WLAN Scanning by Access Point Channel Prevalence
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The process of network discovery and association in WLAN client devices consumes significant battery life, particularly for battery-operated devices, as they need to scan multiple channels to maintain connectivity, which prolongs the scanning process and reduces battery life.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a scanning scheme that prioritizes channels based on the relative prevalence of access point deployment, scanning more frequently on channels with higher access point density and less frequently on those with lower density, allowing for faster detection of networks and reduced power consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the client device scans all communication channels to ensure comprehensive network discovery, then the completeness of network detection is improved, but the scanning time and battery consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating the scanning approach based on channel characteristics. Instead of uniform scanning across all channels, the system identifies channels with higher access point deployment prevalence and prioritizes them for scanning. This localized optimization ensures comprehensive network discovery is achieved more efficiently by focusing scanning resources on the most promising channels rather than treating all channels equally.
2Reliability
If the client device scans all communication channels to maintain connectivity, then the reliability of network connection is improved, but the battery life is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating the scanning approach based on channel characteristics. Instead of uniform scanning across all channels, the system identifies channels with higher access point deployment prevalence and prioritizes them for scanning. This localized optimization ensures comprehensive network discovery is achieved more efficiently by focusing scanning resources on the most promising channels rather than treating all channels equally.
3Ease of operation
If the client device uses conventional scanning order (channel 1, 2, 3...), then the scanning process is simple and standardized, but the detection speed is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by transforming the static, fixed scanning order into a dynamic, adaptive sequence. Instead of always scanning channels in numerical order (1, 2, 3...), the system dynamically reorders channels based on access point deployment prevalence statistics. This dynamic adjustment optimizes detection speed by presenting the most likely candidate networks first while maintaining the overall scanning process simplicity through automated statistical analysis.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A wireless local area network client device scans for wireless local area networks using a scanning scheme that takes into account the relative prevalence, in a population of access points, of access point deployment on the channels to be scanned. In one aspect, channels on which more access points in the population are deployed are scanned prior to channels on which fewer access points in the population are deployed. In another aspect, channels on which more access points in the population are deployed are scanned more often than channels on which fewer access points in the population are deployed. In yet another aspect, channels on which more access points in the population are deployed are scanned prior to and more often than channels on which fewer access points in the population are deployed.