Efficient search through an antenna-pattern group

A method for searching through a set of antenna patterns that includes possible antenna patterns for antenna in an access point, the method comprising:

• while transmitting frames to an electronic device, varying, over the set of antenna patterns, an antenna pattern of a first antenna that is being processed and setting remaining antennas in the access point that have not been processed to a fixed antenna pattern;
• receiving feedback received from the electronic device;
• selecting a first antenna pattern for the first antenna based on the feedback;
• and
• repeating the transmitting, the varying, the receiving and the selecting, independently, for the remaining antennas, while a subset of the antennas, which includes the first antenna, that have already processed are set to their selected antenna patterns and another subset of the antennas that have not already processed are set to the fixed antenna pattern or a different fixed antenna pattern.

A computer-program product for use in conjunction with an access point, the computer-program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and a computer-program mechanism embedded therein to search through a set of antenna patterns that includes possible antenna patterns for antennas in an access point, the computer-program mechanism including:

• instructions for varying, over the set of antenna patterns, an antenna pattern of a first antenna that is being processed while transmitting frames to an electronic device, and setting remaining antennas in the access point that have not been processed to a fixed antenna pattern;
• instructions for receiving feedback received from the electronic device;
• instructions for selecting a first antenna pattern for the first antenna based on the feedback;
• and
• instructions for repeating the transmitting, the varying, the receiving and the selecting, independently, for the remaining antennas, while a subset of the antennas, which includes the first antenna, that have already processed are set to their selected antenna patterns and another subset of the antennas that have not already processed are set to the fixed antenna pattern or a different fixed antenna pattern.