METHODS, WIRELESS COMMUNICATION STATIONS, AND SYSTEM FOR DEVICE-TO-DEVICE DISCOVERY AND ADVERTISEMENT

• US 20140112323A1
• Filed: 03/11/2013
• Published: 04/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Qi, Emily H., Park, Minyoung, Huang, Po-Kai
• Granted Patent: US 9,148,842 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0048 Allocation of pilot signals, i.e. of signals known to the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/10 using broadcasted information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/14 using user query or user detection

Abstract

Embodiments of a user station (STA) and methods for device-to-device discovery and advertisement through broadcast beacon signals are generally described herein. In some embodiments, group information, including a list of STAs in an advertising group, is transmitted in a beacon. A STA may transmit a request to join the advertising group. The request may be transmitted to an upchain STA, the upchain STA being determined based on inspection of the list of STAs of the advertising group. After receiving a response to the request, the STA may periodically broadcast the beacon and the STA may transmit acknowledgements to the upchain STA upon receiving beacons from the upchain STA.

Claims

1. A method, performed by a first user station (STA), for broadcasting in a wireless network, the method comprising:

receiving, in a beacon, information of an advertising group of STAs, the information including a list of STAs of the advertising group;

transmitting a request to join the advertising group to a first upchain STA, the first upchain STA being included in the list of STAs and an identity of the first upchain STA being determined based on an inspection of the list of STAs; and

transmitting the beacon subsequent to receiving, from the first upchain STA, a response to the request.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the information of the advertising group further includes social information or commercial information.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting an ACK to the first upchain STA in response to receiving a beacon transmitted by the first upchain STA.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

receiving a request to join the advertising group from a downchain STA;

transmitting a beacon to the downchain STA subsequent to acknowledging the request, the beacon including the list of STAs of the advertising group, the list including the downchain STA; and

entering a sleep mode after transmitting the beacon.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

waking from a sleep mode upon receiving the request.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first STA broadcasts group information for the advertising group periodically, a time interval between broadcasts being based on a number of STAs in the advertising group.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the request is transmitted during a join window of a broadcasting period.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting an ACK to a second upchain STA upon determining that the first upchain STA has not transmitted a beacon within a time interval.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the group information is received in a broadcast message configured in accordance with a standard of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 family of standards.

10. A wireless communication station (STA) comprising:

a medium access control (MAC) layer to configure a join request message for joining an advertising group of user stations (STAs); and

physical layer (PHY) circuitry to;

receive a list of STAs of the advertising group, the STAs of the advertising group being within a broadcast range of the STA,

transmit the join request message to a first upchain STA in a join window of the first upchain STA, the first upchain STA being a member of the list of STAs of the advertising group,

receive a response to the request from the first upchain STA,

transmit an ACK to the first upchain STA in response to receiving subsequent beacons transmitted by the first upchain STA; and

one or more processors to

determine an identity of the first upchain STA based on an inspection of the list of STAs of the advertising group.

11. The STA of claim 10, wherein

the PHY layer is further arranged to:

receive a request to join the advertising group from a downchain STA, and

transmit a beacon to the downchain STA upon accepting the request; and

the processor is further arranged to

add the downchain STA to the list of STAs of the advertising group.

12. The STA of claim 10, wherein

the processor is arranged to

determine that a beacon transmission was received from a second upchain STA, the second upchain STA being different from the first upchain STA, and

remove the first upchain STA from the list based on the determining, and

the PHY layer is further arranged to transmit an ACK to the second upchain STA based on the determining.

13. The STA of claim 10, wherein the PHY layer is further arranged to:

periodically broadcast social information or advertising information of the advertising group subsequent to receiving the response to the request, a time interval between the broadcasts being based on a number of STAs in the advertising group.

14. The STA of claim 13, wherein the processor is further arranged to:

wake from a sleep mode upon receiving the request to join the advertising group from the downchain STA; and

enter the sleep mode after transmitting each periodic broadcast of the group information.

15. A method for reducing device-to-device broadcast failures in a wireless network, the method comprising:

transmitting a beacon, the beacon including a list of user stations (STAs) in an advertising group, the list including a downchain STA;

removing the downchain STA from the list upon failing to receive, within a first time duration, an acknowledgement (ACK) from the downchain STA.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

entering a sleep mode subsequent to receiving an ACK, from the downchain STA, of the transmission of the beacon.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

retransmitting the beacon to the downchain STA upon failing receiving an ACK from the downchain STA within a second time duration, the second time duration being shorter than the first time duration.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the removing further comprises:

suppressing transmissions of beacons to the downchain STA.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

retransmitting the beacon to a second downchain STA, an identity of the second downchain STA being determined based on an inspection of the list of group STAs in the advertising group.

20. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed on a machine, cause the machine to:

extract, from a beacon, a list of user stations (STAs) of an advertising group, the STAs of the advertising group being within a broadcast range of the machine;

transmit a join request to a first upchain STA, an identity of the first upchain STA being determined based on an inspection of list of STAs,

periodically transmit advertising information or social information of the advertising group subsequent to receiving a response to the join request, a time interval between transmissions being based on a number of STAs in the advertising group, and

transmit an ACK to the first upchain STA in response to receiving a beacon transmitted by the first upchain STA; and

store the list of STAs in a memory.

21. The computer-readable medium of claim 20, further comprising instructions that, when executed on the machine, cause the machine to:

receive a request to join the advertising group from a downchain STA;

add the downchain STA to the list of STAs of the advertising group;

transmit a beacon to the downchain STA subsequent to acknowledging the request; and

remove the downchain STA from the list of STAs of the advertising group upon failing to receive an ACK of the beacon from the downchain STA.

22. A wireless communication station (STA) comprising:

physical layer (PHY) circuitry to

broadcast a list of user stations (STAs) in an advertising group, the list including a downchain STA, the STAs of the advertising group being within a broadcast range of the STA; and

one or more processors to

determine whether an acknowledgment of a broadcast has been received from the downchain STA within a time interval; and

remove the downchain STA from the list or retransmit the broadcast to the downchain STA based on the determining.

23. The STA of claim 22, wherein the PHY layer is further arranged to:

broadcast the group information to a second downchain STA upon the one or more processors removing the first downchain STA from list of STAs in the advertising group.