Distributed coordination of a clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold

• US 7,720,440 B2
• Filed: 05/18/2006
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Zhu, Jing, Liu, Hsin-Yuo
• Primary Examiner(s): PHAM, TUAN
• Application Number:
  US11/436,334
• Publication Number:
  US 20070270102A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,461 Days
• Field of Search: 455/63.1, 455/67.11, 455/67.13, 455/91, 455/522, 455/115.1, 370/328, 370/338, 370/455, 370/333
• US Class Current: 455/63.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/10 using broadcasted information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/002 Transmission of channel access control information

Abstract

Embodiments of distributed coordination of a clear channel assessment threshold are presented herein.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a wireless transmitter;

a communication module to broadcast a clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold using the wireless transmitter, wherein the CCA threshold specifies a minimum amount of incoming energy for a wireless communication channel to be considered as not available for communication; and

a coordination module to coordinate the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold to be broadcast with another CCA threshold received in a broadcast using a wireless receiver, wherein the communication module employs an active listening propagation technique at predefined random time intervals within a predefined listening time interval, wherein the active listening propagation technique comprises lowering the CCA threshold to enlarge a listening range.

2. An apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold is to be broadcast using an action frame that is to further indicate transmission power or an energy detection threshold.

3. An apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the broadcast is to further specify another clear channel assessment threshold received in a broadcast of another action frame.

4. An apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the coordinating includes setting the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold to be broadcast as equal to the other CCA threshold when the other CCA threshold is lower than the CCA threshold to be broadcast.

5. An apparatus as described in claim 1, wherein the coordinating includes:

keeping the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold to be broadcast set as is when it is lower than the other CCA threshold,

broadcasting the kept CCA threshold.

6. A method comprising:

monitoring to detect, by a first wireless node, a broadcast of a clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold of a second wireless node, wherein;

the CCA threshold specifies a minimum amount of incoming energy for a wireless communication channel to be considered as not available for communication; and

monitoring to detect comprises monitoring for a predetermined amount of time and actively monitoring during at least a randomly determined portion of the predetermined amount of time, wherein actively monitoring is performed at a relatively higher sensitivity than monitoring performed during another portion of the predetermined amount of time; and

coordinating a CCA threshold of the first wireless node with the broadcast CCA threshold of the second wireless node.

7. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the coordinating includes setting the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold of the first wireless node to the broadcast CCA threshold if the broadcast CCA threshold is lower than the CCA threshold of the first wireless node.

8. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the coordinating includes applying a policy to adjust the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold of the first wireless node using the broadcast CCA threshold and further comprising propagating the broadcast CCA threshold and the adjusted CCA threshold of the first wireless node to a third wireless node.

9. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the coordinating includes keeping the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold of the first wireless node set as is when it is lower than the broadcast CCA threshold.

10. A method as described in claim 9, further comprising broadcasting the kept clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold of the first wireless node to the second wireless node.

11. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the broadcast is performed using an action frame to specify the clear channel assessment threshold, transmission power or an energy detection threshold of the second wireless node.

12. A method as described in claim 11, wherein the action frame is to specify another clear channel assessment threshold received in a broadcast from a third wireless node.

13. A method as described in claim 6, further comprising determining whether the wireless communication channel is occupied by detecting the amount of incoming energy on the wireless communication channel and comparing the detected amount of incoming energy to the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold.

14. A system comprising:

a wireless receiver;

a display device to display data related to the wireless receiver;

a module to coordinate a clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold with another CCA threshold specified in a broadcast of an action frame received via the wireless receiver, wherein the CCA thresholds specify a minimum amount of incoming energy for a wireless communication channel to be considered as not available for communication; and

a coordination module to coordinate the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold to be broadcast with another CCA threshold received in a broadcast using a wireless receiver, wherein the communication module employs an active listening propagation techniques at predefined random time intervals within a predefined listening time interval, wherein the active listening propagation technique comprises lowering the CCA threshold to enlarge a listening range.

15. A system as described in claim 14, wherein the action frame is to further specify transmission power and an energy detection threshold.

16. A system as described in claim 14, wherein the module is to perform the coordinating based at least in part on a plurality of broadcast CCA thresholds received from a plurality of wireless nodes.

17. A system as described in claim 14, wherein the action frame is to specify another clear channel assessment threshold received in a broadcast of another action frame.

18. A system as described in claim 14, further comprising a housing to contain the wireless receiver, the display device and the module as a wireless router.

19. One or more computer readable media encoded with computer executable instructions that, when executed:

monitor to detect a broadcast of a clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold that specifies a minimum amount of incoming energy for a wireless communication channel to be considered as not available for communication, wherein the monitoring is to be performed over a predetermined amount of time, during at least a randomly determined portion of the predetermined amount of time monitoring is performed at a relatively higher sensitivity than monitoring performed during another portion of the predetermined amount of time; and

coordinate a CCA threshold with the broadcast CCA threshold.

20. One or more computer readable media as described in claim 19, wherein the coordination is to set the clear channel assessment (CCA) threshold to the broadcast CCA threshold if the broadcast CCA threshold is lower than the CCA threshold.