Simultaneous over the air data download to multiple radios

• US 6,128,483 A
• Filed: 11/19/1996
• Issued: 10/03/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Ericsson, Inc. (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)
• Original Assignee: Ericsson, Inc. (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)
• Inventors: Doiron, Timothy J., Dreon, Steven T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Ajit
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pizarro, Ricardo M.
• Application Number:
  US08/752,630
• Time in Patent Office: 1,414 Days
• Field of Search: 370/346, 370/349, 370/449, 370/394, 340/825.01, 455/419, 455/420, 455/432, 455/435, 455/436
• US Class Current: 455/419
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/72 of terrestrial networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/189 in combination with wireless systems selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5069 for group communication, multicast communication or broadcast communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/30 Resource management for broadcast services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/30 Connection release
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/245 from a network towards a terminal

Abstract

In a multi-point mobile radio broadcast network, the multiple mobile radios can have personality information reprogrammed via a broadcast method, rather than on a one-to-one basis. A communications manager, which controls the communications between the various mobile radios can change the personality information contained in each radio by broadcasting that information to the radios as a group. After receiving the new personality information, a processor within the mobile radios can remove the unique identification codes associated with that particular radio from the old personality information, imported into the new personality information communicated to it by the communication manager, and store the new personality information with the newly incorporated unique identification codes into a local memory. The protocol for broadcasting the personality information to the mobile radios is important to ensure that the mobile radios receive the new personality information. It is also important that the communication manager have assurances that the mobile radios properly receive the new personality information, without requiring the mobile radios to communicate multiple acknowledgments one-by-one to the communication manager. Accordingly, broadcast sessions are initiated by a repetitious broadcast control signal, then group data is broadcast without acknowledgments to the mobile radios. On the last data broadcast, the communication manager requests an acknowledgment, which is returned one-by-one from each mobile radio. Finally, a disconnect broadcast session control signal is then repetitiously broadcast to the radios.

Claims

1. A communication manager for sending data packets to a plurality of mobile radios, comprising a transceiver to 1) send at least one command to establish a broadcast session with the mobile radios, 2) broadcast some of said data packets simultaneously to the mobile radios without receiving acknowledgments individually from the mobile radios, 3) transmit others of said data packets individually to the mobile radios, 4) receive an acknowledgment to at least one of the individually transmitted data packets from said mobile radios of receipt of both the broadcasted and individually transmitted data packets, and 5) broadcast at least one command to disconnect the broadcast session with the mobile radios.

2. A communication manager according to claim 1, wherein said data packets broadcast simultaneously to the mobile radios include all data packets in a sequence of data packets except a data packet last in the sequence of data packets.

3. A communication manager according to claim 1, wherein said others of said data packets broadcast individually to the mobile radios include only the last data packet in a sequence of data packets.

4. A communication manager according to claim 1, wherein the transceiver establishes the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast initiation command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

5. A communications manager according to claim 4, wherein the transceiver broadcasts the initiation command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

6. A communication manager according to claim 1, wherein the transceiver disconnects the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast disconnect command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

7. A communication manager according to claim 6, wherein the transceiver broadcasts the disconnect command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

8. A communication manager according to claim 1, wherein the transceiver establishes the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast initiation command repeatedly to the mobile radios and disconnects the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast disconnect command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

9. A communications manager according to claim 8, wherein the transceiver broadcasts the initiation command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios and broadcasts the disconnect command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

10. A communications manager according to claim 1, wherein the data packets include personality information for the mobile radios.

11. A communication manager according to claim 10, wherein the data packets include complete personality information for each of the mobile radios with the exception of a logical identification code for said each of the mobile radios.

12. A communication manager according to claim 1, wherein said data packets broadcast simultaneously to the mobile radios include all data packets in a sequence of data packets except periodically occurring data packets in the sequence.

13. A communication manager according to claim 1, wherein said others of said data packets broadcast individually to the mobile radios include only periodically occurring data packets in a sequence of data packets.

14. A mobile radio used in a multi-point radio broadcast system of mobile radios and a central communications station, comprising:

a memory device containing alterable radio personality information including an identification code unique to said mobile radio among all of said mobile radios in the multi-point radio broadcast system;

a transceiver in broadcast communication with the central communications station using a packet data channel with a packet data transport protocol layer, said packet data transport protocol layer including;

an initial broadcast transfer unit transmitted by the central communications station to the mobile radios to initiate a broadcast communication session simultaneously with the mobile radios, said initial broadcast transfer unit including a command indicating the initiation of the broadcast communication session and a first command flag indicating that the mobile radios are not to acknowledge receipt of the initial broadcast transfer unit;

a data transfer unit used by the central communications station to send new radio personality information via a sequence of data simultaneously to the mobile radios, said data transfer unit including a sequence number identifying a current data packet in the sequence of data packets to be received by the mobile radios, said sequence of data including a second command flag indicating that the mobile radios are not to acknowledge receipt of the data transfer unit;

an acknowledge request data transfer unit used by the central communications station to continue a sequential transfer of data packets via said data transfer unit, including a poll flag indicating that the mobile radios are to acknowledge receipt to the central communications station of the current data packet in the sequence of data packets;

an acknowledge transfer unit used by the mobile radios to acknowledge receipt of a current data packet from the central communications station in response to the poll flag, including a request number identifying a data packet next expected in the sequence of data packets; and

a disconnect broadcast unit used by the central communications station to end a broadcast communication with the mobile radios; and

a processor to combine the new radio personality information with the unique identification code and write the new radio personality information with the unique identification code into the memory.

15. A mobile radio according to claim 14, wherein the acknowledge request data transfer unit occurs only during broadcast of a data packet in the sequence of data packets.

16. A mobile radio according to claim 14, wherein the packet data transport protocol layer further includes a reset unit broadcast from the mobile radio to the central communications station to restart a sending of new radio personality information via the sequence of data, wherein the reset unit broadcast includes a request number corresponding to the data packet next expected in the sequence of data packets had the reset unit broadcast not occurred.

17. A method of broadcasting radio personality information to multiple mobile radios, each of said multiple mobile radios having alterable radio personality information stored together with a unique radio identification code, comprising the steps of:

1) broadcasting a broadcast initiation command simultaneously to the multiple mobile radios without receiving an acknowledgment of receipt of the broadcast initiation command from the multiple mobile radios;

2) repeating step 1 a plurality of times;

3) broadcasting a current data packet associated with new radio personality information simultaneously to the multiple mobile radios without receiving an acknowledgment of receipt of the current data packet from the multiple mobile radios;

4) contemporaneously with step number 3, broadcasting a sequence number Y corresponding to the current data packet;

5) repeating steps

     3) and

     4) for a next data packet using a next sequence number equal to a previous sequence number incremented by a predetermined value;

6) repeating step

     5) until all data packets are broadcast, except for a last data packet;

7) broadcasting the last data packet associated with the new radio personality information simultaneously to the multiple mobile radios;

8) contemporaneously with step

     7), broadcasting a request for acknowledgment to said multiple mobile radios; and

9) receiving an acknowledgment from each of said multiple mobile radios including a request number equal to Y+n, where "n" is the sum of the increments actually received by each particular mobile radio in steps

     5) through

     8);

10) checking the request number received in step

     9) for each mobile radio with the value of Y plus the sum of the increments broadcast in steps

     5) though

     8); and

11) rebroadcasting the data packets if in the check in step

     10) one or more of said mobile radios did not return a request number equal to said Y plus the sum of the increments broadcast.

18. A method according to claim 17, wherein step 11 includes the steps of:

11A) determining a number of mobile radios satisfying the check in step

     11),

11B) if the number of mobile radios determined in step 11A) is 100%, then ending;

11C) if the number of mobile radios determined in step 11A) exceeds a predetermined percentage but is less than 100%, then repeating steps

     3)-10) for each individual mobile radio that did not return a correct request number in steps

     9)-10);

11D) if the number of mobile radios determined in step 11A) does not exceed the predetermined percentage, then repeating steps

     3)-11).

19. A communication manager for sending data packets to a plurality of mobile radios, comprising a transceiver to 1) send at least one command to establish a broadcast session with the mobile radios, 2) broadcast a continuous stream of said data packets simultaneously to the mobile radios without interrupting the stream for the purpose of receiving acknowledgments individually from the mobile radios, wherein said data packets broadcasted simultaneously to the mobile radios include all data packets in a sequence of data packets except at least one data packet last in the sequence of data packets 3) at the conclusion of said continuous stream broadcast, transmit the at least one data packet together with a request for acknowledgment individually to each of said plurality of mobile radios, and 4) receive an acknowledgment from said mobile radios that successfully received and understood the stream of data packets and 5) receive a re-transmission request from said mobile radios that did not successfully receive or understand the stream of data packets, and to re-transmit said stream of data packets individually to said mobile radios that return said re-transmission request.

20. A communication manager according to claim 19, wherein the data packets include personality information.

21. A communication manager according to claim 19, wherein said request for acknowledgment transmitted individually to the mobile radios includes a last data packet in a sequence of data packets.

22. A communication manager according to claim 19, wherein the transceiver establishes the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast initiation command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

23. A communication manager according to claim 22, wherein the transceiver broadcasts the initiation command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

24. A communication manager according to claim 19, wherein the transceiver disconnects the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast disconnect command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

25. A communication manager according to claim 24, wherein the transceiver broadcasts the disconnect command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

26. A communication manager according to claim 19, wherein the transceiver establishes the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast initiation command repeatedly to the mobile radios and disconnects the broadcast session by broadcasting a broadcast disconnect command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

27. A communication manager according to claim 26, wherein the transceiver broadcasts the initiation command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios and broadcasts the disconnect command without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

28. A communication manager according to claim 20, wherein the personality information data packets include complete personality information for each of the mobile radios with the exception of a logical identification code unique to each of the mobile radios.

29. A method of sending data packets to a plurality of mobile radios, comprising:

sending at least one command to establish a broadcast session with the mobile radios;

broadcasting some of said data packets simultaneously to the mobile radios without receiving acknowledgments individually from the mobile radios;

transmitting others of said data packets individually to the mobile radios;

receiving an acknowledgment to the individually transmitted data packets from said mobile radios of receipt of both said broadcasted and said individually transmitted data packets; and

broadcasting at least one command to disconnect the broadcast session with the mobile radios.

30. A method according to claim 29, wherein said data packets broadcast simultaneously to the mobile radios include all data packets in a sequence of data packets except at least one data packet last in the sequence of data packets.

31. A method according to claim 29, further including broadcasting individually to the mobile radios include only a last sub-set of data packets in a sequence of data packets.

32. A method according to claim 29, further including broadcasting a broadcast initiation command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

33. A method according to claim 29, wherein the step of broadcasting the initiation command occurs without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

34. A method according to claim 29, further including broadcasting a broadcast disconnect command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

35. A method according to claim 29, wherein the step of broadcasting the disconnect command occurs without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

36. A method according to claim 29, further including broadcasting a broadcast initiation command repeatedly to the mobile radios;

and

broadcasting a broadcast disconnect command repeatedly to the mobile radios.

37. A method according to claim 36, wherein the broadcasts of the initiation command and disconnect command occur without receiving any acknowledgments from the mobile radios.

38. A method according to claim 29, wherein the broadcasting of said some of the data packets include broadcasting complete personality information for each of the mobile radios with the exception of a logical identification code for each of the mobile radios;

and

the transmitting of the individual data packets includes the logical identification code for each of the mobile radios.

39. A method according to claim 29, wherein the step of receiving includes receiving a non-acknowledgement from at least one of the mobile radios whereupon said broadcasted data packets are re-submitted to the at least one mobile radio.

40. A communication manager for sending data packets to a plurality of mobile radios, comprising a transceiver to:

send at least one command to establish a broadcast session with the mobile radios;

broadcast some of said data packets simultaneously to the mobile radios without receiving acknowledgments individually from the mobile radios;

transmit others of said data packets individually to the mobile radios; and

receive an acknowledgment to at least one of the individually transmitted data packets from said mobile radios of receipt of both the broadcasted and individually transmitted data packets.