Patent ID: 6353598
Filing Date: 2002-03-05
Classification: H04W

Abstract:
A method of time division duplexing in a mobile cellular communication system comprising:dividing the communication system into a plurality of cells, each cell being served by a base station; providing a channel in the communication system over which a base station and at least one mobile station may communicate; using time division duplexing to divide the channel into a plurality of frames, each frame consisting of a plurality of slots; coordinating the time division duplexing across a plurality of cells; and in which each base station allocates slots to either uplink communication or downlink communication to optimise throughput in the channel comprising that each frame includes a compulsory uplink communication slot and a compulsory downlink communication slot, inhibiting a mobile station from using selected slots of frames dependent upon the mobile station being determined as in an area where drown-out would otherwise occur, the selected slots not including the compulsory uplink communication slot and compulsory downlink communication slot.