Method and apparatus for distributed uplink data processing in a communication network with limited backhaul

A method for handling data in a backhaul network, the method comprising:

• receiving, via a network interface of a network device located at a processing node in the backhaul network, uplink data indicative of a physical layer signal transmitted from a client device to an access node over a wireless medium, the data being generated by extracting payload information from the signal, the access node being separate from the processing node;
• processing, via a microprocessor of the network device, the received data according to one or more processing operations, wherein the one or more processing operations comprise generating, based on the data and by mimicking a signal generation operation of the client device, a representation of the physical layer signal as transmitted from the client device or as received by the access node or another access node over the wireless medium, the one or more processing operations further comprising adding a header to a decoded packet including the uplink data, wherein the header includes instructions for further processing of the decoded packet of uplink data by other nodes in the backhaul network;
• and
• transmitting, via the network interface, output of the one or more processing operations toward one or more further nodes in the backhaul network for use thereby in said further processing of the signal transmitted from the client device, further processing of a signal transmitted from another client device over the wireless medium, or a combination thereof.

A system comprising:

• a client device communicatively coupled to a wireless communication network and configured to transmit a physical layer signal over a wireless medium;
• and
• an apparatus located at a processing node in a backhaul portion of the wireless communication network, the apparatus comprising a microprocessor, a network interface and a memory and configured to:
• receive, via the network interface, uplink data indicative of the signal transmitted from the client device to an access node, the data being generated by extracting payload information from the signal, the access node being separate from the processing node;
• process the received data according to one or more processing operations, wherein the one or more processing operations comprise generating, based on the data and by mimicking a signal generation operation of the client device, a representation of the physical layer signal as transmitted from the client device or as received by the access node or another access node over the wireless medium, the one or more processing operations further comprising adding a header to a decoded packet including the uplink data, wherein the header includes instructions for further processing of the decoded packet of uplink data by other nodes in the backhaul network;
• and
• transmit output of the one or more processing operations via the network interface toward one or more further nodes in the backhaul network for use thereby in said further processing of the signal transmitted from the client device, further processing of a signal transmitted from another client device over the wireless medium, or a combination thereof.