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Telecommunications

Patent Issued for Demodulation of a Subset of Available Link Assignment Blocks

2012 AUG 22 (VerticalNews) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Telecommunications Weekly -- A patent by the inventors Palanki, Ravi (San Diego, CA); Gorokhov, Alexei (San Diego, CA); Sampath, Hemanth (San Diego, CA), filed on January 29, 2008, was cleared and issued on August 7, 2012, according to news reporting originating from Alexandria, Virginia, by VerticalNews correspondents.

Patent number 8238295 is assigned to QUALCOMM Incorporated (San Diego, CA).

The following quote was obtained by the news editors from the background information supplied by the inventors: "I. Field

"The following description relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to enabling access terminals to decode subsets of link assignment blocks (LABs) transferred from base stations in a wireless communication system.

"II. Background

"Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication; for instance, voice and/or data can be provided via such wireless communication systems. A typical wireless communication system, or network, can provide multiple users access to one or more shared resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, . . . ). For instance, a system can use a variety of multiple access techniques such as Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM), Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), Code Division Multiplexing (CDM), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), and others.

"Generally, wireless multiple-access communication systems can simultaneously support communication for multiple access terminals. Each access terminal can communicate with one or more base stations via transmissions on forward and reverse links. The forward link (or downlink) refers to the communication link from base stations to access terminals, and the reverse link (or uplink) refers to the communication link from access terminals to base stations. This communication link can be established via a single-in-single-out, multiple-in-single-out or a multiple-in-multiple-out (MIMO) system.

"Wireless communication systems oftentimes employ one or more base stations that provide a coverage area. A typical base station can transmit multiple data streams for broadcast, multicast and/or unicast services, wherein a data stream may be a stream of data that can be of independent reception interest to an access terminal. An access terminal within the coverage area of such base station can be employed to receive one, more than one, or all the data streams carried by the composite stream. Likewise, an access terminal can transmit data to the base station or another access terminal.

"Base stations can communicate link assignment blocks (LABs) over the downlink. Each LAB can provide assignment related information to particular access terminal(s). Conventionally, an access terminal decodes each LAB communicated via the downlink from a base station to identify a subset of LABs intended for that particular access terminal. However, a large number of the decoded LABs can be directed towards disparate access terminal(s); accordingly, significant resource expenditures (e.g., time, processor cycles, . . . ) can be outlaid by the access terminal when employing common techniques where all or most of the LABs transferred from the base station are decoded. These resource expenditures can impact access terminal performance such as, for example, by diminishing a data rate utilized in connection with decoding data actually directed to a particular access terminal."

In addition to the background information obtained for this patent, VerticalNews journalists also obtained the inventors' summary information for this patent: "The following presents a simplified summary of one or more embodiments in order to provide a basic understanding of such embodiments. This summary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated embodiments, and is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of all embodiments nor delineate the scope of any or all embodiments. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more embodiments in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

"In accordance with one or more embodiments and corresponding disclosure thereof, various aspects are described in connection with facilitating assignment of indices to link assignment blocks (LABs) communicated via a downlink. Indices in a first subset are allocated to shared LABs, which are decoded by a plurality of access terminals. Indices in a second subset are assigned to unshared LABs, which are each intended for a particular recipient access terminal. Assignment of an index for each unshared LAB can be based upon a hash of an identifier corresponding to an intended recipient access terminal and/or access terminal capabilities. Moreover, an access terminal can decode LABs based upon corresponding indices. LABs with indices in a first range can be identified as shared LABs and decoded. Further, the access terminal can determine a second range of indices corresponding to unshared LABs to decode; the second range of indices includes fewer than all indices corresponding to unshared LABs in a frame sent by a base station.

"According to related aspects, a method that facilitates sending frames that include control messages in a wireless communication environment is described herein. The method can include assigning indices to a set of control messages. Further, the method can comprise restricting transmission of respective subsets of the control messages to respective, intended recipient access terminals based on the indices.

"Another aspect relates to a wireless communications apparatus. The wireless communications apparatus can include a memory that retains instructions related to assigning indices to a set of control messages and restricting transmission of respective subsets of the control messages to respective, intended recipient access terminals based on the indices. Further, the wireless communications apparatus can include a processor, coupled to the memory, configured to execute the instructions retained in the memory.

"Yet another aspect relates to a wireless communications apparatus that enables assigning indices to link assignment blocks (LABs) and organizing LABs based thereupon in a wireless communication environment. The wireless communications apparatus can include means for allocating indices to shared LABs. Further, the wireless communications apparatus can include means for allotting indices to unshared LABs based upon access terminal capabilities and hashes of identifiers of respective, intended recipient access terminals. Moreover, the wireless communications apparatus can comprise means for sending the shared LABs and the unshared LABs organized based on the assigned indices.

"Still another aspect relates to a machine-readable medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions for assigning indices to a set of control messages; and restricting transmission of respective subsets of the control messages to respective, intended recipient access terminals based on the indices.

"In accordance with another aspect, an apparatus in a wireless communication system can include a processor, wherein the processor can be configured to assign indices to a set of control messages. Moreover, the processor can be configured to restrict transmission of respective subsets of the control messages to respective, intended recipient access terminals based on the indices.

"According to other aspects, a method that facilitates decoding a subset of control messages in a wireless communication environment is described herein. The method can include receiving a set of indexed control messages. Moreover, the method can include decoding a subset of the indexed control messages identified based upon corresponding indices.

"Yet another aspect relates to a wireless communications apparatus that can include a memory that retains instructions related to obtaining a set of indexed control messages and decoding a subset of the indexed control messages identified based upon corresponding indices. Further, the wireless communications apparatus can comprise a processor, coupled to the memory, configured to execute the instructions retained in the memory.

"Another aspect relates to a wireless communications apparatus that enables decoding a subset of received link assignment blocks (LABs) in a wireless communication environment. The wireless communications apparatus can include means for demodulating shared LABs recognized based upon a first range of indices. Further, the wireless communications apparatus can comprise means for identifying a second range of indices based on a hash of an access terminal identifier and an access terminal capability measure. Moreover, the wireless communications apparatus can include means for demodulating unshared LABs recognized based upon the second range of indices.

"Still another aspect relates to a machine-readable medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions for receiving a set of indexed control messages, and decoding a subset of the indexed control messages identified based upon corresponding indices.

"In accordance with another aspect, an apparatus in a wireless communication system can include a processor, wherein the processor can be configured to obtain a set of indexed control messages. Further, the processor can be configured to decode a subset of the indexed control messages identified based upon corresponding indices.

"To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the one or more embodiments comprise the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative aspects of the one or more embodiments. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of various embodiments can be employed and the described embodiments are intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents."

URL and more information on this patent, see: Palanki, Ravi; Gorokhov, Alexei; Sampath, Hemanth. Demodulation of a Subset of Available Link Assignment Blocks. U.S. Patent Number 8238295, filed January 29, 2008, and issued August 7, 2012. Patent URL: http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=43&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=2111&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PTXT&s1=20120807.PD.&OS=ISD/20120807&RS=ISD/20120807

Keywords for this news article include: Electronics, Wireless Technology, QUALCOMM Incorporated, Wireless Communication.