Fragmenting large packets in the presence of high priority packets

• US 8,619,731 B2
• Filed: 01/14/2008
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Montemurro, Michael, Durand, Roger
• Primary Examiner(s): Jaroenchonwanit, Bunjob
• Application Number:
  US12/013,682
• Publication Number:
  US 20080170553A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,178 Days
• Field of Search: 370/338, 370/326, 709/236
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/24 Traffic characterised by specific attributes, e.g. priority or QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/065 using assembly or disassembly of packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/569 of the traffic information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

In the presence of high priority traffic received at a mobile station over a wireless medium or to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium, a fragmentation threshold in a wireless local area network (WLAN) medium access control (MAC) layer of the mobile station is adjusted according to a highest priority of the traffic. Packets received by the WLAN MAC layer are fragmented into packets each of which is no larger than the fragmentation threshold.

Claims

1. A method for controlling transmission of wireless local area network (WLAN) traffic from a mobile station over a wireless medium, the method comprising:

monitoring a stream control application in the mobile station to determine whether any WLAN voice stream session is set up and to determine whether any WLAN video stream session is set up;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that at least one WLAN voice stream session is set up, setting a fragmentation threshold in a WLAN medium access control (MAC) layer of the mobile station to a first value slightly larger than an expected packet size for WLAN voice traffic;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN voice stream sessions are set up and that at least one WLAN video stream session is set up, setting the fragmentation threshold to a second value slightly larger than an expected packet size for WLAN video traffic;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN voice stream sessions are set up and that no WLAN video stream sessions are set up, setting the fragmentation threshold to a third value that is larger than the first value and larger than the second value; and

fragmenting packets received by the WLAN MAC layer that are larger than the fragmentation threshold into packets each of which is no larger than the fragmentation threshold, wherein the packets received by the WLAN MAC layer include best effort packets or background packets or both.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that at least one WLAN voice stream session is set up comprises:

identifying that an admission control request for WLAN voice traffic is to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium to an access point.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that at least one WLAN video stream session is set up comprises:

identifying that an admission control request for WLAN video traffic is to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium to an access point.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN voice stream sessions are set up comprises:

identifying that a traffic specification for WLAN voice traffic has either expired or been explicitly terminated by an access point.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN video stream sessions are set up comprises:

identifying that a traffic specification for WLAN video traffic has either expired or been explicitly terminated by an access point.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

extracting the expected packet size for WLAN voice traffic from a traffic specification in an admission control request for WLAN voice traffic that is to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium to an access point.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

extracting the expected packet size for WLAN video traffic from a traffic specification in an admission control request for WLAN video traffic that is to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium to an access point.

8. A method for controlling transmission of wireless local area network (WLAN) traffic from a mobile station over a wireless medium, the method comprising:

dynamically adjusting a fragmentation threshold of a WLAN medium access control (MAC) layer of the mobile station; and

fragmenting packets received by the WLAN MAC layer that are larger than the fragmentation threshold into packets each of which is no larger than the fragmentation threshold, wherein the packets received by the WLAN MAC layer include best effort packets or background packets or both,

wherein dynamically adjusting the fragmentation threshold comprises;

while a single streaming application on the mobile station is receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium or both, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that corresponds to a priority assigned by the streaming application to the data packets generated by the single streaming application;

while two or more streaming applications on the mobile station are receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium or both, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that corresponds to whichever of the priorities assigned by the two or more streaming applications to the data packets generated by the two or more streaming applications is highest; and

while no streaming application on the mobile station is receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that is very large in comparison to the size of the data packets generating by any of the streaming applications on the mobile station.

9. A mobile station comprising:

a wireless local area network (WLAN) interface comprising a medium access control (MAC) layer, through which the mobile station is able to receive and to transmit over a wireless medium, wherein the WLAN MAC layer is operable to fragment packets received thereby that are larger than a fragmentation threshold into packets each of which is no larger than the fragmentation threshold;

a processor coupled to the WLAN interface; and

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory able to store a stream control application and a stream control monitor which, when executed by the processor;

provides the fragmentation threshold to the WLAN MAC layer;

monitors the stream control application to determine whether any WLAN voice stream session is set up and to determine whether any WLAN video stream session is set up;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that at least one WLAN voice stream session is set up, sets the fragmentation threshold to a first value slightly larger than an expected packet size for WLAN voice traffic;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN voice stream sessions are set up and that at least one WLAN video stream session is set up, sets the fragmentation threshold to a second value slightly larger than an expected packet size for WLAN video traffic; and

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN voice stream sessions are set up and that no WLAN video stream sessions are set up, sets the fragmentation threshold to a third value that is larger than the first value and larger than the second value.

10. A mobile station comprising:

a wireless local area network (WLAN) interface comprising a medium access control (MAC) layer, through which the mobile station is able to receive and to transmit over a wireless medium, wherein the WLAN MAC layer is operable to fragment packets received thereby that are larger than a fragmentation threshold into packets each of which is no larger than the fragmentation threshold;

a processor coupled to the WLAN interface; and

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory able to store streaming applications, a stream control application and a stream control monitor which, when executed by the processor, dynamically adjusts the fragmentation threshold and provides the dynamically adjusted fragmentation threshold to the WLAN MAC layer,

wherein dynamically adjusting the fragmentation threshold comprises;

while a single streaming application on the mobile station is receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium or both, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that corresponds to a priority assigned by the streaming application to the data packets generated by the single streaming application;

while two or more streaming applications on the mobile station are receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium or both, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that corresponds to whichever of the priorities assigned by the two or more streaming applications to the data packets generated by the two or more streaming applications is highest; and

while no streaming application on the mobile station is receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that is very large in comparison to the size of the data packets generating by any of the streaming applications on the mobile station.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions which, when executed by a processor of a mobile station, result in:

monitoring a stream control application in the mobile station to determine whether any wireless local area network (WLAN) voice stream session is set up and to determine whether any WLAN video stream session is set up;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that at least one WLAN voice stream session is set up, setting a fragmentation threshold in a WLAN medium access control (MAC) layer of the mobile station to a first value slightly larger than an expected packet size for WLAN voice traffic;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN voice stream sessions are set up and that at least one WLAN video stream session is set up, setting the fragmentation threshold to a second value slightly larger than an expected packet size for WLAN video traffic;

responsive to determining from the monitoring of the stream control application that no WLAN voice stream sessions are set up and that no WLAN video stream sessions are set up, setting the fragmentation threshold to a third value that is larger than the first value and larger than the second value; and

fragmenting packets received by the WLAN MAC layer that are larger than the fragmentation threshold into packets each of which is no larger than the fragmentation threshold, wherein the packets received by the WLAN MAC layer include best effort packets or background packets or both.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions which, when executed by a processor of a mobile station, result in:

dynamically adjusting a fragmentation threshold of a WLAN medium access control (MAC) layer of the mobile station; and

fragmenting packets received by the WLAN MAC layer that are larger than the fragmentation threshold into packets each of which is no larger than the fragmentation threshold, wherein the packets received by the WLAN MAC layer include best effort packets or background packets or both,

wherein dynamically adjusting the fragmentation threshold comprises;

while a single streaming application on the mobile station is receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium or both, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that corresponds to a priority assigned by the streaming application to the data packets generated by the single streaming application;

while two or more streaming applications on the mobile station are receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium or both, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that corresponds to whichever of the priorities assigned by the two or more streaming applications to the data packets generated by the two or more streaming applications is highest; and

while no streaming application on the mobile station is receiving data packets over the wireless medium or generating data packets to be transmitted by the mobile station over the wireless medium, using for the fragmentation threshold a value that is very large in comparison to the size of the data packets generating by any of the streaming applications on the mobile station.