Method and apparatus for determining a communication path (as amended)

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10356690-B2
Application number	US-201515128959-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 4, 2015
Priority date	Mar 25, 2014
Publication date	Jul 16, 2019
Grant date	Jul 16, 2019

Abstract

Disclosed are a communication path determination method and device, which solve the problems of low transmission efficiency and long transmission time delay which may be caused by the existing path which is configured for a small cell needing to access a network for directly communicating through a wireless channel between the small cell and a macro base station. The method comprises: when a wireless node needs to access a network, acquiring, by the wireless node, an optimal communication path from same to the network; and communicating, by the wireless node, with the network through the acquired optimal communication path, wherein the optimal communication path indicates the wireless node to access the network through at least one auxiliary node, and at least one of the at least one auxiliary nodes is a wired node which is directly connected to the network. Since the wireless node accesses the network and communicate with the network through at least one auxiliary node with the function of being capable of providing the data forwarding service for other nodes, the quality and performance of data transmission between the wireless node needing to access the network and the network are improved, and the transmission efficiency of the wireless node is improved.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for determining a communication path, the method comprising:
obtaining, by a wireless station to access a wired network, information about a communication path between the wireless station and the wired network, wherein the wireless station comprises a base station of a small cell; and
communicating, by the wireless station, with the wired network over the communication path according to the obtained information;
wherein:
the information indicates that the wireless station accesses the wired network through at least one forwarding node;
the at least one forwarding node is at least one node enabled to provide another device with a data forwarding service;
the wireless station communicates with a forwarding node next to the wireless station in the communication path wirelessly, wherein the forwarding node next to the wireless station is one of the at least one forwarding node;
the at least one forwarding node comprises at least one wired node
communicating with the wired network via a wired protocol; and
a last forwarding node of the at least one forwarding node is a non-fixed wired node, wherein the last forwarding node is next to the wired network;
wherein obtaining, by the wireless station to access the wired network, information about the communication path between the wireless station and the wired network comprises:
selecting, by the wireless station, one of at least one node enabled to provide another device with the data forwarding service around the wireless station as a first-hop forwarding node in the communication path, and determining the information about the communication path between the wireless station and the wired network as accessing the wired network through the first-hop forwarding node; wherein the first-hop forwarding node is the forwarding node next to the wireless station in the communication path;
or
determining, by the wireless station, the at least one forwarding node in the communication path between the wireless station and the wired network according to a preconfigured correspondence relationship between the wireless station and the at least one forwarding node, and determining the information about the communication path between the wireless station and the wired network as accessing the wired network through the at least one forwarding node;
or
receiving, by the wireless station, from a wired network side node, information about the at least one forwarding node, selected by the wired network side node for the wireless station, and determining the information about the commutation path between the wireless station and the wired network as accessing the wired network through the at least one forwarding node, wherein the wired network side node determines the information about the commutation path between the wireless station and the wired network according to obtained information about accessing of the wireless station to the wired network, wherein the wired network side node comprises an entity functioning for Operation and Maintenance, OAM, a macro station and a network side control node;

wherein before the wireless station receives from the wired network side node the information about the at least one forwarding node, selected by the wired network side node for the wireless station the method further comprises:
measuring, by the wireless station, at least one signal transmitted by at least one node enabled to provide another device with the data forwarding a service around the wireless station, and reporting at least one measured first measurement result to the wired network side node to request the wired network side node for determining the information about the communication path for the wireless station; or
measuring, by the wireless station, at least one signal transmitted by the at least one node enabled to provide another device with the data forwarding service around the wireless station, and reporting at least one first measurement result satisfying a preset threshold to the wired network side node to request the wired network side node for determining the information about the communication path for the wireless station; or
transmitting, by the wireless station, a detecting signal to at least one node around the wireless station, wherein the at least one node measures the detecting signal upon reception of the detecting signal, and reports at least one measured second measurement results, or at least one second measurement result satisfying the preset threshold, to the wired network side node to request the wired network side node for determining the information about the communication path for the wireless station; or
transmitting, by the wireless station, at least one first request message to the at least one node enabled to provide another device with the data forwarding service around the wireless station, wherein each of the at least one first request message requests for an access to the wired network through one of the at least one node, and when at least one node receiving at least one first request message determines that it is capable of acting as at least one forwarding node for the wireless station to access the wired network, the at least one node transmits at least one second request message to the wired network side node, wherein the at least one second request message informs the wired network side node that the at least one node, transmitting the at least one second request message, is capable of acting as at least one forwarding node for the wireless station to access the wired network;

wherein communicating, by the wireless station, with the wired network over the communication path according to the obtained information comprises:
obtaining by the wireless station, a resource configured by a wired network side node for communication between the wireless station and a first-hop forwarding node according to information preconfigured by the wired network side node, and communicating with the first-hop forwarding node over the resource; wherein the first-hop forwarding node is the forwarding node next to the wireless station in the communication path; or
receiving, by the wireless station, resource configuration information transmitted by the wired network side node, Obtaining a resource configured by the wired network side node for communication between the wireless station and the first-hop forwarding node in the communication path, and communicating with the first-hop forwarding node over the resource reconfigured by the wired network side node; or
reporting, by the wireless station, the amount of data to be transmitted by the wireless station to the wired network side node; receiving resource configuration information transmitted by the wired network side node: obtaining a resource configured by the wired network side node for current communication between the wireless station and the first-hop forwarding node in the communication path, and transmitting the data to be transmitted to the first-hop forwarding node over the resource; or
determining, by the wireless station, a resource for use in communication with the first-hop forwarding node in the communication path, by negotiating with the first-hop forwarding node; or
transmitting, by the wireless station, uplink data to be transmitted to the wired network side node, to the first-hop forwarding node in the communication path, wherein the first-hop forwarding node transmits the uplink data to the wired network side node over a channel between the first-hop forwarding node and the wired network according to a locally stored mapping relationship between the channel of the first-hop forwarding node to the wired network, and a channel of the first-hop forwarding node to the wireless station; and receiving, by the wireless station, downlink data, from the wired network side node, forwarded by the first-hop forwarding node in the communication

Assignees

• China Academy Telecommunications Technology

Inventors

• Liu Jiamin
• Kou Huiru

Classifications

• Y02D70/1262

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• Y02D70/126

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• H04W84/047

  using dedicated repeater stations · CPC title

• H04W40/22 Primary

  using selective relaying for reaching a BTS [Base Transceiver Station] or an access point · CPC title

• Y02D70/39

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic