WIRELESS NETWORK ENHANCEMENTS

• US 20090016280A1
• Filed: 07/12/2007
• Published: 01/15/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: IMER, Orhan Cagri, Van STRALEN, Nick Andrew, IYER, Suresh K., MITCHELL, Robert James JR.
• Granted Patent: US 8,687,562 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/0833 Random access procedures, e.g. with 4-step access

Abstract

Apparatus are provided, which include a wireless transmit interface and a wireless receive interface. A payload receive processor is provided to identify a receive overhead portion from received data received via the receive interface, and it is configured to retrieve payload data in relation to the receive overhead portion in accordance with a data structure protocol. A payload transmit processor is provided to define or modify a transmit overhead portion in transmit data to be transmitted via the transmit interface. The payload transmit processor is configured to position payload data in relation to the transmit overhead portion in accordance with a data structure protocol. A controller is provided, to determine a given wireless media location defined at least in part by the controller determining a given frequency band, from among plural frequency bands, for a given data transfer, via wireless media, between a given node and a separate node.

Claims

1. Apparatus comprising:

a wireless transmit interface and a wireless receive interface;

a controller to unilaterally determine a given wireless media location defined at least in part by the controller determining a given frequency band, from among plural frequency bands, for a given data transfer, via wireless media, between a given node and a separate node.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises the given node which is a wireless, non-access point, communication node.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a plural set of wireless communication nodes, each node in the set comprising the wireless transmit interface and the wireless receive interface, the payload receive processor, the payload transmit processor, and the controller.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a payload source.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the wireless transmit interface includes a wireless radio transmit interface,

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the wireless receive interface includes a wireless radio receive interface.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising payload processor circuitry to process payload data in accordance with a data structure protocol, wherein the data structure protocol is a frame-based data structure protocol.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the given wireless media location is further defined by a transmission time at which the neighbor node is expecting to receive the data transfer.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the transfer data includes a unicast transfer from the given node to the separate node.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the data transfer further includes a broadcast transfer from the given node to the separate node.

11. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the controller includes a pseudorandom wireless media location assignment determiner configured to pseudorandomly determine a message start time for the data transfer to be transmitted from the given node to the separate node, and configured to pseudorandomly choose one of a plurality of available frequency channels for the data transfer.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the pseudorandom wireless media location assignment determiner includes a lookup table generated in accordance with at least one pseudorandom number generator algorithm.

13. The apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising payload processor circuitry to process payload data in accordance with a data structure protocol, wherein the data structure protocol includes a frame structure including a segment in a frame for broadcasts and another segment within the same frame for unicasts.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the controller is configured to, during a broadcast segment of a frame, tune the given node to a reference channel to receive a broadcast packet.

15. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the controller is configured to, during a unicast segment of a frame, tune the given node to its own unique receive channel in accordance with a global known pseudorandom schedule, known by all nodes within the network.

16. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to, during a transmit by the given node during a unicast segment of a frame, determine a transmit frequency for a target node, and wherein the controller is configured to, during a transmit by the given node during a unicast segment of a frame, determine a transmit frequency for the unicast transmission to the given target node, and further wherein the controller is configured to, during a transmit by the given node during a unicast segment of a frame, effect a message exchange resulting in transmission of transmit payload data from the given node to the target node.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the message exchange includes an RTS (ready to send)/CTS (clear to send) handshake.

18. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the message exchange includes a boomerang acknowledgement.

19. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to provide, for a given subnet, for a given data transmission, a transmit message start time, a transmit frequency, and, for the given subnet, for a given data reception, a receive message start time and receive frequency, so that the given node in a given IP subnet has available to it, a subset of the available message start times and available frequency channels.

20. A method comprising:

providing a wireless transmit interface and a wireless receive interface; and

unilaterally determining a given wireless media location defined at least in part by determining a given frequency band, from among plural frequency bands, for a given data transfer, via wireless media, between a given node and a separate node.