Method and apparatus for allocating bandwidth of wireless network where both wide-band and narrow-band signals are transmitted, and method and apparatus for transmitting and receiving data on the network

• US 9,942,883 B2
• Filed: 11/13/2007
• Issued: 04/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kwon, Chang-Yeul
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsu, Alpus H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Houshmand, Hooman
• Application Number:
  US11/939,092
• Publication Number:
  US 20080112368A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,801 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 using beam steering
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/046 the resource being in the space domain, e.g. beams
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management

Abstract

Provided are a bandwidth-allocation method and apparatus for a wireless network based on a time division transmission mechanism, and a method and apparatus for transmitting and receiving data on the wireless network. The data transmission method includes at least one wireless device belonging to the wireless network transmitting a frame to a network coordinator, the frame including a transmission mode of data and used to request a time slot, receiving a beacon frame containing information about the transmission mode and a time slot duration from the network coordinator, and transmitting the data in the transmission mode to other wireless devices belonging to the wireless network during the duration of the time slot, wherein the transmission mode indicates whether the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal.

Claims

1. A bandwidth-allocation method for transmitting data in a wireless network, comprising:

receiving, by a network coordinator, an association request frame from a wireless device, wherein the association request frame includes;

a device address field indicating a hardware address of the wireless device;

a device information field indicating whether the wireless device supports a mode for transmitting and receiving wide-band signals or a mode for transmitting and receiving narrow-band signals, and

an association timeout field indicating a maximum time period during which association between the network coordinator and the wireless device can be maintained in a state where there is no communication between the network coordinator and the wireless device;

transmitting, by the network coordinator, an association response frame to the wireless device that indicates acceptance or rejection of the association request;

receiving, by the network coordinator, a first frame from the wireless device that belongs to the wireless network, wherein the first frame comprises a plurality of bandwidth request blocks, and each bandwidth request block comprises information indicating a transmission mode for transmitting the data from the wireless device to another wireless device that belongs to the wireless network and an identifier of the another wireless device, the transmission mode indicating whether the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and the first frame is used by the wireless device to request a time slot;

wherein a first bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the wide-band signal, and a second bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the narrow-band signal;

transmitting, by the network coordinator, a second frame comprising a bandwidth response frame in response to the first frame to the wireless device, wherein the bandwidth response frame includes;

a transmission mode field indicating whether the transmission mode is a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and

a value indicating acceptance or rejection of a bandwidth request; and

broadcasting, by the network coordinator, a beacon frame comprising information about the transmission mode and a time slot duration to the wireless network.

2. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 1, wherein each of the bandwidth request blocks and the beacon frame further comprise information on an antenna pattern indicating whether a signal for transmitting the data has directivity.

3. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 2, wherein if the transmission mode is a wide-band signal mode, the antenna pattern is a beam-forming pattern, and if the transmission mode is a narrow-band signal mode, the antenna pattern is an omni-directional pattern.

4. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 3, wherein the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal if the data is uncompressed audio/video (AV) data, and an antenna of the wireless device is driven by a beam-forming pattern when the data is transmitted.

5. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 1, wherein the wide-band signal has a wavelength in a millimeter range.

6. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 1, wherein the wide-band signal is transmitted in a channel having a channel bandwidth of 0.5-2.5 GHz.

7. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 1, wherein the first frame is transmitted by the wireless device during a contention period, and the second frame and beacon frame are transmitted during a contention-free period.

8. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 1, wherein the information indicating the transmission mode for transmitting the data from the wireless device is a request to transmit the data from the wireless device.

9. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 1, wherein the first frame further comprises a media access control frame of a time division multiple access system and the network coordinator comprises a piconet coordinator.

10. The bandwidth-allocation method of claim 1, wherein the wide-band signal is a millimeter wave signal, and the narrow-band signal is either a 2.4 GHz signal or a 5 GHz signal.

11. A bandwidth-allocation apparatus for transmitting data in a wireless network, comprising:

a receiving unit, of a network coordinator, that receives an association request frame from a wireless device, wherein the association request frame includes;

a device address field indicating a hardware address of the wireless device,

a device information field indicating whether the wireless device supports a mode for transmitting and receiving wide-band signals or a mode for transmitting and receiving narrow-band signals, and

an association timeout field indicating a maximum time period during which association between the network coordinator and the wireless device can be maintained in a state where there is no communication between the network coordinator and the wireless device;

a transmitting unit, of the network coordinator, that transmits an association response frame to the wireless device that indicates acceptance or rejection of the association request;

wherein the receiving unit also receives a first frame from a wireless device that belongs to the wireless network, wherein the first frame comprises a plurality of bandwidth request blocks, and each bandwidth request block comprises information indicating a transmission mode for transmitting data from the wireless device to another wireless device that belongs to the wireless network and an identifier of the another wireless device, the transmission mode indicating whether the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and the first frame is used by the wireless device to request a time slot;

wherein a first bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the wide-band signal, and a second bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the narrow-band signal;

wherein the transmitting unit, of the network coordinator, transmits a second frame comprising a bandwidth response frame in response to the first frame to the wireless device, wherein the bandwidth response frame includes;

a transmission mode field indicating whether the transmission mode is a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and

a value indicating acceptance or rejection of a bandwidth request; and

a broadcasting unit, of the network coordinator, that broadcasts a beacon frame comprising information about the transmission mode and a time slot duration to the wireless network.

12. The bandwidth-allocation apparatus of claim 11, wherein each of the bandwidth request blocks and the beacon frame further comprise information on an antenna pattern indicating whether a signal for transmitting the data has directivity.

13. The bandwidth-allocation apparatus of claim 12, wherein if the transmission mode is a wide-band signal mode, the antenna pattern is a beam-forming pattern, and if the transmission mode is a narrow-band signal mode, the antenna pattern is an omni-directional pattern.

14. The bandwidth-allocation apparatus of claim 13, wherein the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal if the data is uncompressed audio/video (AV) data, and an antenna of the wireless device is driven by a beam-forming pattern when the data is transmitted.

15. The bandwidth-allocation apparatus of claim 11, wherein the wide-band signal has a wavelength in a millimeter range.

16. The bandwidth-allocation apparatus of claim 11, wherein the wide-band signal is transmitted in a channel having a channel bandwidth of 0.5-2.5 GHz.

17. A method of transmitting data in a wireless network, comprising:

transmitting, by a wireless device, an association request frame to a network coordinator, wherein the association request frame includes;

a device address field indicating a hardware address of the wireless device,

a device information field indicating whether the wireless device supports a mode for transmitting and receiving wide-band signals or a mode for transmitting and receiving narrow-band signals, and

an association timeout field indicating a maximum time period during which association between the network coordinator and the wireless device can be maintained in a state where there is no communication between the network coordinator and the wireless device;

receiving, by the wireless device, an association response frame from the network coordinator that indicates acceptance or rejection of the association request;

transmitting, by the wireless device that belongs to the wireless network, a first frame to the network coordinator, wherein the first frame comprises a plurality of bandwidth request blocks, and each bandwidth request block comprises information indicating a transmission mode for transmitting the data from the wireless device to another wireless device that belongs to the wireless network and an identifier of the another wireless device, the transmission mode indicating whether the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and the first frame is used by the wireless device to request a time slot;

wherein a first bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the wide-band signal, and a second bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the narrow-band signal;

receiving, by the wireless device, a second frame comprising a bandwidth response frame in response to the first frame, wherein the bandwidth response frame includes;

a transmission mode field indicating whether the transmission mode is a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and

a value indicating acceptance or rejection of a bandwidth request; and

receiving, by the wireless device, a beacon frame comprising information about a time slot duration for transmitting the data in the transmission mode, from the network coordinator; and

transmitting, by the wireless device, the data in the transmission mode to other wireless devices that belong to the wireless network during the time slot duration.

18. A wireless device for wireless communication in a wireless network to which the wireless device belongs, comprising:

a transmitting unit that transmits an association request frame to a network coordinator, wherein the association request frame includes;

a device address field indicating a hardware address of the wireless device,

a device information field indicating whether the wireless device supports a mode for transmitting and receiving wide-band signals or a mode for transmitting and receiving narrow-band signals, and

an association timeout field indicating a maximum time period during which association between the network coordinator and the wireless device can be maintained in a state where there is no communication between the network coordinator and the wireless device;

a receiving unit that receives an association response frame from the network coordinator that indicates acceptance or rejection of the association request;

wherein the transmitting unit transmits a first frame to a network coordinator of the wireless network, wherein the first frame comprises a plurality of bandwidth request blocks, and each bandwidth request block comprises information indicating a transmission mode for transmitting data from the wireless device to another wireless device that belongs to the wireless network and an identifier of the another wireless device, the transmission mode indicating whether the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and the first frame is used by the wireless device to request a time slot;

wherein a first bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the wide-band signal, and a second bandwidth request block among the plurality of bandwidth request blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the narrow-band signal;

wherein the receiving unit also receives a second frame comprising a bandwidth response frame in response to the first frame, wherein the bandwidth response frame includes;

a transmission mode field indicating whether the transmission mode is a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and

a value indicating acceptance or rejection of a bandwidth request; and

wherein the receiving unit also receives a beacon frame comprising information about a time slot duration for transmitting the data in the transmission mode, from the network coordinator; and

a data transmitting unit that transmits the data in the transmission mode to other wireless devices that belong to the wireless network during the time slot duration.

19. A method of receiving data in a wireless network, comprising:

transmitting, by a wireless device, an association request frame to a network coordinator, wherein the association request frame includes;

a device address field indicating a hardware address of the wireless device,

a device information field indicating whether the wireless device supports a mode for transmitting and receiving wide-band signals or a mode for transmitting and receiving narrow-band signals, and

an association timeout field indicating a maximum time period during which association between the network coordinator and the wireless device can be maintained in a state where there is no communication between the network coordinator and the wireless device;

receiving, by the wireless device, an association response frame from the network coordinator that indicates acceptance or rejection of the association request;

transmitting, by the wireless device that belongs to the wireless network, a first frame comprising a bandwidth request frame to the network coordinator;

receiving, by the wireless device, a second frame comprising a bandwidth response frame in response to the first frame, wherein the bandwidth response frame includes;

a transmission mode field indicating whether the transmission mode is a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and

a value indicating acceptance or rejection of a bandwidth request; and

causing the wireless device that belongs to the wireless network to receive a beacon frame, from the network coordinator, comprising a plurality of scheduling blocks, and each scheduling block comprises information about a transmission mode for the data transmitted from another wireless device that belongs to the wireless network, an identifier of a wireless receiving device, and a time slot duration, wherein the transmission mode indicates whether the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal;

wherein a first scheduling block among the plurality of scheduling blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the wide-band signal, and a second scheduling block among the plurality of scheduling blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the narrow-band signal;

wherein if an identifier of the wireless device is identical with the identifier of the wireless receiving device, adjusting the wireless device to receive the data in the transmission mode; and

receiving the data from the other wireless device that belongs to the wireless network during the time slot duration.

20. A wireless device for wireless communication in a wireless network to which the wireless device belongs, comprising:

a transmitting unit that transmits an association request frame to a network coordinator, wherein the association request frame includes;

a device address field indicating a hardware address of the wireless device,

a device information field indicating whether the wireless device supports a mode for transmitting and receiving wide-band signals or a mode for transmitting and receiving narrow-band signals, and

an association timeout field indicating a maximum time period during which association between the network coordinator and the wireless device can be maintained in a state where there is no communication between the network coordinator and the wireless device;

a receiving unit that receives an association response frame from the network coordinator that indicates acceptance or rejection of the association request;

wherein the transmitting unit transmits a first frame comprising a bandwidth request frame to the network coordinator;

wherein the receiving unit receives a second frame comprising a bandwidth response frame in response to the first frame, wherein the bandwidth response frame includes;

a transmission mode field indicating whether the transmission mode is a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal, and

a value indicating acceptance or rejection of a bandwidth request; and

wherein the receiving unit receives a beacon frame, from the network coordinator, comprising a plurality of scheduling blocks, and each scheduling block comprises information about a transmission mode for data transmitted from another wireless device that belongs to the wireless network, an identifier of a wireless receiving device, and a time slot duration, wherein the transmission mode indicates whether the data is transmitted by a wide-band signal or a narrow-band signal;

wherein a first scheduling block among the plurality of scheduling blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the wide-band signal, and a second scheduling block among the plurality of scheduling blocks indicates that the data is transmitted by the narrow-band signal;

an adjusting unit that adjusts the wireless device to receive the data in the transmission mode if an identifier of the wireless device is identical with the identifier of the wireless receiving device; and

a data receiving unit that receives the data from the other wireless device that belongs to the wireless network during the time slot duration.