Establishing a multicast signaling control channel based on a multicast address that is related to floor arbitration for a p2p session

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016105291-A1
Application number	US-201514803824-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 20, 2015
Priority date	Oct 13, 2014
Publication date	Apr 14, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

In an embodiment, a P2P device discovers other P2P devices that belong to a P2P group. The P2P device determines a multicast address to be used for signaling related to floor arbitration of a P2P session with the P2P group. The P2P device exchanges signaling with one or more of the discovered P2P devices over a multicast signaling control channel of a P2P interface using the multicast address. The P2P device identifies a leader (e.g., the P2P device itself and/or one or more of the other P2P devices) that is responsible for performing a floor arbitration function for the P2P session. The P2P devices participates in the P2P session by exchanging media with the P2P group over a media channel of the P2P interface that is separate from the multicast signaling control channel in accordance with the floor arbitration function performed by the leader.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method of operating a peer-to-peer (P2P) device that belongs to a P2P group, comprising:
engaging in a P2P discovery procedure for discovering P2P devices that also belong to the P2P group; determining a multicast address to be used for signaling related to floor arbitration of a P2P session with the P2P group; exchanging signaling with one or more of the discovered P2P devices over a multicast signaling control channel of a P2P interface using the multicast address; identifying a leader that is responsible for performing a floor arbitration function for the P2P session; and participating in the P2P session by exchanging media with the P2P group over a media channel of the P2P interface that is separate from the multicast signaling control channel in accordance with the floor arbitration function performed by the leader.

2 . The method of claim 1 ,
wherein the multicast signaling control channel is configured as a dedicated channel used for control messaging that does not include any media, or wherein the multicast signaling control channel is configured to carry the control messaging along with at least some media for the P2P session.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein additional signaling related to floor arbitration of the P2P session is also exchanged via unicast between the leader and another participating P2P device in the P2P session.

4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the additional signaling includes one or more floor request messages, one or more floor grant messages, one or more floor denial messages or any combination thereof.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the signaling exchanged over the multicast signaling control channel includes:
one or more heartbeat signals from the leader or a proxy of the leader, or one or more messages associated with a leader selection scheme through which the leader is identified by the identifying, or call control information, or any combination thereof.

6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the call control information indicates a current floorholder of the P2P session, a current floor arbitrator of the P2P session, an announcement of the P2P session, termination of the P2P session or any combination thereof.

7 . The method of claim 1 ,
wherein only the leader is permitted to transmit upon the multicast signaling control channel, or wherein both the leader and one or more other participating P2P devices are permitted to transmit upon the multicast signaling control channel.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining is performed before, during or after the P2P discovery procedure.

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the multicast address is provisioned at the P2P device by an external entity.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining includes independently deriving the multicast address at the P2P device.

11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the determining includes:
obtaining a group identifier of the P2P group; and generating the multicast address using the group identifier based on a hash function.

12 . The method of claim 11 ,
wherein the P2P interface is a Long Term Evolution-Direct (LTE-D) interface, wherein the group identifier of the P2P group is extracted from a Public or Private Expression of the P2P group, wherein the multicast address is an IPv6 multicast address, and wherein the hash function incorporates bits from the group identifier into a Group ID field of the IPv6 multicast address.

13 . The method of claim 12 , wherein the generating generates the IPv6 multicast address dynamically at the P2P device by:
setting a prefix field of the IPv6 multicast address based on operator policy for link local addresses for P2P service, setting a Flags field of the IPv6 multicast address to indicate a Transient flag indicative of a dynamically assigned multicast address, setting a scope field of the IPv6 multicast address to link local, organization local or site local depending on operator and/or service policy, and setting a remainder of the IPv6 multicast address using the incorporated bits from the group identifier in accordance with the hash function.

14 . The method of claim 12 , wherein the hash function further incorporates an application-specific string into the Group ID field of the IPv6 multicast address along with the incorporated bits from the group identifier.

15 . The method of claim 14 ,
wherein the application-specific string is selected from one of multiple application-specific strings provisioned on the P2P device, and wherein each of the multiple application-specific strings is configured to be used in conjunction with the hash function to produce a different IPv6 multicast address for a different type of data that is exchanged in association with the P2P session.

16 . The method of claim 15 , the multiple application-specific strings are configured to produce the different IPv6 multicast addresses for:
control signaling, or in-call signaling, or call set-up signaling, or media, or any combination thereof.

17 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the identifying includes:
selecting the leader locally at the P2P device, or receiving a leader confirmation message over the P2P interface that indicates the leader.

18 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the engaging, determining, exchanging and identifying are triggered by one or more of:
a manual instruction from a member of the P2P group, detection of a threshold number of P2P devices registered to the P2P group being in proximity to the P2P device, external signaling from one or more other proximate P2P devices in the P2P group, one or more rules that are either user-specified or based on machine learning, or any combination thereof.

19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the one or more rules instruct the P2P device to perform the engaging, determining, exchanging and identifying in response to one or more of:
a location of the P2P device, or one or more measured environmental parameters, or any combination thereof.

20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein the one or more measured environmental parameters include time, ambient temperature, ambient brightness level, ambient noise level, ambient humidity level or any combination thereof.

21 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the P2P discovery procedure indicates that the discovered P2P devices are arranged in one of:
a single-hop network topology where the P2P device and each of the discovered P2P devices are in direct communication range with each other, or a star network topology where at least one and less than all of the P2P device and each of the discovered P2P devices are in direct communication range with each other, or a multi-hop network topology where none of the P2P device or the discovered P2P devices are in direct communication range with each other.

22 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
detecting, during the P2P session, a transition of the floor arbitration function to a new leader; and continuing participation in the P2P session by exchanging media in accordance with the floor arbitration function performed by the new leader.

23 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the transition of the floor arbitration function occurs in response to one or more of:
the leader dropping out of the P2P session, the leader or a proxy of the leader failing to provide a heartbeat signal over the P2P interface, one or more n

Assignees

• Qualcomm Inc

Inventors

• Anchan Kirankumar Bhoja

Classifications

• H04L29/08306

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H04L12/189 Primary

  in combination with wireless systems (selective distribution or broadcast in wireless communication networks H04W4/06) · CPC title

• H04L67/104

  Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks · CPC title

• H04W76/023

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H04W88/02

  Terminal devices · CPC title