Random shuffling mechanism for MIMO wireless system

• US 8,565,138 B1
• Filed: 09/30/2009
• Issued: 10/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Yuan, Yuan, Yu, Kevin C., Koukoumidis, Emmanouil, Jiang, Xiaofang, Gunter, Michial Allen, Gossett, Carroll Philip
• Primary Examiner(s): Moore, Ian N
• Assistant Examiner(s): TANG, KIET G
• Application Number:
  US12/570,825
• Time in Patent Office: 1,483 Days
• Field of Search: 375/267, 375/299, 375/346, 375/347, 370/336, 370/337, 370/465, 370469-479
• US Class Current: 370/312
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0413 MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0037 Inter-user or inter-terminal allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0048 Allocation of pilot signals, i.e. of signals known to the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0053 Allocation of signaling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0446 Resources in time domain, e.g. slots or frames
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/1263 Mapping of traffic onto schedule, e.g. scheduled allocation or multiplexing of flows

Abstract

A method of coordinating communications between a wireless MIMO base station and a plurality of wireless communication devices is disclosed. The method includes generating a series of index numbers for controlling sub-slot assignments for the plurality of wireless communication devices, providing data representing the series of numbers to the MIMO base station and each of the plurality of wireless communication devices, and controlling simultaneous communication between the plurality of wireless communication devices and the MIMO base station by reassigning access by the plurality of wireless communication devices to a plurality of sub-slots in a communication structure of unit size.

Claims

1. A method of coordinating communications between a wireless MIMO base station and a plurality of wireless communication devices, comprising:

generating a series of index numbers for controlling sub-slot assignments for the plurality of wireless communication devices, each of the index numbers having a corresponding sub-slot in a communication structure of unit size;

providing data representing the series of index numbers to the MIMO base station and each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; and

controlling simultaneous communication between the plurality of wireless communication devices and the MIMO base station by reassigning access by the plurality of wireless communication devices to a plurality of sub-slots in the communication structure, wherein reassigning access comprises reassigning the plurality of wireless communication devices to different sub-slots from one successive time period to a next successive time period, wherein the different sub-slots are sub-slots corresponding to index numbers selected based on positions at which the index numbers occur within the series of index numbers.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication structure of unit size comprises a slot.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein each successive time period is defined by a repeating frame structure.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein reassigning access comprises reassigning access for each frame in the frame structure.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein access by the plurality of clients is reassigned to the plurality of slots in the frame every N frames, wherein N comprises an integer number.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the series of index numbers comprises pseudo-randomly generated numbers.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein providing data representing the series of numbers comprises generating the series of index numbers using common determination mechanisms at the wireless communication devices and the MIMO base station, generating slot assignment information at the base station, and transmitting the slot assignment information in the communication structure to the plurality of wireless communication devices.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the common determination mechanisms comprise a plurality of random number arrays.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the number of random arrays in the plurality of random arrays is corresponds to a number of antennas active on the MIMO base station.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein each slot comprises an uplink portion having a plurality of sub-slots, to carry information from the plurality of wireless clients to the MIMO base station, and a downlink portion having a plurality of sub-slots, to carry information from the MIMO base station to the plurality of wireless clients.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, at the MIMO base station, an identification by a first wireless device of the plurality of wireless devices, and providing to the first wireless device slot assignment information to be used by the first wireless device, with the index numbers, to select sub-slots in the communication structure.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising receiving, at the MIMO base station, identifications for each of the plurality of wireless devices, and providing to each of the plurality of wireless devices slot assignment information to be used by each of the plurality of wireless devices, with the index numbers, to select sub-slots in the communication structure.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the slot assignment information comprises offset information for selecting sub-slots.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the data representing the series of index numbers comprises the series of index numbers.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the series of index numbers for controlling sub-slot assignments for the plurality of wireless communication devices comprises generating a series of values that includes a number of values larger than a number of sub-slots in the communication structure.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein controlling simultaneous communication between the plurality of wireless communication devices and the MIMO base station comprises changing sub-slots assigned to the plurality of wireless communication devices in the successive time periods in an order in which the index numbers for the sub-slots occur in the series of index numbers.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein controlling simultaneous communication between the plurality of wireless communication devices and the MIMO base station comprises:

in each of the successive time periods, assigning a particular wireless communication device of the plurality of wireless communication devices to sub-slots identified by successive index numbers in the series of index numbers.

26. The method of claim 1, wherein controlling simultaneous communication between the plurality of wireless communication devices and the MIMO base station comprises:

determining, for a particular wireless communication device of the plurality of wireless communication devices, a value indicating a position within the series of index numbers;

selecting from the series of index numbers an index number that occurs in the series of index numbers at the determined position; and

assigning the particular wireless communication device to the sub-slot corresponding to the selected index number.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein determining the value indicating the position within the series of index numbers comprises determining the value based on an offset value assigned to the particular wireless communication device, the offset value being different from offset values assigned to the others of the plurality of wireless communication devices.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein determining the value indicating the position within the series of index numbers comprises determining the value based on a frame number corresponding to one of the successive periods or a sub-slot assigned to the particular wireless communication device.

29. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication structure of unit size comprises a slot, wherein each successive time period is defined by a repeating frame structure, and wherein reassigning access comprises changing the sub-slots to which one or more of the plurality of wireless communication devices are assigned for each frame in the frame structure.

15. A system for coordinating communications between a wireless MIMO base station and a plurality of wireless communication devices, comprising:

a data switching structure for routing data to and from a plurality of wireless devices in communication with the base station;

a wired network interface to connect to a wired network; and

a network processor programmed to;

generate a series of index numbers for controlling sub-slot assignments for the plurality of wireless devices, each of the index numbers having a corresponding sub-slot in a communication structure of unit size;

provide data representing the series of index numbers to each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; and

control simultaneous communication with the plurality of wireless communication devices by reassigning access by the plurality of wireless communication devices to a plurality of sub-slots in communication structure, wherein reassigning access comprises reassigning the plurality of wireless communication devices to different sub-slots from one successive time period to a next successive time period, wherein the different sub-slots are sub-slots corresponding to index numbers selected based on positions at which the index numbers occur within the series of index numbers.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the communication structure of unit size comprises a slot.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein reassigning access comprises reassigning access for each frame in a repeating frame structure that is defined in each successive time period.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein access by the plurality of clients is reassigned to the plurality of slots in the frame every N frames, wherein N comprises an integer number.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the series of index numbers comprises pseudo-randomly generated numbers.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein each slot comprises an uplink portion having a plurality of sub-slots, to carry information from the plurality of wireless clients to the MIMO base station, and a downlink portion having a plurality of sub-slots, to carry information from the MIMO base station to the plurality of wireless clients.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein the network processor is further programmed to provide, to a first wireless device, slot assignment information to be used by the first wireless device, with the index numbers, to select sub-slots in the communication structure.

22. A method of coordinating communications between a wireless MIMO base station and a plurality of wireless communication devices, comprising:

generating a series of index numbers for controlling sub-slot assignments for the plurality of wireless communication devices, the series of index numbers indicating a non-consecutive ordering of the index numbers;

providing data representing the series of index numbers to the MIMO base station and each of the plurality of wireless communication devices; and

controlling simultaneous communication between the plurality of wireless communication devices and the MIMO base station by reassigning access by the plurality of wireless communication devices to a plurality of sub-slots in a communication structure of unit size based on positions of the index numbers in the non-consecutive ordering of the index numbers, the series of index numbers being used in successive time periods to reassign the plurality of wireless communication devices to different sub-slots from one successive time period to a next successive time period.