OPTIMAL UTILIZATION OF MULTIPLE TRANSCEIVERS IN A WIRELESS ENVIRONMENT

• US 20090156227A1
• Filed: 12/18/2007
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Frerking, Melvin D., Ohana, Alain, Shively, David
• Granted Patent: US 9,185,601 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/455
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/336 Signal-to-interference ratio [SIR] or carrier-to-interference ratio [CIR]
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0413 MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0632 Channel quality parameters, e.g. channel quality indicator [CQI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0691 using subgroups of transmit antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0693 switching off a diversity branch, e.g. to save power
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0697 using spatial multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0877 switching off a diversity branch, e.g. to save power
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0001 Systems modifying transmission characteristics according to link quality, e.g. power backoff adaptive data allocation for multicarrier modulation H04L5/0044; controlling transmission power for radio systems H04W52/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/06 using space diversity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/08 by repeating transmission, e.g. Verdan system H04L1/1858 and H04L1/189 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/20 Negotiating bandwidth

Abstract

Switching between and/or combining various multi-transceiver wireless communication techniques based on a determined characteristic of a network or a wireless link is described herein. As an example, a characteristic such as signal to noise ratio (SNR), multi-path scattering, available bandwidth, or the like, can be determined. The characteristic can then be compared with suitable thresholds for various multi-transceiver communication techniques, such as MIMO, multi-channel concatenation, channel diversity, and so on. Based on a comparison of the characteristic and the thresholds, a suitable multi-transceiver technique can be selected and implemented for the wireless link Accordingly, a network can provide increased data rates and/or channel quality from a multi-transceiver technique that is most suited to prevailing conditions of the wireless network/link.

Claims

1. A system that provides multi-advanced data rate capability for a wireless handset, comprising:

a channel analysis component that obtains a channel characteristic of a wireless link between a mobile base station and a mobile handset; and

a determination component that compares the channel characteristic to a predetermined threshold and selects a multi-transceiver wireless technique that provides a higher quality or higher data rate for the wireless link based on the comparison.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the multi-transceiver wireless technique includes splitting a signal into multiple data streams on a single channel of the wireless link or splitting a signal into multiple data streams on multiple channels of the wireless link.

3. The system of claim 2, further comprising a multi-mode switching component that instructs the mobile handset to at least one of:

interface at least two of a plurality of handset transceivers with at least two of the multiple data streams on the single channel if the channel characteristic meets a single channel threshold;

or

synchronize the at least two of the plurality of handset transceivers to concatenate the multiple data streams on the multiple channels, if the channel characteristic meets a multi channel threshold.

4. The system of claim 3, the multi-mode switching component instructs the handset to synchronize the at least two of the plurality of handset transceivers to receive or transmit multiple data streams by way of the single channel to affect multiple input multiple output (MIMO) communication.

5. The system of claim 3, further comprising a multi-stream decoding component that at least one of:

combines a first of the multiple data streams received over a first of the multiple channels with a second of the multiple data streams received over a second of the multiple channels to form a combined communication;

or

combines a first of the at least two of the multiple data streams with a second of the at least two of the multiple data streams to form the combined communication.

6. The system of claim 1, the channel characteristic includes a signal to noise ratio (SNR) or a multi-path scattering factor associated with the wireless link, or both.

7. The system of claim 3, the determination component rejects splitting the signal into the multiple data streams and selects a diversity transmit or receive mode, or both, if the channel characteristic indicates a SNR below a quality threshold.

8. The system of claim 1, the determination component further comprises a channel monitoring component that periodically determines a concurrent value of the channel characteristic.

9. The system of claim 8, the determination component further comprises a dynamic mode component that periodically compares the concurrent value of the channel characteristic with the predetermined threshold enabling the determination component to dynamically select a MIMO architecture, a concatenation architecture, or a single channel diversity architecture for the mobile handset, or a combination thereof, based on the comparison.

10. The system of claim 3, further comprising at least one of:

a transmit diversity component that instructs the mobile handset to further synchronize the at least two of the plurality of handset transceivers to utilize a transmit diversity arrangement in conjunction with multi-path concatenation to respond to the multiple data streams received on the multiple channels;

or

a receive diversity component that instructs the mobile handset to further synchronize the at least two of the plurality of handset transceivers to concurrently receive the multiple data streams from each of the multiple wireless channels, if such wireless channels are transmitted via a substantially common frequency band, to implement receive diversity in conjunction with concatenation of the multiple wireless channels.

11. A method of utilizing alternate advanced data rate wireless communication techniques via multiple transceivers of a mobile handset, comprising:

forming a wireless data link with a mobile handset;

obtaining a channel characteristic of the wireless data link and comparing the channel characteristic with a predetermined threshold; and

implementing advanced data rate or advanced quality communication over the wireless link by interfacing at least two transceivers to at least one of;

multiple data streams on a single channel of the wireless data link;

multiple data streams on multiple wireless channels of the wireless data link, or

each transmit/receive a single data stream of the single channel,

based at least in part on a result of comparing the channel characteristic with the predetermined threshold.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising employing a MIMO arrangement and instructing the mobile handset to interface at least two transceivers of the mobile handset with the multiple data streams of the single channel.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising employing a spatial multiplexing algorithm to transmit/receive the multiple data streams on the single channel.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising employing a concatenation arrangement and instructing the mobile handset to interface at least two transceivers of the mobile handset to the multiple data streams on the multiple wireless channels.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising synchronizing the at least two transceivers to transmit at least two of the multiple data streams over at least two of the multiple wireless channels concurrently to provide transmit diversity in conjunction with the concatenation arrangement.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising instructing the mobile handset to synchronize the at least two transceivers of the mobile handset to each receive at least two of the multiple data streams over at least two of the multiple wireless channels concurrently, if the at least two of the multiple wireless channels utilize a substantially common frequency band, to provide receive diversity in conjunction with the concatenation arrangement.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising employing a signal to noise ratio or a multi path scattering factor associated with the wireless link as the channel characteristic.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising at least one of:

employing a first signal to noise ratio or a first multi path scattering factor as a first predetermined threshold level associated with interfacing the at least two transceivers to the multiple data streams of the single channel;

employing a second signal to noise ratio, less than the first signal to noise ratio, or a low multi path scattering factor, less than the first multi path scattering factor, or both, as a second predetermined threshold level associated with interfacing the at least two transceivers to the multiple data streams of the multiple channels;

or

employing a low signal to noise ratio, less than the first signal to noise ratio and the second signal to noise ratio, as a third predetermined threshold level associated with interfacing the at least two transceivers to each transmit/receive the single data stream of the single channel.

19. A system that enables a mobile handset to switch between alternate wireless communication techniques that provide advanced data rate or advanced quality wireless communication, comprising:

means for determining a channel characteristic of a wireless data link between a mobile handset and a base station and comparing the channel characteristic with a predetermined threshold; and

means for conducting advanced data rate or advanced quality communication over the wireless link by interfacing at least two transceivers of the mobile handset to one of;

multiple data streams of a single wireless channel;

multiple data streams of multiple wireless channels, or

each transmit/receive a single data stream of the single wireless channel, based at least in part on a result of comparing the channel characteristic with the predetermined thresholds.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising at least two of:

means for employing a spatial multiplexing algorithm to interface the at least two transceivers of the mobile handset with the multiple data streams of the single wireless channel;

means for concatenating the multiple data streams of the multiple wireless channels into a single communication;

or

means for employing a space-time block coding/decoding algorithm to provide transmit or receive diversity in conjunction with transmitting or receiving the single data stream of the single wireless channel.