Apparatus, system and method of wireless communication beamforming

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9680546-B2
Application number	US-201314129304-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 8, 2013
Priority date	Sep 8, 2013
Publication date	Jun 13, 2017
Grant date	Jun 13, 2017

Abstract

Some demonstrative embodiments include apparatuses, systems and/or methods of wireless communication beamforming. For example, an apparatus may include a wireless communication unit to process a beamforming frame communicated between a beamforming initiator station and a beamforming responder station subsequent to a Transmit (Tx) sector sweep by the beamforming initiator station, wherein transmission of the beamforming frame is from a first station of the beamforming initiator station or the beamforming responder station to a second station of the beamforming initiator station or the beamforming responder station, the beamforming frame comprises an indication of a selected Tx sector, based on the Tx sector sweep, to be used by the first station for transmitting a directional beamformed transmission to the second station.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a wireless communication unit comprising circuitry and logic configured to process a beamforming frame to be received at a first wireless station, the beamforming frame comprising a frame from a second wireless station to a third wireless station, said beamforming frame comprises an indication of a selected Transmit (Tx) sector, based on a Tx sector sweep, to be used by said second wireless station for transmission of a directional beamformed transmission to said third wireless station, said wireless communication unit is configured to determine, based on said beamforming frame, a directional beamforming scheme to be used by said first wireless station.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said beamforming frame comprises a report of measurements corresponding to a Receive (Rx) sector of said second wireless station.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein said Rx sector has a beam directionality corresponding to a beam directionality of said Tx sector.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein said Rx sector is reciprocal to said Tx sector.

5. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to maintain Tx-Rx information associating between a plurality of Tx sectors and a plurality of Rx sectors.

6. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein said report comprises a plurality of channel loads corresponding to a plurality of channels.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to receive a discovery beacon with a unicast Receive Address (RA) including an address of a beamforming responder station and including the indication of said selected Tx sector.

8. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein said beamforming frame comprises a Directional measurement report frame including an indication of a direction of said Rx sector and a Tx sector information element (IE), the Tx sector IE including the indication of said Tx sector.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said beamforming frame comprises a Sector Sweep (SSW) frame including a SSW feedback field, said SSW feedback field including the indication of said Tx sector.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to detect said second and third wireless stations are engaged for communication over a communication channel using said Tx sector of said second wireless station, and wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to avoid communication over said channel using a Tx sector of said first wireless station directed to said TX sector of said second wireless station.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to determine first beamforming information associating between Tx sectors of said first wireless station and Tx sectors of a first plurality of stations, and, based on SSW feedback fields of SSW feedback frames communicated between second and third pluralities of stations to determine second beamforming information associating between Tx sectors of the second plurality of stations and the third plurality of stations.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to detect an engagement between a first engaged station of said second plurality of stations and a second engaged station of said third plurality of stations, to determine an engaged Tx sector of said first engaged station based on said second beamforming information, and to detect, based on said first beamforming information, a Tx sector of said first wireless station associated with said engaged Tx sector.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to receive said beamforming frame from said second wireless station.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said wireless communication unit is configured to communicate said beamforming frame over a millimeterWave (mmWave) wireless communication band.

15. A method comprising:
receiving by a first station a beamforming frame transmitted from a second station to a third station over a first channel, said beamforming frame comprises an indication of a Transmit (Tx) sector of said second station for transmission of said frame;
avoiding communication over said first channel using a Tx sector of said first station, if detecting said second and third stations are engaged for communication over said first channel using the Tx sector of said second station; and
based on the indication of said Tx sector of said second station, using by said first station a second channel, different from said first channel, for communicating via the Tx sector of said first station.

16. The method of claim 15 comprising determining first beamforming information associating between a plurality of Tx sectors of said first station and Tx sectors of a first plurality of stations, and, based on beamforming frames communicated between second and third pluralities of stations, determining second beamforming information associating between Tx sectors of the second plurality of stations and the third plurality of stations.

17. The method of claim 16 comprising detecting an engagement between said second and third stations; determining the Tx sector of said second station based on said second beamforming information; and detecting the Tx sector of said first station based on the Tx sector of said second station and said first beamforming information.

18. The method of claim 15 , wherein said beamforming frame comprises a Sector Sweep (SSW) frame including a SSW feedback field, said SSW feedback field including the indication of said Tx sector of said second station.

19. A product comprising a non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by a machine, result in:
receiving by a first station a beamforming frame transmitted from a second station to a third station over a first channel, said beamforming frame comprises an indication of a Transmit (Tx) sector of said second station for transmission of said frame;
avoiding communication over said first channel using a Tx sector of said first station, if detecting said second and third stations are engaged for communication over said first channel using the Tx sector of said second station; and
based on the indication of said Tx sector of said second station, using by said first station a second channel, different from said first channel, for communicating via the Tx sector of said first station.

20. The product of claim 19 , wherein the instructions result in determining first beamforming information associating between a plurality of Tx sectors of said first station and Tx sectors of a first plurality of stations, and, based on beamforming frames communicated between second and third pluralities of stations, determining second beamforming information associating between Tx sectors of the second plurality of stations and the third plurality of stations.

21. The product of claim 19 , wherein said beamforming frame comprises a Sector Sweep (SSW) frame including a SSW feedback field, said SSW feedback field including the indication of said Tx sector of said second station.

Assignees

• Intel Corp

Inventors

• Trainin Solomon B

Classifications

• H04B7/0617 Primary

  for beam forming · CPC title

• H04B7/0682

  using phase diversity (e.g. phase sweeping) · CPC title

• H04B7/063

  Parameters other than those covered in groups H04B7/0623 - H04B7/0634, e.g. channel matrix rank or transmit mode selection · CPC title