Method and apparatus for controling multiple logical data flow in a variable data rate environment

• US 20020199008A1
• Filed: 06/20/2001
• Published: 12/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Andersen, Niels Peter Skov, Willis, Lawrence A., Stewart, Kenneth, Pecen, Mark Edward
• Granted Patent: US 6,973,030 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/11 Identifying congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/263 Rate modification at the source after receiving feedback
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 Multichannel or multilink protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/32 Architecture of open systems interconnection [OSI] 7-layer type protocol stacks, e.g. the interfaces between the data link level and the physical level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0205 at the air interface dynamic wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0252 per individual bearer or channel dynamic wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0284 detecting congestion or overload during communication monitoring arrangements H04L43/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0289 Congestion control load shedding arrangements in network planning H04W16/08; performing reselection for handling the traffic H04W36/22; wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/12 using signalling between network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

A method and apparatus that enables incremental control the flow of downlink data on an external interface-by-interface basis, reducing the risk of repeatedly exhausting internal memory resources. A mobile device (300), having a plurality of device interfaces (328-330) for transmitting data received from a network (306) through a network controller (302), includes an identity associating layer (322) that associates identifiers with packet data protocol contexts corresponding to the plurality of device interfaces. A general resource indicator (334) generates a first indication in response to system memory of the mobile device being substantially exhausted, and a private resource indicator (336) generates a second indication in response to private resources corresponding to the plurality of device interfaces being substantially exhausted. A control processing unit (332) generates a flow control indication signal in response to the first indication, the second indication, flow control information corresponding to the plurality of interfaces, and the identifiers associated by the identity associating layer. A bit-map generator (338) generates a bit-map, based on the flow control indication signal, that is transmitted to the radio network controller, which interprets the bit-map to discretely control transmission of data from the radio network controller to the plurality of device interfaces.

Claims

1. A mobile device having a plurality of device interfaces for transmitting data received from a network through a network controller, the mobile device comprising:

a data stack including an identity associating layer, the identity associating layer associating identifiers with packet data protocol contexts corresponding to the plurality of device interfaces;

a general resource indicator generating a first indication in response to system memory of the mobile device being substantially exhausted;

a private resource indicator generating a second indication in response to private resources corresponding to the plurality of device interfaces being substantially exhausted;

a control processing unit generating a flow control indication signal in response to the first indication, the second indication, flow control information corresponding to the plurality of interfaces, and the identifiers associated by the identity associating layer; and

a bit-map generator generating a bit-map, based on the flow control indication signal, discretely controlling transmission of data from the radio network controller to the plurality of device interfaces.

2. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the bit-map generated by the bit-map generator comprises:

a global flow control bit portion including the first indication; and

a flow control bit portion including bits corresponding to association of the identifiers with the packet data protocol contexts.

3. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the identifier corresponds to a radio bearer identity.

4. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the identifier corresponds to a packet flow identifier.

5. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein the flow control information corresponds to an interruption of a coupling at one or more of the plurality of interfaces.

6. A communication system transmitting data between a mobile device and a network through a radio network controller, the mobile device directing the data to a plurality of interfaces, the communication system comprising:

a data stack including an identifier associating layer associating identifiers with packet data protocol contexts corresponding to the plurality of interfaces;

a general resource indicator, positioned in the mobile device, generating a first indication in response to system memory of the mobile device being substantially exhausted;

a private resource indicator generating a second indication in response to private resources corresponding to the plurality of interfaces being substantially exhausted;

a first control processing unit generating a flow control indication signal in response to the first indication, the second indication, flow control information corresponding to the plurality of interfaces, and the identifiers associated by the identity associating layer;

a bit-map generator generating a bit-map based on the flow control indication signal; and

a second control processing unit interpreting the bit-map generated by the bit-map generator and discretely controlling the transmission of the data from the radio network controller to the plurality of interfaces.

7. The communication system of claim 6, wherein the bit-map generated by the bit-map generator comprises:

a global flow control bit portion including the first indication; and

a flow control bit portion including bits corresponding to association of the identifiers with the packet data protocol contexts.

8. The communication system of claim 6, wherein the identifier corresponds to a radio bearer identity.

9. The communication system of claim 6, wherein the identifier corresponds to a packet flow identifier.

10. The communication system of claim 6, wherein the flow control information corresponds to an interruption of a coupling at one or more of the plurality of interfaces.

11. The communication system of claim 6, further comprising a queuing mechanism receiving and organizing the data transmitted from the network to the radio network controller, wherein, in response to the second control processing unit disabling transmission of one or more data streams from the radio network controller to the plurality of device interfaces, subsequent receipt of the one or more data streams by the radio network controller is inserted within the queuing mechanism.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising the step of determining whether the flow control bit-map has changed since receipt of a prior generated flow control bit-map.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the identifier corresponds to a radio bearer identity.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the identifier corresponds to a packet flow identifier.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of generating a flow control bit-map comprises the steps of:

determining whether general resources of the mobile device have been substantially exhausted;

determining whether resources associated with each of the plurality of device interfaces has been substantially exhausted; and

determining whether an indication has been received from each the plurality of device interfaces to disable corresponding transmission of the data flow.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein, in response to general resources of the mobile device being substantially exhausted, resources associated with the plurality of device interfaces being substantially exhausted, and an indication being received from the plurality of device interfaces to disable the transmission of the data flow, the corresponding data flow to each of the plurality of device interfaces is disabled.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein, in response to general resources of the mobile device not being substantially exhausted, resources associated with the plurality of device interfaces not being substantially exhausted, and an no indication being received from the plurality of device interfaces to disable the transmission of the data flow, the method further comprises the steps of:

determining whether excess general resources of the mobile device are available;

determining whether excess private resources associated with the plurality of device interfaces is available; and

determining whether an indication has been received from each the plurality of device interfaces to enable corresponding transmission of the data flow.

12. A method for controlling multiple data flow between a mobile device and a network through a radio network controller, comprising the steps of:

associating a packet data protocol context with a corresponding identifier;

generating a flow control bit-map controlling transmission of the data flow to the mobile device, and transmitting the flow control bit-map from the mobile device to the radio network controller; and

discretely controlling transmission of the data flow from the radio network controller to a plurality of interfaces within the mobile device.