Wireless modem alignment in a multi-cell environment

• US 6,438,363 B1
• Filed: 11/15/1999
• Issued: 08/20/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Ner, Haim Shalom, Honcharenko, Walter, Feder, Peretz Moshes
• Primary Examiner(s): Hunter, Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): HARRY, ANDREW T
• Application Number:
  US09/440,045
• Time in Patent Office: 1,009 Days
• Field of Search: 455/67.1, 455/67.4, 455/226.1, 455/226.4, 455/226.2, 455/226.3, 375/220, 375/222
• US Class Current: 455/226.4
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/23 Indication means, e.g. displays, alarms, audible means
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/24 using SIR [Signal to Interference Ratio] or other wireless path parameters

Abstract

In addition to aligning a first unit for proper forward link communications in a wireless environment, there is a method of alignment where a reverse link signal is transmitted from the first unit to a second unit, so that the first unit may be positioned based on at least one signal quality parameter measure contained in a forward link signal reply to the reverse link signal. The method enables an installer to verify signal quality in both the forward link and reverse link directions by reviewing indications of received signal strength for both the reverse link and forward link directions on an LED display, so as to position the first unit for achieving acceptable signal strength in both directions.

Claims

1. A method of aligning a first unit for wireless communications, comprising:

displaying at least one signal quality parameter of a forward link signal received from a second unit and at least one signal quality parameter of a reverse link signal transmitted to the second unit that is contained in a forward link signal reply received by the first unit from the second unit;

aligning the first unit in a forward link direction based on the displayed at least one signal quality parameter of the received forward link signal; and

aligning the first unit in a reverse link direction based on the displayed at least one signal quality parameter of the reverse link signal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said first unit is a wireless modem and said second unit is an access point.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said first and second units include antennas of radio equipment.

4. The method of claim 2, further including connecting the wireless modem to a managing computer for displaying signal quality information of a forward link signal and for configuring the wireless modem to generate reverse link information to the access point.

5. The method of claim 1, said forward link reply containing reverse link signal strength information, said aligning in the reverse link direction based on the received reverse link signal strength information.

6. The method of claim 1,

wherein said displayed signal quality parameters include displayed forward link and reverse link signal strength information, and

wherein said step of displaying further includes displaying each of said forward link and reverse link signal strength information as an excess signal-to-noise ratio, SNR, above a threshold value, the wireless modem being positioned so as to achieve an acceptable excess SNR above threshold for both forward link and reverse link directions.

7. The method of claim 2, further including disabling power control of the wireless modem before aligning the modem in the forward link and reverse link directions.

8. The method of claim 2, further including enabling power control of the wireless modem after aligning the modem in the forward link and reverse link directions.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein said reverse link signal is an uplink signal transmitted from the wireless modem to the access point, and said forward link signal is a downlink signal transmitted from the access point to the wireless modem.

10. An article of manufacture including a computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for aligning a first unit in a wireless communications environment, the computer program comprising:

a forward link mode segment for causing the computer to place the first unit in a forward link mode to process forward link traffic activity received from a second unit, said forward link traffic containing information indicative of at least one signal quality parameter of the forward link signal; and

a reverse link mode segment for causing the computer to place the first unit in an reverse link mode to generate reverse link traffic activity to a second unit, wherein a reply from the second unit containing information indicative of at least one signal quality parameter of the reverse link signal,

the computer program causing said information of said information indicative of said at least one signal quality parameters of the forward link and reverse link signals to be displayed in order to align the first unit in both a forward link and reverse link direction.

11. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein said signal quality parameters of both forward link and reverse link signals are displayed on the first unit.

12. The article of manufacture of claim 10, further including a power control disable segment for causing the computer to load a configuration file for disabling power control of the first unit in preparation for aligning the first unit in the forward and reverse link directions.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 10, further including a power control enable segment for causing the computer to load a configuration file for enabling power control once the forward link and reverse link signal quality parameters exceed an acceptable threshold, thereby indicating that said first unit has been aligned in the forward and reverse link directions.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein the forward link and reverse link signal quality parameters are each displayed as an excess signal-to-noise ratio, SNR, above a threshold value, the first unit being positioned so as to achieve an acceptable excess SNR above threshold for both forward link and reverse link directions.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 10,

wherein said reverse link mode generates multiple second unit ping requests to the first unit, whereupon said first unit transmits corresponding multiple ping requests over an airlink to the second unit, and

wherein the second unit transmits multiple ping replies indicative of reverse link signal strength information in reply to the first unit, the signal strength information being displayed on LEDs of the first unit to align the first unit in the reverse link direction.

16. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein said first unit is a wireless modem and said second unit is an access point.

17. The article of manufacture of claim 16, wherein said reverse link traffic are uplink signals transmitted from the wireless modem to the access point, and said forward link traffic are downlink signals transmitted from the access point to the wireless modem.

18. A first unit for installment in a wireless communications environment, comprising:

a display device for displaying at least reverse link information of the first unit and forward link information that is transmitted from a second unit; and

a receiver for receiving said transmitted reverse link and forward link information;

said first unit being aligned in a forward link direction based upon at least one displayed signal quality parameter of the received forward link information, and being aligned in a reverse link direction based upon at least one displayed signal quality parameter of the reverse link information.

19. The first unit of claim 18, wherein each of said forward link and reverse link signal quality parameters are-verified to ensure that they exceed a threshold value.

20. The first unit of claim 18, wherein said second unit includes a receiver, and wherein the first unit generates reverse link traffic of control packets to the second unit receiver.

21. The first unit of claim 20, wherein the second unit receiver adjusts gain control based on an incoming control packet, and transmits AGC information to the first unit, said AGC information representing said reverse link information.

22. The first unit of claim 21, wherein said receiver extracts the second unit'"'"'s received excess signal strength indication (RSSI) above a threshold value from the AGC information, and displays it on the display device, said RSSI representing said at least one displayed signal quality parameter of the reverse link information, the first unit being positioned so as to achieve an acceptable RSSI above the threshold value in the reverse link direction.

23. The first unit of claim 18, wherein the displayed at least one signal quality parameter of the reverse link signal is contained in a second unit reply signal responsive to reverse link data requests generated by the first unit.

24. The first unit of claim 18,

wherein said displayed signal quality parameters are displayed forward link and reverse link signal strength information, and

wherein said step of displaying further includes displaying said forward link and reverse link signal strength information each as a received excess signal strength indication (RSSI) above a threshold value, the first unit being positioned so as to achieve an acceptable RSSI above the threshold value for both forward link and reverse link directions.

25. The first unit of claim 18, wherein said receiver detects incoming packets of forward link information from the second unit, said incoming packets representing said forward link information.

26. The first unit of claim 25, wherein the receiver extracts said at least one signal quality parameter from the incoming packets.

27. The first unit of claim 26, wherein the extracted signal quality parameter is a received excess signal strength indication (RSSI) above a threshold value that is displayed at the display device, the first unit being positioned so as to achieve an acceptable RSSI above the threshold value in the forward link direction.

28. The first unit of claim 18, the display device including a plurality of LEDs, one of which illuminates only when the first unit is in a reverse link alignment mode.

29. The first unit of claim 18, wherein said second unit is an access point, said first unit being a wireless modem.

30. The first unit of claim 29, wherein said reverse link information are uplink signals transmitted from the wireless modem to the access point, and wherein said forward link information are downlink signals transmitted from the access point to the wireless modem.

31. A method of aligning a wireless modem, comprising:

receiving a forward link signal containing forward link signal strength information of a base station;

transmitting a reverse link signal to the base station, said base station

transmitting a reply containing reverse link signal strength information of the wireless modem;

displaying the forward link and reverse link signal strength information at the wireless modem; and

aligning the wireless modem in forward and reverse link directions based on the displayed information.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein said step of displaying further includes displaying said forward link and reverse link signal strength information each as a received excess signal strength indication (RSSI) above a threshold value, the wireless modem being positioned so as to achieve an acceptable RSSI above the threshold value for both forward link and reverse link directions.