Technique for effectively utilizing bandwidth of a cable network for wireless communications

• US 6,721,298 B1
• Filed: 03/16/1998
• Issued: 04/13/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Vella-Coleiro, George Philip
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsu, Alpus H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Toan D.
• Application Number:
  US09/042,478
• Time in Patent Office: 2,220 Days
• Field of Search: 370/295, 370/488, 370/485, 370/486, 370/487, 370/497, 370/342, 455/5.1, 455/75, 455/161.2, 455/164.2, 375/295
• US Class Current: 370/342
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44245 Monitoring the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. its availability, bandwidth
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4425 Monitoring of client processing errors or hardware failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6168 involving cable transmission, e.g. using a cable modem
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 Transmission or handling of upstream communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/22 Adaptations for optical transmission

Abstract

In a cable network for delivering a personal communications service (PCS) and cable television (CATV) service, return service applications, e.g., a pay per view service, are also provided on a return cable band provided by the cable network. In accordance with the invention, the return service applications utilize subbands unused by the PCS in the return cable band, thereby unaffecting the PCS. The broadband noise in the subbands normally accompanied by the PCS is filtered out using a tunable filter whose passband is adjustable to coincide with one of many PCS signal bands being used in the return cable band.

Claims

1. A system for communicating a signal through one of a plurality of signal bands in a communication band, at least one subband other than the plurality of the signal bands in the communication band being corrupted by noise, the system comprising:

a filter having an adjustable passband;

a detector for identifying said one of the plurality of the signal bands; and

a controller for adjusting the adjustable passband of the filter to substantially coincide with the identified said one of the plurality of the signal bands.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the communication band is provided by a cable network.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the plurality of signal bands are used for a personal communications service (PCs).

4. The system of claim 2 wherein the communication band is a return cable band, and the subband is used for a return service application.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the signal represents information which is formatted in accordance with a code division multiple access (CDMA) scheme.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the detector identifies said one of the plurality of signal bands based on a difference between a power level of the signal and that of the noise.

7. A cable network arrangement including a headend, at least one signal being transmitted in the arrangement toward the headend through a communication band, the communication band being corrupted by noise, the arrangement comprising:

a detector for scanning the communication band to identify a location of a signal band therein which is occupied by the signal; and

an adjustable passband filter for reducing the noise and allowing the signal to pass therethrough substantially unaffected based on knowledge of the location of the signal band, the passband being adaptively adjusted to correspond to the location in the communication band of the signal band occupied by the signal being transmitted toward the headend.

8. The arrangement of claim 7 wherein the signal 2 band is used for a PCS.

9. The arrangement of claim 7 wherein the signal represents information which is formatted in accordance with a CDMA scheme.

10. The arrangement of claim 7 wherein the detector identifies the location of the signal band based on a difference between a power level of the signal and that of the noise.

11. The arrangement of claim 7 wherein the passband is adjusted to substantially coincide with the signal band.

12. A method for use in a system for communicating a signal through one of a plurality of signal bands in a communication band, at least one subband other than the plurality of the signal bands in the communication band being corrupted by noise, the system including a filter having an adjustable passband, the method comprising the steps of:

identifying said one of the plurality of the signal bands; and

adjusting the adjustable passband of the filter to substantially coincide with the identified said one of the plurality of the signal bands.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the plurality 2 of signal bands are used for a PCS.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein the signal represents information which is formatted in accordance with a CDMA scheme.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein said one of the plurality of signal bands is identified based on a difference between a power level of the signal and that of the noise.

16. A method for use in a cable network arrangement including a headend, at least one signal being transmitted in the arrangement toward the headend through a communication band, the communication band being corrupted by noise, the arrangement also including an adjustable filter for reducing the noise, the method comprising the steps of:

scanning the communication band to identify a location of a signal band therein which is occupied by the signal; and

based on knowledge of the location of the signal band, adjusting the adjustable filter to exhibit a passband corresponding to the location in the communication band of the signal band occupied by the signal being transmitted toward the headend.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the signal band is used for a PCS.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein the signal represents information which is formatted in accordance with a CDMA scheme.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein the location of the signal band is identified based on a difference between a power level of the signal and that of the noise.

20. A system for communicating a signal through a communication band, said communication band including a plurality of signal bands interspersed with a plurality of sub-bands, respectively, said sub-bands being corrupted by noise, the system comprising:

a filter having an adjustable passband;

a detector for identifying one of the plurality of the signal bands having a non-noise first signal;

a controller for adjusting the adjustable passband of the filter to pass the identified signal band while also substantially removing the noise in at least one of the sub-bands adjacent to said identified signal band; and

a coupler to assign a second signal to the at least one adjacent sub-band.

21. The system of claim 20,

wherein said communication band represents a return cable band;

wherein said first signal represents at least one wireless communications signal; and

wherein said second signal represents at least one return service application signal.

22. In a communications system including a filter having an adjustable passband, a method of communicating a signal through a communication band, said communication band including a plurality of signal bands interspersed with a plurality of sub-bands, respectively, said sub-bands being corrupted by noise, the method comprising:

identifying one of the plurality of the signal bands having a non-noise first signal;

adjusting the adjustable passband of the filter to pass the identified signal band while also substantially removing the noise in at least one of the sub-bands adjacent to said identified signal band; and

coupling a second signal to the at least one adjacent sub-band.

23. The method of claim 22,

wherein said communication band represents a return cable band;

wherein said first signal represents at least one wireless communications signal; and

wherein said second signal represents at least one return service application signal.

24. A method for use in a system for communicating a signal through one of a plurality of distinct signal bands in a communication band, at least one subband other than the plurality of the signal bands in the communication band being corrupted by noise, the system including a filter having an adjustable passband, the method comprising the steps of:

identifying said one of the plurality of distinct signal bands; and

adjusting the adjustable passband of the filter to substantially coincide with the identified said one of the plurality of distinct signal bands.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the distinct signal bands are substantially non-overlapping.