Wireless systems, methods and devices employing forward- and/or return-link carriers having different numbers of sub-band carriers
Wireless Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) systems and methods include forward and return link carriers comprising numbers of sub-band carrier groupings that are not identical. A return link carrier may consist of fewer sub-band carriers than a forward link carrier and the return link carrier also may consist of a single sub-band carrier.
1 . A wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) system including forward and/or return link carriers comprising sub-band carrier groupings that are not identical in number of sub-band carriers.
2 . A wireless system according to claim 1 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
3 . A wireless system according to claim 2 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of a single sub-band carrier.
4 . A wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) method comprising wirelessly transporting information over forward and/or return link carriers comprising sub-band carrier groupings that are not identical in number.
5 . A wireless method according to claim 4 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
6 . A wireless method according to claim 5 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of a single sub-band carrier.
7 . A wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) system comprising:
a forward link carrier consisting of a forward link sub-band carrier grouping; and
a return link carrier consisting of a return link sub-band carrier grouping that is not identical in number of sub-band carriers to the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
8 . A wireless system according to claim 7 wherein the return link carrier consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the forward link carrier.
9 . A wireless system according to claim 8 wherein the return link carrier consists of a single sub-band carrier.
10 . A wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) system device comprising a transceiver that is configured to radiate a forward link carrier that transports information to at least one wireless user device over a sub-band carrier grouping comprising a number of sub-band carriers and is also configured to receive a return link carrier that transports information from at least one wireless user device to the system device over a sub-band carrier grouping comprising a number of sub-band carriers that is not identical to the number of sub-band carriers of the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
11 . A wireless system device according to claim 10 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
12 . A wireless system device according to claim 11 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of a single sub-band carrier.
13 . A wireless system device according to claim 10 wherein the wireless FDM/FDMA system device comprises a wireless Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) system device.
14 . A wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) user device comprising a transceiver that is configured to receive a forward link carrier that transports information from at least one wireless system device to the wireless user device over a sub-band carrier grouping comprising a number of sub-band carriers and is also configured to transmit a return link carrier that transports information from at least one wireless user device to the at least one system device over a sub-band carrier grouping comprising a number of sub-band carriers that is not identical to the number of sub-band carriers of the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
15 . A wireless user device according to claim 14 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
16 . A wireless user device according to claim 15 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of a single sub-band carrier.
17 . A wireless user device according to claim 14 wherein the FDM/FDMA wireless user device comprises a wireless Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) user device.
18 . A method of operating a wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) system device comprising:
wirelessly transporting user information from the wireless system device to at least one wireless user device over a forward link carrier consisting of a sub-band carrier grouping; and
wirelessly transporting user information to the wireless system device from at least one wireless user device over a return link carrier consisting of a sub-band carrier grouping that is not identical in number of sub-band carriers to the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
19 . A method according to claim 18 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
20 . A method according to claim 19 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of a single sub-band carrier.
21 . A method according to claim 18 wherein the wireless FDM/FDMA system device comprises a wireless Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) system device.
22 . A method of operating a wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) user device comprising:
wirelessly transporting user information to the wireless user device from at least one wireless system device over a forward link carrier consisting of a sub-band carrier grouping; and
wirelessly transporting user information from the wireless user device to at least one wireless system device over a return link carrier consisting of a sub-band carrier grouping that is not identical in number of sub-band carriers to the forward link sub-band carrier grouping.
23 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
24 . A method according to claim 23 wherein the return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of a single sub-band carrier.
25 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the wireless FDM/FDMA user device comprises a wireless Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) user device.
26 . A wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) system comprising wireless user devices and wireless system devices that communicate using a plurality of forward- and/or return-link carriers comprising sub-band carrier groupings that differ in number of sub-band carriers.
27 . A wireless system according to claim 26 wherein a first return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than a second return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
28 . A wireless system according to claim 26 wherein a first forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than a second forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
29 . A wireless system according to claim 26 wherein a wireless system device is configured to receive a first and/or a second return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping where the first return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the second return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
30 . A wireless system according to claim 29 wherein a wireless system device is configured to transmit a first and/or a second forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping where the first forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the second forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
31 . A wireless system according to claim 26 wherein a wireless user device is configured to receive a first and/or a second forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping where the first forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the second forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
32 . A wireless system according to claim 31 wherein the wireless user device is configured to transmit a first and/or a second return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping where the first return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than the second return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
33 . A wireless Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDM/FDMA) and/or wireless Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM/OFDMA) and/or a Time-Frequency Division Multiplexing and/or Time-Frequency Division Multiple Access (T-FDM/T-FDMA) method comprising wirelessly transporting information over a plurality of forward- and/or return-link carriers comprising sub-band carrier groupings that differ in number of sub-band carriers.
34 . A wireless method according to claim 33 wherein a first return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than a second return link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.
35 . A wireless method according to claim 33 wherein a first forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping consists of fewer sub-band carriers than a second forward link carrier sub-band carrier grouping.