HK1123918B - Methods and apparatus for providing a platform coexistence system of multiple wireless communication devices - Google Patents

Description

Method and apparatus for providing a platform coexistence system for multiple wireless communication devices

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communication systems, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for providing a platform coexistence system of multiple wireless communication devices.

Background

As wireless communications become more and more popular in offices, homes, schools, etc., different wireless technologies and applications may be employed in combination to meet anytime and/or anywhere computing and communication needs. For example, multiple wireless communication networks may coexist to provide a wireless environment with greater computing and/or communication capabilities, greater mobility, and/or ultimately seamless roaming.

In particular, Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs) may provide fast, short-range connectivity in a relatively small space, such as a workspace in an office or a room in a home. Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs) may provide greater range than WPANs within office buildings, homes, schools, and the like. Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMANs) may cover a greater distance than WLANs by connecting, for example, a building to another building in a wider geographic area. Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWANs) may provide the broadest range such that such networks are widely deployed in cellular infrastructure. Although each of the wireless communication networks described above may support different uses, the coexistence between these networks may provide a more robust environment to connect anytime and anywhere.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example wireless communication system in accordance with embodiments of the methods and apparatus disclosed herein;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary platform coexistence system for multiple wireless communication devices;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating another example platform coexistence system for multiple wireless communication devices;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary user terminal;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating one configuration of the exemplary user terminal of FIG. 4; and

fig. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary processor system that may be used to implement the exemplary user terminal of fig. 4.

Detailed Description

Methods and apparatus for providing a platform coexistence system for multiple wireless communication devices are generally described herein. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

Referring to fig. 1, an exemplary wireless communication system 100 may include one or more wireless communication networks, shown generally at 110, 120, and 130. Specifically, the wireless communication system 100 may include a Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN)110, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)120, and a Wireless Metropolitan Area Network (WMAN) 130. Although fig. 1 shows three wireless communication networks, the wireless communication system 100 may include more or fewer wireless communication networks. For example, the wireless communication system 100 may include other WPANs, WLANs, and/or WMANs. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

The wireless communication system 100 may also include one or more user terminals, shown generally as 140, 142, 144, 146, and 148. For example, the user terminals 140, 142, 144, 146, and 148 may include wireless electronic devices such as desktop computers, laptop computers, handheld computers, tablet computers, cellular telephones, pagers, audio and/or video players (e.g., MP3 player or DVD player), gaming devices, video cameras, digital cameras, navigation devices (e.g., GPS devices), wireless peripherals (e.g., printers, scanners, headsets, keyboards, mice, etc.), medical devices (e.g., heart rate monitors, blood pressure monitors, etc.), and/or other suitable fixed, portable, or mobile electronic devices. Although fig. 1 shows five user terminals, the wireless communication system 100 may include more or fewer user terminals.

The user terminals 140, 142, 144, 146, and 148 may employ various modulation techniques, such as spread spectrum modulation (e.g., direct sequence code division multiple access (DS-CDMA) and/or frequency hopping code division multiple access (hopcode division multiple access)

(FH-CDMA)), Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) modulation, Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM) modulation, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) modulation, multi-carrier modulation (MDM), and/or other suitable modulation techniques to communicate via a wireless link. In one example, the laptop computer 140 may operate according to a suitable wireless communication protocol requiring very low power, such as Bluetooth, to implement the WPAN 110Ultra Wideband (UWB), and/or Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). In particular, the laptop computer 140 may communicate with devices associated with the WPAN 110 (e.g., the camera 142 and/or the printer 144) via wireless links.

In another example, the laptop computer 140 may employ Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) modulation and/or Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS) modulation to implement the WLAN 120 (e.g., the 802.11 family of standards developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and/or variations and evolutions of these standards). For example, laptop computer 140 may communicate with devices associated with WLAN 120 (e.g., printer 144, handheld computer 146, and/or smartphone 148) via a wireless link. The laptop computer 140 may also communicate with an Access Point (AP)150 via a wireless link. The AP 150 may be operatively coupled to a router 152, which will be described in further detail below. Alternatively, the AP 150 and the router 152 may be integrated into a single device (e.g., a wireless router).

The laptop computer 140 may employ OFDM modulation to transmit large amounts of digital data by splitting a radio frequency signal into multiple smaller sub-signals that are then transmitted simultaneously at different frequencies. In particular, the laptop computer 140 may implement the WMAN 130 using OFDM modulation. For example, the laptop computer 140 may operate in accordance with the 802.16 family of standards developed by IEEE (e.g., IEEE Standard 802.16, published 2004) to support fixed, portable, and/or mobile Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) networks to communicate via wireless links with base stations, shown generally as 160, 162, and 164.

While some of the above examples are described above with respect to standards developed by IEEE, the methods and apparatus disclosed herein are readily applicable to many specifications and/or standards developed by other specialized interested parties and/or standard development organizations (e.g., wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi)) alliance, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) forum, infrared data association (IrDA), third generation partnership project (3GPP), etc.). The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

The WLAN 120 and WMAN 130 may be operatively coupled to a public or private network 170, such as the internet, a telephone network (e.g., the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)), a Local Area Network (LAN), a wired network, and/or another wireless network via a connection to an ethernet, a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), a telephone line, a coaxial cable, and/or any wireless connection, etc. In one example, WLAN 120 may be operatively coupled to public or private network 170 via AP 150 and/or router 152. In another example, the WMAN 130 may be operatively coupled to the public or private network 170 via the base stations 160, 162, and/or 164.

The wireless communication system 100 may include other suitable wireless communication networks. For example, the wireless communication system 100 may include a Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN) (not shown). The laptop computer 140 may operate in accordance with other wireless communication protocols that support WWANs. In particular, these wireless communication protocols may be based on analog, digital, and/or dual-mode communication system technologies such as global system for mobile communications (GSM) technology, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) technology, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) technology, Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE) technology, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) technology, standards based on these technologies, variations and evolutions of these standards, and/or other suitable wireless communication standards. Although fig. 1 illustrates a WPAN, a WLAN, and a WMAN, wireless communication system 100 may include other combinations of WPANs, WLANs, WMANs, and/or WWANs. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

The wireless communication system 100 may include other WPAN, WLAN, WMAN, and/or WWAN devices (not shown), such as network interface devices and peripherals (e.g., Network Interface Cards (NICs)), Access Points (APs), redistribution points, end points, gateways, bridges, hubs, etc., to implement a cellular telephone system, a satellite system, a Personal Communication System (PCS), a two-way radio system, a one-way paging system, a two-way paging system, a Personal Computer (PC) system, a Personal Data Assistant (PDA) system, a Personal Computing Accessory (PCA) system, and/or any other suitable communication system. Although certain examples have been described above, the scope of coverage of this disclosure is not limited thereto.

In the example of fig. 2, platform coexistence system 200 may include two or more wireless communication devices, shown generally as 210 and 220. The platform coexistence system 200 may be integrated into a single platform such as a user terminal (e.g., the user terminal 400 of fig. 4). The first Wireless Communication Device (WCD)210 may include a first Network Device Interface Specification (NDIS) Application Program Interface (API)212, a first device driver 214, and a first Network Interface Device (NID) 216. A second Wireless Communication Device (WCD)220 may include a second NDIS API 222, a second device driver 224, and a second NID 226.

In general, first and second WCDs 210 and 220 may interact via software (and/or firmware) and hardware. At the software and/or firmware level 202 of the platform coexistence system 200, the first NDIS API212 and the first device driver 214 may be operatively coupled to the second NDIS API 222 and the second device driver 224 to exchange configuration information for the first and second WCDs 210 and 220. At the hardware level 204 of the platform coexistence system 200, the first and second NIDs 216 and 226 may be operatively coupled to each other via one or more wired links, shown generally at 242 and 244, to communicate priority information between the first and second WCDs 210 and 220. In particular, each of the wired links 242 and 244 may be unidirectional to transmit priority information (e.g., priority signals) as described in more detail below. In one example, a first NID216 may send a priority signal from the first NID216 to a second NID226 via a first wired link 242, and a second NID226 may send a priority signal from the second NID226 to the first NID216 via a second wired link 244. Although fig. 2 shows two separate, unidirectional wired links operatively coupling the first and second NIDs 216 and 226, the first and second NIDs 216 and 226 may be operatively coupled to each other via a single bidirectional wired link. Thus, the priority signal from the first NID216 or the second NID226 may be transmitted over the same wired link.

A first WCD210 may provide communication services associated with a first wireless communication network (e.g., WLAN 120 of fig. 1) and a second WCD 220 may be associated with a second wireless communication network (e.g., WMAN 130 of fig. 1). Although first and second WCDs 210 and 220 may be associated with wireless communication networks based on different wireless technologies, first and second WCDs 210 and 220 may operate within the same frequency range, adjacent frequency ranges, overlapping frequency ranges, or relatively close frequency ranges that may generate interference. In one example, the first wireless communication network may operate based on Wi-Fi technology, while the second wireless communication network may operate based on WiMAX technology. Accordingly, according to the above example, first WCD210 may communicate based on Wi-Fi technology, while second WCD 220 may communicate based on WiMAX technology.

Briefly, Wi-Fi technology provides high-speed wireless connectivity within the range of wireless access points (e.g., hotspots) located in different locations, including homes, offices, coffee shops, hotels, airports, etc. In particular, Wi-Fi technology may allow a wireless device to connect to a local area network when the wireless device is within range of a wireless access point (e.g., 150 feet indoors or 300 feet outdoors) without having to physically plug the wireless device into the network. In one example, Wi-Fi technology may provide high speed internet access and/or voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to connected wireless devices. Wi-Fi technology can operate in a frequency range that starts at 2.4 gigahertz (GHz) and ends at 2.4835 GHz. IEEE has developed an 802.11 family of standards for supporting WLANs (e.g., IEEE Standard 802.11a, published 1999, IEEE Standard 802.11b, published 2003, IEEE Standard 802.11 g). The Wi-Fi alliance facilitates the use of WLANs based on the 802.11 standard. In particular, the Wi-Fi alliance ensures compatibility and interoperability of WLAN devices. For convenience, in this disclosure, the terms "802.11" and "Wi-Fi" may be used interchangeably to refer to the IEEE 802.11 suite of air interface standards. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

WiMAX technology provides "last mile" (1ast-mile) broadband connectivity over a larger geographic area than other wireless technologies, such as Wi-Fi technology. In particular, WiMAX technology may provide broadband or high-speed data connections to various geographic locations where wired transmissions may be too costly, inconvenient, and/or unavailable. In one example, WiMAX technology may provide greater range and bandwidth to make T1-type services for commerce and/or wired/Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL) equally accessible to the home. WiMAX technology may operate in a frequency band ranging from 2 to 11GHz (e.g., 2.3 to 2.4GHz, 2.5 to 2.7GHz, 3.3 to 3.8GHz, or 4.9 to 5.8 GHz). The IEEE developed a family of 802.16 standards to support fixed, portable, and/or mobile broadband wireless access networks (e.g., IEEE standard 802.16, published 2004). The WiMAX forum has promoted the use of broadband wireless access networks based on the IEEE 802.16 standard. In particular, the WiMAX forum ensures the compatibility and interoperability of broadband wireless devices. For convenience, in this disclosure, the terms "802.16" and "WiMAX" may be used interchangeably to refer to the IEEE 802.16 suite of air interface standards. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

As described in detail below, first and second WCDs 210 and 220 of platform coexistence system 200 may operate simultaneously through coordination and operation in a collocated (i.e., running in parallel) manner. In one example, the platform coexistence system 200 of FIG. 2 may be implemented in the laptop computer 140 of FIG. 1. As described above, in one example, first WCD210 may communicate based on Wi-Fi technology, while second WCD 220 may communicate based on WiMAX technology. In particular, laptop computer 140 may use first WCD210 to communicate with the WLAN devices of fig. 1 (e.g., printer 144, handheld computer 146, smartphone 148, and/or access point 150). The laptop computer 140 may use the second WCD 220 to communicate with the WMAN device of fig. 1 (e.g., base stations 160, 162, and/or 164). The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

Generally, Wi-Fi technology can operate in the frequency range from 2.4 to 2.4835GHz, while WiMAX technology can operate in the frequency range from 2.3GHz to 2.7 GHz. Accordingly, the simultaneous use of Wi-Fi and WiMAX technologies may cause significant interference. In particular, for high data rate modulation (e.g., 64 Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM)), the interference may be caused by the need for extremely close frequencies, high power transmission, low antenna isolation, and/or high signal-to-noise ratio. In one example, a transmission using Wi-Fi technology may affect a reception using WiMAX technology, and vice versa. To mitigate potential interference between co-existing Wi-Fi and WiMAX technologies, first and second WCDs 210 and 220 may be configured to operate in a co-located manner as described in more detail below. Although the above examples are described with respect to Wi-Fi and WiMAX technologies, first and second WCDs 210 and 220 may be based on other wireless technologies.

Returning to fig. 2, first and second WCDs 210 and 220 may exchange configuration information with each other. In particular, the device drivers 214 and 224 may exchange configuration information via the NDIS APIs 216 and 226, respectively. The configuration information for each wireless communication device indicates the manner in which the wireless communication device communicates via a wireless link in the respective wireless communication network. For example, device drivers 214 and 224 may exchange information indicating channels used by first and second WCDs 210 and 220, respectively, and/or information indicating channels assigned to first and second WCDs 210 and 220, respectively. In addition to channel information, device drivers 214 and 224 may exchange information indicating bandwidth, transmit power, front-end filters, receive sensitivity, antenna isolation, and/or other suitable information related to first and second WCDs 210 and 220, respectively.

Based on the configuration information, first and second WCDs 210 and 220 may operate in a collocated manner. In particular, each of first and second device drivers 214 and 224 may determine whether to adjust the wireless configuration of NIDs 216 and 226, respectively, for communication via a wireless link. In one example, if the current output power is relatively high (e.g., greater than 10 decibel-milliwatts (dBm)), first device driver 214 may reduce the transmission power of first WCD210 (e.g., to 0 dBm). In another implementation, first device driver 214 may reduce the transmission power of first WCD210 if the conditions for antenna isolation are poor (e.g., less than 30 dB). In yet another example, first device driver 214 may also reduce the transmission power of first WCD210 if first WCD210 is not being used for multi-hop purposes in the mesh network. Additionally, or alternatively, if the output power of second WCD 220 is relatively high (e.g., greater than 20dBm) and/or if the antenna isolation conditions are relatively poor (e.g., less than 40dB), first device driver 214 may adjust the receive sensitivity of first WCD210 to tolerate higher interfering input power. Although the above examples are described with respect to transmission output power and receive sensitivity, the methods and apparatus described herein may also adjust other suitable wireless configurations of first and second WCDs 210 and 220.

Each of the first and second device drivers 214 and 224 may also determine whether to generate an output priority signal based on the configuration information. In one example, if the first NID216 is transmitting critical information (e.g., receiving and/or transmitting critical information) and if the first and second NIDs 216 and 226 are using the same frequency range, adjacent frequency ranges, overlapping frequency ranges, or relatively close frequency ranges (e.g., frequency ranges separated by less than 100 megahertz (MHz)), the first NID216 may generate an output priority signal. The critical information may be packets, such as beacons, audio packets, video packets, and/or data packets. If the first device driver 214 decides to generate the output priority signal, the first NID216 may send the output priority signal to the second NID226 via the first wired link 242 so that the second device driver 224 may process the output priority signal as described in detail below (e.g., the output priority signal from the first NID216 is an input priority signal relative to the second device driver 224).

In a similar manner, the second NID226 may determine whether to generate an output priority signal based on the configuration information. The second NID226 may generate an output priority signal if the second NID226 is transmitting critical information and if the first and second NIDs 216 and 226 are using the same frequency range, adjacent frequency ranges, overlapping frequency ranges, or relatively close frequency ranges. If the second device driver 224 decides to generate the output priority signal, the second NID226 may send the output priority signal to the first NID216 via the second wired link 244.

Accordingly, each of the first and second device drivers 214 and 216 may determine whether an input priority signal has been received by the first and second NIDs 216 and 226, respectively. In particular, the first NID216 may receive an incoming priority signal from the second NID226 via the second wired link 244. The second NID226 may receive an incoming priority signal from the first NID216 via the first wired link 242.

In one example, first device driver 214 may determine whether wireless communication activity of first WCD210 is a higher priority than wireless communication activity of second WCD 220 based on an incoming priority signal received from second NID226 via first wired link 242. If the priority of wireless communication activity of first WCD210 is higher than the priority of wireless communication activity of second WCD 220, then first device driver 214 may ignore or discard the incoming priority signal from second NID 226. Accordingly, first device driver 214 and/or first NID216 may continue wireless communication activity for first WCD 210.

Otherwise, if the priority of wireless communication activity of first WCD210 is lower than the priority of wireless communication activity of second WCD 220, first device driver 214 and/or first NID216 may prioritize wireless communication activity of second WCD 220. For example, first device driver 214 and/or first NID216 may suspend transmission of one or more packets and/or selectively drop one or more transmitted packets to balance the performance of first and second WCDs 210 and 220.

In a manner similar to that described with reference to first device driver 214, second device driver 224 may determine whether wireless communication activity of second WCD 220 is a higher priority than wireless communication activity of first WCD210 based on an incoming priority signal received from first NID216 via second wired link 244. Second device driver 224 may ignore or discard the incoming priority signal from first NID216 if the priority of wireless communication activity for second WCD 220 is higher than the priority of wireless communication activity for first WCD 210. In one example, the wireless communication activity of second WCD 220 may be critical information as described above. Accordingly, second device driver 224 and/or second NID226 may continue wireless communication activity for second WCD 220.

Otherwise, if the priority of wireless communication activity of second WCD 220 is lower than the priority of wireless communication activity of first WCD210 (e.g., critical information is being communicated at first WCD 210), then second device driver 224 and/or second NID226 may prioritize wireless communication activity of first WCD 210. For example, second device driver 224 and/or second NID226 may suspend transmission of one or more packets and/or selectively drop one or more transmitted packets to balance the performance of first and second WCDs 210 and 220. Accordingly, platform coexistence system 200 may mitigate interference between first and second WCDs 210 and 220. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

Although fig. 2 shows two wireless communication devices, the methods and apparatus described herein may include other wireless communication devices. Referring to fig. 3, for example, a platform coexistence system 300 may include three or more wireless communication devices, generally shown as 310, 320, and 330. The platform coexistence system 300 may be integrated into a single platform. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

In one example, the platform coexistence system 300 may include the WPAN device 310, the WLAN device 320, and the WMAN device 330. The WPAN device 310 may operate based on relatively short range technologies, such as BluetoothA technology (e.g., IEEE standard 802.15.1, a variation and/or evolution of the standard, published 2002) or a UWB technology (e.g., IEEE standard 802.15.3, a variation and/or evolution of the standard, published 2003). Alternatively, the WPAN device 310 may operate based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology or Wi-Fi technology.

The WLAN device 320 may operate based on Wi-Fi technology (e.g., IEEE standard 802.11x) and the WMAN device 330 may operate based on WiMAX technology (e.g., IEEE standard 802.16 x). The WPAN device 310, WLAN device 320, and WMAN device 330 may be operatively coupled to each other via a bus 340 for exchanging configuration information with each other. To transmit the priority signal, the WPAN device 310 and WLAN device 320 may be operatively coupled to each other via one or more wired links, shown generally as 352 and 354. Each of the wired links 352 and 354 may be unidirectional to transmit priority signals from the respective wireless communication devices. In one example, the WPAN device 310 can transmit the priority signal to the WLAN device 320 via a wired link 352, and the WLAN device 320 can transmit the priority signal to the WPAN device 310 via a wired link 354.

Similar to the above example, the WMAN device 330 may be operatively coupled to the WLAN device 320 via one or more wired links, shown generally as 362 and 364. In particular, wired link 362 may be operatively coupled to wired link 352. As a result, the WMAN device 330 may transmit the priority signal to the WLAN device 320 via the wired links 352 and 362. In a similar manner, the wired link 364 may be operatively coupled to the wired link 354 such that the WLAN device 320 may transmit the priority signal to the WMAN device 330 via the wired links 354 and 364.

Although fig. 3 shows a particular manner in which the wireless communication devices 310, 320, and 330 are operatively coupled to one another, the wireless communication devices 310, 320, and 330 may be operatively coupled in other suitable manners to exchange configuration information and transmit priority signals. Although fig. 3 illustrates each of the WPAN, WLAN, and WMAN devices within platform coexistence system 300, the methods and apparatus described herein may also include other wireless communication devices (which may operate in accordance with other suitable types of wireless communication networks), and/or include other combinations of wireless communication devices. In one example, the platform coexistence system 300 may include a wireless communication device for WWAN, as an additional wireless communication device or in place of a wireless communication device. In another example, the platform coexistence system 300 may include a first WPAN device, a second WPAN device, and a WMAN device. One or both of the first and second WPAN devices may use Wi-Fi technology. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

As described above, the platform coexistence systems 200 and 300 may be implemented in a user terminal. Turning to fig. 4, for example, user terminal 400 may include two or more WCDs, as generally shown by first WCD410 and second WCD 420. The user terminal 400 may further include a controller 430 and a memory 440. First and second WCDs 410 and 420, controller 430, and memory 440 may be operatively coupled to each other via bus 450.

Each of first and second WCDs 410 and 420 may include a receiver, shown generally at 412 and 422, respectively. Each of first and second WCDs 410 and 420 may include a transmitter, shown generally as 414 and 424, respectively. First WCD410 may receive and/or transmit data via a receiver 412 and a transmitter 414, respectively. Second WCD420 may receive and/or transmit data via receiver 422 and transmitter 424, respectively. Each of first and second WCDs 410 and 420 may include an antenna, as shown generally at 416 and 426. Antennas 416 and 426 may each include a unidirectional antenna, or a multi-directional antenna, or an omni-directional antenna, such as a dipole antenna, a monopole antenna, a patch antenna, a loop antenna, a microstrip antenna and/or other type of antenna suitable for transmission of RF signals. Although fig. 4 shows a single antenna for each of first and second WCDs 410 and 420, each of first and second WCDs 410 and 420 may also include additional antennas. For example, each of first and second WCDs 410 and 420 may include multiple antennas to implement a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system.

For first and second WCDs 410 and 420 operating in a collocated manner, controller 430 may facilitate the exchange of configuration information between first and second WCDs 410 and 420, as described in connection with fig. 5. Memory 440 may be used to store configuration information and/or other suitable information.

Although fig. 4 shows the various components of the user terminal 400 being coupled to one another via a bus 450, the components may also be operatively coupled to one another via other suitable direct or indirect connections (e.g., a point-to-point connection, or a point-to-multipoint connection). In one example, first and second WCDs 410 and 420 may be operatively coupled to each other via one or more wired links 460 to exchange priority information. Although fig. 4 shows a single bidirectional wired link, wired link 460 may also include two separate unidirectional wired links that operatively couple first and second WCDs 410 and 420. For example, first WCD410 may transmit priority information to second WCD420 using one wired link, and second WCD420 may transmit priority information to first WCD410 using another wired link.

Although the components shown in fig. 4 are depicted as separate blocks within the user terminal 400, the functions performed by some of these blocks may be integrated within a single semiconductor circuit or may be implemented using two or more separate integrated circuits. For example, although the receiver 412 and the transmitter 414 are depicted as separate blocks within the communication interface 410, the receiver 412 may be integrated into the transmitter 414 (e.g., a transceiver). In addition, although fig. 4 shows two WCDs, user terminal 400 may also include other WCDs. Although the above examples are described for user terminals, the methods and apparatus described in the present invention may be implemented in other suitable devices, such as wireless gateways, routers, modems, hubs. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

Fig. 5 illustrates a manner in which a wireless communication device may be configured to provide the example platform coexistence systems of fig. 2 and/or 3. The example process 500 in fig. 5 may be implemented as machine-accessible instructions employing any of several different programming codes stored on any combination of machine-accessible media such as volatile memory or non-volatile memory or other mass storage devices (e.g., floppy disks, CDs, and DVDs). For example, the machine-accessible instructions may be embodied in a machine-accessible medium such as a programmable gate array, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), a read-only memory (ROM), a random-access memory (RAM), a magnetic medium, an optical medium, and/or any other suitable type of medium.

Further, while a particular order of actions is illustrated in FIG. 5, these actions may be performed in other temporal sequences. Again, this example process 500 is merely provided and described in connection with the apparatus of fig. 4 as one example manner of providing a platform coexistence system.

In the example of fig. 5, process 500 may begin with first and second WCDs 410 and 420 exchanging configuration information with each other (e.g., via controller 430). In particular, first WCD410 may receive configuration information related to second WCD 420. For example, first WCD410 may receive information related to second WCD420 indicative of a channel, bandwidth, transmission power, front-end filter, receive sensitivity, or antenna isolation (block 510). Accordingly, first WCD410 may transmit configuration information associated with first WCD410 to second WCD420 (block 520). For example, first WCD410 may transmit configuration information to second WCD420 in response to detecting that second WCD420 is turned on.

Based on the configuration information, first WCD410 may determine whether to adjust a wireless configuration of first WCD410 to communicate via a wireless link. In particular, first WCD410 may monitor for adjustment conditions (block 530). If first WCD410 does not detect an adjustment condition, control may proceed directly to block 540, as described in detail below.

Otherwise, if first WCD410 detects an adjustment condition, first WCD410 may adjust the radio configuration of first WCD410 (block 535). In one example, if the current output power is relatively high (e.g., greater than 10 decibel-milliwatts (dBm)), first WCD410 may reduce the transmission power (e.g., to 0 dBm). In another implementation, first WCD410 may reduce transmission power if the conditions for antenna isolation are poor (e.g., less than 30 dB). In yet another example, first WCD410 may also reduce transmission power if first WCD410 is not being used for multi-hop purposes in the mesh network. Additionally, or alternatively, first WCD410 may adjust receive sensitivity to tolerate higher interference input power if the output power of second WCD420 is relatively high (e.g., greater than 20dBm) and/or if the antenna isolation condition is relatively poor (e.g., less than 40 dB). Control may proceed to block 540, as described in detail below.

First WCD410 may determine whether to generate an output priority signal to second WCD420 based on the configuration information. In one example, first WCD410 may generate the output priority signal if first WCD410 is transmitting critical information and if first and second WCDs 410 and 420 are using the same frequency range, adjacent frequency ranges, overlapping frequency ranges, or relatively close frequency ranges.

If first WCD410 is not generating an output priority signal, control may proceed directly to block 550 as described in detail below. Otherwise, if first WCD410 generates an output priority signal, first WCD410 may transmit the output priority signal to second WCD420 (block 545). Control may pass to block 550, as described in detail below.

Turning to block 550, first WCD410 may monitor for incoming priority signals from second WCD 420. If first WCD410 does not receive the incoming priority signal, control may proceed directly to block 555 to perform communication activities for first WCD 410.

Otherwise, if first WCD410 receives the input priority signal at block 550, first WCD410 may determine whether the priority of the communication activity of first WCD410 is higher than the priority of the communication activity of second WCD420 as indicated by the input priority signal (block 560). First WCD410 may prioritize communication activity of second WCD420 if the priority of communication activity of first WCD410 is not higher than the priority of communication activity of second WCD 420. In one example, first WCD410 may suspend transmission of one or more packets and/or selectively discard one or more transmitted packets.

Otherwise, if the priority of communication activity of first WCD410 is higher than the priority of communication activity of second WCD420, then first WCD410 may ignore the incoming priority signal from second WCD420 (block 565). Accordingly, first WCD410 may proceed to block 555 to perform communication activities of first WCD 410. Second WCD420 may operate in a similar manner as described in conjunction with fig. 5 to provide a platform coexistence system. The methods and apparatus described herein are not limited in this respect.

Fig. 6 is a block diagram of an example processor system 2000 adapted to implement the methods and apparatus disclosed herein. The processor system 2000 may be a desktop computer, laptop computer, handheld computer, tablet computer, PDA, server, internet appliance, and/or other type of computing device.

The processor system 2000 illustrated in fig. 6 includes a chipset 2010, which includes a memory controller 2012 and an input/output (I/O) controller 2014. The chipset 2010 may provide memory and I/O management functions as well as a plurality of general purpose and/or special purpose registers, timers, etc. that are accessible or used by a processor 2020. The processor 2020 may be implemented using one or more processors, WPAN components, WLAN components, WMAN components, WWAN components, and/or other suitable processing components. For example, the processor 2020 may useThe technology,The technology,Centrino^TMThe technology,Xeon^TMTechnique and/orOne or more of the techniques. In the alternative, the processor 2020 may be implemented using other processing technologies. The processor 2020 may include a cache 2022, which may be implemented using a first level unified cache (L1), a second level unified cache (L2), a third level unified cache (L3), and/or any other suitable structure for storing data.

The memory controller 2012 may perform functions that enable the processor 2020 to access and communicate with a main memory 2030 via a bus 2040, the main memory 2030 including a volatile memory 2032 and a non-volatile memory 2034. The volatile memory 2032 may be implemented using Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM), Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), RAMBUS Dynamic Random Access Memory (RDRAM), and/or other types of random access memory devices. The non-volatile memory 2034 may be implemented using flash memory, Read Only Memory (ROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), and/or any other desired type of memory device.

The processor system 2000 may also include an interface circuit 2050 that is coupled to the bus 2040. The interface circuit 2050 may be implemented using any type of interface standard such as an ethernet interface, a Universal Serial Bus (USB), a third generation input/output (3GIO) interface, and/or any other suitable type of interface.

One or more input devices 2060 may be connected to the interface circuit 2050. The input device(s) 2060 permit an individual to enter data and commands into the processor 2020. For example, the input device(s) 2060 may be implemented using a keyboard, mouse, touch-sensitive display, track pad, track ball, Isopoint, and/or voice recognition system.

One or more output devices 2070 may also be connected to the interface circuit 2050. For example, the output device(s) 2070 may be implemented by display devices (e.g., a Light Emitting Display (LED), a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) display, a printer and/or speakers). The interface circuit 2050 may include, among other things, a graphics driver card.

The processor system 2000 may also include one or more mass storage devices 2080 to store software and data. Examples of such mass storage devices 2080 include floppy disks and drives, hard disk drives, compact disks and drives, and Digital Versatile Disks (DVDs) and drives.

The interface circuit 2050 may also include a communication device such as a modem or a network interface card to facilitate exchange of data with external computers via a network. The communication link between the processor system 2000 and the network may be any type of network connection such as an ethernet connection, a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), a telephone line, a cellular telephone system, a coaxial cable, etc.

Access to the input device(s) 2060, the output device(s) 2070, the mass storage device(s) 2080 and/or the network may be controlled by the I/O controller 2014. In particular, the I/O controller 2014 may perform functions that enable the processor 2020 to communicate with the input device(s) 2060, the output device(s) 2070, the mass storage device(s) 2080 and/or the network via the bus 2040 and the interface circuit 2050.

Although the components in fig. 6 are depicted as separate blocks within the processor system 2000, the functions performed by some of these blocks may be integrated within a single semiconductor circuit or may be implemented using two or more separate integrated circuits. For example, while the memory controller 2012 and the I/O controller 2014 are depicted as separate blocks within the chipset 2010, the memory controller 2012 and the I/O controller 2014 may be integrated within a single semiconductor circuit.

Although certain example methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture have been described herein, the scope of coverage of this disclosure is not limited thereto. On the contrary, this disclosure covers all methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture fairly falling within the scope of the appended claims either literally or under the doctrine of equivalents. For example, although the exemplary systems disclosed above include, among other components, software or firmware executed on hardware, it should be noted that these systems are merely exemplary and should not be considered as limiting. Specifically, it is contemplated that: any or all of the disclosed hardware, software, and/or firmware components could be embodied exclusively in hardware, exclusively in software, exclusively in firmware, or in some combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware.

Claims (9)

1. A method for providing a platform coexistence system of a plurality of wireless communication devices, comprising:

exchanging configuration information between a first wireless communication device associated with a first wireless communication network and a second wireless communication device associated with a second wireless communication network via a network device interface specification application program interface, wherein the configuration information includes at least transmission power and antenna isolation information for the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device, and wherein the first wireless communication network operates based on Wi-Fi technology and the second wireless communication network operates based on WiMAX technology, the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device being integrated within a single platform and operatively coupled to each other via one or more wired links to transmit priority information;

reducing, by the first wireless communication device, transmission power in response to the transmission power of the first wireless communication device being greater than a transmission power threshold and the antenna isolation of the second wireless communication device being less than an antenna isolation threshold to enable the first and second wireless communication devices to simultaneously communicate with the first and second wireless communication networks over an interfering frequency range;

simultaneously communicating, via the first wireless communication device, on the first wireless communication network and via the second wireless communication device, on the second wireless communication network based on the adjusted configuration, wherein the first wireless communication network and the second wireless communication network operate in an interference frequency range;

generating, by at least one of the first wireless communication device or the second wireless communication device, a hardware priority signal based on configuration information adjusted in response to a determination that antenna isolation has fallen below the antenna isolation threshold, wherein the hardware priority signal includes priority information; and

in response to detecting a condition indicating that the second wireless communication device is higher priority than the first wireless communication device, delaying or relinquishing communication activity on the first wireless communication device; delaying or relinquishing communication activity on the second wireless communication device in response to detecting a condition indicating that the first wireless communication device has a higher priority than the second wireless communication device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein exchanging the configuration information comprises: exchanging information indicative of at least one of a channel, a bandwidth, a transmission power, a front-end filter, a receive sensitivity, and an antenna isolation associated with the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating comprises: generating a hardware priority signal comprising priority information in response to detecting a condition indicating that critical information is communicated and a condition indicating that the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device are associated with at least one of a same frequency range, an adjacent frequency range, an overlapping frequency range, and a substantially close frequency range.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting the hardware priority signal including priority information from the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device via a first wired link.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving the hardware priority signal including priority information on the second wireless communication device via a first wired link.

6. An apparatus for providing a platform coexistence system of a plurality of wireless communication devices, comprising:

a first wireless communication device having a first device driver and a first network interface device, the first wireless communication device associated with a first wireless communication network operating based on Wi-Fi technology;

a second wireless communication device having a second device driver and a second network interface device, the second wireless communication device associated with a second wireless communication network operating based on WiMAX technology;

wherein the first network interface device and the second network interface device are operatively coupled to each other via two unidirectional wired links to communicate priority information, and

wherein the first device driver and the second device driver are operatively coupled to each other to exchange configuration information, wherein the configuration information includes at least transmission power and antenna isolation information of the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device to enable the first and second wireless communication devices to:

an adjustment configuration, wherein the adjustment configuration comprises reducing transmission power in the configuration information based on the transmission power of the first wireless communication device being greater than a transmission power threshold and the antenna isolation of the second wireless communication device being less than an isolation threshold to enable the first and second wireless communication devices to simultaneously communicate with the first and second wireless communication networks over an interfering frequency range,

generating a hardware priority signal based on configuration information adjusted in response to a determination that the antenna isolation has dropped below another antenna isolation threshold, an

In response to detecting a condition indicating that the second wireless communication device is higher priority than the first wireless communication device, delaying or relinquishing communication activity on the first wireless communication device; delaying or relinquishing communication activity on the second wireless communication device in response to detecting a condition indicating that the first wireless communication device has a higher priority than the second wireless communication device.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the configuration information comprises information further indicative of at least one of a channel, a bandwidth, a front-end filter, or a receive sensitivity associated with at least one of the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein at least one of the first device driver and the second device driver generates the hardware priority signal comprising priority information in response to detecting a condition indicating that critical information is communicated and a condition indicating that the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device are associated with at least one of a same frequency range, an adjacent frequency range, an overlapping frequency range, and a substantially close frequency range.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the first network interface device transmits the hardware priority signal to the second network interface device via a first of the two unidirectional wired links.