# US 12,010,746 B2 · Multi-link device classification based neighbor discovery > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,010,746 B2 - Document ID: US12010746B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/167,985 - Filed: 2021-02-04 - Published: 2022-08-04 - Granted: 2024-06-11 - Earliest claimed: 2021-02-04 - Assignees: Cisco Technology, Inc. - Applicants: Cisco Technology, Inc. - Inventors: Vishal Satyendra Desai; Gautam D. Bhanage; Benjamin Jacob Cizdziel; Santosh Babaji Kulkarni - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12010746B2 ## CPC - H04W 76/15: Setup of multiple wireless link connections - H04W 8/24: Transfer of terminal data - H04W 48/16: Discovering, processing access restriction or access information - H04W 72/0453: Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA - H04W 72/23: in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal - H04W 48/14: using user query {or user detection} - H04W 88/18: Service support devices; Network management devices - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) ## Abstract Optimization of radio communications of a wireless network of a local site may be provided. A probe frame or an association frame may be received from a Client Device (CD) operating in the local site that identifies at least one operating class and Multi-Link (ML) capability information of the CD. Channel information of at least one Access Point (AP) having ML capability in the local site may be embedded in a probe response frame or in an association response frame based on the at least one operating class and the ML capability information of the CD. The probe response frame or the association response frame that includes the channel information of the at least one AP having ML capability in the local site may be transmitted, as unicast, to the CD. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system comprising: a processing unit; and memory that includes instructions which, when executed by the processing unit operate to: receive a probe frame or an association frame that identifies at least one operating class and Multi-Link (ML) capability information from a Client Device (CD) operating in a local site; tailor a client-specific channelization Information Element (IE) for the CD, the client-specific channelization IE for the CD comprising channel information of at least one channel of at least one ML capable Access Point (AP) in the local site based on at least one operating class, the ML capability information received from the CD, and a likelihood of the CD associating with the at least one ML capable AP, wherein the likelihood of association is determined based on a trajectory of the CD and one or more of a current location of the CD, an operational state of the CD, and an association history; embed the channelization IE in a probe response frame or in an association response frame; and transmit, as unicast to the CD, the probe response frame or the association response frame that includes the channel information of the at least one ML capable AP in the local site. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the processing unit is further caused to tailor the channel information of the channelization IE for the at least one ML capable AP in the local site to provide frequency separation between multiple channels of the at least one ML capable AP when the CD includes at least one of multiple radios with Simultaneous Transmit and Receive (STR) capability and multiple radios without STR capability. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the processing unit is further caused to: when the CD is ML capable, embed the channel information in the channelization IE to include a channel list that identifies at least one channel of a first frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the first frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the first frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the first frequency band. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein the channel list further identifies at least one channel of a second frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the second frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the second frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the second frequency band. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein the channel list further identifies at least one channel of a third frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the third frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the third frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the third frequency band. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the processing unit is further caused to transmit, as unicast to the CD, a probe response frame that includes a client-specific Reduced Neighbor Report (RNR) or an association response frame that includes the client-specific RNR, wherein the client-specific RNR is tailored to include at least one of a Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID), a Target Beacon Transmission Time (TBTT), or frequency information of a different frequency band of a neighbor AP based on the likelihood of the CD associating with the neighbor AP using the different frequency band. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The system of claim 6, wherein the processing unit is further caused to enhance the client-specific RNR based on at least one of a Quality of Service Basic Service Set (QBSS) of at least one neighbor AP, a current traffic distribution of the at least one neighbor AP, a configured data rate of the at least one neighbor AP, or Quality of Service (QoS) requirements of the CD. ### Claim 8 A method comprising: receiving a probe frame or an association frame that identifies at least one operating class and Multi-Link (ML) capability information from a Client Device (CD) operating in a local site; tailoring a client-specific channelization Information Element (IE) for the CD, the client-specific channelization IE for the CD comprising channel information of at least one channel of at least one ML capable Access Point (AP) in the local site based on at least one operating class and the ML capability information received from the CD and a likelihood of the CD associating with the at least one ML capable AP, wherein the likelihood of association is determined based on a trajectory of the CD and one or more of a current location of the CD, an operational state of the CD, and an association history; embedding the channelization IE in a probe response frame or in an association response frame; and transmitting, as unicast to the CD, the probe response frame or the association response frame that includes the channel information of the at least one ML capable AP in the local site. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising tailoring the channel information of the channelization IE for the at least one ML capable AP in the local site to provide frequency separation between multiple channels of the at least one ML capable AP when the CD includes at least one of multiple radios with Simultaneous Transmit and Receive (STR) capability and multiple radios without STR capability. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising: when the CD is ML capable, embedding the channel information in the channelization IE to include a channel list that identifies at least one channel of a first frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the first frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the first frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the first frequency band. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the channel list further identifies at least one channel of a second frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the second frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the second frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the second frequency band. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein the channel list further identifies at least one channel of a third frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the third frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the third frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the third frequency band. ### Claim 13 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising transmitting, as unicast to the CD, a probe response frame that includes a client-specific Reduced Neighbor Report (RNR) or an association response frame that includes the client-specific RNR, wherein the client-specific RNR is tailored to include at least one of a Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID), a Target Beacon Transmission Time (TBTT), or frequency information of a different frequency band of a neighbor AP based on the likelihood of the CD associating with the neighbor AP using the different frequency band. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, further comprising enhancing the client-specific RNR based on at least one of a Quality of Service Basic Service Set (QBSS) of at least one neighbor AP, a current traffic distribution of the at least one neighbor AP, a configured data rate of the at least one neighbor AP, or Quality of Service (QoS) requirements of the CD. ### Claim 15 A non-transitory computer-readable medium that stores a set of instructions which when executed by a processing unit perform a method executed by the set of instructions comprising: receiving a probe frame or an association frame that identifies at least one operating class and Multi-Link (ML) capability information from a Client Device (CD) operating in a local site; tailoring a client-specific channelization Information Element (IE) for the CD, the client-specific channelization IE for the CD comprising channel information of at least one channel of at least one Access Point (AP) having ML capability in the local site based on at least one operating class and the ML capability information received from the CD and a likelihood of the CD associating with the at least one ML capable AP, wherein the likelihood of association is determined based on a trajectory of the CD and one or more of a current location of the CD, an operational state of the CD, and an association history; embedding the channelization IE in a probe response frame or in an association response frame based on the at least one operating class and the ML capability information of the CD; and transmitting, as unicast to the CD, the probe response frame or the association response frame that includes the channel information of the at least one AP having ML capability in the local site. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising: when the CD is ML capable, embedding at least one of: channel information in the channelization IE to include a channel list that identifies at least one channel of a first frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the first frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the first frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the first frequency band. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising transmitting, as unicast to the CD, the probe response frame that includes a client-specific Reduced Neighbor Report (RNR) or the association response frame that includes the client-specific RNR, wherein the client-specific RNR is tailored to include at least one of a Basic Service Set Identifier (BSS ID), a Target Beacon Transmission Time (TBTT), or frequency information of a different frequency band of a neighbor AP based on the likelihood of the CD associating with the neighbor AP using the different frequency band. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, further comprising enhancing the client-specific RNR based on at least one of a Quality of Service Basic Service Set (QBSS) of at least one neighbor AP, a current traffic distribution of the at least one neighbor AP, a configured data rate of the at least one neighbor AP, or Quality of Service (QoS) requirements of the CD. ### Claim 19 (depends on 15) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising tailoring the channel information of the channelization IE for the at least one ML capable AP in the local site to provide frequency separation between multiple channels of the at least one ML capable AP when the CD includes at least one of multiple radios with Simultaneous Transmit and Receive (STR) capability and multiple radios without STR capability. ### Claim 20 (depends on 16) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the channel list further identifies: at least one channel of a second frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the second frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the second frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the second frequency band; and at least one channel of a third frequency band and an ML channel bitmap for the third frequency band in the probe response frame or in the association response frame, wherein the third frequency band corresponds to the at least one operating class received from the ML capable CD in the probe frame or the association frame, and the ML channel bitmap indicates one or more channels that support ML operations in the third frequency band.