Multi-beam listen before talk

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10764024-B2
Application number	US-201815868735-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 11, 2018
Priority date	Jan 11, 2018
Publication date	Sep 1, 2020
Grant date	Sep 1, 2020

Abstract

Various embodiments disclosed herein provide for a multi-beam Listen Before Talk which is a coexistence mechanism used by wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi, to access unlicensed shared spectrum, such as the ISM UNIT bands (5 GHz). The embodiments disclosed herein enable a transceiver to determine whether or not there is activity on a beam to avoid causing interference. The transceiver can determine that there is activity in a certain direction, and then avoid transmitting on a beam in that direction until the activity ceases. While there is activity in a first beam, the transceiver can continue to transmit on other beams that will not cause interference with a transmission associated with the first beam.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A base station device, comprising:
a processor; and
a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:
detecting, in a first beam, an activity on a first channel, wherein the activity indicates a presence of radio interference on the first beam, wherein the first beam originates from a transmitter in a first direction, wherein the detecting the activity comprises detecting the activity via a group of antenna elements that perform transmit and receive beamforming via time division duplexing, wherein the detecting the activity further comprises detecting the activity based on detecting energy on the first channel in the first direction above a defined threshold and based on decoding a preamble associated with a signal received on the first channel in the first direction, and wherein the defined threshold is based on a distance of the base station device from a receiver device associated with a transmission;
detecting, in a second direction, an absence of the activity on the first channel;
in response to the detecting the activity on the first channel in the first direction and the detecting the absence of the activity in the second direction, transmitting the transmission on a transmission beam in the second direction; and
in response to detecting no activity on the first channel for a group of directions, transmitting a group of transmissions on transmission beams in the group of directions, wherein the group of directions is selected based on a performance metric.

2. The base station device of claim 1 , wherein the defined threshold is further based on a beam width associated with the first direction.

3. The base station device of claim 1 , wherein the defined threshold is further based on a communication protocol associated with the transmission.

4. The base station device of claim 1 , wherein the group of transmissions are directed at a receiver device.

5. The base station device of claim 1 , wherein the group of transmissions are directed at a group of receiver devices.

6. The base station device of claim 1 , wherein a first transmission beam of the transmission beams has a different beam parameter than a second transmission beam of the transmission beams.

7. A method, comprising:
detecting, by a transceiver device comprising a processor, a transmission signature from a first transmitter in a first direction on a channel, wherein the first direction and the channel correspond to a receive beam of a first time division duplex transmission, wherein the transmission signature has energy that satisfies a defined criterion associated with interference, and wherein the detecting the transmission signature comprises decoding a preamble associated with the receive beam of the first time division duplex transmission;
determining, by the transceiver device, that no transmission has been received during a detection period from a second transmitter in a second direction on the channel, wherein the second direction and the channel corresponds to a receive beam of a second time division duplex transmission;
in response to the detecting and the determining, transmitting, by the transceiver device, a second transmission on a transmission beam associated with the second time division duplex transmission; and
in response to determining no activity via a group of receive beams, transmitting, by the transceiver device, a group of transmissions via a group of transmission beams.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the group of transmission beams have different beam parameters.

9. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
selecting the group of transmission beams based on a performance metric associated with efficiency.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein the group of transmissions are directed to a receiver device.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the group of transmission beams are directed to a group of receiver devices.

12. The method of claim 7 , The base station device of claim 1 , wherein a first transmission beam of the transmission beams has a different beam parameter than a second transmission beam of the transmission beams.

13. The method of claim 7 , wherein the defined criterion is further based on a beam width associated with the first direction.

14. The method of claim 7 , wherein the defined criterion is further based on a communication protocol associated with the first time division duplex transmission.

15. A machine-readable storage medium, comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor of a transceiver device, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:
detecting a transmission signature from a first transmitter in a first direction on a channel, wherein the first direction and the channel correspond to a receive beam of a first time division duplex transmission, wherein the transmission signature has energy above a defined criterion associated with interference, and wherein the detecting the transmission signature comprises decoding a preamble associated with the receive beam of the first time division duplex transmission;
determining that no transmission has been received during a detection period from a second transmitter in a second direction on the channel, wherein the second direction and the channel corresponds to a receive beam of a second time division duplex transmission;
in response to the detecting and the determining, transmitting a second transmission on a transmission beam associated with the second time division duplex transmission; and
in response to determining that there is no activity on a group of receive beams, transmitting a group of transmissions on a group of transmission beams.

16. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the group of transmission beams have different beam parameters.

17. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 15 , the operations further comprising:
selecting the group of transmission beams based on a performance metric associated with efficiency.

18. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the group of transmissions are directed to a receiver device.

19. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the group of transmission beams are directed to a group of receiver devices.

20. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the defined criterion is further based on a beam width associated with the first direction.

21. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the defined criterion is further based on a communication protocol associated with the first time division duplex transmission.

Assignees

• At & T Ip I Lp

Inventors

• Hafeez Abdulrauf
• Novlan Thomas

Classifications

• H04W72/541

  using the level of interference · CPC title

• H04W72/51

  based on terminal or device properties · CPC title

• H04B7/06952

  Selecting one or more beams from a plurality of beams, e.g. beam training, management or sweeping · CPC title

• H04W74/0808 Primary

  using carrier sensing, e.g. carrier sense multiple access [CSMA] · CPC title

• H04W72/046

  the resource being in the space domain, e.g. beams · CPC title