US 2010/0150098 A1Published application

Method Of System Access To A Wireless Network

AssigneeResearch In Motion Limited

InventorsWen Zhao, Xin Jin

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Abstract

A method includes steps, performed by a wireless device for accessing a wireless network through network base stations. The steps include selecting a reverse link cost metric from a list of reverse link cost metrics. A reverse link cost is determined according to the selected reverse link cost metric. A plurality of base stations are partitioned into a plurality of candidate base stations and a plurality of excluded base stations. The plurality of base stations are substituted with the candidate base stations, thereby reducing the cardinality of the plurality of base stations by the cardinality of the plurality of excluded base stations. A candidate base station is selected from a plurality of the base stations. A probe signal is sent at the reverse link cost to the candidate base station. A response from the candidate base station is waited for within a timeout period.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method comprising the steps, performed by a wireless device for accessing a wireless network through network base stations, of:

(a) selecting a reverse link cost metric from a list of reverse link cost metrics;
(b) determining a reverse link cost according to the selected reverse link cost metric;
(c) partitioning a plurality of base stations into a plurality of candidate base stations and a plurality of excluded base stations;
(d) substituting the plurality of base stations with the candidate base stations thereby reducing the cardinality of the plurality of base stations by the cardinality of the plurality of excluded base stations;
(e) selecting a candidate base station from a plurality of the base stations;
(f) sending a probe signal at the reverse link cost to the candidate base station;
(g) waiting for a response from the candidate base station within a timeout period;
and
(h) repeating steps (e) to (g) one or more times, selecting a different candidate base station each time until either:
each of the plurality of base stations has been sent a probe at least once at substantially the same reverse link cost and corresponding timeout periods have all expired, or a response is received from at least one candidate base station wherein the responding candidate base station is used to provide system access to the wireless network.

7 more elements

A method comprising the steps, performed by a mobile wireless device configured to access a wireless network through base stations, of:

partitioning a plurality of base stations into a plurality of candidate base stations and a plurality of excluded base stations;
substituting the plurality of base stations with the candidate base stations thereby reducing the cardinality of the plurality of base stations by the cardinality of the plurality of excluded base stations;
sending a first probe signal at a first reverse link cost to a base station and waiting for a response, for each base station of a set of base stations, the set of base stations including multiple base stations;
if no response to the first probe signal is received from each base station within a preset first time period, then sending to each of at last one of the base stations a second probe signal at a second reverse link cost greater than the first reverse link cost and waiting for a response;
and
if a response to the second probe signal is received from one of the base stations within a preset second time period, then accessing the network through that responding base station.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 12/715,001Filed 1 Mar 2010
Priority: 7 Dec 2001
Published: 17 Jun 2010
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification5 codes

H04W 48/20
Access restriction ; Network selection; Access point selection: selecting an access point
H04W 4/24
Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor: accounting or billing
H04W 24/02
Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements: arrangements for optimising operational condition
H04W 48/16
Access restriction ; Network selection; Access point selection: discovering, processing access restriction or access information

Family

Application60/336,687Us provisional application · filed 7 Dec 2001
Application10/498,025Continuation · filed 4 Jun 2004
Application11/607,578Continuation · filed 1 Dec 2006
Application12/715,001Continuation
US 2004/0266393 A1Published application
US 2007/0077927 A1Published application
US 7,162,242 B2Related patent
US 7,702,335 B2Related patent
US 7,995,530 B2Related patent
US 2010/0150098 A1This patent

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