US 7,142,864 B2Granted

Methods and apparatus of enhancing performance in wireless communication systems

AssigneeQUALCOMM Incorporated

InventorsRajiv Laroia, Murari Srinivasan, Junyi Li

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Abstract

Methods and apparatus for supporting and using multiple communications channels corresponding to different transmit technologies and/or access technologies in parallel within a cell of a wireless communications system are described. Mobile nodes support multiple technologies and can switch between the technology being used at a particular point in time, e.g., from a first channel corresponding to a first technology to a second channel corresponding to a different technology which provides better transmission characteristics, e.g., a better perceived channel quality. Mobiles maintain at least two sets of channel quality information at any one point in time. Mobiles select the better channel and communicate the channel selection to the base station or communicate channel quality information for multiple channels to the basestation and allow the base station to select the channel corresponding to the technology providing the better conditions for the mobile. Different mobiles in the same cell may support different technologies.

Claims38

Dependent claims

A communications method, the method comprising the steps of:

operating a wireless communications terminal to maintain a set of communications quality information for a plurality of different wireless communications channels which can be used to communicate information between a base station and said wireless communications terminal, at least one of the base station and wireless terminal including multiple antennas, said plurality of different wireless communications channels including at least a first communications channel and a second communications channel, the first and second communications channels having different quality characteristics which are a function of first and second transmission technologies used to establish said first and second communications channels, respectively, said first and second transmission technologies being different;
operating the wireless terminal to generate a signal as a function of the maintained communications channel quality information corresponding to at least said first and said second communications channels;
transmitting said signal to said base station;
making a measurement indicative of a rate of motion of said wireless terminal;
and
operating one of the base station and wireless terminal to select a communications channel for use in communicating to said wireless terminal as a function of the measurement indicative of the rate of motion of said wireless terminal.

3 more elements

A wireless terminal comprising:

means for making a measurement indicative of a rate of motion of said wireless terminal;
a set of communications quality information for a plurality of different wireless communications channels which can be used to communicate information between a base station and said wireless communications terminal, said plurality of different wireless communications channels including at least a first communications channel and a second communications channel, the first and second communications channels having different quality characteristics which are a function of first and second transmission technologies used to establish said first and second communications channels, respectively, said first and second transmission technologies being different;
means for generating a signal as a function of the maintained communications channel quality information corresponding to at least said first and said second communications channels, said signal providing information on the quality of at least one of said first and said second communications channels;
a transmitter for transmitting said signal to said base station;
and
means for selecting a communications channel for use in communicating between said wireless terminal and said base station as a function of the measurement indicative of the rate of motion of said wireless terminal.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 10/830,976Filed 23 Apr 2004 · us provisional application
Priority: 23 Apr 2003
Published: US 2005/0181799 A118 Aug 2005
Granted: 28 Nov 2006
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification21 codes

H04L 5/0055
Allocation of signalling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals: physical resource allocation for ACK/NACK
H04B 7/0689
Hybrid systems, i.e. switching and simultaneous transmission: using different transmission schemes, at least one of them being a diversity…
H04B 17/24
Of receivers: with feedback of measurements to the transmitter
H04L 5/0007
Time-frequency: the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM or DMT