DEVICE BEACON FOR COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT FOR PEER TO PEER COMMUNICATIONS

• US 20100118834A1
• Filed: 11/07/2008
• Published: 05/13/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: KALHAN, Amit
• Application Number:
  US12/267,365
• Publication Number:
  US 20100118834A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/336
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2627 Modulators
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/08 Access restriction or access information delivery, e.g. discovery data delivery signalling during connection H04W76/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/001 Synchronization between nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0446 Resources in time domain, e.g. slots or frames
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals

Abstract

A wireless communication device transmits a device beacon in accordance with a system timing of a wireless wide area network (WWAN). For one example, the beacon is transmitted relative to WWAN uplink channels of the time-frequency space of the uplink WWAN channel assignment. In response to the reception of the device beacon by another wireless communication device, a peer to peer communication session is established.

Claims

1. A wireless communication device comprising:

a wireless wide area network (WWAN) transceiver configured to receive WWAN signals from a base station; and

a device beacon detector configured to apply WWAN system timing information derived from the WWAN signals to receive a device beacon transmitted by another wireless communication device in accordance with the WWAN system timing information.

2. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the WWAN transceiver is further configured to transmit a device proximity message to the WWAN invoking transmission of a search message instructing the another wireless communication device to adjust a searching scheme for searching for wireless communication device.

3. The wireless communication device of claim 1, further comprising a WLAN interface configured to transmit a device proximity message to the another wireless communication device indicting that the device beacon was received.

4. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device beacon detector comprises a WWAN receiver configured to receive WWAN uplink signals, the device beacon transmitted within a WWAN uplink channel.

5. The wireless communication device of claim 4, wherein the device beacon is transmitted within a WWAN subcarrier time slot.

6. The wireless communication device of claim 5, wherein the device beacon is transmitted within a WWAN OFDM subcarrier time slot.

7. The wireless communication device of claim 6, wherein the device beacon is transmitted within a WWAN Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) subcarrier time slot.

8. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device beacon Is transmitted in accordance with WWAN system timing information received at the another wireless communication device from a WWAN base station.

9. The wireless communication device of claim 1, further comprising a transceiver for peer-to-peer communication with the another wireless communication device.

10. A mobile wireless communication device comprising:

a wireless wide area network (WWAN) receiver configured to receive WWAN downlink signals from a WWAN;

a device beacon generator configured to generate a device beacon signal based on a WWAN system timing derived from the WWAN downlink signals.

11. The mobile wireless communication device of claim 10, further comprising:

a searcher configured to search for transceiver node signals transmitted by a transceiver node and responsive to a search signal transmitted in response to detection of the device beacon signal at the transceiver node by adjusting a searching scheme of searching for the transceiver node signals.

12. The mobile wireless communication device of claim 11, wherein the transceiver node is a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point and the searcher is further configured to adjust the searching scheme by activating a wireless local area network (WLAN) receiver.

13. The mobile wireless communication device of claim 11, wherein the transceiver node is a femtocell base station and the searcher is further configured to adjust the searching scheme by changing searching parameters increasing the likelihood for detecting the transceiver node signals.

14. The mobile wireless communication device of claim 11, wherein the transceiver node is another wireless communication device.

15. The mobile wireless communication device of claim 11, wherein search signal is received from the WWAN.