Method for using bluetooth module to process non-bluetooth signals

• US 8,135,344 B2
• Filed: 02/13/2008
• Issued: 03/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Krueger, Scott, Tang, John, Dorogusker, Jesse
• Primary Examiner(s): Milord, Marceau
• Application Number:
  US12/030,774
• Publication Number:
  US 20090203316A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,490 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.2, 455/556.1, 455/552.1, 455/557, 455/435.3, 455/556.2, 370/338, 370/349, 370/401, 370/465, 370/320, 709/229, 709/250
• US Class Current: 455/41.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1059 End-user terminal functionalities specially adapted for real-time communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/75 Media network packet handling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/756 adapting media to device capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/22 Negotiating communication rate
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

An electronic device having a communications module with a first set of data rates can be enabled to use the communications module to process signals received from a source that uses a second set of data rates. The device may generate packets, frames, etc. at the first set of data rates using the communications module from the signals received from the remote source by sampling signals at one or more of the first set of data rates. The device may then reconstruct data or payloads originally transmitted in the signals at the second set of data rates from the packets generated at the first set of data rates. Thus, the device can process signals or transmissions at the second set of data rates using the first set of data rates without requiring additional receivers or communications modules to process the signals.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for processing a data packet, the method comprising, by the computer system:

receiving a first data packet using a Bluetooth receiver, the Bluetooth receiver having a first data acquisition rate, wherein the first data packet is transmitted using a first data transmission rate that is different from the first data acquisition rate;

sampling data in the first data packet at the first data acquisition rate;

recreating the first data packet based at least in part on the sampled data;

analyzing the recreated data packet to determine presence of a valid cyclic redundancy check (CRC) attribute and a valid access code; and

accepting the reconstructed data packet in the event that the valid CRC attribute and the valid access code are present.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the first data transmission rate is lower than the first data acquisition rate.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the first data acquisition rate is a Bluetooth data rate and the first data transmission rate is about a quarter of the Bluetooth data rate.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the first data transmission rate is one of a IEEE 802.11 (WiFi) data rate, a IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX) data rate, a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) data rate, or a Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) data rate.

5. A computer-implemented method for managing communications for a plurality of protocols, the method comprising, by a computer system:

receiving a set of policies associated with the plurality of protocols, each of the policies including information about prioritizing communications for a protocol from among the plurality of protocols;

receiving a plurality of transmissions via at least two of the plurality of protocols;

verifying the information about prioritizing communications for each of the received transmissions based at least in part on the protocol used for the transmission; and

scheduling data transmission and reception based at least in part on the information included in the set of policies.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein receiving a plurality of transmissions includes receiving transmissions using a Bluetooth protocol.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein verifying the information about prioritizing communications comprises determining information associated with timing and frequencies of the plurality of protocols.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein prioritizing communications includes determining information related to time intervals associated with data transmission for the first protocol and the second protocol and time intervals associated with non-transmission of data for the first protocol and the second protocol.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein scheduling data reception includes being available to receive data during the time intervals associated with transmission of data by the first protocol and the second protocol.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein scheduling data transmission includes transmitting data using the first protocol during the time intervals associated with non-transmission of data by the second protocol.

11. A device for processing data packets transmitted using a non-Bluetooth protocol comprising:

a Bluetooth transceiver module configured to receive data transmitted using a non-Bluetooth protocol;

a sampling module configured to sample the received data using a Bluetooth data rate to obtain sampled data;

a packet reconstruction module configured to reconstruct the data packet based at least in part on the sampled data; and

an analysis module configured to determine presence or absence of a valid cyclic redundancy check (CRC) attribute and a valid access code in the reconstructed packet.

12. The device of claim 11 wherein a data transmission rate of the non-Bluetooth protocol is about a quarter of the Bluetooth data rate.

13. A device for processing data packets comprising:

means for receiving a data packet transmitted using a non-Bluetooth data rate;

means for sampling the data packet using a Bluetooth data rate to obtain sampled data;

means for reconstructing the data packet based at least in part on the sampled data; and

means for determining presence or absence of a valid cyclic redundancy check (CRC) attribute and a valid access code in the reconstructed data packet.

14. The device of claim 13 wherein the first transmission rate corresponds to a non-Bluetooth data transmission rate.

15. The device of claim 13 wherein the first data acquisition rate is a Bluetooth data rate.

16. A device for managing communications for a plurality of protocols, the device comprising:

a policy receiving module configured to receive a first policy associated with a first protocol and a second policy associated with a second protocol, wherein the first policy and the second policy includes communication priority information for the first protocol and the second protocol;

analysis logic configured to determine timing and frequency information associated with the first protocol and the second protocol based at least in part on the first policy and the second policy; and

scheduling logic configured to schedule communication for the first protocol and the second protocol based at least in part on the timing and frequency information associated with the first protocol and the second protocol.

17. A device for managing communications for a plurality of protocols, the device comprising:

a transceiver module configured to communicate using at least a first protocol and a second protocol;

an analysis module configured to determine time intervals of data non-transmission for the first protocol and the second protocol; and

a scheduling module configured to schedule data transmission for the first protocol and the second protocol based at least in part on the time intervals of data non-transmission for the first protocol and the second protocol,

wherein the scheduling module is further configured to schedule data transmission by interleaving data from the first protocol and the second protocol based at least in part on the time intervals of data non-transmission for the first protocol and the second protocol.