Observing this too. Unclear what's happening.

We’ve noticed brief connection drops only after an iPhone has been locked and asleep for a while—almost as if the Wi-Fi radio powers down and the access point simply queues traffic until the device wakes. When the phone is unlocked, the connection remains solid. Our use-case requires the link to stay alive continuously, even during extended sleep. Are there any iOS settings (or other device-level options) that can keep Wi-Fi awake under all circumstances? Beyond Wi-Fi configuration itself, are there iPhone- or iOS-specific factors that might influence connection stability while the device is locked? We don’t see the same behaviour on Android handsets connected to the exact same network.