OFDMA RESOURCE ASSIGNMENT RULES TO ACHIEVE ROBUSTNESS

• US 20160119927A1
• Filed: 10/26/2015
• Published: 04/28/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Atlas Global Technologies LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Newracom Inc.
• Inventors: HEDAYAT, Ahmad Reza
• Application Number:
  US14/923,335
• Publication Number:
  US 20160119927A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/12 Wireless traffic scheduling

Abstract

A method for a wireless communications system in which an access point wirelessly communicates with a plurality of stations over a wireless channel includes transmitting a frame, including a schedule, from the access point to a plurality of stations, the schedule including assignments of one or more sub-bands in at least one sub-channel of the wireless channel to each station in the plurality of stations. Each station in the plurality of stations uses the assigned sub-band for a multi-user, simultaneous communication with the access point.

Claims

1. A method for a wireless communications system in which an access point wirelessly communicates with a plurality of stations over a wireless channel, the method comprising:

transmitting a frame, including a schedule from the access point to a plurality of stations, the schedule including assignments of one or more sub-bands in at least one sub-channel of the wireless channel to each station in the plurality of stations,

wherein each station in the plurality of stations uses the assigned sub-band for a multi-user, simultaneous communication with the access point.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more sub-bands are assigned from a primary channel of the wireless channel.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless channel includes a plurality of sub-channels and one or more sub-bands are assigned to each station in the plurality of stations from each of the plurality of sub-channels such that the each station in the plurality of stations is assigned at least one sub-band in each of the plurality of sub-channels.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein each sub-channel in the plurality of sub-channels is a 20 MHz channel.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless channel includes a plurality of sub-channels, and

wherein sub-bands in one or more sub-channels of the plurality of sub-channels are assigned to at least two separate stations in the plurality of stations.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein one sub-channel in the plurality of sub-channels is a primary sub-channel such that all transmissions on the wireless channel includes the primary sub-channel,

wherein the assignment of sub-bands, in one or more sub-channels of the plurality of sub-channels to at least two separate stations in the plurality of stations, prioritizes the primary sub-channel over the other sub-channels in the plurality of sub-channels.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein one sub-channel in the plurality of sub-channels is a primary sub-channel such that all transmissions on the wireless channel includes the primary sub-channel,

wherein the assignment of sub-bands, in one or more sub-channels of the plurality of sub-channels to at least two separate stations in the plurality of stations, prioritizes a sub-channel other than the primary sub-channel.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein (1) one sub-channel in the plurality of sub-channels is a primary sub-channel such that all transmissions on the wireless channel includes the primary sub-channel and (2) one sub-channel in the plurality of sub-channels is a secondary sub-channel such that all transmissions that are double a bandwidth of the primary sub-channel includes the secondary sub-channel,

wherein the assignment of sub-bands, in one or more sub-channels of the plurality of sub-channels to at least two separate stations in the plurality of stations, prioritizes the secondary sub-channel over the other sub-channels in the plurality of sub-channels.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a set of stations in the plurality of stations with a highest signal strength over a period of time,

wherein one or more stations from the set of stations is assigned to one or more sub-channels in the plurality of sub-channels.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein one sub-channel in the plurality of sub-channels is a primary sub-channel such that all transmissions on the wireless channel includes the primary sub-channel,

wherein the assignment of the one or more stations from the set of stations to one or more sub-channels in the plurality of sub-channels prioritizes the primary sub-channel over the other sub-channels in the plurality of sub-channels.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the schedule is represented in one of (1) a trigger frame, which schedules an uplink transmission from the plurality of stations, and (2) a signaling field of a downlink multi-user transmission from the access point to the plurality of stations.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless channel includes a plurality of sub-channels, and

wherein at least two stations in the plurality of stations is assigned to each sub-channel in the plurality of sub-channels.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting an interfering wireless signal from a device outside a basic service set (BSS) of the access point, the interfering wireless signal at least partially occupies one or more sub-bands of one or more sub-channels of the wireless channel; and

precluding assignment of the one or more sub-bands, upon which the interfering wireless signal is detected, to a station in the plurality of stations in response to/detecting the interfering wireless signal.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the schedule indicates that the one or more sub-bands, upon which the interfering wireless signal is detected, are avoided for multi-user, simultaneous communication with the access point while other sub-bands, upon which the interfering wireless signal has not been detected, are used for multi-user, simultaneous communication with the access point.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the schedule indicates a non-contiguous set of sub-channels upon which multi-user, simultaneous communication is conducted with the access point.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein each sub-channel of the wireless channel is assigned at least one common station from the plurality of stations.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein each sub-channel of the wireless channel is assigned a different station from the plurality of stations.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein at least two sub-channels of the wireless channel are assigned different stations from the plurality of stations.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the schedule includes assignment of at least two stations in the plurality of stations to at least two sub-bands in each sub-channel of a wireless channel occupied by the frame.

16. A method for a wireless communications system in which an access point wirelessly communicates with a plurality of stations, the method comprising:

transmitting a frame including a schedule from the access point to a plurality of stations, the schedule including assignment of at least one station in the plurality of stations to at least one sub-band in each sub-channel of a wireless channel occupied by the frame,

wherein each station in the plurality of stations uses the assigned sub-band for a multi-user, simultaneous communication with the access point.