Patent ID: 8457023

Claim:
A method for selecting operating frequency channels for a network communicating data over a shared medium, the network being configured to communicate within a frequency range, the method comprising: i) dividing the frequency range into a plurality of frequency channels (f 1 -f n ), each frequency channel defining predetermined frequency parameters; ii) dividing data to be communicated over the network into sequences (FS), each sequence having a plurality of positions (SP 1 -SP m ); iii) regularly scanning the frequency range to identify interfering frequencies within the frequency range generated by interfering networks operating within the shared medium; iv) assigning a frequency channel (f k ) to each position (SP i ) within a current sequence based on the interfering frequencies identified in step iii), whereby the use of interfering frequencies is limited; defining a default frequency channel, having default frequency parameters, for each position (SP i ) in the current sequence; v) primarily selecting the frequency channel (f k ) assigned to the position (SP i ) in the current sequence in step iv) to be the default frequency channel, if the identified interfering frequencies in step iii) are non-overlapping with the default frequency parameters; and vi) secondarily selecting the frequency channel (f k ) assigned to the position (SP i ) in the current sequence in step iv) to be a non-default frequency channel if the identified interfering frequencies in step iii) are non-overlapping with the frequency parameters of the non-default frequency channel.