Patent ID: 8588112

Claim:
A method for transmission in a wireless communication system comprising the steps of: selecting by a signal destination one of a source-destination direct transmission, a decode-forward relay transmission, and a compress-forward transmission, responsive to channel gains between a signal source and a relay, between said signal source and said signal destination, and between said relay and said signal destination; informing a selected transmission mode from said selecting step to said signal source and said relay; and operating in said selected transmission mode by said relay; wherein said selecting step comprises said signal destination broadcasting a feedback after receiving an optimum number of symbols required by said relay before said broadcasting, said feedback signal being heard by said relay link, said signal source and including information for selecting one of said decode-forward and said compress-forward transmission; and wherein said optimum number of symbols the relay should receive before it starts transmitting being sent as additional feedback responsive to a transmission delay consideration in said selecting step, said feedback signal and said additional feedback being sent anytime before beginning of said optimum number of symbols at the beginning of a transmission block.