US 12,089,295 B2
Multiple virtual interfaces through a single physical interface
Gregory Nobutaka Nakanishi, San Diego, CA (US); Kwoktung Brian Lo, Palo Alto, CA (US); and Ken Haase, Pleasanton, CA (US)
Assigned to ARRIS ENTERPRISES LLC, Horsham, PA (US)
Filed by ARRIS Enterprises LLC, Suwanee, GA (US)
Filed on May 7, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/314,733.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/057,004, filed on Jul. 27, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0030665 A1, Jan. 27, 2022
Int. Cl. H04W 88/16 (2009.01); H04L 12/46 (2006.01); H04W 8/26 (2009.01); H04W 28/02 (2009.01); H04W 48/16 (2009.01); H04W 84/12 (2009.01)
CPC H04W 88/16 (2013.01) [H04L 12/4641 (2013.01); H04W 8/26 (2013.01); H04W 28/0268 (2013.01); H04W 48/16 (2013.01); H04W 84/12 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A gateway device for providing multiple virtual interfaces over a first physical Wi-Fi interface of the gateway device, the gateway device comprising:
a memory storing computer-readable instructions; and
a processor configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to:
configure the first physical Wi-Fi interface of the gateway device with a first virtual interface of the multiple virtual interfaces for a wide area network (WAN) side of the gateway device and a second virtual interface of the multiple virtual interfaces for a local area network (LAN) side of the gateway device, wherein the first physical Wi-Fi interface is a single physical Wi-Fi interface, wherein the first physical Wi-Fi interface comprises a radio, and wherein, when configuring the first physical Wi-Fi interface, the processor is further configured to:
assign a first service set identifier (WAN SSID) to the first virtual interface for the WAN side of the gateway device;
assign a second service set identifier (LAN SSID) to the second virtual interface for the LAN side of the gateway device; and
store the WAN SSID and the LAN SSID in the memory of the gateway device as virtual interface configuration data associated with the first physical Wi-Fi interface;
receive a packet at the first physical Wi-Fi interface of the gateway device;
determine whether the packet is received via the first virtual interface based on the virtual interface configuration data stored in the memory of the gateway device, the second virtual interface based on the virtual interface configuration data stored in the memory of the gateway device, or another physical interface of the gateway device; and
perform virtual input processing to manage flow of the packet to a router of the gateway device based on the determining that the packet is received via the first virtual interface or the second virtual interface, wherein, when performing the virtual input processing, the processor is further configured to:
tag the packet as WAN traffic associated with the first virtual interface based on the WAN SSID, or tag the packet as LAN traffic associated with the second virtual interface based on the LAN SSID; and
forward the packet to the router of the gateway device for packet forward processing;
wherein the radio comprises a single 6 gigahertz (GHz) radio for establishing a 6 GHz backhaul connection to a WAN adaptor and one or more wireless devices, wherein the gateway device configures the one or more wireless devices to communicate with the gateway device using the LAN SSID and configures the WAN adaptor to communicate with the gateway device using the WAN SSID, and wherein: if when the packet is received at the first virtual interface, the packet forward processing outputs the packet through the second virtual interface to at least one of the one or more wireless devices using the LAN SSID; and if when the packet is received at the second virtual interface, the packet forward processing outputs the packet through the first virtual interface to the WAN adaptor using the WAN SSID.