Wireless communication terminal and wireless communication method

• US 7,542,718 B2
• Filed: 09/11/2003
• Issued: 06/02/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Matsui, Yasunori, Sakao, Katsutoshi, Kimata, Hirokatsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; John J
• Application Number:
  US10/529,165
• Publication Number:
  US 20060105765A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,091 Days
• Field of Search: 455/428, 455/436, 455/439, 455/456.3, 455/525, 455/452.1, 455/3.01, 455/3.04, 455/3.02, 455/3.06, 455/517, 455/502, 455/550.1, 455/524, 455/67.11, 455/503, 455/82
• US Class Current: 455/3.04
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/1027 assessing signal quality or detecting noise/interference for the received signal

Abstract

A wireless communication terminal is disclosed which has mass data such as stream data delivered thereto efficiently over a wireless communication network so that the overall utilization efficiency of the network is improved as well. While a wireless communication terminal (100) is receiving stream data for its use, a main controller (120) checks a radio wave reception level LB coming from a receiver unit (103) in the terminal. If the reception level is found to drop below a predetermined level, the main controller (100) causes a frequency synthesizer (105) to control reception frequencies fed to the receiver unit (103) so as to receive radio waves from a plurality of base stations in the vicinity. A search is thus made for a base station which offers a radio wave reception level higher than the predetermined level and which is delivering the stream data in question, and that base station is selected preferentially.

Claims

1. A wireless communication terminal comprising:

selecting means for selecting a first base station with which to communicate;

detecting means for detecting a radio wave reception level of the first base station selected by said selecting means; and

selection controlling means which, if the detected radio wave reception level from said detecting means drops below a predetermined level during reception of predetermined data, then causes said selecting means preferentially to select a second base station which is already broadcasting said predetermined data to a plurality of wireless communication terminal within a cell of said second base station and which offers a radio wave reception level higher than said predetermined level, based on the radio wave reception level of each base station selected and on the ongoing broadcasting of said predetermined data therefrom;

wherein said predetermined data is at least one of video streaming data and audio streaming data which is being multicast to the terminal from at least said first base station and said second base station.

2. A wireless communication method for causing predetermined data to be streamed to a terminal from a network of base stations, said wireless communication method comprising the steps of:

selecting a first base station with which to communicate;

detecting a radio wave reception level of the first base station selected by said selecting means; and

if a radio wave reception level of said first base stations drops below a predetermined level, then

selecting preferentially a second base station which is already broadcasting predetermined data to a plurality of wireless communication terminal within a cell of said second base station and which offers a radio wave reception level higher than said predetermined level, based on the radio wave reception level of each base station selected and on the ongoing broadcasting of said predetermined data therefrom;

wherein said predetermined data is at least one of video streaming data and audio streaming data which is being multicast to the terminal from at least said first base station and said second base station.