Method and apparatus for dynamically allocating resources in a communication system

• US 6,934,254 B2
• Filed: 01/18/2001
• Issued: 08/23/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google Technology Holdings LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola, Inc. (Motorola Solutions, Inc.)
• Inventors: Yang, Jian, Brown, William Leslie, Kim, Dae-Young, Mehrabanzad, Sepehr
• Primary Examiner(s): CANGIALOSI, SALVATORE A
• Application Number:
  US09/764,959
• Publication Number:
  US 20020093913A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,678 Days
• Field of Search: 370/232, 370/431, 370/437, 712/22, 709/213
• US Class Current: 370/232
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/32 Architecture of open systems interconnection [OSI] 7-layer type protocol stacks, e.g. the interfaces between the data link level and the physical level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method and apparatus is provided that dynamically allocates processor resources to data transfer-related operations, minimizing the processor resources used for data transfer-related operations and maximizing the processor resources available for other applications. The apparatus comprises a communication device (104), comprising a processing unit (204) and a complexity controller (206), which communication device (104) is capable of executing multiple data transfer-related operations and is highly configurable. The complexity controller (206) monitors a condition of a communication channel (102) and determines the best configuration of communication device (104) in regard to processor resource utilization to meet a given Quality of Service requirement for the condition of channel (102) and to maximize the processor resources available for other applications, such as data terminal equipment user applications (108) or signal processing by other communication devices using the same host processor.

Claims

1. An apparatus for the dynamic allocation of processing resources of a host processor by a communication device, wherein the communication device comprises a plurality of data transfer-related operations and at least one non-data transfer operation, and wherein the apparatus comprises a host processor that comprises:

a complexity controller that controls the allocation of the amount of processing resources between the plurality of data transfer-related operations and the at least one non-data transfer operation by determining to execute at least one data transfer-related operation of the plurality of data transfer-related operations; and

a processing unit, coupled to the complexity controller, that executes the at least one data transfer-related operation of the plurality of data transfer-related operation based on the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus further comprises an interface apparatus coupled to the processing unit.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the complexity controller further determines a condition of a communication channel.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the complexity controller further determines a quality metric based on the determined condition of the communication channel, and wherein the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation is based on the quality metric.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the apparatus further comprises a quality of service requirement and wherein the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation is based on the quality of service requirement and the determined quality metric.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the complexity controller further determines an available processor resource and wherein the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation is based on the determined available processor resources.

7. A method for dynamically allocating an amount of processing resources of a host processor by a communication device, wherein the communication device comprises a plurality of data transfer-related operations and at least one non-data transfer operation, and wherein the method comprises the steps of:

determining to execute at least one data transfer-related operation of the plurality of data transfer-related operations; and

allocating the amount of processing resources between the plurality of data transfer-related operations and the at least one non-data transfer operation based on the determination to execute the at least one data transfer-related operation of the plurality of data transfer-related operations.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein in the step of determining, a condition of a communication channel is determined.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of determining a quality metric based on the determined condition of the operating channel, and wherein the step of determining to execute at least one data transfer-related operation is based on the determined quality metric.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of determining a quality of service requirement and wherein the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation is based on the quality of service requirement and the determined quality metric.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of determining a resource load of the processor, and wherein the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation is based on the determined resource load of the processor.

12. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of executing at least one data transfer-related operation in response to the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation.

13. A method for dynamically allocating an amount of processing resources of a host processor by a communication device, wherein the communication device comprises a plurality of data transfer-related operations and at least one non-data transfer operation, and wherein the method comprises the steps of:

determining a condition of a communication channel; and

allocating the amount of processing resources between the plurality of data transfer-related operations and the at least one non-data transfer operation based on the determined condition of the communication channel.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of determining a quality metric based on the determined condition of the communication channel.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of determining to execute at least one data transfer-related operation of the plurality of data transfer-related operations based on the determined condition of the communication channel.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of allocating the amount of processing resources comprises the step of allocating the amount of processing resources based on the determined condition of the communication channel and on the determination to execute at least one data transfer-related operation.