SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR WIRELESS MULTI-BAND NETWORKS ASSOCIATION AND MAINTENANCE

• US 20100315954A1
• Filed: 03/10/2010
• Published: 12/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Hsu, Julan, Singh, Harkirat, Ngo, Chiu
• Granted Patent: US 9,007,968 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/241
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/044 based on the type of the allocated resource
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/00 Connection management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

A system and method for wireless communication over multi-rate channels are disclosed. One embodiment of the system includes a first multi-band wireless station that is capable of using a first frequency band and a second frequency band for wireless communication; and a second multi-band wireless station that is capable of using the first frequency band and the second frequency band for wireless communication. One or more of the first and second stations is configured to monitor a status of the second frequency band. The status includes the availability of the second frequency band for communication between the first and second stations. The first and second stations can share the monitored status with each other via the first frequency band.

Claims

1. A device for wireless communication, the device comprising:

a first antenna system configured to use a first frequency band for wireless communication;

a second antenna system configured to use a second frequency band for wireless communication, the second frequency band being different from the first frequency band;

a memory configured to store multi-band information comprising a status of the second frequency band, wherein the multi-band information comprises a network identifier of a wireless network; and

a medium access control (MAC) layer configured to monitor the status of the second frequency band, and to transmit and/or receive a signal via a pre-established wireless link on the first frequency band, the signal including at least part of the multi-band information.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the first frequency band has a lower frequency than the second frequency band, and wherein the first frequency band has a longer range of transmission than the second frequency band.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the first frequency band has a frequency of about 2.4 or 5 GHz, and wherein the second frequency band has a frequency of about 60 GHz.

4. The device of claim 2, wherein the first antenna system is configured to use the first frequency band for wireless communication in a first wireless network, and wherein the second antenna system is configured to use the second frequency band for wireless communication in a second wireless network different from the first wireless network.

5. The device of claim 4, wherein the MAC layer is configured to transmit the signal if there is a change to the network identifier of the second wireless network.

6. The device of claim 4, wherein the MAC layer is configured to transmit the signal if the device receives a network identifier from a third wireless network that uses the second frequency band, the third wireless network being different from the first and second wireless networks.

7. The device of claim 4, wherein the MAC layer is configured to transmit the signal periodically.

8. The device of claim 4, wherein the MAC layer is configured to receive a signal from another wireless device via the pre-established wireless link on the first frequency band, the signal including a network identifier of a third wireless network that uses the second frequency band, and covers the other wireless device.

9. The device of claim 8, wherein the MAC layer is further configured to determine if the network identifier of the second wireless network is the same as the network identifier of the third wireless network.

10. The device of claim 9, wherein the MAC layer is further configured to communicate with the other wireless device via the second frequency band if the network identifier of the second wireless network is the same as the network identifier of the third wireless network.

11. The device of claim 4, wherein the network identifier of the second wireless network comprises a MAC address of the second access point.

12. The device of claim 1, wherein the signal contains one or more of a network identifier field indicative of a network using the second frequency band, a rendezvous offset field, a discovery duration field, a beamforming mode field, an observed beacon interval field, and an observed target beacon transmission time offset field.

13. The device of claim 1, wherein the first frequency band is a frequency band on which a peer-to-peer communication link has been established by an association process with another wireless device.

14. The device of claim 1, wherein the second frequency band is a frequency band on which a peer-to-peer communication link has not been established by an association process with another wireless device.

15. The device of claim 1, wherein either the first frequency band or the second frequency band is active at a given time instance.

16. A wireless communication system, the system comprising:

a first multi-band wireless station that is capable of using a first frequency band and a second frequency band for wireless communication, the second frequency band being different from the first frequency band; and

a second multi-band wireless station that is capable of using the first frequency band and the second frequency band for wireless communication,

wherein one or more of the first and second stations is configured to store multi-band information comprising a status of the second frequency band,

wherein one or more of the first and second stations is further configured to monitor the status of the second frequency band, the status comprising availability of the second frequency band for communication between the first and second stations, wherein the monitored status comprises a network identifier of a wireless network covering one or more of the stations on the second frequency band, and

wherein the first and second stations share the monitored status with each other via the first frequency band.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the first frequency band has a lower frequency than the second frequency band, and wherein the first frequency band has a longer range of transmission than the second frequency band.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the first and second stations are configured to establish a link therebetween on the first frequency band before sharing the monitored status.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising:

a first access point configured to be associated with the first and second stations via the first frequency band; and

a second access point configured to be associated with one or more of the first and second stations via the second frequency band.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein one or more of the stations is further configured to transmit a frame containing the network identifier via the first frequency band if there is a change to the network identifier.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein one or more of the stations is further configured to determine if a network covering the first station is the same as a network covering the second station, based at least partly on the network identifier.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the first and second stations are further configured to communicate with each other via the second frequency band if the network covering the first station is the same as the network covering the second station.

23. The system of claim 19, wherein one or more of the stations is further configured to identify the network identifier from a beacon signal transmitted on the second frequency band from the second access point.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein one or more of the stations is further configured to monitor a status of the beacon signal, and to determine whether to use the second frequency band for wireless communication, based at least partly on the monitored status of the beacon signal.

25. The system of claim 16, wherein the first frequency band is a frequency band on which a peer-to-peer communication link has been established by an association process between the first and second stations.

26. The system of claim 16, wherein the second frequency band is a frequency band on which a peer-to-peer communication link has not been established by an association process between the first and second stations.

27. A method of wireless communication, the method comprising:

establishing, by a first multi-band wireless station capable of using first and second frequency bands for wireless communication, a wireless link on the first frequency band with a second multi-band wireless station capable of using the first and second frequency bands for wireless communication, the second frequency band being different from the first frequency band;

monitoring, by the first station, a status of the second frequency band, wherein the status of the second frequency band comprises an identifier of a basic service set covering the first station on the second frequency band; and

transmitting, by the first station, an information element containing the status of the second frequency band to the second station via the first frequency band.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein monitoring the status of the second frequency band comprises receiving a beacon from an access point via the second frequency band.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising performing an association process with the access point.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein transmitting the information element comprises transmitting the information element if there is a change to the identifier.

31. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

receiving, by the first station via the first frequency band, an identifier of a basic service set covering the second station on the second frequency band.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising determining, by the first station, whether the identifier of the basic service set covering the first station is the same as the identifier of the basic service set covering the second station.

33. The method of claim 31, further comprising transmitting data to the second station via the second frequency band if the identifier of the basic service set covering the first station is the same as the identifier of the basic service set covering the second station.

34. The method of claim 31, wherein the first station has identifiers of two or more basic service sets covering the first station, and wherein the method further comprises determining, by the first station, which of the two or more basic service sets is the same as the basic service set covering the second station.

35. The method of claim 27, wherein the information element further contains information for a device discovery between the first and second stations.

36. The method of claim 27, wherein the information element further contains information on beacon signal transmissions on the second frequency band.

37. A method of wireless communication, the method comprising:

establishing, by a first multi-band wireless station capable of using first and second frequency bands for wireless communication, a wireless link on the first frequency band with a second multi-band wireless station capable of using the first and second frequency bands for wireless communication, the second frequency band being different from the first frequency band;

receiving, by the first station, a signal including information on a status of the second frequency band from the second station via the wireless link on the first frequency band, wherein the status of the second frequency band comprises an identifier of a basic service set covering the second station on the second frequency band; and

determining, by the first station, whether the second frequency band is available for communication between the first and second stations.

38. The method of claim 37, further comprising determining, by the first station, whether the identifier of the basic service set covering the first station is the same as the identifier of the basic service set covering the second station.

39. The method of claim 38, further comprising updating the status of the second frequency band, based at least partly on the information included in the received signal.

40. The method of claim 39, further comprising:

performing a discovery process on the second frequency band between the first and second stations; and

communicating data via the second frequency band between the first and second stations.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein performing the discovery process comprises:

transmitting, by the first station, an acknowledgment signal of the signal via the first frequency band;

switching, by the first and second stations, to the second frequency band during a pre-scheduled time period; and

performing the discovery process during the pre-scheduled time period.

42. The method of claim 37, further comprising:

obtaining, by the first station, identifiers of two or more basic service sets that cover the first station;

determining, by the first station, which of the two or more basic service sets is the same as the basic service set covering the second station; and

associating, by the first station, with an access point of the basic service set covering the second station.

43. The method of claim 37, further comprising:

determining, by the first station, whether the first and second stations are within the coverage of the same basic service set on the second frequency band; and

communicating, by the first station, with the second station without associating with a second frequency band access point with which the second station has been associated.