Method and apparatus for performing handover in a bluetooth radiocommunication system

• US 20050130656A1
• Filed: 03/13/2002
• Published: 06/16/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intellectual Ventures I LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Intellectual Ventures I LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Chen, Hongyuan
• Granted Patent: US 8,559,951 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/436
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0058 Transmission of hand-off measurement information, e.g. measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Apparatus and method for handing over, at a time instance, a first low power radio frequency transceiver participating in a first network of low power radio frequency transceivers using first network parameter(s) and controlled by a first master transceiver from the first network to a second network of low power radio frequency transceivers using second network parameter(s) and controlled by a second master transceiver. An indication of the time instance is sent to the first low power radio frequency transceiver. An indication of the time instance is also sent to the second master transceiver. An indication of the second network parameter(s) is sent to the first low power radio frequency transceiver. The first transceiver switches from using the first network parameter(s) to using the second network parameter(s) at time the time instance. The second master transceiver polls the first transceiver at the time instance using the second network parameters.

Claims

1. A low power radio frequency transceiver for controlling a first network of low power radio frequency transceivers, using first network parameter (s) and including a first transceiver, and for handing-over, at a time instance, the first transceiver from the first network of low power radio frequency transceivers to a second network of low power radio frequency transceivers, using second network parameter (s) and controlled by a second low power radio frequency transceiver, comprising:

transmission means; and

control means arranged to control the transmission means to send the second network parameter (s) to the first transceiver and an indication of the time instance to both the first transceiver and second transceiver.

2. A low power radio frequency transceiver as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first network parameter (s) is any one or more of:

an indication of a frequency hopping sequence used in the first network;

an identifier of the first network; and

a time base of the first network.

3. A low power radio frequency transceiver as claimed in claim 1 wherein the second network parameter (s) is any one or more of:

an indication of the frequency hopping sequence used in the second network;

an identifier of the second network; and

a time base of the second network.

4. A low power radio transceiver as claimed in claim 1 wherein the second low power radio frequency transceiver has a fixed identifying address and the second network parameter (s) comprises at least a portion of the fixed identifying address.

5. A low power radio transceiver as claimed in claim 1 wherein the second low power radio frequency transceiver has a free-running clock and the second network parameter (s) comprises means for the emulation of the second transceiver'"'"'s clock in the first transceiver.

6. A low power radio transceiver as claimed in claim 1 wherein the second low power radio frequency transceiver assigns temporary addresses to the low power radio frequency transceivers of the second network and directs a communication to a particular transceiver by using a particular temporary address, arranged to send an indication of the temporary address to be used by the second transceiver in communicating with the first transceiver, to the first transceiver.

7. A low power radio transceiver as claimed in claim 1 arranged to control the handover in dependence on communication quality measurements.

8. A low power radio transceiver as claimed in claim 7 further comprising reception means for receiving communication quality measurements.

9. A low power radio frequency transceiver as claimed in claim 1 wherein the control means is arranged to control the handover of the first transceiver to any one of a plurality of candidate networks controlled by candidate transceivers, by controlling the transmission means to send, to the first transceiver, the network parameter (s) for each of the candidate networks and an indication of the time instance of handover to each of the candidate networks and to send, to each candidate transceivers, an indication of the time instance of handover to that candidate transceiver.

10. A low power radio frequency transceiver as claimed in claim 1 arranged to form a physical connection to the second low power radio frequency transceiver wherein the transmission means is arranged to communicate via the physical connection and via low power radio frequency transmission means wherein the control means controls the transmission means to send the indication of the time instance to the second transceiver via the physical connection.

11. A low power radio frequency transceiver for participating in a first network of low power radio frequency transceivers, controlled by a first transceiver, by communicating, using first network parameter (s), with the first transceiver and for switching, at a time instance, to communicating, using second network parameter (s), with a second low power radio frequency transceiver controlling a second network of low power radio frequency transceivers comprising:

low power radio frequency reception means arranged to receive from the first transceiver the second network parameter (s) and an indication of the time instance; and

control means arranged to control the reception means at the time instance to switch from receiving in the first network using the first network parameter (s), to receiving in the second network using the second parameter (s).

12. A low power radio frequency transceiver for participating in a first network of low power radio frequency transceivers, including a second low power radio frequency transceiver, using first network parameters and controlled by a first low power radio frequency transceiver and for controlling a second network of low power radio frequency transceivers, using second network parameter (s), comprising:

reception means for receiving from the first transceiver an indication of a time instance;

transmission means; and

control means for controlling the transmission means, at the received time instance, to poll the second transceiver using the second network parameters and for controlling the reception means to receive, using the second network parameter, a reply to the poll.

13. A low power radio frequency transceiver as claimed in claim 12 wherein the control means controls the transmission means to send a packet having a header comprising an address of the second transceiver.

14. A low power radio frequency transceiver as claimed in claim 13 wherein the address of the transceiver is either a default address used for handover or is received from the first transceiver.

15. A low power radio frequency transceiver as claimed in claim 12, wherein the control means is arranged to control the transmission means to send an acknowledgement to the first transceiver using the first network parameters in response to a reply received from the second transceiver.

16. A low power radio transceiver as claimed in claim 12 having means for detecting the quality of the communication channel between it and the second transceiver and for sending an indication of the quality of communication to the first transceiver.

17. A low power radio transceiver as claimed in claim 12 arranged to form a physical connection to the first low power radio frequency transceiver wherein the reception means is arranged to communicate using the physical connection to receive from the first transceiver an indication of the time instance and using low power radio frequency reception means to receive from the second transceiver the reply to the poll.

18. Method of handing over, at a time instance, a first low power radio frequency transceiver participating in a first network of low power radio frequency transceivers using first network parameter (s) and controlled by a first master transceiver from the first network to a second network of low power radio frequency transceivers using second network parameter (s) and controlled by a second master transceiver comprising the steps of:

sending an indication of the time instance to the first low power radio frequency transceiver;

sending an indication of the time instance to the second master transceiver;

sending an indication of the second network parameter (s) to the first low power radio frequency transceiver; and

switching the first transceiver from using the first network parameter (s) to using the second network parameter (s).

19. A method as claimed in claim 18 wherein the poll is sent in the second network.

20. A method as claimed in claim 18 further comprising the step of sending a reply to the poll from the first transceiver to the second master in the second network.

21. A method as claimed in claim 20 further comprising sending an acknowledgement from the second master to the first master.