Wireless communication system
First Claim
1. A method for operating a system having a plurality of terminal units each having an active and an inactive state with respect to a time multiplexed communications medium, said system further including a control unit, comprising the steps of:
- allocating, when a number NA of said terminal units are active, an amount of time TA,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, said control unit transmitting, via said communications medium, indications of said amounts of time TA,i for each of said active units;
said control unit receiving, via said communications medium, requests from at least one of said terminal units for at least k of said inactive terminal units to become active;
said control unit transmitting an approval of said requests via said communications medium; and
allocating, when a number NB of said terminal units are active, NB =NA +k, an amount of time TB,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, said control unit transmitting, via said communications medium, indications of said amounts of time TB,i for each of said active units,wherein TB,i <
TA,i for at least a first one of said active terminal units.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A wireless communications system includes a base station and a plurality of terminal units which can be mobile. The base station establishes connections among sets of two or more of the mobile units so as to permit private, full-duplex conversations to take place within each set of terminal units. A number of such conversations can take place concurrently. The base station allocates packet time slots for each active terminal unit to transmit, and dynamically reduces the allocation per terminal unit only as the number of active terminal units increases. The terminal units are able to transmit the same isochronous information (such as voice) regardless of the number of packet time slots allocated to the terminal unit, by compressing the data by a greater amount when fewer packet slots are allocated, and by a lesser amount when a greater number of packet slots are allocated per unit of time. The system is able to support a range of numbers of concurrent conversations, while dynamically maximizing the quality of such communications at different times.
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Citations
38 Claims
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1. A method for operating a system having a plurality of terminal units each having an active and an inactive state with respect to a time multiplexed communications medium, said system further including a control unit, comprising the steps of:
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allocating, when a number NA of said terminal units are active, an amount of time TA,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, said control unit transmitting, via said communications medium, indications of said amounts of time TA,i for each of said active units; said control unit receiving, via said communications medium, requests from at least one of said terminal units for at least k of said inactive terminal units to become active; said control unit transmitting an approval of said requests via said communications medium; and allocating, when a number NB of said terminal units are active, NB =NA +k, an amount of time TB,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, said control unit transmitting, via said communications medium, indications of said amounts of time TB,i for each of said active units, wherein TB,i <
TA,i for at least a first one of said active terminal units. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 18, 19, 25)
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2. A method for operating a system having a plurality of terminal units each having an active and an inactive state with respect to a time multiplexed communications medium, said system further having a control unit, comprising the steps of:
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allocating, when a number NA of said terminal units are active, an amount of time TA,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units; allocating an amount of time TA,b per unit time for transmissions by said control unit via said communications medium when NA of said terminal units are active; allocating, when a number NB of said terminal units are active, NB >
NA, an amount of time TB,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, andallocating an amount of time TB,b per unit time for transmissions by said control unit via said communications medium when NB of said terminal units are active, wherein TB,i <
TA,i for at least a first one of said active terminal units, and wherein TA,b =TB,b.
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10. A method for operating a system having a plurality of terminal units each having an active and an inactive state with respect to a time multiplexed communications medium operating in temporally sequential equal duration frames during a subject time period, comprising the steps of:
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allocating, when a number NA of said terminal units are active, an amount of time TA,i per unit time for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units; and allocating, when a number NB of said terminal units are active, NB >
NA, an amount of time TB,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units,wherein TB,i <
TA,i for at least a first one of said terminal units,wherein said step of allocating an amount of time TA,i comprises a step of allocating a number SA,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, and wherein said step of allocating an amount of time TB,i comprises a step of allocating a number SB,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, wherein each of said time slots has equal duration, said first active terminal unit transmitting via said communications medium at a rate of B bits per time slot, SA,1 time slots per frame being allocated to said first active terminal unit when NA terminal units are active, and SB,1 time slots per frame being allocated to said first terminal unit when NB terminal units are active, further comprising the steps of said first active terminal unit; producing first output data at a rate RA,1 bits per frame in response to first isochronous input data, while SA,1 time slots per frame are allocated to said first terminal unit, B*SB,1 <
RA,1 ≦
B*SA,1 ;compressing said first isochronous input data to produce said first output data at a rate RB,1 bits per frame while SB,1 time slots per frame are allocated to said first active terminal unit RB,1 ≦
B*SB,1 ; andtransmitting said first output data via said communications medium during time slots allocated to said first active terminal unit. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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20. A method for operating a system having a plurality of terminal units each having an active and an inactive state with respect to a time multiplexed communications medium operating in temporally sequential frames during a subject time period, comprising the steps of:
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allocating, when a number NA of said terminal units are active, an amount of time TA,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units; and allocating, when a number NB of said terminal units are active, NB >
NA, an amount of time TB,i per unit time for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units,wherein TB,i <
TA,i for at least a first one of said active terminal units,wherein said step of allocating an amount of time TA,i comprises a step of allocating a number SA,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, wherein said step of allocating an amount of time TB,i comprises a step of allocating a number SB,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, and wherein said step of allocating SB,i time slots in each of said frames comprises a step of allocating one time slot per two sub-frames for said second active terminal unit, further comprising the steps of; establishing a logical connection among a first set of at least two of the terminal units in said plurality of terminal units, said terminal units in said first set being active terminal units at least while said logical connection exists; said control unit re-transmitting to a first one of the terminal units in said first set via said communications medium, first data received by said control unit during time slots allocated to a second one of the terminal units in said first set; and said control unit re-transmitting to said second terminal unit in said first set via said communications medium, second data received by said control unit during time slots allocated to said first one of the terminal units in said first set. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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26. A communications system for conducting communications via a wireless communications medium operating with temporally sequential frames, comprising:
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a plurality of terminal units, each having an active and an inactive state and each active one of said terminal units receiving respective input data at a respective input data rate; and a base unit which allocates for transmissions by each i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units a respective number SA,i of incoming time slots in each of said frames when the number of said terminal units which are active is between 1 and a first threshold NA, inclusive, and a number SB,i of incoming time slots in each of said frames when the number of said terminal units which are active is between NA +1 and a number NB, inclusive, NB >
NA, all of said incoming time slots having equal duration and SB,i being different from SA,i for at least one of said active terminal units,each given active one of said terminal units including; a data compression mechanism which, when SB,i incoming time slots per frame are allocated to the given terminal unit, compresses the input data received by the given terminal unit sufficiently to fit within SB,i time slots per frame, and which, when SA,i incoming time slots per frame are allocated to the given terminal unit, compresses the input data received by the given terminal unit sufficiently to fit within SA,i time slots per frame but insufficiently to fit within SB,i per frame, each of said data compression mechanisms having a respective data output; and a transmitter coupled to receive the data output of the data compression mechanism in the given terminal unit and to transmit such data output via said communications medium during the incoming time slots allocated to the given terminal unit. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A control unit for use with a plurality of terminal units each having an active and an inactive state with respect to a shared communications medium having a total capacity C for transmissions by said terminal units, said communications medium operating in temporally sequential frames during a subject time period, comprising:
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means for allocating, when a number NA of said terminal units are active, a portion CA,i of said total capacity C for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units; and means for allocating, when a number NB of said terminal units are active, NB >
NA, a portion CB,i of said total capacity C for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units,wherein CB,i <
CA,i for at least a first one of said active terminal units,wherein said means for allocating a portion CA,i of said total capacity C comprises means for allocating a number SA,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, wherein said means for allocating a portion CB,i of said total capacity C comprises means for allocating a number SB,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, wherein each of said frames is divided into a plurality of sub-frames, and wherein said means for allocating SA,i time slots in each of said frames comprises means for allocating one time slot per sub-frame for a second one of said active terminal units, and wherein said step of allocating SB,i time slots in each of said frames comprises a step of allocating one time slot per two sub-frames for said second active terminal unit. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34)
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35. A control unit for use with a plurality of terminal units each having an active and an inactive state with respect to a shared communications medium having a total capacity C for transmissions by said terminal units, said communications medium operating in temporally sequential frames during a subject time period, comprising:
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means for allocating, when a number NA of said terminal units are active, a portion CA,i of said total capacity C for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units; and means for allocating, when a number NB of said terminal units are active, NB >
NA, a portion CB,i of said total capacity C for transmissions via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units,wherein CB,i <
CA,i for at least a first one of said active terminal units,wherein said means for allocating a portion CA,i of said total capacity C comprises means for allocating a number SA,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, wherein said means for allocating a portion CB,i of said total capacity C comprises means for allocating a number SB,i of time slots in each of said frames for transmission via said communications medium by each respective i'"'"'th one of said active terminal units, wherein an outbound portion in each of said frames is allocated for transmission via said communications medium by said control unit, wherein a logical connection exists among a first set of at least two of the terminal units in said plurality of terminal units, said terminal units in said first set being active terminal units at least while said logical connection exists, said control unit further comprising; means for re-transmitting to a first one of the terminal units in said first set via said communications medium, first data received by said control unit during time slots allocated to a second one of the terminal units in said first set; and means for re-transmitting to said second terminal unit in said first set via said communications medium, second data received by said control unit during time slots allocated to said first one of the terminal units in said first set. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37, 38)
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Specification