Method and apparatus of operating channel request and responding to the operating channel request in a wireless local area network system

• US 9,474,058 B2
• Filed: 07/22/2013
• Issued: 10/18/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Eunsun, Seok, Yongho
• Primary Examiner(s): Liu, Jung-Jen
• Application Number:
  US13/947,277
• Publication Number:
  US 20130308577A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,184 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 Selecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/23 in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A method for operating channel request and responding to the operating channel request in a wireless local area network (WLAN) is disclosed. A method of operating channel request by a first station in a regulatory domain where an unlicensed device is permitted to operate at a given time in a given geographical area with regard to a licensed device in a wireless local area network (WLAN) comprises transmitting, to a second station, first frame including a first operating class field and a first channel number field, wherein the first operating class field indicates a number of an operating class of a first channel included in a first channel set for operating channel request and the first channel number field indicates a number of the first channel; and receiving, from the second station, second frame including a second operating class field and a second channel number field, wherein the second operating class field indicates a number of a operating class of a second channel included in a second channel set granted by the second station and the second channel number field indicates a number of the second channel.

Claims

1. A method for managing channels for operation in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the method comprising:

receiving, by a responding station from a requesting station, a request frame including first information indicating frequencies preferred by the requesting station;

transmitting, by the responding station to a server, the request frame;

receiving, by the responding station from the server, a response frame including second information indicating WLAN network channels confirmed by the server; and

transmitting, by the responding station to the requesting station, the response frame,

wherein the second information includes;

a second operating class field, and

a second channel number field,

wherein the second operating class field indicates a value of an operating class of a second channel included in a second channel set,

wherein the second channel number field indicates a value of the second channel,

wherein the second operating class field and the second channel number field together specify a second channel frequency, and

wherein a second channel bandwidth that the responding station has granted permission for use by the requesting station.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first information specifies a first channel frequency and a first channel bandwidth that the requesting station selected.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first information includes a first operating class field and a first channel number field.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein:

the first operating class field indicates a value of an operating class of a first channel included in a first channel set;

the first channel number field indicates a value of the first channel; and

the first operating class field and the first channel number field together specify the first channel frequency and the first channel bandwidth.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein a White Space Map (WSM) is provided by the responding station to the requesting station.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the requesting station transmits the request frame whenever the WSM has been changed.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the WLAN network channels that the server confirms are a same channels specified by the request frame or a subset of the channels specified by the request frame.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the responding frame includes a maximum transmit power field.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the request frame and the response frame are transmitted using a Registered Location Query Protocol (RLQP).

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the requesting station is controlled by the operation of a geo-location database in a TV whitespace.

11. An apparatus for managing channels for operation in a wireless local area network (WLAN), the apparatus comprising:

a transceiver; and

a processor configured to;

receive, using the transceiver from a requesting station, a request frame including first information indicating frequencies preferred by the requesting station;

transmit, using the transceiver to a server, the request frame;

receive, using the transceiver from the server, a response frame including second information indicating WLAN network channels confirmed by the server; and

transmit, using the transceiver, to the requesting station, the response frame,

wherein the second information includes;

a second operating class field, and

a second channel number field,

wherein the second operating class field indicates a value of an operating class of a second channel included in a second channel set,

wherein the second channel number field indicates a value of the second channel,

wherein the second operating class field and the second channel number field together specify a second channel frequency, and

wherein a second channel bandwidth that the responding station has granted permission for use by the requesting station.