US 7106713

Patent Overview: US7106713B2

Title: Method of rate allocation in a data communications network

Assignee/Inventor: Original assignee Qualcomm Inc; inventor Rajesh K. Pankaj.

Key dates: Priority date 1999-03-08; filing date 2001-09-11; publication date 2006-09-12; legal status listed as "Expired – Fee Related," adjusted expiration 2021-09-30. Application number US09/954,682; other version US20020012357A1.

Classifications: H04W16/02, H04W16/10 (dynamic resource partitioning), H04W28/16, H04W28/18, and H04B7/264 (CDMA data rate control).

Purpose: To allocate a shared transmission channel's capacity dynamically among multiple data producers, since bursty data traffic makes static allocation inefficient. The control unit must know the channel's total capacity, the approximate number of producers, and producer history. It reserves a minimum basic rate for each producer, then distributes remaining capacity via allocation grants based on recent activity.

Plain-language scope: The excerpt describes estimating remaining capacity using either a limit-based scheme (FIG. 4, avoiding collisions by reserving basic rate for all producers) or a current-use-based scheme (FIG. 5/6, reserving less capacity, yielding higher estimates but risking collisions). Different basic rates may be reserved for different producer groups (FIG. 7), and capacity may be reserved for new arrivals. An equitable sharing method is shown in FIG. 10, optionally with priority by producer type or pricing. Leftover capacity may go to ineligible producers or to those otherwise limited to the basic rate. Potential overload (all producers at basic rate exceeding capacity) may be handled by temporarily allocating sub-basic or null rates (FIG. 11). FIG. 12 covers receiving a new allocation grant; FIG. 14 shows frames of 16 slots. The excerpt notes ALOHA limitations (18% pure, 37% slotted utilization) as motivation, and mentions buffer/telephone producers that may not know their own buffer capacity.

Source: https://patents.google.com/patent/[US7106713](/patent/US7106713)/en

What the excerpt does not establish: It omits most claims text, full specification, exact claim scope, prosecution details, and figures' complete content. It does not establish litigation, ownership transfers, validity, or prior-art conclusions. Coverage of specific embodiments is partial only.