Dynamic negotiation of resources for user equipment in wireless communications system

• US 6,434,380 B1
• Filed: 12/13/1999
• Issued: 08/13/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Unwired Planet LLC (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Spaling, Gerke Hilbrand, Brouwer, Frank Bastiaan, Andersson, Christoffer
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Nay
• Assistant Examiner(s): Vuong, Quochien B.
• Application Number:
  US09/460,238
• Time in Patent Office: 974 Days
• Field of Search: 455/406, 455/407, 455/408, 455/403, 455/414, 455/575, 379/114.01, 379/114.03, 379/114.05, 379/114.06, 379/114.07, 379/114.08, 379/114.1, 379/114.12, 379/144.06
• US Class Current: 455/406
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/18 Negotiating wireless communication parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup

Abstract

A telecommunications system (18) has a capacity management system (100) which provides a user equipment unit agent (150) for each wireless user equipment unit (20) with which a connection is to be established. The user equipment agent negotiates resources for the prospective connection to be established with its corresponding user equipment unit. In the negotiation, the user equipment agent determines a number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit for the negotiation, and issues a resource request to begin the negotiation. Each resource has a resource unit price at which a unit of the resource is sold. In response to the resource request issued by the user equipment agent, connection resources are allocated to the user equipment unit in accordance with what the number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit can afford. The resource unit price for the resources is dynamically adjusted, e.g., in accordance with load on the telecommunication system. The resources can include such capabilities as transmission power, spreading code, bit rate, and a number of handover legs (for diversity purposes).

Claims

1. A telecommunications system for establishing a connection with a wireless user equipment unit, the telecommunications system comprising:

a user equipment unit agent which determines a number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit and which uses a resource request to negotiate for connection resources to be utilized in the connection;

a capacity management system comprising;

a resource price list which includes a resource unit price for each of plural connection resources requested for the connection from the telecommunications system, the resource unit price for each of the plural connection resources being dynamically adjusted in accordance with load on the telecommunication system;

a controller which responds to the resource request by allocating connection resources to the user equipment unit in accordance with what the number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit can afford.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the resource request is a connection admission request.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is transmission power.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is a spreading code.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is bit rate.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is a number of handover legs.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit is classified into a number of purchase units expendable for each of the plural connection resources.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the controller processes the resource request on a per connection resource basis.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein after an initial allocation of sources for the connection, the user equipment unit agent re-negotiates with the resource manager for the first connection resource.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a load manager which apprises the user equipment unit agent of a status change in the telecommunication system.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the user equipment unit agent re-negotiates in response to the status change.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an adaptive control system which determines the load on the telecommunication system, and wherein resource unit price for each of the plural connection resources is dynamically adjusted in accordance with the load on the telecommunication system.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the adaptive control system determines a predicted load on the telecommunication system.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the adaptive control system determines a predicted load on the telecommunication system by using a long term prediction profile and a short term prediction profile.

15. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the user equipment unit agent is included in the capacity management system.

16. A method of operating a telecommunications system which establishes a connection with a wireless user equipment unit, the method comprising:

using a user equipment unit agent for the user equipment unit to determine a number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit and to issue a resource request to negotiate for connection resources to be utilized in the connection;

providing a resource price list which includes a resource unit price for each of plural connection resources requested for the connection from the telecommunications system;

dynamically adjusting the resource unit price for each of the plural connection resources in accordance with load on the telecommunication system;

responding to the resource request by allocating connection resources to the user equipment unit in accordance with what the number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit can afford.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the resource request is a connection admission request.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is transmission power.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is a spreading code.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is bit rate.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of the plural connection resources is a number of handover legs.

22. The method of claim 16, further comprising classifying the number of purchase units expendable by the user equipment unit into a number of purchase units expendable for each of the plural connection resources.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising processing the resource request on a per connection resource basis.

24. The method of claim 16, further comprising providing a resource manager for a first connection resource and wherein, after the resources are initially allocated to the connection, using the user equipment unit agent to re-negotiates with the resource manager for the first connection resource.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising apprising the user equipment unit agent of a status change in the telecommunication system.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising the user equipment unit agent re-negotiating in response to the status change.

27. The method of claim 16, further comprising adaptively determining the load on the telecommunication system, and wherein the resource unit price for each of the plural connection resources is dynamically adjusted in accordance with the load on the telecommunication system.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the step of adaptively determining the load on the telecommunication system includes determining a predicted load on the telecommunication system.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising determining a predicted load on the telecommunication system by using a long term prediction profile and a short term prediction profile.