Apple patents system to prioritize data feedback on phones
Apple has been granted a patent for a method that helps phones manage how quickly they send confirmation signals back to a network. The system assigns importance levels to different types of data, such as a video stream versus a background update, and slows down the feedback for less important data to save bandwidth.
In the filing’s own words
Systems, methods, devices, and circuitries are provided for downlink flow control. In one example, a method for a user equipment (UE) includes determining respective priorities of uplink (UL) feedback packets based on a respective UE-assigned priority of an application or data flow with which the respective UL feedback packet is associated; and selectively transmitting the respective UL feedback packets based on the respective UE-assigned priorities.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. A user equipment (UE) comprising a memory and one or more processors, wherein the one or more processors, when executing instructions stored in the memory, are configured to cause the UE to: assign a UE-assigned priority to a first downlink (DL) data flow and a second DL data flow, wherein the UE-assigned priority of the first DL data flow is higher than the UE-assigned priority of the second DL data flow; determine, based on the UE-assigned priorities, a reduced feedback rate for transmission of second UL feedback packets associated with the second DL data flow and a higher feedback rate for transmission of first UL feedback packets associated with the first of DL data flow, wherein the first UL feedback packets and the second UL feedback packets comprise acknowledgement of DL data or handshaking-related information requested by a DL packet; control a rate of transmission of the second UL feedback packets based on the reduced feedback rate; and control a rate of transmission of the first UL feedback packets based on the higher feedback rate.
Facts
- Company
- Apple (Apple Inc.)
- Official title
- Flow prioritization
- Patent number
- US12756669B2
- Application number
- 18476781
- Filed
- Sep 28, 2023
- Granted
- Oct 6, 2026
- Inventors
- 4
- Claims
- 25
Classified under
H04L 47/323 Electricity & electronicsH04L 47/24 Electricity & electronicsH04L 47/6275 Electricity & electronicsMore from Apple in Networks & wireless
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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.