Fast Moving AP Switching via Pre-Association
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current wireless communication systems face challenges in seamlessly switching between access points, especially in fast-moving scenarios, leading to interruptions and reduced throughput due to long re-association latency.
Innovation Solution
A new re-association technique that pre-associates a communication station with next access points along a route, allowing for efficient switching by eliminating the need for probe requests and authentication procedures, and utilizing GPS to determine optimal switching points, thereby reducing latency and improving network stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a station uses traditional re-association procedure to switch between access points, then authentication and connection reliability are ensured, but switching time increases and service continuity is interrupted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements pre-association by having the station proactively establish connections with future access points along its predicted route before actually needing to switch. The system obtains the station's movement trajectory, predicts future access points, and initiates association procedures in advance, so that when the station actually needs to switch, the connection is already established or nearly established, dramatically reducing switching time while maintaining reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the traditional single-step re-association process into multiple parallel phases: obtaining trajectory information, predicting future access points, pre-establishing connections with multiple potential access points simultaneously, and then seamlessly switching between them. This segmentation allows the system to prepare multiple connection options in parallel rather than sequentially, reducing overall switching time
2Speed
If a station moves quickly through multiple access point coverage areas, then service coverage is maintained, but frequent switching causes interruptions and reduces throughput
Solution Approach 1:
The system obtains the station's movement trajectory and predicts future access points along the path. By pre-establishing associations with these predicted access points before the station actually reaches them, the system ensures that even at high speeds, the station can seamlessly transition between access points without interruption, maintaining both high movement speed and network throughput
Solution Approach 2:
The patent maintains continuous network connectivity by ensuring the station always has an active association with at least one access point. Through pre-association and maintaining multiple simultaneous associations, the system eliminates gaps in connectivity that would occur during traditional switching, ensuring continuous useful action (data transmission) even as the station moves quickly through different coverage areas
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of a system and method for switching access points in a fast moving scenario in a wireless network are generally described herein. In some embodiments, an apparatus of a communication station (STA) includes transceiver circuitry to: send a request to a first access point (AP) to associate with the first AP to access a network, and receive a service set identifier (SSID), a channel number, an ordered listing of APs for association when traveling in a fast moving scenario, and a plurality of basic service set identifications (BSSIDs) corresponding to the ordered listing of APs. The apparatus includes processing circuitry to determine whether a signal strength of a second AP exceeds a signal strength of the first AP in the fast moving scenario fast moving scenario access point switching.