Bluetooth Controller Offload Routing for Low-Latency Wi-Fi Paths
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Solution Overview
Problem
Network communication across different protocols and hardware domains incurs latency due to chip-to-chip data transfers involving applications processors, which can be reduced by establishing an offload agent on a dual-mode wireless communications chip to bypass the applications processor.
Innovation Solution
An offload agent is established on a second processor to route data received from a Bluetooth controller directly to Wi-Fi, bypassing the network stack of the first processor, thereby reducing latency and processor loading.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If data is routed through the applications processor network stack, then protocol compatibility and routing flexibility are improved, but latency and processor loading increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the network stack functionality from the applications processor and relocates it to a dedicated network processor. This separation allows data to bypass the applications processor entirely when routing between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, eliminating the latency and processing overhead associated with general-purpose processor intervention while maintaining protocol compatibility through the dedicated network processor's specialized stack implementation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a dedicated network processor as an intermediary component between the Bluetooth controller and Wi-Fi interface. This intermediary handles all network protocol processing, packet routing, and data transformation tasks, allowing the applications processor to remain idle for these operations while the network processor manages the data flow efficiently through its specialized network stack.
2Productivity
If an offload agent is established on the dual-mode wireless communications chip, then latency is reduced by bypassing the applications processor, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the network stack functionality with the dual-mode wireless communications chip by establishing an offload agent directly on the network processor that manages both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi interfaces. This consolidation allows the network processor to handle protocol processing, packet routing, and data transformation for both interfaces without involving the applications processor, thereby reducing latency and improving network efficiency while the added complexity is confined to the network processing domain.
Data Source
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AI summary
Low latency network communication paths are provided. A method includes identifying, by an agent (416) of a first portion of a device (400), that a Bluetooth controller is being used with the device (400), the Bluetooth controller to provide input via a second portion of the device (400) for an application being communicated to the device (400) from a server via a network stack of the first portion. The method includes establishing, by the agent (416) and responsive to the identification, the offload agent (417) on the second portion to route data received via Bluetooth to communicate, via Wi-Fi, to the server and bypassing the first portion of the device (400). The method includes communicating, by the second portion (e.g., the offload agent (417)), one or more packets generated by the second processor to the server, the one or more packets including the data received from the Bluetooth controller.