Patent ID: 8116959

Claim:
A method of vehicular wireless communication over a Dedicated Short Range Communication service band implemented by a programmed processor, said method comprising the steps of: dividing the service band into a control channel for transmitting a safety communication, and a service channel for transmitting a non-safety communication; subdividing the control channel into intervals of time, wherein one interval is a safety exchange interval and each registered vehicle transmits a safety communication at predetermined time during the safety exchange interval, and the predetermined time is determined by an access point; determining if the vehicle is within communications range of an access point service region, wherein the access point service region is a geographic area containing an access point that transmits and receives non-safety communications to and from the vehicle in the access point service region; determining if the vehicle is registered with the access point, if the vehicle is within the communications range of the access point, wherein the access point maintains a list of registered vehicles, and registering the vehicle with the access point if not registered; determining if a current time is within the safety exchange interval in a contention free period of time in the control channel, and transmitting the safety communication by each registered vehicle during the safety exchange interval at the predetermined time for each registered vehicle, if the current time is within the safety exchange interval of the contention free period; determining if the safety communication exchange by every registered vehicle is completed, and permitting the vehicle to leave the control channel if the safety communication exchange is complete; and determining if a current time is within a contention period, and transmitting the non-safety communication if the current time is within the contention period.