WLAN Resource Scheduling With Subband Bitmaps for Lower Overhead

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing resource scheduling methods in multi-user transmission systems, such as OFDMA and MU-MIMO, require significant transmission resources due to the increasing length of bit sequences needed to indicate resource allocations as bandwidth increases, leading to high overheads.

Innovation Solution

The method employs a flexible bit sequence generation approach where some bits indicate whether a to-be-assigned resource unit is actually allocated from possible locations in the frequency domain, allowing for reduced transmission resource overheads by comparing allocation locations and generating bit sequences of varying lengths.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If a bit sequence is used to indicate resource units in a bandwidth to be allocated, then resource allocation can be achieved, but transmission resource overheads increase continuously as bandwidth increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveresource allocation capabilityVSAvoidtransmission resource overheads
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the bandwidth into multiple subbands, with each subband independently indicating resource unit allocation. Instead of using a single long bit sequence for the entire bandwidth, multiple shorter bit sequences are used for each subband, reducing the overhead for indicating resource allocations in wide bandwidths.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a frequency domain dimension by dividing the bandwidth into subbands and using separate indication mechanisms for each subband. This dimensional approach allows the system to efficiently indicate resource allocations across wide bandwidths without requiring a proportionally increasing number of bits.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Area of stationary object

If the bandwidth increases, then more resource units can be allocated, but the length of the bit sequence increases continuously

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovebandwidthVSAvoidbit sequence length
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSLength of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the total bandwidth into multiple smaller subbands, each with its own resource unit indication. This segmentation allows the system to support increasing bandwidth without proportionally increasing the bit sequence length, as each subband uses a fixed-size indication regardless of the total bandwidth.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses a fixed number of bits to indicate resource units within each subband, regardless of whether all resource units in that subband are fully utilized. This partial indication approach keeps the bit sequence length bounded while still supporting flexible resource allocation across varying bandwidths.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentEP3681083B1Resource scheduling method, apparatus, and device
Publication Date: 2025.12.31 HUAWEI TECH CO LTD
  • EP3681083B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3681083B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP3681083B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

Embodiments of the present invention provide a resource scheduling method, which can support reduction of transmission resource overheads in resource scheduling. The method is applied to a wireless local area network, where a next generation protocol followed by the wireless local area network prescribes locations of resource units possibly allocated from a to-be-assigned frequency domain resource. The method includes: generating, by a sending end, resource scheduling information, where the resource scheduling information includes a bit sequence used to indicate a resource unit(s) actually allocated from the to-be-assigned frequency domain resource, and at least some bits in the bit sequence are used to indicate whether one or more of said resource unit locations possibly allocated from the to-be-assigned frequency domain resource is\are the actually allocated resource unit(s).