Patent ID: 9107226
Filing Date: 2015-08-11
Classification: H04W

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for managing contention in a communications system, the apparatus comprising: a processor; and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming for execution by the processor, the programming including instructions to: receive a ranging code from a device in a ranging channel, wherein the ranging code corresponds to a current ranging attempt; broadcast a message acknowledging reception of the ranging code; receive a ranging request message from the device, wherein the ranging request message comprises a ranging retries parameter that specifies a number of ranging retries that the device performed during the current ranging attempt; and estimate a distribution of failures before successful ranging code transmission based at least in part on the ranging retries parameter, wherein the distribution of failures before successful ranging code transmission comprises a first percentage of contending devices that succeeded on a first ranging code transmission attempt, and one or more of a second percentage of contending devices that succeeded on a second ranging code transmission attempt, a third percentage of contending devices that succeeded on a third ranging code transmission attempt, and a fourth percentage of contending devices that succeeded after the third ranging code transmission attempt.