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AppleGranted patentNetworks & wirelessInterest 6/10

Apple patents Wi-Fi system that groups devices using sensor data

Apple describes a wireless network setup where devices send normal data to a router while also sharing extra information like movement or app usage on a separate channel. The router uses this extra data to group devices together, allowing them to adjust their connections and share data more efficiently.

Why it mattersThis could make home Wi-Fi networks handle multiple devices better by letting the router understand how each phone or laptop is being used in real time.

In the filing’s own words

Systems, methods, and devices for grouping client devices based on sensor data in an assisted wireless communication system are provided. Sensor data may include device mobility, device type, and device application data usage, among other characteristics. An assisted wireless communication system may include client devices sending data to an access point. The clients may send conventional protocol data over a channel and, concurrently, send sensor data over an alternative channel. In some cases, client devices may exchange their protocol data, modify their own protocol data based on the exchanged data, and send the modified protocol data to the access point. This may allow the clients to adjust their grouping.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. An electronic device comprising: a network interface; and a processor communicatively coupled to the network interface and configured to: cause the network interface to send a first signal using a first channel to a first client; receive, using the network interface, a first plurality of compressed packets from the first client using the first channel while receiving, using the network interface, first sensor data from a second client using a second channel; cause the network interface to send a second signal using the first channel to the second client; receive, using the network interface, a second plurality of compressed packets from the second client using the first channel while receiving, using the network interface, second sensor data from the first client using a third channel; and form a group based on the first plurality of compressed packets, the second plurality of compressed packets, the first sensor data, and the second sensor data.

Facts

Company
Apple (Apple Inc.)
Official title
Assisted multi-user multi-input multi-output (MU-MIMO) communication system
Patent number
US12750098B2
Application number
18473974
Filed
Sep 25, 2023
Granted
Sep 29, 2026
Inventors
4
Claims
20

Classified under

H04B 7/0452 Electricity & electronicsH04L 69/18 Electricity & electronicsH04W 40/04 Electricity & electronicsH04W 84/12 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.