WIRELESS COMMUNICATION APPARATUS, WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORK AND SOFTWARE UPGRADING METHOD

• US 20090042554A1
• Filed: 10/14/2008
• Published: 02/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: OKITA, Koichi, KURATA, Ryosuke
• Granted Patent: US 7,751,808 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42136 Administration or customisation of services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A base station control portion 200 selects one or plural signals from signals received by plural settable communication paths in accordance with the state of the wave. A wireless communication apparatus 110 communicates with a wireless terminal 300 and a wired communication network. When the wireless communication apparatus 110 receives a request for upgrading software from a network management device 250, the wireless communication apparatus 110 controls the state of the transmission wave of a wireless interface so as to switch a communication path in which communication services are being provided to another wireless communication apparatus 110 without blackouts, rewrites the set software to software having been received through a wired interface in advance, returns the state of the transmission wave of the wireless interface and upgrades software without blackouts of the supply of communication services to the wireless terminal 300.

Claims

1. A base station apparatus for communicating with a wireless terminal and a wired communication network within a wireless communication network which is capable of soft handover, the base station apparatus comprising:

a wireless interface for communicating with the wireless terminal;

a wired interface for communicating with the wired communication network;

a communication processing portion for performing processing for providing communication services to the wireless terminal through the wireless interface and the wired interface; and

a control portion for controlling said base station apparatus,

wherein the control portion receives a control signal to prohibit performing a service stopping operation from a network management device which transmits and receives control signals for operation or maintenance of the wireless communication network and which transmits the control signal to prohibit performing the service stopping operation to base station apparatuses adjacent to a base station apparatus in which software will be upgraded, and

wherein when the control portion receives an upgrading request which is transmitted from the network management device to the base station apparatuses in which software will be upgraded, at a state in which performing the service stopping operation is forbidden, the control portion;

reduces output power of the transmission wave of the wireless interface such that a cell covered by the base station apparatus does not overlap with the other cells covered by adjacent base station apparatuses, thereby causing a soft handover such that all communication paths in which the communication service is being provided are switched to the communication paths of the adjacent base station apparatuses,

after determining that no calls are connected to the base station apparatus or a sector of the base station apparatus, upgrades software set therein to software received through the wired interface in advance, and

returns the transmission wave of the wireless interface to its original state after the software has been upgraded.