IP Library Granted Patent US 9,763,115
Granted Patent B2
US 9,763,115 · App. 14/472,409 · Granted Sep 12, 2017

Apparatus, system and method of performing a time of flight (ToF) measurement

Inventors: Emily H. Qi (Camas, WA); Carlos Cordeiro (Portland, OR); Jonathan Segev (Tel Mond, IL)
Assignee: INTEL IP CORPORATION
H04W24/02
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,763,115
App. No.
14/472,409
Granted
Sep 12, 2017
Kind
B2
Abstract

Some demonstrative embodiments include apparatuses, systems and/or methods of performing a Time of Flight (ToF) measurement. For example, a first wireless device may include a radio to communicate a discovery frame with a second wireless device, the discovery frame including an initiator indication to indicate whether a sender of the discovery frame is to be an initiator or a responder of a Time of Flight (ToF) measurement procedure, and availability information to indicate a wireless channel and one or more time intervals; and a controller to perform the ToF measurement procedure with the second wireless device over the wireless channel during the one or more time intervals, the controller be either the initiator or responder of the ToF measurement according to the initiator indication.

Claims (36)

1. A first wireless device comprising:

a radio to communicate a discovery frame with a second wireless device, the discovery frame comprising an initiator indication bit having a first value or a second value, the first value to indicate that a sender of the discovery frame is to be an initiator of a Time of Flight (ToF) measurement procedure and the second value to indicate that the sender of the discovery frame is to be a responder of the ToF measurement procedure, said discovery frame comprising availability information to indicate a wireless channel and one or more time intervals; and

a controller to perform the ToF measurement procedure with the second wireless device over the wireless channel during the one or more time intervals, the controller to be either the initiator or responder of the ToF measurement according to the value of the initiator indication bit in the discovery frame.

2. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein the discovery frame includes capability information to indicate whether or not the sender of the discovery frame has at least one capability selected from the group consisting of an initiator capability, and a responder capability.

3. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein the discovery frame includes a report indication to indicate whether or not the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure is to send to the responder of the ToF measurement procedure a report of the ToF measurement procedure.

4. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein the discovery frame includes a ToF measurement information field comprising a first bit to indicate whether or not the sender of the discovery frame is capable of being the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure, a second bit to indicate whether or not the sender of the discovery frame is capable of being the responder of the ToF measurement procedure, a third bit comprising the initiator indication bit, and a fourth bit to indicate whether or not the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure is to send to the responder of the ToF measurement procedure a report of the ToF measurement procedure.

5. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein said discovery frame is an unsolicited publish frame.

6. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein said radio is to communicate a subscribe frame with the second wireless device, the discovery frame being a solicited publish frame in response to the subscribe frame.

7. The first wireless device of claim 6 , wherein the subscribe frame includes capability information to indicate whether or not a sender of the subscribe frame has at least one capability selected from the group consisting of an initiator capability, and a responder capability.

8. The first wireless device of claim 6 , wherein the subscribe frame includes preference information to indicate a preference of the sender of the subscribe frame to be the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure.

9. The first wireless device of claim 6 , wherein the subscribe frame includes a report indication to indicate whether or not the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure is to send to the responder of the ToF measurement procedure a report of the ToF measurement procedure.

10. The first wireless device of claim 6 , wherein the subscribe frame includes a ToF measurement information field including a first bit to indicate whether or not the sender of the subscribe frame is capable of being the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure, a second bit to indicate whether or not the sender of the subscribe frame is capable of being the responder of the ToF measurement procedure, a third bit to indicate a preference of the sender of the subscribe frame to be the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure, and a fourth bit to indicate whether or not the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure is to send to the responder of the ToF measurement procedure a report of the ToF measurement procedure.

11. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein said radio is to transmit said discovery frame to the second wireless device.

12. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein said radio is to receive said discovery frame from the second wireless device.

13. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein the ToF measurement procedure comprises a Fine Timing Measurement (FTM) procedure.

14. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein said radio is to communicate the discovery frame over a wireless communication channel over a 2.4 Gigahertz (GHz) frequency band or a 5 GHz frequency band.

15. The first wireless device of claim 1 , wherein the discovery frame is a Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN) service discovery frame.

16. A wireless communication system comprising a first wireless device, the first wireless device comprising:

one or more antennas;

a memory;

a processor;

a radio to communicate a discovery frame with a second wireless device, the discovery frame comprising an initiator indication bit having a first value or a second value, the first value to indicate that a sender of the discovery frame is to be an initiator of a Time of Flight (ToF) measurement procedure and the second value to indicate that the sender of the discovery frame is to be a responder of the ToF measurement procedure, said discovery frame comprising availability information to indicate a wireless channel and one or more time intervals; and

a controller to perform the ToF measurement procedure with the second wireless device over the wireless channel during the one or more time intervals, the controller to be either the initiator or responder of the ToF measurement according to the value of the initiator indication bit in the discovery frame.

17. The wireless communication system of claim 16 , wherein the discovery frame includes capability information to indicate whether or not the sender of the discovery frame has at least one capability selected from the group consisting of an initiator capability, and a responder capability.

18. The wireless communication system of claim 16 , wherein the discovery frame includes a report indication to indicate whether or not the initiator of the ToF measurement procedure is to send to the responder of the ToF measurement procedure a report of the ToF measurement procedure.

19. The wireless communication system of claim 16 , wherein said radio is to communicate a subscribe frame with the second wireless device, the discovery frame being a solicited publish frame in response to the subscribe frame.

20. A method performed by a first wireless device, the method comprising:

communicating a discovery frame with a second wireless device, the discovery frame comprising an initiator indication bit having a first value or a second value, the first value to indicate that a sender of the discovery frame is to be an initiator of a Time of Flight (ToF) measurement procedure and the second value to indicate that the sender of the discovery frame is to be a responder of the ToF measurement procedure, said discovery frame comprising availability information to indicate a wireless channel and one or more time intervals; and

performing the ToF measurement procedure with the second wireless device over the wireless channel during the one or more time intervals, during the ToF measurement procedure being either the initiator or responder of the ToF measurement according to the value of the initiator indication bit in the discovery frame.

21. The method of claim 20 , wherein the discovery frame includes capability information to indicate whether or not the sender of the discovery frame has at least one capability selected from the group consisting of an initiator capability, and a responder capability.

22. The method of claim 20 comprising communicating a subscribe frame with the second wireless device, the discovery frame being a solicited publish frame in response to the subscribe frame.

23. A product comprising one or more tangible computer-readable non-transitory storage media comprising computer-executable instructions operable to, when executed by at least one processor, enable the at least one processor to cause a first wireless device to:

communicate a discovery frame with a second wireless device, the discovery frame comprising an initiator indication bit having a first value or a second value, the first value to indicate that a sender of the discovery frame is to be an initiator of a Time of Flight (ToF) measurement procedure and the second value to indicate that the sender of the discovery frame is to be a responder of the ToF measurement procedure, said discovery frame comprising availability information to indicate a wireless channel and one or more time intervals; and

perform the ToF measurement procedure with the second wireless device over the wireless channel during the one or more time intervals, during the ToF measurement procedure being either the initiator or responder of the ToF measurement according to the value of the initiator indication bit in the discovery frame.

24. The product of claim 23 , wherein the discovery frame includes capability information to indicate whether or not the sender of the discovery frame has at least one capability selected from the group consisting of an initiator capability, and a responder capability.

25. The product of claim 23 , wherein said discovery frame is an unsolicited publish frame.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Oct 15, 2021
From: INTEL CORPORATION
To: SOLID, INC.
Reel/Frame 057827/0276 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 20, 2021
From: INTEL IP CORPORATION
To: INTEL CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 056323/0278 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 17, 2014
From: QI, EMILY H.; CORDEIRO, CARLOS; SEGEV, JONATHAN
To: INTEL IP CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 033753/0450 →
Continuity (2)
Provisional Application 62006353 · Jun 2, 2014
Related Publication 20150350936A1 · Dec 3, 2015