METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DYNAMIC STATION ENABLEMENT PROCEDURE

• US 20110243078A1
• Filed: 03/11/2011
• Published: 10/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Eun Sun, Seok, Yong Ho
• Granted Patent: US 8,588,160 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0085 when channel conditions change
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/14 Spectrum sharing arrangements between different networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/27 between access points
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/51 based on terminal or device properties
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A method and an apparatus for an access point (AP) station to operate as a first type dependent station within a white space in a regulatory domain where a licensed device and an unlicensed device are permitted to operate together are disclosed. For a method of an access point (AP) station to operate as a first type dependent station within a white space in a regulatory domain where a licensed device and an unlicensed device are permitted to operate together, the method comprising: transmitting a White Space Map (WSM) comprising a list of available channels and a list of maximum allowed transmission powers of the available channels within a beacon frame in every beacon transmission instances with a predetermined transmission interval, wherein the transmission of the WSM is for at least one second type dependent station; receiving, from an enabling station having an authority for a permission of an operation of the first type dependent station and the second type dependent station, an updated White Space Map (WSM); operating only within the available channels identified by the updated WSM; and transmitting the updated WSM in a next beacon transmission instance when the WSM is supposed to be transmitted within the beacon frame.

Claims

1. A method of an access point (AP) station to operate as a first type dependent station within a white space in a regulatory domain where a licensed device and an unlicensed device are permitted to operate together, the method comprising:

transmitting a White Space Map (WSM) comprising a list of available channels and a list of maximum allowed transmission powers of the available channels within a beacon frame in every beacon transmission instances with a predetermined transmission interval, wherein the transmission of the WSM is for at least one second type dependent station;

receiving, from an enabling station having an authority for a permission of an operation of the first type dependent station and the second type dependent station, an updated White Space Map (WSM);

operating only within the available channels identified by the updated WSM; and

transmitting the updated WSM in a next beacon transmission instance when the WSM is supposed to be transmitted within the beacon frame.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the enabling station is a station determining the available channels at its location using its own geographic location identification and a regulatory database access capability.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second type dependent station is a station receiving the available channel list from the enabling station or the first type dependent station that enables the operation of the second type dependent station.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein operating only within the available channels comprise:

moving channels for operation if the AP station is operating on a channel which becomes unavailable by the updated WSM.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the second type dependent station, a probe request frame on a specific channel identified by the WSM; and

transmitting a probe response frame comprising the WSM to the second type dependent station.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the WSM further comprise valid time information indicating the time period in which the WSM is valid from the transmission of the beacon frame comprising the WSM.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the AP station or the second type dependent station become unenabled, if the WSM becomes invalid and the AP station or the second type dependent station does not receive another WSM within the valid time.

8. An access point (AP) station apparatus operating as a first type dependent station within a white space in a regulatory domain where a licensed device and an unlicensed device are permitted to operate together, the apparatus comprising:

a transceiver configured to transmit a White Space Map (WSM) comprising a list of available channels and a list of maximum allowed transmission powers of the available channels within a beacon frame in every beacon transmission instances with a predetermined transmission interval, wherein the transmission of the WSM is for at least one second type dependent station, and to receive, from an enabling station having an authority for a permission of an operation of the first type dependent station and the second type dependent station, an updated White Space Map (WSM); and

a processor configured to operate only within the available channels identified by the updated WSM,

wherein the processor controls the transceiver to transmit the updated WSM in a next beacon transmission instance when the updated WSM is received and the WSM is supposed to be transmitted within the beacon frame.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the enabling station is a station determining the available channels at its location using its own geographic location identification and a regulatory database access capability.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the second type dependent station is a station receiving the available channel list from the enabling station or the first type dependent station that enables the operation of the second type dependent station.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to move channels for operation if the apparatus is operating on a channel which becomes unavailable by the updated WSM.

12. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the transceiver is further configured to receive, from the second type dependent station, a probe request frame on a specific channel identified by the WSM, and to transmit a probe response frame comprising the WSM to the second type dependent station.

13. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the WSM further comprise valid time information indicating the time period in which the WSM is valid from the transmission of the beacon frame comprising the WSM.

14. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the apparatus or the second type dependent station become unenabled, if the WSM becomes invalid and the apparatus or the second type dependent station does not receive another WSM within the valid time.