Adaptive network supporting single to concurrent interfering wireless transmissions

• US 20080113640A1
• Filed: 11/09/2006
• Published: 05/15/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bennett, James D.
• Granted Patent: US 8,194,587 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/303
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/18 Negotiating wireless communication parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/541 using the level of interference

Abstract

A wireless network infrastructure supporting a plurality of wireless end point devices containing a wireless access point and a plurality of end point wireless devices that supports single transmission and reception and/or concurrent interfering transmission and reception. The wireless access point transmits data to the end point wireless devices that supports single transmission and reception during a first portion of a first data transmission period and simultaneously transmits data to the end point wireless devices that supports concurrent interfering transmission and reception during a second portion of the first data transmission period. The wireless access point simultaneously receives data from the end point wireless devices that supports concurrent interfering transmission and reception during a second data transmission period. The wireless access point detects and separates data that arrive from the Plurality of end point wireless devices that supports concurrent interfering transmission and reception.

Claims

1. A wireless network infrastructure supporting a plurality of end point devices, the wireless network infrastructure comprising:

an access point;

a first end point device, communicatively coupled to the access point, having first receiver circuitry that supports single reception;

a second end point device, communicatively coupled to the access point, having second receiver circuitry that supports concurrent interfering receptions;

a third end point device, communicatively coupled to the access point, having third receiver circuitry that supports concurrent interfering receptions;

the access point transmits first data to first receiver circuitry of the first end point device during a first portion of a frame; and

the access point concurrently transmits second data and third data during a second portion of the frame, the second data destined for the second receiver circuitry of the second end point device and third data destined for the third receiver circuitry of the third end point device.

2. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 1, wherein the second receiver circuitry extracts the second data from the concurrent transmission of the second data and the third data.

3. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 1, wherein the third receiver circuitry extracts the second data and at least a portion of the third data from the concurrent transmission of the second data and the third data.

4. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 1, wherein the access point further concurrently receives fourth data and fifth data from the second end point device and third end point device during a third portion of the frame.

5. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 4, wherein the access point extracts the fourth data and the fifth data.

6. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 1, wherein the access point delivers contention information during a beacon period of the frame.

7. A wireless network infrastructure that supports both a first type of wireless receiver circuitry operable to at least receive concurrent interfering transmissions and a second type of wireless receiver circuitry operable to only receive single transmissions, the wireless network infrastructure comprising:

a first end point device having first receiver circuitry, the first receiver circuitry comprising either the first type of wireless receiver circuitry or the second type of wireless receiver circuitry;

a second end point device having second receiver circuitry, the second receiver circuitry comprising either the first type of wireless receiver circuitry or the second type of wireless receiver circuitry; and

an access point, based on interaction with the first end point device and the second end point device, adapts a frame contention of a wireless local area network protocol to accommodate the first receiver circuitry and the second receiver circuitry.

8. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 7, wherein the access point provides the accommodation by limiting at least some transmissions, from the access point, to single transmissions.

9. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 7, wherein the access point provides the accommodation by supporting concurrent interfering transmissions, from the access point.

10. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 7, wherein the access point adapts the frame by defining at least one first frame portion in which transmissions from the access point are limited to single transmissions, and at least one second frame portion wherein concurrent interfering transmissions are permitted.

11. A wireless network infrastructure that supports both a first type of wireless receiver circuitry adapted to at least receive concurrent interfering transmissions and a second type of wireless receiver circuitry adapted to only receive single transmissions, the wireless network infrastructure comprising:

a first end point device having first receiver circuitry, the first receiver circuitry comprising either the first type of wireless receiver circuitry or the second type of wireless receiver circuitry;

a second end point device having second receiver circuitry, the second receiver circuitry comprising either the first type of wireless receiver circuitry or the second type of wireless receiver circuitry;

an access point having wireless transmitter circuitry, the wireless transmitter circuitry supports single transmissions for communicating to at least the first type of wireless receiver circuitry and concurrent interfering transmissions for communicating to the second type of wireless receiver circuitry; and

the access point selects between the single transmissions and the concurrent interfering transmissions to accommodate the first receiver circuitry and the second receiver circuitry.

12. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 11, wherein the at least the first type of wireless receiver circuitry comprising either the first type of wireless receiver circuitry or the combination of the first type of wireless receiver circuitry and the second type of wireless receiver circuitry.

13. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 11 further comprising a third end point device having a third wireless receiver circuitry comprising both the first type of wireless receiver circuitry and the second type of wireless receiver circuitry, the third wireless receiver circuitry adapts to support the single transmissions and the concurrent interfering transmissions from the first wireless transmitter circuitry of the access point.

14. A wireless network infrastructure comprising:

a first end point device having first wireless receiver circuitry and first wireless transmitter circuitry, the first wireless receiver circuitry supports concurrent interfering transmissions;

a second end point device having second wireless receiver circuitry and second wireless transmitter circuitry, the second wireless receiver circuitry supports single transmissions; and

an access point having third wireless receiver circuitry and third wireless transmitter circuitry, the third wireless transmitter circuitry delivers single transmissions to communicate with the second end point device, the third wireless transmitter circuitry delivers the concurrent interfering transmissions to communicate with the first end point device.

15. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 14 further comprising a third end point device having fourth wireless receiver circuitry and fourth wireless transmitter circuitry.

16. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 15, wherein the fourth receiver circuitry supports both single transmissions and concurrent interfering transmissions.

17. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 16, the third wireless transmitter circuitry adapts to deliver either single transmissions or the concurrent interfering transmissions to communicate with the third end point device.

18. A wireless network infrastructure comprising:

a plurality of end point devices;

a first of the plurality of end point devices having first wireless receiver circuitry and first wireless transmitter circuitry;

a second of the plurality of end point devices having second wireless receiver circuitry and second wireless transmitter circuitry;

an access point having third wireless receiver circuitry and third wireless transmitter circuitry;

the access point manages a protocol that adapts to enable or disable support for concurrent interfering transmissions from the first wireless transmitter and the second wireless transmitter; and

the access point directs the adaption based on interaction with both the first of the plurality of end point devices and the second of the plurality of end point devices.

19. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 18, wherein concurrent interfering transmissions comprises a plurality of transmissions in a single radio band.

20. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 18, wherein the protocol defines at least one first portion of a frame wherein transmissions are limited to single transmissions.

21. The wireless network infrastructure of claim 18, wherein the protocol defines at least one second portion of the frame wherein concurrent interfering transmissions are permitted.

22. A method performed by a wireless access point that communicates a plurality of packets with a plurality of end point wireless devices, the method comprising:

receiving first of the plurality of packets destined for single transmissions capable device;

receiving second and third of the plurality of packets destined for concurrent interfering transmissions capable device;

identifying single and concurrent interfering transmissions capable end point devices;

selecting protocol operation in response to the identification;

sending the first of the plurality of packets to the single transmissions capable end point devices during a first portion of a frame; and

transmitting the second and third of the plurality of packets to the concurrent interfering transmissions of to the concurrent interfering transmissions capable end point devices during a second portion of the frame.

23. The method of claim 22 further comprising:

receiving a plurality of packets concurrently from the plurality of end point wireless devices; and

applying detection and separation algorithms to the received plurality of packets to separate the packets arriving from each of the plurality of end point devices.