Invoking network-based transcoding in response to threshold low battery power

• US 9,215,653 B1
• Filed: 09/20/2013
• Issued: 12/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Ray, Amar Nath
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Nimesh
• Application Number:
  US14/032,349
• Time in Patent Office: 816 Days
• Field of Search: 455/456.1, 455/411, 455/414.1, 726/4, 726/14, 726/17, 726/22, 713/152, 713/164, 713/166, 713/182
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0206 in access points, e.g. base stations access point devices per se H04W88/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0277 according to available power supply, e.g. switching off when a low battery condition is detected
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/028 switching on or off only a part of the equipment circuit blocks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Methods and systems are provided for conserving battery charge of a wireless communication device (WCD). A radio access network (RAN) and a WCD communicate with data encoded based on one of two codecs. By default, the RAN and the WCD communicate based on a first codec of the two codecs. Communication based on the first codec provides a high-quality audio signal between the RAN and WCD but uses more battery charge. When the battery charge decreases, the WCD can communicate a low-battery indicator to the RAN. Upon receiving the low-battery indicator, the RAN enables a transcoder configured to convert the data encoded based on the first codec into data encoded based on the second codec. After transcoding, RAN and the WCD communicate with based on the second codec. Communication based on the second codec provides a lower-quality audio signal between the RAN and WCD but uses less battery charge.

Claims

1. A method carried out by a wireless base station (BS) during an ongoing communication session, comprising:

receiving into the BS a transport network signal from a transport network;

encoding by the BS the transport network signal using a first codec to produce audio data encoded with the first codec, wherein encoding the transport network signal to produce audio data encoded with the first codec has an associated first delay time;

transmitting from the BS over an air interface to a wireless communication device (WCD) a communication signal comprising audio data encoded with the first codec, wherein the communication signal has a first radio frequency (RF) bandwidth and a first transmission delay at least as long as the first delay time;

receiving a low-charge indication from the WCD; and

in response to receiving the low-charge indication from the WCD, (i) transcoding by the BS audio data encoded with the first codec to produce audio data encoded with a second codec instead of the first codec, wherein transcoding data encoded with the first codec to have a second encoding has an associated second delay time, and (ii) switching by the BS from transmitting to the WCD audio data encoded with the first codec to transmitting to the WCD audio data encoded with the second codec, wherein the communication signal transmitting audio data encoded with the second codec has a second RF bandwidth that is less than the first RF bandwidth, and wherein the communication signal transmitting audio data encoded with the second codec has a second transmission delay at least as long as a total of the first delay time and the second time.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a first data rate of the communication signal comprising audio data encoded with the first codec is greater than a second data rate of the communication signal comprising audio data encoded with the second codec.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first codec is an Enhanced Variable Rate Codec and the second codec is a G.722 codec.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting to the WCD the audio data encoded with a first codec is in response to a Quality of Service (QOS) requirement for an application executed by the WCD exceeding a QOS threshold.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the BS determines the QOS requirement.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the BS receives an indication of the QOS requirement from the WCD.

7. A method carried out by a wireless base station (BS) during an ongoing communication session, comprising:

receiving a transport network signal from a transport network;

encoding the transport network signal based on a first codec, wherein encoding the transport network signal based on the first codec has an associated first delay time;

the BS transmitting over an air interface to a wireless communication device (WCD) a communication signal comprising audio data encoded with the first codec, wherein the communication signal has a first radio frequency (RF) bandwidth and a first transmission delay at least as long as the first delay time;

receiving a low-charge indication from the WCD; and

in response to receiving the low-charge indication from the WCD,

(i) transcoding by the BS audio data encoded with the first codec to produce audio data encoded with a second codec instead of the first codec, wherein transcoding data encoded with the first codec to have a second encoding has an associated second delay time, and

(ii) switching by the BS from transmitting to the WCD audio data encoded with the first codec to transmitting to the WCD audio data encoded with the second codec, wherein the communication signal transmitting audio data encoded with the second codec has a second RF bandwidth that is less than the first RF bandwidth, and wherein the communication signal transmitting audio data encoded with the second codec has a second transmission delay at least as long as a total of the first delay time and the second time.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein a first data rate of the communication signal comprising data encoded with the first codec is greater than a second data rate of the communication signal comprising data encoded with the second codec.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein transmitting to the WCD data encoded with a first codec is in response to a Quality of Service (QOS) requirement for an application executed by the WCD exceeding a QOS threshold, the BS providing the first communication signal to the WCD.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the BS provides the communication signal comprising data encoded with the first codec to the WCD regardless of the receiving the low-charge indication from the WCD.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the BS receives an indication of the QOS requirement from the WCD.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the BS calculates the QOS requirement.

13. A wireless base station (BS), comprising:

a wireless-communication interface configured to communicate with WCD;

a processor; and

data storage containing instructions executable by the processor for carrying out functions during an ongoing communication session, the functions including;

a) receiving into the BS a transport network signal from a transport network;

b) encoding by the BS the transport network signal using a first codec to produce audio data encoded with the first codec, wherein encoding the transport network signal to produce audio data encoded with the first codec has an associated first delay time;

c) transmitting to the WCD with the wireless-communication interface a communication signal comprising audio data encoded with the first codec, wherein the communication signal has a first radio frequency (RF) bandwidth and a first transmission delay at least as long as the first delay time;

d) in response to the wireless-communication interface receiving a low-charge indication from the WCD,

(i) transcoding audio data encoded with the first codec to produce audio data encoded with a second codec instead of the first codec, wherein transcoding data encoded with the first codec to have a second encoding has an associated second delay time, and

(ii) switching the wireless-communication interface from transmitting to the WCD audio data encoded with a first codec to transmitting to the WCD audio data encoded with the second codec, wherein the communication signal transmitting audio data encoded with the second codec has a second RF bandwidth that is less than the first RF bandwidth, and wherein the communication signal transmitting audio data encoded with the second codec has a second transmission delay at least as long as a total of the first delay time and the second time.

14. The wireless base station of claim 13, wherein a first data rate of the communication signal comprising audio data encoded with the first codec is greater than a second data rate of the communication signal comprising audio data encoded with the second codec.

15. The wireless base station of claim 13, wherein the first codec is an Enhanced Variable Rate Codec and the second codec is a G.722 codec.

16. The wireless base station of claim 13, wherein transmitting to the WCD audio data encoded with a first codec is in response to a Quality of Service (QOS) requirement for an application executed by the WCD exceeding a QOS threshold.

17. The wireless base station of claim 16, wherein the BS determines the QOS requirement.

18. The wireless base station of claim 16, wherein the BS receives an indication of the QOS requirement from the WCD.