Medium access control in industrial and automotive wireless with combined wired and wireless sensor networks

• US 10,015,802 B2
• Filed: 07/18/2014
• Issued: 07/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Inventors: Matischek, Rainer, Dielacher, Markus, Flatscher, Martin, Prainsack, Josef
• Primary Examiner(s): Li, Guang W
• Application Number:
  US14/335,122
• Publication Number:
  US 20140328199A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,446 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/26 Resource reservation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/21 in the uplink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/542 using measured or perceived quality
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/04 Scheduled access hybrid access H04W74/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/10 Small scale networks; Flat hierarchical networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/22 with access to wired networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

An embodiment of the invention relates to a local area sensor network including a central unit configured to receive a resource allocation request from a priority network sensor in a reserved timeslot and in response to designate a shared timeslot allocation. The priority network sensor transmits a resource allocation request in a reserved timeslot, and the sensor transmits data in the allocated shared timeslot. A sensor network can be formed with multiple gateways that each communicate over wired and wireless portions of the network. The central unit communicates with the gateways over the wired portion of the network. Wireless nodes communicate wirelessly with the gateways. The central unit receives a plurality of link quality indicators from the gateways for respective wireless paths to the wireless sensors, and selects a gateway for relaying a message from the central unit to a wireless sensor based on the link quality indicators.

Claims

1. A sensor network, comprising:

a plurality of gateways configured to communicate over a wired portion and a wireless portion of the sensor network;

a non-priority wireless node configured to communicate with at least one gateway of the plurality of gateways; and

a central unit configured to communicate with the plurality of gateways over the wired portion of the sensor network, wherein the central unit is further configured to

receive a plurality of link quality indicators from the plurality of gateways for respective wireless paths from the non-priority wireless node to the plurality of gateways,

select a gateway of the plurality of gateways for relaying a message from the central unit to the non-priority wireless node,

receive a resource allocation request from a first priority wireless node, and

in response to receiving the resource allocation request, transmit, to the non-priority wireless node and the first priority wireless node, information indicating an allocation of a first timeslot, and

receive, from the non-priority wireless node, data in an unallocated timeslot different from the first timeslot.

2. The sensor network as claimed in claim 1, wherein the central unit is further configured to:

transmit a reservation bit map including the information indicating the allocation of the first timeslot; and

receive data in the first timeslot from the first priority wireless node.

3. The sensor network as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first priority wireless node comprises a first priority sensor unit.

4. The sensor network as claimed in claim 1, wherein the central unit is further configured to combine a plurality of messages received by the plurality of gateways from the non-priority wireless node to increase reliability of a wireless message from the non-priority wireless node.

5. The sensor network as claimed in claim 1, wherein the selected gateway relays the message from the central unit using a wireless time division multiple access communication mode.

6. The sensor network as claimed in claim 5, wherein the central unit establishes network synchronization for the wireless time division multiple access communication mode by broadcasting a beacon over the wired portion of the sensor network.

7. The sensor network as claimed in claim 5, wherein the selected gateway of the plurality of gateways relays the message with a selectively delayed wireless beacon.

8. The sensor network as claimed in claim 1, wherein the selected gateway of the plurality of gateways is configured to transmit the message to the non-priority wireless node in a wireless timeslot allocated by the central unit.

9. The sensor network as claimed in claim 1, wherein each gateway of the plurality of gateways is configured to measure a signal characteristic of a signal received from a wireless node to determine the respective link quality indicator for the respective wireless path.

10. The sensor network as claimed in claim 1, wherein the central unit combines a plurality of messages received by the plurality of gateways from the non-priority wireless node to increase reliability of a wireless message from the non-priority wireless node.

11. A method of operating a sensor network, the method comprising:

configuring a plurality of gateways to communicate over a wired portion and a wireless portion of the sensor network;

configuring a non-priority wireless node to communicate with at least one gate of the plurality of gateways;

configuring a central unit to communicate with the plurality of gateways over the wired portion of the sensor network;

receiving by the central unit a plurality of link quality indicators from the plurality of gateways for respective wireless paths from a wireless node to the plurality of gateways;

selecting a gateway of the plurality of gateways by the central unit for relaying a message from the central unit to the wireless node;

receiving, by the central unit, a resource allocation request from a first priority wireless node;

in response to receiving the resource allocation request, transmitting, by the central unit, to the non-priority wireless node and the first priority wireless node, information indicating an allocation of a first timeslot; and

receiving, by the central unit, data from the non-priority wireless node in an unallocated timeslot different from the first timeslot.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

transmitting, by the central unit, a reservation bit map including the information indicating the allocation of the first timeslot; and

receiving, by the central unit, data in the first timeslot from the first priority wireless node.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the first priority wireless node comprises a first priority sensor unit.

14. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising combining, by the central unit, a plurality of messages received by the plurality of gateways from the non-priority wireless node to increase reliability of a wireless message from the non-priority wireless node.

15. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the selected gateway relays the message from the central unit using a wireless time division multiple access communication mode.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising establishing, by the central unit, network synchronization for the wireless time division multiple access communication mode by broadcasting a beacon over the wired portion of the sensor network.

17. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the selected gateway of the plurality of gateways relays the message with a selectively delayed wireless beacon.

18. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the selected gateway of the plurality of gateways is configured to transmit the message to the non-priority wireless node in a wireless timeslot allocated by the central unit.

19. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein each gateway of the plurality of gateways is configured to measure a signal characteristic of a signal received from a wireless node to determine the respective link quality indicator for the respective wireless path.

20. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising combining, by the central unit, a plurality of messages received by the plurality of gateways from the non-priority wireless node to increase reliability of a wireless message from the non-priority wireless node.