WLAN having load balancing by access point admission/termination

• US 20030134642A1
• Filed: 11/12/2002
• Published: 07/17/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Yin, Hujun, Leung, Kin K., Kostic, Zoran
• Granted Patent: US 7,406,319 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/450
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/24 Multipath
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/023 Multiplexing of multicarrier modulation signals multicarrier modulation H04L27/2601
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/06 based on traffic conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 Selecting an access point

Abstract

A network includes access points that admit/terminate mobile station associations based upon the loading level of the access point and/or whether a mobile station can associate with a further access point. Mobile stations transmit information indicative of the access points to which they can associate. The access points determine whether to admit/terminate a mobile station association based upon access point loading.

Claims

1. A method of controlling access point loading in a wireless network, comprising:

receiving information transmitted by a mobile station to a first one of a plurality of access points, the information including an indication of one or more access points in the plurality of access points to which the mobile station can attempt to associate; and

determining whether to admit/terminate an association of the mobile station to the first one of the plurality of access points based upon a loading level of the first one of the plurality of access points.

2. The method according to claim 1, further including determining whether the mobile station can establish an association with a second one of the plurality of access points.

3. The method according to claim 2, further including terminating an association between the mobile station and the first one of the plurality of access points and establishing an association between the mobile station and the second one of the plurality of access points.

4. The method according to claim 3, further including storing an identification of the first one of the plurality of access points.

5. The method according to claim 4, further including not requesting an association with the first one of the plurality of access points by the mobile station based upon the association termination.

6. The method according to claim 1, further including not requesting an association with the first one of the plurality of access points by the mobile station after being denied an association.

7. The method according to claim 1, further including receiving the information from the mobile station in an association request frame.

8. The method according to claim 7, further including receiving the information from the mobile station in a capability information subfield within the association request frame.

9. The method according to claim 1, further including storing the information in a database.

10. The method according to claim 1, further including determining the loading level of the first one of the plurality of access points by at least determining a number of currently associated mobile stations.

11. The method according to claim 1, further including determining a loading level of the first one of the plurality of access points by determining one or more of a number of currently associated mobile stations, link bandwidth, traffic levels, and a measurement of received signal power from a subset of mobile stations.

12. An access point, comprising:

a transceiver for providing communication with a mobile station over a radio link;

a memory for storing information including for one or more mobile stations how many access points each of the one or more mobile stations can associate with; and

an association module for determining whether to accept/terminate an association with a mobile station based upon a loading level of the access point and the stored information for the one or more mobile stations.

13. A mobile station, comprising:

a transceiver for providing communication with an access point over a radio link including transmitting a message containing information relating to access points with which the mobile station can associate.

14. The mobile station according to claim 13, further including a memory for storing an identification of an access point that has denied/terminated association with the mobile station.