Multiplex communications – Communication techniques for information carried in plural... – Adaptive
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-30
2003-03-18
Ton, Dang (Department: 2666)
Multiplex communications
Communication techniques for information carried in plural...
Adaptive
C370S342000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06535523
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to allocation of a limited resource among multiple users. More specifically, this invention relates to the assignment of usage rates based on a set of persistence vectors.
2. Description of Related Art and General Background
A shared resource is one which may be used by multiple users. Shared resources which have limited availabilities or capacities include such diverse examples as electric power stations and other energy plants, water sources such as reservoirs and flowing bodies, supply systems for the distribution of goods and/or materials, and data communications networks and pathways. Problems associated with allocating the use of a shared resource among multiple users may therefore arise in many different contexts. Regardless of the particular context, however, such resources may be found in many systems in which at least the following conditions hold:
the capacity or availability of the shared resource may be expressed in terms of a finite rate R of units per measure of time (e.g. kilowatts/hour, gallons/minute, cartons/week, or bits/second);
at any particular time, the resource is being used by n different users, where n is a non-negative integer; and
at any particular time, the usage of the i-th user (where 1≦i≦n) may be characterized by a finite usage rate u
i
of units per measure of time.
A basic model for such a system is shown in
FIG. 1
, where resource
100
is used by users
120
a-d
at rates
110
a-d,
respectively. Depending on the particular implementation, the rate R which characterizes the shared resource may indicate an actual or estimated limit of the capacity of the resource (e.g. in the case of a communications pathway) or, in the alternative, the rate R may be a threshold indicating a maximum safe or permissible load of the resource (e.g. in the case of a power generation facility or device). Likewise, the usage rates u
i
may indicate actual use, expected use, or requests or demands for use.
An overload condition arises when the sum of the n usage rates u
i
at any one time exceeds the value R. With respect to a power plant, for example, an overload condition may arise when the total current draw exceeds the rated capacity. With respect to a data communications pathway, an overload condition may arise when the total data transfer rate exceeds the pathway's actual capacity, thereby corrupting the data in transmission. In certain situations such as water supply or warehousing of materials, an overload condition may also indicate that although user demands are currently being met, reserve or buffer capacity is being depleted.
Depending on the nature of the resource, the consequences of an overload condition will vary, possibly including the need for an offline period for resource recovery (e.g. cooling of a power generation system or replenishment of a reservoir) or the need to expend present capacity in order to repeat a use that was attempted in the past but failed because of the overload (e.g. retransmission of a data packet corrupted by a collision). The resource may even become temporarily or permanently unable to regain its former capacity. In cases where the sum of the n usage rates u
i
may exceed the value R, it is desirable to control the usage rates in some fashion so as to avoid overload conditions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In a system or method according to an embodiment of the invention, a resource is shared among a set of users. Each user has a usage rate selected from a set of available rates, and each user's use of the resource is determined at least in part by the user's usage rate. Each user also has a set of persistence vectors, each vector element corresponding to a rate among the set of available rates. Selection of a user's usage rate from the set of available rates is based at least in part on one among the set of persistence vectors.
REFERENCES:
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patent: 5729542 (1998-03-01), Dupont
patent: 5857147 (1999-01-01), Gardner et al.
Computer Networks, Tanenbaum, 3rdEdition, Prentice Hall, 1996, pp. 250-251, 256, 258.
Chung, et al “Power Allocation for Multi-Rate Multiuser Detection in Wideband CDMA Systems” IEEE Conf. 50: 608-612 (Sep. 1999).
Guo, Yile “Capacity of Multi-class Traffic CDMA System with Multiuser Receiver” IEEE Wireless Communications & Networking Conference 1:500-504 (Sep. 1999).
Lal, et al. “Distributed Resource Allocation for DS-CDMA-Based Multimedia ad hoc Wireless Lan's” IEEE J. on Selected Areas in Communications 17(5): 947-967 (May 1999).
Oh, et al. “Adaptive Resource Allocation in Power Constrained CDMA Mobile Networks” IEEE Wireless Communications & Networking Conference 1:510-514 (Sep. 1999).
Bender Paul E.
Grob Matthew Stuart
Karmi Gadi
Baker Kent D.
English Sean
Qualcomm Incorporated
Ton Dang
Wadsworth Philip R.
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