IP Library Granted Patent US 12,696,331
Granted Patent B2
US 12,696,331 · App. 18/597,856 · Granted Jul 28, 2026

Tunneled direct link setup latency management for non-collocated APs

Inventors: Yue Qi (Plano, TX); Boon Loong Ng (Plano, TX); Rubayet Shafin (Allen, TX); Peshal Nayak (Plano, TX); Vishnu Vardhan Ratnam (Plano, TX); Elliot Jen (Taipei City, TW)
Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
H04W76/12H04W52/0206H04W76/14
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,696,331
App. No.
18/597,856
Granted
Jul 28, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

Methods and apparatuses for handling TDLS latency issues in non-collocated APs. A method of wireless communication performed by a first STA comprises: initiating a TDLS procedure between the first STA and a second STA via an AP of a plurality of APs that are associated with the first STA and the second STA, wherein: a first subset of the plurality of APs form a logical AP multi-link device (MLD), and the second STA is associated with either the first AP or a second AP of the plurality of APs; determining, based on the TDLS procedure, whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated; and adjusting a response time for receiving data from the plurality of APs or from the second STA based on the determination of whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

Claims (57)

1 . A method of wireless communication performed by a first station (STA), the method comprising:

initiating a tunneled direct link setup (TDLS) procedure between the first STA and a second STA via a first access point (AP) of a plurality of APs that are associated with the first STA and the second STA, wherein:

a first subset of the plurality of APs form a logical AP multi-link device (MLD), and

the second STA is associated with either the first AP or a second AP of the plurality of APs;

determining, based on the TDLS procedure, whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated; and

adjusting a response time for receiving data from the plurality of APs or from the second STA based on the determination of whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated comprises determining whether the first AP of the plurality of APs is non-collocated with one or more other APs of the plurality of APs, wherein the first STA and the second STA are associated with a same AP of the logical AP MLD.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first STA and the second STA are respectively associated with other APs of the plurality of APs.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein:

determining whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated comprises receiving a message from the plurality of APs regarding collocation of the plurality of APs; and

adjusting the response time for receiving data from the plurality of APs comprises receiving a request from the plurality of APs to adjust the response time.

5 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving, from the second STA, a request to extend a TDLS response time when the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein:

the TDLS procedure includes a TDLS peer power saving mode (PSM) procedure, a TDLS discovery procedure, a TDLS setup procedure, or a TDLS teardown procedure,

determining whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated comprises receiving a message from the plurality of APs regarding collocation of the plurality of APs, and

adjusting the response time for receiving data from the plurality of APs comprises receiving a request from the plurality of APs to adjust the response time when the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein a second subset of the plurality of APs forms a physical AP MLD, the method further comprising:

receiving, from the logical AP MLD, an indication associated with switching a media access control (MAC) address that is associated with a non-collocated AP of the plurality of APs from the logical AP MLD to the physical AP MLD.

8 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising receiving, from either the second STA or the non-collocated AP of the plurality of the APs, TDLS response information including the MAC address that was switched from the logical AP MLD to the physical AP MLD.

9 . A first station (STA) comprising:

a transceiver; and

a processor operably coupled to the transceiver, the processor configured to:

initiate a tunneled direct link setup (TDLS) procedure between the first STA and a second STA via a first access point (AP) of a plurality of APs that are associated with the first STA and the second STA, wherein:

a first subset of the plurality of APs form a logical AP multi-link device (MLD), and

the second STA is associated with either the first AP or a second AP of the plurality of APs;

determine, based on the TDLS procedure, whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated; and

adjust a response time for receiving data from the plurality of APs or from the second STA based on the determination of whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

10 . The first STA of claim 9 , wherein to determine whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated, the processor is further configured to determine whether the first AP of the plurality of APs is non-collocated with one or more other APs of the plurality of APs, wherein the first STA and the second STA are associated with a same AP of the logical AP MLD.

11 . The first STA of claim 9 , wherein the first STA and the second STA are respectively associated with other APs of the plurality of APs.

12 . The first STA of claim 9 , wherein:

to determine whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated, the processor is further configured to receive a message from the plurality of APs regarding collocation of the plurality of APs; and

to adjust the response time for receiving data from the plurality of APs, the processor is further configured to receive a request from the plurality of APs to adjust the response time.

13 . The first STA of claim 9 , wherein the processor is further configured to receive, from the second STA, a request to extend a TDLS response time when the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

14 . The first STA of claim 9 , wherein:

the TDLS procedure includes a TDLS peer power saving mode (PSM) procedure, a TDLS discovery procedure, a TDLS setup procedure, or a TDLS teardown procedure,

to determine whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated, the processor is further configured to receive a message from the plurality of APs regarding collocation of the plurality of APs, and

to adjust the response time for receiving data from the plurality of APs, the processor is further configured to receive a request from the plurality of APs to adjust the response time when the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

15 . The first STA of claim 9 , wherein:

a second subset of the plurality of APs forms a physical AP MLD, and

the processor is further configured to receive, from the logical AP MLD, an indication associated with switching a media access control (MAC) address that is associated with a non-collocated AP of the plurality of APs from the logical AP MLD to the physical AP MLD.

16 . The first STA of claim 15 , wherein the processor is further configured to receive, from either the second STA or the non-collocated AP of the plurality of the APs, TDLS response information including the MAC address that was switched from the logical AP MLD to the physical AP MLD.

17 . A first access point (AP) comprising:

a transceiver; and

a processor operably coupled to the transceiver, the processor configured to:

initiate a tunneled direct link setup (TDLS) procedure between a first station (STA) and a second STA, the first AP associated with a plurality of APs that are associated with the first STA and the second STA, wherein:

a first subset of the plurality of APs form a logical AP multi-link device (MLD), and

the second STA is associated with either the first AP or a second AP of the plurality of APs; and

adjust a response time for transmitting data to the first STA based on a determination associated with the TDLS procedure whether the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

18 . The first AP of claim 17 , wherein:

the TDLS procedure includes a TDLS peer power saving mode (PSM) procedure, a TDLS discovery procedure, a TDLS setup procedure, or a TDLS teardown procedure, and

the transceiver is configured to:

transmit a message from the plurality of APs regarding collocation of the plurality of APs, and

transmit a request from the plurality of APs to adjust the response time when the plurality of APs are non-collocated.

19 . The first AP of claim 17 , wherein:

a second subset of the plurality of APs forms a physical AP MLD, and

the processor is further configured to transmit, via the transceiver, an indication associated with switching a media access control (MAC) address that is associated with a non-collocated AP of the plurality of APs from the logical AP MLD to the physical AP MLD.

20 . The first AP of claim 19 , wherein the processor is further configured to transmit, via the transceiver, TDLS response information associated with the non-collocated AP of the plurality of the APs including the MAC address that was switched from the logical AP MLD to the physical AP MLD.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 23, 2026
From: JEN, ELLIOT
To: ADI WORLDLINK LLC
Reel/Frame 075052/0756 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 23, 2026
From: SAMSUNG RESEARCH AMERICA, INC.
To: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 075053/0005 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 19, 2026
From: QI, YUE; NG, BOON LOONG; SHAFIN, RUBAYET; NAYAK, PESHAL; RATNAM, VISHNU VARDHAN
To: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 075014/0224 →
Continuity (3)
Provisional Application 63604364 · Nov 30, 2023
Provisional Application 63451484 · Mar 10, 2023
Related Publication 20240306228A1 · Sep 12, 2024
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