Systems and methods for lte-u detection

Abstract

A method for detecting aggressive signal transmission signatures in a wireless communication network is provided. The network includes at least one station, at least one access point, and at least one non-cooperative transmission source. The method includes steps of generating a matrix of each instance of request-to-send (RTS) messages received by the access point during a specified observation cycle, recording, in a memory of the access point, a number of cumulative RTS messages received from the station, calculating a cumulative distribution function (CDF), based on the recorded RTS message instances in the memory, for a probability of the presence of an aggressive transmission signal by the non-cooperative transmission source within a transmission range of the access point, and determining the presence of the aggressive transmission signal based on the calculated CDF being greater than a predetermined threshold.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for detecting aggressive signal transmission signatures in a wireless communication network including at least one station, at least one access point, and at least one non-cooperative transmission source, the method comprising the steps of:
 generating a matrix of each instance of request-to-send (RTS) messages received by the at least one access point during a specified observation cycle;   recording, in a memory of the at least one access point, a number of cumulative RTS messages received from the at least one station;   calculating a cumulative distribution function (CDF), based on the recorded RTS message instances in the memory, for a probability of the presence of an aggressive transmission signal by the at least one non-cooperative transmission source within a transmission range of the at least one access point; and   determining the presence of the aggressive transmission signal based on the calculated CDF being greater than a predetermined threshold.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one access point utilizes a distributed access protocol relating to one or more of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Zigbee technologies. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one non-cooperative transmission source utilizes an unlicensed long term evolution protocol. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the wireless communication network includes a plurality of stations, and wherein, in the step of recording, a number of cumulative RTS messages are recorded in the memory for each of the plurality of stations. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein data of the generated matrix is stored within the memory of the at least one access point. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising a step of increasing a detection interval during the specified observation cycle when the calculated CDF is below the predetermined threshold. 
     
     
         7 . A method for detecting aggressive signal transmission signatures in a wireless communication network including a plurality of stations, a plurality of access points, and at least one non-cooperative transmission source, the method comprising the steps of:
 transmitting a first cooperative transmission signal from a first one of the plurality of access points to a selected one of the plurality of stations;   issuing a carrier sense clear channel assessment, by a second one of the plurality of access points, to one or more of the plurality of stations and of the plurality of access points;   completing the transmission of the first cooperative transmission signal upon commencement of an aggressive transmission by the at least one non-cooperative transmission source;   sending, from the second one of the plurality of access points, a clear-to-send (CTS) message to one or more of the plurality of stations and of the plurality of access points;   detecting, by the second one of the plurality of access points, an energy of the aggressive transmission; and   determining, by the second one of the plurality of access points, the presence of the aggressive transmission based on the detected energy.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising a step of requesting, by the second one of the plurality of access points, radio measurements on one or more channels within transmission range of the second one of the plurality of access points. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising a step of selecting, by the second one of the plurality of access points, and idle channel from the one or more channels. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising a step of analyzing, by one or more of the first and second ones of the plurality of access points, a shared spectrum of the wireless communication network to model a signature and/or pattern of the aggressive transmission. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the step of analyzing is performed based on multiple queries of the shared spectrum by the one or more of the first and second ones of the plurality of access points. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the step of analyzing further comprises sampling spectral data of the shared spectrum. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising a step of calculating the bounds of one or more of detected Wi-Fi energy and the detected interference energy from the sample spectral data. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising a step of creating square wave signals from the sampled spectral data. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising a substep of determining one or more of the periodicity and the duty cycle of the created square wave signals. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising a substep of discarding nonconforming square wave data. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising a step of re-analyzing the shared spectrum to measure noise levels therein. 
     
     
         18 . A wireless communications system, comprising:
 a first access point including a memory, a processor, and a transceiver, and configured to wirelessly send and receive cooperative transmission data;   a first electronic station configured to wirelessly communicate with the first access point and process the cooperative transmission data; and   at least one electronic aggressor transmission source configured to wirelessly send and receive aggressive transmission data within a transmission range of the first access point,   wherein the transceiver is configured to receive request-to-send (RTS) messages from the first electronic station at a selected cadence for a specified observation cycle,   wherein the access point is configured to record the received RTS messages in the memory, and   wherein the processor is configured to determine a transmission signature of aggressive transmission data based at least in part on a cumulative distribution function (CDF) of the stored RTS messages in the memory.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the first station comprises a Wi-Fi device. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the at least one electronic aggressor transmission source utilizes an unlicensed long term evolution protocol. 
     
     
         21 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the first access point is further configured increase the cadence in response to the CDF of the RTS messages falling below a predetermined threshold. 
     
     
         22 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the first access point is further configured increase a detection interval upon determining that an aggressive transmission signal is not detected within the observation cycle at a prescribed confidence level.