HK1155024A - Infrastructure assisted discovery in a wireless peer-to-peer network - Google Patents

Description

Infrastructure assisted discovery in wireless peer-to-peer networks

Background

FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications within an unplanned user deployable network, and more particularly to a method of infrastructure assisted discovery procedure in a peer-to-peer wireless network.

Background

Peer-to-peer ("P2P") networks are often used to connect nodes via ad hoc (adhoc) connections. These networks are distinguished from the traditional client-server model in which communication is typically with a central server. A peer-to-peer network may consist entirely of peer nodes in direct communication with each other, or may include a small number of servers to provide various services to the nodes in the network. These networks can be used to efficiently share files, media streaming, telephony, real-time data applications, and other communications.

In a peer-to-peer network supporting mobile nodes, various discovery and acquisition procedures are employed as the nodes move around within the coverage area of the network. The process of discovering nodes in a network generally begins with the broadcast of a discovery signal. If a node detects a discovery signal from another node, it may initiate an acquisition procedure using paging and access mechanisms defined by the network to establish a communication session.

To conserve battery power, nodes typically do not continuously broadcast discovery signals. Instead, the node remains in a low power state or sleep mode most of the time and periodically wakes up to broadcast a discovery signal. This procedure has been successful in reducing power consumption of nodes in a non-communicating state. However, it is still possible that at some point the node is consuming excessive power. As an example, a node that periodically broadcasts discovery signals while outside of the network coverage area is unnecessarily consuming power. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved ways of managing discovery in peer-to-peer networks. These improvements should also be applicable to other networks.

SUMMARY

In an aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus for wireless communication includes a processing system configured to support discovery of a remote node.

In another aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus for wireless communication includes a processing system configured to use a remote node for discovery.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a method for wireless communication from an apparatus includes supporting discovery of a remote node.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a method for wireless communication includes a processing system configured to use a remote node for discovery.

In yet another aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus for wireless communication includes means for connecting to a remote node and means for supporting discovery of the remote node.

In another aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus for wireless communication includes means for connecting to a remote node and means for using the remote node for discovery.

In another aspect of the disclosure, an access point includes: a wireless interface configured to support a backhaul connection for an access terminal; and a processing system configured to support the wireless interface, the processing system further configured to support discovery of the access terminal.

In yet another aspect of the disclosure, an access terminal includes: a processing system configured to use the access point for discovery; and a user interface supported by the processing system.

In yet another aspect of the disclosure, a computer-program product for communication includes a machine-readable medium including instructions executable by a processing system to support discovery of remote nodes.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a computer-program product for communication includes a machine-readable medium including instructions executable by a processing system to use a remote node for discovery.

Brief Description of Drawings

Aspects of a communication system are illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings and in which like reference numerals may be used to refer to like features throughout the specification and in which:

fig. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a peer-to-peer wireless network;

fig. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating another example of a peer-to-peer wireless network;

fig. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating yet another example of a peer-to-peer wireless network;

fig. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a call flow for a node to assist discovery of another node in a peer-to-peer wireless network.

Fig. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating an example of a discovery procedure that may be implemented by a node;

fig. 6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a peer-to-peer wireless network supporting infrastructure-assisted discovery;

fig. 7 is a state diagram illustrating an example of a discovery procedure implemented by a node in a peer-to-peer wireless network;

fig. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the functionality of a node; and

fig. 9A is a block diagram illustrating an example of the functionality of a processing system;

fig. 9B is a block diagram illustrating another example of the functionality of a processing system.

In accordance with common practice, the various features illustrated in the drawings are intended as descriptions of aspects of the networks and network-related entities and are not intended to represent only aspects within the scope of the claims. The figures may include specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the network or network-related entities, however, aspects of the described networks and network-related entities may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the various concepts described throughout this disclosure.

Detailed Description

Aspects of one or more methods and apparatus 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 with other structure, functionality, or structure and functionality in addition to or other than one or more of the aspects set forth herein. Aspects of any apparatus or method described throughout this disclosure may include a single element of any claim and/or any combination of elements in one or more claims.

In the following detailed description, aspects of one or more methods and apparatus will be described in the context of a peer-to-peer wireless network. However, as those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the aspects presented throughout this disclosure are extensible to a wide range of networks and communication protocols. Accordingly, any reference to a peer-to-peer wireless network is intended only to illustrate aspects of the network, and it is to be understood that these aspects have a wide range of applications.

Fig. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a peer-to-peer wireless network. Network 100 is shown with several nodes 102, each of which may be configured in various ways. By way of example, the nodes 102 may be configured as laptops, mobile phones, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), digital audio players, game consoles, digital cameras, digital camcorders, multimedia devices, or any other suitable device capable of supporting peer-to-peer connections with other nodes 102 in the network 100. Node 102 may be referred to by those skilled in the art as an access terminal, a handset, a wireless communication device, a user terminal, user equipment, a mobile station, a mobile unit, a subscriber station, a mobile radio, a wireless telephone, a wireless station, a wireless device, or some other terminology. The various concepts described throughout this disclosure are intended to apply to all nodes regardless of their specific nomenclature.

In this example, peer-to-peer network 100 is a self-configuring network of nodes 102 connected by wireless links, which together form an ad hoc wireless topology, nodes 102 connected by wireless links. Node 102 may utilize the wireless topology to support connections with peers in network 100 either directly or through one or more intermediate nodes. In the latter case, data is routed from one node to another until the data reaches its destination. The wireless topology may change rapidly as nodes move around freely within the coverage area. Thus, peer-to-peer networks are dynamically reconfigurable to maintain connectivity as nodes move around within the coverage area.

Fig. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating another example of a peer-to-peer wireless network. In this example, the network 200 includes several infrastructure nodes 204, which are shown as fixed-site transceiver stations, but may be implemented as mobile nodes in other configurations. Infrastructure node 204 may be referred to by those skilled in the art as an access point, a relay point, a node B, a Radio Network Controller (RNC), an evolved node B, a Base Station Controller (BSC), a Base Transceiver Station (BTS), a Base Station (BS), a Transceiver Function (TF), a radio router, a radio transceiver, a basic service set (BSs), an Extended Service Set (ESS), a Radio Base Station (RBS), or some other suitable terminology.

Node 202 may be connected to infrastructure node 204, or any other node in network 200, either directly or through one or more intermediate nodes. As with the earlier described example, the wireless topology is dynamically reconfigurable to maintain connections as nodes 202 move around within the coverage area and the load on infrastructure 204 changes. In one configuration of network 200, infrastructure nodes 204 may be distributed throughout a Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN), such as may be the case in a network employing Wi-Max, evolution-data optimized (EV-DO), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), or some other suitable wireless standard. In another configuration of network 200, infrastructure nodes 204 may be distributed throughout a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) in a home, office building, airport, hotel, coffee shop, or other suitable private or public location. In this example, the infrastructure node 204 may be used as an access point to a WLAN, such as, by way of example, to a Wi-Fi network.

The geographic scope of peer-to-peer network 300 may be extended by a Wide Area Network (WAN), such as the internet. An example of such a peer-to-peer wireless network is shown in fig. 3. In this configuration, any combination of nodes 302 and infrastructure nodes 304 may provide wireless backhaul to the WAN 306 for other nodes 302. A single infrastructure node 304 may provide an access point to the WAN 306 through a wired connection as shown in fig. 3, or alternatively, any number of infrastructure nodes 304 may have wired or wireless connections to the WAN 306. The wireless topology is dynamically reconfigurable to maintain a connection between two nodes in the WAN 306 as the two nodes and other nodes move around within the coverage area and the load on the infrastructure node 304 changes.

When a node in one of the various network configurations described thus far, or in some other suitable network configuration, initially comes on-line, the node attempts to discover other peers through a discovery procedure. The discovery procedure utilized by a node will depend on the type of peer-to-peer connection it wishes to establish. As an example, a node may wish to have an anonymous connection with a peer. In this example, the node does not broadcast a discovery signal, thereby making its presence in the neighborhood anonymous. Instead, it attempts to join the network by decoding a reference signal, such as a beacon, from an infrastructure node (see fig. 2 and 3) or some other node or network-related entity. Once a node decodes a reference signal, the node may register with the network by notifying a network-related entity such as a mobility agent of its whereabouts so that it can be paged when another node in the network attempts to establish a connection with it.

The discovery procedure utilized by the nodes may also support peer-to-peer connections with a set of fixed nodes. This discovery procedure may be well suited for Personal Area Networks (PANs) that include a collection of nodes owned by an individual. By way of example, the nodes may include laptop computers, cellular phones, microphones, medical devices, biometric sensors, heart rate monitors, pedometers, EKG devices, user I/O devices, watches, remote controls, switches, point-of-sale devices, hearing aids, set-top boxes, and so forth. In this example, the identity of each node is known a priori to the other nodes via a list stored in the memory of each node, or some other means. In the case of a list, an in-band mechanism may be used to form the list.

In attempting to discover peers from this fixed set, a node may listen for discovery signals from its peers. The discovery signal received by a node from a peer may include a message containing one or more attributes (e.g., peer identifier) of the peer. The node may then compare the message to a list of peers stored in memory to determine whether the peer belongs to the set of fixed nodes. If the node determines that the peer is contained in the list, the node may attempt to connect to the peer.

A node may also utilize a discovery procedure to support peer-to-peer connections with a particular type of peer, where the identity of the peer is not known a priori. This procedure may be well suited for nodes that wish to connect to peers in a particular group, as may be the case when a node seeks local services such as games, appointments, shopping, etc. In this case, a message containing one or more attributes of the peer (e.g., a group association identifier) may be included in the discovery signal broadcast by the peer. Alternatively, a network-related entity such as a server may provide assistance during the discovery procedure. In this configuration, the node may provide a message to the server including its location and various attributes related to the group association. A peer may determine its location using the Global Positioning System (GPS), by other nodes connected to it, or by some other means. In response to this message, the server may send information to the node identifying nearby peers that support the group association identified by the node. Preferably, the discovery procedure is configured to support nodes that are members of many groups at the same time.

Discovery procedures that allow a node to connect with any other peer (i.e., without limited association requirements) may also be utilized. Under this procedure, the node listens for a discovery signal. If a node detects a discovery signal from a peer, it may attempt to establish a connection with it.

In at least one configuration of a peer-to-peer network, or other suitable network arrangement, a node may use another node to assist its discovery. An example will now be given with reference to fig. 4 illustrating the flow of a call between two nodes. In this example, the infrastructure node is assisting in discovery of another node. However, as those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the various concepts described in this example may be extended to any node facilitating discovery of any other node in a peer-to-peer wireless network.

The following examples may be useful when a node wishes to conserve battery power during a discovery procedure by broadcasting its discovery signals and/or detecting discovery signals from peers using an infrastructure node. Referring to fig. 4, a node first attempts to discover an infrastructure node by decoding a reference signal broadcast from the infrastructure node, as indicated by arrow 402. Once the peer node has discovered the infrastructure node, the overhead channel may then be decoded to learn the capabilities of the infrastructure node, as illustrated with arrow 404. The overhead channel may provide various information, including whether the infrastructure node supports discovery on behalf of another node. Assuming the infrastructure node supports discovery, the node may connect to the infrastructure node for this purpose by requesting access to the infrastructure node, as indicated by arrow 406. The infrastructure node may respond with an access grant as indicated by arrow 408. In response to the access grant, the node may communicate various attributes over a reverse link traffic channel (i.e., a traffic channel that supports transmissions from peer nodes to infrastructure nodes), as illustrated by arrow 410. By way of example, these attributes may include a globally unique node identifier or some other identifier, a peer identifier (e.g., a friends list), group membership, and/or any other information related to discovery.

Upon receiving this information, the infrastructure node may facilitate discovery of the node, as indicated by arrow 412. The manner in which the assistance is performed may vary. As an example, an infrastructure node may broadcast a discovery signal for the node, and the node may itself listen for discovery signals from other nodes. In this example, the discovery may include information indicating that the infrastructure node is assisting discovery of the node (e.g., by setting a bit in a discovery signal broadcast by the infrastructure node). Alternatively, a node may broadcast its discovery signal and allow infrastructure nodes to listen for discovery signals from peers. Maximum assistance may be provided for an infrastructure node when the node is both broadcasting discovery signals for the node and listening for discovery signals from peers.

In at least one configuration of a peer-to-peer network, an infrastructure node may only undertake a portion of the discovery of the node. As an example, a node may broadcast a discovery signal at certain times and an infrastructure node may broadcast the discovery signal at other times. Similarly, a node may listen for discovery signals from peers at certain times, and an infrastructure node may listen for discovery signals from peers at other times. Various configurations may be deployed in which any combination of the infrastructure assisted discovery procedures discussed thus far and apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in light of this disclosure may be implemented. As an example, an infrastructure node may broadcast a discovery signal, and the responsibility for listening for the discovery signal is split between the node and the infrastructure node. This may be an application-specific static condition or may be dynamically reconfigurable depending on channel conditions and other factors. As an example of the latter, an infrastructure node may later assume responsibility for listening to discovery signals from peers due to changes in channel conditions, changes in load on the infrastructure node, or for some other reason, just as the discovery signals are broadcast on behalf of the node.

Once an infrastructure node begins assisting in the discovery of another node, the infrastructure node may employ various mechanisms to monitor the whereabouts of the node. These mechanisms allow an infrastructure node to terminate discovery on behalf of the node, for example, when the node moves out of the coverage area of the infrastructure node. In at least one configuration of the peer-to-peer network, the infrastructure node may maintain a timer, as shown at block 414. The timer is restarted each time the infrastructure node receives a keep-alive signal, as indicated by arrow 416. In this configuration, a node transmits a series of keep-alive signals to inform the infrastructure node that it still needs infrastructure-assisted discovery. The keep-alive signals may be in the form of a broadcast of one or more discovery signals of the node, a transmission directed to the infrastructure node (e.g., access the infrastructure node, send a signal on a control channel, etc.), or some other type of signaling or communication. To conserve battery life, a node may go to sleep during all or part of the time between keeping active signals. If the timer expires before the keep-alive signal is received, the infrastructure node stops assisting discovery of the node, as shown in block 418.

In the case where an infrastructure node is listening for discovery signals from peers on behalf of a node in a peer-to-peer network, the infrastructure node may notify the node upon discovering a peer. Similarly, if an interested peer attempts to connect to an infrastructure node, the infrastructure node may notify the node. The notification may take the form of a page or some other signaling. In response to the notification, an icon indicating the presence of the peer may appear on the display of the node, or a map may be presented to the display to show the peer. The node may then establish a connection with the peer directly, through the infrastructure node, or through one or more intermediate nodes (i.e., a multi-hop connection).

As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, a node may be configured to support one or more of the discovery procedures discussed above. Alternatively or in addition to the discovery procedures described above, the node may also be configured to support additional discovery procedures, as well as other procedures such as paging, transmitting broadcast messages, and the like.

Fig. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating an example of a discovery procedure that may be implemented by a node. In this example, the node supports a series of discovery signals 502 separated in time by quiet periods 504. The discovery signal may be a packet broadcast on a common or dedicated channel. The packet may contain a preamble known a priori to all nodes in the network, the preamble comprising a pseudo-random number (PN) or multiple repetitions thereof. During the quiet period 504, or any portion thereof, the node may also listen for discovery signals from peers. If the node detects a discovery signal from a peer, a connection may be established. In the case where a peer is associated with only a set of fixed nodes, information in the discovery signal, or information provided by the server, may be used by the node to determine whether to establish a communication session. The discovery signals broadcast by the nodes may be synchronous or asynchronous, may use frequency reuse or time reuse, and may be transmitted using Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), or any other suitable technique for supporting an air interface in a wireless telecommunications system.

To conserve battery power, the duration of the quiet-period 504 may vary depending on the current operating mode and/or environment. As an example, the duration of the quiet period 504 may increase when a battery in the peer node is fully charged and decrease when the battery level is low. As another example, the duration of the quiet period 504 may be increased when the transmit power is high and decreased when the transmit power is low.

In some configurations of nodes, the duration of the quiet period 504 may change based on peers within radio range. As an example, the quiet-period 504 may be relatively long when the node is outside the radio range of any peer with which it is authorized to communicate. In this example, the quiet period 504 may be reduced when the node moves within radio range of one or more peer nodes, facilitating an active search. This generally requires that the node know where its peers are with respect to it and is therefore primarily applicable to infrastructure assisted discovery as will now be described in connection with fig. 5.

Fig. 6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a peer-to-peer wireless network 600 supporting infrastructure assisted discovery. In this example, node 602 registers with discovery server 608. Discovery server 608 may be dependent on the type of service required by node 602. As an example, a node 602 seeking to connect to peers in a particular group to access local services such as games, appointments, shopping, etc., may access a particular server configured to support these services. Alternatively, a single server may be used. In the latter configuration, peer 602 may send a profile including the type of service it requires when registering with server 608.

The registration procedure may be implemented in various ways. As an example, node 602 may send a registration message to server 608 that includes its location. Using the location of the node contained in the registration message, server 608 may respond by sending a list of peers near node 602. Node 602 may query server 608 to update its list as it, or its peers, move around within network 600. In at least one configuration of the wireless peer-to-peer network, the list may also be updated as one or more peers move into or out of the neighborhood of the node.

Returning to fig. 5, the node may have a relatively long period of silence when it is not in radio range of any peer with which it is authorized to communicate. In this mode, the node should broadcast a discovery signal only when there are peers in its neighborhood that it has not yet discovered, or when infrastructure-assisted discovery is not reliable or available. When the node moves into radio range of one or more peers, it can start actively searching by reducing the quiet period. The duration of the quiet period may then be increased once the node discovers the peer nodes to connect to. Alternatively, the node may be configured to increase the duration of the quiet period only after it discovers all peers in its network. In some configurations, it may be desirable for the nodes to stop broadcasting discovery signals together, but to maintain the discovery signal broadcast a long period of silence apart to inform peers that they have not moved outside of radio range.

The change in the duration of the quiet period between discovery signals may be fixed or variable. In the latter case, the quiet period may become progressively shorter as soon as the peer moves into radio range of the peer. The quiet-period may be progressively shorter on a random basis, or according to a linear, polynomial, or exponential function, or some other function.

Fig. 7 is a state diagram illustrating an example of a discovery procedure implemented by a node in a peer-to-peer wireless network. Each state defines a different periodicity for broadcasting discovery signals.

In this example, when there is no peer in the neighborhood, the node is in the first state 702. In this state, a discovery signal is occasionally issued. The node may periodically send its location to the server via a registration message. A registration reply or other message may be sent back to the node identifying any peers in the neighborhood. If there is no peer in the neighborhood, the node remains in the first state 702. On the other hand, if the server identifies one or more peers in the neighborhood, the node may enter a second state 704 in which the frequency of discovery signals is increased to actively search for peers.

While the node is in the second state 704, it continues to register with the server periodically. If a registration reply is received from the server indicating that there are no more peers in the neighborhood, the node returns to the first state 702. Conversely, if the node is able to discover all peers identified in the registration reply from the server, it enters a third state 706 in which the frequency of discovery signals is reduced. Whenever one or more peers are lost or an undiscovered peer is identified in a subsequent registration reply, the node returns to the second state 704 to actively search by increasing the frequency of discovery signals. Alternatively, instead of periodically registering with the server, the server may push this information to the node if the peer enters or leaves the neighborhood.

Fig. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the functionality of a node. The following description of node 800 is informational in nature and broadly defines the functionality of each block. Only the functionality relevant to the various concepts disclosed herein will be described. Those skilled in the art will recognize that these functional blocks may provide other functionality not described herein. In this example, node 800 includes at least two functional blocks: a wireless interface 802 and a processing system 804.

The wireless interface 802 may be configured as a transceiver that provides both transmit and receive functionality. The transmit function includes modulating a carrier with data. The receive function includes demodulating the carrier to recover the data. The wireless interface 802 may also provide various other functions such as RF front end processing, analog/digital conversion, timing and frequency estimation, channel estimation, turbo coding, and so forth. In summary, the wireless interface 802 may be configured to provide a complete physical layer implementation of the node 800.

The processing system 804 may be configured to implement all functionality above the physical layer, alone or in combination with other entities in the node 800. Alternatively, the processing system 804 may also implement all or part of the physical layer. In the most general sense, the processing system 804 is configured to support communications using the transmit and receive functions of the wireless interface 802. In one aspect of the node 800, the processing system 804 may be configured to support discovery of remote nodes. In another aspect of the node 800, the processing system 804 may be configured to use the remote node for its discovery.

Node 800 may act as an access terminal, access point, relay point, or any combination thereof. The node 800, acting as an access terminal, may include a user interface 806. The user interface 806 may include a display, a keypad, a speaker, a microphone, and/or any other suitable interface that enables a user to operate the access terminal. The user interface 806 is used to control data transmitted and received by the processing system 804 on a wireless uplink maintained by the wireless interface 802.

The node 800, acting as an access point, includes a wireless interface 802, the wireless interface 802 capable of maintaining any suitable number of wireless downlink connections with access terminals and/or relay points, as well as maintaining one or more uplink connections to support backhaul. The uplink connection may be wired or wireless. As an example, an access point may support a wireless uplink connection to a relay point and a wired uplink connection to another network (e.g., the internet).

The processing system 804 may be implemented using software, hardware, or a combination of both. By way of example, the processing system may be implemented with one or more Integrated Circuits (ICs). The IC may include a general purpose processor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, electronic components, optical components, mechanical components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein, and may execute code or instructions that reside within the IC, external to the IC, or both. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the general purpose processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processing system may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

The code or instructions may be embodied in one or more machine-readable media to support software applications. Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, programs, code, or any other electronic media content, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise. The machine-readable medium may include storage integrated with the processor, as may be the case with an ASIC. The machine-readable medium may also include storage external to the processor, such as Random Access Memory (RAM), flash memory, Read Only Memory (ROM), Programmable Read Only Memory (PROM), erasable PROM (eprom), registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, a DVD, or any other suitable storage device. Additionally, a machine-readable medium may include a carrier wave transmitting a wire or encoded data signal. Those skilled in the art will recognize how best to implement the described functionality of the processing system. Further, in some aspects, any suitable computer program product may include a computer-readable medium or machine-readable medium containing code relating to one or more aspects of the disclosure. In certain aspects, a computer program product may include packaging materials.

Fig. 9A is a block diagram illustrating an example of the functionality of the processing system 804. In this example, processing system 804 includes a module 902A for connecting to a remote node and a module 904A for supporting discovery of the remote node.

Fig. 9B is a block diagram illustrating another example of the functionality of the processing system 804. In this example, processing system 804 includes a module 902B for connecting to a remote node and a module 904B for using the remote node for discovery.

The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one" unless specifically so stated, but rather "one or more. The term "some" means one or more unless specifically stated otherwise. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. No element of the claims should be construed under the provisions of 35u.s.c. § 112 sixth clause unless the element is explicitly recited using the wording "means for … …" or in the case of a method claim the element is recited using the wording "step for … …".

Claims (79)

1. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

a processing system configured to support discovery of remote nodes.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to support the discovery by broadcasting a discovery signal for the remote node.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the discovery signal comprises information indicating that the discovery signal is broadcast for the remote node.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to support the discovery by listening for a discovery signal from another node.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processing system is further configured to notify the remote node in response to receiving the discovery signal from the other node to enable the remote node to establish a connection with the other node.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to communicate to the remote node that the processing system is capable of supporting discovery of the remote node.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to receive a communication from the remote node that includes one or more attributes related to the discovery of the remote node.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the processing system is further configured to support the discovery by listening for a discovery signal from another node having at least one of the one or more attributes.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to continue to support the discovery of the remote node in response to a keep-alive signal from the remote node.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processing system comprises a timer, and wherein the processing system is further configured to stop supporting the discovery of the remote node if the timer expires before the keep-alive signal is received from the remote node.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a broadcast of a discovery signal from the remote node.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a transmission directed to the apparatus.

13. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

a processing system configured to use a remote node for discovery.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the processing system is further configured to use the remote node for discovery by enabling the remote node to broadcast a discovery signal for the apparatus.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processing system is further configured to send a keep-alive signal to enable the remote node to continue broadcasting the discovery signal.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the processing system is further configured to sleep for at least a portion of the time if the processing system is not sending the keep-alive signal to the remote node.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the processor system is further configured to broadcast a second discovery signal.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the second discovery signal comprises the keep-alive signal.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a transmission directed to the remote node.

20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processing system is further configured to listen for a discovery signal from another node.

21. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the processing system is further configured to use the remote node for discovery by enabling the remote node to listen for a discovery signal from another node.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the processing system is further configured to listen for the discovery signal from the other node.

23. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the processing system is further configured to broadcast a discovery signal.

24. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the processing system is further configured to receive a communication from the remote node indicating that the remote node is capable of supporting discovery of the apparatus.

25. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the processing system is further configured to communicate one or more attributes related to the discovery to the remote node to enable the remote node to discover another node having at least one of the one or more attributes.

26. A method of wireless communication from an apparatus, comprising:

remote node discovery is supported.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the discovery for the remote node is supported by broadcasting a discovery signal for the remote node.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the discovery signal comprises information indicating that the discovery signal is broadcast for the remote node.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein the discovery of the remote node is supported by listening for a discovery signal from another node.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising notifying the remote node in response to receiving the discovery signal from the other node to enable the remote node to establish a connection with the other node.

31. The method of claim 26, further comprising communicating to the remote node that the apparatus is capable of supporting discovery for the remote node.

32. The method of claim 26, further comprising receiving a communication from the remote node that includes one or more attributes related to the discovery of the remote node.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the discovery of the remote node is supported by listening for a discovery signal from another node having at least one of the one or more attributes.

34. The method of claim 26, wherein the support for the discovery of the remote node continues in response to a keep-alive signal from the remote node.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the support for the discovery of the remote node is stopped in response to a timer expiring before receiving the keep-alive signal from the remote node.

36. The method of claim 34, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a broadcast of a discovery signal from the remote node.

37. The method of claim 34, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a transmission directed to the apparatus.

38. A method for wireless communication, comprising:

a processing system configured to use a remote node for discovery.

39. The method of claim 38 wherein the remote node is used for discovery by enabling the remote node to broadcast a discovery signal for an apparatus.

40. The method of claim 39, further comprising transmitting a keep-alive signal to cause the remote node to continue broadcasting the discovery signal.

41. The method of claim 40 further comprising sleeping for at least a portion of the time if the keep-alive signal is not being sent to the remote node.

42. The method of claim 40, further comprising broadcasting a second discovery signal.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the second discovery signal comprises the keep-alive signal.

44. The method of claim 40, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a transmission directed to the remote node.

45. The method of claim 39, further comprising listening for a discovery signal from another node.

46. The method of claim 38 wherein the remote node is used for discovery by enabling the remote node to listen for a discovery signal from another node.

47. The method of claim 46, further comprising listening for the discovery signal from the other node.

48. The method of claim 46, further comprising broadcasting a discovery signal.

49. The method of claim 38, further comprising receiving a communication from the remote node indicating that the remote node is capable of supporting discovery of devices.

50. The method of claim 38, further comprising communicating one or more attributes related to the discovery to the remote node to enable the remote node to discover another node having at least one of the one or more attributes.

51. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

means for connecting to a remote node; and

means for supporting discovery of the remote node.

52. The apparatus of claim 51, wherein the means for supporting discovery comprises means for broadcasting a discovery signal for the remote node.

53. The apparatus of claim 52, wherein the discovery signal comprises information indicating that the discovery signal is broadcast for the remote node.

54. The apparatus of claim 51, wherein the means for supporting discovery comprises means for listening for a discovery signal from another node.

55. The apparatus of claim 54 further comprising means for notifying the remote node in response to receiving the discovery signal from the other node to enable the remote node to establish a connection with the other node.

56. The apparatus of claim 51, further comprising means for communicating to the remote node that the apparatus is capable of supporting discovery for the remote node.

57. The apparatus of claim 51, wherein the means for connecting to a remote node comprises means for receiving a communication from the remote node that includes one or more attributes related to the discovery of the remote node.

58. The apparatus of claim 57, wherein the means for supporting discovery comprises means for listening for a discovery signal from another node having at least one of the one or more attributes.

59. The apparatus of claim 51, wherein the means for supporting discovery comprises means for continuing to support the discovery in response to a keep-alive signal from the remote node.

60. The apparatus of claim 59, further comprising a timer, and wherein the means for supporting discovery is configured to stop supporting the discovery for the remote node in response to the timer expiring before the keep-alive signal is received from the remote node.

61. The apparatus of claim 59, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a broadcast of a discovery signal from the remote node.

62. The apparatus of claim 59, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a transmission directed to the apparatus.

63. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

means for connecting to a remote node; and

means for using the remote node for discovery.

64. The apparatus of claim 63, wherein the means for using the remote node comprises means for enabling the remote node to broadcast a discovery signal for the apparatus.

65. The apparatus of claim 64, further comprising means for transmitting a keep-alive signal to cause the remote node to continue broadcasting the discovery signal.

66. The apparatus of claim 65 further comprising means for sleeping for at least a portion of the time if the keep-alive signal is not being sent to the remote node.

67. The apparatus of claim 65, further comprising means for broadcasting a second discovery signal.

68. The apparatus of claim 67, wherein the second discovery signal comprises the keep-alive signal.

69. The apparatus of claim 65, wherein the keep-alive signal comprises a transmission directed to the remote node.

70. The apparatus of claim 64, further comprising means for listening for a discovery signal from another node.

71. The apparatus of claim 63, wherein the means for using the remote node comprises means for enabling the remote node to listen for a discovery signal from another node.

72. The apparatus of claim 71, further comprising means for listening for the discovery signal from the other node.

73. The apparatus of claim 71, further comprising means for broadcasting a discovery signal.

74. The apparatus of claim 63, further comprising means for receiving a communication from the remote node indicating that the remote node is capable of supporting discovery of the apparatus.

75. The apparatus of claim 63, further comprising means for communicating one or more attributes related to the discovery to the remote node to enable the remote node to discover another node having at least one of the one or more attributes.

76. An access point, comprising:

a wireless interface configured to support a backhaul connection for an access terminal; and

a processing system configured to support the wireless interface, the processing system further configured to support discovery of the access terminal.

77. An access terminal, comprising:

a processing system configured to use an access point for discovery; and

a user interface supported by the processing system.

78. A computer program product for communication, comprising:

a machine-readable medium comprising instructions executable by a processing system to support discovery of remote nodes.

79. A computer program product for communication, comprising:

a machine-readable medium comprising instructions executable by a processing system to use a remote node for discovery.