Patent ID: 8391225
Filing Date: 2013-03-05
Classification: H04W

Abstract:
1. A method of operating a cognitive radio (CR) communication network, the method comprising: operating the (CR) communication network using synchronized transmission frames and superframes to provide communication services within cells of base stations of the CR communication network; operating a communication link between the base stations; maintaining a schedule of assignments (SchAs) of frames, within a single channel, to the base stations, wherein each frame is assigned to at most one base station for exclusive use for the communication services by the base stations; communicating the SchAs between the base stations on the communication link; and using a frame contention among a plurality of contending base stations to share use of the single channel by assigning individual frames to base stations for scheduled sole use for communication services; wherein the frame contention comprises making assignments, in the SchAs, of individual frames of subsequent superframes of the single channel among the plurality of contending base stations by comparing spectrum contention numbers (SCNs) which are randomly chosen from a finite set of numbers in which each number is equally likely; and wherein the frame contention further comprises destination resolution, by which a destination base station, which has scheduled use of a set of frames in a subsequent superframe, resolves the frame contention initiated by at least one base station seeking to obtain the scheduled use of some or all of the frames in the set.