EP-4738942-A1 - SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR RETAINING LOW POWER CONNECTIONS IN MULTILINK NETWORKS

EP4738942A1EP 4738942 A1EP4738942 A1EP 4738942A1EP-4738942-A1

Abstract

The disclosure describes systems and methods for retaining low-power connections in multilink networks. An access point can include a plurality of radios, each operating on a different frequency band. The access point can establish connections with clients. The access point can receive a frame indicating the connected clients are entering sleep mode. In response, the access point can cause a radio, operating on a longer range and lower power band, to go into sleep mode, while maintaining a lower power connection with the clients. The access point can switch off the other radios operating on higher frequency bands. During a wakeup period, the access point can transmit a beacon via the lower power radio, indicating to the clients that the access point has broadcast and multicast (BCMC) data. The access point can transmit the BCMC data via the low-power radio to the clients.

Inventors

Buhari, Nizamudeen
DUTTA H K, Mahesh
SAHOO, JIMUT
Daddimane, Renuka

Assignees

Avago Technologies International Sales Pte. Limited

Dates

Publication Date: 20260506
Application Date: 20251028

Claims (15)

A system comprising: an access point configured with a plurality of radios each operating on a different band of a plurality of bands, a first radio of the plurality of radios operating on a first band having a longer range and lower power than bands of remaining radios of the plurality of radios, the access point configured to: establish, using one or more of the plurality of radios, one or more connections with the one or more clients; receive a frame from the one or more clients connected to the access point, the frame indicating the one or more clients going into sleep mode; responsive to the frame, cause the first radio to go into sleep mode, while maintaining a lower power connection on the first band to the one or more clients, and switch off the remaining radios of the plurality of radios; transmit, by the first radio via the lower power connection on the first band, during a wakeup period, a beacon to the one or more clients, the beacon indicating the access point has broadcast and multicast (BCMC) data to transmit the one or more clients for the plurality of bands; and transmit, using only the first radio operating on the first band via the lower power connection, the BCMC data to the one or more clients.
The system of claim 1, wherein the access point is further configured to use the first radio for transmitting data with the one or more clients until an amount of data to be transmitted exceeds a threshold.
The system of claim 2, wherein the access point is further configured to activate at least one or more of the remaining radios of the plurality of radios and switch to the at least one or more of the remaining radios to transmit data to the one or more clients.
The system of any one of the claims 1 to 3, wherein the access point is further configured to determine that data to be transmitted to the one or more clients is for a low latency application and responsive to the determination, activate at least one or more of the remaining radios of the plurality of radios to transmit the data.
The system of any one of the claims 1 to 4, wherein the access point is further configured to advertise support for multi-link lower power connection retention (ML-LPCR) capability to the one or more clients; wherein in particular the access point is further configured to advertise support for the ML-LPCR capability in one of the following: one or more beacons, probe responses, and association response frames.
The system of any one of the claims 1 to 5, wherein the access point is further configured to generate and transmit to the one or more clients a multi-link (ML) power save notification frame, the multi-link (ML) power save notification frame identifying one of a power save state or a radio-on state of each of the plurality of different radios.
The system of any one of the claims 1 to 6, wherein the one or more clients comprise a plurality of radios operating on different bands and, responsive to going into sleep mode, maintain the connection to the access point using a radio of the plurality of radios on the first band while deactivating any remaining radios of the plurality of radios.
The system of any one of the claims 1 to 7, wherein the first band of the first radio is 2G while remaining bands of the plurality of bands comprise one or more of the following: 5G or 6G.
A system comprising: a Wi-Fi device configured with a plurality of radios each operating on a different band of a plurality of bands, a first radio of the plurality of radios operating on a first band having a longer range and lower power than bands of remaining radios of the plurality of radios, the Wi-Fi device configured to: establish, using the plurality of radios, connections with an access point; responsive to determining to go into sleep mode, cause the first radio to go into sleep mode, while maintaining a lower power connection on the first band to the access point, and switch off the remaining radios of the plurality of radios; transmit a frame to the access point, the frame indicating to the access point that the Wi-Fi device is going into the sleep mode; receive, by the first radio via the lower power connection on the first band, during a wakeup period, a beacon from the access point, the beacon indicating the access point has broadcast and multicast (BCMC) data to transmit to the Wi-Fi device for the plurality of bands; and receive, using only the first radio on the first band via the lower power connection, the BCMC data from the access point.
The system of claim 9, wherein the Wi-Fi device is further configured, responsive to the beacon, to activate at least one or more of the remaining radios of the plurality of radios.
The system of claim 9 or 10, wherein the Wi-Fi device is further configured to communicate, via one or more frames or beacons, an active state of at least one or more of the remaining radios of the plurality of radios.
The system of any one of the claims 9 to 11, wherein the system comprises at least one of the following features: (A) the Wi-Fi device is further configured to use the first radio for communicating data with the access point until an amount of data to be communicated exceeds a threshold; wherein in particular the Wi-Fi device is further configured, responsive to the amount of data to be communicated exceeding the threshold, to activate at least one or more of the remaining radios of the plurality of radios to communicate the data; (B) the Wi-Fi device is further configured to determine that data to be communicated with the Wi-Fi device is for a low latency application and responsive to the determination, activate at least one or more of the remaining radios of the plurality of radios to transmit the data; (C) the first band of the first radio is 2G while remaining bands of the plurality of bands comprise one or more of the following: 5G or 6G.
A device comprising: a plurality of radios each operating on a different band of a plurality of bands, a first radio of the plurality of radios operating on a first band having a longer range and lower power than bands of remaining radios of the plurality of radios, one or more processors configured to: generate a multi-link (ML) power save notification frame, the multi-link (ML) power save notification frame identifying the power save state and the radio-on state of each of the plurality of different radios; and transmit the multi-link (ML) power save notification frame to one or more clients connected to the access point.
The device of claim 13, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to set a power management bit in a field of the multi-link (ML) power save notification frame to a value to indicate the device is entering and/or exiting a power saving (PS) mode.
The device of claim 13 or 14, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to generate the multi-link (ML) power save notification frame to have a power saving link bitmap to identify whether a radio operating on a band is in power management mode or is active.

Description

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE This disclosure generally relates to systems and methods for wireless communication between access points and wireless communication devices, including, without limitation, retaining low-power connections in multilink networks. BACKGROUND The market for wireless communication devices has been growing due to increased use of portable devices, increased connectivity, and data transfer between all manners of devices. Digital switching techniques have facilitated the large-scale deployment of affordable, easy-to-use wireless communication networks. Wireless communication can operate in accordance with various standards, such as the IEEE 802.11x (e.g., Wi-Fi technology), Bluetooth, global system for mobile communications (GSM), and code division multiple access (CDMA). Using such technologies, wireless communication devices can connect to local area networks and the internet without physical cables, communicating over radio frequencies and across various spaces and ranges. SUMMARY The technical solutions of the present disclosure are directed to retaining low-power connections in multilink network operations (MLO) by managing the use of multiple radios operating across different frequency bands. In MLO-supported systems, an access point and/or a client device can be configured to support multiple simultaneous links using radios operating on various bands, such as 2G, 5G, or 6G. While MLO provides flexibility and performance benefits by allowing devices to use multiple radios on different bands, the configuration can also present challenges in managing power consumption, particularly during idle states where a device is not actively transmitting or receiving data. Devices often prioritize throughput and performance, which can result in the continued use of high-power or high-capacity bands, even when the network is idle. For example, a device may maintain a connection on a high-capacity 5G band, even when there is no active data traffic, consuming unnecessary power. Furthermore, when a device enters an idle state, either all the active links or the operating/primary link is used to maintain the connection. However, the link selected for its data efficiency is often unsuitable for idle or standby states, where power consumption takes precedence. As a result, maintaining connections on high-capacity links, such as 5G or 6G, even when no active data is being transmitted leads to inefficient power usage. The technical solutions disclosed herein can overcome the challenges of managing power consumption in MLO by dynamically switching between high-capacity bands and low-power bands. During active data transmission, the high-capacity 6G/5G bands can be used to manage heavy traffic, and the low-capacity 2G band may not participate in data traffic. As data traffic slows and the Wi-Fi connection approaches an idle state, the 2G band can transition from hibernate to sleep mode, while the 6G/5G band can move from active to hibernate after communicating the power management (PM) state to the access point. As the 2G band is already in PM state for the access point, the client device may not need to transmit a NULL frame for power management purposes but can listen to the delivery traffic indication message (DTIM) to receive beacon and broadcast and multicast (BCMC) packet transmissions from the access point. The 2G band can manage the keep-alive operation to avoid prematurely switching the low-power band to the high-capacity bands, as the keep-alive exchanges are bare minimum traffic to maintain the client device's connection with the access point. Once the access point informs the client device of buffered data, the client device can switch from the 2G band to the 6G/5G band. The client device can decide whether to switch bands immediately or wait until data traffic exceeds a certain threshold or is for a low-latency application. By using the 2G band for beacon reception, the MLO client device can avoid missing unicast data traffic and experience no delay in retrieving buffered data. During the client device's sleep state, the access point may not deliver data via any band until the client device wakes up one or more bands, allowing the high-power radios to remain in hibernate. Once the client detects bufferable data via 2G beacon reception, the client device can activate one or more radios for data reception. For BCMC data, the access point buffers packets and delivers them after the DTIM-0 beacon delivery. For example, the DTIM-0 beacon signals that the access point will transmit any buffered multicast or broadcast data after this beacon. In some cases, when legacy or single-link clients are connected to the access point, the access point can deliver BCMC packets across all bands to facilitate proper reception. The lower rate BCMC packets can also be received by the 2G band. The technical solutions disclosed herein can result in reduced sleep current consumption for MLO client devices, comparable to