U.S. patent application number 16/465727 was filed with the patent office on 2019-11-07 for channel selection in an unlicensed frequency band.
The applicant listed for this patent is Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ). Invention is credited to Thomas Nilsson, Leif Wilhelmsson.
Application Number | 20190342762 16/465727 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 57799674 |
Filed Date | 2019-11-07 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20190342762 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Nilsson; Thomas ; et
al. |
November 7, 2019 |
Channel Selection in an Unlicensed Frequency Band
Abstract
A process for selecting frequency channel(s) used by a network
node (20) operating in an unlicensed band is disclosed. To that
end, a network node (20) analyzes a signal received for each of
multiple frequency channels using autocorrelation techniques, and
thus without first demodulating the signals, to determine what
types of wireless communication devices (32) are contributing to
the load of each frequency channel. The network node (20) then
selects one of the frequency channels for scheduling communications
in the unlicensed band with a wireless communication device (30),
where the selection is responsive not only to the estimated load,
but also to the identified types of other wireless communication
devices (32).
Inventors: |
Nilsson; Thomas; (Malmo,
SE) ; Wilhelmsson; Leif; (Lund, SE) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) |
Stockholm |
|
SE |
|
|
Family ID: |
57799674 |
Appl. No.: |
16/465727 |
Filed: |
December 20, 2016 |
PCT Filed: |
December 20, 2016 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/EP2016/081999 |
371 Date: |
May 31, 2019 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04W 72/0453 20130101;
H04W 16/14 20130101; H04W 72/0486 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04W 16/14 20060101
H04W016/14; H04W 72/04 20060101 H04W072/04 |
Claims
1-27. (canceled)
28. A method of selecting frequency channels for a wireless network
operating in an unlicensed band and comprising a network node and a
wireless communication device, the network node configured to send
downlink signals to the wireless communication device and to
receive uplink signals from the wireless communication device, the
method implemented by the network node and comprising: receiving a
signal for each of two or more frequency channels; estimating a
load of each of the two or more frequency channels responsive to
the received signals; for each of the two or more frequency
channels: correlating the corresponding received signal with one or
more delayed versions of the corresponding received signal to
generate one or more autocorrelation results, wherein each delayed
version of the corresponding received signal is associated with a
different delay; identifying one or more types of wireless
communication devices associated with the corresponding received
signal using at least one of the one or more autocorrelation
results; selecting one of the two or more frequency channels for
the unlicensed band responsive to the estimated loads and the
identified types of wireless communication devices; and scheduling
communications in the unlicensed band with the wireless
communication device on the selected frequency channel.
29. The method of claim 28 wherein correlating the corresponding
received signal with one or more delayed versions of the
corresponding received signal comprises, for each of the two or
more frequency channels: delaying the corresponding received signal
by a first delay and by a second delay to respectively generate a
first delayed signal and a second delayed signal, the first delay
being different than the second delay; correlating the
corresponding received signal with the first delayed signal to
generate a first autocorrelation result; correlating the
corresponding received signal with the second delayed signal to
generate a second autocorrelation result; and wherein identifying
the one or more types of wireless communication devices comprises
identifying the one or more types of wireless communication devices
associated with the corresponding received signal using the first
and second autocorrelation results.
30. The method of claim 29 wherein the first delay is greater than
the second delay, and wherein identifying the one or more types of
wireless communication devices comprises, for each of the two or
more frequency channels, associating a first type of wireless
communication device with the corresponding received signal when
the first autocorrelation result includes multiple peaks or when
the first and second autocorrelation results include multiple
peaks, and associating a second type of wireless communication
device with the corresponding received signal when only the second
autocorrelation result includes multiple peaks.
31. The method of claim 28 wherein identifying the one or more
types of wireless communication devices comprises, for each of the
two or more frequency channels: measuring a distance between two
consecutive peaks in at least one of the autocorrelation results;
associating the corresponding received signal with a first type of
wireless communication device when the measured distance exceeds a
predetermined threshold; and associating the corresponding received
signal with a second type of wireless communication device when the
measured distance is less than the predetermined threshold.
32. The method of claim 28 wherein correlating the corresponding
received signal with one or more delayed versions of the
corresponding received signal comprises correlating the
corresponding received signal with one delayed version of the
corresponding received signal to generate a first autocorrelation
result, wherein identifying the one or more types of wireless
communication devices comprises: associating the corresponding
received signal with a first type of wireless communication device
when the first autocorrelation result produces multiple peaks; and
associating the corresponding received signal with a second type of
wireless communication device when the first autocorrelation result
produces no peaks.
33. The method of claim 28 wherein identifying the one or more
types of wireless communication devices comprises: associating the
corresponding received signal with a first type of wireless
communication device when a first one of the one or more
autocorrelation results produces multiple peaks for a first part of
the corresponding received signal and a second one of the one or
more autocorrelation results produces multiple peaks for a second
part of the corresponding received signal; and associating the
corresponding received signal with a second type of wireless
communication device when the one or more autocorrelation results
produces multiple peaks for the first part or the second part of
the corresponding received signal.
34. The method of claim 28 further comprising estimating a number
of packets associated with each type of wireless communication
device using at least one of the one or more autocorrelation
results, wherein selecting one of the two or more frequency
channels comprises selecting one of the two or more frequency
channels responsive to the estimated loads, the identified types of
wireless communication devices, and the estimated number of
packets.
35. The method of claim 28 further comprising estimating a number
of devices associated with each type of wireless communication
device using at least one of the one or more autocorrelation
results, wherein selecting one of the two or more frequency
channels comprises selecting one of the two or more frequency
channels responsive to the estimated loads, the identified types of
wireless communication devices, and the estimated number of
devices.
36. The method of claim 28 further comprising: estimating a number
of packets associated with each type of wireless communication
device using at least one of the one or more autocorrelation
results; estimating a number of devices associated with each type
of wireless communication device using at least one of the one or
more autocorrelation results; wherein selecting one of the two or
more frequency channels comprises selecting one of the two or more
frequency channels responsive to the estimated loads, the
identified types of wireless communication devices, the estimated
number of devices, and the estimated number of packets.
37. The method of claim 28 further comprising estimating what
fraction of each frequency channel is occupied by each type of
wireless communication device using the one or more autocorrelation
results, wherein selecting one of the two or more frequency
channels comprises selecting one of the two or more frequency
channels responsive to the estimated loads, the identified types of
wireless communication devices, and the estimated fraction.
38. The method of claim 28 wherein the one or more types of
wireless communication devices comprises different first and second
types of wireless communication devices, wherein the first type of
wireless communication device is configured according to IEEE
802.11ax and wherein the second type of wireless communication
device is not configured for IEEE 802.11ax.
39. The method of claim 28 wherein estimating the load of each of
the two or more frequency channels comprises measuring, for each
frequency channel, a fraction of time of the received signal that
the corresponding frequency channel is occupied.
40. A network node in a wireless network operating in an unlicensed
band, the wireless network comprising the network node and a
wireless communication device, the network node configured to send
downlink signals to the wireless communication device and to
receive uplink signals from the wireless communication device, the
network node comprising: a transceiver circuit configured to
receive a signal for each of two or more frequency channels; a load
circuit configured to estimate a load of each of the two or more
frequency channels responsive to the received signals; an
identification circuit comprising: a correlation circuit configured
to, for each of the two or more frequency channels, correlate the
corresponding received signal with one or more delayed versions of
the corresponding received signal to generate one or more
autocorrelation results, wherein each delayed version of the
corresponding received signal is associated with a different delay;
wherein the identification circuit is configured to identify, for
each of the two or more frequency channels, one or more types of
wireless communication devices associated with the corresponding
received signal using at least one of the one or more
autocorrelation results; a selection circuit configured to select
one of the two or more frequency channels for the unlicensed band
responsive to the estimated loads and the identified types of
wireless communication devices; and a scheduling circuit configured
to schedule communications in the unlicensed band with the wireless
communication device on the selected frequency channel.
41. The network node of claim 40 wherein the correlation circuit is
configured to correlate the corresponding received signal with one
or more delayed versions of the corresponding received signal by,
for each of the two or more frequency channels: delaying the
corresponding received signal by a first delay and by a second
delay to respectively generate a first delayed signal and a second
delayed signal, the first delay being different than the second
delay; correlating the corresponding received signal with the first
delayed signal to generate a first autocorrelation result; and
correlating the corresponding received signal with the second
delayed signal to generate a second autocorrelation result; wherein
the identification circuit is configured to identify the one or
more types of wireless communication devices by, for each of the
two or more frequency channels, identifying the one or more types
of wireless communication devices associated with the corresponding
received signal using the first and second autocorrelation
results.
42. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a computer
program product for controlling a network node comprising
instructions which, when executed on at least one processor of the
network node, causes the network node to: receive a signal for each
of two or more frequency channels; estimate a load of each of the
two or more frequency channels responsive to the received signals;
for each of the two or more frequency channels: correlate the
corresponding received signal with one or more delayed versions of
the corresponding received signal to generate one or more
autocorrelation results, wherein each delayed version of the
corresponding received signal is associated with a different delay;
identify one or more types of wireless communication devices
associated with the corresponding received signal using at least
one of the one or more autocorrelation results; select one of the
two or more frequency channels for the unlicensed band responsive
to the estimated loads and the identified types of wireless
communication devices; and schedule communications in the
unlicensed band with the wireless communication device on the
selected frequency channel.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The solution presented herein generally relates to channel
selection for a wireless communication device in a network, and
more particularly to channel selection in an unlicensed frequency
band.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The ever increasing need for more frequency spectrum in
wireless communications has recently shifted the attention of
standards developers to unlicensed frequency bands. Given the large
amount of spectrum available in unlicensed frequency bands, the
capacity in Long-Term Evolution (LTE), developed for the 3rd
Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), could potentially be
increased. However, unlicensed frequency bands come with additional
challenges associated with, e.g., managing interference and
coexisting with other technologies.
[0003] In response, a Licensed-Assisted Access (LAA) framework in
3GPP has been introduced. The LAA framework (3GPP Release 13)
builds on carrier aggregation solutions introduced in Release 10
LTE to access the additional bandwidth in the unlicensed frequency
bands. FIG. 1 shows an exemplary LAA framework 40, where an
enhanced NodeB (eNB) uses and configures a secondary cell (SCell)
44 or an LAA carrier on the unlicensed band. The primary cell
(PCell) 42 carries the more critical real-time traffic and control
information, while the LAA carrier will be used to increase the
capacity for less sensitive data, e.g., best effort data. The next
3GPP release may enable LAA to operate without a licensed primary
carrier in a more stand-alone fashion, which may present additional
challenges. In contrast with legacy Wi-Fi standards, the LAA uplink
is scheduled and is not allowed to contend for access on its own.
Instead, the User Equipments (UEs) receive so called uplink grants
from the eNB containing information regarding when the UEs are
allowed to transmit. Uplink and downlink transmissions are usually
contained within the same transmission opportunity (TXOP). This
way, the eNB protects the uplink from channel competing
technologies.
[0004] The need to coexist with other technologies operating in the
same frequency band presents a challenge to the use of the
unlicensed frequency bands for the LAA carrier. The major
technology operating in the unlicensed frequency band today is
Wi-Fi, which is governed by the Wi-Fi standard IEEE 802.11 and all
its variants. The traditional method used by IEEE 802.11 devices to
coexist and share the spectrum is the so called Carrier Sense
Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA/CA). Devices
following this scheme use carrier sensing to detect other
transmissions, and perform back-off to defer transmissions until
the channel is found idle. This algorithm is also known as a
Listen-Before-Talk (LBT) scheme.
[0005] IEEE 802.11ax is the latest Wi-Fi technology variant and is
currently being standardized by the IEEE 802.11ax task group
(TGax). Two of the most prominent new features in 802.11ax are
uplink/downlink Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access
(OFDMA) and uplink Multi-User Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output
(MU-MIMO). Another important feature, which is generally not found
in earlier variants of IEEE 802.11, is a scheduled uplink.
Traditionally the uplink and downlink in Wi-Fi have operated under
the same channel access rules. Specifically, the non-network nodes
have contended for the channel using CSMA/CA. The motivation behind
this design has been to maintain a low complexity and has not
caused any problems for smaller networks. However, when the number
of uplink devices increases, as expected with 802.11ax, the
downlink will gradually receive a smaller share of the capacity,
i.e., 1/(N+1) of the total capacity when there are N uplink devices
and assuming all devices have non-empty buffers.
[0006] In 802.11ax, a tone plan has been set for a new Fast Fourier
Transform (FFT) size of 256 (4 times the size used by the legacy
standard, which is 64). The smallest allocated sub-band, generally
referred to as a resource unit (RU), consists of 26 subcarriers,
where each RU contains two pilot tones. The largest RU for 20 MHz
contains 242 tones, including 8 pilot tones. There are many more
tone unit sizes for different bandwidths. This tone plan is
required for resource allocation with OFDMA in uplink and downlink.
The increased FFT size in 802.11ax results in OFDM symbols that are
four times longer for the data field. Note that the legacy preamble
in 802.11ax packets still uses the legacy FFT size of 64.
[0007] In conventional LAA systems, the eNB contends for access for
both the downlink (DL) and the uplink (UL). In a network with
contending Wi-Fi devices (one BSS), e.g., devices bound by the IEEE
802.11 standards, the LAA cell will at most receive 1/(N+2) of the
total capacity for both the uplink and downlink, when all devices
have data to transmit, due to the fact that the network node as
well as the Wi-Fi devices are contending for the channel. The
coexistence between two LAA cells will give a fair sharing of the
capacity between the cells, in contrast to a scenario where a LAA
cell is coexisting with one Wi-Fi BSS. Thus, there is a need for
additional channel allocation solutions. In particular, there is a
need for solutions that enable the LAA to share the radio resources
in a more even way with Wi-Fi, while still complying with all rules
defining channel access fairness.
SUMMARY
[0008] The solution presented herein facilitates the selection of
the frequency channel(s) used by a network node operating in an
unlicensed band. To that end, the network node analyzes a signal
received for each of multiple frequency channels, without first
demodulating the signals, to determine what types of wireless
communication devices are contributing to the load of each
frequency channel. The network node then selects one of the
frequency channels for scheduling communications in the unlicensed
band with a wireless communication device, where the selection is
responsive not only to the estimated load, but also to the
identified types of other wireless communication devices.
[0009] One exemplary embodiment comprises a method of selecting
frequency channels for a wireless network operating in an
unlicensed band and comprising a network node and a wireless
communication device. The network node is configured to send
downlink signals to the wireless communication device and to
receive uplink signals from the wireless communication device. The
method is implemented by the network node and comprises receiving a
signal for each of two or more frequency channels, and estimating a
load of each of two or more frequency channels responsive to the
received signals. The method further comprises, for each of the two
or more frequency channels, correlating the corresponding received
signal with one or more delayed versions of the corresponding
received signal to generate one or more autocorrelation results.
Each delayed version of the corresponding received signal is
associated with a different delay. The method further comprises,
for each of the two or more frequency channels, identifying one or
more types of wireless communication devices associated with the
corresponding received signal using at least one of the one or more
autocorrelation results. The method further comprises selecting one
of the two or more frequency channels for the unlicensed band
responsive to the estimated loads and the identified types of
wireless communication devices, and scheduling communications in
the unlicensed band with the wireless communication device on the
selected frequency channel.
[0010] Another exemplary embodiment comprises a network node in a
wireless network operating in an unlicensed band. The wireless
network comprises the network node and a wireless communication
device, where the network node is configured to send downlink
signals to the wireless communication device and to receive uplink
signals from the wireless communication device. The network node
comprises a receiver circuit, a load circuit, an identification
circuit, a selection circuit, and a scheduling circuit. The
receiver circuit is configured to receive a signal for each of two
or more frequency channels. The load circuit is configured to
estimate a load of each of the two or more frequency channels
responsive to the received signals. The identification circuit
comprises a correlation circuit configured to, for each of the two
or more frequency channels, correlate the corresponding received
signal with one or more delayed versions of the corresponding
received signal to generate one or more autocorrelation results.
Each delayed version of the corresponding received signal is
associated with a different delay. The identification circuit is
configured to identify, for each of the two or more frequency
channels, one or more types of wireless communication devices
associated with the corresponding received signal using at least
one of the one or more autocorrelation results. The selection
circuit is configured to select one of the two or more frequency
channels for the unlicensed band responsive to the estimated loads
and the identified types of wireless communication devices. The
scheduling circuit is configured to schedule communications in the
unlicensed band with the wireless communication device on the
selected frequency channel.
[0011] Another exemplary embodiment comprises a network node in a
wireless network operating in an unlicensed band. The wireless
network comprises the network node and a wireless communication
device, where the network node is configured to send downlink
signals to the wireless communication device and to receive uplink
signals from the wireless communication device. The network node
comprises a receiver module, a load module, an identification
module, a selection module, and a scheduling module. The receiver
module is configured to receive a signal for each of two or more
frequency channels. The load module is configured to estimate a
load of each of the two or more frequency channels responsive to
the received signals. The identification module comprises a
correlation module configured to, for each of the two or more
frequency channels, correlate the corresponding received signal
with one or more delayed versions of the corresponding received
signal to generate one or more autocorrelation results. Each
delayed version of the corresponding received signal is associated
with a different delay. The identification module is configured to
identify, for each of the two or more frequency channels, one or
more types of wireless communication devices associated with the
corresponding received signal using at least one of the one or more
autocorrelation results. The selection module is configured to
select one of the two or more frequency channels for the unlicensed
band responsive to the estimated loads and the identified types of
wireless communication devices. The scheduling module is configured
to schedule communications in the unlicensed band with the wireless
communication device on the selected frequency channel.
[0012] Another exemplary embodiment comprises a non-transitory
computer readable medium storing a computer program product for
controlling a processing circuit in a network node. The network
node is configured to send downlink signals to a wireless
communication device and to receive uplink signals from the
wireless communication device. The computer program product
comprises software instructions which, when run on the processing
circuit, causes the network node to receive a signal for each of
the two or more frequency channels and estimate a load of each of
two or more frequency channels responsive to the received signals.
The computer program product comprises software instructions which,
when run on the processing circuit, further causes the network node
to, for each of the two or more frequency channels, correlate the
corresponding received signal with one or more delayed versions of
the corresponding received signal to generate one or more
autocorrelation results. Each delayed version of the corresponding
received signal is associated with a different delay. The computer
program product comprises software instructions which, when run on
the processing circuit, further causes the network node to identify
one or more types of wireless communication devices associated with
the corresponding received signal using at least one of the one or
more autocorrelation results. The computer program product
comprises software instructions which, when run on the processing
circuit, further causes the network node to select one of the two
or more frequency channels for the unlicensed band responsive to
the estimated loads and the identified types of wireless
communication devices, and schedule communications in the
unlicensed band with the wireless communication device on the
selected frequency channel.
[0013] Another exemplary embodiment comprises a computer program
comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one
processor of a wireless communication device, causes the wireless
communication device to execute the method of selecting frequency
channels for a wireless network operating in an unlicensed band
disclosed and claimed herein. In some exemplary embodiments, a
computer-readable medium comprises the computer program. In some
exemplary embodiments, the computer-readable medium comprises a
non-transitory computer readable medium.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] FIG. 1 shows an exemplary framework for using licensed and
unlicensed spectrum for wireless communications.
[0015] FIG. 2 shows an exemplary wireless system of interacting LTE
and Wi-Fi networks.
[0016] FIG. 3 shows an exemplary preamble of an OFDM symbol used
for 802.11ax communications.
[0017] FIG. 4 shows method of selecting frequency channels for a
wireless network operating in an unlicensed band according to one
exemplary embodiment.
[0018] FIG. 5 shows an exemplary block diagram of a network node
configured to implement the method of FIG. 4.
[0019] FIG. 6 shows an implementation of the correlation
circuit/module of FIG. 5 according to one exemplary embodiment.
[0020] FIG. 7 shows a method of selecting frequency channels for a
wireless network operating in an unlicensed band according to
another exemplary embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0021] The solution presented herein enables a network node (e.g.,
node 20 in FIG. 2) to more fairly assess channel conditions and
resources when selecting frequency channel(s) for communications
with a wireless communication device 30 (e.g., device 30 in FIG. 2)
in an unlicensed band, where the wireless communication device 30
sends uplink signals to the network node 20 and receives downlink
signals from the network node 20. It will be appreciated that the
solution presented herein applies to any wireless network 10
operating in the unlicensed frequency band, e.g., an LAA wireless
network, an enhanced LAA wireless network, a MulteFire wireless
network, etc. In the context of the solution presented herein, it
should be understood that a network node 20 may comprise a radio
network node (e.g., a radio base station, NB, eNB, etc.). Exemplary
wireless communication devices 30 comprise, but are not limited to,
a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, a machine-type communications
(MTC) device, and/or a NB-IoT device. The wireless communication
device 30 may also comprise a User Equipment (UE), however it
should be noted that the UE does not necessarily have a "user" in
the sense of an individual person owning and/or operating the
device. A wireless communication device 30 may also be referred to
as a radio device, a radio communication device, a wireless
terminal, or simply a terminal. Unless the context indicates
otherwise, the use of any of these terms is intended to include
device-to-device UEs or devices, machine-type devices or devices
capable of machine-to-machine communication, sensors equipped with
a wireless device, wireless-enabled table computers, mobile
terminals, smart phones, laptop-embedded equipped (LEE),
laptop-mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, wireless
customer-premises equipment (CPE), etc. In the discussion herein,
the terms Machine-to-Machine (M2M) device, Machine Type
Communication (MTC) device, wireless sensor, and sensor may also be
used. It should be understood that these devices may be UEs, but
are generally configured to transmit and/or receive data without
direct human interaction. In an Internet of Things (IoT) scenario,
a wireless communication device 30 as described herein may be, or
may be comprised in, a machine or device that performs monitoring
or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring
measurements to another device or a network. Particular examples of
such machines are power meters, industrial machinery, or home or
personal appliances, e.g., refrigerators, televisions, personal
wearables such as watches etc. In other scenarios, a wireless
communication device 30 as described herein may be comprised in a
vehicle and may perform monitoring and/or reporting of the
vehicle's operational status or other functions associated with the
vehicle.
[0022] PCT Application No. PCT/SE2015/051370, "An access point, a
station and methods therein for access point selection in a
wireless local area network", by Leif Wilhelmsson and Filip
Mestanov and referred to herein as the '370 application, provides
one solution for dealing with scheduling issues associated with
802.11ax. The '370 application uses the idea that it may be more
favorable to join a network with 802.11ax devices than a network
with devices not able to support multi-user transmission and
reception. However, in the solution of the '370 application, each
Access Point (AP) knows what station(s) it serves, and thus can
determine the number of 802.11ax-capable devices currently
associated with a frequency channel. Each AP then signals this
number as part of an extended version of the Base Station Subsystem
(BSS) Load element to other Wi-Fi units so that such Wi-Fi units
can use this information. A normal BSS Load element already
contains information about the number of associated devices and the
load, and the '370 application adds specifics about the number of
802.11ax devices to this BSS Load element. However, the solution
presented in the '370 application is not applicable to non-WiFi
units.
[0023] The solution presented herein uses one or more correlations
of a received signal associated with a particular frequency channel
with delayed versions of the received signal to determine what
types of devices are associated with the particular frequency
channel. This approach takes advantage of the cyclic prefix
redundancy typically associated with OFDM symbols. In particular,
the solution presented herein correlates a first set of samples
from the received signal with another set of samples from a delayed
version of the same received signal to generate an autocorrelation
result. When the delay used to generate the delayed version of the
received signal matches the symbol duration, the autocorrelation
result will include one or more peaks.
[0024] FIG. 2 shows one exemplary wireless communication system 10
comprising a cellular communication network 12, e.g., an LTE
communications network, and a pair of Wi-Fi networks 14. Network 12
operates in an unlicensed band and includes a network node 20
(e.g., eNB) serving a plurality of wireless communication devices
30, e.g., User Equipments (UEs). Network 12 may, for example,
comprise an LAA wireless network, an enhanced LAA (eLAA) wireless
network, MulteFire, etc. Each Wi-Fi network 14 operates according
to the controlling IEEE 802.11 standard, and comprises an access
point (AP) 22 serving a plurality of wireless communication devices
32, e.g., stations (STA). Further, each Wi-Fi network 14 operates
according to a different frequency channel (indicated by the
different dashed markings). As shown in FIG. 2, network 12 overlaps
with networks 14, which enables eNB 20 to detect transmissions from
the Wi-Fi networks 14 on their respective frequency channels. As
discussed herein, eNB 20 selects one of the frequency channels for
communications in the unlicensed band. The solution presented
herein provides an improved approach for making such a selection.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the system diagram of
FIG. 2 is exemplary, and is not intended to limit the scope of the
solution presented herein.
[0025] The solution presented herein is described in terms
different types of devices. Exemplary types of devices include, but
are not limited to "ax devices," i.e., those devices bound by the
IEEE 802.11ax standard, and "non-ax devices," i.e., those devices
bound by all variants of the IEEE 802.11 standards except IEEE
802.11ax. Before providing additional details, the following first
provides some basic information regarding the types of packets
transmitted for different types of 802.11 devices. FIG. 3 shows an
exemplary preamble 50 for 802.11ax packets associated with ax
devices. Preamble 50 comprises a legacy (L) preamble 52 and a high
throughput (HT) preamble 54. The legacy preamble 52 is the same for
all OFDM-based 802.11 variants, e.g., 11n and 11ac, and is needed
for proper coexistence. As understood by those skilled in the art,
each new variant to the IEEE 802.11 standard adds a new preamble
directly following the legacy preamble. The fields in the preambles
are Short Training Fields (STFs), Long Training Fields (LTFs), and
Signal Fields (SIGs). As shown in FIG. 3, the legacy preamble 52 is
generated with a 64-point Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), while parts
of the high throughput preamble 54 are generated with a 256-point
FFT and other parts of the high throughput preamble 54 are
generated with the 64-point FFT. The solution presented herein
exploits these characteristics of the legacy and high throughput
preambles to identify 802.11ax signals, and thus to identify ax
devices and non-ax devices, without requiring the received signals
to be decoded. As such, the solution presented herein provides the
network node 20 with the ability to identify different types of
devices without decoding received signals, and thus enables the
network node 20 to more efficiently select frequency channel(s) for
scheduled communications with the wireless communication device 30
in an unlicensed band. It will be appreciated that the solution
presented herein may be used to distinguish between other types of
devices that also have different symbol lengths, and thus that
facilitate differentiation based on these symbol lengths.
[0026] In exemplary embodiments, the solution presented herein
makes use of the structure of the OFDM symbols to detect the
presence of 802.11ax transmissions, and thus to identify the types
of devices on different frequency channels. To that end, network
node 20 correlates a received signal with a delayed version of the
received signal, and uses the autocorrelation results to identify
the type(s) of device(s) 32 associated with each frequency channel,
and selects a frequency channel for unlicensed communications with
a wireless communication device 30 responsive to this information.
The wireless communication device 30 is connected to or associated
with the network node 20, whereas the device(s) 32 are not
connected to or associated with the network node 20.
[0027] FIG. 4 shows one exemplary method 100 of selecting frequency
channels for a wireless network operating in an unlicensed band as
implemented by the network node 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the
wireless network 10 comprises a network node 20 and one or more
wireless communication devices 30, where the network node 20 is
configured to send downlink signals to the wireless communication
device 30 and to receive uplink signals from the wireless
communication device 30. Method 100, which is implemented by the
network node 20, comprises receiving a signal for each of two or
more frequency channels (block 110), and estimating a load of each
of the two or more frequency channels responsive to the received
signals (block 120). For example, the network node 20 may estimate
the load by measuring, for each frequency channel, the fraction of
time of the received signal that the frequency channel is occupied.
For each of the two or more frequency channels, the method 100
further comprises correlating the corresponding received signal
with one or more delayed versions of the corresponding received
signal to generate one or more autocorrelation results, where each
delayed version of the corresponding received signal is associated
with a different delay (block 130). For each of the two or more
frequency channels, the method 100 further comprises identifying
one or more types of wireless communication devices 32 associated
with the corresponding received signal using at least one of the
one or more autocorrelation results (block 140). The method 100
further comprises selecting one of the two or more frequency
channels for the unlicensed band responsive to the estimated loads
and the identified types of wireless communication devices 32
(block 150), and scheduling communications in the unlicensed band
with the wireless communication device on the selected frequency
channel (block 160).
[0028] FIG. 5 shows a block diagram for one exemplary network node
20 implemented in accordance with one or more embodiments. Network
node 20 comprises one or more processing circuits 200, a memory
250, and a transceiver circuit/module 260. The transceiver
circuit/module 260 is configured to receive a signal for each of
two or more frequency channels. The processing circuit(s) 200 are
configured to evaluate the received signal without demodulating the
received signal to identify one or more types of devices 32 for
each of the frequency channels, select one of the frequency
channels for the unlicensed band responsive to the evaluation, and
schedule communications in the unlicensed band with a wireless
communication device 30 on the selected frequency channel. As
shown, the processing circuit(s) 200 in network node 20 executes
the method of FIG. 4 using various functional means, units,
circuits, or modules. These functional means, units, circuits, or
modules include, for example, a load circuit/module 210, an
identification circuit/module 220, a selection circuit/module 230,
and a scheduling circuit/module 240. The load circuit/module 210 is
configured to estimate a load of each of the two or more frequency
channels responsive to the received signals. For example, the load
circuit/module 210 may estimate the load by measuring, for each
frequency channel, the fraction of time of the received signal that
the frequency channel is occupied. The identification
circuit/module 220 comprises a correlation circuit/module 222
configured to, for each of the two or more frequency channels,
correlate the corresponding received signal with one or more
delayed versions of the corresponding received signal to generate
one or more autocorrelation results. Each delayed version of the
corresponding received signal is associated with a different delay.
The identification circuit/module 220 is configured to identify,
for each of the two or more frequency channels, one or more types
of wireless communication devices 32 associated with the
corresponding received signal using at least one of the one or more
autocorrelation results produced by the correlation circuit/module
222. The selection circuit/module 230 is configured to select one
of the two or more frequency channels for the unlicensed band
responsive to the estimated loads and the identified types of
wireless communication devices 32. The scheduling circuit/module
240 is configured to schedule communications in the unlicensed band
with the wireless communication device 30 on the selected frequency
channel.
[0029] The following describes the solution in terms of first and
second delays used to generate first and second autocorrelation
results, which are used to identify one or more types of wireless
communication devices, and where the first delay is greater than
the second delay. In particular, the following describes how the
network node 20 uses autocorrelation of the received signal to
identify what types of preamble(s) are used in the received signal,
and thus to identify what types of wireless communication devices
are present in the received signal. It will be appreciated,
however, that the solution presented herein applies to more than
two delays, and thus to more than the two corresponding
autocorrelation results.
[0030] FIG. 6 demonstrates one exemplary correlation of a received
signal r(n) with a delayed version of the received signal r(n-N)
(block 130 in FIG. 4), as executed by the correlation
circuit/module 222. In this example, the correlation circuit/module
222 comprises a first delay circuit/module 223, a second delay
circuit/module 224, a first multiplier/summer circuit/module 225,
and a second multiplier/summer circuit/module 226. The first delay
circuit/module 223 delays the received signal r(n) by a first delay
N1 to generate a first delayed signal r(n-N1), and the second delay
circuit/module 224 delays the received signal r(n) by a second
delay N2 to generate a second delayed signal r(n-N2). It will be
appreciated that the first and second delays are generally selected
by the network node 20 to correspond to the FFT characteristics of
the different preambles associated with the different type of
802.11 devices 32 being considered. For example, network node 20
may set N1 to 12.8 us, where 12.8 us corresponds to the duration of
the useful part of an OFDM symbol generated with a 256-point FFT of
a 20 MHz channel associated with the high throughput preamble 54,
and may set N2 to 3.2 us, where 3.2 us corresponds to the duration
of the useful part of an OFDM symbol generated with a 64-point FFT
of a 20 MHz channel associated with the legacy preamble 52 due to
the 64-point FFT. The first multiplier/summer circuit/module 225
generates a first autocorrelation result R.sub.1 according to
Equations (1.1), and the second multiplier/summer circuit/module
226 generates a second autocorrelation result R.sub.2 according to
Equation (1.2), where K represents the length of the cyclic prefix
(CP) in samples. For example, a 64-point FFT adds a CP of 0.8 us,
while a 256-point FFT adds a CP of 0.8 us, 1.6 us, or 3.2 us; K
represents these lengths in samples.
R 1 = k = 0 K - 1 r ( n - k ) r * ( n - k - N 1 ) ( 1.1 ) R 2 = k =
0 K - 1 r ( n - k ) r * ( n - k - N 2 ) ( 1.2 ) ##EQU00001##
As a result, R.sub.1 will only produce peaks in the time domain
where (and if) the received signal includes the high throughput
preamble 54, while R.sub.2 will only produce peaks in the time
domain where the received signal includes the legacy preamble 52.
Further, as shown in FIG. 6, any peaks in R.sub.1 will be separated
by N1+K, which represents the total length of the OFDM symbol,
e.g., the duration of the useful part of the OFDM symbol plus the
duration of the associated cyclic prefix. Similarly, any peaks in
R.sub.2 will be separated by N2+K, which represents the total
length of the OFDM symbol, e.g., the duration of the useful part of
the OFDM symbol plus the duration of the associated cyclic prefix.
While FIG. 6 shows the processing associated with the delays and
corresponding correlations occurring in parallel processing paths,
it will be appreciated that such parallel processing is not
required. In some embodiments, for example, the correlation
circuit/module 222 may sequentially implement each correlation. It
will be appreciated that while the number of terms used when
calculating the autocorrelation in this example is selected to be
identical to the number of samples K in the CP, the solution
presented herein is not so limited. The network node 20 may use a
smaller number of terms, for example. Regardless of how many terms
are used when calculating the autocorrelation, however, the
distance between the peaks will still be defined by the total
length of the OFDM symbol, e.g., N1+K when the high throughput
preamble is present and N2+K when the legacy preamble is
present.
[0031] The identification circuit/module 220 evaluates the
autocorrelation results, e.g., R.sub.1 and R.sub.2, to determine
the type of devices 32 associated with each frequency channel. This
evaluation generally involves evaluating the peaks (or lack
thereof) in each autocorrelation result. The following provides
various different examples for evaluating the autocorrelation
results to determine the types of devices 32 associated with each
frequency channel. It will be appreciated, however, that the
solution presented herein is not limited to these examples.
[0032] In one exemplary embodiment, the identification
circuit/module 220 may identify the types of device(s) 32
associated with the received signal dependent upon which of the
autocorrelation result(s) includes multiple peaks. For example, if
the first autocorrelation result includes multiple peaks and/or
both autocorrelation results include multiple peaks, the
identification circuit/module 220 may associate the received signal
with a first device, e.g., an ax device. If, however, only one of
the autocorrelation results includes multiple peaks, e.g., the
second autocorrelation result, the identification circuit/module
220 may associate the received signal with non-ax devices.
[0033] In another exemplary embodiment, the identification
circuit/module 220 may identify the types of device(s) 32
associated with the received signal dependent upon the distance
between two consecutive peaks in the autocorrelation results. For
example, the identification circuit/module 220 may associate the
received signal with a first type of device 32, e.g., an ax device,
if the distance between two consecutive peaks exceeds a threshold,
and associate the received signal with a second type of device 32,
e.g., a non-ax device, if the distance between two consecutive
peaks is less than a threshold. In this example, the identification
circuit/module 220 would set the threshold to a predetermined value
between the peak separations expected for the different types of
devices 32, e.g., to a value between N1+K and N2+K.
[0034] In yet another exemplary embodiment, the identification
circuit/module 220 may rely on the time-location of the peaks
within the autocorrelation results. For example, the identification
circuit/module 220 may associate the received signal with a first
type of device 32, e.g., an ax device, if one autocorrelation
result produces multiple peaks for a first part of the received
signal and another autocorrelation result produces multiple peaks
for a second part of the received signal. Alternatively, the
identification circuit/module 220 may associate the received signal
with a second type of device 32, e.g., a non-ax device, when
multiple peaks are only produced for part of the received
signal.
[0035] In another exemplary embodiment, the identification
circuit/module 220 may only rely upon one autocorrelation result.
In this exemplary embodiment, the correlation circuit/module 222
delays the received signal by a delay corresponding to the ax
preamble, e.g., the N1 delay corresponding to the 256-point FFT.
The identification circuit/module 220 then associates the received
signal with a first type of device 32, e.g., an ax device, when the
autocorrelation result produces multiple peaks, and associates the
received signal with a second type of device 32, e.g., a non-ax
device, when the autocorrelation result produces no peaks.
[0036] The network node 20 may also use the autocorrelation
result(s) to provide additional information that may be used by the
selection circuit/module 230 to improve the selection effort. For
example, the identification circuit/module 220, using the
autocorrelation result(s), may estimate a number of packets
associated with each identified type of device 32 and/or estimate a
number of devices associated with each identified type of device
32. The selection circuit/module 230 then selects one of the
frequency channels responsive to the estimated load, the identified
types of devices 32, as well as the estimated number of packets
and/or the estimated number of devices. In another embodiment, the
identification circuit/module 220 may estimate what fraction of
each frequency channel is occupied by each type of device 32 using
the autocorrelation result(s). For example, the identification
circuit/module 220 may estimate this fraction by determining, using
the autocorrelation results, how much of the total correlation time
is used for transmission of OFDM symbols associated with one type
of device 32 and how much of the total correlation time is used for
transmission of OFDM symbols associated with another type of device
32. In this example, the selection circuit/module 230 selects one
of the frequency channels responsive to the estimated load, the
identified types of wireless communication devices 32, and the
estimated fraction.
[0037] The following provides two detailed examples for the
solution presented herein: Example A and Example B. These examples
are included to further demonstrate the solution presented herein,
and are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims.
[0038] In Example A, two auto-correlations are performed, with the
delays used by the correlation circuit/module 222 corresponding to
3.2 us and 12.8 us. The first delay (i.e., 12.8 us) corresponds to
the duration of the useful part of an OFDM symbol generated with a
256-point FFT for a 20 MHz channel, and the second delay (i.e., 3.2
us) corresponds to an OFDM symbol generated with a 64-point FFT.
Thus, a first autocorrelation result produced by the correlation
circuit/module 222 using the first delay will generate a
correlation (i.e., one or more peaks) when the longer symbol is
present in the received signal, whereas a second autocorrelation
result produced by the correlation circuit/module 222 using the
second delay will generate a correlation (i.e., one or more peaks)
if the shorter symbol is present in the received signal. The
distance between consecutive peaks will equal the total length of
the OFDM symbol, i.e., the duration of the useful part plus the
duration of the Cyclic Prefix (CP). It will be appreciated that the
network node 20 may use the distance between consecutive peaks
information to determine the length of the CP in case this is not
known beforehand. The solution presented herein, however, may use
the distance between consecutive peaks information to identify how
often the longer OFDM symbols are used, and thus how often
ax-devices are used. Therefore, according to this example, the
network node 20 need only determine the duration for when the
autocorrelation results output by the correlation circuit/module
222 contains peaks. Thus, according to this exemplary embodiment, a
network node 20 uses the two autocorrelation results output by the
correlation circuit/module 222 to determine how much of the total
time is used for transmitting long OFDM symbols and how much the
total time is used for transmitting short OFDM symbols,
respectively. When deciding which one of two possible frequency
channel to select for LAA, the network node 20 uses this
information along with an estimated load for each frequency
channel.
[0039] For example, consider the exemplary method 300 of FIG. 7,
and suppose the approach is used for selecting between two
frequency channels: CH1 and CH2. The correlation circuit/module 222
selects one frequency channel, e.g., CH1 (block 310), and performs
correlations for CH1 for a time t, e.g., one second (block 320).
From the resulting first and second autocorrelation results, the
identification circuit/module 220 finds that no long symbols are
transmitted on CH1, from which the identification circuit/module
220 concludes that ax devices are not used (block 330). The
identification circuit/module 220 finds, however, that short
symbols are present 50% of the time on CH1, and thus that the
channel has a "non-ax" load of 50%. If frequency channels are
remaining (block 340), the correlation circuit/module 222 selects
the next frequency channel (block 310), e.g., CH2, and performs
correlations for CH2 for a time t, e.g., one second (block 320).
From the resulting first and second autocorrelation results, the
identification circuit/module 220 finds that the short OFDM symbols
on CH2 are found only a few percent of the time, whereas the long
symbols are found on CH2 60% of the time. Based on this
observation, the identification circuit/module 220 concludes that
all transmissions on CH2 are according to the 802.11ax standard,
where the small percentage of short symbols corresponds to the
initial part of the 802.11ax packets, i.e., the legacy preamble
(block 330). Because the transmissions for CH2 are assumed to be
scheduled by the corresponding AP 22, network node 20 will
effectively only contend with one Wi-Fi device for CH2, i.e., the
AP 22. For CH1, all the STAs 32 will contend for the channel, which
effectively means that the network node 20 will potentially have to
compete with a large number of Wi-Fi devices. As such, the network
node 20 has a small probability of winning the contention on CH1.
Therefore, although the load is higher for CH2, the selection
circuit/module 230 may still select to use CH2 (block 350), to
increase the probability of winning the contention.
[0040] Example A considered the fraction of the correlation time
having long and short symbols. Example B demonstrates how to
explicitly identify 802.11ax packets and non-802.11ax packets by
identifying packets that start with short symbols and then switch
to long symbols, which would correspond to an 802.11ax packet.
Packets only containing short symbols, on the other hand, would
instead correspond to non-802.11ax packets. Similarly to the
Example A, the relative use of the two packets can advantageously
be used to select a suitable channel. While the implementation of
Example B may be slightly more complex than the implementation of
Example A, Example B produces a better understanding of the
traffic. In addition, network node 20 may optionally also determine
statistics on how many packets are transmitted per time unit, in
addition to considering the occupancy of the frequency channel. It
may, for example, be useful for the network node 20 to know if the
traffic contains many short packets or a small number of relatively
large ones.
[0041] The identification circuit/module 220 may optionally filter
over several OFDM symbol durations to improve the detection
performance. There are at least eight OFDM symbols of length 4 us
from the legacy preamble and parts of the HE preamble. The number
of long OFDM symbols of length 16 us varies with the size of the
payload. Such filtering may be useful, for example, when the delay
spread of the channel is relatively large, and therefore the CP to
a large extend contains interference from the previous symbol, and
thus when it may be harder to separate the peaks from the noise. In
this case, the filtering in time will help remove at least some of
the noise, and thus make it easier to identify the peaks.
[0042] Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that
embodiments herein further include corresponding computer programs.
A computer program comprises instructions which, when executed on
at least one processor of a node, cause the node to carry out any
of the respective processing described above. A computer program in
this regard may comprise one or more code modules corresponding to
the means or units described above.
[0043] Embodiments further include a carrier containing such a
computer program. This carrier may comprise one of an electronic
signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage
medium. In this regard, embodiments herein also include a computer
program product stored on a non-transitory computer readable
(storage or recording) medium and comprising instructions that,
when executed by a processor of a node, cause the node to perform
as described above.
[0044] Embodiments further include a computer program product
comprising program code portions for performing the steps of any of
the embodiments herein when the computer program product is
executed by a computing device. This computer program product may
be stored on a computer readable recording medium, e.g., a
non-transitory computer readable medium.
[0045] The solution presented herein ensures that a system will
have a higher probability of accessing a channel by considering the
effective number of competing devices, and also therefore reduces
the number of collisions between uplink devices, and thus increases
the performance, e.g., increase throughput and decrease delay,
associated with the unlicensed frequency band on a frequency
channel having mostly ax devices. Further, the solution presented
herein increases the performance of the overall 802.11ax network as
compared to the performance of the 802.11ax network coexisting with
a non-802.11ax network. For example, because LAA cells have
scheduled uplinks, there would be contention between two LAA cells
(with two different operators). This contention is similar to that
which would be experienced with one 802.11ax BSS and one LAA cell.
Further, the solution presented herein uses autocorrelation of the
received signal to identify the type(s) of wireless communication
devices 32 associated with each frequency channel, and thus enables
the network node 20 to identify the types of the devices 32 without
having to decode the received signal. Further, the solution
presented herein enables the network node 20 to acquire a larger
portion of the channel capacity on a channel with mostly ax devices
as compared to a channel with non-ax devices. For example, the
network node 20 may be able to acquire 50% of a frequency channel
having only ax devices because it only has to contend with the AP
14, and not each ax device.
[0046] The solution presented herein may, of course, be carried out
in other ways than those specifically set forth herein without
departing from essential characteristics of the solution presented
herein. The present embodiments are to be considered in all
respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes
coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended
embodiments are intended to be embraced therein.
* * * * *