SYSTEM AND METHOD OF RESOURCE ALLOCATION WITHIN A COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates generally to wireless communications and more particularly to resource and interference management in an ad hoc network.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Types of wireless networks include infrastructurebased wireless networks and ad hoc wireless networks. [0003] Ad hoc networks are self-forming networks which can operate in the absence of any fixed infrastructure, and in some cases the ad hoc network is formed entirely of mobile nodes. An ad hoc network typically includes a number of geographically-distributed, potentially mobile units, sometimes referred to as "nodes," which are wirelessly connected to each other by one or more links (e.g., radio frequency communication channels). The nodes can communicate with each other over a wireless media without the support of an infrastructure-based or wired network. Links or connections between these nodes can change dynamically in an arbitrary manner as existing nodes move within the ad hoc network, as new nodes join or enter the ad hoc network, or as existing nodes leave or exit the ad hoc network. Because the topology of an ad hoc network can change significantly techniques are needed which can allow the ad hoc network to dynamically adjust to these changes. Due to the lack of a central controller, many network-controlling functions can be distributed among the nodes such that the nodes can self-organize and reconfigure in response to topology changes. [0004] One characteristic of ad hoc network nodes is that each node can directly communicate over a short range with nodes which are a single "hop" away. Such nodes are sometimes referred to as "neighbor nodes." When a node transmits packets to a destination node and the nodes are separated by more than one hop (e.g., the distance between two nodes exceeds the radio transmission range of the nodes, or a physical barrier is present between the nodes), the packets can be relayed via intermediate nodes ("multi-hopping") until the packets reach the destination node. In such situations, each intermediate node routes the packets (e.g., data and control information) to the next node along the route, until the packets reach their final destination. For relaying packets to the next node, each node maintains routing information collected through conversation with its neighboring nodes. The routing information can also be periodically broadcast in the network to reflect the current network topology. Alternatively, to reduce the amount of information transmitted for maintaining accurate routing information, the network nodes may exchange routing information only when it is needed. [0005] Resource allocation is an important design aspect of ad hoc networks. IEEE 802.11 and Bluetooth are two predominant ad hoc networking standards. IEEE 802.11 is a Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) based system where resources are competed for in a distributed architecture. Bluetooth is a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) based system where resources are allocated by a centralized master controller.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0006] The accompanying figures, where like reference numerals refer to identical or functionally similar elements
throughout the separate views and which together with the detailed description below are incorporated in and form part of the specification, serve to further illustrate various embodiments and to explain various principles and advantages all in accordance with the present invention. [0007] FIG. 1 is an example block diagram of a communication network.
[0008] FIG. 2 is an example of multiple clusters within a communication network.
[0009] FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the communication network of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention. [0010] FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 illustrate various examples of frame structures for operation of the communication network of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.
[0011] FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating further detail of the operation of FIG. 3 in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.
[0012] FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the communication network of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention. [0013] Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] Before describing in detail embodiments that are in accordance with the present invention, it should be observed that the embodiments reside primarily in combinations of method steps and apparatus components related to resource allocation within a communication system. Accordingly, the apparatus components and method steps have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.
[0015] In this document, relational terms such as first and second, top and bottom, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. The terms "comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element proceeded by "comprises ... a" does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.
[0016] It will be appreciated that embodiments of the invention described herein may be comprised of one or more conventional processors and unique stored program instructions that control the one or more processors to implement, in conjunction with certain non-processor circuits, some, most, or all of the functions of resource allocation within a communication system described herein. The non-processor circuits
