Patent · US Expired

Medium access protocol for wireless LANs

US5231634A · kind A · utility

275Cited by
1References
23Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateDec 18, 1991
Grant dateJul 27, 1993
Priority date
Expiry dateDec 18, 2011

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH04W92/18
  • WIPO fieldDigital communication
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

Access to a radio communications medium shared by at least two agents to provide peer-to-peer communication therebetween is controlled by sensing the communications medium at a first agent to determine if the communications medium is in use, transmitting from the first agent, if the first agent determines that the communications medium is not in use, a request-to-send message that includes reservation duration information, and receiving the request-to-sent message at a second agent. The second agent then transmits a clear-to-send message including reservation duration information on behalf of the first agent, after which the first agent then transmits information to the second agent while a reservation duration indicated by the reservation duration information has not elapsed. A possible third agent within receiving range of only one of the first and second agents is thereby guaranteed to receive the reservation duration information and is expected to observe the reservation according to rules disclosed.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.