrect input
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automatic network information acquisition where the unregistered home appliance autonomously obtains AP connection credentials from the pre-registered home appliance without requiring manual user input. The unregistered appliance extracts and applies the network information (SSID and password) automatically, eliminating human error in manual entry while maintaining registration process completion. This self-service approach simultaneously improves reliability and ease of operation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the mobile terminal connects to AP using scanned information, then remote control functionality is achieved, but additional user input requirements increase operational complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The pre-registered home appliance performs preliminary actions by storing AP network information in advance and making it available for other appliances. When an unregistered appliance needs to connect to the AP for remote control functionality, it automatically retrieves the pre-stored network information from the pre-registered appliance without requiring users to manually input credentials or perform additional connection steps. This preliminary preparation of network information reduces operational complexity while maintaining adaptability for remote control.
Data Source
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AI summary
A home appliance configured to be registered in a server, the home appliance includes: a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) module, based on the home appliance being registered in the server, communicatively connected to an access point (AP) and configured to periodically operate in an AP mode through a virtual interface, and a controller configured to control the Wi-Fi module to periodically operate in the AP mode. The Wi-Fi module is configured to generate a beacon signal to search for an unregistered home appliance based on the Wi-Fi module being operated in the AP mode.