US 10,594,376 B2Granted

Directed wireless communication

OwnerMarcus Da Silva, William J. Crilly, Jr. +9inventors

InventorsMarcus Da Silva, William J. Crilly, Jr., James Brennan, Robert J. Conley, Siavash Alamouti, Eduardo Casas, Hujun Yin, Bobby Jose, Yang-Seok Choi, Vahid Tarokh, Praveen Mehrotra

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Abstract

Disclosed herein are methods and apparatuses configured to direct wireless communication. In some embodiments, a networking apparatus is configured to generate a plurality of sequences of symbols for transmission to plurality of client devices; transmit the plurality of sequences to the plurality of client device via one or more beams focused toward the client devices; receive information regarding the one or more beams from the client devices; and modify at least one of the one or more beams based on the information.

Claims34

Dependent claims

A data-communications networking apparatus, comprising:

a processor configured to:
generate a probing signal for transmission to at least a first client device and a second client device;
generate a first data stream for transmission to the first client device;
and
generate a second data stream for transmission to the second client device;
and
a transceiver operatively coupled to the processor and configured to:
transmit the probing signal to at least the first client device and the second client device via a smart antenna;
wherein the smart antenna is operatively coupled to the transceiver and comprises a first antenna element and a second antenna element;
wherein one or more of the processor, the transceiver, or the smart antenna is further configured to:
receive a first feedback information from the first client device in response to the transmission of the probing signal;
receive a second feedback information from the second client device in response to the transmission of the probing signal;
determine where to place transmission peaks and transmission nulls within one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals based in part on the first and the second feedback information;
transmit the first data stream to the first client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
and
transmit the second data stream to the second client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
wherein transmission of the first data stream and transmission of at least part of the second data stream occur at the same time;
and
wherein the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals are configured to exhibit a first transmission peak at a location of the first client device and a second transmission peak at a location of the second client device.

16 more elements

A data-communications networking apparatus, comprising:

a processor configured to:
generate a probing signal for transmission to at least a first client device and a second client device;
generate a first data stream for transmission to the first client device;
and
generate a second data stream for transmission to the second client device;
and
a transceiver operatively coupled to the processor, and configured to:
transmit the probing signal to at least the first client device and the second client device via a smart antenna;
wherein the smart antenna is operatively coupled to the transceiver and comprises a first antenna element and a second antenna element;
wherein one or more of the processor, the transceiver, or the smart antenna is further configured to:
receive a first feedback information from the first client device;
receive a second feedback information from the second client device;
determine where to place transmission peaks and transmission nulls within one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals based in part on the first and the second feedback information;
transmit the first data stream to the first client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
and
transmit the second data stream to the second client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
wherein transmission of the first data stream and transmission of at least part of the second data stream occur at the same time;
and
wherein the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals are configured to exhibit a first transmission peak at a location of the first client device, a second transmission peak at a location of the second client device, and a first transmission null at a location of a third device.

16 more elements

A data-communications networking apparatus, comprising:

a processor configured to:
generate a probing signal for transmission to at least a first client device and a second client device;
generate a first data stream for transmission to the first client device;
and
generate a second data stream for transmission to the second client device;
and
a transceiver operatively coupled to the processor and configured to:
transmit the probing signal to at least the first client device and the second client device via a smart antenna;
wherein the smart antenna is operatively coupled to the transceiver;
wherein one or more of the processor, the transceiver, or the smart antenna is further configured to:
receive a first feedback information from the first client device;
wherein the first feedback information comprises one or more of:
a first amplitude information, a first phase information, a first routing information, or a first index to a routing table;
receive a second feedback information from the second client device;
wherein the second feedback information comprises one or more of:
a second amplitude information, a second phase information, a second routing information, or a second index to a routing table;
determine where to place transmission peaks and transmission nulls within one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals based in part on the first and the second feedback information;
transmit the first data stream to the first client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
transmit the second data stream to the second client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
wherein transmission of the first data stream and transmission of at least part of the second data stream occur simultaneously;
and
wherein the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals are configured to exhibit a first transmission peak at a location of the first client device and a second transmission peak at a location of the second client device.

19 more elements

A data-communications networking apparatus, comprising:

a processor configured to:
generate a probing signal for transmission to at least a first client device and a second client device;
generate a first data stream for transmission to the first client device;
and
generate a second data stream for transmission to the second client device;
a transceiver operatively coupled to the processor and configured to:
transmit the probing signal to at least the first client device and the second client device via a smart antenna;
wherein the smart antenna is operatively coupled to the transceiver;
and
a memory operatively coupled to one or more of the processor or the transceiver;
wherein a routing table is stored in the memory;
wherein one or more of the processor, the transceiver, or the smart antenna is further configured to:
receive a first feedback information from the first client device;
wherein the first feedback information comprises one or more of:
a first amplitude information, a first phase information, a first routing information, or a first routing table index;
receive a second feedback information from the second client device;
wherein the second feedback information comprises one or more of:
a second amplitude information, a second phase information, a second routing information, or a second routing table table;
determine where to place transmission peaks and transmission nulls within one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals based in part on the first feedback information and the second feedback information;
transmit the first data stream to the first client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
transmit the second data stream to the second client device via the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals;
wherein transmission of the first data stream and transmission of at least part of the second data stream occur simultaneously;
and
wherein the one or more spatially distributed patterns of electromagnetic signals are configured to exhibit a first transmission peak at a location of the first client device, a second transmission peak at a location of the second client device, and a first transmission null at a location of a third device.

21 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 15/486,245Filed 12 Apr 2017 · continuation
Priority: 4 Nov 2002
Published: US 2017/0222705 A13 Aug 2017
Granted: 17 Mar 2020
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

H04B 7/0617
Of weighted versions of same signal: for beam forming
H04B 7/04
Diversity systems; Multi-antenna system, i.e. transmission or reception using multiple antennas: using two or more spaced independent antennas
H04B 7/0621
Using feedback from receiving side: feedback content
H04B 17/318
Measuring or estimating channel quality parameters: received signal strength

Family

Application60/423,660Us provisional application · filed 4 Nov 2002
Application10/700,329Parent of this division · filed 3 Nov 2003
Application13/855,410Parent of this continuation · filed 2 Apr 2013
US 8,412,106 B2Parent of this division · filed 2 Apr 2013
Application15/260,147Parent of this continuation · filed 8 Sep 2016
US 9,462,589 B2Parent of this continuation · filed 4 Oct 2016
US 2017/0222705 A1Pre-grant publication · published 3 Aug 2017
Application13/855,410Parent of this division
US 10,009,085 B2Related patent
US 2004/0224637 A1Published application
US 2013/0229999 A1Published application
US 2016/0380686 A1Published application
US 10,594,376 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.