Power adaption in a multi-station network

• US 20050063356A1
• Filed: 10/07/2004
• Published: 03/24/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: James David Larsen, Mark Sievert Larsen
• Original Assignee: James David Larsen, Mark Sievert Larsen
• Inventors: Larsen, Mark Sievert, Larsen, James David
• Granted Patent: US 7,697,952 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/351
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/08 Monitoring or testing based on specific metrics, e.g. QoS, energy consumption or environmental parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0829 Packet loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0852 Delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0864 Round trip delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/12 Network monitoring probes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/70 Routing based on monitoring results
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/14 Spectrum sharing arrangements between different networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0219 where the power saving management affects multiple terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0245 according to signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/04 TPC
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/10 Open loop power control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/223 predicting future states of the transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/226 using past references to control power, e.g. look-up-table
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/228 using past power values or information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/242 taking into account path loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/243 taking into account interferences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/246 where the output power of a terminal is based on a path parameter calculated in said terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/247 where the output power of a terminal is based on a path parameter sent by another terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/46 : in multi hop networks, e.g. wireless relay networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/54 : based on quality criteria
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 : in wireless communication networks

Abstract

The invention relates to a method of operating a communication network, the network comprising a plurality of stations which are able to transmit data to and receive data from one another. The method comprises monitoring, at each station, the transmission path quality between that station and each other station with which that station can communicate. Data corresponding to the monitored path quality is recorded at each station, thereby permitting a transmission power value based on the relevant path quality data to be selected when transmitting data to another station. Thus, the probability of transmitting data to any selected station at an optimum power level is increased. Each station transmits path quality data in its own transmissions as well as local noise/interference data, so that other stations can obtain path quality data for a particular station even if they are out of range of that particular station. The invention extends to communication apparatus which can be used to implement the method.

Claims

1. A method of operating a communication network comprising a plurality of stations able to transmit data to and receive data from one another, the method comprising:

a) transmitting data from an originating station to a destination station, either directly or via one or more intermediate stations;

b) monitoring, at each station, the path quality between that station and each other station with which that station communicates;

c) including, in each station'"'"'s transmissions to other stations, path quality data corresponding to the monitored path quality between the respective stations; and

d) monitoring, at each station, the transmissions of other stations communicating with each other, so that a first station monitoring a transmission from a second station within range of the first station to a third station out of range of the first station can obtain path quality data relating to the third station.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the monitoring of path quality between stations includes monitoring at least one of the path loss, phase distortion, time delay, Doppler shift and multipath fading characteristics of a channel between the stations.

3. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2 including setting, at each station, a transmission power value based on the recorded path quality data associated with a selected other station when transmitting data to said selected other station, thereby to increase the probability of transmitting data to said selected other station at an optimum power level.

4. A method according to claim 1 including monitoring, from a first station transmitting data, the background noise/interference at a second station receiving a data transmission and adjusting the transmission power value at the station transmitting data to the receiving station, thereby to maintain the required signal to noise ratio at the receiving station.

5. A method according to claim 2 including monitoring, from a first station transmitting data, the background noise/interference at a second station receiving a data transmission and adjusting the transmission power value at the station transmitting data to the receiving station, thereby to maintain the required signal to noise ratio at the receiving station.

6. A method according to claim 3 including monitoring, from a first station transmitting data, the background noise/interference at a second station receiving a data transmission and adjusting the transmission power value at the station transmitting data to the receiving station, thereby to maintain the required signal to noise ratio at the receiving station.

7. A method according to claim 6 wherein each station includes local background noise/interference data in at least some of its transmissions to other stations, for use by the other stations in adjusting their transmission power values when transmitting data to said each station.

8. A method according to claim 6 including adjusting the data rate of message data transmitted from a first station to a second station according to the transmission power value set at the first station and the required signal to noise ratio at the second station.

9. A method according to claim 7 including adjusting the data rate of message data transmitted from a first station to a second station according to the transmission power value set at the first station and the required signal to noise ratio at the second station.

10. A method according to claim 6 including adjusting the length of message data packets transmitted from a first station to a second station according to the transmission power value set at the first station and the required signal to noise ratio at the second station.

11. A method according to claim 7 including adjusting the length of message data packets transmitted from a first station to a second station according to the transmission power value set at the first station and the required signal to noise ratio at the second station.

12. A method according to claim 8 including adjusting the length of message data packets transmitted from a first station to a second station according to the transmission power value set at the first station and the required signal to noise ratio at the second station.

13. A method according to claim 9 including adjusting the length of message data packets transmitted from a first station to a second station according to the transmission power value set at the first station and the required signal to noise ratio at the second station.

14. A method according to claim 1 wherein each station monitors the transmissions of other stations to obtain background noise/interference data therefrom, so that a first station monitoring a transmission from a second station within range of the first station to a third station out of range of the first station can obtain background noise/interference data relating to the third station.

15. A method according to claim 1 including selecting, opportunistically, a station for transmission of data thereto according to the path quality and/or background noise/interference data associated therewith.