WIRELESS NETWORK RELAY APPARATUS

• US 20130059529A1
• Filed: 05/16/2011
• Published: 03/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Sonobe, Satoshi, Nakajima, Hiroaki, Nakao, Yoshitaka, Muto, Hideyuki, Kudou, Kentarou
• Granted Patent: US 8,995,905 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/9
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/15521 combining by calculations packets received from different stations before transmitting the combined packets as part of network coding network coding aspects for detection or prevention of errors in the information received H04L1/0076; network traffic management with optimizing of information sizing, e.g. header compression, by using assembly and disassembly of packets H04W28/065
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0003 by switching between different modulation schemes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0097 Relays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/0008 arrangements for allowing a transmitter or receiver to use more than one type of modulation negotiating modulation type for two-way transmission paths H04L5/1453
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

A wireless network relay apparatus includes a Layer 2 switch and a line control device as well as wireless/wired line terminating devices performing band limitation associated with an AMR function. It measures traffic passing through each line terminating device in inflow/outflow path directions. Upon detecting a modulation scheme changed due to an AMR function in a wireless area, it may specify a line terminating device so as to read a desired modulation scheme from a transmission source modulation scheme conversion table of the line control device based on traffic. It may change a local modulation scheme with a desired modulation scheme when a difference therebetween is above a predetermined number of stages. By tracking a modulation scheme changed for a transmission destination, it is possible to appropriately change a modulation scheme for a transmission source, thus suppressing traffic without discarding necessary data.

Claims

1. A wireless network relay apparatus, which is equipped with a plurality of line terminating devices corresponding to a plurality of communication lines and which performs line limitation associated with an AMR function, said wireless network relay apparatus comprising:

a traffic measuring part configured to measure traffic, passing through the plurality of line terminating devices, in a plurality of directions, thus recording total traffic;

a modulation scheme detecting part configured to detect whether or not a modulation scheme is changed due to the AMR function in a wireless area;

a modulation scheme judging part configured to specify the line terminating device of the communication line corresponding to the wireless area whose modulation scheme is changed and to judge whether or not a local modulation scheme should be changed;

a modulation scheme determining part configured to determine a desired modulation scheme based on the recorded traffic with the specified line terminating device when it is judged that the local modulation scheme should be changed; and

a modulation scheme changing part configured to change the local modulation scheme with the desired modulation scheme.

2. The wireless network relay apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the traffic measuring part sums up traffic in an inflow path direction of the specified line terminating device, among the plurality of line terminating devices, and traffic in an outflow path direction of the specified line terminating device independently, thus recording the traffics in these directions.

3. The wireless network relay apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the traffic measuring part records the traffic which is calculated by multiplying an average value of traffic, passing through the plurality of line terminating devices in a predetermined time, by a predetermined coefficient.

4. The wireless network relay apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined coefficient is set to 1.2.

5. The wireless network relay apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the modulation scheme detecting part detects that a modulation scheme is changed in a plurality of wireless areas, the modulation scheme judging part specifies the line terminating device corresponding to the wireless area undergoing a larger variant of band, thus determining whether or not the local modulation scheme should be changed based on the traffic.

6. The wireless network relay apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when modulation scheme detecting part detects that a modulation scheme is changed in a plurality of wireless areas and that the plurality of wireless areas undergoes a same variant of band, the modulation scheme judging part judges that the local modulation scheme should not be changed.

7. The wireless network relay apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the modulation scheme detecting part detects that a modulation scheme is changed in a plurality of wireless areas, that the plurality of wireless areas undergo a same variant of band, and that one wireless area undergoes a decreased band, the modulation scheme judging part specifies the line terminating device corresponding to the wireless area undergoing the decreased band, thus judging whether or not the local modulation scheme should be changed based on the traffic.

8. The wireless network relay apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the modulation scheme judging part stores a table describing a correspondence relationship between the modulation scheme and the traffic so as to read a secondary modulation scheme based on the changed modulation scheme of the wireless area detected by the modulation scheme detecting part and the traffic of the specified line terminating device, among the plurality of line terminating devices, and wherein when the secondary modulation scheme has a difference, corresponding to a predetermined number of stages or more, compared to the current local modulation scheme, the modulation scheme changing part changes the current local modulation scheme with the secondary modulation scheme.

9. A modulation scheme changing method adapted to a wireless network relay apparatus, which is equipped with a plurality of line terminating devices corresponding to a plurality of communication lines and which performs band limitation associated with an AMR function, said modulation scheme changing method comprising:

measuring traffic, passing through the plurality of line terminating devices in a plurality of directions, thus recording total traffic;

detecting whether or not a modulation scheme is changed due to the AMR function in the wireless area;

specifying the line terminating device of the communication line corresponding to the wireless area whose modulation scheme is changed, thus judging whether or not a local modulation scheme should be changed;

determining a desired modulation scheme based on the recorded traffic with the specified line terminating device when it is judged that the local modulation scheme should be changed; and

changing the local modulation scheme with the desired modulation scheme.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium with an executable program stored thereon, wherein the program causes a computer to execute a modulation scheme changing method adapted to a wireless network relay apparatus, which is equipped with a plurality of line terminating devices corresponding to a plurality of communication lines and which performs band limitation associated with an AMR function, wherein the program instructs the computer to perform the following steps:

measuring traffic, passing through the plurality of line terminating devices in a plurality of directions, and then recording total traffic;

detecting whether or not a modulation scheme is changed due to the AMR function in the wireless area;

specifying the line terminating device of the communication line corresponding to the wireless area whose modulation scheme is changed, thus judging whether or not a local modulation scheme should be changed;

determining a desired modulation scheme based on the recorded traffic with the specified line terminating device when it is judged that the local modulation scheme should be changed; and

changing the local modulation scheme with the desired modulation scheme.