Patent ID: 8275261

Claim:
A method for power saving in a communications network comprising the steps of: (a) initiating sleep control message flow between a user device and a network device; (b) transitioning said user device to cyclic sleep mode; (c) determining a sleep time for said user device to be in a sleep mode wherein said user device consumes diminished power for communicating with said network device; (d) while said user device is in said cyclic sleep mode, if said network device needs to send data to said user device: (i) sending from said network device a data message; and (ii) said user device upon receiving said data message transitioning to a normal mode; and (e) while said user device is in said cyclic sleep mode, if said network device lacks data to send to said user device: (i) sending from said network device a sleep message to said user device; (ii) said network device suspending keepalive processes associated with said user device; and (iii) upon receiving at said user device said sleep message, said user device transitions to a sleep mode for said sleep time.