Method and apparatus for a reconfigurable multi-media system

• US 7,016,668 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2002
• Issued: 03/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Uniloc 2017 LLC (FIG LLC (d/b/a Fortress Investment Group LLC))
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: VanderSchaar, Mihaela, Krishnamachari, Santhana, Vaidyanathan, Krishnamurthy
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Doris H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHU, SANH D
• Application Number:
  US10/255,327
• Publication Number:
  US 20030081580A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,272 Days
• Field of Search: 455/418, 455/419, 455/432.2, 455/552.1, 455/553.1, 370/328, 370/335, 370/342, 375/240.11
• US Class Current: 455/418
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/0003 Software-defined radio [SDR] systems, i.e. systems wherein components typically implemented in hardware, e.g. filters or modulators/demodulators, are implented using software, e.g. by involving an AD or DA conversion stage such that at least part of the signal processing is performed in the digital domain digital baseband systems H04L25/00; digital modulation/demodulation H04L27/00; CDMA H04B1/707; TDMA H04B7/2643; image transmission H04N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/406 with more than one transmission mode, e.g. analog and digital modes
• 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 69/323 in the physical layer [OSI layer 1]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/324 in the data link layer [OSI layer 2], e.g. HDLC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A reconfigurable multi-media system, method and device provides monitoring and reconfiguration of a plurality of communication layers of a communications stack to dynamically reconfigure the modulation and coding of software defined radio (SDR). The system includes a software object radio (SWR) library having reconfigurable object specification, design and performance parameters, the SWR is adapted for at least one of transmitting and receiving multi-media content via wireless communication; a controller in communication with the SWR library; a power management device module in communication with said controller; a reconfigurable encoder/decoder in communication with said controller to provide the SWR with dynamic coding information for modulation; a TCP/IP interface in communication with said reconfigurable encoder/decoder and said controller; and an application layer comprising a link layer and a reconfigurable physical layer in communication with each other and said controller, the physical layer adapted for communication with a channel, and the application layer including at least one driver for multi-media delivery. The controller monitors the physical layer and link layer information and the reconfigurable encoder/decoder dynamically reconfigures modulation and coding of multi-media content according to a cross-layer optimization approach.

Claims

1. A reconfigurable multi-media system comprising:

a software object radio (SWR) library 130 comprising reconfigurable object specification, design and performance parameters, said SWR adapted for at least one of transmitting and receiving multi-media content via wireless communication;

a controller 115 in communication with said SWR library;

a power management device module 135 in communication with said controller;

a reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 in communication with said controller to provide the SWR with dynamic coding information for modulation;

a TCP/IP interface 145 in communication with said reconfigurable encoder/decoder and said controller; and

an application layer 125 comprising a link layer 120 and a reconfigurable physical layer 100 in communication with each other and said controller 115, the physical layer adapted for communication with a channel 110, and said application layer including at least one driver for multimedia delivery;

wherein the controller 115 monitors the physical layer 100 and link layer 120 information, and the reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 dynamically reconfigures modulation and coding of multi-media content according to a cross-layer optimization approach in conjunction with the controller from;

(a) the physical layer 100 according to channel conditions and device power restrictions;

(b) the link layer 120 according to variation in network access delay in a multi-user network; and

(c) the application layer 125 according to variation in characteristics of a data stream to be transported.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 uses wavelet-based coding during cross-layer optimization.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 uses MPEG coding during cross-layer optimization.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 uses 3-D wavelet coding.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the power management device module 135 operates according to predetermined Quality of Service (QoS) criteria supplied thereto.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the controller 115 and reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 further comprise a reconfigurable modem device adapted to implement a desired air interface with a Software Defined Radio (SDR).

7. A method for providing a reconfigurable multi-media system comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a software object radio (SWR) library comprising reconfigurable object specification, design and performance parameters, said SWR adapted for at least one of transmitting and receiving multi-media content via wireless communication;

(b) providing a controller in communication with said SWR library;

(c) providing a power management device module in communication with said controller;

(d) providing a reconfigurable encoder/decoder in communication with said controller to provide the SWR with dynamic coding information for modulation;

(e) providing a TCP/IP interface in communication with said reconfigurable encoder/decoder and said controller; and

(f) providing an application layer comprising a link layer and a reconfigurable physical layer in communication with each other and said controller, the physical layer adapted for communication with a channel, and said application layer including at least one driver for multimedia delivery;

(g) monitoring by the controller of channel conditions, device power restrictions, and predetermined Quality of Service (QoS) criteria;

(h) reconfiguring modulation and coding of multi-media content according to a cross-layer optimization by the reconfigurable encoder/decoder in conjunction with the controller from;

(1) the physical layer according to channel conditions and device power restrictions;

(2) at the link layer according to variation in network access delay in a multi-user network; and

(3) at the application layer according to variation in characteristics of a data stream to be transported.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 uses wavelet-based coding during cross-layer optimization.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein the reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 using MPEG algorithms during cross-layer optimization.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein the reconfigurable encoder/decoder 140 uses 3-D wavelet algorithms.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein the power management device module 135 operates according to predetermined Quality of Service (QoS) criteria supplied thereto.