Millimeter wave distributed network antenna sector switch

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10461828-B2
Application number	US-201816230611-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 21, 2018
Priority date	Dec 27, 2017
Publication date	Oct 29, 2019
Grant date	Oct 29, 2019

Abstract

This disclosure describes systems, methods, and devices related to a time division duplex (TDD) antenna sector switch. A device may determine one or more antenna sector configurations based on TDD beamforming, wherein the one or more antenna sector configurations are associated with first antenna sectors used to communicate with a first station device (STA). The device may initiate a TDD sector switch with the first STA to switch from the one or more first antenna sectors to one or more second antenna sectors. The device may cause to send, to the first STA, an action frame comprising TDD sector setting parameters associated with the TDD sector switch. The device may identify a response frame received from the first STA, wherein the response frame comprises the TDD sector setting parameters. The device may perform the TDD sector switch by switching from the one or more first antenna sectors to the one or more second antenna sectors.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device of an initiator for performing time division duplex (TDD) sector switch, the device comprising memory and processing circuitry, the processing circuitry coupled to the memory, and the processing circuitry configured to:
determine one or more antenna sector configurations based on time division duplex (TDD) beamforming, wherein the one or more antenna sector configurations are associated with first antenna sectors used to communicate with a first station device (STA);
initiate a TDD sector switch with the first STA to switch from the one or more first antenna sectors to one or more second antenna sectors;
cause to send, to the first STA, an action frame comprising TDD sector setting parameters associated with the TDD sector switch;
identify a response frame received from the first STA, wherein the response frame comprises the TDD sector setting parameters; and
perform the TDD sector switch by switching from the one or more first antenna sectors to the one or more second antenna sectors.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein TDD beamforming comprises establishing a first initiator transmit (TX) antenna sector identification (ID), a first initiator receive (RX) antenna sector ID, a first responder TX antenna sector ID, and a first responder RX antenna sector ID.

3. The device of claim 1 , wherein the action frame is an announce frame indicating a TDD sector switch request.

4. The device of claim 1 , wherein the response frame is an announce frame indicating a TDD sector switch response.

5. The device of claim 1 , wherein the TDD sector setting parameters indicates a second sector configuration to which the device and the first STA are to switch to.

6. The device of claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:
initiate a switch indication with the TDD sector setting parameters to an upper layer of a medium access control (MAC) of the initiator, wherein the upper layer of the MAC of the initiator is associated with an upper layer circuitry; and
set a transmit (TX) and a receive (RX) antenna configuration based on the TDD sector setting parameters sent to the first STA.

7. The device of claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to cause to send an acknowledgment frame to the response frame, wherein the acknowledgment frame comprises a set sector acknowledgment subfield set to a first value.

8. The device of claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:
determine the TDD sector switch has failed; and
determine to revert back to a TX and RX antenna configuration used at a start of the TDD sector switch.

9. The device of claim 1 , further comprising a transceiver configured to transmit and receive wireless signals.

10. The device of claim 9 , further comprising an antenna coupled to the transceiver and further comprising the one or more first antenna sectors and the one or more second antenna sectors.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions which when executed by one or more processors result in performing operations comprising:
determining one or more antenna sector configurations based on time division duplex (TDD) beamforming, wherein the one or more antenna sector configurations are associated with first antenna sectors used to communicate with a first station device (STA);
initiating a TDD sector switch with the first STA to switch from the one or more first antenna sectors to one or more second antenna sectors;
causing to send, to the first STA, an action frame comprising TDD sector setting parameters associated with the TDD sector switch;
identifying a response frame received from the first STA, wherein the response frame comprises the TDD sector setting parameters; and
performing the TDD sector switch by switching from the one or more first antenna sectors to the one or more second antenna sectors.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein TDD beamforming comprises establishing a first initiator transmit (TX) antenna sector identification (ID), a first initiator receive (RX) antenna sector ID, a first responder TX antenna sector ID, and a first responder RX antenna sector ID.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the action frame is an announce frame indicating a TDD sector switch request.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the response frame is an announce frame indicating a TDD sector switch response.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the TDD sector setting parameters indicates a second sector configuration to which the device and the first STA are to switch to.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the operations further comprise:
initiating a switch indication with the TDD sector setting parameters to an upper layer of a medium access control (MAC) of the initiator, wherein the upper layer of the MAC of the initiator is associated with an upper layer circuitry; and
setting a transmit (TX) and a receive (RX) antenna configuration based on the TDD sector setting parameters sent to the first STA.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the operations further comprise causing to send an acknowledgment frame to the response frame, wherein the acknowledgment frame comprises a set sector acknowledgment subfield set to a first value.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the operations further comprise:
determining the TDD sector switch has failed; and
determining to revert back to a TX and RX antenna configuration used at a start of the TDD sector switch.

19. A method comprising:
determining, by one or more processors, one or more antenna sector configurations based on time division duplex (TDD) beamforming, wherein the one or more antenna sector configurations are associated with first antenna sectors used to communicate with a first station device (STA);
initiating a TDD sector switch with the first STA to switch from the one or more first antenna sectors to one or more second antenna sectors;
causing to send, to the first STA, an action frame comprising TDD sector setting parameters associated with the TDD sector switch;
identifying a response frame received from the first STA, wherein the response frame comprises the TDD sector setting parameters; and
performing the TDD sector switch by switching from the one or more first antenna sectors to the one or more second antenna sectors.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein TDD beamforming comprises establishing a first initiator transmit (TX) antenna sector identification (ID), a first initiator receive (RX) antenna sector ID, a first responder TX antenna sector ID, and a first responder RX antenna sector ID.

Assignees

• Intel Ip Corp

Inventors

• Kedem Oren
• Cordeiro Carlos
• Glik Michael
• Levy Elad
• Brainman Igor
• Chen Cheng

Classifications

• H04L5/0096 Primary

  Indication of changes in allocation · CPC title

• H04B7/0491 Primary

  using two or more sectors, i.e. sector diversity · CPC title

• H04B7/0617

  for beam forming · CPC title

• H04B1/48

  in circuits for connecting transmitter and receiver to a common transmission path, e.g. by energy of transmitter {(H04B1/46 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• H04L5/1469

  using time-sharing · CPC title