Cognitive multi-user OFDMA

• US 9,774,415 B2
• Filed: 03/12/2015
• Issued: 09/26/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Hassan, Amer A., Huitema, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Warner
• Application Number:
  US14/656,694
• Publication Number:
  US 20150188651A1
• Time in Patent Office: 929 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 1/12 Arrangements for reducing cross-talk between channels in line transmission systems H04B3/32; in cables or lines H04B3/26 - H04B3/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 1/16 Monitoring arrangements for transmission in general H04B17/00; for amplifiers H03F1/52, H03F1/523
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/003 at the transmitter transmission to multiple receive units in multiple input multiple output [MIMO] H04B7/0452; transmit antenna weighting H04B7/0615
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/0066 of narrowband interference narrowband interference reduction H04B1/1036
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/0006 Assessment of spectral gaps suitable for allocating digitally modulated signals, e.g. for carrier allocation in cognitive radio for spectrum sharing between different networks H04W16/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/16 Frequency regulation arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2627 Modulators
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0007 the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM(A), DMT
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0016 Time-frequency-code
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0032 Distributed allocation, i.e. involving a plurality of allocating devices, each making partial allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0037 Inter-user or inter-terminal allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0039 Frequency-contiguous, i.e. with no allocation of frequencies for one user or terminal between the frequencies allocated to another
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0058 Allocation criteria
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0064 Rate requirement of the data, e.g. scalable bandwidth, data priority
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0073 Allocation arrangements that take into account other cell interferences for intercell interference mitigation or co-ordination in orthogonal multiplex systems H04J11/005
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/023 Multiplexing of multicarrier modulation signals multicarrier modulation H04L27/2601
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/10 Dynamic resource partitioning

Abstract

A computing device operating according to a frequency division multiplexed protocol in which communication occurs over a signal formed from a plurality of sub-channels selected from anywhere in a frequency spectrum. A computing device may select sub-channels cognitively by using information about sub-channels previously deemed suitable or unsuitable by that computing device or other computing devices. A described technique for determining sub-channel suitability includes analyzing radio frequency energy in the sub-channel to detect signals generated by another computing device or high noise levels. Information may also be used to cognitively select sub-channels to be analyzed, such as by first selecting for analysis previously-used sub-channels.

Claims

1. A system comprising a computing device that includes at least one processor and at least one program module that are together configured for performing actions comprising;

determining, by the computing device, a number of sub-channels of a plurality of sub-channels within a particular frequency spectrum that is divided into multiple channels that are each further divided into sub-channels of the plurality of sub-channels, where the determined number of sub-channels are sufficient for transmitting data at a desired data rate;

selecting, by the computing device until the determined number of sub-channels is selected without regard to whether the selected sub-channels are contiguous or non-contiguous, ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum, where the selecting avoids any of the plurality of sub-channels that are deemed unsuitable for communication;

first transmitting, by the computing device to a second device via a control frequency and a particular protocol, a notification message that identifies the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum; and

second transmitting, by the computing device in response to the notification message being transmitted and without requiring any response to the transmitted notification message, the data to the second device via the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum.

2. The system of claim 1 where a sub-channel is deemed unsuitable by determining that the sub-channel is being used by another device.

3. The system of claim 1 where a sub-channel is deemed unsuitable by determining that the sub-channel is being subjected to at least a threshold amount of electronic interference.

4. The system of claim 3 where the determining that the sub-channel is being subjected to at least a threshold amount of electronic interference is based on monitoring the sub-channel.

5. The system of claim 1, the actions further comprising reporting a data rate supported by the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels.

6. The system of claim 1 where the transmitted notification message serves to reserve for use the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels.

7. A method performed by a computing device according to computer-executable instructions, the computing device of a plurality of computing devices, the computing device comprising at least one processor and memory, the method comprising:

determining, by the computing device, a number of sub-channels of a plurality of sub-channels within a particular frequency spectrum that is divided into multiple channels that are each further divided into sub-channels of the plurality of sub-channels, where the determined number of sub-channels are sufficient for transmitting data at a desired data rate;

selecting, by the computing device until the determined number of sub-channels is selected without regard to whether the selected sub-channels are contiguous or non-contiguous, ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum, where the selecting avoids any of the plurality of sub-channels that are deemed unsuitable for communication;

first transmitting, by the computing device to a second device via a control frequency and a particular protocol, a notification message that identifies the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum; and

second transmitting, by the computing device in response to the notification message being transmitted and without requiring any response to the transmitted notification message, the data to the second device via the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum.

8. The method of claim 7 where a sub-channel is deemed unsuitable by determining that the sub-channel is being used by another device.

9. The method of claim 7 where a sub-channel is deemed unsuitable by determining that the sub-channel is being subjected to at least a threshold amount of electronic interference.

10. The method of claim 9 where the determining that the sub-channel is being subjected to at least a threshold amount of electronic interference is based on monitoring the sub-channel.

11. The method of claim 7 further comprising reporting a data rate supported by the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels.

12. The method of claim 7 where the transmitted notification message serves to reserve for use the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels.

13. At least one hardware computer-readable medium comprising:

a computer memory, the at least one computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor of a computing device of a plurality of computing devices, cause the computing device to perform actions comprising;

determining, by the computing device, a number of sub-channels of a plurality of sub-channels within a particular frequency spectrum that is divided into multiple channels that are each further divided into sub-channels of the plurality of sub-channels, where the determined number of sub-channels are sufficient for transmitting data at a desired data rate;

selecting, by the computing device until the determined number of sub-channels is selected without regard to whether the selected sub-channels are contiguous or non-contiguous, ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum, where the selecting avoids any of the plurality of sub-channels that are deemed unsuitable for communication;

first transmitting, by the computing device to a second device via a control frequency and a particular protocol, a notification message that identifies the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum; and

second transmitting, by the computing device in response to the notification message being transmitted and without requiring any response to the transmitted notification message, the data to the second device via the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels within the particular frequency spectrum.

14. The at least one hardware computer-readable medium of claim 13 where a sub-channel is deemed unsuitable by determining that the sub-channel is being used by another device.

15. The at least one hardware computer-readable medium of claim 13 where a sub-channel is deemed unsuitable by determining that the sub-channel is being subjected to at least a threshold amount of electronic interference.

16. The at least one hardware computer-readable medium of claim 15 where the determining that the sub-channel is being subjected to at least a threshold amount of electronic interference is based on monitoring the sub-channel.

17. The at least one hardware computer-readable medium of claim 13, the actions further comprising reporting a data rate supported by the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels.

18. The at least one hardware computer-readable medium of claim 13 where the transmitted notification message serves to reserve for use the selected ones of the plurality of sub-channels.