PERSONAL AREA NETWORK DATA ENCAPSULATION IN WLAN COMMUNICATIONS

• US 20080175213A1
• Filed: 10/12/2007
• Published: 07/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hansen, Christopher J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,940,751 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/18 Negotiating wireless communication parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

An integrated circuit radio transceiver and associated method comprises a multi-mode device operable to support personal area network communications as well as traditional wireless local area network communications. In one embodiment, IEEE 802.11 protocol IBSS communications are used to transport Bluetooth communication data packets. In another embodiment, a direct link comprising direct packet transfers without beaconing is performed between the multi-mode device and another multi-mode device. Thus, the multi-mode device is operable to establish traditional BSS communications with an Access Point in addition to establishing peer-to-peer communications with another multi-mode device to transport the Bluetooth communications over the 802.11 IBSS communication link or over an IEEE 802.11 direct communication link.

Claims

1. An apparatus for encapsulating communicating over a first protocol communication link and for transmitting second protocol communications over the first protocol communication link, comprising:

circuitry operable to break a second communication protocol data packet into a plurality of fragments; and

circuitry operable to generate a plurality of first protocol packets, wherein each first protocol packet contains;

a fragment number;

a common second protocol packet ID; and

a second protocol channel ID.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first protocol is I.E.E.E. 802.11(n) protocol communications wherein the second communication protocol data packet is transmitted over a plurality of communication channels according to the first communication protocol.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first protocol is one of an I.E.E.E. I.B.S.S. protocol communications and WiMedia and wherein the second protocol is Bluetooth.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus is operable to encapsulate master-save communications according to the second communication protocol and to transmit the encapsulated communications through a peer-to-peer configuration using the first communication network protocol.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the fragment is encapsulated in a frame body portion of a data packet formed according to the first communication protocol.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the second protocol is Bluetooth.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the first protocol is one of I.E.E.E. 802.11 or 802.16 or 802.20.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the first protocol is WiMedia.

14. The method of claim 8 wherein the second protocol is Bluetooth.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the first protocol is one of I.E.E.E. 802.11 or 802.16 or 802.20.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the first protocol is WiMedia.

9. A method for communication over a first protocol communication link and for transmitting second protocol communications over the first protocol communication link, comprising:

breaking a second communication protocol data packet into a plurality of fragments; and

generating a plurality of first protocol packets, wherein each first protocol packet contains;

a fragment number;

a common second protocol packet ID; and

a second protocol channel ID.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the first protocol is I.E.E.E. 802.16 protocol communications wherein the second communication protocol data packet is transmitted over a plurality of communication channels according to the first communication protocol.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the first protocol is one of an I.E.E.E. I.B.S.S. protocol communications and WiMedia and wherein the second protocol is Bluetooth.

12. The method of claim 9 further including encapsulating master-save communications according to the second communication protocol and transmitting the encapsulated communications through a peer-to-peer configuration using the first communication network protocol.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the fragment is encapsulated in a frame body portion of a data packet formed according to the first communication protocol.

17. An apparatus for encapsulating communicating over a first protocol communication link and for transmitting second protocol communications over the first protocol communication link, comprising:

circuitry operable to break a second communication protocol data packet into a plurality of fragments; and

circuitry operable to generate a plurality of first protocol packets containing a fragment number and a common second protocol packet ID and, in the first of the plurality of first protocol packets, a second protocol channel ID;

18. The apparatus of claim 17, the first protocol packets further including an indication of a length of the second protocol data packet.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, the first protocol packets further including a first protocol packet ID.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, the first protocol packets further including all fragments of the second protocol data packet within a frame body.

21. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the first protocol is an IEEE 802.11, 802.16 or 802.20 protocol.

22. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the first protocol is Bluetooth.