Patent ID: 7460503

Claim:
A method of beacon rebroadcast for use in a packet-based, centrally-controlled, wireless network, wherein there are two wireless networks each with its own central controller, the method comprising: broadcasting, from the central controller in the first network, a beacon packet containing a superframe timing field and a plurality of time reservation blocks, each time reservation block being assigned to and associated with a unique one of a plurality of devices in the first network and representing the reserved time slot during which the assigned device may broadcast; receiving, by a device in the first network but not within radio range of the central controller of the second network, the beacon packet including the time reservation block assigned to said device in the first network; embedding only the time reservation block assigned to said device in the first network, in a header portion of a data packet to be transmitted by said device in the first network; rebroadcasting, by said device in the first network in its reserved time slot, a quasi-beacon packet containing, from the beacon packet, only the time reservation block assigned to said device, said rebroadcasting comprising broadcasting said data packet with said header having embedded therein only said time reservation block assigned to said device; and receiving, by a device in the second network that is within radio range of said device in the first network but not within radio range of the central controller in the first network, said quasi-beacon packet, thereby allowing said device in the second network to detect the presence of the first network; wherein said device in the second network, upon receipt of said data packet with said header having embedded therein only said time reservation block assigned to said device in the first network, decodes only the header of said data packet, and recognizes that said data packet is not from the second network, whereupon, said device in the second network ignores the remainder of said data packet.