Cooperative Wireless Networks

• US 20090310586A1
• Filed: 08/21/2009
• Published: 12/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Genghiscomm Holdings, LLC
• Original Assignee: Genghiscomm Holdings, LLC
• Inventors: Shatti, Steve
• Granted Patent: US 8,750,264 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/0003 Software-defined radio [SDR] systems, i.e. systems wherein components typically implemented in hardware, e.g. filters or modulators/demodulators, are implented using software, e.g. by involving an AD or DA conversion stage such that at least part of the signal processing is performed in the digital domain digital baseband systems H04L25/00; digital modulation/demodulation H04L27/00; CDMA H04B1/707; TDMA H04B7/2643; image transmission H04N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/024 Co-operative use of antennas of several sites, e.g. in co-ordinated multipoint or co-operative multiple-input multiple-output [MIMO] systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/026 Co-operative diversity, e.g. using fixed or mobile stations as relays
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0452 Multi-user MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0456 Selection of precoding matrices or codebooks, e.g. using matrices antenna weighting
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0697 using spatial multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 13/0003 Code application, i.e. aspects relating to how codes are applied to form multiplexed channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 13/004 Orthogonal
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 13/12 Generation of orthogonal codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/01 Equalisers baseband equalizers at the transmitter end H04L25/03343; in analogue transmission systems H04B3/04, H04B7/005
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/148 using filters, including PLL-type filters
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2601 Multicarrier modulation systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2602 Signal structure
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2614 Peak power aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2636 with FFT or DFT modulators, e.g. standard single-carrier frequency-division multiple access [SC-FDMA] transmitter or DFT spread orthogonal frequency division multiplexing [DFT-SOFDM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2646 using feedback from receiver for adjusting OFDM transmission parameters, e.g. transmission timing or guard interval length
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/2647 Arrangements specific to the receiver only equalisation H04L27/01
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/24 Multipath
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0007 the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM(A), DMT
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0021 : in which codes are applied as a frequency-domain sequences, e.g. MC-CDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0023 : Time-frequency-space
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0035 : Resource allocation in a cooperative multipoint environment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0037 : Inter-user or inter-terminal allocation
• 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: H04W 72/046 : the resource being in the space domain, e.g. beams
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 : Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

A wireless local area network (WLAN) communicatively couples together a group of mobile wireless terminals configured to operate in a wireless wide area network (WWAN). A network-management operator processes WWAN-control messages used by the mobile wireless terminals and the WWAN. One or more of the mobile wireless terminals may function as the network-management operator.

Claims

1. A communication method, comprising:

employing a WLAN for sharing WWAN control information between a group of mobile wireless terminals;

coordinating communication of the WWAN control information between the group and the WWAN; and

cooperatively processing the WWAN control information in the group.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the mobile wireless terminals functions as both a WLAN controller and a WWAN network-management operator.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the mobile wireless terminals functions as a WWAN network-management operator for at least one other wireless terminal

4. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the mobile wireless terminals functions as its own WWAN network-management operator and employs the group for at least one of transmitting and receiving WWAN control information.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting at least one of the mobile wireless terminals to communicate WWAN control information with the WWAN based on its WWAN communication channel quality.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein cooperatively processing comprises employing a load-balancing algorithm for assigning processing tasks to the mobile wireless terminals.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein cooperatively processing comprises participating in at least one of a set of WWAN-control operations, the set comprising:

power control, data-rate control, session control, user authentication, key exchange, paging, control-channel monitoring, traffic-channel request, channel assignment, error detection, acknowledgement, request for retransmission, identification, reconnects, synchronization, flow control, request for service from a particular sector or access point, and hand-off.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising distributing at least one of a set of operations between the mobile wireless terminals, the set comprising:

Application Layer operations, Presentation Layer operations, Session Layer operations, Transport Layer operations, Network Layer operations, Data Link layer operations, and Physical Layer operations.

9. A computer-readable storage medium encoded with a computer program configured to perform the method recited in claim 1.

10. A mobile wireless terminal, comprising:

a wireless wide area network (WWAN) interface for communicatively coupling to a WWAN;

a wireless local area network (WLAN) interface for communicatively coupling to at least one other mobile wireless terminal; and

a cooperative WWAN network-management operator configured for at least one of;

processing WWAN control messages received by the at least one other mobile wireless terminal; and

processing WWAN control messages to be transmitted by the at least one other mobile wireless terminal.

11. The mobile wireless terminal of claim 10, wherein the cooperative WWAN network-management operator is configured for communicatively coupling its own WWAN control messages to the at least one other mobile wireless terminal for transmission into the WWAN.

12. The mobile wireless terminal of claim 10, wherein the cooperative WWAN network-management operator is configured for processing its own WWAN control messages received by the at least one other mobile wireless terminal.

13. The mobile wireless terminal of claim 10, wherein the cooperative WWAN network-management operator is configured for selecting the at least one other mobile wireless terminal.

14. A communication system, comprising:

a wireless local area network (WLAN) controller configured for communicatively coupling together a plurality of mobile wireless terminals, each of the mobile wireless terminals communicatively coupled to a wireless wide area network (WWAN); and

a network-management operator for cooperatively processing WWAN-control messages for the mobile wireless terminals.

15. The communication system of claim 14, wherein the network-management operator includes at least one of the mobile wireless terminals.

16. The communication system of claim 14, wherein responsibilities of the network-management operator are transferred between the plurality of mobile wireless terminals.

17. The communication system of claim 14, wherein the network-management operator is configured to communicate WWAN-control parameters in the WWAN on behalf of at least one of the mobile wireless terminals.

18. The communication system of claim 14, wherein the network-management operator comprises at least one of the mobile wireless terminals selected from the plurality of mobile wireless terminals based on at least one of WWAN channel quality and a load-balancing algorithm.

19. The communication system of claim 14, wherein the network-management operator comprises a combiner for combining WWAN signals received by the mobile wireless terminals.

20. The communication system of claim 14, wherein the network-management operator is configured to perform at least one of a set of WWAN-control operations, the set comprising:

selecting one or more base stations to serve the mobile wireless terminals;

directing hand offs between at least one of WWAN sectors, WWAN base stations, and different WWAN networks; and

interleaving communications across multiple WWAN channels.