Distributed signal field for communications within multiple user, multiple access, and/or MIMO wireless communications

• US 20110032875A1
• Filed: 08/09/2010
• Published: 02/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/07/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Fischer, Matthew James, Lauer, Joseph Paul, Amini, Peiman, Kim, Joonsuk, Erceg, Vinko
• Granted Patent: US 8,599,804 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/043 using best eigenmode, e.g. beam forming or beam steering
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0452 Multi-user MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0669 using different channel coding between antennas space-time coding H04L1/0618
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0684 using different training sequences per antenna
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0697 using spatial multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0003 by switching between different modulation schemes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0009 by adapting the channel coding H04L1/1812 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0025 Transmission of mode-switching indication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0075 Transmission of coding parameters to receiver H04L1/0023 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0079 Formats for control data H04L1/16 takes precedence; training sequences H04L25/00 and H04L27/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/06 using space diversity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0023 Time-frequency-space
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/005 of common pilots, i.e. pilots destined for multiple users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0051 of dedicated pilots, i.e. pilots destined for a single user or terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0053 Allocation of signaling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/06 Optimizing the usage of the radio link, e.g. header compression, information sizing , discarding information system modifying transmission characteristic according to link quality by modifying frame length H04L1/0007; dynamic adaptation of the packet size for flow control or congestion control H04L47/365
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/065 using assembly or disassembly of packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

Distributed signal field for communications within multiple user, multiple access, and/or MIMO wireless communications. In accordance with wireless communications, a signal (SIG) field employed within such packets is distributed or partitioned into at least two separate signal fields (e.g., SIG A and SIG B) that are located in different portions of the packet. A first of the SIG fields includes information that may be processed and decoded by all wireless communication devices, and a second of the SIG fields includes information that is specific to one or more particular wireless communication devices (e.g., a specific wireless communication device or a specific subset of the wireless communication devices). The precise locations of the at least first and second SIG fields within a packet may be varied, including placing a second of the SIG fields (e.g., including user-specific information) adjacent to and preceding a data field in the packet.

Claims

1. A method for operating a wireless communication device, the method comprising:

generating a multi-user packet including a distributed signal (SIG) field composed of at least two SIG fields; and

transmitting the multi-user packet to a plurality of wireless communication devices, wherein;

a first SIG field within the multi-user packet including first information for use by each of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding a first at least one field within the multi-user packet; and

a second SIG field within the multi-user packet including second information for use by at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding a second at least one field within the multi-user packet corresponding to the at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the multi-user packet being a multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO) packet or an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) packet.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first at least one field within the multi-user packet being the second at least one field within the multi-user packet.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

both the first information and the second information being for use by at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding the first at least one field within the multi-user packet or the second at least one field within the multi-user packet.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the multi-user packet including a first portion corresponding to a first operational mode followed by a second portion corresponding to a second operational mode;

the first portion including the first SIG field; and

the second portion including the second SIG field.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein:

within the second portion including the second SIG field, the second SIG field being adjacently located to a data field.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein:

a plurality of steering or precoding weight corresponding to at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices being applied only to the second portion of the multi-user packet.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

a bit within the first SIG field indicating a resolvable long training fields (LTFs) operational mode; and

the resolvable LTFs operational mode corresponding to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices respectively performing channel estimation corresponding to its respective communication channel by employing a plurality of LTFs and information corresponding to at least one other of the plurality of wireless communication devices within the multi-user packet.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein:

a common format of the multi-user packet being compliant with a plurality of operational modes including;

a single user (SU) operational mode;

a resolvable long training field (LTFs) operational mode being a first multi-user (MU) operational mode; and

a non-resolvable LTFs operational mode being a second MU operational mode.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the multi-user packet including a first portion including the first SIG field and a second portion including the second SIG field;

the first portion of the multi-user packet being transmitted omni-directionally to the plurality of wireless communication devices; and

the second portion of the multi-user packet being transmitted in accordance with beamforming or precoding to a selected at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the wireless communication device being an access point (AP); and

the plurality of wireless communication devices being a plurality of wireless stations (STAs).

12. A method for operating a wireless communication device, the method comprising:

generating a multi-user packet including a distributed signal (SIG) field composed of at least two SIG fields, such that the multi-user packet including a first portion including the first SIG field and a second portion including the second SIG field; and

transmitting the first portion of the multi-user packet omni-directionally to a plurality of wireless communication devices; and

transmitting the second portion of the multi-user packet in accordance with beamforming or precoding to a selected at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices;

wherein;

a first SIG field within the multi-user packet including first information for use by each of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding a first at least one field within the multi-user packet;

a second SIG field within the multi-user packet including second information for use by at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding a second at least one field within the multi-user packet corresponding to the at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices;

the multi-user packet including a first portion corresponding to a first operational mode followed by a second portion corresponding to a second operational mode;

the first portion including the first SIG field;

within the second portion including the second SIG field, the second SIG field being adjacently located to a data field; and

a common format of the multi-user packet being compliant with a plurality of operational modes including;

a single user (SU) operational mode;

a resolvable long training field (LTFs) operational mode being a first multi-user (MU) operational mode; and

a non-resolvable LTFs operational mode being a second MU operational mode.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein:

the multi-user packet being a multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO) packet or an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) packet.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein:

the first at least one field within the multi-user packet being the second at least one field within the multi-user packet.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein:

both the first information and the second information being for use by at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding the first at least one field within the multi-user packet or the second at least one field within the multi-user packet.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein:

a plurality of steering or precoding weight corresponding to at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices being applied only to the second portion of the multi-user packet.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein:

a bit within the first SIG field indicating a resolvable long training fields (LTFs) operational mode; and

the resolvable LTFs operational mode corresponding to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices respectively performing channel estimation corresponding to its respective communication channel by employing a plurality of LTFs and information corresponding to at least one other of the plurality of wireless communication devices within the multi-user packet.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein:

the wireless communication device being an access point (AP); and

the plurality of wireless communication devices being a plurality of wireless stations (STAs).

19. An apparatus, comprising:

a baseband processing module for generating a multi-user packet including a distributed signal (SIG) field composed of at least two SIG fields; and

at least one antenna for transmitting the multi-user packet to the plurality of wireless communication devices; and

wherein;

a first SIG field within the multi-user packet including first information for use by each of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding a first at least one field within the multi-user packet; and

a second SIG field within the multi-user packet including second information for use by at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding a second at least one field within the multi-user packet corresponding to the at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

the multi-user packet being a multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO) packet or an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) packet.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

the first at least one field within the multi-user packet being the second at least one field within the multi-user packet.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

both the first information and the second information being for use by at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices for decoding the first at least one field within the multi-user packet or the second at least one field within the multi-user packet.

23. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

the multi-user packet including a first portion corresponding to a first operational mode followed by a second portion corresponding to a second operational mode;

the first portion including the first SIG field; and

the second portion including the second SIG field.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein:

within the second portion including the second SIG field, the second SIG field being adjacently located to a data field.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein:

a plurality of steering or precoding weight corresponding to at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices being applied only to the second portion of the multi-user packet.

26. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

a bit within the first SIG field indicating a resolvable long training fields (LTFs) operational mode; and

the resolvable LTFs operational mode corresponding to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices respectively performing channel estimation corresponding to its respective communication channel by employing a plurality of LTFs and information corresponding to at least one other of the plurality of wireless communication devices within the multi-user packet.

27. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

a common format of the multi-user packet being compliant with a plurality of operational modes including;

a single user (SU) operational mode;

a resolvable long training field (LTFs) operational mode being a first multi-user (MU) operational mode; and

a non-resolvable LTFs operational mode being a second MU operational mode.

28. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

the multi-user packet including a first portion including the first SIG field and a second portion including the second SIG field;

the apparatus omni-directionally transmitting the first portion of the multi-user packet to the plurality of wireless communication devices; and

the apparatus transmitting the second portion of the multi-user packet in accordance with beamforming or precoding to a selected at least one of the plurality of wireless communication devices.

29. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein:

the apparatus being an access point (AP); and

the plurality of wireless communication devices being a plurality of wireless stations (STAs).