Method and system for wirelessly transmitting data

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10136388-B2
Application number	US-201514952462-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 25, 2015
Priority date	Sep 26, 2012
Publication date	Nov 20, 2018
Grant date	Nov 20, 2018

Abstract

Methods and systems for wirelessly transmitting data between Wi-Fi stations without requiring the Wi-Fi stations to be fully connected to the Wi-Fi network. A first Wi-Fi station generates the data to be transmitted. The data comprises status data and/or wake-up data. The first Wi-Fi station then inserts the data in a vendor-specific information element of a probe request frame and wirelessly transmits the probe request frame. The probe request frame is then received by a second Wi-Fi station. If the probe request frame contains wake-up data and the second Wi-Fi station is operating in a low-power mode when it receives the probe request frame, the second Wi-Fi station will wake-up from the low-power mode. If the probe request frame contains status data then the second Wi-Fi station may process the probe request frame and/or forward at least a portion of the received probe request frame to another device.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method to wirelessly transmit data, the method comprising:
generating at a first Wi-Fi station data to be transmitted to another Wi-Fi station, the data comprising at least one of status data and wake-up data;
inserting at the first Wi-Fi station the generated data in a vendor-specific information element of a Wi-Fi probe request frame; and
wirelessly transmitting at the first Wi-Fi station the Wi-Fi probe request frame;
wherein at least one of the first Wi-Fi station and the other Wi-Fi station is operating in a low-power mode in which the Wi-Fi station does not wake up periodically.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the wake-up data is arranged to cause the other Wi-Fi station to wake-up from a low-power mode.

3. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
determining at the first Wi-Fi station whether one or more predetermined conditions are met; and
wherein the first Wi-Fi station generates the data to be transmitted if at least one predetermined condition is met.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the Wi-Fi probe request frame is a broadcast probe request frame.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the Wi-Fi probe request frame comprises the wake-up data and the status data.

6. A system to wirelessly transmit data, the system comprising a first Wi-Fi station and the first Wi-Fi station comprising:
a processor configured to:
operate the first Wi-Fi station in a low-power mode in which the first Wi-Fi station does not wake-up periodically;
generate data to be transmitted to another Wi-Fi station, the data comprising at least one of status data and wake-up data, and
insert the generated data in a vendor-specific information element of a Wi-Fi probe request frame; and

a Wi-Fi module configured to wirelessly transmit the Wi-Fi probe request frame.

7. The system according to claim 6 , wherein the wake-up data is arranged to cause the other Wi-Fi station to wake-up from a low-power mode.

8. The system according to claim 6 , further comprising the other Wi-Fi station configured to:
receive the Wi-Fi probe request frame; and
in response to receiving the Wi-Fi probe request frame, execute one or more actions.

9. The system according to claim 8 , wherein the other Wi-Fi station is operating in a low-power mode when it receives the Wi-Fi probe request frame comprising the wake-up data and the one or more actions executed by the other Wi-Fi station comprises waking up the other Wi-Fi station from the low-power mode.

10. The system according to claim 6 , further comprising a non-Wi-Fi device configured to:
determine whether one or more predetermined conditions are met; and
if at least one predetermined condition is met, transmit a notification from the non-Wi-Fi device to the first Wi-Fi station that at least one predetermined condition is met;
wherein the first Wi-Fi station generates the data to be transmitted in response to receiving the notification from the non-Wi-Fi device that at least one predetermined condition is met.

11. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the notification is transmitted using a protocol other than Wi-Fi.

12. The system according to claim 6 , wherein the Wi-Fi probe request frame is a broadcast probe request frame.

13. The system according to claim 6 , wherein the Wi-Fi probe request frame comprises the wake-up data and the status data.

14. A Wi-Fi station comprising:
a Wi-Fi module configured to wirelessly receive a Wi-Fi probe request frame from another Wi-Fi station while the Wi-Fi station is operating in a low power-mode in which the Wi-Fi station does not wake-up periodically, the Wi-Fi probe request frame comprising at least one of status data and wake-up data in a vendor-specific information element of the Wi-Fi probe request frame; and
a processor configured to:
execute one or more actions in response to receiving the Wi-Fi probe request frame.

15. The Wi-Fi station according to claim 14 , wherein the one or more actions executed by the processor comprises:
determining whether the received Wi-Fi probe request frame comprises a vendor-specific information element comprising wake-up data; and
if the Wi-Fi probe request frame comprises the vendor specific information element comprising wake-up data, waking-up the Wi-Fi station from the low-power mode.

16. The Wi-Fi station according to claim 15 , wherein operating the Wi-Fi station in the low-power mode comprises suspending at least a portion of the Wi-Fi station and waking-up the Wi-Fi station from the low-power mode comprises enabling the at least a portion of the Wi-Fi station.

17. The Wi-Fi station according to claim 14 , wherein the processor is further configured to determine if one or more predetermined conditions are met and if at least one predetermined condition is met, operate the Wi-Fi device in the low-power mode.

18. The Wi-Fi station according to claim 14 , wherein the Wi-Fi probe request frame comprises the status data and the one or more actions executed by the processor comprises forwarding at least a portion of the Wi-Fi probe request frame to another device.

19. The Wi-Fi station according to claim 14 , wherein the Wi-Fi probe request frame comprises the status data and the one or more actions executed by the processor comprises processing the Wi-Fi probe request frame.

Assignees

• Imagination Tech Ltd

Inventors

• Knowles Ian R

Classifications

• H04W52/0277

  according to available power supply, e.g. switching off when a low battery condition is detected · CPC title

• Y02D70/162

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• Y02D70/142

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• Y02D70/144

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• H04W52/0225 Primary

  using monitoring of external events, e.g. the presence of a signal · CPC title