This invention relates to local area networks (LANs) in general and to a transmission control for a wireless LAN station.
Local area networks wherein a plurality of network stations are interconnected by cabling have become widely known and utilized. However, LANs using wired connections have the disadvantage that extensive cabling is required to interconnect the stations. The provision of such cabling is generally inconvenient, and gives rise to inflexibility if it is desired to alter the physical location of the stations. It has been proposed to utilize a wireless radio link for LANs. However, certain problems are associated with the use of a radio transmission link, particularly for LANs in an indoor environment. One such problem is multipath fading. The use of spread spectrum communication techniques alleviates the problems associated with multipath fading.
Another problem associated with wireless radio LANs is that they utilize radio frequency transmission bands which are a scarce resource. In order to economize with this resource, it is desirable for stations to utilize the same frequency band. However, this gives rise to difficulties where stations of more than one LAN are situated so close together that stations of one LAN can receive stations of another LAN. It will be appreciated that this interference arising from stations of another LAN adversely affects LAN throughput performance.