Wireless communication apparatus and wireless channel assignment method

• US 7,130,636 B2
• Filed: 09/27/2001
• Issued: 10/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Kitazawa, Daisuke, Umeda, Narumi, Sato, Hijin
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramakrishnaiah, Melur
• Application Number:
  US09/963,537
• Publication Number:
  US 20020037729A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,860 Days
• Field of Search: 455/450, 455/451, 455/452.1, 455/452.2, 455/453, 455/423, 455/509, 370/329, 370/330, 370/343, 370/478, 370/480
• US Class Current: 455/452.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2416 Real-time traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2433 Allocation of priorities to traffic types
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/14 using intermediate storage
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0446 Resources in time domain, e.g. slots or frames
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/54 based on quality criteria
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

At each wireless terminal, a receiving unit receives a signal transmitted from a wireless base station. A signal-to-noise ratio measurement unit measures an S/N of this received signal. In the wireless base station, data amount measurement unit measures the amount of data stored in each buffer therein. A maximum stay time measurement unit measures a maximum stay time of packets in each buffer. A classification by the maximum stay time unit classifies each wireless terminal based on the maximum stay time. A slot assignment priority order determination unit determines an assignment order of time slots to each wireless terminal based on the classification result in the classification unit, the receiving signal-to-noise ratio, the amount of data, and the maximum stay time.

Claims

1. A communication apparatus which communicates with a plurality of wireless terminals, comprising:

an assignment order determination unit which is arranged to determine an assignment order of wireless channels between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals based on a maximum stay time of data to be transmitted from a transmission end for every reception and for wireless terminal; and

a wireless channel assignment unit which is arranged to assign, according to the thus-determined assignment order, the wireless channels between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals, including

a wireless terminal classification unit which is arranged to classify each wireless terminal into a first wireless terminal for which the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received has exceeded a predetermined time, or a second wireless terminal for which the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received has not exceeded the predetermined time;

wherein, when said communication apparatus acts as the reception end, said assignment order determination unit is arranged to determine said assignment order based on the communication quality measured in the said communication apparatus for each wireless terminal, and the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted measured in each wireless terminal and the measured result sent to the said communication apparatus;

and, said assignment order determination unit is arranged to give priority for the first wireless terminals over the second wireless terminals to determine the assignment order therefor.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when said communication apparatus acts as the transmission end, said assignment order determination unit is arranged to determine the assignment order of the wireless channels based on the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted measured in the said communication apparatus, and the communication quality measured in each wireless terminal.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said assignment order determination unit is arranged to determine, for said first wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received, and, then, the order of the communication quality, and, to determine, for said second wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the communication quality, and, then, the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, based on the maximum stay time and the amount of data to be transmitted or the data to be received, and the communication quality, said assignment order determination unit is arranged to determine said assignment order.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said assignment order determination unit is arranged to determine, for said first wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or of the data to be received, the order of the communication quality, and, then, the ascending order of the amount of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received, and, to determine, for said second wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the communication quality, the ascending order of the amount of data to be transmitted or the data to be received, and, then, the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received.

6. The communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said assignment order determination unit is arranged to determine said assignment order between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals based on the communication quality at the reception end for every wireless terminal by, determining the assignment order of the wireless channels between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals based on the number of modulation levels corresponding to the communication quality at the reception end for every wireless terminal.

7. A method of assigning wireless channels in a communication apparatus which communicates with a plurality of wireless terminals, comprising:

a) determining an assignment order of wireless channels between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals based on a maximum stay time of data to be transmitted from a transmission end for every wireless terminal, and the communication quality at a reception end for every wireless terminal; and

b) assigning, according to the thus-determined assignment order, the wireless channels between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals, that when said communication apparatus acts as the reception end, said step a) includes a step of determining the assignment order of the wireless channels based on the communication quality measured in said communication apparatus for each wireless terminals, and the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted measured in each wireless terminal and the measured result sent to the said communication apparatus; and

c) classifying each wireless terminals into a first wireless terminal for which the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received has exceeded a predetermined time, or a second wireless terminal for which the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received has not exceeded the predetermined time.

wherein, said step a) includes the steps of giving priority for the first wireless terminals over the second wireless terminals to determine the assignment order.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein when said communication apparatus acts as the transmission end, said step a) includes a step of determining said assignment order based on the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted measured in said communication apparatus, and the communication quality measured in each wireless terminal.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein said step a) further comprises the steps of determining, for said first wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received, and, then, the order of the communication quality, and, while determining, for said second wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the communication quality, and, then, the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein said step a) further comprises a step of determining said assignment order, based on the maximum stay time and the amount of the data to be transmitted, and the communication quality.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein said step a) further comprises the steps of determining, for said first wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received, the order of the communication quality, and, then, the ascending order of the amount of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received, and, while determining, for said second wireless terminals, said assignment order by the order of the communication quality, the ascending order of the amount of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received, and, then, the order of the maximum stay time of the data to be transmitted or the data to be received.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein said step a) further comprises the step of determining said assignment order between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals based on the communication quality at the reception end for every wireless terminal, by determining said assignment order between said communication apparatus and said wireless terminals based on the number of modulation levels corresponding to the communication quality at the reception end for every wireless terminal.