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US 9,288,758 B2Granted
Portable terminal and method for scanning access points
AssigneeSamsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
InventorMijin Jeong
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A portable terminal and a method for scanning Access Points (APs) to perform the AP scan with low power consumption in a sleep mode are provided. The method includes checking whether a sleep mode entry request is detected in a state that a short range radio communication function is activated, transmitting, when the sleep mode entry request is detected, an access point list and a setup command for handing over an access point scan control from a control unit to a short range radio communication module, adjusting a scan period according to a motion of the portable terminal based on the access point list and the setup command, and scanning, at the short range radio communication module, access points at the adjusted scan period.
Claims18
An access point scan method of a portable terminal, the method comprising:
- checking whether a sleep mode entry request is detected in a state that a short range radio communication function is activated;
- transmitting, when the sleep mode entry request is detected, an access point list and a setup command for handing over an access point scan control from a control unit to a short range radio communication module;
- entering, by the control unit, the sleep mode after transmitting the access point list and the setup command to the short range radio communication module;
- adjusting, by the short range radio communication module, a scan period according to a motion of the portable terminal while the control unit is in the sleep mode in response to a reception of the setup command;
- scanning, by the short range radio communication module, access points based on the adjusted scan period and the access point list;
- transmitting, when a connectable access point is found, a wakeup signal for waking up the control unit and information on the found access point from the short range radio communication module to the control unit;
- attempting, by the control unit, establishment of a communication channel to the found access point;
- and
- re-entering, by the control unit, the sleep mode when the communication channel to the found access point is established successfully.
6 more elements
A portable terminal comprising:
- an input unit configured to receive a short range radio communication function on/off signal;
- a storage unit configured to store an access point list including information on access points to which the portable terminal has connected previously;
- a control unit configured to transmit, when the sleep mode entry request is detected in a state that a short range radio communication function is activated, the access point list and a setup command for handing over an access point scan control and enters the sleep mode;
- a motion sensor configured to detect a motion of the portable terminal while the control unit is in the sleep mode;
- and
- a short range radio communication module, configured to:
- adjust, when the access point list and the setup command are received, a scan period according to the detected motion of the portable terminal,
- scan access points based on the access point list and the adjusted scan period while the control unit is in the sleep mode, and
- transmit, when a connectable access point is found, a wakeup signal for waking up the control unit and information on the found access point to the control unit,
- wherein the control unit is further configured to:
- attempt, when the wake-up signal is received, establishment of a communication channel to the found access point, and
- re-enter, when the communication channel to the found access point is established successfully, the sleep mode.
9 more elements
A method of scanning for access points of a portable terminal, the method comprising:
- activating a short range radio communication function of the portable terminal;
- detecting whether a sleep mode entry request is received when the short range radio communication function of the portable terminal is activated;
- retrieving an access point list when the sleep mode entry request is received and transmitting the access point list and a setup command from a control unit of the portable terminal to a short range radio communication module of the portable terminal for handing over an access point scan control;
- entering, by the control unit, the sleep mode after transmitting the access point list and the setup command to the short range radio communication module;
- adjusting, by the short range radio communication module, a scan period for scanning the access points of the portable terminal according to a motion of the portable terminal while the control unit is in the sleep mode in response to a reception of the setup command;
- scanning, by the short range radio communication module, the access points based on the access point list and the adjusted scan period;
- transmitting, when a connectable access point is found, a wakeup signal for waking up the control unit and information on the found access point from the short range radio communication module to the control unit;
- attempting, by the control unit, establishment of a communication channel to the found access point;
- and
- re-entering, by the control unit, the sleep mode when the communication channel to the found access point is established successfully.
7 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.