APPARATUS AND METHOD OF GENERATING AND MAINTAINING HYBRID CONNECTION IDENTIFICATIONS (IDs) FOR PEER-TO-PEER WIRELESS NETWORKS

• US 20090019168A1
• Filed: 07/01/2008
• Published: 01/15/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Tavildar, Saurabh, Richardson, Thomas, Wu, Xinzhou, Li, Junyi
• Granted Patent: US 8,005,091 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0007 the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM(A), DMT
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0048 Allocation of pilot signals, i.e. of signals known to the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0091 Signaling for the administration of the divided path
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/11 Allocation or use of connection identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup

Abstract

An apparatus and method are disclosed for generating a transmission connection identifier (CID) for a transmitter/receiver pair in a wireless network. The CID may be selected from or mapped to a hybrid CID space comprising a first set of orthogonal CIDs and a second set of non-orthogonal (random or pseudo-random) CIDs. When a transmitter device wants to initiate a peer-to-peer connection with a receiver device, the transmitter and receiver devices attempt to obtain a CID to identify their connection within a traffic channel in a shared frequency space. The first and/or second device attempt to select a CID from the first set of orthogonal CIDs. However, if a CID collision is detected, the first and second devices select their CID from the second set of non-orthogonal CIDs. The selected transmission CID may be used during a time slot or interval to facilitate communications between the first and second devices.

Claims

1. A method of operating a first device for generating and utilizing a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between the first device and a second device in a wireless communications network, comprising:

partitioning a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

selecting a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

transmitting a transmission request signal to the second device using the first transmission resource unit; and

transmitting traffic data to the second device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first transmission resource unit is selected from one of the first and second subsets of transmission units as a function of whether the first connection identifier is an orthogonal or a non-orthogonal connection identifier, the first transmission resource unit belonging to the first subset if it is decided to use an orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier and the first transmission resource unit belonging to the second subset if it is decided to use a non-orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second subsets of transmission resource units are non-overlapping, and partitioning of the traffic management channel slot into the first and second subsets is predetermined and independent of the first connection identifier, the method further comprising:

determining the first connection identifier.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the first connection identifier from a predetermined set of a plurality of connection identifiers if it is determined to use an orthogonal connection identifier;

monitoring a connection identifier broadcast channel to determine whether the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity; and

switching to a second connection identifier if it is determined that the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

sending a control message to the second device to indicate the intent of changing the first connection identifier to the second connection identifier.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the second connection identifier is a non-orthogonal connection identifier.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein the second connection identifier is an orthogonal connection identifier.

8. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

calculating a robustness measure of using an orthogonal connection identifier; and

determining to switch to a non-orthogonal connection identifier if the calculated robustness measure is below a certain threshold.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the robustness measure is calculated as a function of the rate at which the first device has determined to switch from an orthogonal connection identifier to another connection identifier in a time interval.

10. The method of claim 4, wherein the second connection identifier is an orthogonal connection identifier, the method further comprising:

prior to switching to the second connection identifier, monitoring the connection identifier broadcast channel corresponding to the second connection identifier to determine whether the second connection identifier is being utilized by other connections in the proximity; and

determining to switch to the second connection identifier if it is determined that the second connection identifier is unused by another connection in the proximity.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

prior to switching to the second connection identifier, switching to a non-orthogonal connection identifier.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

prior to monitoring the connection identifier broadcast channel, switching to a non-orthogonal connection identifier.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining the first connection identifier as a function of an identifier of the first device and a second identifier of the second device if the determined first connection identifier is a non-orthogonal connection identifier.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

prior to transmitting traffic data, scrambling traffic data using a scrambling sequence, the scrambling sequence being derived from the first connection identifier and a value of the time counter.

15. A first device configured to generate and utilize a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between the first device and a second device in a wireless communications network, comprising:

a transmitter and receiver for establishing the wireless peer-to-peer communication connection; and

a processing circuit adapted to perform peer to peer communications through the transmitter and receiver over a peer-to-peer communication channel, the processing circuit configured to

partition a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

select a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

transmit a transmission request signal to the second device using the first transmission resource unit; and

transmit traffic data to the second device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

16. The first device of claim 15, wherein the first transmission resource unit is selected from one of the first and second subsets of transmission units as a function of whether the first connection identifier is an orthogonal or a non-orthogonal connection identifier, the first transmission resource unit belonging to the first subset if it is decided to use an orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier and the first transmission resource unit belonging to the second subset if it is decided to use a non-orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier.

17. The first device of claim 15, wherein the first and second subsets of transmission resource units are non-overlapping, and partitioning of the traffic management channel slot into the first and second subsets is predetermined and independent of the first connection identifier, and the processing circuit is further adapted to:

determine the first connection identifier.

18. The first device of claim 15, wherein the processing circuit is further adapted to

select the first connection identifier from a predetermined set of a plurality of connection identifiers if it is determined to use an orthogonal connection identifier;

monitor a connection identifier broadcast channel to determine whether the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity; and

switch to a second connection identifier if it is determined that the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity.

19. A first device configured to generate and utilize a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between the first device and a second device in a wireless communications network, comprising:

means for partitioning a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

means for selecting a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

means for transmitting a transmission request signal to the second device using the first transmission resource unit; and

means for transmitting traffic data to the second device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

20. A circuit for generating and utilizing a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between a first device and a second device in a wireless communications network, wherein the circuit operates in the first device and is adapted to:

partition a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

select a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

transmit a transmission request signal to the second device using the first transmission resource unit; and

transmit traffic data to the second device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

21. A machine-readable medium comprising instructions for a first device to generate and utilize a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between the first device and a second device in a wireless communications network, which when executed by a processor causes the processor to:

partition a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

select a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

transmit a transmission request signal to the second device using the first transmission resource unit; and

transmit traffic data to the second device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

22. A method of operating a target second device for generating and utilizing a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between a first device and the second device in a wireless communications network, comprising:

partitioning a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

obtaining a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

receiving a transmission request signal from the first device using the first transmission resource unit; and

receiving traffic data from the first device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the first transmission resource unit is selected from one of the first and second subsets of transmission units as a function of whether the first connection identifier is an orthogonal or a non-orthogonal connection identifier, the first transmission resource unit belonging to the first subset if it is decided to use an orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier and the first transmission resource unit belonging to the second subset if it is decided to use a non-orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the first and second subsets of transmission resource units are non-overlapping, and partitioning of the traffic management channel slot into the first and second subsets is predetermined and independent of the first connection identifier.

25. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

selecting the first connection identifier from a predetermined set of a plurality of connection identifiers if it is determined to use an orthogonal connection identifier;

monitoring a connection identifier broadcast channel to determine whether the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity; and

switching to a second connection identifier if it is determined that the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity.

26. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

determining the first connection identifier as a function of an identifier of the first device and a second identifier of the second device if the determined first connection identifier is a non-orthogonal connection identifier.

27. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

descrambling the traffic data using a descrambling sequence prior to transmission, the descrambling sequence being derived from the first connection identifier and a value of the time counter.

28. A target second device configured to generate and utilize a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between a first device and the second device in a wireless communications network, comprising:

a transmitter and receiver for establishing the wireless peer-to-peer communication connection; and

a processing circuit adapted to perform peer to peer communications through the transmitter and receiver over a peer-to-peer communication channel, the processing circuit configured to;

partition a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

select a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

receiving a transmission request signal from the first device using the first transmission resource unit; and

receiving traffic data from the first device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

29. The second device of claim 28, wherein the first transmission resource unit is selected from one of the first and second subsets of transmission units as a function of whether the first connection identifier is an orthogonal or a non-orthogonal connection identifier, the first transmission resource unit belonging to the first subset if it is decided to use an orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier and the first transmission resource unit belonging to the second subset if it is decided to use a non-orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier.

30. The second device of claim 28, wherein the first and second subsets of transmission resource units are non-overlapping, and partitioning of the traffic management channel slot into the first and second subsets is predetermined and independent of the first connection identifier.

31. The second device of claim 28, wherein the processing circuit is further adapted to:

select the first connection identifier from a predetermined set of a plurality of connection identifiers if it is determined to use an orthogonal connection identifier;

monitor a connection identifier broadcast channel to determine whether the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity; and

switch to a second connection identifier if it is determined that the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity.

32. The second device of claim 31 wherein the second connection identifier is a non-orthogonal connection identifier.

33. The second device of claim 28, wherein the processing circuit is further adapted to:

determine the first connection identifier as a function of an identifier of the first device and a second identifier of the second device.

34. The second device of claim 28, wherein the processing circuit is further adapted to:

scramble the traffic data using a scrambling sequence, the scrambling sequence being derived from the first connection identifier and a value of the time counter prior to transmitting traffic data.

35. A target second device configured to generate and utilize a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between a first device and the second device in a wireless communications network, comprising:

means for partitioning a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

means for selecting a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

means for receiving a transmission request signal from the first device using the first transmission resource unit; and

means for receiving traffic data from the first device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

36. The second device of claim 35, wherein the first transmission resource unit is selected from one of the first and second subsets of transmission units as a function of whether the first connection identifier is an orthogonal or a non-orthogonal connection identifier, the first transmission resource unit belonging to the first subset if it is decided to use an orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier and the first transmission resource unit belonging to the second subset if it is decided to use a non-orthogonal connection identifier as the first connection identifier.

37. The second device of claim 35, wherein the first and second subsets of transmission resource units are non-overlapping, and partitioning of the traffic management channel slot into the first and second subsets is predetermined and independent of the first connection identifier.

38. The second device of claim 35, further comprising:

means for selecting the first connection identifier from a predetermined set of a plurality of connection identifiers if it is determined to use an orthogonal connection identifier;

means for monitoring a connection identifier broadcast channel to determine whether the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity; and

means for switching to a second connection identifier if it is determined that the first connection identifier is being utilized by another connection in the proximity.

39. A circuit for generating and utilizing a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between a first device and a target second device in a wireless communications network, wherein the circuit operates in the second device and is adapted to:

partition a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

select a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

receive a transmission request signal from the first device using the first transmission resource unit; and

receive traffic data from the first device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.

40. A machine-readable medium comprising instructions for a target second device to generate and utilize a connection identifier for a peer-to-peer communication connection between a first device and the second device in a wireless communications network, which when executed by a processor causes the processor to:

partition a traffic management channel slot into a first and a second subsets of transmission resource units, the traffic management channel slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols and each of the OFDM symbols including a plurality of tones, each of the transmission resource units including one of the plurality of tones in one of the plurality of OFDM symbols, the first subset of transmission resource units associated with orthogonal connection identifiers and the second subset of transmission units associated with non-orthogonal connection identifiers;

select a first transmission resource unit from one of either the first and second subsets of transmission resource units as a function of a first connection identifier;

receive a transmission request signal from the first device using the first transmission resource unit; and

receive traffic data from the first device in a traffic channel slot corresponding to the traffic management channel slot.