TRANSCIEVER DEVICE FOR ON-BODY AND OFF-BODY COMMUNICATIONS

• US 20110280224A1
• Filed: 01/28/2010
• Published: 11/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Falck, Thomas, Espina Perez, Javier, Hilgers, Achim
• Granted Patent: US 8,750,222 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/336
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/1215 for collaboration of different radio technologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/10 Small scale networks; Flat hierarchical networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

The present invention relates to a transceiver device for processing a medium access control (MAC) protocol used by a transceiver. The transceiver has a first antenna system for on-body communications and a second antenna system for off-body communications, the transceiver device being designed to reserve one or more data payloads for on-body communications and to allocate the first antenna system to the transceiver for the interval of time occupied by these data payloads, and/or to reserve one or more data payloads for off-body communications and to allocate the second antenna system to the transceiver for the interval of time occupied by these data payloads. An advantageous result of this is that the optimally matched antenna system is available for on-body communications and off-body communications respectively, collisions between data payloads on the radio channel being prevented within the network, and the throughput of data thus being increased and, at the same time, energy consumption being reduced for the transceiver.

Claims

1. A transceiver device for processing a medium access control protocol, or MAC protocol for short, used by a transceiver that has a first antenna system for on-body communications and a second antenna system for off-body communications, wherein the transceiver device is designed

to reserve one or more data payloads for on-body communications and to allocate the first antenna system to the transceiver for the interval of time occupied by the said data payloads and/or

to reserve one or more data payloads for off-body communications and to allocate the second antenna system to the transceiver for the interval of time occupied by the said data payloads.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a network coordinator provides time slots for on-body communications and time slots for off-body communications in a superframe.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein synchronization of the data payloads for on-body communications and/or off-body communications is performed by means of at least one beacon payload that is generated by the network coordinator.

4. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein each transceiver device is able to request time slots for communications with on-body and off-body devices from the network coordinator, and wherein the network coordinator grants the network users rights of use for time slots, for transmission and reception, by means of a beacon payload.

5. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein a network coordinator provides time slots in the form of a contention access period or in the form of guaranteed time slots for on-body communications, and time slots in the form of a contention access period or in the form of guaranteed time slots for off-body communications, in a superframe.

6. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein a network coordinator that is arranged on-body emits the beacon payload in parallel by means of the first and second antenna systems.

7. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein a converter has the first and at least one further antenna system, the further antenna system being intended for communications links conforming to a mid range RF link standard.

8. System for wireless communications between at least one transceiver device as claimed in claim 1, comprising

transceiver devices arranged on the patient'"'"'s body,

transceiving units positioned off-body.

9. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the said system has a transceiver device that performs the function of a converter that changes data between a radio link standard for short range on-body/off-body communications and any desired other standard for mid range RF links, and/or between the protocol for the on-body or off-body short range communications and other mid range RF services.

10. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein any transceiver device on the network is able to perform the function of network coordinator, and wherein the function of network coordinator is assigned to that transceiver device on the network that is switched on first.

11. A system as claimed in claim 8 for exchanging data between a sensor arranged on a patient and a patient information centre, comprising:

an off-body communications link via a patient monitor, or

an on-body communications link to the converter and the exchange of data by means of the converter via a mid range RF link made via the third antenna system.

12. A MAC protocol method wherein a transceiver device divides a transmission channel into superframes that follow one another in time,

and that comprise at least one beacon payload,

at least one data payload for on-body communications over a range of up to 20 m, and preferably of up to 2 m, an antenna system for on-body communications being used during the interval of time occupied by the data payload for on-body communications, and

at least one data payload for off-body communications over a range of up to 100 m, and preferably of 4 m, an antenna system for off-body communications being used during the interval of time occupied by the data payload for off-body communications.

13. A MAC protocol method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the MAC protocol method makes provision for a transceiver device as the network coordinator, the network coordinator coordinating the on-body and off-body radio traffic by allocating time slots.

14. A MAC protocol method as claimed in claim 12, wherein each transceiver device subdivides the superframe into intervals of time for data payloads, in order to

reserve one or more data payloads for on-body communications and for the interval of time occupied by these data payloads, the antenna system that is allocated to the transceiver being the first one in this case, and/or in order to

reserve one or more data payloads for off-body communications and for the interval of time occupied by these data payloads, the antenna system that is allocated to the transceiver being the second one in this case.

15. A MAC protocol method as claimed in claim 12, wherein a transceiver device serves as a protocol converter, such for example as a hub, bridge or gateway, between the protocol method for on-body or off-body short range RF communications and mid range RF communications that employ a different protocol method.