Mechanism to avoid interference and improve communication latency in mmWave WPANs

• US 9,105,969 B2
• Filed: 03/01/2012
• Issued: 08/11/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Kesselman, Alex, Bachrach, Yuval
• Primary Examiner(s): LY, ANH VU H
• Application Number:
  US13/409,122
• Publication Number:
  US 20120218976A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,258 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 3/26 varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elements; varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture H01Q3/12, H01Q3/22, H01Q3/24 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0682 using phase diversity (e.g. phase sweeping)
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/542 using measured or perceived quality

Abstract

Briefly, a mechanism to avoid interference and improve channel efficiency in mmWave Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs) is disclosed. In particular, interference information during various time periods is tracked and used to optimize transmission scheduling. Further, a mechanism is provided to improve communication latency by distributing responsibility for coordination of slots amongst multiple transmitting devices.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

generating, by a coordinator of a wireless personal area network (WPAN), a first transmission schedule of a plurality of transmission flows, the first transmission schedule comprising three or more transmission flows involving three or more devices of the WPAN in one channel time block, wherein one of the three or more transmission flows is designated as a primary flow and the others of the three or more transmission flows are designated as non-primary flows, a device with the transmission flow designated as the primary flow to have channel access control and to explicitly activate each non-primary flow, the first transmission schedule for a first super-frame, wherein each of the plurality of transmission flows comprises a transfer of data from a transmitting device of the WPAN to a receiving device of the WPAN;

wirelessly receiving, by the coordinator of the WPAN, an interference report from one or more devices of the WPAN; and

based at least on the interference report, generating, by the coordinator of the WPAN, a second transmission schedule of the plurality of transmission flows, the second transmission schedule for a second super-frame, the second super-frame subsequent to the first superframe;

wherein the first transmission schedule and the second transmission schedule order the plurality of transmission flows differently.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, by a coordinator of the WPAN, a bandwidth request for at least one of the one or more transmission flows.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first transmission schedule and the second transmission schedule comprise the same plurality of transmission flows.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises the scheduling, wherein scheduling comprises assigning, by the coordinator of the WPAN, a primary flow to a channel time block and a secondary flow to the channel time block.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report comprising interference information during periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is active and during periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is inactive.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report during the periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is active comprising signal to noise ratio information.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report during the periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is inactive comprising noise strength and power information.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report, the interference report being received by the coordinator of the WPAN during a pre-scheduled time slot in the first super-frame, the pre-scheduled time slot being separate from time slots in the first super-frame scheduled for transmission flows; and

wirelessly receiving the interference report comprises receiving, from each receiving device in the WPAN scheduled to receive during the first super-frame, an interference report during the pre-scheduled time slot.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein wirelessly receiving the interference report comprises receiving the interference report on a non-periodic basis;

wherein communication of the interference report is triggered by a substantial change in an interference level during a time slot of a super-frame or by signal quality degradation during a time slot of a super-frame.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein generating the schedules to order the plurality of transmission flows comprises generating the schedules to order directional wireless communications.

11. An apparatus of a coordinator of a wireless personal area network (WPAN), the apparatus comprising:

an antenna system;

a receiver to receive, by the coordinator of the WPAN, an interference report from one or more devices of the WPAN; and

a scheduler, the scheduler to

generate a first transmission schedule of a plurality of transmission flows, the first transmission schedule comprising three or more transmission flows involving three or more devices of the WPAN in one channel time block, wherein one of the three or more transmission flows is designated as a primary flow and the others of the three or more transmission flows are designated as non-primary flows, a device with the transmission flow designated as the primary flow to have channel access control and to explicitly activate each non-primary flow, the first transmission schedule for a first super-frame, wherein each of the plurality of transmission flows comprises a transfer of data from a transmitting device of the WPAN to a receiving device of the WPAN, and

generate, based at least on the interference report, of a second transmission schedule of the plurality of transmission flows, the second transmission schedule for a second super-frame, the second super-frame subsequent to the first super-frame;

wherein the first transmission schedule and the second transmission schedule order the plurality of transmission flows differently.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first transmission schedule and the second transmission schedule include the same plurality of transmission flows.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the interference report includes interference information during periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is active and during periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is inactive.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the interference information during the periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is active includes signal to noise ratio information.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the interference information during the periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is inactive includes noise strength and power information.

16. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the plurality of transmission flows includes a primary transmission flow and a secondary transmission flow;

and wherein the scheduler is to assign the primary transmission flow and the secondary transmission flow within a same channel time block of the second super-frame.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the primary transmission flow comprises TCP data and the secondary transmission flow comprises TCP ACKs.

18. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the plurality of the transmission flows comprise directional wireless transmissions.

19. An article comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the computer readable storage medium comprising instructions, which when executed by one or more processors, configure a computing system to perform operations comprising;

generating by a coordinator of a wireless personal area network (WPAN) a first transmission schedule of a plurality of transmission flows, the first transmission schedule comprising three or more transmission flows involving three or more devices of the WPAN in one channel time block, wherein one of the three or more transmission flows is designated as a primary flow and the others of the three or more transmission flows are designated as non-primary flows, a device with the transmission flow designated as the primary flow to have channel access control and to explicitly activate each non-primary flow, the first transmission schedule for a first super-frame, wherein each of the plurality of transmission flows comprises a transfer of data from a transmitting device of the WPAN to a receiving device of the WPAN;

wirelessly receiving by the coordinator of the WPAN an interference report from one or more devices of the WPAN; and

based at least on the interference report, generating by the coordinator of the WPAN a second transmission schedule of the plurality of transmission flows, the second transmission schedule for a second super-frame, the second super-frame subsequent to the first super-frame;

wherein the first transmission schedule and the second transmission schedule order the plurality of transmission flows differently.

20. The article of claim 19, further comprising receiving, by a coordinator of the WPAN, a bandwidth request for at least one of the one or more transmission flows.

21. The article of claim 19, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises the scheduling, wherein scheduling comprises assigning, by the coordinator of the WPAN, a primary flow to a channel time block and a secondary flow to the channel time block.

22. The article of claim 19, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report comprising interference information during periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is active and during periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is inactive.

23. The article of claim 22, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report during the periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is active comprising signal to noise ratio information.

24. The article of claim 22, wherein generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report during the periods of time when the one of the one or more devices of the WPAN is inactive comprising noise strength and power information.

25. The article of claim 19, wherein:

generating the second transmission schedule comprises generating the second transmission schedule based upon the interference report, the interference report being received by the coordinator of the WPAN during a pre-scheduled time slot in the first super-frame, the pre-scheduled time slot being separate from time slots in the first super-frame scheduled for transmission flows; and

wirelessly receiving the interference report comprises receiving, from each receiving device in the WPAN scheduled to receive during the first super-frame, an interference report during the pre-scheduled time slot.