Multi-Carrier Communications With Group-Based Subcarrier Allocation

• US 20110170446A1
• Filed: 03/21/2011
• Published: 07/14/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Adaptix, Inc. (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Adaptix, Inc. (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Inventors: Yin, Hujun, Li, Xiaodong, Liu, Hui, Mu, Fuqi, Xing, Guanbin
• Application Number:
  US13/053,111
• Publication Number:
  US 20110170446A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/252
• 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 1/0026 Transmission of channel quality indication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0023 Time-frequency-space
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0037 Inter-user or inter-terminal allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0044 allocation of payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/006 Quality of the received signal, e.g. BER, SNR, water filling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/023 Multiplexing of multicarrier modulation signals multicarrier modulation H04L27/2601
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/02 Selection of wireless resources by user or terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/542 using measured or perceived quality
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/02 Hierarchically pre-organised networks, e.g. paging networks, cellular networks, WLAN [Wireless Local Area Network] or WLL [Wireless Local Loop]

Abstract

A method and apparatus for subcarrier selection for systems is described. In one embodiment, the system employs orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA). In one embodiment, a method for subcarrier selection comprises a subscriber measuring channel and interference information for subcarriers based on pilot symbols received from a base station, the subscriber selecting a set of candidate subcarriers, providing feedback information on the set of candidate subcarriers to the base station, and receiving an indication of subcarriers of the set of subcarriers selected by the base station for use by the subscriber.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication, said method comprising:

allocating a first set of one or more subcarriers to a subscriber to over a wireless link with said subscriber;

receiving information indicative of quality of said allocated subcarriers;

changing said allocation from said first set to a second set; and

transmitting said second set of one or more subcarriers to said subscriber;

wherein said second set is different than said first set.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein changing comprises allocating one or more additional subcarriers to said subscriber when said information indicative of quality is below a determined value.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein changing comprises removing at least one of said allocated subcarriers from said allocated subcarriers when said information indicative of quality is above a determined value.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein changing comprises replacing at least one of said allocated subcarriers with at least one or more other subcarriers.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said information indicative of quality is signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR) information relating to said one or more allocated subcarriers.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said information indicative of quality is signal to noise ratio (SNR) information relating to said one or more allocated subcarriers.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising comparing said information indicative of quality to a determined value;

wherein said changing is further based upon said comparison.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said determined value is dynamic.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving information indicative of quality of said second allocated subcarriers;

changing said allocation from said second set to a third set; and

transmitting said third set of one or more subcarriers to said subscriber, wherein said third set is different than said second set.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein changing said allocation is performed after said allocating and receiving and increases communication bandwidth over said wireless link.

11. The method of claim 2 wherein allocating one or more additional subcarriers to said subscriber comprises allocating one or more diversity clusters to said subscriber.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the number of diversity clusters allocated to said subscriber increases as the amount at which said information indicative of quality falls below said determined value increases;

and

wherein changing said allocation is performed after said allocating and receiving and increases communication bandwidth over said wireless link.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein said transmitting a second set of one or more subcarriers to said subscriber comprises transmitting information indicative of the modulation to be used for said wireless link.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein said transmitting a second set of one or more subcarriers to said subscriber comprises transmitting information indicative of the coding to be used for said wireless link.

15. A method for wireless communication, said method comprising:

receiving, from one or more subscriber stations, information indicative of quality of one or more subcarriers allocated to said one or more subscriber stations;

prioritizing one or more subcarriers for communication with said one or subscribers based on said received information;

transmitting one or more subcarriers to said one or more subscribers according to said priority; and

updating, from time to time, said priority based on additional received information indicative of quality of said one or more subcarriers.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein said information indicative of quality said information comprising information sufficient to determine signal to noise plus interference ratio (SINR).

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said information indicative of quality further comprises information sufficient to determine received signal strength (RSS).

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

summing said RSS and SINR information for said one or more subcarriers; and

prioritizing said one or more subcarriers further based on said summing.

19. The method of claim 15 further comprising analyzing information indicative of quality for said one or more subcarriers, wherein said prioritizing is based on said analyzing.

20. The method of claim 16 wherein said information indicative of quality comprises SINR information relating to pilot symbols transmitted over said wireless link.

21. The method of claim 16 wherein said information indicative of quality comprises SINR information relating to data symbols transmitted over said wireless link.

22. The method of claim 15 further comprising prioritizing said one or more subcarriers based on said analyzing.

23. A method for wireless communication, said method comprising:

sending, from a base station, an instruction to a subscriber station to measure channel condition information for one or more subcarriers, said subcarriers available for communication between said base station and said subscriber station;

receiving, at said base station, information indicative of measured channel condition information of said one or more subcarriers; and

allocating one or more subcarriers to said subscriber station.

24. The method of claim 23 further comprising:

comparing said received information to a determined value.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein said determined value is dynamic.

26. The method of claim 23 wherein said instruction to a subscriber station to measure channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises an instruction to measure pilot symbol information, said pilot symbols transmitted from said base station.

27. The method of claim 26 wherein said instruction further comprises an instruction to determine signal to noise plus interference (SINR) for said one or more subcarriers.

28. The method of claim 24 wherein said allocating one or more subcarriers to said subscriber station comprises allocating additional subcarriers if said received information is below said determined value.

29. The method of claim 28 wherein allocating one or more subcarriers to said subscriber station comprises allocating a coherence cluster of subcarriers.

30. The method of claim 23 wherein said instruction to a subscriber station to measure channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises an instruction to measure data symbol information, said data symbols transmitted from said base station.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein said instruction further comprises an instruction to determine signal to noise plus interference (SINR) for said one or more subcarriers.

32. The method of claim 28 wherein allocating one or more subcarriers to said subscriber station comprises allocating a diversity cluster of subcarriers.

33. The method of claim 23 wherein said instruction to a subscriber station to measure channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises an instruction to measure a coherence cluster of subcarriers.

34. The method of claim 23 wherein said instruction to a subscriber station to measure channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises an instruction to measure a diversity cluster of subcarriers.

35. The method of claim 23 wherein said instruction to a subscriber station to measure channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises an instruction to measure randomly selected subcarriers.

36. The method of claim 23 wherein said transmitting a second set of one or more subcarriers to said subscriber comprises transmitting information indicative of the modulation for communication between said base station and said subscriber station.

37. The method of claim 23 wherein said transmitting a second set of one or more subcarriers to said subscriber comprises transmitting information indicative of the coding for communication between said base station and said subscriber station.

38. The method of claim 23 wherein said allocating one or more subcarriers to said subscriber station is based, at least in part, on said received information.

39. A method for wireless communication, said method comprising:

receiving a first allocation of one or more subcarriers from a base station to establish a wireless communication link with said base station;

transmitting, after receiving said first allocation, information indicative of quality of said one or more subcarriers to said base station; and

receiving a second allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station;

wherein said second allocation is different than said first allocation.

40. The method of claim 39 wherein said transmitting is performed on a periodic basis.

41. The method of claim 39 wherein said transmitting is performed on an aperiodic basis.

42. The method of claim 39 wherein said second allocation comprises more subcarriers than said first allocation.

43. The method of claim 39 wherein said second allocation comprises less subcarriers than said first allocation.

44. The method of claim 39 wherein said second allocation comprises at least one different subcarrier from said first allocation.

45. The method of claim 39 wherein said information indicative of quality is signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR) information relating to said one or more allocated subcarriers.

46. The method of claim 39 wherein said information indicative of quality is signal to noise ratio (SNR) information relating to said one or more allocated subcarriers.

47. The method of claim 39, further comprising:

transmitting information indicative of quality of said second one or more subcarriers to said base station; and

receiving a third allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station;

wherein said third allocation is different than said second allocation.

48. The method of claim 39 wherein said second allocation is based, at least in part, on said transmitted information.

49. The method of claim 47 wherein transmitting information indicative of quality of said second one or more subcarriers is performed in response to receiving said second allocation;

and

receiving said third allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station, is based, at least in part, on said second transmitted information.

50. A method for wireless communication, said method comprising:

receiving, at a subscriber station, an instruction from a base station to measure channel condition information for one or more subcarriers, said subcarriers available for communication between said base station and said subscriber station;

measuring channel condition information for one or more subcarriers in accordance with said instruction;

transmitting information indicative of measured channel condition information of said one or more subcarriers to said base station; and

receiving an allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station.

51. The method of claim 50 wherein said measuring channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises measuring pilot symbol information, said pilot symbols transmitted from said base station.

52. The method of claim 51 wherein said measured pilot symbol information is used to determine signal to noise plus interference (SINR) for said one or more subcarriers.

53. The method of claim 52 wherein said allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station comprises additional subcarriers if said determined SINR is below a determined value.

54. The method of claim 53 wherein receiving an allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station comprises receiving a coherence cluster of subcarriers.

55. The method of claim 50 wherein said measuring channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises measuring data symbol information, said data symbols transmitted from said base station.

56. The method of claim 55 wherein said measured data symbol information is used to determine signal to noise plus interference SINR for said one or more subcarriers.

57. The method of claim 56 wherein said allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station comprises additional subcarriers if said determined SINR is below a determined value.

58. The method of claim 57 wherein receiving an allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station comprises receiving a diversity cluster of subcarriers.

59. The method of claim 50 wherein said measuring channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises measuring a coherence cluster of subcarriers.

60. The method of claim 50 wherein said measuring channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises measuring a diversity cluster of subcarriers.

61. The method of claim 50 wherein said measuring channel condition information for one or more subcarriers comprises measuring randomly selected subcarriers.

62. The method of claim 50 wherein said receiving an allocation of one or more subcarriers from said base station is based, at least in part, on said transmitted information.