# US 11,115,857 B2 · Bandwidth sentinel > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,115,857 B2 - Document ID: US11115857B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/231,377 - Filed: 2018-12-21 - Published: 2020-06-25 - Granted: 2021-09-07 - Earliest claimed: 2009-07-10 - Assignees: Extreme Networks, Inc. - Applicants: Extreme Networks, Inc. - Inventors: Huizhao Wang; Changming Liu; Peter Wu - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11115857B2 ## CPC - H04B 17/382: for resource allocation, admission control or handover - H04W 28/0284: {detecting congestion or overload during communication (monitoring arrangements H04L43/00)} - H04L 47/11: Identifying congestion - H04L 47/125: by balancing the load, e.g. traffic engineering - H04L 47/215: using token-bucket - H04W 24/08: Testing, {supervising or monitoring} using real traffic - H04W 28/0205: {at the air interface (dynamic wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12)} - H04W 28/0236: {radio quality, e.g. interference, losses or delay} - H04B: TRANSMISSION - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract Minimum guaranteed wireless network bandwidth is provided to client network devices by monitoring the performance of network connections to identify client network devices experiencing network congestion. Congested network connections are then analyzed to determine the source of the network congestion. Depending upon the source of the network congestion, an embodiment of the invention may undertake steps to either improve the quality of the network connection or to mitigate the impact of this network connection on other network connections. High quality network connections may be allocated additional bandwidth, airtime, or other resources to reduce the network congestion. Low quality network connections are not allocated additional bandwidth, airtime, or other resources. Instead, the impact of this network connection on the other network connections is mitigated. Additionally, the low quality network connection may be transferred to another wireless networking device that may be able to provide a better quality network connection. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for configuring a network connection, the method comprising: determining a first quality score for a first wireless network connection, between a wireless network device and a client network device, based on one or more wireless network connection attributes of the first wireless network connection; determining a second quality score for a second wireless network connection between another wireless network device and another client network device based on one or more wireless network connection attributes of the second wireless network connection; comparing the first wireless network connection and the second wireless network connection based on the first quality score and the second quality score; and in response to the comparison indicating the second quality score being higher than the first quality score, allocating additional bandwidth to the second wireless network connection to provide a wireless network connection to the client network device via the another wireless network device, wherein the first wireless network connection is classified as a first quality connection based on a comparison of the first quality score with a first benchmark quality score, and wherein the second wireless network connection is classified as a second quality connection based on a comparison of the second quality score with a second benchmark quality score that is different from the first benchmark quality score. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the first quality connection is associated with network congestion caused by at least one of high interference, low signal strength, and a mis-configuration of the client network device. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more wireless network connection attributes of the first and second wireless network connections include one or more of receiving bit rate usage, transmission bit rate usage, transmission retries, receiving retries, received signal strength indication, and wireless network interface type. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the first wireless network connection is classified as the first quality connection based on a comparison of the first quality score with the first benchmark quality score, and the second wireless network connection is classified as the second quality connection based on a comparison of the second quality score with the second benchmark quality score. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to the comparison indicating the second quality score being higher than the first quality score, de-associating the wireless network device from the first wireless network connection. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising determining the second wireless network connection as a congested wireless network connection, wherein upon determining that the second wireless network connection is a congested wireless network connection, the second quality score is determined. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein a token bucket for tokens representing queued packets is assigned to each of the first and second wireless network connections, and the additional bandwidth is allocated to the second wireless network connection by increasing a size of the token bucket assigned to the second wireless network connection. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the additional bandwidth is allocated to the second wireless network connection such that a bandwidth of the second wireless network connection is greater than a minimum guaranteed wireless network bandwidth. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless network device and the another wireless network device both comprise a wireless access point. ### Claim 10 A wireless network device, comprising: one or more processors; and memory storing instructions, which when executed, are configured to cause the one or more processors to: determine a first quality score for a first wireless network connection, between a wireless network device and a client network device, based on one or more wireless network connection attributes of the first wireless network connection; determine a second quality score for a second wireless network connection between another wireless network device and another client network device based on one or more wireless network connection attributes of the second wireless network connection; compare the first wireless network connection and the second wireless network connection based on the first quality score and the second quality score; and in response to the comparison indicating the second quality score being higher than the first quality score, allocate additional bandwidth to the second wireless network connection to provide a wireless network connection to the client network device via the another wireless network device, wherein the first wireless network connection is classified as a first quality connection based on a comparison of the first quality score with a first benchmark quality score, and wherein the second wireless network connection is classified as a second quality connection based on a comparison of the second quality score with a second benchmark quality score that is different from the first benchmark quality score. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein the first quality connection is associated with network congestion caused by at least one of high interference, low signal strength, and a mis-configuration of the client network device. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein the one or more wireless network connection attributes of the first and second wireless network connections include one or more of receiving bit rate usage, transmission bit rate usage, transmission retries, receiving retries, received signal strength indication, and wireless network interface type. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein the first wireless network connection is classified as the first quality connection based on a comparison of the first quality score with the first benchmark quality score, and the second wireless network connection is classified as the second quality connection based on a comparison of the second quality score with the second benchmark quality score. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein, when executed, the instructions are further configured to cause the one or more processors to de-associate the wireless network device from the first wireless network connection, in response to the comparison indicating the second quality score being higher than the first quality score. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein, when executed, the instructions are further configured to determine the second wireless network connection as a congested wireless network connection, and determine the second quality score upon determining that the second wireless network connection is a congested wireless network connection. ### Claim 16 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein, when executed, the instructions are further configured to assign a token bucket for tokens representing queued packets to each of the first and second wireless network connections, and allocate the additional bandwidth to the second wireless network connection by increasing a size of the token bucket assigned to the second wireless network connection. ### Claim 17 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein the additional bandwidth is allocated to the second wireless network connection such that a bandwidth of the second wireless network connection is greater than a minimum guaranteed wireless network bandwidth. ### Claim 18 A system comprising: means for determining a first quality score for a first wireless network connection, between a wireless network device and a client network device, based on one or more wireless network connection attributes of the first wireless network connection; means for determining a second quality score for a second wireless network connection between another wireless network device and another client network device based on one or more wireless network connection attributes of the second wireless network connection; means for comparing the first wireless network connection and the second wireless network connection based on the first quality score and the second quality score; means for allocating additional bandwidth to the second wireless network connection to provide a wireless network connection to the client network device via the another wireless network device, in response to the comparison indicating the second quality score being higher than the first quality score, wherein the first wireless network connection is classified as a first quality connection based on a comparison of the first quality score with a first benchmark quality score, and wherein the second wireless network connection is classified as a second quality connection based on a comparison of the second quality score with a second benchmark quality score that is different from the first benchmark quality score. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein one or more of the first quality score and the second quality score is a numerical quality score. ### Claim 20 (depends on 10) The wireless network device of claim 10, wherein one or more of the first quality score and the second quality score is a numerical quality score.