METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DYNAMIC SPECTRUM ACCESS

• US 20110090853A1
• Filed: 09/15/2010
• Published: 04/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Trustees of The Stevens Institute of Technology (Stevens Institute Of Technology)
• Original Assignee: The Trustees of The Stevens Institute of Technology (Stevens Institute Of Technology)
• Inventors: Hong, Kai, Chandramouli, Rajarathnam, Sengupta, Shamik
• Granted Patent: US 8,873,580 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/22 Traffic simulation tools or models
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/10 Flow control between communication endpoints
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/18 Negotiating wireless communication parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/22 Negotiating communication rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

Apparatus and methods are disclosed for improving wireless and other network communications, e.g., through improving resource utilization, which may comprise the steps of accumulating channel modeling information relating to channel performance; calculating a channel parameter threshold based on the accumulated channel modeling information, whereby the channel parameter, as measured, being above the threshold indicates the channel is a good channel; adjusting traffic over a selected good channel to improve performance of the network or a network resource. The network resource may comprises battery life for devices operating on the network, data rate for devices operating on the network, constituting or reconstituting ad hoc networks comprising nodes separated by multiple hops, continuity of connectivity within a single communication link over the network, etc. The apparatus and method of operating the apparatus may also comprise dynamically performing the adjusting step resulting from repeating the calculating step over time.

Claims

1. A method of improving wireless network resource utilization on a network comprising the steps of:

accumulating channel modeling information relating to channel performance for a channel;

calculating a channel parameter threshold for the channel parameter based on the accumulated channel modeling information, wherein the channel parameter, as measured, being above the threshold indicates the channel is a good channel;

adjusting traffic over a selected good channel to improve performance of the network or a network resource.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the network resource is selected from the group comprising battery life, data rate, constituting or reconstituting an ad hoc network comprising nodes separated by multiple hops, continuity of connectivity within a single communication link, for devices operating over the network.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

dynamically performing the adjusting step resulting from repeating the calculating step over time.

4. A method for facilitating wireless network communication between first and second network communication devices, comprising the steps of:

establishing a first communication link between a first communication device and a second communication device through a first physical link data channel for transmitting a packet;

determining at the second communication device, as to a received packet, whether a destination communication device indicated by the received packet is connected to the second communication device through a second physical link; and

,

if so creating a virtual link between the first communication device and the destination communication device through the pair of first and second physical links.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the wireless network comprises an ad hoc wireless network.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the second communication device is selected by the first communication device to receive a packet based upon the existence of the first physical link, whereby the first communication device and second communication device are within communication range of each other.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the second communication device designates the destination communication device for the packet based upon the existence of the second physical link, whereby the second communication device and the destination communication device are within communication range of each other.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the second communication device has no physical link to the destination device, further comprising the step of:

designating a third communication device intermediate the second communication device and the destination communication device based on a virtual link between the second communication device and the destination communication device through the third communication device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the second communication device selects the third communication device from a learned table of virtual links wherein the destination communication device is indicated to be connected to the second communication device by a virtual link through the third communication device.

10. A method of communicating from a first communication device to a second communication device, comprising the steps of:

operating a first communication device having a plurality of physical layer interfaces, each of which is adapted for connection to a respective one of a plurality of communication networks through a virtual device implemented in kernel space, transporting legacy protocols into a layer 3.5 protocol; and

,

communicating with a second communication device connected to at least two of the plurality of communication networks simultaneously over the respective ones of the plurality of networks to which each of the first and second communication devices are each connected.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

the step of communicating further comprises the first communication device sending the same communication to the second communication device over each network to which the first and second communication devices are connected and through which the first and second communication devices are communicating, to thereby decrease the probability of the communication interrupting before completed.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

the step of communicating further comprises the first communication device sending different communications to the second communications device over each network to which the first and second communication devices are connected and through which the first and second communication devices are communicating, to thereby increase the bandwidth available for communication between the first and second communication devices.