Patent ID: 6885862
Filing Date: 2005-04-26
Classification: H04W

Abstract:
1. A method for programming wireless subscriber terminals in a wireless system, the wireless system having a base station in wireless communication with the wireless subscriber terminals using one or more control channels and multiple traffic channels, and each wireless subscriber terminal having a memory, a non-volatile memory, a processor to control operation of the wireless subscriber terminal, the method comprising the steps of: A. transmitting from the base station over a point-to-point channel to wireless subscriber terminals information about a new control program including in said information, a number of blocks and a block-size for a firmware image representing said new control program; B. transmitting a response from each individual wireless subscriber terminal over a point-to-point channel to the base station indicating whether that terminal will be a recipient of the new control program; C. broadcasting the new control program in a series of identified blocks of data from the base station to the recipient terminals over a control channel for each block in the firmware image; D. polling all of the recipient terminals by the base station over a point-to-point channel to determine the transfer status of all blocks of the new control program at each recipient terminal; E. transmitting a status message from each recipient terminal to the base station indicating the status of the reception of the new control program including information about how many blocks were received of said firmware image and/or a range of blocks missing; F. re-transmitting select missing data blocks to each recipient terminal in response to the individual status messages sent from each recipient terminal that indicate an incomplete transmission and the specific data blocks needed; and G. transferring control of each recipient terminal to said new control program.