Dynamic Beacon Intervals for Ad-Hoc Network Power Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing Wi-Fi standards, such as Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) and Wi-Fi Simple Configuration (WSC), do not provide provisions for establishing and maintaining dynamic ad-hoc wireless local area networks, leading to high power consumption in devices waiting to connect and limited networking availability.
Innovation Solution
A method is introduced to establish a wireless ad-hoc network connection by defining a beacon interval with subintervals, where a node sends a network connection request during one subinterval and enters a sleep mode during the other, extending the active subinterval after a monitoring period to conserve power and ensure connection detection within a predetermined number of beacon intervals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If devices continuously monitor for network connections, then networking availability is improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic monitoring at beacon intervals instead of continuous monitoring. Devices wake up at predetermined beacon intervals to check for network connection requests, then return to sleep mode. This periodic action maintains networking availability by regularly checking for connections while dramatically reducing power consumption compared to continuous monitoring.
2Use of energy by moving object
If devices enter sleep mode to conserve power, then power consumption is reduced, but connection detection time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses preliminary action by having devices send connection requests before the beacon interval expires. This allows the requesting device to initiate connection establishment in advance, so when the monitoring device wakes up at the next beacon interval, the connection can be quickly established without waiting for the full beacon interval to elapse.
3Speed
If beacon intervals are shortened to improve connection speed, then connection detection is faster, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic beacon intervals that can be adjusted based on network conditions and requirements. The system can shorten beacon intervals when fast connection detection is needed, and lengthen them when power conservation is the priority. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize the trade-off between connection speed and power consumption based on current operational needs.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for establishing a dynamic ad-hoc wireless network are disclosed. A node transitions between wake and sleep modes during periods defined as beacon intervals. Before a network connection is established and while it is awake, the node transmits network connection request and also listens for network activity. If a beacon or response message is not detected while the node is listening, the node enters sleep mode and thereby conserves power. The node optionally changes the duration of its detection period and/or the time at which it listens for network activity relative to the start of each beacon interval. Information elements are optionally included with transmitted beacons or response messages.