Patent ID: 8289874

Claim:
A method comprising: an access node providing wireless service to a plurality of access terminals on a carrier in a coverage area, the plurality of access terminals consisting of a first subset and a second subset, the first and second subsets being mutually exclusive, the first subset operating according to IS-856, Release 0, and the second subset operating according to IS-856, Revision A; the access node maintaining a reverse activity bit (RAB) threshold, and periodically measuring reverse noise rise (RNR) on the carrier, comparing the measured RNR to the RAB threshold, and transmitting a RAB to the plurality of access terminals, wherein the RAB is set when the measured RNR exceeds the RAB threshold, and wherein the RAB is clear when the measured RNR does not exceed the RAB threshold; and the access node periodically: computing a ratio of (a) either (1) a number of access terminals in the first subset or (2) a number of access terminals in the second subset to (b) a total number of access terminals in the first and second subsets, and transmitting the computed ratio to at least the access terminals in the first subset, wherein, when the RAB is set, the access terminals in the first subset (a) perform a ratio test by comparing the computed ratio with a ratio threshold and (b) decrease their reverse-link data rates without reference to any reverse-link transitional probabilities when the computed ratio passes the ratio test.