Two-way wireless data network having a transmitter having a range greater than portions of the service areas

• US 5,898,904 A
• Filed: 10/13/1995
• Issued: 04/27/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: General Wireless Communications Incorporated
• Original Assignee: General Wireless Communications Incorporated
• Inventors: Wang, Weijia
• Primary Examiner(s): Cumming, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): WYCHE, MYRON
• Application Number:
  US08/542,860
• Time in Patent Office: 1,292 Days
• Field of Search: 455/31.2, 455/31.3, 340/311.1, 340/825.44, 340/825.45, 340/825.46, 340/825.47, 340/825.48
• US Class Current: 340/7.27
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0216 using a pre-established activity schedule, e.g. traffic indication frame
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0219 where the power saving management affects multiple terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/04 Large scale networks; Deep 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

A two-way data network includes a broadcast control sub-network and a cellular data sub-network. The broadcast control sub-network includes a few high-power radio transmitters broadcasting into a large service area. The cellular data sub-network covers the large service area by a number of base stations each servicing a relatively small area. The wireless terminals of the two-way data network monitors the messages in a broadcast control channel at pre-assigned periodic time slots and remain in "sleep" mode at other times. A packet radio transceiver in the wireless terminal sends data to, and receives data from, the cellularized base stations. The broadcast control sub-network is used to notify the subscriber the receipt of a message. In responding to the notification, the location of the subscriber'"'"'s wireless terminal is make known, thereby eliminating conventional tasks such as location and mobility management tasks and allowing wireless terminals to be low power. Communication between the cellular base stations and the wireless terminals achieves high data rate, low latency and high capacity.

Claims

1. A wireless data network serving a service area, comprising:

a network control center;

a plurality of cellular base stations, each serving a portion of said service area, each of said cellular base station communicating with said network control center;

a plurality of mobile wireless terminals each capable of two-way communication with said cellular base stations over a first radio link, each of said mobile wireless terminals also capable of receiving a broadcast message over a second radio link; and

a broadcast network, including a transmitter having a range greater than each of said portions of said service areas, for sending said broadcast message to said mobile wireless terminals over said second radio link.

2. A wireless data network as in claim 1, wherein each of said mobile wireless terminals is assigned a periodically occurring time slot during which the wireless terminal is activated to receive said broadcast message.

3. A wireless data network as in claim 1, wherein said first radio link uses a predetermined radio channel common to all of said mobile wireless terminals and said cellular base stations.

4. A wireless data network as in claim 1, wherein said first radio link is accessed using a multiple access protocol.

5. A wireless data network as in claim 1, wherein said first radio link is a secured communication link in which an acknowledgement packet is sent by a recipient in response to each message received, and a message is retransmitted if a sender does not received said acknowledgement packet after a predetermined time of sending said message.

6. In a wireless data network as defined in claim 1, a method comprising the steps of:

sending over said first radio link, from a first one of said mobile wireless terminal, to a first one of said cellular base station, a data packet designated for a second one of said wireless terminal;

upon receiving said data packet at said first cellular base station, sending said data packet from said first cellular base station to said network control center;

sending a notification message from said network control center to said broadcast network, said notification message including an identification code of said second mobile wireless terminal;

broadcasting, from said transmitter of said broadcast network, said notification message as said broadcast message designating said second mobile wireless terminal;

receiving at said second mobile wireless terminal said notification message;

upon receiving said broadcast message, sending a control message from said second mobile wireless terminal over said first radio link to a second cellular base station, said control message including a request to said network control center to forward said data packet;

upon receiving said control message, sending said data packet from said network control center to said second cellular base station; and

upon receiving said data packet at said second cellular base station, sending said data packet from said second cellular base station, over said first radio link, to said second mobile wireless terminal.

7. A method for providing a two-way wireless data network comprising:

establishing a first communication link between a wireless terminal and a base station, said communication link being effective over a predetermined range;

establishing a second communication link between said base station and a network control center, and

establishing a third communication link between said network control center and said wireless terminal, said third communication link being effective over a range greater than said predetermined range wherein

said first and second communication links are two-way communication links and said third communication link is a one-way communication link.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a radio transceiver.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a handheld terminal having a display and a keyboard.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a two-way pager.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a hand-held facsimile terminal.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein said base station comprises:

a first radio transceiver; and

a second radio transceiver.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein said first communication link is a low power local radio link.

14. The method of claim 7 wherein said second communication link is a high power backhaul radio link.

15. The method of claim 8, wherein said base station comprises:

a two-way local interface adapted for interfacing with said first communication link for receiving and transmitting wireless signals within a local area, wherein said local area is contained within a service area;

a backhaul interface adapted for interfacing with said second communication link between said base station and said network control center; and

a control unit which controls said two-way local interface to communicate with said wireless terminal within said local area and relays information from said wireless terminal in said local area, to said network control center, via said backhaul interface.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said second communication link comprises a telephone link between said base station and said network control center.

17. The method claim 15, wherein said second communication link comprises a wireless link between said base station and said network control center.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein said backhaul interface is adapted for communications with said network control center such that said network control center directs information to a transmission tower for transmitting said information over said third communication link.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein said two-way local interface further provides two-way communications between said base station and a second base station.

20. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

interfacing said network control center with an information and communication application.

21. The method claim 20, wherein said information and communication application is an existing one-way communications network.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein said information and communication application is an information dissemination network.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein said information and communication application is a monitoring system.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein said information and communication application is an electronic map\positioning system.

25. A method for providing a two-way paging system over a service area, said method comprising the steps of:

establishing a first communication link between a wireless terminal and a base station, said first communication link being effective over a first predetermined range;

establishing a second communication link between said base station and a network control center; and

establishing a third communication link between said network control center and a transmitter having a range greater than said predetermined range of said first communication link, wherein

said first and second communication links are two-way communication links.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein said wireless terminal is a two-way pager.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein said base station comprises:

a first radio transceiver; and

a second radio transceiver.

28. The method of claim 25, wherein said first communication link is a low power local radio link.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein said second communication link is a high power backhaul radio link.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein said high power backhaul radio link operates at a power of approximately 3 watts.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein said high power backhaul radio link has a range of approximately 10 kilometers.

32. The method of claim 25, wherein said base station comprises:

a two-way local interface adapted for interfacing with said first communication link for receiving and transmitting wireless signals within a local area, wherein said local area is contained within said service area;

a backhaul interface adapted for interfacing with said second communication link between said base station and said network control center; and

a control unit which controls said two-way local interface to communicate with said wireless terminal within said local area and relays information from said wireless terminal in said local area to said network control center via said backhaul interface.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein said second communication link comprises a telephone link between said base station and said network control center.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein said second communication link comprises a wireless link between said base station and said network control center.

35. The method of claim 32, wherein said backhaul interface is adapted for communications with said network control center such that said network control center directs information to said transmitter via said third communication link.

36. The method of claim 32, wherein said two-way local interface further provides two-way communication between said base station and a second base station.

37. The method of claim 33, wherein said third communication link comprises a wireless link between said network control center and said transmitter.

38. The method of claim 33, wherein said third communication link comprises a telephone link between said network control said and said transmitter.

39. A two-way wireless data network comprising:

a wireless terminal;

a base station;

a first communication link between said wireless terminal and said base station, said first communication link being effective over a predetermined range;

a network control center; and

a second communication link between said base station and said network control center, and

a third communication between said network control center and a radio frequency transmitter having a range greater than said predetermined range wherein said first and second communication links are two-way communication links.

40. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a radio transceiver.

41. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a handheld terminal having a keyboard and a display.

42. The two-way wireless data network of claim 41, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a two-way pager.

43. The two-way wireless data network of claim 41, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a hand-held facsimile terminal.

44. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said base station further comprises:

a first radio transceiver; and

a second radio transceiver.

45. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said first communication link is a low power local radio link.

46. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said second communication link is a high power backhaul radio link.

47. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said high power backhaul radio link operates at a power of approximately 3 watts.

48. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said high power backhaul radio link has a range of approximately ten kilometers.

49. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, wherein said base station further comprises:

a two-way local interface adapted for interfacing with said first communication link for receiving and transmitting wireless signals within a local area, wherein said local area is contained within said service area;

a backhaul interface adapted for interfacing with said second communication link between said base station and said network control center; and

a control unit which controls said two-way local interface to communicate with said wireless terminal within said local area and relays information from said wireless terminal in said local area, to said network control center, via said backhaul interface.

50. The two-way wireless data network of claim 49, wherein said second communication link comprises a telephone link between said base station and said network control center.

51. The two-way wireless data network of claim 49, wherein said second communication link comprises a wireless link between said base station and said network control center.

52. The two-way wireless data network of claim 49, wherein said backhaul interface is adapted for communications with said network control center such that said network control center directs information to said transmitter.

53. The two-way wireless data network of claim 49, wherein said two-way local interface further provides two-way communications between said base station and a second base station.

54. The two-way wireless data network of claim 39, further comprising:

a interface, wherein said interface interfaces said network control center with an information and communication application.

55. The two-way wireless data network of claim 54, wherein said information and communication application is an existing one-way communications network.

56. The two-way wireless data network of claim 54, wherein said information and communication application is an information dissemination network.

57. The two-way wireless data network of claim 54, wherein said information and communication application is a monitoring system.

58. The two-way wireless data network of claim 54, wherein said information and communication application is an electronic map/positioning system.

59. A two-way paging system over a service area, comprising:

a wireless terminal;

a base station;

a first communication link between said wireless terminal and said base station, said first communication link being effective over a first range;

a network control center;

a second communication link between said base station and said network control center;

a transmitter having a range greater than said first range; and

a third communication link between said network control center and said said transmitter, wherein said first and second communication links are two-way communication links.

60. The two-way paging system of claim 59, wherein said wireless terminal comprises a two-way pager.

61. The two-way paging system of claim 59, wherein said base station further comprises:

a first radio transceiver; and

a second radio transceiver.

62. The two-way paging system of claim 59, wherein said first communication link is a low power local radio link.

63. The two-way paging system of claim 62, wherein said second communication link is a high power backhaul radio link.

64. The two-way paging system of claim 59, wherein said base station further comprises:

a two-way local interface adapted for interfacing with said first communication link for receiving and transmitting wireless signals within a local area, wherein said local area is contained within said service area;

a backhaul interface adapted for interfacing with said second communication link between said base station and said network control center; and

a control unit which controls said two-way local interface to communicate with said wireless terminal within said local area and relays information from said wireless terminal in said local area, to said network control center, via said backhaul interface.

65. The two-way paging system of claim 64, wherein said second communication link comprises a telephone link between said base station and said network control center.

66. The two-way paging system of claim 64, wherein said second communication link comprises a wireless link between said base station and said network control center.

67. The two-way paging system of claim 64, wherein said backhaul interface is adapted for communications with said network control center such that said network control center directs information to said transmitter.

68. The two-way paging system of claim 64, wherein said two-way local interface further provides two-way communications between said base station and a second base station.