Method and apparatus for scheduling transmissions in spatial division multiple access network systems

• US 8,923,215 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2010
• Issued: 12/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Vermani, Sameer, Sridhara, Vinay, Abraham, Santosh P., Aggarwal, Alok
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Phuongchau Ba
• Application Number:
  US12/712,974
• Publication Number:
  US 20100220601A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,769 Days
• Field of Search: 370/329, 370/312, 370/319, 375/267, 375/299, 375/219
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0025 Transmission of mode-switching indication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/04 Error control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/046 the resource being in the space domain, e.g. beams

Abstract

An apparatus for communications including a processing system configured to generate a plurality of spatial streams for communicating with a plurality of nodes, the processing system being further capable of determining an allocation of the spatial streams to each of the nodes based on at least one metric for each of the nodes.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a processing system configured to;

generate a plurality of spatial streams for communicating with a plurality of access terminals; and

determine an allocation of the plurality of spatial streams to the plurality of access terminals based on at least one metric for each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals, wherein determining the allocation comprises determining a first number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a first access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on a first antenna configuration of the first access terminal, wherein the processing system is further configured to split a high data rate signal for the first access terminal into a second number of lower data rate streams, wherein the second number is equal to the first number, and wherein the lower data rate streams are allocated to the first access terminal.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to determine a first subset of the plurality of access terminals that communicate via beam forming and a second subset of the plurality of access terminals that are configurable to communicate via spatial division multiplexing.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the processing system is further configured to determine timing for communicating with the second subset based on a number of antennas on each access terminal of the second subset.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the processing system is further configured to determine timing for communicating with the second subset based on a number of antennas supportable by the processing system.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein determining the allocation further comprises determining an allocation of spatial streams of the plurality of spatial streams for each access terminal of other access terminals of the plurality of access terminals based on one or more antenna configurations of the other access terminals of the plurality of access terminals.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to determine a particular number of spatial streams to be transmitted to each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on a third number of antennas supportable by the processing system, wherein the processing system is a base station, and wherein the first access terminal is a mobile terminal.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to the first access terminal is further based on a quality of a channel between the first access terminal and an access point associated with the processing system.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first antenna configuration indicates a number of antennas at the first access terminal.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein determining the allocation further comprises determining a third number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a second access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on a second antenna configuration of the second access terminal.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is a transmitting node for downlink communications and the plurality of access terminals are receiving nodes for downlink communications.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system is a receiving node for uplink communications and the plurality of access terminals are transmitting nodes for uplink communications.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing system supports multiple input multiple output technology.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each stream of the plurality of lower data rate streams has a different spatial signature.

14. An apparatus comprising:

means for generating a plurality of spatial streams for communicating with a plurality of access terminals;

means for determining an allocation of the plurality of spatial streams to the plurality of access terminals based on at least one metric for each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals, wherein the means for determining the allocation comprises means for determining a first number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a first access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on an antenna configuration of the first access terminal; and

means for splitting a high data rate signal for the first access terminal into a second number of lower data rate streams, wherein the second number is equal to the first number, and wherein the lower data rate streams are allocated to the first access terminal.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

means for determining a first subset of the plurality of access terminals that communicate via beam forming; and

means for determining a second subset of the plurality of access terminals that are configurable to communicate via spatial division multiplexing.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the means for determining the allocation further comprises means for determining an allocation of spatial streams of the plurality of spatial streams for a second access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on a second antenna configuration of the second access terminal.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising means for determining a number of spatial streams of the plurality of spatial streams to be transmitted to each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on a number of antennas that are supportable by the means for generating the plurality of spatial streams.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the means for generating is a transmitting node for downlink communications and the plurality of access terminals are receiving nodes for downlink communications.

19. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the means for generating is a receiving node for uplink communications and the plurality of access terminals are transmitting nodes for uplink communications.

20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the means for generating supports multiple input multiple output technology.

21. A method comprising:

generating a plurality of spatial streams for communicating with a plurality of access terminals;

determining an allocation of the plurality of spatial streams to the plurality of access terminals based on at least one metric for each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals, wherein determining the allocation comprises determining a first number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a first access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on an antenna configuration of the first access terminal; and

splitting a high data rate signal for the first access terminal into a second number of lower data rate streams, wherein the second number is equal to the first number, and wherein the lower data rate streams are allocated to the first access terminal.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein determining the allocation further comprises determining a third number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a second access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on a second antenna configuration of the second access terminal.

23. The method of claim 21, further comprising communicating with the plurality of access terminals by transmitting the spatial streams through a plurality of antennas, and wherein a second number of spatial streams to be transmitted to each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals is based on a third number of antennas.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein the plurality of access terminals are receiving nodes for downlink communications.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein the plurality of access terminals are transmitting nodes for uplink communications.

26. A non-transitory computer-program product for communication, comprising:

a machine-readable medium encoded with instructions executable by a processor to cause the processor to perform operations including;

generating a plurality of spatial streams for communicating with a plurality of access terminals;

determining an allocation of the plurality of spatial streams to the plurality of access terminals based on at least one metric for each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals, wherein determining the allocation comprises determining a first number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a first access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on an antenna configuration of the first access terminal; and

splitting a high data rate signal for the first access terminal into a second number of lower data rate streams, wherein the second number is equal to the first number, and wherein the lower data rate streams are allocated to the first access terminal.

27. The non-transitory computer-program product of claim 26, wherein the plurality of access terminals are receiving nodes for downlink communications.

28. The non-transitory computer-program product of claim 26, wherein the plurality of access terminals are transmitting nodes for uplink communications.

29. An access point comprising:

a plurality of antennas;

a processing system configured to;

generate a plurality of spatial streams for communicating with a plurality of access terminals; and

determine an allocation of the plurality of spatial streams to the plurality of access terminals based on at least one metric for each access terminal of the plurality of access terminals, wherein determining the allocation comprises determining a first number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a first access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on an antenna configuration of the first access terminal, wherein the processing system is further configured to split a high data rate signal for the first access terminal into a second number of lower data rate streams, wherein the second number is equal to the first number, and wherein the lower data rate streams are allocated to the first access terminal; and

a transceiver configured to communicate with the plurality of access terminals through the plurality of antennas.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein determining the allocation further comprises determining a third number of the plurality of spatial streams to be allocated to a second access terminal of the plurality of access terminals based on a second antenna configuration of the second access terminal.

31. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the first number does not equal the third number.

32. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein at least one spatial stream of the plurality of spatial streams is allocated to the first access terminal and no spatial streams are allocated to the second access terminal.

33. The access point of claim 29, wherein the processing system is a transmitting node for downlink communications and the plurality of access terminals are receiving nodes for downlink communications.

34. The access point of claim 29, wherein the processing system is a receiving node for uplink communications and the plurality of access terminals are transmitting nodes for uplink communications.

35. The access point of claim 29, wherein the processing system supports multiple input multiple output technology.