Discontinuous Transmission Audio Packet Scheduling

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing wireless communication systems face challenges in managing discontinuous transmissions during silence periods in conversations, leading to interference and battery power consumption issues, while maintaining natural sound quality and meeting desired transmission timing.

Innovation Solution

A communication system that includes an audio module and a transceiver configured to selectively transmit critical and non-critical audio packets, ensuring that every Pth packet is conveyed, with the transceiver determining whether a packet is critical or non-critical based on a periodicity value, thereby reducing waste and interference.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of energy

If discontinuous transmission is implemented during silence periods, then interference is reduced and battery power is conserved, but transmission timing requirements may not be met and sound quality may deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvebattery power consumptionVSAvoidtransmission timing accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of energyVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments audio packets into critical and non-critical categories. Critical packets (every Pth packet) are transmitted to maintain timing requirements and natural sound quality, while non-critical packets are suppressed during silence periods to reduce power consumption and interference.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different transmission strategies are applied to different packets based on their criticality. Critical packets receive guaranteed transmission resources to maintain timing accuracy, while non-critical packets are selectively transmitted or suppressed based on power and interference conditions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

2Loss of information

If all audio packets are transmitted continuously, then natural sound quality is maintained, but power consumption increases and interference occurs

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesound qualityVSAvoidbattery power consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts and transmits only the essential critical information (every Pth packet) while suppressing redundant non-critical packets during silence periods. This maintains perceptual sound quality while significantly reducing power consumption.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of transmitting all packets or no packets, the patent transmits a partial set (every Pth packet) that is sufficient to maintain natural sound quality and timing requirements while reducing overall transmission volume and power consumption.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Productivity

If non-critical packets are suppressed during silence periods, then power consumption is reduced and interference is minimized, but transmission gaps may occur

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetransmission efficiencyVSAvoidcontinuous transmission coverage
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements periodic transmission of critical packets (every Pth packet) during silence periods. This periodic action ensures that transmission gaps are controlled and bounded, maintaining system reliability while achieving discontinuous transmission benefits.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #19Periodic action

Solution Approach 2:

The system preliminarily identifies and marks critical packets before transmission decisions are made. This allows the transceiver to proactively ensure that critical timing requirements are met while suppressing non-critical packets to reduce power consumption.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP2353304B1Discontinuous transmission in a wireless network
Publication Date: 2013.07.17 QUALCOMM INC
  • EP2353304B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2353304B1 patent drawingFigure 2~4
  • EP2353304B1 patent drawingFigure 3~5

AI summary

A communication system for use in a wireless network includes: an audio module configured to provide packets indicative of audio for a part of a communication between the communication system and another communication system, the communication spanning packet times, the packets including at least critical packets indicative of critical audio; and a transceiver coupled to the audio module and configured to cause: the critical packets to be conveyed for transmission; and first non-critical packets, indicative of non-critical audio, to be conveyed for transmission such that (1) the first non-critical packets represent less than all of a time between transmission of critical packets and (2) no more than a threshold number of packet times will pass without one of the critical packets or one of the first non-critical packets being conveyed by the transceiver for transmission.