Patent ID: 7639661

Claim:
A wireless communication system that performs a communication operation independent of a controlling station, said wireless communication system comprising: a plurality of communication stations each configured to maintain at least one neighboring-station list of neighboring communication stations and a save list of overlapping neighboring communication stations, transmit a beacon signal, including a beacon reception timing information, at a predetermined frame period, manage a neighboring communication station in accordance with the beacon signal from another communication station, issue a request to change a beacon transmission timing upon an overlap between an overlapping beacon signal from the overlapping communication station and beacon reception timing information in the neighboring-station list of the communication station, wherein the overlapping neighboring communication station that receives the request is configured to find an open time in the predetermined frame period and is configured to set the beacon transmission timing of said overlapping communication station, the overlapping neighboring communication stations employing beacon reception timing information that overlaps beacon reception timing information of communication stations in the neighboring-station list, and the beacon reception timing information of the overlapping neighboring communication stations in the save list cannot be placed in the predetermined frame period.