ULTRA-RELIABLE COMMUNICATIONS USING NEIGHBORING DEVICE-TO-DEVICE ASSISTANCE

• US 20160044733A1
• Filed: 03/27/2015
• Published: 02/11/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/07/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Soriaga, Joseph Binamira, Li, Junyi, Ji, Tingfang, Bhushan, Naga, Smee, John Edward
• Granted Patent: US 10,750,558 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1887 Scheduling and prioritising arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0097 Relays
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/15 Setup of multiple wireless link connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/18 Management of setup rejection or failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/40 for selective distribution or broadcast
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

One feature provides a method operational on a neighboring device for downlink transmission assistance for a target device. The neighboring device monitors a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions from a serving access point. The neighboring device also determines if a received first transmission over the shared asynchronous first channel is intended for the target device. For instance, the received first transmission may be captured and decoded. After an expiration of a threshold period of time, the neighboring device relays the received first transmission to the target device over the first channel or a different second channel.

Claims

1. A method operational on at least one neighboring device for downlink transmission assistance for a target device, comprising:

monitoring a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions from a serving access point;

determining if a received first transmission over the shared asynchronous first channel is intended for the target device; and

relaying, after an expiration of a threshold period of time, the received first transmission to the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the shared asynchronous first channel and the second channel are established over different non-overlapping frequency spectrums.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the shared asynchronous first channel is coextensive with the second channel.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold period of time is synchronous with respect to reception of the first transmission.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

capturing and decoding the received first transmission.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically relaying the received first transmission after a decoding delay.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the received first transmission is relayed only if a failure indicator is received from the target device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the received first transmission is relayed in synchronicity with an expected retransmission from the serving access point.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first channel uses a first frequency spectrum, a first communication protocol, and/or a first modulation-and-coding scheme.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving a message from the target device over the second channel indicating that a retransmission of the received first transmission is desired over the second channel, wherein the second channel uses a second frequency spectrum, a second communication protocol, and/or a second modulation-and-coding scheme, distinct from the first channel.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the received first transmission is relayed within an expected transmission time interval of transmissions over the first channel.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the first transmission is relayed regardless of channel conditions for the first channel and/or the second channel.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first channel is shared for all broadcast transmissions from the serving access point.

14. A wireless communication device, comprising:

a wireless communication circuit adapted for communications with at least one wireless network and other wireless devices;

a processing circuit coupled to the wireless communication circuit for downlink communication assistance, the processing circuit configured to;

monitor a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions from a serving access point;

determine if a received first transmission over the shared asynchronous first channel is intended for a target device; and

after an expiration of a threshold period of time, relay, via the wireless communication circuit, the received first transmission to the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

15. The wireless communication device of claim 14 further comprising:

a storage device including channel data and transmission data.

16. The wireless communication device of claim 14 further comprising:

a user input circuit coupled to an external user input device; and

a display circuit coupled to an external display output device.

17. The wireless communication device of claim 16, wherein the user input circuit takes input and also provides output via the external user input device and the display circuit displays output and provides input via the external display output device.

18. The wireless communication device of claim 14, wherein the wireless communication circuit comprises:

at least one transceiver chain; and

a modem processor coupled to the processing circuit.

19. The wireless communication device of claim 18, wherein the at least one transceiver chain comprises:

a first transceiver chain including a first radio frequency (RF) front end interface and a first RF processor, the first RF front end interface being coupled to the first RF processor; and

a second transceiver chain including a second RF front end interface and a second RF processor, the second RF front end interface being coupled to the second RF processor, the first and second RF front end interfaces communicating with the at least one wireless network and the other wireless devices.

20. The wireless communication device of claim 19, wherein the modem processor sends a first transmitted signal to the first RF processor and a second transmitted signal to the second RF processor, and also receives a first received signal from the first RF processor and a second received signal from the second RF processor.

21. An apparatus operational on at least one neighboring device for downlink transmission assistance for a target device, comprising:

means for monitoring a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions from a serving access point;

means for determining if a received first transmission over the shared asynchronous first channel is intended for the target device; and

means for relaying, after an expiration of a threshold period of time, the received first transmission to the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the shared asynchronous first channel and the second channel are established over different non-overlapping frequency spectrums.

23. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the shared asynchronous first channel is coextensive with the second channel.

24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the threshold period of time is synchronous with respect to reception of the first transmission.

25. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising:

means for capturing and decoding the received first transmission.

26. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising:

means for automatically relaying the received first transmission after a decoding delay.

27. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the received first transmission is relayed only if a failure indicator is received from the target device.

28. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the received first transmission is relayed in synchronicity with an expected retransmission from the serving access point.

29. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the first channel uses a first frequency spectrum, a first communication protocol, and/or a first modulation-and-coding scheme.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising:

means for receiving a message from the target device over the second channel indicating that a retransmission of the received first transmission is desired over the second channel, wherein the second channel uses a second frequency spectrum, a second communication protocol, and/or a second modulation-and-coding scheme, distinct from the first channel.

31. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the received first transmission is relayed within an expected transmission time interval of transmissions over the first channel.

32. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the first transmission is relayed regardless of channel conditions for the first channel and/or the second channel.

33. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the first channel is shared for all broadcast transmissions from the serving access point.

34. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon operational on at least one neighboring device for downlink transmission assistance for a target device, the instructions which when executed by at least one processor cause the processor to:

monitor a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions from a serving access point;

determine if a received first transmission over the shared asynchronous first channel is intended for a target device; and

after an expiration of a threshold period of time, relay the received first transmission to the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

35. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the shared asynchronous first channel and the second channel are established over different non-overlapping frequency spectrums.

36. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the shared asynchronous first channel is coextensive with the second channel.

37. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the threshold period of time is synchronous with respect to reception of the first transmission.

38. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the instructions which when executed by the at least one processor further causes the processor to:

capture and decode the received first transmission.

39. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the instructions which when executed by the at least one processor further causes the processor to:

automatically relay the received first transmission after a decoding delay.

40. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the received first transmission is relayed only if a failure indicator is received from the target device.

41. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the received first transmission is relayed in synchronicity with an expected retransmission from the serving access point.

42. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the first channel uses a first frequency spectrum, a first communication protocol, and/or a first modulation-and-coding scheme.

43. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 42, wherein the instructions which when executed by the at least one processor further causes the processor to:

receive a message from the target device over the second channel indicating that a retransmission of the received first transmission is desired over the second channel, wherein the second channel uses a second frequency spectrum, a second communication protocol, and/or a second modulation-and-coding scheme, distinct from the first channel.

44. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 42, wherein the received first transmission is relayed within an expected transmission time interval of transmissions over the first channel.

45. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the first transmission is relayed regardless of channel conditions for the first channel and/or the second channel.

46. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 34, wherein the first channel is shared for all broadcast transmissions from the serving access point.

47. A method operational on at least one neighboring device for uplink transmission assistance for a serving access point, comprising:

receiving a first transmission from a target device over a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions, the first transmission also being sent from the target device to the serving access point;

pre-allocating an additional time period with the serving access point;

determining if the first transmission was not received by the serving access point; and

relaying, after an expiration of the pre-allocated additional time period, the received first transmission to the serving access point over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

48. The method of claim 47, further comprising:

receiving a second transmission from the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions, the second transmission not being sent to the serving access point; and

simultaneously broadcasting, to the serving access point, both the received second transmission and a third transmission from the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel or the different second channel, the second transmission and the third transmission being the same transmission.

49. The method of claim 47, wherein all devices that send transmissions use the same time and/or frequency resources to form a local single frequency network.

50. The method of claim 47, wherein the serving access point selects the relaying of the received first transmission to be unicasted from several nearby additional devices capable of relaying transmissions.

51. The method of claim 47, wherein determining if the first transmission was not received by the serving access point comprises determining if the serving access point sends a failure indicator (NAK) that is received by at least the target device.

52. A network communication device, comprising:

a wireless communication circuit adapted for communications with at least one wireless network and other wireless devices;

a network communication circuit adapted for communications with at least one core network;

a processing circuit coupled to the wireless communication circuit for uplink communication assistance, the processing circuit configured to;

receive a first transmission from a target device over a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions, the first transmission also being sent from the target device to a serving access point;

pre-allocate an additional time period with the serving access point;

determine if the first transmission was not received by the serving access point; and

relay, after an expiration of the pre-allocated additional time period, the received first transmission to the serving access point over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

53. The network communication device of claim 52, wherein the network communication circuit and the wireless communication circuit form a combined communication circuit.

54. The network communication device of claim 53, wherein the combined communication circuit comprises:

at least one transceiver chain; and

a modem processor coupled to the processing circuit.

55. The network communication device of claim 54, wherein the at least one transceiver chain comprises:

a first transceiver chain including a first radio frequency (RF) front end interface and a first RF processor, the first RF front end interface being coupled to the first RF processor; and

a second transceiver chain including a second RF front end interface and a second RF processor, the second RF front end interface being coupled to the second RF processor, the first and second RF front end interfaces communicating with the at least one core network, the at least one wireless network and/or the other wireless devices.

56. The network communication device of claim 55, wherein the modem processor sends a first transmitted signal to the first RF processor and a second transmitted signal to the second RF processor, and also receives a first received signal from the first RF processor and a second received signal from the second RF processor.

57. An apparatus operational on at least one neighboring device for uplink transmission assistance for a serving access point, comprising:

means for receiving a first transmission from a target device over a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions, the first transmission also being sent from the target device to the serving access point;

means for pre-allocating an additional time period with the serving access point;

means for determining if the first transmission was not received by the serving access point; and

means for relaying, after an expiration of the pre-allocated additional time period, the received first transmission to the serving access point over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

58. The apparatus of claim 57, further comprising:

means for receiving a second transmission from the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions, the second transmission not being sent to the serving access point; and

means for simultaneously broadcasting, to the serving access point, both the received second transmission and a third transmission from the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel or the different second channel, the second transmission and the third transmission being the same transmission.

59. The apparatus of claim 57, wherein all devices that send transmissions use the same time and/or frequency resources to form a local single frequency network.

60. The apparatus of claim 57, wherein the serving access point selects the relaying of the received first transmission to be unicasted from several nearby additional devices capable of relaying transmissions.

61. The apparatus of claim 57, wherein the means for determining if the first transmission was not received by the serving access point comprises means for determining if the serving access point sends a failure indicator (NAK) that is received by at least the target device.

62. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon operational on at least one neighboring device for uplink transmission assistance for a serving access point, the instructions which when executed by at least one processor cause the processor to:

receive a first transmission from a target device over a shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions, the first transmission also being sent from the target device to a serving access point;

pre-allocate an additional time period with the serving access point;

determine if the first transmission was not received by the serving access point; and

relay, after an expiration of the pre-allocated additional time period, the received first transmission to the serving access point over the shared asynchronous first channel or a different second channel.

63. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein the instructions which when executed by the at least one processor further causes the processor to:

receive a second transmission from the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel for broadcast transmissions, the second transmission not being sent to the serving access point; and

simultaneously broadcast, to the serving access point, both the received second transmission and a third transmission from the target device over the shared asynchronous first channel or the different second channel, the second transmission and the third transmission being the same transmission.

64. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein all devices that send transmissions use the same time and/or frequency resources to form a local single frequency network.

65. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein the serving access point selects the relaying of the received first transmission to be unicasted from several nearby additional devices capable of relaying transmissions.

66. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 62, wherein determining if the first transmission was not received by the serving access point comprises determining if the serving access point sends a failure indicator (NAK) that is received by at least the target device.