Paging for non-real-time communications wireless networks

• US 8,073,469 B2
• Filed: 01/31/2005
• Issued: 12/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Jasper Wireless, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Mohammed, Jahangir
• Primary Examiner(s): Appiah, Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOLLIDAY, JAIME MICHELE
• Application Number:
  US11/047,354
• Publication Number:
  US 20060172747A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,500 Days
• Field of Search: 455/458, 455/574, 455/434
• US Class Current: 455/458
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0216 using a pre-established activity schedule, e.g. traffic indication frame
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/0015 one node acting as a reference for the others
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Improvements for paging in wireless networks is disclosed. A wireless terminal clock is synchronized to a server clock and a paging window and a dormant window are derived for communicating between the server and the wireless terminal using the synchronized time. During the paging window a control channel for a cellular network is found by the wireless terminal; and the page may be received from the server at the wireless terminal.

Claims

1. A method of paging for wireless networks comprising:

synchronizing a paging window clock of a wireless terminal to a paging window clock of a server;

deriving a paging window and a dormant window for communicating between the server and the wireless terminal based at least in part on the paging window clock of the server or the paging window clock of the wireless terminal, wherein the paging window and the dormant window are separate from a paging interval used between a base station and the wireless terminal, wherein a duration of the paging window is greater than a duration of the paging interval used between the base station and the wireless terminal, and wherein a duration of the dormant window is greater than the duration of the paging interval used between the base station and the wireless terminal;

during the paging window;

sending a page from the server to the wireless terminal in the event that the server is indicated to send the page to the wireless terminal;

waking up circuitry of the wireless terminal to receive and respond to the page in the event that the page is transmitted to the wireless terminal in a paging period during the paging window;

receiving the page from the server at the wireless terminal; and

during the dormant window;

causing the circuitry of the wireless terminal to sleep even during times that correspond to paging slots for the wireless terminal between the base station and the wireless terminal;

wherein the paging window has a duration at least as long as a duration from a start of a first paging slot to an end of a second paging slot between the wireless terminal and the server such that the paging window overlaps at least one paging slot between the wireless terminal and the base station.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein synchronizing the paging window clock of the wireless terminal to the paging window clock of the server comprises the server sending a synchronizing signal to the wireless terminal.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein synchronizing the paging window clock of the wireless terminal to the paging window clock of the server comprises synchronizing the clock of the server to an external time reference and synchronizing the clock of the wireless terminal to the external time reference.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein synchronizing the paging window clock of the wireless terminal to the paging window clock of the server comprises synchronizing the paging window clock of the server to an external time reference and synchronizing the paging window clock of the wireless terminal to the external time reference wherein the external time reference comprises a GPS time reference.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein synchronizing the paging window clock of the wireless terminal to the paging window clock of the server comprises synchronizing the paging window clock of the server to an external time reference and synchronizing the paging window clock of the wireless terminal to the external time reference wherein the external time reference comprises Internet time via NTP protocol.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the received page from the server is based on the GSM/GPRS paging method.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the received page from the server is based on the CDMA paging method.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the received page from the server is based on the WCDMA paging method.

9. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein deriving the paging window and the dormant window can be changed by the server.

10. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein finding the control channel for the cellular network by the wireless terminal includes searching a last control channel camped on.

11. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein finding the control channel for the cellular network by the wireless terminal includes searching a list of most recent control channels.

12. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein finding the control channel for the cellular network by the wireless terminal includes searching a last neighbor control channel list.

13. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein during the dormant window the wireless terminal conserves power by one or more of the following:

shutting down part the wireless terminal'"'"'s circuitry, running circuitry to maintain the internal wireless terminal window clock, and running circuitry to respond to an interrupt.

14. A system for paging for wireless networks comprising:

a time reference;

an internal server paging window clock;

an internal wireless terminal paging window clock;

a processor of a server for synchronizing the internal server paging window clock with the time reference and for deriving a paging window and a dormant window based at least in part on the internal server paging window clock or the internal wireless terminal paging window clock, wherein the paging window and the dormant window are separate from a paging interval used between a base station and the wireless terminal, wherein a duration of the paging window is greater than a duration of the paging interval used between the base station and the wireless terminal, and wherein a duration of the dormant window is greater than the duration of the paging interval used between the base station and the wireless terminal;

a processor of the wireless terminal for synchronizing the internal wireless terminal paging window clock with the time reference and for deriving the paging window and the dormant window;

a wireless terminal radio receiver for receiving pages from the server, wherein the wireless terminal radio receiver listens for pages only during the paging window, and wherein the wireless terminal radio receiver ignores all communication from the base station during the dormant window, including a page within a paging slot between the wireless terminal and the base station, wherein the paging window has a duration at least as long as a duration from a start of a first paging slot to an end of a second paging slot between the wireless terminal and the server such that the paging window overlaps at least one paging slot between the wireless terminal and the base station.

15. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the time reference comprises a GPS time reference.

16. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein during the dormant window the wireless terminal conserves power by one or more of the following:

shutting down part the wireless terminal'"'"'s circuitry, running circuitry to maintain the internal wireless terminal window clock, and running circuitry to respond to an interrupt.

17. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein periodically synchronizing the internal wireless terminal window clock of the wireless terminal comprises the server sending a synchronizing signal to the wireless terminal.

18. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein periodically synchronizing the internal wireless terminal window clock of the wireless terminal comprises synchronizing the internal server window clock to the time reference and synchronizing the internal wireless terminal window clock to the time reference.

19. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the time reference comprises Internet time via NTP protocol.

20. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the received page from the server is based on the GSM/GPRS paging method.

21. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the received page from the server is based on the CDMA paging method.

22. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the received page from the server is based on the WCDMA paging method.

23. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein deriving the paging window and the dormant window can be changed by the server.

24. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the wireless terminal finds a control channel for the cellular network by searching a last control channel camped on.

25. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the wireless terminal finds a control channel for the cellular network by searching a list of most recent control channels.

26. A system as recited in claim 14, wherein the wireless terminal finds a control channel for the cellular network by searching a last neighbor control channel list.