Method and apparatus for allocating processing resources

• US 6,466,559 B1
• Filed: 08/28/1998
• Issued: 10/15/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktienbolaget L.M. Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktienbolaget L.M. Ericsson
• Inventors: Johansson, Peter, RynbÅck, Patrik J. E., Andersson, Christoffer, Jonsson, Nils T. E., Johansson, Staffan E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Olms, Douglas
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOM, SHICK C
• Application Number:
  US09/143,619
• Time in Patent Office: 1,509 Days
• Field of Search: 370/252, 370/320, 370/342, 370/422, 370/441, 370/449, 370/453, 370/457, 370/461, 370/462, 370/465, 370/479, 370/335, 370/395.3, 370/395.31, 370/395.32
• US Class Current: 370/335
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 13/16 Code allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5607 Radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5632 Bandwidth allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5676 Code Division Multiple Access [CDMA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0062 Provisions for network management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/18 Negotiating wireless communication parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/00 Local resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/04 Wireless resource allocation

Abstract

First and second pools of resource units are configured using a structure having plural levels including first and second level resource units. A relationship is established between ones of the two pools of resource units. A request is made for a resource that requires a resource unit from both of the first and second resource unit pools. A single allocation procedure is employed to allocate resource units from both pools. If one of the resource units is available in one pool, the relationship ensures that a required corresponding resource unit in another pool is also available.

Claims

1. A method comprising the steps of:

configuring a first data structure corresponding to a first pool of a first type of resource units including first, lowest level resource units of the first type provided in groups, and second, higher level resource units of the first type provided in groups, each corresponding to one of the groups of the first level resource units;

configuring a second data structure corresponding to a second pool of a second type of resource units including first, lowest level resource units of the second type provided in groups, and second, higher level resource units of the second type provided in groups, each corresponding to one of the groups of the first level resource units of the second type;

establishing a relationship between ones of the first type of resource units in the first data structure and ones of the second type of resource units in the second data structure;

receiving a request for a resource that requires one or more resource units from the first and second pools of resource units; and

using the established relationship to allocate available resource units from the first and second pools of resource units to respond to the request.

2. The method in claim 1, wherein the relationship includes a one-to-one correspondence between individual ones of the first and second types of resource units.

3. The method in claim 2, wherein each of the first and second data structures is configured as a hierarchy having plural levels.

7. The method in claim 1, wherein the first type of resource units are software resource units and the second type of resource units are hardware resource units.

4. A method comprising:

configuring a first data structure corresponding to a first pool of a first type of resource units;

configuring a second data structure corresponding to a second pool of a second type of resource units;

establishing a relationship between ones of the first type of resource units in the first data structure and ones of the second type of resource units in the second data structure;

receiving a request for a resource that requires one or more resource units from the first and second pools of resource units; and

using the established relationship to allocate available resource units from the first and second pools of resource units to respond to the request,

wherein the establishing step includes establishing a matrix, where each row in the matrix represents a resource unit of the first type and where each column represents a resource unit of the second type so that selection of a row or a column corresponding to a resource unit of one type also selects a column or row, respectively, corresponding to a resource unit of another type.

5. The method in claim 4, further comprising;

configuring the matrix so that each row selects only one of the columns.

6. The method in claim 5, further comprising:

reconfiguring the matrix.

8. A method for use in a code division multiple access CDMA communications system comprising:

configuring a first data structure corresponding to a first pool of a first type of resource units including CDMA spreading codes;

configuring a second data structure corresponding to a second pool of a second type of resource units including data processing and transceiving hardware;

establishing a relationship between ones of the first type of resource units in the first data structure and ones of the second type of resource units in the second data structure;

receiving a request for a resource that requires one or more resource units from the first and second pools of resource units; and

using the established relationship to allocate available resource units from the first and second pools of resource units to respond to the request.

9. The method in claim 8, wherein each of the first and second data structures are hierarchies having plural levels, where plural resource units on a lower level are grouped to a corresponding single resource unit on a higher level such that all of the lower level resource units in the group must be available before the corresponding single resource unit on the higher level may be allocated.

10. The method in claim 8, wherein the relationship includes a one-to-one correspondence between individual ones of the first and second types of resource units.

11. A method comprising:

storing a first structure for a first type of resource units;

storing a second structure for a second type of resource units; and

establishing a relationship between the first and second structures so that if one of the first type of resource units in the first structure is available for allocation, a corresponding second type of resource unit in the second structure is available for allocation,

wherein the establishing step includes establishing a matrix where each row in the matrix represents one or more different resource units of the first type and where each column represents one or more different resource units of the second type so that selection of a row or a column corresponding to a resource unit of one type also selects a column or row, respectively, corresponding to a resource unit of another type.

12. Apparatus comprising:

means for storing a first data structure corresponding to a first pool of a first type of resource units and a second data structure corresponding to a second pool of a second type of resource units, wherein the first pool of resource units includes first, lowest level resource units of the first type provided in groups, and second, higher level resource units of the first type provided in groups, each corresponding to one of the groups of the first level resource units and the second pool of resource units includes first, lowest level resource units of the second type provided in groups, and second, higher level resource units of the second type provided in groups, each corresponding to one of the groups of the first level resource units of the second type;

means for establishing a relationship between ones of the first type of resource units in the first data structure and ones of the second type of resource units in the second data structure; and

means, receiving a request for a resource that requires one or more resource units from the first and second pools of resource units, for using the established relationship to allocate available resource units from the first and second pools of resource units to respond to the request.

13. The apparatus in claim 12, wherein the relationship ensures that if one of the first type of resource units in the first pool is available for allocation, a corresponding second type of resource unit in the second pool is available for allocation.

14. The apparatus in claim 12, wherein the relationship includes a one-to-one correspondence between individual ones of the first and second types of resource units.

15. The apparatus in claim 12, wherein the first and second pools of resource units are hierarchical structures.

16. Apparatus comprising:

means for storing a first data structure corresponding to a first pool of a first type of resource units and a second data structure corresponding to a second pool of a second type of resource units;

means for establishing a relationship between ones of the first type of resource units in the first data structure and ones of the second type of resource units in the second data structure; and

means, receiving a request for a resource that requires one or more resource units from the first and second pools of resource units, for using the established relationship to allocate available resource units from the first and second pools of resource units to respond to the request,

wherein the means for establishing establishes a matrix where each row in the matrix represents a resource unit of the first type and where each column represents a resource unit of the second type so that selection of a row or a column corresponding to a resource unit of one type also selects a column or row, respectively, corresponding to a resource unit of another type.

17. The apparatus in claim 16, further comprising:

means for configuring the matrix so that each row selects only one of the columns.

18. The apparatus in claim 16, further comprising:

means for reconfiguring the matrix.

19. A communications system, comprising:

first and second pools of respective communications resource units, each pool configured in a hierarchical structure having plural levels;

a mapper that maps ones of the first pool of resource units to corresponding ones of the second pool of resource units;

a communications resource manager, in response to communication resource request, that allocates one or more of the resource units in the first pool, which also allocates the corresponding one or more of the resource units in the second pool based on the established mapping,

wherein the mapper is configured to establish a matrix where each row in the matrix represents one or more different resource units in the first pool and where each column represents one or more different resource units in the second pool so that selection of a row or a column corresponding to a resource unit of one pool also selects a column or row, respectively, corresponding to a resource unit of the other pool.

20. The communications system in claim 19, wherein the first pool of resource units includes software resource units and the second pool of resource units includes hardware resource units.

25. The communications system in claim 19, wherein the mapper includes means for configuring the matrix so that each row is related to only one of the columns.

26. The communications system in claim 19, wherein the mapper includes means for reconfiguring the matrix.

21. A communications system, comprising:

first and second pools of respective communications resource units, each pool configured in a structure having plural levels;

a mapper that maps ones of the first pool of resource units to corresponding ones of the second pool of resource units;

a communications resource manager, in response to communication resource request, that allocates one or more of the resource units in the first pool, which also allocates the corresponding one or more of the resource units in the second pool based on the established mapping,

wherein the communications system is a code division multiple access CDMA radio communications system, wherein the first pool of resource units are CDMA spreading codes and the second pool of resource units are data processing and transceiving hardware units.

22. The communications system in claim 21, wherein the mapper includes a matrix where each row in the matrix represents a different CDMA spreading code and where each column represents a different data processing and transceiving unit so that selection of a CDMA spreading code or a data processing and transceiving unit also selects a corresponding data processing and transceiving unit or CDMA spreading code, respectively.

23. The communications system in claim 22, wherein the mapper includes means for configuring the matrix so that each row is related to only one of the columns.

24. The communications system in claim 22, wherein the mapper includes means for reconfiguring the matrix.