Patent ID: 8849331

Claim:
One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions thereon which, when executed by a computing device, implement a method of scheduling, for a plurality of telecommunications devices, network resource allocations during a current communications block of a train of communications blocks, the method comprising: for the current communications block and for each telecommunications device of the plurality of telecommunications devices, determining whether a respective telecommunications device may save energy by entering sleep mode during a time interval in which network resources are not allocated to the respective telecommunications device, the time interval being at least one of: (a) before an earliest candidate communication burst commences; (b) after a last candidate communication burst ends; and (c) between an end of a first candidate communication burst and a beginning of a second candidate communication burst, where the second communication burst is immediately subsequent to the first communication burst, and assigning at least one candidate communication burst to the respective telecommunications device in response to determining that the telecommunications device may save energy during the time interval by entering sleep mode.