Access Point Channel Allocation Minimizing Interference Pairs
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Solution Overview
Problem
In dense deployments of access points in communication networks, conventional channel assignment methods like LCCS fail to account for interference between client devices and do not optimize channel reuse, leading to inefficiencies in channel allocation.
Innovation Solution
A method that identifies interference-prone pairs of access points and allocates non-overlapping channels to minimize interference, using a selection criterion such as client device count or traffic load, and employs graph coloring algorithms like DSATUR to optimize channel allocation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If LCCS method is used for channel assignment, then each AP autonomously selects the channel with fewest clients, but client interference between different access points is not accounted for
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary controller that mediates between access points and clients. The controller collects client location information and interference data, then makes informed channel assignment decisions that consider both AP-to-AP interference and client-to-client interference, resolving the contradiction between autonomous operation and interference awareness
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where access points report client association data and interference measurements to the controller. The controller uses this feedback to dynamically adjust channel assignments, ensuring that client interference patterns are continuously considered in channel allocation decisions
2Device complexity
If channel assignment is based on client distribution, then channel reuse is simplified, but channel re-use is not optimized
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameters considered in channel assignment from simple client counts to a comprehensive set including client locations, transmission power levels, and measured interference levels. This allows the system to optimize channel reuse by considering the actual spatial distribution and interference characteristics of clients rather than just their numbers
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies local quality analysis by considering the specific characteristics of each client's connection, including their location relative to multiple access points, their transmission power, and their interference profile. This enables optimized channel assignment that tailors decisions to local conditions rather than applying uniform rules
Data Source
AI summary
A method for allocating communication channels to access points in a communications network comprising: identifying, amongst the access points, one or more interference-prone pairs of access points, wherein each interference-prone pair comprises a first access point and a second access point that are currently using the same or overlapping communication channels to communicate with their respective client user devices, determining the number N of non-overlapping channels that are available for allocating to the access points; allocating the N non-overlapping channels between the access points in such a way as minimize the number of interference-prone pairs of access points; and where an access point cannot be allocated any one of the N channels without it comprising part of an interference-prone pair, selecting a particular one of the N channels to allocate to the access point based on a selection criterion.