Patent ID: 9730218
Date: 2017-08-08
CPC Classifications: H04L,H04W

Claim:
1. A method for a device to perform a common medium access procedure for the transmission of packets of one or more certain classes, the method comprising: initiating, by the device, a backoff procedure for one of the certain classes, wherein initiating the backoff includes initiating a back-off counter at the device, and decrementing the back-off counter at the device depending on a clear channel assessment state at the device, and wherein the backoff procedure includes sending an indication of the clear channel assessment state to a central controller; receiving, by the device, an indication from the central controller that a common backoff procedure for the class has been completed based on a clear channel assessment state reported to the central controller from two or more of the devices; performing, by the device, one or more transmissions in response to receiving the indication, independent of whether the initiated back-off procedure indicates it is time to transmit in that class; and updating, by the device, the backoff procedure for the class based on the one or more transmissions.