Method and system for a quality of service mechanism for a wireless network

• US 20060045051A1
• Filed: 11/10/2004
• Published: 03/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Atmel Corporation (Microchip Technology Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Atmel Corporation (Microchip Technology Incorporated)
• Inventors: Karoubalis, Theodore, Floros, Andreas
• Application Number:
  US10/986,344
• Publication Number:
  US 20060045051A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/332
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/26 Resource reservation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/12 Wireless traffic scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/02 Hybrid access
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/06 using polling
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/08 Non-scheduled access, e.g. ALOHA hybrid access H04W74/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices

Abstract

A quality of service mechanism for a wireless network includes reserving time for contention-based transmissions of station devices under a polling-based channel access function in an access point. Also included is deriving a scheduled polling service under access rules of the polling-based channel access function, wherein admission capability and bandwidth management of the wireless network are enhanced.

Claims

1. A method for a quality of service mechanism for a wireless network, the method comprising:

reserving time for contention-based transmissions of station devices under a polling-based channel access function in an access point; and

deriving a scheduled polling service under access rules of the polling-based channel access function, wherein admission capability and bandwidth management of the wireless network are enhanced.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein reserving time further comprises defining a reserved-time length for contention-based transmissions.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein deriving a scheduled polling service further comprises calculating a service interval for scheduling transmission operations under the access rules.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein calculating a service interval further comprises calculating transmission operation lengths to be granted to all admitted traffic streams within one service interval, wherein a transmission operation length that is not used for actual transmissions is reduced.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising expanding a length of transmission operations granted to admitted traffic streams on a predetermined basis in order to avoid possible queue overflows.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising utilizing a pending queue value for each of the admitted traffic streams and an aggregated pending queue value to derive a required transmission operation expansion length.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising utilizing a programmable threshold as a value needing to be reached by the pending queue value in order to trigger transmission operation length expansion.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising preventing transmission operation length expansion when a maximum service interval parameter of the traffic streams that should be serviced after the transmission operation length expansion is violated.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising re-polling traffic streams for which the transmission operation length expansion was not allowed substantially immediately after an end of all scheduled transmission operations within a current service interval using transmission operations with a length equal to the required transmission operation expansion length.

10. A system for a quality of service mechanism for a wireless network, the system comprising:

QSTAs (quality of service stations); and

a QAP (quality of service access point) networked to the QSTAs via the wireless network, the QAP reserving time for contention-based transmissions of the QSTAs under a polling-based channel access function in an access point, and deriving a scheduled polling service under access rules of the polling-based channel access function, wherein admission capability and bandwidth management of the wireless network are enhanced

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the QAP reserves time by defining a reserved-time length for contention-based transmissions.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the QAP derives a scheduled polling service by calculating a service interval for scheduling transmission operations under the access rules.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the QAP calculates transmission operation lengths to be granted to all admitted traffic streams within one service interval, wherein a transmission operation length that is not used for actual transmissions is reduced.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein the QAP further expands a length of transmission operations granted to admitted traffic streams on a predetermined basis in order to avoid possible queue overflows.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the QAP further utilizes a pending queue value for each of the admitted traffic streams and an aggregated pending queue value to derive a required transmission operation expansion length.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the QAP further utilizes a programmable threshold as a value needing to be reached by the pending queue value in order to trigger transmission operation length expansion.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the QAP further prevents transmission operation length expansion when a maximum service interval parameter of the traffic streams that should be serviced after the transmission operation length expansion is violated.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the QAP further re-polls traffic streams for which the transmission operation length expansion was not allowed substantially immediately after an end of all scheduled transmission operations within a current service interval using transmission operations with a length equal to the required transmission operation expansion length.

19. A method for a quality of service mechanism for a wireless network, the method comprising:

deriving a scheduled polling service under access rules of the polling-based channel access function to control transmission operations length, wherein unused transmission operation length is reduced, certain transmission operations length is expanded to avoid queue overflows, and provision of extra transmission operations at a schedule end occurs.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein deriving further comprises calculating transmission operation lengths to be granted to all admitted traffic streams within one service interval, utilizing a pending queue value for each of the admitted traffic streams and an aggregated pending queue value to derive a required transmission operation expansion length, utilizing a programmable threshold as a value needing to be reached by the pending queue value in order to trigger transmission operation length expansion, and re-polling traffic streams for which the transmission operation length expansion was not allowed substantially immediately after an end of all scheduled transmission operations within a current service interval using transmission operations with a length equal to the required transmission operation expansion length.

21. A computer readable medium containing program instructions for a quality of service mechanism for a wireless network, the program instructions for:

reserving time for contention-based transmissions of station devices under a polling-based channel access function in an access point; and

deriving a scheduled polling service under access rules of the polling-based channel access function, wherein admission capability and bandwidth management of the wireless network are enhanced

22. The computer readable medium of claim 21 wherein reserving time further comprises defining a reserved-time length for contention-based transmissions.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 22 wherein deriving a scheduled polling service further comprises calculating a service interval for scheduling transmission operations under the access rules.

24. The computer readable medium of claim 23 wherein calculating a service interval further comprises calculating transmission operation lengths to be granted to all admitted traffic streams within one service interval, wherein a transmission operation length that is not used for transmissions is reduced.

25. The computer readable medium of claim 24 further comprising expanding a length of transmission operations granted to admitted traffic streams on a predetermined basis in order to avoid possible queue overflows.

26. The computer readable medium of claim 25 further comprising utilizing a pending queue value for each of the admitted traffic streams and an aggregated pending queue value to derive a required transmission operation expansion length.

27. The computer readable medium of claim 26 further comprising utilizing a programmable threshold as a value needing to be reached by the pending queue value in order to trigger transmission operation length expansion.

28. The computer readable medium of claim 27 further comprising preventing transmission operation length expansion when a maximum service interval parameter of the traffic streams that should be serviced after the transmission operation length expansion is violated.

29. The computer readable medium of claim 28 further comprising re-polling traffic streams for which the transmission operation length expansion was not allowed substantially immediately after an end of all scheduled transmission operations within a current service interval using transmission operations with a length equal to the required transmission operation expansion length.