METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADAPTIVE TIME DIVISION MULTIPLEXING ON A MULTI-CHANNEL WIRELINE MEDIUM WITH COLOCATED TRANSCEIVERS

• US 20090279565A1
• Filed: 05/09/2008
• Published: 11/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Smith, Matthew, Kumar, Prem, Cho, James S., Kamath, Purushotham
• Granted Patent: US 8,199,767 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/442
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/2643 using time-division multiple access [TDMA] H04B7/2615, H04B7/2618 take precedence

Abstract

A wireline communications circuit using transceivers compatible with a wireless communications protocol is disclosed using access points and stations in an adaptive Time Division Multiple Access scheme for a multi-channel medium with colocated transceivers. Methods of operating an access point and a station, their implementations as chips and the implementation of a chip for either the access point or station are further disclosed.

Claims

1. A method comprising the step of:

operating an access point including a transmitter and a receiver both compliant to a wireless protocol for use with a wireline medium, further comprising the steps of;

directing said transmitter to send a beacon and a schedule on said wireline medium to initiate a time division multiple access sequence of uplink frames and downlink frames;

signaling other access points and moving ahead said schedule in response to a first determination that one of said uplink frames needs no upload; and

signaling other access points and moving ahead said schedule in response to a second determination that one of said downlink frames needs no download.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said wireless protocol is a version of an IEEE 802[period] 11 wireless communications protocol.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said wireline medium is a form of coaxial cable.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

receiving a relinquish message in said upload to relinquish use of said uplink frame by at least one station receiving said beacon and said schedule via said wireline medium.

6. A method comprising the step of:

operating a station including a transmitter and a receiver both compliant to a wireless protocol for use with a wireline medium, further comprising the steps of;

directing said receiver to receive a beacon and a schedule on said wireline medium to initiate a time division multiple access sequence of uplink frames and downlink frames;

moving ahead at least one frame in response to a third determination that one of said uplink frames needs no upload;

transmitting a “

relinquish”

frame in response to a fourth determination that said station does not need to transmit said upload in said uplink frame.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said wireless protocol is a version of an IEEE 802 [period] 11 wireless communications protocol.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein said wireline medium is a form of coaxial cable.

10. The method of claim 6, further comprising at least one of the steps of:

directing said transmitter to send a relinquish message as said upload to relinquish use of said uplink frame by said station.

11. A chip for operating an access point, comprising:

a transmitter and a receiver both compliant to a wireless protocol for use with a wireline medium;

a processor controllably coupled to said transmitter and to said receiver, whereby

said processor directs said transmitter to send a beacon and a schedule on said wireline medium to initiate a time division multiple access sequence of uplink frames and downlink frames,

said processor signaling other access points and moves ahead at least one frame in response to a first determination that one of said uplink frames needs no uploads, and

first processor signaling other access points and moves ahead at least one of said frames in response to a second determination that one of said downlink frames needs no download.

12. The chip of claim 11, wherein said wireless protocol is a version of an IEEE 802[period] 11 wireless communications protocol.

13. The chip of claim 11, wherein said wireline medium is a form of coaxial cable.

14. The chip of claim 11, wherein said processor accesses a channel use flag interface for said first determination and said second determination.

15. The chip of claim 11, wherein said wireline medium is a form of a member of the group consisting of a fiber optic cable and a twisted pair cable.

16. A chip for operating a station, including:

a transmitter and a receiver both compliant to a wireless protocol for use with a wireline medium;

a second processor controllably coupled to said transmitter and to said receiver, whereby

said second processor directs said receiver to receive a beacon and a schedule on said wireline medium to initiate a time division multiple access sequence of uplink frames and downlink frames;

said second processor moves ahead at least one frame in response to a third determination that one of said uplink frames needs no upload; and

said second processor transmitting a “

Relinquish”

frame in response to a fourth determination that the station does not need to transmit said upload in said uplink frame.

17. The chip of claim 16, wherein said wireless protocol is a version of an IEEE 802[period] 11 wireless communications protocol.

18. The chip of claim 16, wherein said wireline medium is a form of coaxial cable.

19. The chip of claim 16, wherein said processor uses said transmitter to send said upload during said uplink frame, whereby said upload includes at least one of

a data frame,

an acknowledgement of a previous download received by said station, and

a relinquish message to relinquish further use of said uplink frame.

20. The chip of claim 16, wherein said wireline medium is a form of a member of the group consisting of a fiber optic cable and a twisted pair cable.

21. A chip, including

a transmitter and a receiver both compliant to a wireless protocol for use with a wireline medium;

a third processor including a computer accessibly coupled to a computer readable memory, said computer controllably coupled to said transmitter and to said receiver, whereby

said third processor operates said transmitter and said receiver as an access point with an adaptive Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) scheme in response to the installation of a first program system in said computer readable memory, and

said third processor operates said transmitter and said receiver as a station in response to the installation of a second program system in said computer readable memory.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said wireless protocol is a version of an IEEE 802[period] 11 wireless communications protocol.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein said wireline medium is a form of coaxial cable.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein said wireline medium is a form of fiber optic cable.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein said wireline medium is a form of twisted pair cable.