Intelligent load balancing bandwidth allocation for multiple interface wireless devices
View Patent ↗A system and method is provided for intelligent bandwidth allocation in a wireless communication device supporting multiple interfaces. A wireless communications device operating in connection with a first communications interface and a second communications interface is capable of switching channels back and forth so as to receive beacons from both interfaces effectively and provide enough bandwidth for each interface for data traffic to continue without any observable interruptions.
1. A mobile communications device comprising:
a processor configured to manage multiple communication connections;
a watchdog component operative with the processor and configured to calculate:
a first packet activity rate per bandwidth ratio for a first communications connection of the multiple communication connections; and
a second packet activity rate per bandwidth ratio for a second communications connection of the multiple communication connections; and
wherein the processor is further configured to reallocate bandwidth to the first and second communications connections based on a relative operational bandwidth usage as determined by a comparison of the first and second packet activity rate per bandwidth ratios according to at least one of: a virtual simultaneous dual band (VSDB) mode where the reallocated bandwidth comprises adopting a band switching pattern to achieve a full operational bandwidth for at least one of the first and second communications connections or virtual simultaneous dual channel (VSDC) mode where the reallocated bandwidth comprises adopting a channel switching pattern to achieve a full operational bandwidth for at least one of the first and second communications connections.
2. The mobile communications device of claim 1 , wherein the first communications connection is provided over a first communications channel and the second communications connection is provided over a second communications channel.
3. The mobile communications device of claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to switch back and forth between the first and second communications channels in the channel switching pattern based on the reallocated bandwidth.
4. The mobile communications device of claim 3 , wherein the channel switching pattern is selected with communication beacons received for each of the first and second communications connections.
5. The mobile communications device of claim 3 , wherein the channel switching pattern is selected with overlapping communication beacons for each of the first and second communications connections.
6. The mobile communications device of claim 3 , wherein the channel switching pattern is selected as a repeating pattern to average the reallocated bandwidth.
7. The mobile communications device of claim 3 , wherein the channel switching pattern is selected as a varied pattern to average the reallocated bandwidth.
8. The mobile communications device of claim 3 , wherein the channel switching pattern is selected with non-overlapping communication beacons for each of the first and second communications connections.
9. The mobile communications device of claim 1 , wherein the configured to calculate process is performed on a repeated basis until at least one of the first and second communications connections is operating at the full operational bandwidth via the reallocated bandwidth.
10. The mobile communications device of claim 1 , wherein a physical layer (PHY) rate of traffic at the first and second communications connections is used when calculating the first and second packet activity rate per bandwidth ratios.
11. A system supporting multiple communication connections on a single wireless communications device, the system comprising:
a processor including a watchdog component configured to:
calculate a first operational load ratio for a first communications connection of the multiple communication connections; and
calculate a second operational load ratio for a second communications connection of the multiple communication connections, the second communications connection operating concurrently with the first communications connection, the first operational load ratio and the second operational load ratio calculated according to respective time used for transmission/reception (TX/RX) activity on each of the first and second communications connections as divided by respective operational bandwidth allocations of the first and second communications connections; and
reallocate the respective operational bandwidth allocations for the first and second communications connections based on the calculated first and second operational load ratios for the first and second communications connections.
12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the reallocation is repeatedly performed until at least one of the first and second communications connections is operating at a full operational bandwidth allocation.
13. The system of claim 11 , wherein a physical layer (PHY) rate of traffic at the first and second communications connections is used when calculating the first and second operational load ratios.
14. The system of claim 11 , wherein the wireless communications device operates in virtual simultaneous dual band (VSDB) mode when supporting the multiple communication connections and the reallocation comprises adopting a band switching pattern to achieve full operational bandwidth for at least one of the first and second communications connections.
15. The system of claim 11 , wherein the wireless communications device operates in virtual simultaneous dual channel (VSDC) mode when supporting the multiple communication connections and the reallocation comprises adopting a channel switching pattern to achieve full operational bandwidth for at least one of the first and second communications connections.
16. A wireless communications device, comprising:
communications circuitry simultaneously supporting a first communications connection and a second communications connection;
watchdog circuitry calculating a first operational load ratio for the first communications connection and a second operational load ratio for the second communications connection, the first operational load ratio and the second operational load ratio calculated according to respective time used for transmission/reception (TX/RX) activity on each of the first and second communications connections as divided by respective operational bandwidth allocations for the first and second communications connections; and
a processor configured to reallocate bandwidth to the respective first and second communications connections including modifying one or more of the first and second operational load ratios for the first and second communications connections until at least one of the first and second communication connections is operating at a full operational bandwidth.
17. The wireless communications device of claim 16 , wherein the reallocated bandwidth is allocated by switching back and forth between the first and second communications connections in a switching pattern including one or more of:
a first pattern to receive communication beacons for each of the first and second communications connections;
a second pattern to receive overlapping communication beacons for each of the first and second communications connections;
a third pattern including a repeated pattern to average the reallocated bandwidth;
a fourth pattern including a varied pattern to average the reallocated bandwidth; or
a fifth pattern to receive non-overlapping communication beacons for each of the first and second communications connections.
18. The wireless communications device of claim 16 , wherein the processor reallocates bandwidth a plurality of times until the first and second communications connections are both operating at the full operational bandwidth for each of the first and second communications connections, respectively.
19. The wireless communications device of claim 16 , wherein the wireless communications device operates in virtual simultaneous dual band (VSDB) mode when supporting the first and second communication connections and the reallocation comprises adopting a band switching pattern to achieve the full operational bandwidth for at least one of the first and second communications connections.
20. The wireless communications device of claim 16 , wherein the wireless communications device operates in virtual simultaneous dual channel (VSDC) mode when supporting the first and second communication connections and the reallocation comprises adopting a channel switching pattern to achieve the full operational bandwidth for at least one of the first and second communications connections.