Abstract:
When a base station has just a small amount of data to transmit to a served UE, the base station will transmit the data to the UE in a DCI message on a PDCCH, rather than using the DCI message to allocate PDSCH resources to carry the data and transmitting the data on the allocated PDSCH resources. Further, the base station could advantageously make use of a standard DCI message format but could transmit the data in DCI message fields that would otherwise be used to allocate PDSCH resources or otherwise to facilitate PDSCH transmission, since those DCI message fields would not be needed when the data is transmitted in the DCI message itself.
Abstract:
A method for prioritized transmission of redundancy data in a voice-over-packet call. A sending device applies a variable rate codec to generate a sequence of encoded voice frames having varying sizes, and the sending device inserts the encoded voice frames into a sequence of fixed-size packets, one encoded voice frame per packet, resulting in varying left-over payload capacity per packet. The sending device further generates based on each encoded voice frame multiple redundancy blocks to help facilitate recovery of the encoded voice frame. And on a per packet-basis, the sending device selects, from a sliding-window set of recently generated redundancy blocks, one or more redundancy blocks to add into the left-over payload capacity of the packet, with the selecting of each redundancy block being based at least on importance of the voice frame based on which the redundancy block was generated, and the age and size of the redundancy block.
Abstract:
Aspects of selecting a base station or coverage area for a UE device are described. The UE device or a wireless network component (e.g., a base station) can determine RF uplink use values of a coverage area sector or cell. The RF uplink use values can be received from one or more base stations and can be based on a subframe or other time segment. The UE device can determine an average and variation of the RF uplink use values, and a load metric. The load metric can indicate a load pattern of an RF uplink. A selection of the base station or coverage area can be based on the load metric and whether the UE device is located or operating at an edge of a cell or coverage area. The UE device, while idle, can continue or switch to camping on the selected base station or coverage area.
Abstract:
Disclosed is a method and apparatus to help manage communication on a wireless channel when transmitting and receiving nodes will engage in a sequence of data-ACK exchanges with each other on the channel. As disclosed, the transmitting node and/or receiving node may include in at least one of the data-ACK exchanges an indication of how many data-ACK exchanges remain in the sequence and may further include indicia of how often each data-ACK exchange will occur and how long each data-ACK exchange will last. A neighboring node that is observing the channel to determine whether the channel is available may thus determine, based at least in part on the indication in the data-ACK exchange how many times to refrain from transmitting on the channel, how often to so refrain, and how long to refrain in each instance.
Abstract:
When a UE is being served by a base station over a first air interface in a client-server relationship and the UE receives from the base station a HARQ NACK for a transmission over the first air interface, the UE will responsively engage in the HARQ re-transmission to the base station over a second, different air interface, such as through a peer-to-peer communication to the base station. The first air interface may be an OFDMA air interface such as LTE, and the second air interface may be a WLAN air interface such as WiFi. Engaging in re-transmission via the second air interface may enable the base station to complete receipt of the data from the UE and thereby provide the UE, via the first air interface, with a HARQ ACK. This arrangement may help reduce delay in re-transmission, which may be particularly useful for delay-sensitive communications such as VoIP communications.
Abstract:
A method and system for coordinated multipoint transmission concurrently to multiple user equipment devices (UEs) from multiple base stations. When multiple base stations each serve a respective UE and each base station has a separate bit stream to communicate to its respective served UE, bit groups will be defined across the base station's bit streams, such that each bit group includes at least one bit from each base station's bit stream. And the base stations will then engage in CoMP transmission of each bit group, with all of the base stations transmitting the bit group at the same time and frequency as each other, such as on the same resource element, using the same modulation scheme. Each UE may then receive that transmitted bit group and process just the appropriate bit(s) destined to the UE, discarding the others.
Abstract:
Disclosed are methods and systems to facilitate use of a single channel for voice communications and of multiple channels for non-voice communications. In particular, a transmitting node may determine that data is to be communicated from the transmitting node to a receiving node and may then make a determination of whether the data is to be communicated as part of a voice communication. If the determination is that the data is not to be communicated as part of a voice communication, then the transmitting node may responsively communicate the data to the receiving node over two or more channels. Whereas, if the determination is that the data is to be communicated as part of a voice communication, then the transmitting node may responsively communicate the data to the receiving node over just one channel rather than communicating the data to the receiving node over two or more channels.
Abstract:
An improved method for controlling how long a device will occupy a wireless channel, based on consideration of QoS class of communication on the channel. With respect to a communication that the device detects on the channel, the device could determine QoS class by detecting a sequence of energy levels in association with the detected communication, the sequence of energy levels indicating the QoS class. The disclosed method could be applied by a cellular base station to control how long the base station will provide cellular service on the channel, where the channel is also used for other communications such as WiFi communications for instance.
Abstract:
Disclosed is a method and system for managing signaling in wireless communication network. Base stations in the network will be divided into groups, but each base station's coverage area will be deemed a separate respective tracking area, and, for each group of base stations, an intermediary will manage transmission of registration and paging signaling between a paging controller and the group of base stations. In practice, when a tracking-area update (TAU) arrives from a WCD in coverage of the group of base stations, the intermediary may forward the TAU to the paging controller only if the TAU represents the WCD's movement into coverage of the group of base stations. Further, when a paging message arrives for a WCD, the intermediary may forward the paging message to the appropriate base station in the group.
Abstract:
A method and apparatus to help manage communication on a wireless channel. When a neighboring node detects on a wireless channel a ready-to-send (RTS) message from a transmitting node to a receiving node, the neighboring node will set itself to avoid transmission on the channel for a time period but will then determine whether it detects in that time period a further transmission from the transmitting node to the receiving node, related to the data transmission. The further transmission may be a confirmation-to-send (CoTS) message that the transmitting node sends to the receiving node in response to a clear-to-send (CTS) from the receiving node. If the determination is affirmative, then the neighboring node will continue avoiding use of the channel. But if the determination is negative, then the neighboring node will discontinue avoiding use of the channel.