Method and apparatus for providing high speed services using a wireless communications system

• US 6,657,982 B1
• Filed: 01/27/2000
• Issued: 12/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Shankaranarayanan, Nemmara K., Leung, Kin K., Qiu, Xiaoxin, Henry, Paul Shala, Fong, Thomas K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Yao, Kwang Bin
• Application Number:
  US09/492,174
• Time in Patent Office: 1,405 Days
• Field of Search: 370/328, 370/329, 370/330, 370/336, 370/337, 370/338, 370/349, 370/465, 370/468, 370/470, 370/346, 370/347, 370/348, 455/422.1, 455/446, 455/447, 455/449, 455/450, 455/452.1, 455/455, 455/464, 455/507, 455/509, 455/512, 455/513, 455/516
• US Class Current: 370/336
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/06 Hybrid resource partitioning, e.g. channel borrowing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/12 Fixed resource partitioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/24 Cell structures
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 using beam steering
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/542 using measured or perceived quality

Abstract

A method and apparatus for scheduling transmissions between a plurality of communications sites within a communications system. The communications system provides service to a service area which is divided into sectors. Each sector is assigned a time subframe in a pattern where adjacent sectors use different subframes. Communications sites within each sector communicate packets of information in at least one time subframe according to a schedule to minimize interference from other communications sites.

Claims

1. A method for scheduling information for transmission over a communication system, the communication system having a service area divided into at least two sectors, the at least two sectors being assigned at least one time subframe, the at least one time subframe having a first side and a second side, the method comprising:

scheduling information belonging to a first sector for transmission in a time subframe, the information belonging to the first sector being scheduled in the time subframe for transmission starting from a first side of the time subframe; and

scheduling information belonging to a second sector for transmission in the time subframe, the information belonging to the second sector being scheduled in the time subframe for transmission starting from a second side of the time subframe.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the information belonging to the first sector is information being scheduled for transmission in an uplink transmission from at least one terminal station in the first sector to a base station in the first sector, and the information belonging to the second sector is information being scheduled for transmission in an uplink transmission from at least one terminal station in the second sector to a base station in the second sector.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the information belonging to the first sector is information being scheduled for transmission in a downlink transmission from a base station in the first sector to at least one terminal station in the first sector, and the information belonging to the second sector is information being scheduled for transmission in a downlink transmission from a base station in the second sector to at least one terminal station in the second sector.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of scheduling information belonging to a first sector includes assigning the time subframe to the first sector, and the step of scheduling information belonging to a second sector includes assigning the time subframe to the second sector.

5. A method for scheduling information for transmission over a communication system, the communication system having a service area divided into a set of sectors, each sector assigned a time subframe, each time subframe having a first side and a second side, the method comprising:

scheduling information belonging to a first sector for transmission in a first time subframe, the information being scheduled for transmission in the first time subframe starting from a first side of the first time subframe;

scheduling information belonging to a second sector for transmission in a second time subframe; and

scheduling excess information belonging to the second sector for transmission in the first time subframe, the excess information being scheduled for transmission in the first time subframe starting from a second side of the first time subframe.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the information belonging to the first sector is information being scheduled for transmission in an uplink transmission from at least one terminal station in the first sector to a base station in the first sector, and the information and the excess information belonging to the second sector are information being scheduled for transmission in an uplink transmission from at least one terminal station in the second sector to a base station in the second sector.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the information belonging to the first sector is information being scheduled for transmission in a downlink transmission from a base station in the first sector to at least one terminal station in the first sector, and the information and the excess information belonging to the second sector are information being scheduled for transmission in a downlink transmission from a base station in the second sector to at least one terminal station in the second sector.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein the step of scheduling information belonging to a first sector includes assigning the first time subframe to the first sector, and the step of scheduling excess information belonging to a second sector includes assigning the first time subframe to the second sector.

9. A method for scheduling information for transmission for a communication system in a set of time subframes, the communication system having a service area divided into a plurality of sectors, each time subframe having a first side and a second side, the method comprising:

scheduling information for a sector of the plurality of sectors for transmission in the set of time subframes according to a predetermined order of the time subframes associated with the sector, the predetermined order having a last time subframe, the information being scheduled within each time subframe of the predetermined order for transmission starting from one of two sides of that time subframe, in which;

if a first subset of the information is scheduled for transmission in a time subframe of the predetermined order other than the last time subframe from a left side of the time subframe, then a second subset of the information is scheduled for transmission in a next time subframe of the predetermined order starting from a right side of the next time subframe; and

if the first subset of the information is scheduled for transmission in the time subframe of the predetermined order other than the last time subframe from a right side of the time subframe, then the second subset of the information is scheduled for transmission in the next time subframe of the predetermined order starting from a left side of the next time subframe.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the predetermined order is formed by:

assigning each time subframe of the set an interference value; and

ranking each time subframe of the set according to the assigned interference value.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the ranking step comprises ranking each time subframe of the set from a time subframe having a minimum interference value to a time subframe having a maximum interference value.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein information belonging to an adjacent sector is scheduled for transmission in the set of time subframes according to a predetermined order associated with the adjacent sector, the predetermined order associated with the adjacent sector being staggered by one time frame compared to the predetermined order associated with the sector.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of sectors comprises six sectors.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the set of time subframes comprises six time subframes.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein information belonging to an adjacent sector is scheduled for transmission in the set of time subframes according to a predetermined order associated with the adjacent sector, the predetermined order associated with the adjacent sector being staggered by one time frame compared to the predetermined order associated with the sector.