Embodiments of the present specification relate generally to wireless local area networks, and more particularly to systems and methods for real-time monitoring and characterization of transient network conditions experienced by client devices that are coupled to the wireless local area networks.
A wireless local area network (WLAN) is a wireless computer network that links two or more components or devices using a wireless distribution method within a determined area such as a home, school, hospital, computer laboratory, or office building. Currently, WLAN hardware and protocols predominantly follow various versions of the IEEE 802.11 standard. In general, all components that can connect into a wireless medium in a WLAN are referred to as stations (STA). Typically, the stations are equipped with WLAN hardware, firmware, and drivers, also known as Wireless Network Interface Controllers (WNIC). These stations may be generally categorized as wireless access points (APs) and client devices. In one example, the wireless APs may include wireless routers which act as base stations for the WLAN. Some non-limiting examples of mobile and fixed client devices include patient monitoring devices, ambulatory hubs, wearable devices, mobile phones, tablets, laptops, handheld devices, and servers.
Wireless local area networks based on the IEEE 802.11 standard operate in several different modes. In one example, the client devices connect to the APs to join the WLAN. This enables users of the client devices to move around within a local coverage area and still be connected to the network. Moreover, the WLAN also provides a connection for the client devices to the wider Internet.
Typically, the APs are strategically located at different locations within the local coverage area to provide the desired wireless service to client devices within range. Further, when a client device enters the WLAN, the client device may associate itself with one of the APs to communicate application data to an end device or another client device. Also, the client device may roam freely by transitioning from one access point (AP) to another AP within the coverage area of the WLAN.
Generally, in caregiving facilities such as hospitals, the client devices are primarily wireless telemetry devices. Wireless telemetry devices have a sensing component and a communication component that enable the measurement of physical or biological parameters and transmission of the measured data over a communication network. The performance and dependability of patient monitoring and telemetry is heavily dependent on the wireless local area network. Wireless telemetry devices are predominantly mobile, transitioning between APs within the coverage area of the hospital WLAN. Typically, device manufacturers of these wireless telemetry devices enter a service level agreement (SLA) with the hospitals to stipulate a minimal level of service that the wireless network must provide to a wireless telemetry device. However, enforcement of the SLA may be problematic because of the transient nature of the wireless links between client devices and various APs of the WLANs.
Commonly, network performance with respect to the SLA may be determined at the AP by collecting network wide statistics. However, these statistics may only serve as a representation of general network health. Also, these statistics may fail to capture transient network characteristics in real-time at different coverage areas of the WLAN. In one example, statistics collected at the APs of the WLAN may capture the quality-of-service characteristics of the network. However, transient congestion points at certain network coverage areas may not be detectable at the APs. Moreover, these statistics may be limited to downlink traffic, overlooking key network metrics that may be only determined from client devices transmitting on the uplinks to the APs. Furthermore, leveraging the distributed location and mobility of the client devices within the wireless local network coverage area to discover transient network characteristics in real-time is often overlooked.