Patent ID: 7720038

Claim:
A wireless network in a communication infrastructure having a packet switched backbone network, the wireless network comprising: an access point, communicatively coupled to the packet switched backbone network, having access point processing circuitry and access point wireless transceiver circuitry; a plurality of client devices, each having client processing circuitry and client wireless transceiver circuitry; the access point processing circuitry, using the access point wireless transceiver circuitry and an associated set of communication parameters: managing communications both between the plurality of client devices and the packet switched backbone network; receiving reception characteristics from at least some of the plurality of client devices, each reception characteristic received from a client device relating to evaluations made by the client device regarding transmissions intercepted by the client device, the intercepted transmissions between another of the plurality of client devices and the access point; based upon the received reception characteristics, selecting a first client device to act as a relay proxy to relay wireless transmissions between the access point and a second client device; and directing the first client device to act as a relay proxy to relay wireless transmissions between the access point and the second client device.