Wireless USB host apparatus supporting UWB

• US 7,596,646 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2005
• Issued: 09/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: Kim, Jong Won, Park, Kwang Roh, Huh, Jae Doo
• Primary Examiner(s): Sorrell; Eron J
• Application Number:
  US11/320,110
• Publication Number:
  US 20070073935A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,371 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 710/72
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/38 Information transfer, e.g. on bus G06F13/14 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2213/3812 USB port controller
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2213/3814 Wireless link with a computer system port
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals

Abstract

A wireless USB host apparatus supporting UWB is disclosed. The wireless USB host apparatus allocates a Media Access Slot of USB super frame to each of a plurality of wireless USB devices to transmit the real-time audio/video data as well as command data, control data and non real-time data through a single transmission channel. Also, the wireless USB host apparatus uses the ultra wide band to exchange data with the plurality of wireless USB devices to support the data transfer rate of about 53.3 to 480 Mbps, guarantees the QoS and supports transmission of the real-time audio/video data.

Claims

1. A wireless USB (universal serial bus) host apparatus supporting an UWB (ultra wide band) for connecting a PC (personal computer) and a plurality of wireless USB devices through a wireless link, the wireless USB host apparatus comprising:

a connecting unit for receiving transmit data and a control signal from the PC and transmitting the transmit data and the control signal to a protocol transforming unit and a controlling unit, respectively, and wherein the connecting unit receives received data from the protocol transforming unit and a control signal from the controlling unit and transfers the received data and the control signal to the PC;

the protocol transforming unit for transforming the transmit data inputted from the connecting unit to a media accessing data and allocating a media accessing slot to each of the wireless USB devices to share a single wireless channel by the plurality of the wireless USB devices, and wherein the protocol transforming unit extracts the received data from the media accessing data received from an UWB physical layer processing unit and transferring the extracted data to the connecting unit;

the UWB physical layer processing unit for transforming the media accessing data outputted from the protocol transforming unit to an UWB wireless signal and transferring the UWB wireless signal to the wireless USB devices, and receiving an UWB wireless signal from the wireless USB devices, transforming the received UWB wireless signal to media accessing data and outputting the media accessing data to the protocol transforming unit; and

the controlling unit for controlling and managing the connecting unit, the protocol transforming unit and the UWB physical layer processing unit,

wherein the PC connected to the plurality of wireless USB devices, that transmit and receive wireless data through UWB and shares the single transmission channel, supports a Quality of Service (QoS) for each of the plurality of wireless USB devices at the same time.

2. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 1, wherein the connecting unit is connected to the PC through a CardBus/PC card interface.

3. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 2, wherein the connecting unit receives a multiplexed accessing signal including a PC card address, transmit data, a CardBus/PC card control signal, and a CardBus/PC card state signal from the PC, transforms the PC card address and the transmit data in the multiplexed accessing signal to a direct memory access control signal and transferring the transformed data to the protocol transforming unit, and transferring the CardBus/PC card control signal and the CardBus/PC card state signal to the controlling unit.

4. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 3, wherein the protocol transforming unit includes:

a DMA (direct memory access) controller for receiving the direct memory access signal from the connecting unit, transforming the direct memory access signal to a buffer accessing signal and transferring the buffer accessing signal to a buffer accessing unit, and transfers data stored in a receiving FIFO (first in first out) to the connecting unit according to the buffer accessing signal from the buffer accessing unit;

the buffer accessing unit for transforming the buffer accessing signal received from the DMA controller to a transmit FIFO signal and transferring the transmit FIFO signal to a transmitting FIFO, and wherein the buffer accessing unit transforms a receiving FIFO signal received from the receiving FIFO to the buffer accessing signal and transferring the buffer accessing signal to the DMA controller;

the transmitting FIFO for receiving the transmit FIFO signal from the buffer accessing unit, temporally storing data stored in a host memory of the PC and transferring the temporally stored data to an UWB media accessing controller as wireless USB transmitting data;

the receiving FIFO for temporally storing wireless USB receiving data, transforming the wireless USB receiving data to the receiving FIFO signal and transferring the receiving FIFO signal to the buffer accessing unit; and

the UWB media accessing controller for allocating the media accessing slot to the plurality of wireless USB devices, creating a payload of a MAC data with the data stored in the transmitting FIFO and a header of the MAC data with the control signal inputted from the controlling unit according to the allocated media accessing slot, transferring the MAC data having the payload and the header to the UWB physical layer processing unit, and receiving the MAC data from the UWB physical layer processing unit, reverse-transforming the received MAC data to the wireless USB receiving data and transferring the wireless USB receiving data to the receiving FIFO.

5. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 4, wherein the UWB media accessing controller allocates the media access slot of a super frame to each of the plurality of wireless USB devices based on a TDMA (time division multiple access) based DRP (distributed reservation protocol) scheme.

6. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 4, wherein the UWB media accessing controller includes:

a transmitting memory for receiving the wireless USB transmitting data from the transmitting FIFO and MAC header information from The controlling unit, creating the MAC data through combining the USB transmitting data and the MAC header information, storing the MAC data, transforming the MAC data to the transmitting memory data and outputting the transmitting memory data to a transmitting queue;

a transmitting queue for temporally storing the transmitting memory data inputted from the transmitting memory, transforming the transmitting memory data to the transmitting queue data according to a transmitting control signal of a protocol controller and transferring the transmitting queue data to the protocol controller;

the protocol controller for allocating the media accessing slot to the plurality of wireless USB devices, transforming the transmitting queue data from the transmitting queue and the control data from the controlling unit to the protocol controller transmitting data of 8 bit unit and transferring the protocol controller transmitting data to a MAC transmitter, receiving the protocol controller receiving data of 8 bit unit from a MAC receiver, transforming the wireless USB receiving data to a receiving queue data and transferring the receiving queue data to the receiving queue with a receiving queue control signal, and transferring command and control data to the controlling unit;

the MAC transmitter for receiving the protocol controller transmitting data from the protocol controller, transforming the protocol controller transmitting data to the MAC data having a MAC trailer of FCS (Frame check sequence), and transferring the transformed MAC data to the UWB physical layer processing unit;

the MAC receiver for receiving the MAC data from the UWB physical layer processing unit, identifying a frame address, detecting overlapped frames, performing a FCS inspection, eliminating the MAC trailer, transforming to the protocol controller receiving data of 8 bit unit, and outputting the protocol controller receiving data to the protocol controller;

the receiving queue for receiving the receiving queue data from the protocol controller, temporally storing the receiving queue data, transforming the temporally stored data to a receiving memory data, and transferring the receiving memory data to a receiving memory; and

the receiving memory for receiving the receiving memory data from the receiving queue, temporally storing the receiving memory data, dividing the receiving memory data to a payload and a header of a MAC frame, transforming the payload to the wireless USB receiving data and outputting the wireless USB receiving data to the receiving FIFO, and transferring the header information to the controlling unit.

7. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 4, wherein the UWB physical layer processing unit includes:

a PLCP (physical layer convergence procedure) processor for transforming the MAC data inputted from the UWB media accessing controller to a PLCP processor data of an UWB physical layer structure;

a transmit data processor for processing the data outputted from the PLCP processor to correct errors generated during transmission;

a modulator for modulating the data outputted from the transmit data processor based on a predetermined modulation scheme supporting a predetermined data transfer rate;

a serial-to-parallel converter for converting the data outputted from the modulator to a parallel data;

an IFFT (inverse fast fourier transform) unit for performing an IFFT on the parallel data outputted from the serial-to-parallel converter;

a DAC (digital-to-analog converter) for converting the data outputted from the IFFT unit to an analog signal;

a RF (radio frequency) transmitter for transforming the analog signal from the DAC to a wireless signal of an ultra wide band and transferring the wireless signal to an antenna;

a RF (radio frequency) receiver for receiving a wireless signal of an ultra wide band received through the antenna and transforming the wireless signal to an analog signal;

an ADC (analog-to-digital converter) for converting the analog signal outputted from the RF receiver to digital data, and providing a RSSI (receive signal strength indicator) of the analog signal to the controlling unit;

a FFT (fast fourier transform) unit for performing a FFT on the digital data outputted from the ADC;

a parallel-to-serial converter for converting the data outputted from the FFT unit to serial data;

an equalizer for equalizing the serial data outputted from the parallel-to-serial converter to correct error caused by a transmission channel;

a demodulator for demodulating the data outputted from the equalizer, and

a receiving data processor for processing the data outputted from the demodulator to correct errors in the data, transforming the error-corrected data to the MAC data and outputting the MAC data to the UWB media accessing controller.

8. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 7, wherein the transmit data processor includes:

a scrambler for transforming the PLCP processor data outputted from the PLCP processor to a code of a random format;

a RS (Reed Solomon) encoder for encoding the data outputted from the scrambler based on a RS encoding scheme to correct a burst error generated by instant noise;

a convolutional encoder for encoding the data outputted from the RS encoder on a convolutional encoding scheme to correct a random error;

a puncturer for receiving the data outputted from the convolutional encoder and a data-transfer-rate data from the controlling unit, and performing a puncturing operation on the received data from the convolutional encoder to regularly omit a predetermined portion of the data according to a predetermined data transfer rate in order to increase a code rate; and

an interleaver for rearranging a symbol sequence and a data sequence of the data outputted from the puncturer to correct a burst error generated by instant noise.

9. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 7, wherein the receiving data processor includes:

a de-interleaver for correcting a burst error in the data outputted from the modulator;

a de-puncturer for receiving the data outputted from the de-interleaver and recovering an omitted portion of the received data by the puncturing operation;

a viterbi decoder for decoding the data outputted from the de-puncturer to correct a random error included in the data outputted from the de-puncturer;

a RS decoder for performing a RS decoding on the data outputted from the viterbi decoder to correct a burst error in the data outputted from the viterbi decoder; and

a de-scrambler for transforming the data outputted from the RS decoder, which is scrambled to a code of a random format, to the MAC data, and transferring the MAC data to the UWB media accessing controller.

10. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 7, wherein the modulator and the demodulator perform modulation/demodulation operation based on a QPSK (quadrature phase shift keying) scheme for a data transfer rate of about 53.3 to 200 Mbps or based on a DCM (dual carrier modulation) scheme of a data transfer rate of about 320 to 480 Mbps.

11. The wireless USB host apparatus of claim 1, wherein the PC connected to the plurality of wireless USB devices that transmit and receive wireless data through UWB share a single transmission channel at the same time.