Method of scheduling radio resource in wireless local area network

• US 9,414,400 B2
• Filed: 03/04/2013
• Issued: 08/09/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Liang, Zheng, Bin, Fanxiang, Wen, Haibo, Yao, Chunyan
• Primary Examiner(s): Chery, Dady
• Application Number:
  US14/376,792
• Publication Number:
  US 20150049686A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,254 Days
• Field of Search: 370/329, 370/328, 370/341, 370/348, 370/431
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/04 Wireless resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/12 Wireless traffic scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/121 for groups of terminals or users
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/006 in the downlink, i.e. towards the terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/08 Non-scheduled access, e.g. ALOHA hybrid access H04W74/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

The invention relates to a method, in an access point of a wireless local area network, of scheduling a radio resource, wherein at least one categorization rule is set in the wireless local area network, and at least one access group is set for a plurality of non-access-point stations served by the access point according to each of the at least one categorization rule, the method comprising the steps of: sending at least one categorization message to at least one of the plurality of stations, each categorization message comprising information about one of all the access groups which are set in the wireless local area network according to the at least one categorization rule; and sending a clear-to-send frame to the plurality of stations to indicate a radio resource allocated to an access group to be protected among all the access groups. The invention can distinctly resolve the contention for radio resource between the stations, effectively limit the number of concurrently contending stations and provide flexibility in access control of an access group.

Claims

1. A method of scheduling a radio resource in an access point of a wireless local area network, at least one categorization rule being set in the wireless local area network, and at least one access group being set for a plurality of non-access-point stations served by the access point according to each of the at least one categorization rule, the method comprising:

sending at least one categorization message to at least one of a plurality of stations, each categorization message including information about an access group from a plurality of access groups which are set in the wireless local area network according to the at least one categorization rule, and the information about the access group including first information, second information and third information, the first information indicating the categorization rule of the access group, the second information indicating an access group label of the access group, and the third information indicating a status code of the access group;

sending a clear-to-send frame to the plurality of stations to indicate the radio resource allocated to the access group be protected among the plurality of access groups and

changing at least one of the at least one categorization rule and the corresponding access group according to a network condition or a quality-of-service requirement of the access group to be protected.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

evaluating performance of one of the plurality of access groups; and

adjusting the status code of the access group according to a rule.

3. The method according to claim 2, further comprising:

receiving, before evaluating the performance of one of the plurality of access groups, a first request message from a station belonging to the access group, the first request message requesting the access point to adjust the access group.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the status code of the access group includes one of Join, Conditional Join, Stay, Conditional Leave and Leave.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

adjusting the radio resource allocated to the access group to be protected according to at least one of a change in network condition and a change in quality-of-service requirement of the access group to be protected.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

sending the at least one categorization message to the at least one of the plurality of stations in response to receiving a request for the categorization message from the at least one of the plurality of stations.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein a receiver address included in the clear-to-send frame indicates a group address of the access group to be protected.

8. A method of scheduling a radio resource in a non-access point station of a wireless local area network, the wireless local area network including a plurality of non-access-point stations and an access point serving the plurality of non-access-point stations, at least one categorization rule being set in the wireless local area network, and at least one access group being set for the plurality of non-access-point stations according to each of the at least one categorization rule, the method comprising:

receiving, at at least one of the plurality of stations, at least one categorization message from the access point, each categorization message including information about an access group from a plurality of access groups which are set in the wireless local area network according to the at least one categorization rule, and the information about the access group including first information, second information and third information, the first information indicating the categorization rule of the access group, the second information indicating an access group label of the access group, and the third information indicating a status code of the access group;

at least one of joining, not joining, staying in, and leaving the access group, by the at least one of the plurality of stations, according to the third information of the access group;

receiving, by the at least one of the plurality of stations, a clear-to-send frame from the access point; and

if an access group to be protected, as indicated in the clear-to-send frame, is the access group which the at least one of the plurality of stations currently has joined, contending for a radio resource in a period indicated in the clear-to-send frame, at least one of the at least one categorization rule and the corresponding access group being changed according to a network condition or a quality-of-service requirement of the access group to be protected.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

if the access group, to be protected, is different from the access group which the station currently has joined, maintaining a sleep mode in the period indicated in the clear-to-send frame.

10. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

adjusting the status code of any one of all the access groups according to a rule.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising:

sending a first request message to the access point to request the access point to adjust the access group.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein the status code of the access group comprises Join, Conditional Join, Stay, Conditional Leave and Leave.

13. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

sending, prior to receiving the at least one categorization message from the access point, a second request message to the access point to request the categorization message.