U.S. patent application number 14/794499 was filed with the patent office on 2015-10-29 for method and system for communicating information in a wireless communication system.
This patent application is currently assigned to Broadcom Corporation. The applicant listed for this patent is Broadcom Corporation. Invention is credited to Pieter van ROOYEN.
Application Number | 20150312890 14/794499 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37893340 |
Filed Date | 2015-10-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150312890 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
van ROOYEN; Pieter |
October 29, 2015 |
Method and System for Communicating Information in a Wireless
Communication System
Abstract
Methods and systems for communicating information in a wireless
communication system are disclosed herein and may include
determining at least a bit-error-rate (BER) for at least a DVB-H
downlink communication path utilized for communicating multimedia
content in a communication system. The communication system may
include a plurality of downlink communication paths, at least two
of the plurality of downlink communication paths may use different
communication protocols, and at least one of the plurality of
downlink communication paths may include the DVB-H downlink
communication path. At least a portion of the multimedia content
may be communicated via at least one of the plurality of downlink
communication paths to at least one mobile communication device
based on at least the determined at least the BER.
Inventors: |
van ROOYEN; Pieter; (San
Diego, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Broadcom Corporation |
Irvine |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Broadcom Corporation
Irvine
CA
|
Family ID: |
37893340 |
Appl. No.: |
14/794499 |
Filed: |
July 8, 2015 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
11237323 |
Sep 28, 2005 |
9088373 |
|
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14794499 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
370/329 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04H 20/24 20130101;
H04L 12/189 20130101; H04H 60/90 20130101; H04W 72/042 20130101;
H04W 72/08 20130101; H04W 76/10 20180201; H04W 84/042 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04W 72/04 20060101
H04W072/04; H04W 72/08 20060101 H04W072/08; H04L 12/18 20060101
H04L012/18 |
Claims
1. A method, comprising: receiving, by a processing device, a first
channel information associated with a first downlink communication
path and a second channel information associated with a second
downlink communication path; selecting, by the processing device,
based on the first channel information and the second channel
information, a first portion of a multimedia content to be sent to
a mobile communication device over the first downlink communication
path using a first communication protocol; and selecting, by the
processing device, based on the first channel information and the
second channel information, a second portion of the multimedia
content to be sent to the mobile communication device over the
second downlink communication path using a second communication
protocol different than the first communication protocol.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting the first portion
comprises: selecting the first portion based on a user profile or a
prior usage history for communicating the multimedia content to the
mobile communication device over the first downlink communication
path and the second downlink communication path.
3. The method of claim 2, further comprising: storing the user
profile and the prior usage history within the mobile communication
device.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first channel information and
the second channel information comprises: a received signal
strength indicator (RSSI); a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR); a
signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio (SINR); a power level, a bit
error rate (BER); or a signal gain associated with the first
downlink communication path and the second downlink communication
path.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first downlink communication
path and the second downlink communication path comprise: a DVB-H
downlink communication path; a cellular downlink communication
path; an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
802.11 wireless local area network (WLAN) communication path, or an
IEEE 802.16 wireless metropolitan area network (WMAN) communication
path.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first portion and the second
portion comprise: a text portion; a video portion; or an audio
portion.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting the first portion
comprises: selecting the first portion based on a mobile
communication device type.
8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: adjusting a
resolution of the multimedia content based on the first channel
information and the second channel information.
9. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon
computer-executable instructions, execution of which by a computing
device causes the computing device to perform operations
comprising: receiving, by a processing device, a first channel
information associated with a first downlink communication path and
a second channel information associated with a second downlink
communication path; selecting, by the processing device, based on
the first channel information and the second channel information, a
first portion of a multimedia content to be sent to a mobile
communication device over the first downlink communication path
using a first communication protocol; and selecting, by the
processing device, based on the first channel information and the
second channel information, a second portion of the multimedia
content to be sent to the mobile communication device over the
second downlink communication path using a second communication
protocol different than the first communication protocol.
10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein
the selecting the first portion comprises: selecting the first
portion based on a user profile or a prior usage history for
communicating the multimedia content to the mobile communication
device over the first downlink communication path and the second
downlink communication path.
11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10,
further comprising: storing the user profile and the prior usage
history within the mobile communication device.
12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein
the first channel information and the second channel information
comprises: a received signal strength indicator (RSSI); a
signal-to-noise ratio (SNR); a signal-to-interference-and-noise
ratio (SINR); a power level, a bit error rate (BER); or a signal
gain associated with the first downlink communication path and the
second downlink communication path.
13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein
the first downlink communication path and the second downlink
communication path comprise: a DVB-H downlink communication path, a
cellular downlink communication path; an Institute of Electrical
and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 wireless local area network
(WLAN) communication path; or an IEEE 802.16 wireless metropolitan
area network (WMAN) communication path.
14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein
the second portion comprises: a text portion; a video portion; or
an audio portion.
15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein
the selecting the first portion comprises: selecting the first
portion based on a mobile communication device type.
16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, further
comprising: adjusting a resolution of the multimedia content based
on the first channel information and the second channel
information.
17. A system, comprising: circuitry, logic, processor executing
code, or any combination thereof configured to: receive a first
channel information associated with a first downlink communication
path and a second channel information associated with a second
downlink communication path; select, based on the first channel
information and the second channel information, a first portion of
a multimedia content to be sent to a mobile communication device
over the first downlink communication path using a first
communication protocol; and select, based on the first channel
information and the second channel information, a second portion of
the multimedia content to be sent to the mobile communication
device over the second downlink communication path using a second
communication protocol different than the first communication
protocol.
18. The system of claim 17, wherein the circuitry, logic, processor
executing code, or any combination thereof is configured to select
the first portion based on a user profile or a prior usage history
for communicating the multimedia content to the mobile
communication device over the first downlink communication path and
the second downlink communication path.
19. The system of claim 18, wherein the user profile and the prior
usage history are stored within the mobile communication
device.
20. The system of claim 17, wherein the first channel information
and the second channel information comprise: a received signal
strength indicator (RSSI); a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR); a
signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio (SINR); a power level, a bit
error rate (BER); or a signal gain associated with the first
downlink communication path and the second downlink communication
path.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 11/237,323, filed on Sep. 28, 2005, which is
hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] Certain embodiments of the disclosure relate to
communication of information via a plurality of different networks.
More specifically, certain embodiments of the disclosure relate to
a method and system for communicating information in a wireless
communication system.
[0004] 2. Background Art
[0005] Broadcasting and telecommunications have historically
occupied separate fields. In the past, broadcasting was largely an
"over-the-air" medium while wired media carried telecommunications.
That distinction may no longer apply as both broadcasting and
telecommunications may be delivered over either wired or wireless
media. Present development may adapt broadcasting to mobility
services. One limitation has been that broadcasting may often
require high bit rate data transmission at rates higher than could
be supported by existing mobile communications networks. However,
with emerging developments in wireless communications technology,
even this obstacle may be overcome.
[0006] Terrestrial television and radio broadcast networks have
made use of high power transmitters covering broad service areas,
which enable one-way distribution of content to user equipment such
as televisions and radios. By contrast, wireless telecommunications
networks have made use of low power transmitters, which have
covered relatively small areas known as "cells". Unlike broadcast
networks, wireless networks may be adapted to provide two-way
interactive services between users of user equipment such as
telephones and computer equipment.
[0007] The introduction of cellular communications systems in the
late 1970's and early 1980's represented a significant advance in
mobile communications. The networks of this period may be commonly
known as first generation, or "1G" systems. These systems were
based upon analog, circuit-switching technology, the most prominent
of these systems may have been the advanced mobile phone system
(AMPS). Second generation, or "2G" systems ushered improvements in
performance over 1G systems and introduced digital technology to
mobile communications. Exemplary 2G systems include the global
system for mobile communications (GSM), digital AMPS (D-AMPS), and
code division multiple access (CDMA). Many of these systems have
been designed according to the paradigm of the traditional
telephony architecture, often focused on circuit-switched services,
voice traffic, and supported data transfer rates up to 14.4
kbits/s. Higher data rates were achieved through the deployment of
"2.5G" networks, many of which were adapted to existing 2G network
infrastructures. The 2.5G networks began the introduction of
packet-switching technology in wireless networks. However, it is
the evolution of third generation, or "3G" technology that may
introduce fully packet-switched networks, which support high-speed
data communications.
[0008] The general packet radio service (GPRS), which is an example
of a 2.5G network service oriented for data communications,
comprises enhancements to GSM that required additional hardware and
software elements in existing GSM network infrastructures. Where
GSM may allot a single time slot in a time division multiple access
(TDMA) frame, GPRS may allot up to 8 such time slots providing a
data transfer rate of up to 115.2 kbits/s. Another 2.5G network,
enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE), also comprises
enhancements to GSM, and like GPRS, EDGE may allocate up to 8 time
slots in a TDMA frame for packet-switched, or packet mode,
transfers. However, unlike GPRS, EDGE adapts 8 phase shift keying
(8-PSK) modulation to achieve data transfer rates that may be as
high as 384 kbits/s.
[0009] The universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) is an
adaptation of a 3G system, which is designed to offer integrated
voice, multimedia, and Internet access services to portable user
equipment. The UMTS adapts wideband CDMA (W-CDMA) to support data
transfer rates, which may be as high as 2 Mbits/s. One reason why
W-CDMA may support higher data rates is that W-CDMA channels may
have a bandwidth of 5 MHz versus the 200 kHz channel bandwidth in
GSM. A related 3G technology, high speed downlink packet access
(HSDPA), is an Internet protocol (IP) based service oriented for
data communications, which adapts W-CDMA to support data transfer
rates of the order of 10 Mbits/s. HSDPA achieves higher data rates
through a plurality of methods. For example, many transmission
decisions may be made at the base station level, which is much
closer to the user equipment as opposed to being made at a mobile
switching center or office. These may include decisions about the
scheduling of data to be transmitted, when data are to be
retransmitted, and assessments about the quality of the
transmission channel. HSDPA may also utilize variable coding rates
in transmitted data. HSDPA also supports 16-level quadrature
amplitude modulation (16-QAM) over a high-speed downlink shared
channel (HS-DSCH), which permits a plurality of users to share an
air interface channel.
[0010] The multiple broadcast/multicast service (MBMS) is an IP
datacast service, which may be deployed in EDGE and UMTS networks.
The impact of MBMS is largely within the network in which a network
element adapted to MBMS, the broadcast multicast service center
(BM-SC), interacts with other network elements within a GSM or UMTS
system to manage the distribution of content among cells within a
network. User equipment may be required to support functions for
the activation and deactivation of MBMS bearer service. MBMS may be
adapted for delivery of video and audio information over wireless
networks to user equipment. MBMS may be integrated with other
services offered over the wireless network to realize multimedia
services, such as multicasting, which may require two-way
interaction with user equipment.
[0011] Standards for digital television terrestrial broadcasting
(DTTB) have evolved around the world with different systems being
adopted in different regions. The three leading DTTB systems are,
the advanced standards technical committee (ATSC) system, the
digital video broadcast terrestrial (DVB-T) system, and the
integrated service digital broadcasting terrestrial (ISDB-T)
system. The ATSC system has largely been adopted in North America,
South America, Taiwan, and South Korea. This system utilizes
trellis coding and 8-level vestigial sideband (8-VSB) modulation
techniques. The DVB-T system has largely been adopted in Europe,
the Middle East, Australia, as well as parts of Africa and parts of
Asia. The DVB-T system adapts coded orthogonal frequency division
multiplexing (COFDM). The ISDB-T system has been adopted in Japan
and adapts bandwidth segmented transmission orthogonal frequency
division multiplexing (BST-OFDM).
[0012] The various DTTB systems may differ in important aspects;
some systems employ a 6 MHz channel separation, while others may
employ 7 MHz or 8 MHz channel separations. Planning for the
allocation of frequency spectrum may also vary among countries with
some countries integrating frequency allocation for DTTB services
into the existing allocation plan for legacy analog broadcasting
systems. In such instances, broadcast towers for DTTB may be
co-located with broadcast towers for analog broadcasting services
with both services being allocated similar geographic broadcast
coverage areas. In other countries, frequency allocation planning
may involve the deployment of single frequency networks (SFNs), in
which a plurality of towers, possibly with overlapping geographic
broadcast coverage areas (also known as "gap fillers"), may
simultaneously broadcast identical digital signals. SFNs may
provide very efficient use of broadcast spectrum as a single
frequency may be used to broadcast over a large coverage area in
contrast to some of the conventional systems, which may be used for
analog broadcasting, in which gap fillers transmit at different
frequencies to avoid interference.
[0013] Even among countries adopting a common DTTB system,
variations may exist in parameters adapted in a specific national
implementation. For example, DVB-T not only supports a plurality of
modulation schemes, comprising quadrature phase shift keying
(QPSK), 16-QAM, and 64 level QAM (64-QAM), but DVB-T offers a
plurality of choices for the number of modulation carriers to be
used in the COFDM scheme. The "2K" mode permits 1,705 carrier
frequencies that may carry symbols, each with a useful duration of
224 .mu.s for an 8 MHz channel. In the "8K" mode there are 6,817
carrier frequencies, each with useful symbol duration of 896 .mu.s
for an 8 MHz channel. In SFN implementations, the 2K mode may
provide comparatively higher data rates but smaller geographical
coverage areas than may be the case with the 8K mode. Different
countries adopting the same system may also employ different
channel separation schemes.
[0014] While 3G systems are evolving to provide integrated voice,
multimedia, and data services to mobile user equipment, there may
be compelling reasons for adapting DTTB systems for this purpose.
One of the more notable reasons may be the high data rates that may
be supported in DTTB systems. For example, DVB-T may support data
rates of 15 Mbits/s in an 8 MHz channel in a wide area SFN. There
are also significant challenges in deploying broadcast services to
mobile user equipment. Many handheld portable devices, for example,
may require that services consume minimum power to extend battery
life to a level, which may be acceptable to users. Another
consideration is the Doppler effect in moving user equipment, which
may cause inter-symbol interference in received signals. Among the
three major DTTB systems, ISDB-T was originally designed to support
broadcast services to mobile user equipment. While DVB-T may not
have been originally designed to support mobility broadcast
services, a number of adaptations have been made to provide support
for mobile broadcast capability. The adaptation of DVB-T to mobile
broadcasting is commonly known as DVB handheld (DVB-H).
[0015] To meet requirements for mobile broadcasting the DVB-H
specification may support time slicing to reduce power consumption
at the user equipment, addition of a 4K mode to enable network
operators to make tradeoffs between the advantages of the 2K mode
and those of the 8K mode, and an additional level of forward error
correction on multiprotocol encapsulated data-forward error
correction (MPE-FEC) to make DVB-H transmissions more robust to the
challenges presented by mobile reception of signals and to
potential limitations in antenna designs for handheld user
equipment. DVB-H may also use the DVB-T modulation schemes, like
QPSK and 16-quadrature amplitude modulation (16-QAM), which may be
most resilient to transmission errors. MPEG audio and video
services may be more resilient to error than data, thus additional
forward error correction may not be required to meet DTTB service
objectives.
[0016] In a conventional wireless communication system, one or more
handheld devices may receive information via a downlink
communication path. However, channel conditions of the downlink
communication path may vary, which may result in poor quality of
the received information at the receiver. Furthermore, any
information, which was not received by the receiver, may be
re-transmitted which may result in processing delay.
[0017] Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and
traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the
art, through comparison of such systems with the present invention
as set forth in the remainder of the present application with
reference to the drawings.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0018] A system and/or method for communicating information in a
wireless communication system, substantially as shown in and/or
described in connection with at least one of the figures, as set
forth more completely in the claims.
[0019] Various advantages, aspects and novel features of the
present invention, as well as details of an illustrated embodiment
thereof, will be more fully understood from the following
description and drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary communication
system for providing services between a plurality of networks, in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary communication
system for communicating information from a DVB-H base station, a
cellular base station, an IEEE 802.11 base station, and an IEEE
802.16 base station, in accordance with an embodiment of the
present disclosure.
[0022] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary communication
system for communicating information from a plurality of base
stations with content selection capabilities, in accordance with an
embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0023] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary channel condition
processor, in accordance with an embodiment of the present
disclosure.
[0024] FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for
communicating information in a network, in accordance with an
embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] Certain aspects of the present disclosure may be found in a
method and system for communicating information in a wireless
communication system. The wireless communication system may
comprise a plurality of base stations, such as a DVB-H base
station, a cellular base station, an 802.11 wireless local area
network (WLAN) base station, and an 802.16 wireless metropolitan
area network (WMAN) base station. The base stations may be adapted
to communicate multimedia information to a mobile terminal via a
plurality of downlink communication paths. For example, a DVB-H
base station and a downlink communication path may be utilized for
communicating multimedia content to the mobile terminal. One or
more downlink channel condition indicators may be measured during
the communication of multimedia content. The downlink channel
condition indicators may be measured by the mobile terminal and may
be communicated to one or more of the base stations. For example,
the mobile terminal may measure a bit-error-rate (BER) associated
for one or more downlink communication paths, such as a DVB-H
downlink communication path, a cellular downlink communication
path, an IEEE 802.11 downlink communication path, and an IEEE
802.16 downlink communication path. Content selection may then be
performed by one or more of the base station and multimedia content
may be routed to the mobile terminal via one or more downlink
communication paths, based on the content selection and/or the
downlink channel condition indicators.
[0026] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary communication
system for providing services between a plurality of networks, in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring
to FIG. 1, there is shown terrestrial broadcaster network 102,
wireless service provider network 104, service provider 106, and
network 108 which may comprise the Internet, a portal, for example.
FIG. 1 further comprises public switched telephone network (PSTN)
110, an IEEE 802.11 wireless local area network (WLAN) 113, an IEEE
802.16 wireless metropolitan area network (WMAN) 115, and mobile
terminals (MTs) 116a and 116b. The MT 116b may be within the range
of the IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and the IEEE 802.16 WMAN 115. In this
regard, the MT 116b may be adapted to receive multimedia content
from one or more base stations within the IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and
the IEEE 802.16 WMAN 115.
[0027] The terrestrial broadcaster network 102 may comprise
transmitter (Tx) 102a, multiplexer (Mux) 102b, and information
content source 114. The content source 114 may also be referred to
as a data carousel, which may comprise audio, data, and/or video
content. The terrestrial broadcaster network 102 may also comprise
VHF/UHF broadcast antennas 112a and 112b. The wireless service
provider network 104 may comprise mobile switching center (MSC)
118a, and a plurality of cellular base stations 104a, 104b, 104c,
and 104d.
[0028] The terrestrial broadcaster network 102 may comprise
suitable equipment that may be adapted to encode and/or encrypt
data for transmission via the transmitter 102a. The transmitter
102a in the terrestrial broadcast network 102 may be adapted to
utilize VHF/UHF broadcast channels to communicate information to
the mobile terminals 116a and 116b. The multiplexer 102b associated
with the terrestrial broadcaster network 102 may be utilized to
multiplex data from a plurality of sources. For example, the
multiplexer 102b may be adapted to multiplex various types of
information such as audio, video and/or data into a single pipe or
stream for transmission by the transmitter 102a. In one embodiment,
the data carousel 114 may be located outside the terrestrial
broadcaster network 102. In this regard, information from the data
carousel 114 may be communicated to the terrestrial broadcaster
network 102 via a wireless and/or a wired connection.
[0029] Although communication links between the service provider
106 and the wireless service provider 104 may be wired
communication links, the present disclosure may not be so limited.
Accordingly, the communication links may comprise a wireless
communication link. In an exemplary embodiment, the communication
link between the service provider 106 and the wireless service
provider 104 may be an IEEE 802.x based communication link, such as
an IEEE 802.16 WMAN or WiMax broadband access communication link.
In another exemplary embodiment, the communication link may
comprise a broadband line of sight (LOS) connection.
[0030] The wireless service provider network 104 may be a cellular
network, such as a personal communications service network. Usage
of the term cellular may comprise any band of frequencies that may
be utilized for cellular telephone communication. The wireless
service provider network 104 may utilize cellular access
technologies such as GSM, CDMA, CDMA2000, WCDMA, HSDPA, AMPS,
N-AMPS, and/or TDMA. The cellular network may be utilized to offer
bidirectional services via uplink and downlink communication
channels. In this regard, other bidirectional communication
methodologies comprising uplink and downlink capabilities, whether
symmetric or asymmetric, may be utilized.
[0031] Although the wireless service provider network 104 is
illustrated as a GSM, CDMA, WCDMA based network and/or variants
thereof, the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.
Accordingly, the wireless service provider network 104 may be an
IEEE 802.11 wireless local area network (WLAN). Additionally, the
wireless service provider network 104 may also be adapted to
provide GSM, CDMA, WCDMA, CDMA2000 based network services and/or
variants thereof. In this regard, the mobile terminals 116a and
116b may also be compliant with the GSM, CDMA, WCDMA, CDMA2000, and
IEEE 802.11 based wireless network.
[0032] In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, if the mobile
terminal (MT) 116a is within an operating range of the VHF/UHF
broadcasting antenna 112a and moves out of the latter's operating
range and into an operating range of the VHF/UHF broadcasting
antenna 112b, then VHF/UHF broadcasting antenna 112b may be adapted
to provide VHF/UHF broadcast services to the mobile terminal 116a.
If the mobile terminal 116a subsequently moves back into the
operating range of the VHF/UHF broadcasting antenna 112a, then the
broadcasting antenna 112a may be adapted to provide VHF/UHF
broadcasting service to the mobile terminal 116a. In a somewhat
similar manner, if the mobile terminal (MT) 116b is within an
operating range of the VHF/UHF broadcasting antenna 112b and moves
out of the latter's operating range and into an operating range of
the broadcasting antenna 112a, then the VHF/UHF broadcasting
antenna 112a may be adapted to provide VHF/UHF broadcasting service
to the mobile terminal 116b. If the mobile terminal 116b
subsequently moves back into the operating range of broadcasting
antenna 112b, then the VHF/UHF broadcasting antenna 112b may be
adapted to provide VHF/UHF broadcast services to the mobile
terminal 116b.
[0033] The service provider 106 may comprise suitable interfaces,
circuitry, logic and/or code that may be adapted to facilitate
communication between the mobile terminals 116a and 116b and the
wireless communication network 104. In an illustrative embodiment
the service provider 106 may be adapted to utilize its interfaces
to facilitate exchange of control information with the wireless
communication network 104 and to exchange control information with
the mobile terminals 116a and 116b. The control information
exchanged by the service provider 106 with the wireless
communication network 104 and the mobile terminals 116a and 116b
may be utilized to control certain operations of the mobile
terminals and the wireless communication network 104. Exemplary
operations that may be controlled may comprise receiving multimedia
content from the portal 108 and/or communicating multimedia content
to a mobile terminal communicatively coupled to the wireless
network 104.
[0034] In accordance with an embodiment, the service provider 106
may also comprise suitable interfaces, circuitry, logic and/or code
that may be adapted to handle network policy decisions. For
example, the service provider 106 may be adapted to manage a load
on the wireless communication network 104. A load may indicate a
total amount of data, such as multimedia content, which may be
requested by a plurality of mobile terminals within the wireless
network 104. Load management may be utilized to control how
information such as media content is distributed by the wireless
communication network 104 and the terrestrial broadcaster network
102. For example, load may be distributed among the base stations
104a, 104b, 104c, 104d so as to optimally provide cellular and/or
broadcast services to the mobile terminals 116a and 116b.
[0035] The network or portal 108 may comprise suitable interfaces,
logic, circuitry and/or code that may be adapted to provide content
media to the service provider 106 via one or more communication
links. These communication links, although not shown, may comprise
wired and/or wireless communication links. The content media that
may be provided by the network or portal 108 may comprise audio,
data, video or any combination thereof. In this regard, the network
or portal 108 may be adapted to provide one or more specialized
information services to the service provider 106.
[0036] In another embodiment, the network or portal 108 may be
adapted to provide multimedia content to one or more base stations
within the IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and/or to the IEEE WMAN 115 via a
wired and/or wireless connection. Furthermore, the IEEE 802.11 WLAN
113 and/or the IEEE WMAN 115 may be communicatively coupled to the
data carousel 114 within the terrestrial broadcaster network 102.
In this regard, one or more base stations within the IEEE 802.11
WLAN 113 and/or the IEEE WMAN 115 may receive multimedia data from
the network or portal 108 and/or from the data carousel 114. Even
though two multimedia sources, 108 and 114, are discussed with
regard to FIG. 1, the present disclosure may not be so limited. The
IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and/or the IEEE WMAN 115 may utilize other
sources of multimedia data, which may be coupled via a wired and/or
wireless connection to the IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and/or to the IEEE
WMAN 115. The IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and/or the IEEE WMAN 115 may
communicate multimedia data to the MT 116b via one or more downlink
communication paths, such as an IEEE 802.11 WLAN downlink
communication path and/or an IEEE WMAN downlink communication
path.
[0037] The public switched telephone network (PSTN) 110 may be
coupled to the MSC 118a. Accordingly, the MSC 118a may comprise
suitable interfaces that may be adapted to switch calls originating
from within the PSTN 110 to one or more mobile terminals serviced
by the wireless service provider 104. Similarly, the MSC 118a may
be adapted to switch calls originating from mobile terminals
serviced by the wireless service provider 104 to one or more
telephones serviced by the PSTN 110. In an embodiment, a T1 or T3
connection, for example, may be utilized to facilitate
communication between the PSTN and the 110 and the MSC 118a.
[0038] In one aspect of the present disclosure, the information
content source 114 may comprise a data carousel. In this regard,
the information content source 114 may be adapted to provide
various information services, which may comprise online data
including audio, video and data content. The information content
source 114 may also comprise file download, and software download
capabilities. In instances where a mobile terminal fails to acquire
requested information from the information content source 114 or
the requested information is unavailable, then the mobile terminal
may receive the requested information via, for example, a cellular
channel from the portal 108. The request may be initiated through
an uplink cellular communication path.
[0039] The mobile terminals (MTs) 116a and 116b may comprise
suitable logic, circuitry and/or code that may be adapted to handle
the processing of downlink cellular channels for various access
technologies and broadcast UHF/VHF technologies. Furthermore, the
MTs 116a and 116b may be adapted to receive multimedia data via one
or more downlink communication paths from the IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113
and/or from the IEEE WMAN 115. In an exemplary embodiment, the
mobile terminals 116a and 116b may be adapted to utilize one or
more cellular access technologies such as GSM, GPRS, EDGE, CDMA,
WCDMA, and CDMA2000.
[0040] The mobile terminals may also be adapted to receive and
process VHF/UHF broadcast signals in the VHF/UHF bands. For
example, a mobile terminal may be adapted to receive and process
DVB-H signals. A mobile terminal may be adapted to request
information via a first cellular service and in response, receive
corresponding information via a VHF/UHF broadcast service. A mobile
terminal may also be adapted to request information from a service
provider via a cellular service and in response, receive
corresponding information via a data service, which is provided via
the cellular service. The mobile terminals may be adapted to
receive VHF/UHF broadcast information from the VHF/UHF broadcast
antennas 112a and 112b. In some instances, the mobile terminal may
communicate corresponding uplink information via an uplink cellular
communication channel.
[0041] In one embodiment, a mobile terminal may be adapted to
utilize a plurality of broadcast integrated circuits for receiving
and processing VHF/UHF channels, and a plurality of cellular
integrated circuits for receiving and processing cellular or PCS
channels. In this regard, the plurality of cellular integrated
circuits may be adapted to handle different cellular access
technologies. For example, at least one of the cellular integrated
circuits may be adapted to handle GSM, and at least one of the
cellular integrated circuits may be adapted to handle WCDMA. For
broadcast channels, each of the plurality of broadcast integrated
circuits may be adapted to handle at least one VHF/UHF channel.
[0042] In another embodiment, a mobile terminal, such as the mobile
terminal 116b, may be adapted to receive broadcast information via
a plurality of downlink communication paths. For example, the MT
116b may be adapted to receive multimedia content via a DVB-H
broadcast communication path from the base station 112b and/or via
a cellular downlink communication path from the base station 104a.
Furthermore, the MT 116b may receive multimedia content from one or
more base stations within the IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and/or the IEEE
802.16 WMAN 115. Content communicated from the base station 112b,
the base station 104a, or from the IEEE 802.11 WLAN 113 and/or the
IEEE WMAN 115 may be shaped or selected based on downlink channel
conditions of the downlink communication paths utilized by the MT
116b. For example, the MT 116b may determine one or more downlink
channel condition indicators associated with downlink communication
paths utilized by the MT 116b. The downlink channel conditions may
be communicated to one or more of the base stations, such as the
cellular base station 104a. The cellular base station may then
route multimedia content information from the network or portal 108
to the mobile 116b via one or more of the downlink communication
paths, based on the received downlink channel conditions.
[0043] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary communication
system for communicating information from a DVB-H base station, a
cellular base station, an IEEE 802.11 base station, and an IEEE
802.16 base station, in accordance with an embodiment. Referring to
FIG. 2, the communication system 200 may comprise a multimedia
content provider 212, a plurality of base stations 202, . . . , 208
and a mobile terminal 210. The plurality of base stations 202, . .
. , 208 may comprise a DVB-H base station 202, an IEEE 802.11 WLAN
base station 204, an IEEE 802.16 WMAN base station 206, and a
cellular base station 208. The DVB-H base station 202 may be
adapted to communicate information to the mobile terminal 210 via
the DVB-H downlink communication path 202a. The IEEE 802.11 WLAN
base station 204 may be adapted to communicate information to the
mobile terminal 210 via the IEEE 802.11 WLAN downlink communication
path 204a. The IEEE 802.16 WMAN base station 206 may be adapted to
communicate information to the mobile terminal 210 via the IEEE
802.16 WMAN downlink communication path 206a. The cellular base
station 208 may be adapted to communicate information to the mobile
terminal 210 via the cellular downlink communication path 208a.
[0044] In operation, the mobile terminal 210 may determine one or
more downlink channel condition indicators for the downlink
communication paths 202a, . . . , 208a. For example, the mobile
terminal 210 may determine a bit-error-rate (BER) for each of the
downlink communication paths 202a, . . . , 208a. The mobile
terminal may then communicate the determined BER to one or more of
the base stations 202, . . . , 208. For example, the determined BER
may be communicated to the cellular base station 208. The cellular
base station may utilize a processor, such as a content selection
processor, to route multimedia content from the content provider
212 to the mobile terminal 210 via one or more of the downlink
communication paths 202a, . . . , 208a. In this regard, the
cellular base station 208 and/or the content selection processor
may communicate one or more content selection signals to the
multimedia content provider 212. Based on the content signals that
are communicated to the multimedia content provider 212, multimedia
content may be routed through one of the downlink paths 202a, 204a,
206a, and 208a to the mobile terminal 210.
[0045] A bit-error-rate (BER) algorithm, which may be utilized in
accordance with the present disclosure, is disclosed in "BER
Estimation for HiperLAN/2" (Lodewijk T. Smit, et al., International
Federation for Information Processing, 2004), which is incorporated
herein by reference.
[0046] Communication of the information selected from the
multimedia content provider 212 may be apportioned between one or
more of the downlink communication paths 202a, . . . , 208a, based
on the downlink channel conditions of the communication paths. For
example, the DVB-H downlink communication path 202a may be
initially utilized to transmit video and audio content from the
multimedia content provider 212 to the mobile terminal 210. Channel
conditions at the mobile may be determined by various signal
measurements taken by the mobile terminal 210. These measurements
may be sent from the mobile terminal 210 to the cellular base
station 208 via an uplink channel. In one embodiment, channel
conditions for the DVB-H downlink communication path may be
measured by the mobile terminal and a BER rate for the DVB-H link
may be communicated to the cellular base station 208. Based on the
channel measurements, the cellular base station 208 may apportion
the media content, which may be delivered to the mobile terminal
210 via one ore more downlink communication paths. For example, if
conditions on the DVB-H downlink deteriorate, audio content from
the multimedia content provider 212 may be delivered to the mobile
terminal 210 via the cellular downlink communication path 208a. In
this regard, the DVB-H downlink communication path may be utilized
to communicate the video portion of multimedia content, which may
improve quality of service (QoS) on the DVB-H downlink
communication path 202a.
[0047] In another exemplary embodiment, the cellular base station
208 may apportion multimedia content communication among one more
communication paths based on the BER of the DVB-H downlink and an
audio and/or video portion of the multimedia content may be routed
away from the DVB-H downlink communication path. For example, the.
IEEE 802.16 downlink communication path 206a may be utilized for
communicating video information from the multimedia content
provider 212 to the mobile terminal 210, and the IEEE 802.11
downlink communication path 204a may be utilized for communicating
audio information from the multimedia content provider 212 to the
mobile terminal 210.
[0048] In one embodiment, information requiring higher bandwidth,
such as latency-sensitive information, may be communicated to the
mobile terminal 210 via a downlink communication path with greater
bandwidth, such as the DVB-H downlink communication path 202a.
Similarly, information that is not latency-sensitive may be
communicated to the mobile terminal 210 via a lower bandwidth
communication path, such as the cellular downlink communication
path 208a. For example, when downloading a Web page, then video or
graphics content may be communicated to the mobile terminal 210
from the DVB-H base station 202 via the DVB-H downlink
communication path 202a. Text data may be communicated to the
mobile terminal 210 from the cellular base station 208 via the
cellular downlink communication path 208a using, for example, GPRS
or EDGE. The amount and/or type of traffic that may be apportioned
by a content selection processor, for example, to the DVB-H
downlink communication path 202a and to the cellular downlink
communication path 208a may be dynamically varied during
transmission of data to the mobile terminal 210 or may be
determined in advance and prior to any data transmission to the
mobile terminal 210.
[0049] In one embodiment, a processor such as a channel condition
processor may be utilized to determine downlink channel conditions
of the downlink communication paths 202a, . . . , 208a. The channel
condition processor may comprise suitable circuitry, logic, and/or
code and may be adapted to determine one or more indications of
downlink channel condition. For example, the channel processor may
be adapted to determine bit error rate (BER), received signal
strength indicator (RSSI), a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), a
signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio (SINR), power level, and/or
signal gain associated with one or more of the downlink
communication paths 202a, . . . , 208a. In one embodiment, the
channel condition processor may be located within the mobile
terminal 210 and may be utilized to determine downlink channel
condition indicators of one or more of the downlink communication
paths 202a, . . . , 208a. The determined downlink channel condition
indicators may be communicated to one or more of the base stations
202, . . . , 208 for media content delivery selection.
[0050] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary communication
system for communicating information from a plurality of base
stations with content selection capabilities, in accordance with an
embodiment. Referring to FIG. 3, the communication system 300a may
comprise a multimedia content provider 322a, a plurality of base
stations 306a, . . . , 312a and a mobile terminal 302a. The
cellular base station 308a may comprise a content selection
processor 316a. The mobile terminal 302a may comprise a channel
condition processor 304a.
[0051] The plurality of base stations 306a, . . . , 312a may
comprise a DVB-H base station 306a, a cellular base station 308a,
an IEEE 802.11 wireless station (WS) 310a, and an IEEE 802.16 WS
312a. The DVB-H base station 306a may be adapted to communicate
information to the mobile terminal 302a via the DVB-H downlink
communication path 332a. The IEEE 802.11 WS 310a may be adapted to
communicate information to the mobile terminal 302a via the IEEE
802.11 downlink communication path 336a. The IEEE 802.16 WS 312a
may be adapted to communicate information to the mobile terminal
302a via the IEEE 802.16 downlink communication path 338a. The
cellular base station 308a may be adapted to communicate
information to the mobile terminal 302a via the cellular downlink
communication path 334a.
[0052] The channel condition processor 304a within the mobile
terminal 302a may comprise suitable circuitry, logic, and/or code
and may be adapted to determine one or more indications of downlink
channel conditions for the downlink communication paths 332a, . . .
, 338a, respectively. For example, the channel condition processor
304a may be adapted to determine one or more downlink channel
condition indicator, such as a bit-error-rate (BER), received
signal strength indicator (RSSI), a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), a
signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio (SINR), power level, and/or
signal gain associated with one or more of the downlink
communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a. The downlink channel
condition indicators determined by the channel condition processor
304a may be communicated via the cellular downlink communication
path 334a to the content selection processor 316a within the
cellular base station 308a.
[0053] The content selection processor 316a may comprise suitable
circuitry, logic, and/or code and may be adapted to select and
apportion multimedia content from the multimedia content provider
322a for communication to the mobile terminal 302a via one or more
of the downlink communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a based on the
downlink channel condition indicators received from the channel
condition processor 304a. For example, the content selection
processor 316a within the cellular base station 308a may receive
BER indicators for the downlink communication paths 332a, . . . ,
338a from the channel condition processor 304a. The content
selection processor 316a may then apportion communication of video
content from the multimedia content provider 322a to the mobile
terminal 302a via the DVB-H downlink communication path 332a.
Furthermore, the content selection processor 316a may route
communication of audio content from the multimedia content provider
322a to the mobile terminal 302a via the cellular downlink
communication path 334a. Exemplary channel condition indicators
that may be used by the content selection processor 316a may
comprise BER, RSSI, SNR, and SINR.
[0054] Even though the content selection processor 316a is
implemented within the cellular base station 316a, the present
disclosure may not be so limited. A content selection processor may
also be implemented within one or more of the remaining base
stations, such as the IEEE 802.11 WS 310a and/or the IEEE 802.16 WS
312a.
[0055] In operation, the channel condition processor 304a may
determine downlink channel conditions for the downlink
communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a. In accordance with an
embodiment, the determined downlink channel condition indicators
may be communicated to the content selection processor 316a within
the cellular base station 308a via the communication path 334a. The
content selection processor 316a may select and apportion
multimedia content from the multimedia content provider 322a for
communication to the mobile terminal 302a via one or more of the
downlink communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a based on the
downlink channel condition indicators received from the channel
condition processor 304a.
[0056] In one embodiment, the mobile terminal 302a may determine
downlink channel condition indicators for each of the downlink
communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a prior to communicating any
information by the base stations 306a, . . . , 312a to the mobile
terminal 302a. The determined downlink channel condition indicators
may be communicated to the content selection processor 316a within
the cellular base station 308a via the communication path 334a. The
content selection processor 316a may determine how media content
from the multimedia content provider 322a should be apportioned and
routed to the mobile terminal 302a based on the received downlink
channel condition indicators.
[0057] In another embodiment, the content selection processor 316a
may select one of the plurality of base stations 306a, . . . ,
312a, to communicate at least a portion of content from the
multimedia content provider 322a to the mobile terminal 302a. For
example, the content selection processor 316a may select the DVB-H
base station 306a to start communication of information from the
multimedia content provider 322a. During communication of
information to the mobile terminal 302a, the channel condition
processor 304a within the mobile terminal 302a may determine
channel condition indicators for the downlink communication paths
332a, . . . , 338a. The content selection processor 316a may then
compare the downlink channel condition indicators and may determine
the downlink communication path with best channel conditions.
Transmission of multimedia content, or a portion thereof, may then
be apportioned and/or re-routed from the current downlink
communication path to the downlink communication path with better
downlink channel conditions. For example, the DVB-H downlink
communication path 332a may deteriorate and content transmission
may be apportioned among one or more of the remaining downlink
communication paths 334a, . . . , 338a.
[0058] In yet another embodiment, user profile data and/or prior
usage data may be utilized to determine how media content and/or
data may be apportioned and assigned to various downlink
communication paths within the communication system 300a. For
example, a user profile stored within the mobile terminal 302a, for
example, may be communicated to the content selection processor
316a within the cellular base station 308a. The user profile may
also be utilized to indicate a type of content that may be
communicated to the mobile terminal 302a via a particular downlink
communication path. The type of media content and/or data that may
be communicated to the mobile terminal 302a via the various
downlink communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a may also be
dependent on prior usage patterns.
[0059] For example, the mobile terminal 302a may communicate prior
usage data and/or user profile data to the content selection
processor 316a within the cellular base station 308a via the
downlink communication path 334a. The prior usage data may indicate
a type of downlink communication path that was previously used by
the mobile terminal 302a to receive a particular type of multimedia
data. For example prior usage data may indicate that the DVB-H
downlink communication path 332a was used for communication of
video data and the cellular downlink communication path 334a was
used for communication of text data to the mobile terminal 302a.
The user profile data may be generated by a user of the mobile
terminal 302a and may also indicate a type of downlink
communication path to be used for communication of certain type of
content. After the content selection processor 316a receives prior
usage data and/or user profile data from the mobile terminal 302a,
the content selection processor 316a may indicate that content from
the multimedia content provider 322a which is destined for the
mobile terminal 302a may be delivered via one or more of the
downlink communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a.
[0060] In another embodiment, the resolution of media content
communicated to the mobile terminal 302a may be reduced or
increased based on downlink channel conditions. For example, if
channel conditions are good, then a maximum resolution or bit rate
may be used to transfer multimedia content. As channel conditions
deteriorate, for example, below a certain threshold, then the
resolution of the content or the bit rate may be decreased
accordingly. However, as downlink channel conditions within the
communication system 300b improve, then the resolution or the bit
rate of the media content may be increased accordingly.
[0061] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary channel condition
processor, in accordance with an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 4,
the channel condition processor 400 may comprise a bit error rate
(BER) block 404, a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) block
402, a signal power block 406, a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) block
414, a signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio (SINR) block 410, a
signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) block 408, and signal gain block
412. The channel condition processor 400 may be the same as the
channel condition processors 304a utilized within the communication
system 300a in FIG. 3.
[0062] The bit error rate (BER) block 404 may comprise suitable
circuitry, logic, and/or code and may be adapted to determine a BER
for a downlink communication path. The received signal strength
indicator (RSSI) block 402 may comprise suitable circuitry, logic,
and/or code and may be adapted to determine an RSSI for a downlink
communication path. The signal power block 406 may comprise
suitable circuitry, logic, and/or code and may be adapted to
determine signal power for signals communicated to a mobile
terminal via a downlink communication path. The signal-to-noise
ratio (SNR) block 414, the signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio
(SINR) block 410, and the signal-to-interference ratio (SIR) block
408 may each comprise suitable circuitry, logic, and/or code and
may be adapted to determine SNR, SINR, and SIR, respectively, for a
signal communicated to a mobile terminal via a downlink
communication path. The signal gain block 412 may comprise suitable
circuitry, logic, and/or code and may be adapted to calculate
signal gain for a signal communicated to a mobile terminal via a
downlink communication path.
[0063] FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary steps for
communicating information in a network, in accordance with an
embodiment. Referring to FIGS. 3 and 5, at 502, at least a
bit-error-rate (BER) may be determined for at least a DVB-H
downlink communication path utilized for communicating multimedia
content in the communication system 300a. The communication system
300a may comprise a plurality of downlink communication paths 332a,
. . . , 338a using different communication protocols. At 504, at
least a portion of the multimedia content may be communicated via
at least one of the plurality of downlink communication paths 332a,
. . . , 338a to a least one mobile communication device 302a based
on at least the determined at least the BER. At 506, delivery of
the multimedia content via at least one of the plurality of
downlink communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a using different
communication protocols to the mobile communication device 302a may
be apportioned based on the determined at least the BER for the at
least the DVB-H downlink communication path. At 508, at least one
of: a text portion, a video portion, and an audio portion of the
multimedia content 322a may be delivered to the mobile
communication device 302a via at least one of the plurality of
downlink communication paths 332a, . . . , 338a using different
communication protocols based on the apportioning.
[0064] Accordingly, aspects of the present disclosure may be
realized in hardware, software, firmware or a combination thereof.
The present disclosure may be realized in a centralized fashion in
at least one computer system or in a distributed fashion where
different elements are spread across several interconnected
computer systems. Any kind of computer system or other apparatus
adapted for carrying out the methods described herein is suited. A
typical combination of hardware, software and firmware may be a
general-purpose computer system with a computer program that, when
being loaded and executed, controls the computer system such that
it carries out the methods described herein.
[0065] One embodiment of the present disclosure may be implemented
as a board level product, as a single chip, application specific
integrated circuit (ASIC), or with varying levels integrated on a
single chip with other portions of the system as separate
components. The degree of integration of the system will primarily
be determined by speed and cost considerations. Because of the
sophisticated nature of modern processors, it is possible to
utilize a commercially available processor, which may be
implemented external to an ASIC implementation of the present
system. Alternatively, if the processor is available as an ASIC
core or logic block, then the commercially available processor may
be implemented as part of an ASIC device with various functions
implemented as firmware.
[0066] The present disclosure may also be embedded in a computer
program product, which comprises all the features enabling the
implementation of the methods described herein, and which when
loaded in a computer system is able to carry out these methods.
Computer program in the present context may mean, for example, any
expression, in any language, code or notation, of a set of
instructions intended to cause a system having an information
processing capability to perform a particular function either
directly or after either or both of the following: a) conversion to
another language, code or notation; b) reproduction in a different
material form. However, other meanings of computer program within
the understanding of those skilled in the art are also contemplated
by the present disclosure.
[0067] While the present disclosure has been described with
reference to certain embodiments, it will be understood by those
skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents
may be substituted without departing from the scope of the present
disclosure. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a
particular situation or material to the teachings of the present
disclosure without departing from its scope. Therefore, it is
intended that the present disclosure not be limited to the
particular embodiments disclosed, but that the present disclosure
will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the
appended claims.
* * * * *