Aspects of the inventive subject matter generally relate to the field of wireless communication and, more particularly, to reducing the time and power required for Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) scans with a client station.
WLAN systems are widely deployed to support wireless communication for client stations, which may be computers, cellular phones, etc. WLAN systems are deployed in various locations such as office buildings, coffee shops, malls, airport terminals, schools, and other hot spots where data usage is expected to be high. WLAN systems allow client stations to obtain data connectivity (e.g., to connect to the Internet) from virtually anywhere in the world. Many WLAN systems implement the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard to enable detection of Access Points (APs) within the WLAN. Some WLAN detection algorithms allow for roaming based on Received Signal Strength Indications (RSSI).
A client station may be configured to search for WLAN systems whenever the client station is powered on. The client station generally does have any context regarding its location or which APs are near its vicinity. Without such context, the initial WLAN scans performed by the client station may require an increased amount of time and may consume an increased amount of power (i.e., battery life).
An example of an apparatus for wireless communication according to the disclosure includes a first interface configured to receive neighbor report information from one or more wireless nodes, a processing system configured to, generate a beacon frame, generate a neighbor report based on the received neighbor report information, a second interface configured to output the beacon frame for transmission, and output the neighbor report for transmission after outputting the beacon frame.
Implementations of such an apparatus may include one or more of the following features. The processing system may be configured to generate an Access Network Query Protocol (ANQP) frame having the neighbor report included therein, and the second interface may be configured to output the ANQP frame for transmission independent of any request. The first interface may be configured to retrieve the neighbor report information from a remote server. The neighbor report may identify a time at which the apparatus last scanned for a wireless node. The neighbor report may include a signal strength value associated with each of one or more neighboring wireless nodes identified in the neighbor report.
An example a wireless node according to the disclosure includes a receiver configured to receive neighbor report information from one or more wireless nodes, a processing system configured to generate a beacon frame, generate a neighbor report based on the received neighbor report information, a transmitter configured to transmit the beacon frame, and transmit the neighbor report after transmitting the beacon frame.
An example of a method for wireless communication according to the disclosure includes receiving neighbor report information from one or more wireless nodes, generating a beacon frame, generating a neighbor report based on the received neighbor report information, outputting the beacon frame for transmission, and outputting the neighbor report after outputting the beacon frame.
Implementations of such a method may include one or more of the following features. Generating an Access Network Query Protocol (ANQP) frame having the neighbor report included therein, such that outputting the neighbor report may include outputting the ANQP frame for transmission independent of any request. Receiving the neighbor information may include retrieving the neighbor report from a remote server. The neighbor report may identify a time at which a wireless node was scanned. The neighbor report may include a signal strength value associated with each of one or more neighboring wireless nodes identified in the neighbor report.
An example of an apparatus for wireless communications according to the disclosure includes means for receiving neighbor report information from one or more wireless nodes, means for generating a beacon frame, means for generating a neighbor report based on the received neighbor report information, means for outputting the beacon frame for transmission, and means for outputting the neighbor report after outputting the beacon frame.
Implementations of such an apparatus may include one or more of the following features. The means for generating the neighbor report may include means for generating an Access Network Query Protocol (ANQP) frame having the neighbor report included therein, and the means for outputting the neighbor report may include means for outputting the ANQP frame for transmission independent of any request. The means for receiving the neighbor report information may include means for retrieving the neighbor report information from a remote server. The neighbor report may identify a time at which the apparatus last scanned for a wireless node. The neighbor report may include a signal strength value associated with each of one or more neighboring wireless nodes included in the neighbor report.
An example of a computer-readable medium storing computer-executable code according to the disclosure includes code to receive neighbor report information from one or more wireless nodes, generate a beacon frame, generate a neighbor report based on the received neighbor report information, output a first signal including the beacon frame, and output a second signal including the neighbor report after outputting the first signal.
An example of an apparatus for wireless communications according to the disclosure includes a first interface configured receive a neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements, and a processing system configured to initiate an association process with at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements.
Implementations of such an apparatus may include one or more of the following features. At least one of the one or more neighbor record elements may identify a time at which the apparatus last scanned for a wireless node, and the processing system may be configured to initiate the association process based at least in part on the time. At least one of the one or more neighbor record elements may indicate a signal strength value, and the processing system configured to initiate the association process based at least in part on the signal strength value. The one or more neighbor record elements may include a plurality of fields, the processing system may be further configured to determine a first order for the one or more neighbor record elements based on at least one of the plurality of fields and initiate the association process based at least in part on the first order.
An example of a wireless node according to the disclosure includes a transceiver configured receive a neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements, and a processing system operably coupled to the transceiver and configured to initiate an association process with at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements.
An example of a method for wireless communications according to the disclosure includes receiving a neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements, and initiating an association process with at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements.
Implementations of such a method may include one or more of the following features. At least one of the one or more neighbor record elements may identify a time at which a wireless node was scanned, and initiating the association process with the at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements may be based at least in part on the on the time. At least one of the one or more neighbor record elements may indicate a signal strength value, and initiating the association process with the at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements is based at least in part on the signal strength value. The one or more neighbor record elements may include a plurality of fields and the method may further include determining a first order for the one or more neighbor record elements based on at least one of the plurality of fields, and initiating the association process with the at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements may be based at least in part on the first order.
An example of an apparatus for wireless communications according to the disclosure includes means for receiving a neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements, and means for initiating an association process with at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements.
Implementations of such an apparatus may include one or more of the following features. At least one of the one or more neighbor record elements may identify a time at which the apparatus last scanned for a wireless node, and the means for initiating the association process may be based at least in part on the on the time. At least one of the one or more neighbor record elements may indicate a signal strength value, and the means for initiating the association process may be based at least in part on the signal strength value. The one or more neighbor record elements may include a plurality of fields and the apparatus may further include a means for determining a first order for the one or more neighbor record elements based on at least one of the plurality of fields, and the means for initiating the association process may be based at least in part on the first order.
An example of a computer-readable medium storing computer-executable code according to the disclosure includes code to receive a neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements, and initiate an association process with at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements.
Items and/or techniques described herein may provide one or more of the following capabilities, as well as other capabilities not mentioned. An access point may generate a neighbor report. The neighbor report may be in the form of an unsolicited ANQP response frame and broadcast on a periodic basis. A client station may passively receive the neighbor report. The client station may initiate an associate process based on the neighbor report. The client station may join a network without performing a WLAN scan. An unattached client station may request a neighbor report from an access point. The time to join a network and the power consumed to discover access points may be reduced. Further, it may be possible for an effect noted above to be achieved by means other than that noted, and a noted item/technique may not necessarily yield the noted effect.
Various aspects of the disclosure are described below. It should be apparent that the teachings herein may be embodied in a wide variety of forms and that any specific structure, function, or both being disclosed herein is merely representative. Based on the teachings herein one skilled in the art should appreciate that an aspect disclosed herein may be implemented independently of any other aspects and that two or more of these aspects may be combined in various ways. For example, an apparatus may be implemented or a method may be practiced using any number of the aspects set forth herein. In addition, such an apparatus may be implemented or such a method may be practiced using other structure, functionality, or structure and functionality in addition to or other than one or more of the aspects set forth herein. Furthermore, an aspect may comprise at least one element of a claim. As an example of the above, in some aspects, a method for wireless communication includes generating a neighbor report, generating a beacon frame, outputting the beacon frame for broadcast, and outputting the neighbor report as an unsolicited frame after outputting the beacon frame.
The description that follows includes exemplary systems, methods, techniques, instruction sequences, and computer program products that embody techniques of the present inventive subject matter. However, it is understood that the described aspects may be practiced without these specific details. For instance, although examples utilize Access Network Query Protocol Neighbor reports for providing context to a client station, aspects are not so limited. In other aspects, the neighbor report information may be provided by other wireless standards and devices (e.g., WiMAX devices). In other instances, well-known instruction instances, protocols, structures, and techniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obfuscate the description.
In wireless communication networks, reducing the need for a client station to perform a WLAN scan can be a desired feature for users since WLAN scans generally take time, require additional bandwidth, and utilize additional power. When a client station is initialized or relocated, it may be configured to perform a WLAN scan to determine the context of the current environment. Typically, the client station will scan all valid channels based on established standards (e.g., IEEE 802.11) in an effort to detect the Access Points (APs), or other peer interests, in the WLAN. The discovery of peers in the network may be utilized for ranging or other positioning techniques. The scan results may be analyzed based on signal strength (e.g., RSSI). WLAN scan results, however, often fail to detect all APs in an area because the dwell time on a given channel may not be sufficient. Increasing dwell times may improve the results, but at the cost of additional time and power usage. The time and energy used by a client station to scan the WLAN and build a context generally reduces the ability of the client station to perform other preferred processing tasks. While enhancements to reduce the total WLAN scan time are known, the context aware WLAN connections described herein may eliminate the need for a client station to perform a WLAN scan.
In an example, an AP may periodically scan its environment to build a neighbor report. The AP may periodically broadcast the neighbor report on their home channel. For example, the neighbor report may be broadcast after every beacon using an unsolicited Access Network Query Protocol (ANQP) response frame. The neighbor report may include signal and position information (e.g., Signal Strength value, Latitude value, Longitude value, Altitude, Z axis information, Civic location information) for each access point. In an aspect, the neighbor report may include information element to indicate the time the neighbor report was created (i.e., the time of the last scan to identify how recent or stale neighbor report information may be). This neighbor report broadcast allows a client station that receives the beacon to also receive the neighbor report. Since the neighbor report includes information about all of the APs in the vicinity, once it is received by the mobile station, the mobile station no longer would need to perform a full-scan to determine the context of the environment.
In an example, a client station may send a probe request to an AP, and upon receiving the response from the AP, the client station may send a neighbor report request using ANQP. The use of the probe request and response may reduce the wait time associated with passively detecting the AP beacons and the corresponding neighbor report.
Referring to
The client station 120 may passively monitor network channels for periodic beacon broadcasts from the access points, and receive an ANQP response frame 110 from the first access point 102. In an aspect, the client station may initiate a probe request to initiate an ANQP exchange 112 with the first access point 102. The content of the ANQP response frame 110 may conform in part to network standards (e.g., IEEE 802.11, 8.4.5.12). The unsolicited ANQP response frame 110 may occur while the client station 120 is unattached from the first access point 102. For example, the ANQP response frame 110 may be received prior to a wireless client association process between the client station 120 and the first access point 102. In general, during the client association process, the Service Set Identification (SSID) Media Access Control (MAC) address, and security settings are sent from the client to the access point and are then checked by the access point. A client associate process may result in attaching the client station 120 to the first access point 102. In an aspect, an ANQP exchange 112 between the client station 120 and the first access point 102 may include an ANQP query request from the client station 120 to the first access point 102, an Acknowledgment (ACK) message from the first access point 102 to the client station 120, an ANQP query response from the first access point 102 to the client station 120, and an ACK message from the client station 120 to the first access point 102. Both the unsolicited ANQP response frame 110 and the ANQP query response (e.g., in the ANQP exchange 112) include a neighbor report containing positioning and signal information associated with the neighboring access points (e.g., 104, 106, 108). Upon receipt of the neighbor report, the client station 120 may be configured to connect to (e.g., associate with) one of the access points 102, 104, 106, 108 without performing a WLAN scan.
Referring to
Referring next to
An AP scan module 310, which may be an interface including a wireless transceiver in the first access point 102, or a specialized unit, is configured to perform scans of access points and other peer stations within range of the access point. In response to this scan, the AP scan module 310 receives information from the access points in the network 100 and/or other devices. In an example, the AP scan module 310 is configured to create a neighbor report based on the scan information. The AP scan module 310 may also be configured to generate neighbor reports based on other exchanges between the access points, such as FTM or other protocol enabled data exchanges. An AP reporting module 312 is utilized to provide the received information from the access points to one or more data sources. For example, the AP reporting module 312 may provide access point information over the Internet or one or more networks 306 to a network-based AP database 302. While the AP database 302 is illustrated as a network entity remote from the access point 102, the AP database 302 and/or some or all of its functionality could alternatively be implemented at the access point 102, e.g., via a processing system and memory.
The AP database 302 compiles access point information from one or more access points in the form of network scan lists (e.g., Wi-Fi scan lists, Bluetooth short-range wireless communication technology scan lists, cellular scan lists, etc.) or other suitable formats to generate neighbor reports. Other implementations of the AP database 302 are also possible.
Referring to
Referring to
The ANQP Response Frame with a neighbor report 404 and the ANQP neighbor report 434 may include a number of frames such as generally described in the industry standard protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.11). The frames, and associated fields, include information about the neighboring access points (e.g., 102, 104, 106, 108). The first access point 102, for example, is configured to parse the received frames and store the respective information (i.e., fields) in the frames. For example, the first access point 102 may include locally stored history files and almanac data, or may be operably connected to an AP database 302.
Referring to
Referring to
In operation, referring to
At stage 602, the first access point 102 receives neighbor report information from one or more wireless nodes. The AP scan module 310 may detect other wireless transceivers in the network. For example, the first access point 102 may conduct a scan and detect the presence of other access points in the network 100 (e.g., access points 104, 106, 108). In an example, the first access point 102 may include, or be operably connected to one or more databases to store the neighbor report information. The data in the AP database 302 may be populated by a wireless network vendor, or may be provided and periodically updated by network resources. In an example, the first access point 102 may be configured to listen to beacon reports from the neighboring access points and store the appropriate fields (e.g., BSSID, location information, signal strength, etc.) The first access point 102 may be configured to store the neighbor report information locally or on the AP database 302. In an example, the first access point 102 may send probe requests to the neighboring access points and then store the information contained in the subsequent responses to the probe requests.
At stage 604, the first access point 102 generates a neighbor report based on the received neighbor report information. The AP scan module 310 is configured to parse the information in a signal received from the other access point at stage 602 to generate a neighbor report. The neighbor report may include the fields and data contained in the neighbor record elements 510, 552, as well as other information that may be used for a client association process.
In an aspect, the first access point 102 generates a neighbor report (i.e., locally), or the neighbor report may be generated on the AP database 302 (i.e., remotely). In an example, the first access point 102 may order the list of neighbors by creating an index value associated with each neighbor record element. The order (e.g., index, priority) of the neighbor record elements may be used by the client station 120 to determine an order in which to attempt a connection (e.g., a client association process). Other prioritization (i.e., ordering) requirements may also be used. The order of the neighbor list may be based on a signal strength, channel number, or physical type of the received request. The neighbor list may be constrained to include a subset of the neighborhood. For example, only 8 neighbors of a possible 14 neighbors are included in the neighbor report. In an example, the neighbor list is neither ordered nor constrained.
At stage 606, the first access point 102 generates a beacon frame and outputs the beacon frame for transmission. The beacon frame may be a signal including a MAC header, a frame body and a frame check sequence (e.g., an error detecting code). Additional fields in the beacon frame may include a timestamp, a beacon interval value, SSID value, capability information and other fields as defined by protocol standards (e.g., IEEE 802.11). The beacon interval value provides the interval value for neighbor report broadcast at stage 606.
At stage 608, the first access point 102 outputs the neighbor report as an unsolicited frame after outputting the beacon frame. In an example, the first access point 102 is configured to broadcast the neighbor report as an unsolicited ANQP frame after every beacon broadcast. The ANQP frame may be output for transmission independent of any request. For example, the unsolicited ANQP frame including the neighbor report may be provided in a signal to an unattached client station 120 (e.g., prior to establishing an association between the first access point 102 and the client station 120). The first access point 102 may provide the neighbor report as an IBSS under the (IEEE) 802.11 specifications. The order of the neighbor record elements in the neighbor report may be used by the client station 120 to determine a sequence of connection attempts. The receipt of the neighbor report enables the client device to attempt to connect to an access point without the need to perform a prior WLAN scan.
In operation, referring to
At stage 622, the client station 120 receives a neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements. For example, the client station 120 is configured to receive an ANQP neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements. The neighbor report may be received from a WLAN access point as an unsolicited ANQP frame after every beacon broadcast. For example, the first access point 102 may provide the neighbor report as an IBSS under the (IEEE) 802.11 specifications. The neighbor report may include the fields and data contained in the neighbor record elements 510, 552, as well as other information that may be used for a client association process. In an example, the client station 120 may be configured to order the list of neighbors by creating an index value associated with each neighbor record element. The order (e.g., index, priority) of the neighbor record elements may be used by the client station 120 to determine an order in which to attempt a connection (e.g., a client association process). Other prioritization (i.e., ordering) requirements may also be used. The order of the neighbor list may be based on a signal strength, channel number, or physical type of the received request.
At stage 624, the client station 120 is configured to initiate an association process with at least one wireless node identified in the one or more neighbor record elements. The client station 120 may utilize the neighbor report to attempt to connect to an access point without performing a prior WLAN scan. For example, the client station 120 may utilize the last scan time and/or the signal strength information (e.g., RTT, RSS) to determine which access point to initiate a client association process with (e.g., the most current, the strongest signal, the closest). During the client association process, the client station 120 attempts to enter the WLAN via an access point. Network parameters, such as a Service Set Identification (SSID), Media Access Control (MAC) address, and security settings may be sent from the client station 120 to the access point and are then checked by the access point. A client associate process may result in attaching the client station 120 to the first access point 102. If an attempt to attach to the first access point 102 fails, the client station 120 may be configured to initiate the association process with another access point included in the neighbor report. That is, the order of the neighbor record elements in the neighbor report, or values of the individual neighbor record elements, may be used by the client station 120 to determine a sequence of connection attempts.
In operation, referring to
At stage 702, the client station 120 is configured to initiate a probe exchange with a WLAN. The client station 120 sends a probe request message 422 to discover nearby network (e.g., 802.11 compatible networks). The probe request may indicate a supported data rate. All access points receiving the probe request may respond (assuming they can support the data rate), and may provide information such as the access point SSID, data rates, encryption, and other parameters established in the network protocol.
At stage 704, the client station 120 is configured to send a neighbor report request using ANQP to an access point. In response to the probe exchange the client station 120 may choose a compatible access point (e.g., the first access point 102) based on a particular probe response message 426. The client station 120 is configured to send the neighbor report request using ANQP before attempting to associate with the first access point 102. That is, the probe exchange performed at stage 702 is used to provide basic context to the client station 120.
At stage 706, the client station 120 is configured to receive an ANQP neighbor report comprising one or more neighbor record elements. The neighbor report request and the subsequent ANQP neighbor report are sent and received by the client station 120 before attachment (e.g., connection to an access point). For example, the ANQP neighbor report is provided to the client station 120 prior to forming an association between the first access point 102 and the client station 120. In an example, a neighbor report includes one or more neighbor record elements 510, 552 and each record element includes location information associated with an access point. The client station 120 is configured to parse the frames within the neighbor record elements to determine a list of neighboring access points that may be used for positioning. For example, the neighbor report may indicate that a second access point, a third access point, and a fourth access point (e.g., access points 104, 106, 108 respectively) that should be within range of the client station 120. The order of the list of access points in the neighbor report may indicate to the client station 120 the order in which to attempt association with (e.g., connection to) respective access points. In an example, a field within the neighbor report may indicate order of attempted association (e.g., last scan time, signal strength). The record elements may also include RTT and RSS information for the neighbors and the client station 120 may be configured to initiate the client association process based at least in part on the RTT and RSS information.
At stage 708, the client station 120 is configured to initiate a client association process with at least one access point identified in the one or more neighbor record elements. The client station 120 may remain unattached throughout the proceeding stages of the process 700. The client station 120 may utilize the neighbor report to attempt to connect to an access point without performing a prior WLAN scan. During the client association process, the client station 120 attempts to enter the WLAN via an access point. Network parameters, such as a Service Set Identification (SSID), Media Access Control (MAC) address, and security settings may be sent from the client station 120 to the access point and are then checked by the access point. A client associate process may result in attaching the client station 120 to the first access point 102. If an attempt to attach to the first access point 102 fails, the client station 120 may be configured to initiate the association process with another access point included in the neighbor report. That is, the order of the neighbor record elements in the neighbor report, or values of the individual neighbor record elements, may be used by the client station 120 to determine a sequence of connection attempts.
Aspects may take the form of an entirely hardware aspect, an entirely software aspect (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an aspect combining software and hardware aspects that may all generally be referred to herein as an “apparatus,” “circuit,” “module,” “interface,” or “system.” Furthermore, aspects of the inventive subject matter may take the form of a computer program product embodied in any tangible medium of expression having computer usable program code embodied in the medium. The described aspects may be provided as a computer program product, or software, that may include a machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions, which may be used to program a computer system (or other electronic device(s)) to execute (e.g., perform) a process according to aspects, whether presently described or not, since every conceivable variation is not enumerated herein. A machine-readable medium includes any mechanism for storing or transmitting information in a form (e.g., software, processing application) readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). A machine-readable medium may be a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium, a machine-readable storage medium, or a machine-readable signal medium (e.g., a computer-readable medium storing computer-executable code). A machine-readable storage medium may include, for example, but is not limited to, magnetic storage medium (e.g., floppy diskette); optical storage medium (e.g., CD-ROM); magneto-optical storage medium; read only memory (ROM); random access memory (RAM); erasable programmable memory (e.g., EPROM and EEPROM); flash memory; or other types of tangible medium suitable for storing electronic instructions. A machine-readable signal medium may include a propagated data signal with computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, an electrical, optical, acoustical, or other form of propagated signal (e.g., carrier waves, infrared signals, digital signals, etc.). Program code embodied on a machine-readable signal medium may be transmitted using any suitable medium, including, but not limited to, wireline, wireless, optical fiber cable, RF, or other communications medium.
Computer program code for carrying out operations of the aspects may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programming languages. The program code may execute entirely on a user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN), a personal area network (PAN), or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).
Referring to
The electronic device 800 also includes a communication unit 808. The communication unit 808 comprises a positioning unit 812, a receiver 814, a transmitter 816, and one or more antennas 818. The transmitter 816, the antennas 818, and the receiver 814 form a wireless communication module (with the transmitter 816 and the receiver 814 being a transceiver 820). The transmitter 816 and the receiver 814 are configured to communicate bi-directionally with one or more client stations and other access points via a corresponding antenna 818. In an example, the receiver 814 may be a first interface (e.g., for receiving data) and the transmitter 816 may be a second interface (e.g., for outputting data). In some aspects, the electronic device 800 can be configured as a WLAN station with positioning determining capabilities (e.g., a type of access point). The positioning unit 812 can utilize the FTM session information exchanged with the access points to determine RSS and/or TDOA timing information associated with the access points. The positioning unit 812 can determine the position of the electronic device 800 based, at least in part, on TDOA timing information, and AP position information. In some aspects, the access points 102, 104, 106, 108 can also be configured as the electronic device 800 of
When the electronic device 800 is implemented or used as a transmitting node, the processing system 802 may be configured to select one of a plurality of media access control (MAC) header types, and to generate a packet having that MAC header type. For example, the processing system 802 may be configured to generate a packet comprising a MAC header and a payload and to determine what type of MAC header to use.
When the electronic device 800 is implemented or used as a receiving node, the processing system 802 may be configured to process packets of a plurality of different MAC header types. For example, the processing system 802 may be configured to determine the type of MAC header used in a packet and process the packet and/or fields of the MAC header.
Referring to
In addition, the components and functions represented by
The various operations of methods described herein may be performed by any suitable means capable of performing the corresponding functions. The means may include various hardware and/or software component(s) and/or module(s), including, but not limited to a circuit, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or processor. Generally, where there are operations illustrated in figures, those operations may have corresponding counterpart means-plus-function components with similar functionality and/or numbering. For example, the blocks of the processes 600, 620, and 700 illustrated in
While the aspects are described with reference to various implementations and exploitations, it will be understood that these aspects are illustrative and that the scope of the inventive subject matter is not limited to them. In general, techniques for positioning with access network query protocol neighbor reports as described herein may be implemented with facilities consistent with any hardware system or hardware systems. Many variations, modifications, additions, and improvements are possible.
Plural instances may be provided for components, operations, or structures described herein as a single instance. Finally, boundaries between various components, operations, and data stores are somewhat arbitrary, and particular operations are illustrated in the context of specific illustrative configurations. Other allocations of functionality are envisioned and may fall within the scope of the inventive subject matter. In general, structures and functionality presented as separate components in the exemplary configurations may be implemented as a combined structure or component. Similarly, structures and functionality presented as a single component may be implemented as separate components. These and other variations, modifications, additions, and improvements may fall within the scope of the inventive subject matter.
As used herein, including in the claims, unless otherwise stated, a statement that a function or operation is “based on” an item or condition means that the function or operation is based on the stated item or condition and may be based on one or more items and/or conditions in addition to the stated item or condition.
Any reference to an element herein using a designation such as “first,” “second,” and so forth does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. Rather, these designations may be used herein as a convenient method of distinguishing between two or more elements or instances of an element. Thus, a reference to first and second elements does not mean that only two elements may be used there or that the first element must precede the second element in some manner. Also, unless stated otherwise a set of elements may comprise one or more elements. In addition, terminology of the form “at least one of a, b, or c” or “one or more of a, b, or c” used in the description or the claims means “a or b or c or any combination of these elements.” For example, this terminology may include a, or b, or c, or a and b, or a and c, or a and b and c, or 2a, or 2b, or 2c, or 2a and b, and so on.
Further, more than one invention may be disclosed.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/252,551 filed Nov. 8, 2015, entitled “CONTEXT AWARE WIRELESS LOCAL AREA NETWORK CONNECTION,” the entire contents of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62252551 | Nov 2015 | US |