Terminal Channel Switching Without Re-Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current wireless communication standards, such as IEEE 802.11r and 802.11h, face challenges in rapidly switching data transmission between channels without interrupting service, especially in multi-channel scenarios, which is essential for future standards like IEEE 802.11ac and 802.11ad that utilize wider frequency channels and require seamless transitions between synchronized or asynchronous channels.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method where an access point associates a terminal with a unique identifier shared across all channels, allowing for channel switching without re-authentication or re-association, and using a reference table to manage channel changes, along with synchronized beacons to facilitate quick transitions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If IEEE 802.11r failover mechanism is used for channel switching, then data transmission can fail over from one access point to another, but the transition time remains around 50 ms causing service interruption
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-establishing authentication and association relationships between the terminal and multiple access points across different channels before channel switching is needed. The terminal maintains connection parameters and authentication information for both the first access point on the first channel and the second access point on the second channel simultaneously. When channel switching is triggered, the terminal can immediately activate the pre-established connection on the second channel without performing new authentication or association procedures, thereby reducing transition time from 50 ms to near-instantaneous switching while ensuring continuous data transmission
2Adaptability or versatility
If IEEE 802.11h dynamic frequency selection is used for channel switching, then channel change can be implemented by the same access point, but this approach only allows channel changes within the same frequency band and triggers channel switching for all connected devices
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the channel switching process into terminal-specific operations rather than network-wide operations. Each terminal independently determines its own channel switching needs and executes switching based on its specific requirements, such as signal quality or load conditions. This allows different terminals to remain on different channels simultaneously, enabling fine-grained resource allocation and avoiding unnecessary switching for all connected devices, thereby improving operational flexibility while maintaining adaptability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by enabling access points to manage multiple channels simultaneously and allowing terminals to dynamically select and switch between channels based on real-time conditions. The access point can allocate different channels to different terminals based on current network state, and terminals can switch channels dynamically without requiring the entire network to switch. This dynamic approach extends channel switching beyond the static same-frequency-band limitation of IEEE 802.11h
3Productivity
If an access point manages multiple channels simultaneously, then load distribution across channels becomes possible, but channel switching between synchronized or asynchronous channels becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a channel switching mechanism that works uniformly across both synchronized and asynchronous channel scenarios. The terminal uses the same basic switching procedure regardless of whether the channels are synchronized or asynchronous, with the only difference being the timing parameters. The access point manages multiple channels using a unified approach, handling both synchronous and asynchronous transmissions through the same protocol framework. This universal mechanism simplifies the overall system complexity despite the multi-channel management requirements
Data Source
Figure 1a~1b
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Figure 4~5c
AI summary
The invention relates to a method for switching data transmission from an origin channel to a destination channel, in a terminal (T) associated with an access point (AP) of a communication network, said access point (AP) managing a set of at least two communication channels. According to the invention, such a method in said terminal (T) implements an association and authentication phase (61) with said access point (AP), comprising a step of obtaining (62) a unique identifier (AID) in said access point (AP), and a switchover management phase (64) implementing the following steps: - determination (65) of a destination channel managed by said access point, by processing at least one piece of information received from said access point; - switching (66) of the data transmission from said origin channel to said determined destination channel, without modification of said identifier.