Mobile communication method and network apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8971879-B2
Application number	US-99647909-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 5, 2009
Priority date	Jun 6, 2008
Publication date	Mar 3, 2015
Grant date	Mar 3, 2015

Abstract

A mobile communication method comprises a step in which a first radio base station, finds another radio base station provided in a particular user network when provided in the particular user network; a step in which the first radio base station and the other radio base station found thereby constitutes a group; a step in which a number of mobile stations that can be connected to the group at the same time is decided; and a step in which the number of mobile stations connected at the same time to the first radio base station and other radio base station belonging to the group is restricted based on the decided number of mobile stations that can be connected at the same time.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A mobile communication method comprising:
finding a different radio base station already installed in a specific user network when a first radio base station is installed in the specific user network, the specific user network being a local area network (LAN);
forming a group including the first radio base station and the different radio base station found by the first radio base station;
determining a number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations for the group by a network apparatus in a mobile communication carrier network, the network apparatus not being part of the user network; and
restricting, by processing circuitry, a number of mobile stations simultaneously connected to the first radio base station and the different radio base station which belong to the group, based on the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations determined for the group,
wherein, in the determining, the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations is determined based on a maximum transmission band of the user network and on a radio transmission rate between a mobile station and each of the first radio base station and the different radio base station so that a total sum of the radio transmission rates does not exceed a certain percentage of the maximum transmission band, and
the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations corresponds to a maximum number of mobile stations connectable to the group.

2. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein, in the finding,
the first radio base station broadcasts self information to the user network,
the different radio base station sends a response signal to the self information thus received, and
the first radio base station finds the different radio base station based on the response signal thus received.

3. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein, in the finding, the first radio base station uses a UPnP (Universal Plug & Play) function to find the different radio base station.

4. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein
in the forming, a network apparatus forms the group,
in the determining, the network apparatus determines the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations, and
in the restricting, the network apparatus restricts a number of mobile stations simultaneously connected to the first radio base station and the different radio base station which belong to the group, based on the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations.

5. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein
in the forming, the first radio base station and the different radio base station form the group,
in the determining, the first radio base station and the different radio base station each determine the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations, and
in the restricting, the first radio base station and the different radio base station each restrict a number of mobile stations simultaneously connected thereto, based on the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations.

6. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein the network apparatus in the mobile communication carrier network performs the restricting.

7. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations is based on a maximum transmission band of the specific user network of the group and a radio transmission rate between a mobile station and each of the first radio base station and the different radio base station.

8. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein the restricting is performed by the network apparatus in the mobile communication carrier network.

9. The mobile communication method according to claim 1 , wherein the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations is a maximum number of simultaneous-connectable mobile stations.

10. A network apparatus comprising:
circuitry configured to:
receive, from a first radio base station newly installed in a specific user network, information on a different radio base station installed on the specific user network, the specific user network being a local area network (LAN);
form a group including the first radio base station and the different radio base station which has been indicated by the information on the different radio base station received from the first radio base station;
determine a number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations for the group by a network apparatus in a mobile communication carrier network, the network apparatus not being part of the user network; and
restrict a number of mobile stations connected to the first radio base station and the different radio base station which belong to the group, based on the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations determined for the group,
wherein the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations is determined based on a maximum transmission band of the user network and on a radio transmission rate between a mobile station and each of the first radio base station and the different radio base station so that a total sum of the radio transmission rates does not exceed a certain percentage of the maximum transmission band, and
the number of simultaneously-connectable mobile stations corresponds to a maximum number of mobile stations connectable to the group.

Assignees

• Hosono Hiroyuki
• Ntt Docomo Inc

Inventors

• Hosono Hiroyuki

Classifications

• H04W48/06 Primary

  based on traffic conditions · CPC title

• H04W84/16

  WPBX [Wireless Private Branch Exchange] · CPC title

• H04W84/12

  WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks] · CPC title