Non-Contention Access Power Management for Wireless Nodes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable wireless devices face inefficiencies in power management due to fixed awake and sleep modes, leading to unnecessary power consumption, as they cannot accurately determine when unscheduled frames will be received, forcing them to remain awake during entire beacon periods.
Innovation Solution
A unified framework of non-contention access methods, including scheduled, polled, and posted access, allows for flexible power management by enabling devices to selectively allocate time for power consumption, using 1-periodic, m-periodic, transient, polled, and posted allocations to optimize sleep and hibernation modes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If devices remain in awake mode for entire beacon periods to receive unscheduled frames, then reliability of frame reception is improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic power management by allowing devices to transition between awake and sleep modes based on real-time communication needs. Instead of fixed beacon period awake states, devices can dynamically sleep during scheduled allocations and wake only when needed for unscheduled frames, resolving the contradiction between reliable reception and power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses preliminary scheduling of frames to establish known communication windows before devices enter sleep mode. By pre-allocating scheduled frames and informing devices of these allocations, the system ensures devices wake at appropriate times without needing to remain continuously awake, thus maintaining reliability while reducing power consumption.
2Use of energy by moving object
If devices transition to sleep mode to conserve power, then power consumption is reduced, but risk of missing unscheduled frames increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where hub controllers provide information about scheduled and unscheduled frame allocations to devices. This feedback allows devices to make informed decisions about when to sleep and when to remain awake, ensuring they don't miss important frames while maximizing power savings. The feedback loop resolves the contradiction by providing the information needed for reliable sleep mode operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The hub controller acts as an intermediary that manages the balance between device sleep modes and frame reception. The hub coordinates unscheduled frame transmissions to occur during device awake periods and provides scheduling information as an intermediary signal, allowing devices to sleep confidently without missing frames.
3Device complexity
If fixed beacon period allocations are used, then system simplicity is maintained, but power management flexibility is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the beacon period into distinct scheduled and unscheduled frame allocations, allowing devices to have different power management behaviors for different time segments. This segmentation enables flexible power management while maintaining the overall simplicity of the beacon period structure, resolving the contradiction between system simplicity and power management flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal framework that supports multiple power management modes (awake, sleep, hibernation) within the same beacon period structure. The system can universally apply to different device types and traffic patterns while providing adaptable power management, resolving the contradiction between maintaining system simplicity and enabling flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for managing power in a subnet having a hub in communication with one or more nodes is disclosed. The hub and nodes communicate using one or more non-contention access methods, such as scheduled, polled or posted access. The node may enter a sleep or hibernation state while no scheduled, polled or posted allocation interval is pending. The hibernation state allows the node to hibernate through one or more entire beacon periods. In the sleep state, the node may be asleep between any scheduled, polled and posted allocation intervals for the node or during another node's scheduled allocation interval in a current beacon period. By selecting which access scheme is in use, the node and hub can increase the node's chances to be in hibernation or sleep state and minimize power consumption.