System and Method for Dynamically Allocating Multiple Carriers to NB-IoT Devices

Abstract

The present disclosure generally relates to wireless communication, and more particularly to systems and methods for dynamically allocating multiple carriers to NB-IoT devices. The method includes receiving PRB utilization data of time slots or data packets from a PMS, and comparing the PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data with a predefined threshold PRB utilization duration. If the PRB usage duration is less than the predefined threshold, a cumulative NACK percentage report corresponding to the ARFCN / PRB is requested via an NB-IoT eNB. The method includes selecting an ARFCN / PRB for a time slot based on the PRB utilization data, the cumulative NACK percentage report, and a predefined value. The method includes establishing a connection between an NB-IoT-enabled device and an NB-IoT eNB after sending information associated with the ARFCN / PRB selected for the time slot to the NB-IoT eNB via an LTE eNB. The method includes notifying the LTE eNB that the ARFCN / PRB is to be used as a non-anchor carrier. The method includes allocating the ARFCN / PRB as a non-anchor carrier to schedule data transmission of an NB-IoT-enabled device in a selected time slot.

Description

[0001] All rights reserved

[0002] Portions of this patent document contain material that is subject to intellectual property rights, such as, but not limited to, copyright, industrial design rights, trademarks, integrated circuit layout designs, and / or trade dress protection, belonging to Jio Platforms Limited (JPL) or its affiliates (hereinafter referred to as the owner). While the owner of the patent document or patent disclosure has no objection to anyone making a facsimile reproduction of the patent disclosure because the patent document or patent disclosure appears in the Patent and Trademark Office file or records, it still reserves all rights. All rights in such intellectual property are entirely owned by the owner. Technical Field

[0003] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication. In particular, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods for multi-carrier dynamic allocation to narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) devices. Background Art

[0004] The following description of the related art is intended to provide background information related to the field of the present disclosure. This section may include certain aspects of the field that may be related to various features of the present disclosure. However, it should be understood that this section is only for enhancing the reader's understanding of the present disclosure and does not admit the prior art.

[0005] Generally, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) may include new radio interfaces, such as narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), which is a feature of Release 13. It can reuse various principles and building blocks of the Long Term Evolution (LTE) physical layer and higher protocol layers to enable rapid standardization and product development. NB-IoT can be a stand-alone radio interface that can be closely connected to LTE and thus can be included in the LTE specification. NB-IoT may not be backward compatible with LTE. The NB-IoT technology can be designed for longer battery life and cost effectiveness. Compared with traditional Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) networks, the design of NB-IoT may aim to provide greater coverage. NB-IoT can improve the uplink (UL) capacity of users in areas with poor network coverage through single-tone transmission. In addition, new physical layer signals and channels, such as synchronization signals and physical random access channels (RACH), can be designed to meet the demanding requirements of extended coverage and ultra-low device complexity. The higher protocol, signaling, and physical layer processing requirements can be greatly simplified, thereby reducing the power consumption and complexity of user equipment (UE).

[0006] In addition, many features of LTE can be excluded, such as carrier aggregation, measurements for monitoring channel quality, dual connectivity, and QoS, because these features may be ineffective and may not be cost-effective in providing longer battery life. 3GPP can provide multi-carrier features in NB-IoT, which can increase the resource allocation capacity of NB-IoT cells. Devices supporting NB-IoT may always have an anchored carrier of 180 kHz. However, allocating another non-anchored carrier to a device supporting NB-IoT may require another frequency space with a bandwidth of 180 kHz, thus increasing the space and cost of this method. NB-IoT can use an effective bandwidth of 180 kHz and can always have an anchored carrier of one bandwidth. In addition, 3GPP can facilitate adding non-anchored carriers to devices supporting NB-IoT, which may be the same as providing additional carriers to devices supporting NB-IoT for data transmission. While devices supporting NB-IoT transmit data on non-anchored carriers, the anchored carrier can be used for the RACH and paging processes to serve other devices supporting NB-IoT to avoid communication delays for other devices supporting NB-IoT. However, due to limited bandwidth and a huge number of devices supporting NB-IoT for a certain application, a single carrier may not be sufficient and may cause communication delays for other devices supporting NB-IoT belonging to other applications.

[0007] To implement such features, therefore, an improved system and method are needed for dynamic multi-carrier allocation to devices supporting NB-IoT. Summary of the Invention

[0008] Objectives

[0009] Some objectives of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment of which meets the fields listed below.

[0010] One objective of the present disclosure is to provide a robust, effective, and improved system and method for dynamic multi-carrier allocation to devices supporting NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT).

[0011] Another objective of the present disclosure is to be able to maximize the utilization of radio resources available to operators across LTE and NB-IoT and increase NB-IoT cell throughput and user throughput.

[0012] Another objective of the present disclosure is to select the best ARFCN or PRB as the non-anchored carrier for at least one time slot based on PRB utilization data and cumulative NACK percentage reports.

[0013] Another object of the present disclosure is to allocate an ARFCN or PRB as a non-anchored carrier to schedule multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices for data transmission corresponding to a selected time slot upon receiving an acknowledgement (ACK) from an LTE eNB.

[0014] Another object of the present disclosure is to provide additional data input to a Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF), which can be used to optimize the utilization of NB-IoT resources.

[0015] Another object of the present disclosure is to select an optimal ARFCN or PRB as a non-anchored carrier for at least one time slot to avoid allocating a non-anchored carrier for a specific NB-IoT-enabled device when a non-anchored carrier is not used but has a higher NACK ratio for supporting NB-IoT devices among the available ARFCNs or PRBs of the non-anchored carrier.

[0016] Another object of the present disclosure is to select an optimal ARFCN or PRB to avoid communication delays from multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices, even when different NB-IoT devices are used for different applications.

[0017] Overview

[0018] This section is provided to introduce certain objects and aspects of the present invention in a simplified form, which are further described in the detailed description hereinafter. The summary is not intended to identify the key features or scope of the claimed subject matter.

[0019] On the one hand, the present disclosure provides a system for dynamically allocating multiple carriers to devices supporting NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT). When requesting Physical Resource Block (PRB) utilization data through a Long-Term Evolution Node B (LTE eNB), the system receives PRB utilization data corresponding to at least one time slot and at least one of a set of data packets from a performance management system. Additionally, the system compares at least one PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data with a predetermined threshold PRB utilization duration. Further, if at least one PRB utilization duration is less than the predefined threshold PRB utilization duration, the system requests a cumulative Negative Acknowledgment (NACK) percentage report corresponding to at least one of an Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number (ARFCN) or PRBs associated with at least one non-anchored carrier through a NarrowBand Internet of Things Evolution Node B (NB-IoT eNB). Thereafter, the system selects at least one of the ARFCNs of the PRBs associated with at least one non-anchored carrier for at least one of the at least one time slot and the set of data packets based on the PRB utilization data, the cumulative NACK percentage report, and a predefined value of at least one of the ARFCNs of the PRBs. Additionally, when transmitting information associated with at least one of the ARFCNs of the PRBs selected for at least one time slot to the NB-IoT eNB via the LTE eNB, the system establishes a connection between multiple NB-IoT supporting devices and the NB-IoT eNB. Further, the system notifies the LTE eNB of indicating the use of at least one of the ARFCN or PRB as a non-anchored carrier. Finally, in response to receiving an Acknowledgment (ACK) from the LTE eNB in response to the notification, the system allocates at least one of the ARFCN or PRB as a non-anchored carrier to schedule data transmission corresponding to the selected time slot for multiple NB-IoT supporting devices.

[0020] On the one hand, the system instructs the LTE eNB to release each of at least one of the ARFCN or PRB at the end of the allocated time slot. Additionally, the resource allocation system sends a request for the cumulative NACK percentage report to a Mobility Management Entity (MME) through the NB-IoT eNB. Further, the system receives the requested cumulative NACK percentage report from the MME through the NB-IoT eNB in response to the transmitted request.

[0021] On the other hand, the system determines at least one of less usage and less error percentage in at least one of the ARFCN or PRB. Based on a plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices establishing connections with an NB-IoT eNB, the system requests a NACK percentage report from the NB-IoT eNB via the MME, where the NACK percentage report corresponds to each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices and at least one of the ARFCN or PRB for each of the ARFCNs. Further, the system selects and allocates at least one of the ARFCN or PRB to each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices by reconfiguring the connection using Radio Resource Control (RRC) based on the NACK percentage for each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices. Thereafter, the system performs RRC release for each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices. Further, upon RRC release, the system sends, via the NB-IoT eNB, the NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of the ARFCN or PRB for each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices to the MME.

[0022] On the other hand, when requesting the NCK percentage report, if the NACK percentage report is not available in the MME, the resource allocation system allocates non-anchored carriers via the NB-IoT eNB based on the available utilization rate of the available ARFCNs of the non-anchored carriers.

[0023] On the one hand, the system negotiates data for the available ARFCNs for each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices based on the received NACK percentage report. Further, the system generates a configuration for each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices for the selected time slot. Further, the system configures each ARFCN as a non-anchored carrier for each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices. Thereafter, when the NACK percentage of the non-anchored carrier exceeds a predetermined threshold during a certain duration of data transmission, the system reconfigures the non-anchored carrier for each of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices.

[0024] The present disclosure also provides a method for dynamically allocating multiple carriers to a device supporting NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT). The method includes receiving, from a performance management system, Physical Resource Block (PRB) utilization data corresponding to at least one of at least one time slot and at least one of a set of data packets when requesting PRB utilization data through a Long Term Evolution Node B (LTE eNB). Further, the method includes comparing at least one PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data with a predetermined threshold PRB utilization duration. Further, the method includes, if at least one PRB utilization duration is less than the predefined threshold PRB utilization duration, requesting, through a NarrowBand Internet of Things Evolution Node B (NB-IoT eNB), a cumulative Negative Acknowledgment (NACK) percentage report corresponding to at least one of an Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number (ARFCN) or at least one of the PRBs associated with at least one non-anchored carrier. Thereafter, the method includes selecting, based on the PRB utilization data, the cumulative NACK percentage report, and a predefined value of at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB, at least one of the ARFCNs of the PRBs associated with at least one non-anchored carrier for at least one of at least one time slot and at least one of a set of data packets. Further, the method includes establishing a connection between a plurality of NB-IoT supporting devices and the NB-IoT eNB when transmitting, via the LTE eNB, information associated with at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB selected for at least one time slot to the NB-IoT eNB. Further, the method includes notifying the LTE eNB that it indicates using at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB as a non-anchored carrier. Finally, the method includes, in response to receiving an Acknowledgment (ACK) from the LTE eNB in response to the notification, allocating at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB as a non-anchored carrier to schedule a plurality of NB-IoT supporting devices for data transmission corresponding to the selected time slot. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and constitute a part of this invention, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the disclosed methods and systems, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements in different drawings. The elements in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, but rather emphasis is placed on clearly illustrating the principles of the invention. Some of the drawings may use block diagrams to indicate elements and may not represent the internal circuitry of each component. Those skilled in the art will understand that the inventions in these drawings include inventions of electrical components, electronic components, or circuits commonly used to implement these components.

[0026] Figure 1 FIG. shows an exemplary network architecture according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in or using which the system of the present disclosure can be implemented for dynamically allocating multiple carriers to a device supporting NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT);

[0027] Figure 2 An exemplary representation of a resource allocation system for dynamic multi-carrier allocation to an NB-IoT-enabled device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0028] Figure 3 An exemplary sequence diagram of dynamic multi-carrier allocation to an NB-IoT-enabled device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown; and

[0029] Figure 4 An exemplary method flowchart depicting a method for dynamic multi-carrier allocation to an NB-IoT-enabled device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0030] The above will become more apparent from the following more detailed description of the invention. Detailed Description of the Invention

[0031] In the following description, for the purpose of explanation, various specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it will be apparent that the embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. Several features described below may be used independently of each other or in any combination with other features. A single feature may not solve all of the problems discussed above, or may only solve some of the problems discussed above. Some of the problems discussed above may not be fully solved by any of the features described herein.

[0032] The following description provides only exemplary embodiments and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the present disclosure. Instead, the following description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing the exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that various changes may be made to the functions and arrangements of the elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention set forth.

[0033] Specific details are given in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. For example, circuits, systems, networks, processes, and other components may be shown as components in block diagram form so as not to obscure the embodiments in unnecessary detail. In other instances, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques may be shown without unnecessary detail to avoid obscuring the embodiments.

[0034] In addition, note that each embodiment can be described as a process, which is described as a flowchart, a flow diagram, a data flow diagram, a structural diagram, or a block diagram. Although a flowchart describes operations as a sequential process, many operations can be performed in parallel or simultaneously. In addition, the order of the operations can be rearranged. A process terminates when its operations are completed, but may have other steps not included in the figure. A process can correspond to a method, a function, a procedure, a subroutine, a subprogram, etc. When a process corresponds to a function, its termination can correspond to the function returning to the calling function or the main function.

[0035] The terms "exemplary" and / or "illustrative" are used herein to mean serving as an example, an instance, or an illustration. To avoid doubt, the subject matter disclosed herein is not limited by such examples. In addition, any aspect or design described herein as "exemplary" and / or "illustrative" is not necessarily to be construed as superior or better than other aspects or designs, nor does it mean excluding equivalent exemplary structures and techniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

[0036] In addition, the terms "comprising", "having", "including", and other similar words are used in the detailed description or claims, and these terms are similar to the term "including" as an open transitional word, and are also intended to be inclusive, that is, including any additional or other elements.

[0037] The mention of "an embodiment" or "an example" throughout the specification means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the phrase "in an embodiment" appearing throughout the specification does not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment. In addition, the particular features, structures, or characteristics can be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0038] The terms used herein are only for describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will also be understood that the terms "comprising" and / or "including" when used in this specification specify the presence of the stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0039] The present invention provides a robust, efficient, and improved system and method for allocating multi-carriers dynamically to devices supporting NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT). Embodiments herein are capable of maximizing the utilization of radio resources available to an operator on LTE and NB-IoT. Embodiments herein increase NB-IoT cell throughput and user throughput. Additional data input provided to a Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF) can be used to optimally utilize NB-IoT resources. Embodiments herein allocate at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB as a non-anchored carrier to schedule multiple NB-IoT supporting devices for data transmission corresponding to a selected time slot upon receipt of an ACK from an LTE eNB, which does not require additional frequency space, thereby minimizing frequency space and cost. The best ARFCN or PRB associated with at least one non-anchored carrier of at least one time slot is selected to avoid allocating a non-anchored carrier for a particular NB-IoT supporting device when the non-anchored carrier is not used but has a higher NACK ratio for supporting NB-IoT devices among the available ARFCNs or PRBs of the non-anchored carrier. For each of the NB-IoT supporting devices, an ARFCN or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchored carrier of at least one time slot is selected, providing sufficient bandwidth and not causing communication delays for multiple NB-IoT supporting devices, even when different NB-IoT devices are used for different applications.

[0040] Providers of wireless communication services can manage a wireless access network including a large number of network devices. For example, the wireless access network can provide communication services for devices in Internet of Things (IoT) applications. Such devices can communicate using machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, such as Machine Type Communication (MTC), a type of M2M communication standardized by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), and / or another type of M2M communication. Examples of MTC devices can include utility meters, parking meters, road sensors, environmental sensors, security sensors, traffic and / or street lights, traffic cameras, advertising displays, vehicle telematics devices, point-of-sale terminals, vending machines, health monitoring devices, remote diagnostic devices, access control devices, manufacturing controllers, and / or other types of devices. The use of MTC devices is expected to grow exponentially and may result in a large number of such devices being served by the wireless access network. Estimates suggest that the number of MTC devices in a wireless carrier network may increase to hundreds of millions of devices that communicate autonomously with each other with little or no human intervention.

[0041] A wireless network based on the LTE standard specified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as a Long Term Evolution (LTE) access network (e.g., an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network), can use an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) air interface for wireless communication with devices. The bandwidth of E-UTRA channels in the LTE bands can range from approximately 1.4 to approximately 20 megahertz (MHz). In many applications, the data consumption of MTC devices may be small compared to other types of devices, such as mobile phones used for voice communication or streaming media content. Therefore, using a large bandwidth channel such as an LTE channel for wireless communication with MTC devices may be an inefficient use of radio link resources.

[0042] One technology developed for IoT applications that do not require large amounts of data is NarrowBand (NB) IoT (NB-IoT) technology. NB-IoT is a Low Power Wide Area (LPWA) technology that uses 200 kilohertz (kHz) channels and its own guard bands to send small amounts of data. Using NB-IoT channels may result in better signal penetration in areas that are difficult to reach by hand, such as areas that MTC devices may occupy (e.g., utility meters installed in locations that shield or attenuate wireless signals). Additionally, the use of NB-IoT channels may reduce energy consumption and / or reduce component costs.

[0043] The LTE radio access network can utilize multiple technology types and can be used as a hybrid network. For example, the LTE radio access network can use LTE channels for high data rate communication and NB-IoT channels (also known as Category Cat-M2) for low data rate communication. Additionally, some LTE wireless networks may utilize additional technologies for communication with MTC devices, such as 1.4 MHz wide Enhanced MTC (eMTC) channels (also known as Category Cat-M1) for MTC communication that requires medium data rates.

[0044] LTE channels can include narrow subcarriers that can carry data using Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) modulation. The subcarriers are offset from a central direct current (DC) subcarrier that may not be modulated to carry data. A specific number (e.g., 12) of subcarriers can be allocated for a specific number of time slots as a Physical Resource Block (PRB). A PRB can be the smallest element of resource allocation assigned by an eNode B scheduler. An LTE PRB can include 12 subcarriers with a 15 kHz bandwidth for a 180 kHz bandwidth. Therefore, without guard bands, NB-IoT channels may fit inside a PRB. Thus, an efficient use of LTE channels may be to dedicate a specific PRB to a specific NB-IoT channel.

[0045] ReferenceFigure 1 , which shows an exemplary network architecture in which or with which the systems of the present disclosure may be used to implement dynamic multi-carrier allocation to narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) devices. As shown, the exemplary architecture (100) includes a resource allocation system (102) for facilitating dynamic multi-carrier allocation to devices (130-1, 130-2 to 130-N) that support narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) (hereinafter collectively referred to as "NB-IoT-supporting devices (130)" and individually referred to as "NB-IoT-supporting device (130)"), evolved Node B of Long Term Evolution (LTE-eNB) (104), evolved Node B of narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT-eNB) (106)).

[0046] In some embodiments, the NB-IoT-supporting device (130) may correspond to an embedded wireless device that wirelessly communicates with other devices via a machine-to-machine (M2M) interface using machine type communication (MTC) and / or any other type of M2M communication. As an example, the NB-IoT-supporting device (130) may be electrically connected to a sensor device, an actuator device, a microcontroller that controls one or more sensors, a microcontroller that controls one or more actuators, a microcontroller that performs data processing, and / or any other type of MTC device. Examples of such devices may include, but are not limited to, energy consumption monitoring devices (e.g., utility meters, energy meters), health monitoring devices (e.g., blood pressure monitoring devices, blood glucose monitoring devices, etc.), asset tracking devices (e.g., systems that monitor the geographical location of a fleet, etc.), person / animal tracking devices (e.g., systems that monitor the geographical location of a person, an animal, etc.), vehicle lock tracking devices (e.g., the status of a lock, etc.), traffic management devices (e.g., traffic lights, traffic cameras, road sensors, road lighting, etc.), devices that control the functions of one or more vehicles (e.g., climate control systems, engine monitoring systems, etc.), devices that control electronic signage (e.g., electronic billboards, etc.), devices that control manufacturing systems (e.g., robotic arms, assembly lines, etc.), devices that control security systems (e.g., cameras, motion sensors, window sensors, etc.), devices that control power systems (e.g., smart grid monitoring devices, utility meters, fault diagnosis devices, etc.), devices that control financial transaction systems (e.g., point-of-sale terminals, vending machines, parking meters, etc.), and / or any other type of electronic device.

[0047] In other embodiments, the NB-IoT enabled device (130) may include, but is not limited to, a handheld wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, a smart phone, a tablet device, etc.); a wearable computing device (e.g., a head-mounted display computing device, a head-mounted camera device, a watch computing device, etc.), a Global Positioning System (GPS) device, a laptop computer, a tablet computer or another type of portable computer, a media playback device, a portable gaming system, a household appliance device, a home monitoring device, and / or any other type of computing device having wireless communication capabilities.

[0048] In addition, an access network ( Figure 1 not shown) may provide access to a core network ( Figure 1 not shown) for a wireless device, such as an NB-IoT enabled device (130). The access network may enable the NB-IoT enabled device (130) to provide mobile phone services and / or data services to the NB-IoT enabled device (130). The access network may establish a packet data network connection between the NB-IoT enabled device (130) and the core network. For example, the access network may establish an Internet Protocol (IP) connection between the NB-IoT enabled device (130) and the core network. In some embodiments, the access network may include a Long Term Evolution (LTE) access network (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) network) based on the LTE standard specified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). In other embodiments, the access network may include a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) access network based on, for example, the CDMA2000 standard. For example, the CDMA access network may include a CDMA evolved High Speed Packet Data (eHRPD) network (which may provide access to the LTE access network). In addition, the core network may include, but is not limited to, a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), an optical network, a cable television network, a satellite network, a wireless network (e.g., a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) network, and / or an LTE network), an ad hoc network, a telephone network (e.g., a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) or a cellular network), an intranet, the Internet, or a combination of networks, etc. The core network may allow the transmission of Internet Protocol (IP) services to the NB-IoT enabled device (130) and may interface with other external networks. The core network may include one or more server devices and / or network devices, or other types of computing or communication devices. In one example embodiment, the core network may include an Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network ( Figure 1(not shown in the figure). The IMS network may include a network for transmitting IP multimedia services specified by 3GPP or other standards / protocols, and may provide a media stream between a device (130) supporting NB-IoT and an external IP network or an external circuit-switched network ( Figure 1 (not shown in the figure).

[0049] The access network may include base stations, such as an LTE-eNB (104) and an NB-IoT eNB (106), and a device (130) supporting NB-IoT may wirelessly communicate with the access network through the LTE eNB (104) and / or the NB-IoT eNB (106). Base stations such as the LTE-eNB (104) and the NB-IoT eNB (106) may serve devices (130-1 to 130-N) supporting NB-IoT. In other words, devices (130-1 to 130-N) supporting NB-IoT may be located within a geographical area served by the base stations, such as the LTE-eNB (104) and the NB-IoT eNB (106). The base stations may broadcast information related to available NB-IoT channels, and a device (130) supporting NB-IoT may wirelessly communicate with the access network through the available NB-IoT channels. A device (130) supporting NB-IoT may communicate with the base station through a selected NB-IoT channel. The base station may be part of an LTE eNodeB base station device. An eNodeB base station device may include one or more devices (e.g., base stations) and other components and functions that allow a device (130) supporting NB-IoT to wirelessly connect to the access network. The eNodeB base station device may include one or more cells or be associated with one or more cells. For example, each cell may include a radio frequency (RF) transceiver facing a specific direction. The eNB may perform radio channel modulation or demodulation, channel coding or decoding, and multiplexing or demultiplexing. System information is broadcast in each cell on the radio interface downlink (DL) to provide basic information to a device (130) supporting NB-IoT as a prerequisite for accessing the network. Other functions of the eNB include transmitting dedicated network attachment storage (NAS) information and non-3GPP dedicated information, and transmitting radio access capability information services for a device (130) supporting NB-IoT. The eNode B base station device may interface with the access network through an interface called the S1 interface, which may be split into a control plane S1-MME interface to communicate with a mobility management entity (MME) device (110) in the access network, and a data plane S1-U interface to communicate with the core network through a serving gateway (SGW) device and / or a packet data network gateway (PGW) device (126)( Figure 1 (referred to as S / PGW in the figure).

[0050] In addition, the MME (110) can be a control node that processes signaling between the NB-IoT-enabled device (130) and the core network. The protocol running between the NB-IoT-enabled device (130) and the core network can be referred to as the non-access stratum (NAS) protocol. The main functions of the MME may include functions related to bearer management, which includes the establishment, maintenance, and release of bearers, handled by the session management layer in the NAS protocol, and also includes functions related to connection management, which includes establishing a connection and security between the network and the NB-IoT-enabled device (130), and is handled by the connection or mobility management layer in the NAS protocol layer.

[0051] In addition, the architecture (100) can include a Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF) (124), which can be an interface for small data transfer and control messages between enterprises and core network operators. The SCEF (124) can provide application programming interfaces (APIs) to enterprises for small data transfer and control messages, and can use interfaces defined by 3GPP with network elements in the core network operator to perform its functions, such as APIs for various services, such as latency or scheduled data transfer, non-Internet Protocol (IP) data delivery (NIDD), functions to showcase new revenue. In addition, the architecture (100) can include a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) (122), which is a database containing user-related and subscriber-related information. The HSS (122) can also provide user authentication and access authorization. Thereafter, the architecture (100) can include an Application Server (AS) (128), which hosts IoT services and additional features. In addition, the architecture (100) can include a Performance Management System (PMS) (108), which can collect radio access network (RAN) key performance indicators (KPIs) and busy or non-busy scheduling or resource utilization and other features.

[0052] As Figure 1As shown, the PRB utilization data (120) can be transmitted from the PMS (108) to the LTE eNB (104). The LTE eNB (104) can communicate with the MME (110), S / PGW (126), HHS (122), SCEF (124), and AS (128) directly or via a communication network or one or more of the above units. The NACK percentage report (cumulative or non-cumulative percentage report) can be communicated between the NB-IoT eNB (106) and the MME (110) or with the LTE eNB (104). The LTE eNB (104) and the NB-IoT eNB (106) can be a controlled NB-IoT-and-LTE eNB. The allocated non-anchored carrier (112) can be sent to the NB-IoT carrier (118) via the non-anchored carrier (114) or the anchored carrier (116). The entire communication can be initiated by an NB-IoT-enabled device (130).

[0053] Although Figure 1 exemplary components of the architecture (100) are shown, in other embodiments, the architecture (100) can include fewer components, different components, differently arranged components, or additional functional components than Figure 1 depicted herein. Additionally or alternatively, one or more components of the architecture (100) can perform functions described as being performed by one or more other components of the architecture (100).

[0054] In some embodiments, the resource allocation system (102) can be an independent device and can be communicatively coupled to the LTE-eNB (104) and the NB-IoT eNB (106). In another embodiment, the resource allocation system (102) can be associated with the LTE-eNB (104) and / or the NB-IoT eNB (106). The resource allocation system (102) can be implemented in an electronic device, a mobile device, a server, etc. Such a server can include, but is not limited to, an independent server, a remote server, a cloud server, a dedicated server, etc.

[0055] In one embodiment, the resource allocation system (102) can include one or more processors coupled to a memory, where the memory can store instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, can cause the resource allocation system (102) to perform dynamic multi-carrier allocation for a plurality of NB-IoT devices (130). Figure 2 Reference is made to Figure 1, which shows an exemplary representation of a resource allocation system (102) for facilitating dynamic multi-carrier allocation to a plurality of NB-IoT devices (130) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. On the one hand, the resource allocation system (102) may include one or more processors (202). The one or more processors (202) may be implemented as one or more microprocessors, microcomputers, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, central processing units, logic circuits, and / or any device that processes data based on operation instructions. Among other capabilities, the one or more processors (202) may be configured to obtain and execute computer-readable instructions stored in the memory (204) of the resource allocation system (102). The memory (204) may be configured to store one or more computer-readable instructions or routines in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which may be obtained and executed to create or share data packets through a network service. The memory (204) may include any non-transitory storage device, including, for example, volatile memory such as RAM or non-volatile memory such as EPROM, flash memory, etc.

[0056] In one embodiment, the resource allocation system (102) may include an interface 206. The interface 206 may include various interfaces, such as interfaces for data input and output devices, referred to as I / O devices, storage devices, etc. The interface 206 may facilitate the communication of the resource allocation system (102). The interface 206 may also provide a communication path for one or more components of the resource allocation system (102). Examples of such components include, but are not limited to, a processing engine 208 and a database 210.

[0057] The processing engine (208) may be implemented as a combination of hardware and programming (e.g., programmable instructions) to implement one or more functions of the processing engine (208). In the examples described herein, this combination of hardware and programming may be implemented in several different ways. For example, the program of the processing engine (208) may be processor-executable instructions stored on a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium, and the hardware of the processing engine (208) may include processing resources (e.g., one or more processors) to execute such instructions. In this example, the machine-readable storage medium may store instructions that, when executed by the processing resources, implement the processing engine (208). In such an example, the resource allocation system (102) may include a machine-readable storage medium storing the instructions and processing resources for executing the instructions, or the machine-readable storage medium may be separate but accessible to the resource allocation system (102) and the processing resources. In other examples, the processing engine (208) may be implemented by electronic circuits.

[0058] The processing engine (208) may include one or more engines selected from any data acquisition engine (212), resource allocation engine (214), and other engines (216). In one embodiment, the data acquisition engine (212) of the resource allocation system (102) may request / receive physical resource block (PRB) utilization data, cumulative negative acknowledgment (NACK) percentage reports, NACK percentage reports of corresponding NB-IoT-enabled devices (130), etc. The resource allocation engine (214) may allocate at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB as a non-anchored carrier.

[0059] In one embodiment, when requesting PRB utilization data through a Long Term Evolution evolved Node B (LTE eNB), the resource allocation system (102) may receive physical resource block (PRB) utilization data (120) corresponding to at least one time slot and / or a set of data packets from a performance management system (PMS) (108) communicatively coupled to the LTE-eNB (104). The PRB utilization data may refer to the number of downlink PRBs allocated to a user per unit time. In another embodiment, the resource allocation system (102) may compare at least one PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data (120) with a predefined threshold PRB utilization duration. Further, if at least one PRB utilization duration is less than the predefined threshold PRB utilization duration, the resource allocation system (102) requests, through a Narrowband Internet of Things evolved Node B (NB-IoT eNB) (106), a cumulative negative acknowledgment (NACK) percentage report corresponding to at least one of an absolute radio frequency channel number (ARFCN) or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchored carrier. To request a cumulative NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, the resource allocation system (102) may send a request for the cumulative NACK percentage report to a Mobility Management Entity (MME) (110) via the NB-IoT eNB (106). Further, the resource allocation system (102) may receive the requested cumulative NACK percentage report from the MME (110) via the NB-IoT eNB (106) in response to the sent request. If the NACK percentage report is not available to the MME (110), the resource allocation system (102) may allocate a non-anchored carrier (112) based on the current utilization of available ARFCNs for the non-anchored carrier through the NB-IoT eNB (106).

[0060] In one embodiment, based on PRB utilization data (120), cumulative NACK percentage reports, and a predefined value of at least one of ARFCN or PRB, the resource allocation system (102) may select at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchored carrier for at least one time slot and / or a set of data packets. Cumulative negative acknowledgment (NACK) may refer to the receiver explicitly notifying the sender which data packets, messages, or segments in a stream are received incorrectly and thus may need to be retransmitted. To select at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, the resource allocation system (102) may determine at least one of a less utilized percentage and a less error percentage in at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB.

[0061] In one embodiment, the resource allocation system (102) may establish a connection between multiple NB-IoT supported devices (130) and an NB-IoT eNB (106), and transmit information associated with at least one of the selected ARFCN or PRB of at least one time slot to the NB-IoT eNB (106) via an LTE eNB (104).

[0062] To establish a connection between multiple NB-IoT supported devices (130) and an NB-IoT eNB (106), the resource allocation system (102) may negotiate data of available ARFCNs for each of the multiple NB-IoT supported devices (130) based on NACK percentage reports of the received available ARFCNs. In addition, the resource allocation system (102) may generate a configuration for each of the multiple NB-IoT supported devices (130) for the selected time slot, and configure each ARFCN as a non-anchored carrier for each of the multiple NB-IoT supported devices (130). Further, when the NACK percentage of the non-anchored carrier exceeds a certain predetermined threshold during a certain duration of data transmission, the resource allocation system (102) may reconfigure the non-anchored carrier for each of the multiple NB-IoT supported devices (130).

[0063] Based on establishing connections between multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) and an NB-IoT eNB (106), a resource allocation system (102) can request a NACK percentage report from the NB-IoT eNB (106) through an MME (110), where the NACK percentage report corresponds to each of the multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) and at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB in each of the ARFCNs. Additionally, the resource allocation system (102) can reconfigure the connection using radio resource control (RRC) to select at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB based on the NACK percentage of each of the multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) and allocate at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB to each of the multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices (130). Further, the resource allocation system (102) can perform an RRC release for each of the multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices (130). Upon RRC release, the resource allocation system (102) can send, through the NB-IoT eNB (106), a NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB for each of the multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) to the MME (110).

[0064] Additionally, the resource allocation system (102) can notify the LTE eNB (104) that at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB is to be used as a non-anchor carrier. In one embodiment, upon receiving an acknowledgement (ACK) from the LTE eNB (104) in response to the notification, the resource allocation system (102) allocates at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB as a non-anchor carrier (112) to schedule data transmission for the multiple NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) corresponding to a selected time slot. Further, the resource allocation system (102) can indicate the release of each of at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB at the end of the allocated time slot to the LTE eNB (104).

[0065] In one embodiment, an NB-IoT-enabled device (130) can communicate with the resource allocation system (102) through a set of executable instructions residing on any operating system, including but not limited to Android TM , iOS TM , KaiOS TMetc. In one embodiment, the NB-IoT-enabled device (130) may include, but is not limited to, any electrical, electronic, electromechanical device or a combination of one or more of the above devices, such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a virtual reality (VR) device, an augmented reality (AR) device, a laptop computer, a general-purpose computer, a desktop computer, a personal digital assistant, a tablet computer, a mainframe computer, or any other computing device, where the computing device may include one or more - built-in or externally coupled accessories, including but not limited to visual assistance devices such as cameras, audio assistance devices, microphones, keyboards, input devices for receiving user input such as touchpads, touch-enabled screens, electronic pens, and the like. It can be understood that the NB-IoT-enabled device (130) may not be limited to the devices mentioned and various other devices may be used. The intelligent computing device may be one of the appropriate systems for storing data and other private / sensitive information.

[0066] Figure 3 An exemplary sequence diagram showing the dynamic multi-carrier allocation to an NB-IoT device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0067] Initially, the Performance Management System (PMS) (108) may include the PRB utilization of each cell at intervals of a predefined time period (e.g., 15 minutes). The PMS (108) may analyze the data of each cell for the last configurable number of days and the last configurable number of weeks on the same day and identify the PRB utilization of each cell in the upcoming configurable time slots.

[0068] In step 310, the LTE eNB (104) may request physical resource block (PRB) utilization data (120) for an upcoming time slot from the PMS (108). For example, to initiate the multi-carrier allocation process, a request may be generated for at least one PRB. In step 312, the PMS (108) may send the PRB utilization data (120) for the upcoming time slot to the LTE eNB (104). The PMS (108) may compare at least one PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data (120) with a predefined threshold PRB utilization duration. For example, the PMS (108) may include the PRB utilization of each of a plurality of cells during a predefined time interval (configurable). The PMS (108) may analyze data for the last configurable number of days and the last configurable number of weeks of the same day for each of the plurality of cells and identify the PRB utilization of each cell for an upcoming configurable time slot. For example, the predefined time interval may be, but is not limited to, one of 15 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, etc. In one instance, for each PRB utilization, multiple 180 kHz frequency spaces may be used as non-anchor carriers. Further, based on the PRB utilization of the predefined time interval, the PMS (108) may evaluate the number of available non-anchor carriers and the number of ARFCNs of the LTE eNB (104).

[0069] In step 314, the LTE eNB (104) may request a cumulative NACK percentage report of the ARFCN or PRB of the NB-IoT eNB (106). In step 316, the NB-IoT eNB (106) further sends a request for the cumulative NACK percentage report to the MME (110). In step (318), the MME (110) may send the requested cumulative NACK percentage report as a response to the NB-IoT eNB (106). Based on the NACK percentage report shared by the NB-IoT eNB (106), the cumulative NACK percentage report for a specific ARFCN or PRB may be obtained at the MME (110). In step 320, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may send the cumulative NACK percentage report to the LTE eNB (104).

[0070] In step 322, based on the PRB utilization data (120) and the NACK percentage report, the best possible ARFCN or PRB can be determined for NB-IoT. The predefined value of at least one of the ARFCN or PRB is based on the best possible ARFCN or PRB. For example, the NB-IoT eNB (106) can obtain the cumulative NACK percentage report from the MME (110), and the cumulative NACK percentage report can include the cumulative reports of all available non-anchor carriers of all available NB-IoT supported devices (130), so that the LTE eNB (104) can make the best possible ARFCN or one of at least one PRB available and share the availability with the NB-IoT eNB (106). For example, if considering the PRB utilization, the LTE eNB (104) can only allocate 3 PRBs or ARFCNs, then the LTE eNB (104) can provide the ARFCN or PRB with the best performance for the non-anchor carrier utilization, as shown in Table 1 below:

[0071]

[0072] Table 1

[0073] The ARFCN can also be and is referred to as the evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) ARFCN (i.e., EARFCN), as shown in Table 1 above.

[0074] In addition, the best possible EARFCN or PRB can be available at the NB-IoT eNB (106). For example, whenever any NB-IoT supported device (130) that supports multi-carriers initiates UL or DL data transmission, the NB-IoT eNB (106) can first negotiate the data of the available EARFCN according to the NACK percentage report of the available ARFCNs of the NB-IoT supported device (130) before configuring a specific EARFCN as the non-anchor carrier for the NB-IoT supported device (130), as shown in Table 2 below:

[0075]

[0076] Table 2

[0077] For example, in the absence of a cumulative NACK percentage report obtained from the MME (110), the NB-IoT eNB (106) can allocate non-anchored carriers based on the current utilization of the available ARFCNs for non-anchored carriers. For example, if 3 ARFCNs or PRBs are available for non-anchored carriers, the NB-IoT eNB (106) can allocate the less utilized PRBs as non-anchored carriers according to fair scheduling. The generated cumulative NACK percentage report may be similar to that shown in Table 2, where for a specific NB-IoT enabled device (130), only the previous NACK percentage report of the non-anchored carrier can be allocated to that specific NB-IoT supported device (130), and the NB-IoT supported device (130) can be provided by the MME (110) to the NB-IoT eNB (106).

[0078] In step 324, information associated with the best possible ARFCN or PRB for the upcoming time slot can be sent by the LTE eNB (104) to the NB-IoT eNB (106). The NB-IoT eNB (106) can generate a configuration for the corresponding at least one NB-IoT supported device (130) based on at least one co-located LTE eNB (104) during a predefined time interval. In step 326, the multi-carrier supported NB-IoT device (130) can initiate uplink (UL) or downlink (DL) data transmission. For example, initiating a connection for one of the UL or DL data within a predefined duration can be achieved when powering on the corresponding at least one NB-IoT supported device (130) and through connecting the at least one NB-IoT supported device (130) to at least one NB-IoT network of the corresponding NB-IoT eNB (106).

[0079] Accordingly, at step 328, a request for a NACK percentage report of PRBs for an NB-IoT-capable device (130) is sent from the NB-IoT eNB (106) to the MME (110). At step 330, a response corresponding to the NACK percentage of the NB-IoT-capable device (130) is received at the NB-IoT eNB (106) from the MME (110). The NB-IoT eNB (106) may analyze one or more NACK percentage reports of the allocated PRBs for the corresponding NB-IoT-capable device (130). The NB-IoT eNB (106) may select the best available PRB for the corresponding NB-IoT-capable device (130) based on the analysis result of the one or more NACK percentage reports to allocate the PRB as a non-anchor carrier. For example, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may configure the best non-anchor carrier for the NB-IoT-capable device (130) based on the NACK percentage report. For example, referring to Table 2 above, if carriers C1, C2, C3, and C4 are available for non-anchor allocation in a particular time slot, and the C1 NACK percentages of the NACK percentage reports received for a particular NB-IoT-capable device (130) are 8% (DL) and 9% (UL), the C3 NACK percentages are 4% (DL) and 5% (UL), and the C2 and C4 reports for the NB-IoT-capable device (130) are unknown, then the NB-IoT eNB (106) may allocate the ARFCN or PRB with fewer resources as the non-anchor carrier. Additionally, if reports for all available ARFCNs or PRBs are available for a particular NB-IoT-capable device (130), the NB-IoT eNB (106) may decide based on the ARFCN or PRB with a smaller error percentage. Additionally, a NACK percentage threshold may be selected to avoid allocating a non-anchor carrier for a particular NB-IoT-capable device (130) in case there is a higher NACK percentage for the NB-IoT-capable device (130) among the available ARFCNs or PRBs of the non-anchor carrier but the non-anchor carrier is not being used. Additionally, NACK percentage thresholds for UL and DL may be set to reconfigure the non-anchor carrier of a particular NB-IoT-capable device (130) in an ongoing data transmission / session when the NACK percentage of the allocated non-anchor carrier exceeds the threshold within a particular time period. Accordingly, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may select potential ARFCNs or PRBs for a particular NB-IoT-capable device (130) to be used as non-anchor carriers.

[0080] In step 332, a notification is generated by the NB-IoT eNB (106) and sent to the LTE eNB (104), indicating that the ARFCN or PRB is used as a non-anchored carrier. In step 334, the NB-IoT eNB (106) receives an acknowledgement of the generated notification sent by the LTE eNB (104). For example, when receiving the notification that the ARFCN or PRB is used as a non-anchored carrier, the LTE eNB (104) may send an acknowledgement (ACK) or negative acknowledgement (NACK) message back to the NB-IoT eNB (106). If an ACK is received, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may use these ARFCN or PRB as non-anchored carriers to schedule NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) for UL or DL data transmission in predefined time slots. The LTE eNB (104) may use these PRBs to schedule any data to LTE-enabled devices ( Figure 3 not shown in the figure) during the predefined time slots. For example, the predefined time slot may be 15 minutes, which may be a configurable duration. If a NACK is received, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may not be able to use these PRBs to schedule non-anchored carriers for NB-IoT-enabled devices (130).

[0081] In step 336, based on the NACK percentage of the NB-IoT-enabled devices (130), PRBs can be selected and allocated to the NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) by radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration of the connection.

[0082] In step 338, each RRC release, NACK percentage report of the ARFCN, or PRB of a specific NB-IoT-enabled device (130) can be sent by the NB-IoT eNB (106) to the MME (110). The NB-IoT eNB (106) can allocate non-anchored carriers to enable the completion of data transmission for NB-IoT-enabled devices (130). In one example, there may always be a fixed number of ARFCNs in a specific LTE band, and these ARFCNs can be allocated to non-anchored carriers.

[0083] In step 340, the allocated PRB time slot ends. In step 342, after the allocated PRB time slot ends, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may send a release indication to the LTE eNB (104). For example, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may send a NACK percentage report of each NB-IoT supported device (130) for each data transmission / session to the MME (110) at each RRC release. The MME (110) may collect the NACK percentage data of each NB-IoT supported device (130) for each non-anchored ARFCN for configurable counting. The release indication is sent by the NB-IoT eNB (106) to the LTE eNB (104) so that the LTE eNB (104) can use these ARFCNs to schedule data to the LTE supported devices ( Figure 3 not shown in the figure). If the same EARFCN is notified for the next predefined time interval, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may not notify the LTE eNB (104) of the release indication for this ARFCN. Therefore, if any EARFCN may be in use at the end of the time slot, once the non-anchored carrier is released for the NB-IoT supported device (130), the release indication for this EARFCN can be sent, where the NB-IoT supported device (130) may be using the EARFCN. The LTE eNB (104) may not schedule data on the PRB or EARFCN until it is notified of the release indication from the NB-IoT eNB (106).

[0084] In addition, if a PRB is allocated, the NB-IoT eNB (106) may send a PRB release notification to the LTE eNB (104) for each PRB when the predefined time interval is completed. For example, when the LTE eNB (104) provides the best available ARFCN or PRB as a non-anchored carrier, the resource availability at the NB-IoT eNB (106) can be provided to the SCEF (124) (as Figure 1 shown). The SCEF (124) may use the resource availability provided at the NB-IoT eNB (106) to provide the service capability server (SCS) (not shown in Figure 3 the figure) or the application server (AS) (128) ( Figure 1 shown in the figure), where there is a set of policies indicating the best time to perform data transmission exceeding a certain threshold period, and indicating the data transmission volume and the number of NB-IoT supported devices (130) for the data transmission.

[0085] Figure 4An exemplary method flow diagram according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown, which depicts a method (400) for dynamically allocating multiple carriers to an NB-IoT-enabled device (130).

[0086] As Figure 4 shown, the method (400) includes one or more blocks that illustrate a method for dynamically allocating multiple carriers to an NB-IoT-enabled device (130). The method (400) can be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions. Generally, computer-executable instructions can include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, procedures, modules, and functions that perform functions or implement abstract data types.

[0087] The order in which the method (400) is described is not intended to be construed as limiting, and any number of the described method blocks can be combined in any order to implement the method (400). Additionally, individual blocks can be removed from the method without departing from the scope of the subject matter described herein. Further, the method (400) can be implemented in any suitable hardware, software, firmware, or combination thereof.

[0088] At block (402), the method (400) can include the processor (202) receiving physical resource block (PRB) utilization data (120) corresponding to at least one time slot and at least one of a set of data packets from the PMS (108) when requesting PRB utilization data (120) through an evolved Node B (LTE eNB) of Long-Term Evolution. At block (404), the method (400) can include the processor (202) comparing at least one PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data (120) with a predefined threshold PRB utilization duration. At block (406), the method (400) can include, if at least one PRB usage duration is less than the predefined threshold PRB utilization duration, the processor (202) requesting a cumulative negative acknowledgment (NACK) percentage report via a NarrowBand Internet of Things evolved Node B (NB-IoT eNB) (106), where the cumulative negative acknowledgment (NACK) percentage report corresponds to at least one of an absolute radio frequency channel number (ARFCN) or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchor carrier (114).

[0089] At block (408), method (400) may include, based on PRB utilization data (120), accumulating a NACK percentage report and a predefined value of at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, and selecting, by processor (202), at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, the ARFCN or the PRB being associated with at least one anchor carrier (114) of at least one of at least one time slot and a set of data packets. At block (410), method (400) may include establishing, by processor (202), a connection between a plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) and an NB-IoT eNB (106) when transmitting, via an LTE eNB (104), information related to the selection of at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB of at least one time slot to the NB-IoT eNB (106).

[0090] At block (412), method (400) may include notifying, by a resource processor (202), the LTE eNB (104) that at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB is to be used as a non-anchor carrier (114). At block (414), method (400) may include allocating, by processor (202), at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB as a non-anchor carrier (114) to schedule, in response to receiving an acknowledgement (ACK) from the LTE eNB (104) in response to the notification, a plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) for data transmission corresponding to the selected time slot.

[0091] Various embodiments of the present disclosure enable maximizing the utilization of radio resources available to an operator across LTE and NB-IoT. Embodiments herein increase NB-IoT cell and user throughput. Additional data inputs provided to a Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF) can be used to optimally utilize NB-IoT resources. Embodiments herein allocate at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB as a non-anchor carrier to schedule a plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices for data transmission corresponding to a selected time slot when an ACK is received from an LTE eNB, which does not require additional frequency space, thereby minimizing frequency space and cost. Selecting an optimal ARFCN or PRB associated with at least one non-anchor carrier of at least one time slot avoids allocating a non-anchor carrier for a particular NB-IoT-enabled device when the non-anchor carrier is not in use but has a higher NACK percentage among available ARFCNs or PRBs of the non-anchor carrier for supporting NB-IoT devices. Selecting an ARFCN or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchor carrier of at least one time slot for each of the NB-IoT-enabled devices provides sufficient bandwidth and does not cause communication latency for a plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices, even when different NB-IoT devices are used for different applications.

[0092] Although this text has placed considerable emphasis on the preferred embodiments, it should be understood that many embodiments can be made and many changes can be made to the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the present invention. From the disclosure herein, these and other variations in the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus it can be clearly understood that the above-described subject matter to be achieved is for illustrative purposes only and not for limitation.

Claims

1. A resource allocation system (102) for dynamically allocating multi-carriers to devices (130) supporting NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT), comprising: A processor (202); and A memory (204) communicatively connected to the processor (202), wherein the memory (204) stores processor instructions that, when executed by the processor (202), cause the resource allocation system (102) to: When requesting physical resource block (PRB) utilization data (120) via an LTE eNB (104), receive from a performance management system (PMS) (108) communicatively connected to an evolved Node B of Long Term Evolution (LTE eNB) (104) PRB utilization data (120) corresponding to at least one time slot and a set of data packets; Compare at least one PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data (120) with a predetermined threshold PRB utilization duration; If the at least one PRB utilization duration is less than the predetermined threshold PRB utilization duration, request via a Narrowband Internet of Things evolved Node B (NB-IoT eNB) (106) a cumulative negative acknowledgment (NACK) percentage report corresponding to at least one of an absolute radio frequency channel number (ARFCN) or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchored carrier (114); Based on the PRB utilization data (120), the cumulative NACK percentage report, and a predefined value of at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, select for at least one time slot and a set of data packets at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchored carrier (114); When transmitting information associated with at least one of the selected ARFCN or PRB for at least one time slot and a set of data packets to the NB-IoT eNB (106) via the LTE eNB, establish a connection between a plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) and the NB-IoT eNB (106); Notify the LTE eNB (104) indicating that at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB is used as the non-anchored carrier (114); and Upon receiving an acknowledgment (ACK) from the LTE eNB (104) in response to the notification, allocate at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB as a non-anchored carrier to schedule the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) for data transmission corresponding to the selected time slot.

2. The resource allocation system (102) according to claim 1, characterized in that The resource allocation system (102) is further configured to, at the end of the allocated time slot, indicate to the LTE eNB (104) the release of each of at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB.

3. The resource allocation system (102) according to claim 1, characterized in that To request a cumulative NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, the resource allocation system (102) is further configured to: Send a request for the cumulative NACK percentage report to a Mobility Management Entity (MME) (110) via the NB-IoT eNB (106); and In response to the sent request, receive from the MME (110) via the NB-IoT eNB (106) the requested cumulative NACK percentage report.

4. The resource allocation system (102) according to claim 1, characterized in that To select at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, the resource allocation system (102) is further configured to determine at least one of a percentage of less usage and less errors in at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB.

5. The resource allocation system (102) according to claim 1, characterized in that Based on establishing a connection between a plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130) and an NB-IoT eNB (106), the resource allocation system (102) is further configured to: Request a NACK percentage report from the NB-IoT eNB (106) via the MME (110), the NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130) and for each of the ARFCNs; Based on the NACK percentage for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130), use radio resource control (RRC) to reconfigure the connection to select at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB and allocate at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB to the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130); Perform an RRC release for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130); and At the time of the RRC release, send a NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130) to the MME (110) via the NB-IoT eNB.

6. The resource allocation system (102) according to claim 5, characterized in that When requesting the NACK percentage report, if the NACK percentage report is not available in the MME (110), the resource allocation system (102) allocates the non-anchored carrier (114) based on the current utilization rate of the available ARFCNs of the non-anchored carrier (114) via the NB-IoT eNB (106).

7. The resource allocation system (102) according to claim 1, characterized in that To establish a connection between the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130) and the NB-IoT eNB (106), the resource allocation system (102) is further configured to: Negotiate data of available ARFCNs for the received NACK percentage report of the available ARFCNs for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130); Generate a configuration for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130) for the selected time slot; Configure each ARFCN as the non-anchored carrier (114) for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130); and When the NACK percentage of the non-anchored carrier (114) exceeds a predetermined threshold during a certain duration of the data transmission, reconfigure the non-anchored carrier (114) for each of the plurality of NB-IoT supported devices (130).

8. A method for dynamically allocating multi-carriers to a device (130) supporting NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT), comprising: When requesting physical resource block (PRB) utilization data (120) through an LTE eNB (104), a processor (202) receives PRB utilization data (120) corresponding to at least one time slot and a set of data packets from a performance management system (PMS) (108) communicatively connected to an evolved Node B of Long Term Evolution (LTE eNB) (104); The processor (202) compares at least one PRB utilization duration in the received PRB utilization data (120) with a predetermined threshold PRB utilization duration; If the at least one PRB utilization duration is less than the predetermined threshold PRB utilization duration, the processor (202) requests a cumulative negative acknowledgment (NACK) percentage report corresponding to at least one of an absolute radio frequency channel number (ARFCN) or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchor carrier (114) through a NarrowBand Internet of Things evolved Node B (NB-IoT eNB) (106); Based on the PRB utilization data (120), the cumulative NACK percentage report, and a predefined value of at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB, the processor (202) selects at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB associated with at least one non-anchor carrier (114) for at least one time slot and a set of data packets; When transmitting information associated with at least one of the selected ARFCN or PRB for at least one time slot and a set of data packets to the NB-IoT eNB (106) via the LTE eNB (104), a connection is established between a plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) and the NB-IoT eNB (106); The processor (202) notifies the LTE eNB (104) indicating that at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB is used as the non-anchor carrier (114); and When receiving an acknowledgment (ACK) from the LTE eNB (104) in response to the notification, the processor (202) allocates at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB as the non-anchor carrier (114) to schedule data transmission of the plurality of NB-IoT-enabled devices (130) corresponding to the selected time slot.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein, It further includes the processor (202) instructing the LTE eNB (104) to release each of at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB at the end of the allocated time slot.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein, Requesting a cumulative NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of an ARFCN or a PRB further includes: The processor (202) sends a request for the cumulative NACK percentage report to a mobility management entity (MME) (110) through the NB-IoT eNB (106); and In response to the sent request, the processor (202) receives the requested cumulative NACK percentage report from the MME (110) via the NB-IoT eNB (106).

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein, Selecting at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB further includes determining, by the processor (202), at least one of a less utilized and a less error percentage in at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein, Based on establishing a connection between a plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130) and an NB-IoT eNB (106), the method further includes: The processor (202) requests a NACK percentage report from the NB-IoT eNB (106) via the MME (110), the NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130) and for each of the ARFCNs; Based on the NACK percentage for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130), the processor (202) uses radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration of the connection to select at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB and assign at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB to each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130); Performing, by the processor (202), an RRC release for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130); and At the time of the RRC release, the processor (202) sends, via the NB-IoT eNB, a NACK percentage report corresponding to at least one of the ARFCN or the PRB for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130) to the MME (110).

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein, When requesting the NACK percentage report, if the NACK percentage report is not available in the MME (110), the resource allocation system (102) allocates the non-anchored carrier (114) based on the current utilization of the available ARFCNs of the non-anchored carrier (114) via the NB-IoT eNB (106).

14. The method according to claim 8, wherein, Establishing a connection between the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130) and the NB-IoT eNB (106) further includes: The processor (202) negotiates data of available ARFCNs for a received NACK percentage report for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130); The processor (202) generates a configuration for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130) for a selected time slot; The processor (202) configures each of the ARFCNs as a non-anchored carrier (114) for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130); and When the NACK percentage of the non-anchored carrier (114) exceeds a predetermined threshold during a certain duration of the data transmission, the processor (202) reconfigures the non-anchored carrier (114) for each of the plurality of NB-IoT capable devices (130).

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