Wireless local loop with intelligent base station

• US 7,050,799 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2002
• Issued: 05/23/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Omnipoint Corp. (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Menon, Narayan P., Sola, Ismail I., Nelhams, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): APPIAH, CHARLES NANA
• Application Number:
  US10/229,449
• Publication Number:
  US 20030008632A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,364 Days
• Field of Search: 455/426.1, 455/424, 455/442, 455/74.1, 455/561, 455/557, 455/550.1, 455/552.1, 455/426.2, 455/554.1, 455/403, 455/462, 455/436, 455/423, 455/425, 370/535, 370/331, 370/332, 370/401, 379/229, 379/230
• US Class Current: 455/426.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/14 WLL [Wireless Local Loop]; RLL [Radio Local Loop]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices

Abstract

A communication system for providing wireless local loop services comprises an intelligent base station for communicating with one or more customer premises remote units (CPRUs), each of which connects to a non-wireless device. Each CPRU has a wireless transceiver for over-the-air communication with the intelligent base station. The intelligent base station connects, without the assistance of a base station controller, to a mobile switching center (MSC), through a GSM A-interface or a specialized derivative thereof, and thereby to a public switched telephone network (PSTN). The intelligent base station employs a subset of GSM functionality, enabling the CPRU to take advantage of various advanced telephony features. A transcoder and rate adapter unit may be added between the intelligent base station and the mobile switching center. The intelligent base station may be capable of communicating with both mobile users and fixed wireless local loop customers, using time division multiple access (TDMA) to communicate with multiple users. The intelligent base station may transmit and receive messages using spread spectrum encoding. If mobility is provided within the system, intelligent base stations within a cluster may be connected over physical links so that signalling and bearer channels supporting a call from a mobile user are tunneled through one intelligent base station to the other during handover.

Claims

1. A communication system, comprising:

a wireless unit comprising a first transmitter and a first receiver;

an intelligent base station to operate without a base station controller, the intelligent base station comprising a second transmitter, a second receiver, an over-the-air processor, a line processor, and an internal signaling protocol layer, the over-the-air processor to manage communication between the intelligent base station and the wireless unit over a wireless communication channel, the line processor comprising a base station subsystem management application part (BSSMAP), a signaling connection control part (SCCP), and a message transfer part (MTP), the internal signaling protocol layer to allow communication of signaling information between the over-the-air processor and the line processor;

a non-wireless unit to be connected to the wireless unit, the non-wireless unit to exchange information with the intelligent base station using the wireless unit; and

a mobile switching center to be coupled to the intelligent base station over an interface.

2. The communication system of claim 1, further comprising a transcoding and rate adapter unit interposed between the intelligent base station and the mobile switching center.

3. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the non-wireless unit and the wireless unit communicate across an RJ-11 interface.

4. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the wireless unit comprises an RJ-11 interface and a data interface, the data interface transmitting and receiving digital data.

5. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the first transmitter and the second transmitter each comprise a spread spectrum transmitter, and wherein the first receiver and the second receiver each comprise a spread spectrum receiver.

6. The communication system of claim 5, wherein the intelligent base station is to generate a repeating time frame comprising a plurality of time slots, and wherein the wireless communication channel is defined by at least one of the time slots.

7. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the interface connecting the intelligent base station and the mobile switching center comprises a GSM A-interface.

8. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the intelligent base station communicates with the wireless unit over the wireless communication channel using a non-GSM over-the-air protocol.

9. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the mobile switching center and the wireless unit are peer-to-peer endpoints for GSM connection management, and wherein the mobile switching center communicates with the intelligent base station across a GSM signaling interface.

10. The communication system of claim 9, wherein the GSM signaling interface between the mobile switching center and the intelligent base station further comprises a GSM base station subsystem mobile application part (BSSMAP) and a GSM mobile transfer part (MTP).

11. The communication system of claim 1, further comprising a second intelligent base station, the second intelligent base station connected to the mobile switching center over a second interface.

12. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the non-wireless unit comprises a telephone.

13. A method for wireless communication in a local loop comprising:

establishing a plurality of wireless communication channels between a plurality of wireless units and an intelligent base station, the intelligent base station operation without a base station controller, the intelligent base station comprising;

an over-the-air processor, the over-the-air processor managing communication between the intelligent base station and the plurality of wireless units;

a line processor comprising a base station subsystem management application part (BSSMAP), a signaling connection control part (SCCP), and a message transfer part (MTP); and

an internal signaling protocol layer, the internal signaling protocol layer allowing communication of signaling information between the over-the-air processor and the line processor;

connecting a plurality of non-wireless units to the wireless units, at least one non-wireless unit being connected to each wireless unit;

exchanging information between the non-wireless units and the intelligent base station using the corresponding wireless unit as an intermediary; and

connecting the intelligent base station to a GSM mobile switching center.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein connecting the intelligent base station to the GSM mobile switching center comprises connecting the intelligent base station to a transcoding and rate adapter unit, and connecting the transcoding and rate adapter unit to the GSM mobile switching center.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein connecting the plurality of non-wireless units to the wireless units comprises connecting at least one of the non-wireless units to a wireless unit across an RJ-11 interface.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising communicating between the intelligent base station and the wireless units by spread spectrum encoding data for transmission between the intelligent base station and each of the wireless units, and spread spectrum decoding the data when received at the intelligent base station or the wireless units.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising generating, at the intelligent base station, a repeating time frame comprising a plurality of time slots, wherein each of the wireless communication channels is defined by at least one of the time slots.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein connecting the intelligent base station to the GSM mobile switching center comprises connecting the intelligent base station to the GSM mobile switching center across a GSM A-interface.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein the mobile switching center and the wireless units are peer-to-peer endpoints for GSM connection management, and wherein connecting the intelligent base station to the GSM mobile switching center comprises communicating between the mobile switching center and the intelligent base station across a GSM signaling interface.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein communicating between the wireless units and the intelligent base station comprises communicating between the intelligent base station and each wireless unit using a non-GSM over-the-air protocol.

21. A communication system, comprising:

a plurality of wireless units, each of the wireless units comprising a local transmitter and a local receiver;

an intelligent base station capable of communicating with the plurality of wireless units using a plurality of wireless communication channels without a base station controller, the intelligent base station comprising;

an intelligent base station transmitter;

an intelligent base station receiver;

an over-the-air processor, the over-the-air processor managing communication between the intelligent base station and the plurality of wireless units;

a line processor comprising a base station subsystem management application part (BSSMAP), a signaling connection control part (SCCP), and a message transfer part (MTP); and

an internal signaling protocol layer, the internal signaling protocol layer allowing communication of signaling information between the over-the-air processor and the line processor;

a plurality of non-wireless units, each of the non-wireless units to be connected to one of the wireless units and to exchange information with the intelligent base station using the corresponding wireless unit to which it is to be connected; and

a mobile switching center to be connected to the intelligent base station across an interface.

22. The communication system of claim 21, further comprising a transcoding and rate adapter unit to be interposed between the intelligent base station and the mobile switching center.

23. The communication system of claim 21, wherein at least one of the non-wireless units and one of the wireless units communicate across an RJ-11 interface.

24. The communication system of claim 21, wherein the intelligent base station transmitter and each of the local transmitters of the wireless units each comprises a spread spectrum transmitter, and wherein the intelligent base station receiver and each of the local receivers of the wireless units comprises a spread spectrum receiver.

25. The communication system of claim 24, wherein the intelligent base station is to generate a repeating time frame comprising a plurality of time slots, and wherein the wireless communication channels are each defined by one or more of the time slots.

26. The communication system of claim 21, wherein the interface connecting the intelligent base station and the mobile switching center comprises a GSM A-interface.

27. The communication system of claim 21, wherein the intelligent base station is to communicate with the wireless units over the wireless communication channels using a non-GSM over-the-air protocol.

28. The communication system of claim 21, wherein the mobile switching center and the wireless units are peer-to-peer endpoints for GSM connection management, and wherein the mobile switching center is to communicate with the intelligent base station across a GSM signaling interface.

29. The communication system of claim 28, wherein the GSM signaling interface between the mobile switching center and the intelligent base station further comprises a GSM base station subsystem mobile application part (BSSMAP) and a GSM mobile transfer part (MTP).

30. The communication system of claim 21, wherein one or more of the non-wireless units comprises a telephone.

31. The communication system of claim 21, further comprising a second intelligent base station, the second intelligent base station to be connected to the mobile switching center across a second interface.