Control device, base station, program, and method thereof

Abstract

To achieve communication using efficient carrier aggregation.SOLUTION: A control device 1001 communicates with user equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency. The first sector is one of a plurality of first-type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of a base station is divided, and the second sector is one of a plurality of second-type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, and each first-type sector overlaps with a portion of each of two second-type sectors of the plurality of second-type sectors. When the channel quality of the first sector becomes smaller than a first threshold, the control device sets the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a control device, a base station, a program, and a method thereof. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for allocating measurement gaps in wireless communication involving carrier aggregation. The technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 suppresses a decrease in throughput or a delay in processing such as handover caused by an increase in measurement gaps. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-120196 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, there is a possibility that efficient communication by carrier aggregation cannot be realized with the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1. That is, with the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, a decrease in communication quality of some component carriers among a plurality of component carriers used in carrier aggregation cannot be reflected in resource allocation of the plurality of component carriers, so there is a possibility that efficient communication by carrier aggregation cannot be realized.

[0005] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a control device, a base station, a program, and a method thereof that can realize efficient communication using carrier aggregation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A control device according to a first aspect of the present disclosure is a control device that communicates with User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, the first sector being one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided, the second sector being one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, and each of the first type sectors overlaps with a portion of each of two second type sectors of the plurality of second type sectors, the control device including: an acquisition unit that acquires information regarding channel quality of a sector; and a control unit that sets the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a condition is satisfied, including that the channel quality of the first sector is smaller than a first threshold.

[0007] A base station according to a second aspect of the present disclosure includes the control unit according to the first aspect.

[0008] A program according to a third aspect of the present disclosure is a program for causing a control device to execute a process that controls a base station that communicates with User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, the first sector being one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the base station is divided, the second sector being one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the base station is divided, and each first type sector overlaps with a portion of each of two second type sectors out of the plurality of second type sectors, the process causing a computer to execute a process including setting the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a channel quality of the first sector becomes smaller than a first threshold.

[0009] A method according to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure is a method executed by a control device that controls a base station that communicates with User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, the first sector being one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided; The second sector is one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, and each of the first type sectors overlaps with a portion of each of two second type sectors among the plurality of second type sectors, and the method includes setting the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a channel quality of the first sector becomes smaller than a first threshold. Effect of the Invention

[0010] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a control device, a base station, a program, and a method thereof that can realize efficient communication using carrier aggregation. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control device according to the present disclosure. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2A is a diagram showing an example of sector division in a first cell. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2B is a diagram showing an example of sector division in the second cell. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an overlap region and a movement of a terminal device. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing operation of the control device of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an overlapping region and the movement of a terminal device. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing operation of the control device of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing operation of the control device of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device of the present disclosure. [Figure 10A] FIG. 10A is a sequence diagram showing an example of the processing operations of the terminal device and the control device of the present disclosure. [Figure 10B] FIG. 10B is a sequence diagram showing an example of the processing operations of the terminal device and the control device of the present disclosure. [Figure 10C] FIG. 10C is a sequence diagram showing an example of the processing operations of the terminal device and the control device of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a base station. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the control device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In this disclosure, the drawings may relate to one or more embodiments. Also, each element in the drawings may apply to one or more embodiments. In each drawing, the same or corresponding elements are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations are omitted as necessary for clarity of explanation.

[0013] First Embodiment <Control device configuration example> 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control device according to the present disclosure. In FIG. 1, a control device 1001 includes a control unit 11.

[0014] The control device 1001 controls a base station (not shown). The control device 1001 may be mounted inside a general base station, or may be located outside the base station.

[0015] A base station (not shown) communicates with a terminal device (not shown) using a plurality of frequencies. The terminal device here may be a wireless terminal or User Equipment (UE). For example, the base station (not shown) communicates with the terminal device by Carrier Aggregation (CA) using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency. Here, the first sector is one of a plurality of first-type sectors into which a first cell of the base station with a first frequency is divided. Also, the second sector is one of a plurality of second-type sectors into which a second cell of the base station with a second frequency is divided. Each first-type sector overlaps with a portion of each of two second-type sectors out of the plurality of second-type sectors. Each sector corresponds to a "component carrier." The frequencies of the plurality of component carriers, that is, the first frequency and the second frequency here, do not necessarily need to be adjacent to each other in the frequency direction. A mode in which the first frequency and the second frequency are arranged adjacent to each other in the frequency direction may be called an adjacent mode. Moreover, a mode in which the first frequency and the second frequency are arranged so as not to be adjacent to each other may be called a non-adjacent mode. Specific examples of cells and sectors will be described in detail later.

[0016] The control unit 11 allocates resources used for communication between a base station (not shown) and a terminal device (not shown). For example, the control unit 11 may allocate resources for each component carrier. Information regarding resource allocation may be indicated to the terminal device (not shown) by, for example, a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH). Note that the control unit 11 allocates resources for uplink communication and downlink communication between the base station (not shown) and the terminal device (not shown), but the following description will focus on resource allocation for downlink communication.

[0017] For example, when a condition including the channel quality of the first sector being smaller than a first threshold is satisfied, the control unit 11 sets the second sector as a "preferential allocation target sector" to which resources used for carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated. The "preferential allocation target sector" is, for example, a sector to which resources are preferentially allocated compared to other sectors among a plurality of sectors used for carrier aggregation.

[0018] The acquisition unit 12 acquires information on the channel quality of a sector. Specifically, the acquisition unit 12 acquires a channel quality report from a terminal device. The acquisition unit 12 can acquire the channel quality by receiving the channel quality report transmitted from the terminal device. Based on this channel quality, the control unit 11 can determine resource allocation for data transmission.

[0019] <Example of control device operation> A specific example of cells and sectors will be described. As shown in FIG. 2A, the first cell is divided into sector a (300°-60°), sector b (60°-180°), and sector c (180°-300°) by angle. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 2B, the second cell is divided into sector A (0°-120°), sector B (120°-240°), and sector C (240°-360° (=0°)) by angle. Note that, although an example in which each cell is divided into three sectors with a central angle of 120° has been given here, the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, the central angle of the sector may be greater or smaller than 120°.

[0020] Each sector corresponds to, for example, one directional antenna provided in the base station. That is, in this example, the base station has six directional antennas corresponding to sector a, sector b, sector c, sector A, sector B, and sector C, respectively.

[0021] In the example shown in Figures 2A and 2B, a portion of sector a overlaps a portion of sector A. The overlapping area between sector a and sector A is called overlap area 1, as shown in Figure 3. Similarly, the overlapping area between sector b and sector A is called overlap area 2. The overlapping area between sector b and sector B is called overlap area 3. The overlapping area between sector c and sector B is called overlap area 4. The overlapping area between sector c and sector C is called overlap area 5. The overlapping area between sector a and sector C is called overlap area 6.

[0022] A control method used in the control device of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing operation of the control device of the present disclosure. Here, a case where a terminal device exists in overlap area 1 and moves from overlap area 1 to overlap area 2 will be described as an example. Then, the base station and the terminal device existing in overlap area 1 communicate with each other by carrier aggregation using sector a and sector A.

[0023] The acquisition unit 12 acquires information on the channel quality of the sectors (step S101). For example, as shown in FIG. 3, when the terminal device is present in the overlap region 1, the terminal device can measure at least the channel quality of sector a and the channel quality of sector A. Furthermore, when the terminal device is present in the overlap region 1 near the boundary with the overlap region 2, the terminal device can also measure the channel quality of sector b. For this reason, when the terminal device is present in the overlap region 1, for example, the acquisition unit 12 acquires the channel quality of sector a, the channel quality of sector A, and the channel quality of sector b. The channel quality of other sectors, for example, the channel quality of sector c, the channel quality of sector B, and the channel quality of sector C, may be measured, but is sufficiently small and negligible.

[0024] The control unit 11 determines whether the channel quality of each sector used in the carrier aggregation is smaller than a first threshold (step S102).

[0025] If the channel quality of one sector used for carrier aggregation is smaller than the first threshold (step S102, Yes), the control unit 11 sets another sector used for carrier aggregation as a sector to be preferentially allocated (step S103).If the channel quality of one sector used for carrier aggregation is not smaller than the first threshold (step S102, No), the control device 1001 continues to obtain the channel quality (step S101).

[0026] Here, as the terminal device in the overlap region 1 approaches the boundary between the overlap region 1 and the overlap region 2 (i.e., the boundary between the sector a and the sector b), the channel quality of the sector a tends to decrease. On the other hand, as the terminal device in the overlap region 1 approaches the boundary between the overlap region 1 and the overlap region 2 (i.e., the center of the sector A), the channel quality of the sector A tends to increase. For this reason, when the channel quality of the sector a becomes smaller than the first threshold, it means that the communication using the sector a is less favorable than the communication using the sector A. Therefore, by setting the sector A as a sector to be preferentially assigned when the channel quality of the sector a becomes smaller than the first threshold, more efficient communication by carrier aggregation can be realized.

[0027] The data transmission resource allocation performed by setting one sector as a sector to be preferentially allocated is called priority scheduling. An example of data transmission resource allocation in priority scheduling is shown below. For example, the resource amount to be allocated to the second sector is set to be larger than the resource amount to be allocated to the first sector, such as first sector:second sector=10:90 or 20:80. The user may freely set this resource allocation ratio. That is, this resource allocation ratio may be set to an arbitrary value in advance, or may be dynamically determined from the result of the acquired channel quality. The control device 1001 transmits a priority scheduling instruction to the terminal device. The terminal device that has received the priority scheduling instruction may continue this priority scheduling until it receives a new data transmission resource allocation instruction. Also, it may be set to execute priority scheduling for a certain time after receiving the priority scheduling instruction, and cancel the priority scheduling and perform normal scheduling after the certain time has elapsed.

[0028] Normal scheduling is a resource allocation in which the resource allocation in the first sector and the second sector is substantially the same ratio. An example of data transmission resource allocation in normal scheduling is shown below. For example, the amount of resources allocated to the first sector and the amount of resources allocated to the second sector are set to be the same, such as first sector:second sector=50:50. This resource allocation ratio may be freely set by the user. Also, even in normal scheduling, it is not limited to this ratio, and may be set to different values, such as first sector:second sector=40:60. This normal scheduling allows data to be distributed and transmitted and received as one communication line, thereby achieving high-speed and stable communication.

[0029] <Second embodiment> <Control device configuration example> 5 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a control device according to the present disclosure. The control device 2001 includes a control unit 21 and an acquisition unit 22. The control unit 21 includes an allocation control unit 23 and a handover control unit 24. The acquisition unit 22 includes a channel quality acquisition unit 25 and a location information acquisition unit 26.

[0030] The channel quality acquisition unit 25 acquires information on the channel quality of a sector, similar to the acquisition unit 12. Specifically, the channel quality acquisition unit 25 acquires a channel quality report from a terminal device. The channel quality acquisition unit 25 can acquire the channel quality by receiving the channel quality report transmitted from the terminal device. Based on this channel quality, the control unit 21 can determine resource allocation for data transmission.

[0031] The location information acquisition unit 26 acquires information regarding the location of the terminal device. Specifically, the location of the terminal device can be acquired using Global Positioning System (GPS) positioning and base station positioning. In GPS positioning, the location information of the terminal device can be acquired using a satellite. In base station positioning, the distance from the base station to the terminal device is calculated, and the location information of the terminal device can be acquired. The location information acquisition unit 26 may acquire the location information using either one or both of the GPS positioning and the base station positioning.

[0032] Similarly to the control unit 11, when a condition including the channel quality of the first sector being smaller than a first threshold is satisfied, the allocation control unit 23 sets the second sector as a "priority allocation target sector" to which resources used for carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated. This condition may include that the terminal device is present in a cell center area excluding the cell edge area of ​​the first cell, and that the terminal device is present in a cell center area excluding the cell edge area of ​​the second cell. Here, the channel quality in the cell edge area is usually lower than the channel quality in the cell center area. For this reason, when a terminal device is present in the cell edge areas of the first cell and the second cell, even if the channel quality of the first sector becomes smaller than the first threshold, it is considered that the channel quality of the second sector is also degraded, so that communication using the second sector is not more advantageous than communication using the first sector. For this reason, the allocation control unit 23 may set the "priority allocation target sector" on the condition that the terminal device is present in a cell center area excluding the cell edge area of ​​the first cell, and that the terminal device is present in a center area excluding the cell edge area of ​​the second cell.

[0033] In addition, when the channel quality of the second sector set as the sector to be preferentially allocated becomes lower than the first threshold, the allocation control unit 23 may cancel the setting of the second sector as the sector to be preferentially allocated. This is because, when the channel quality of the second sector becomes lower than the first threshold, it is highly likely that the communication using the second sector is not advantageous compared to the communication using other sectors and is at a disadvantage.

[0034] The handover control unit 24 controls inter-sector handover. For example, when the channel quality of the first sector is lower than the second threshold and the channel quality of the third sector, which is a first type sector, is equal to or higher than the second threshold, the handover control unit 24 controls handover from the first sector to the third sector. That is, the inter-sector handover here is handover between two sectors of the same type (i.e., first type sector or second type sector). For example, the value of the first threshold may be larger than the value of the second threshold. In this case, resource allocation change between component carriers (i.e., setting of sectors to be preferentially allocated) can be performed prior to the inter-sector handover.

[0035] Here, naturally, when the channel quality of the second sector is lower than the first threshold and the channel quality of the third sector is equal to or higher than the first threshold, the allocation control unit 23 may set the third sector as a sector to be preferentially allocated.

[0036] <Example of control device operation> The specific behavior of the terminal device, which is assumed in the explanation of the operation example, will be described. As shown in Fig. 3, first consider that the terminal device moves from overlap area 1 to overlap area 2. The terminal device approaches the boundary between overlap area 1 and overlap area 2 (i.e., the boundary between sector a and sector b) and moves to overlap area 2. Then, the channel quality of sector a decreases, and the channel quality of sector b increases. At this time, the channel quality of sector A remains good.

[0037] Next, the specific behavior of the terminal device will be described. As shown in Fig. 6, consider that the terminal device moves from overlap area 2 to overlap area 3. The terminal device approaches the boundary between overlap area 2 and overlap area 3 (i.e., the boundary between sector A and sector B) and moves to overlap area 3. Then, the channel quality of sector A deteriorates and the channel quality of sector B improves. At this time, the channel quality of sector b remains good.

[0038] Here, sector a may be called the first sector, sector A the second sector, and sector b the third sector.

[0039] In consideration of the above operations, examples of operation of resource allocation control and inter-sector handover control will be summarized.

[0040] <Resource allocation control> FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation of resource allocation control according to the second embodiment.

[0041] The acquisition unit 22 acquires channel qualities of a plurality of sectors currently used for carrier aggregation (step S201). For example, when a terminal device exists in the overlap region 1, communication is performed by carrier aggregation using sector a and sector A, so that the acquisition unit 22 acquires the channel quality of sector a and the channel quality of sector A.

[0042] The acquisition unit 22 acquires the location information of the terminal device (step S202). Specifically, the acquisition unit 22 can acquire the location information of the terminal device using either or both of GPS positioning and base station positioning.

[0043] The control unit 21 determines whether the terminal device is located in a cell edge area or a cell central area (step S203).

[0044] When it is determined that the terminal device is present in the cell central area, the control unit 21 determines whether the channel quality of each sector used for carrier aggregation is smaller than a first threshold (step S204).

[0045] If the channel quality of one sector used for carrier aggregation is lower than the first threshold (Yes at step S204), the control unit 11 determines whether the one sector is set as a sector subject to preferential allocation (step S205).

[0046] If the one sector is set as a sector for preferential allocation (Yes at step S205), the control unit 11 cancels the setting of the sector as a sector for preferential allocation (step S206).

[0047] If the one sector is not set as a sector for preferential allocation (No at step S205), the control unit 11 sets sectors other than the one sector as sectors for preferential allocation (step S207).

[0048] Here, as a terminal device in overlap area 1 approaches the boundary between overlap area 1 and overlap area 2 (i.e., the boundary between sector a and sector b), the channel quality of sector a decreases. On the other hand, as a terminal device in overlap area 1 approaches the boundary between overlap area 1 and overlap area 2 (i.e., the center of sector A), the channel quality of sector A increases. Therefore, the result of the determination in step S204 is Yes and the result of the determination in step S205 is No, and in step S207, sector A is set as a sector to be preferentially allocated.

[0049] When the terminal device moves further and approaches the boundary between overlap area 2 and overlap area 3 (i.e., the boundary between sector A and sector B), the channel quality of sector A deteriorates. At this time, the result of the determination in step S204 is Yes, the result of the determination in step S205 is Yes, and the setting of sector A as a cell subject to priority allocation is released in step S206.

[0050] <Inter-sector handover control> FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation of an inter-sector handover according to the second embodiment.

[0051] The acquisition unit 22 acquires channel quality of sectors (step S301). For example, when the terminal device is located near the boundary between overlap area 1 and overlap area 2 in overlap area 1, communication is performed by carrier aggregation using sector a and sector A, so the acquisition unit 22 acquires the channel quality of sector a and the channel quality of sector A. When the terminal device is located near the boundary between overlap area 1 and overlap area 2 in overlap area 1, the acquisition unit 22 further acquires the channel quality of sector b.

[0052] The acquisition unit 22 acquires the location information of the terminal device (step S302). Specifically, the acquisition unit 22 can acquire the location information of the terminal device using either or both of GPS positioning and base station positioning.

[0053] The control unit 21 determines whether the terminal device is located in a cell edge area or a cell central area (step S303).

[0054] When it is determined that the terminal device is present in the cell central area, the control unit 21 determines whether the channel quality of each sector used for carrier aggregation is smaller than a second threshold (step S304).

[0055] If the channel quality of one sector used for carrier aggregation is lower than the second threshold, the control unit 11 determines whether there is a handover target candidate sector that is of the same type as the one sector and has channel quality equal to or higher than the second threshold (step S305).

[0056] If there is a handover destination candidate sector, the control unit 21 controls the execution of an inter-sector handover (step S306).

[0057] When the terminal device crosses the boundary from overlap region 1 to overlap region 2, the channel quality of sector a becomes smaller than the second threshold and the channel quality of sector b becomes equal to or larger than the second threshold. At this time, the determination in step S304 is Yes, and the determination in step S305 is Yes, so that an inter-sector handover from sector a to sector b is executed in step S306.

[0058] <Third embodiment> <Control device configuration example> 9 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a control device according to the present disclosure. The control device 3001 includes a control unit 31 and an acquisition unit 32. The control unit 31 includes an allocation control unit 33 and a handover control unit 34. The acquisition unit 32 includes a channel quality acquisition unit 35 and a location information acquisition unit 36.

[0059] The allocation control unit 33 performs wireless communication with the terminal device and performs scheduling control for data transmission resource allocation. Specifically, it performs priority allocation control based on the channel quality in each sector and the location information of the terminal device.

[0060] The handover control unit 34 performs handover control for inter-sector handover. Specifically, the handover source sector and the handover destination sector of the terminal device are determined based on the channel quality in each sector and the location information of the terminal device. Information related to handover, such as the handover source sector and the handover destination sector, may be called handover information, for example. The handover control unit 34 transmits a handover instruction to the terminal device based on the handover information. The terminal device executes a handover using the handover instruction as a trigger.

[0061] The channel quality acquisition unit 35 acquires information on the channel quality of a sector. Specifically, the channel quality acquisition unit 35 can acquire the channel quality by receiving a channel quality report from a terminal device. The channel quality acquisition unit 35 may acquire a measurement report in addition to the channel quality report. The measurement report is a message used when determining a sector as a handover destination.

[0062] The location information acquisition unit 36 ​​acquires location information of the terminal device. Specifically, the location of the terminal device can be acquired using Global Positioning System (GPS) positioning and base station positioning. In GPS positioning, the location information of the terminal device can be acquired using satellites. In base station positioning, the distance from the base station to the terminal device is calculated, and the location information of the terminal device can be acquired. The location information acquisition unit 26 may acquire location information using either one or both of GPS positioning and base station positioning. This location information may be used to determine data transmission resource allocation or handover information.

[0063] <Example of operation of a system including a base station (control device) and a terminal device> 10A to 10C are sequence diagrams showing an example of the operation of a system including a base station (control device) and a terminal device according to the present disclosure.

[0064] A specific movement of the terminal device will be described. Consider a situation in which the terminal device exists in the overlap area 1 (an overlap area between sector a and sector A) in FIG. 3 and moves toward the overlap area 2 (an overlap area between sector b and sector A). That is, the terminal device moves in a direction in which the channel quality in sector a decreases and the channel quality in sector b improves. Therefore, it is considered that the channel quality in sector a becomes unstable near the boundary between overlap area 1 and overlap area 2. After that, the terminal device moves beyond overlap area 1 to overlap area 2. At this time, the channel quality of sector A and sector b is good, and the channel quality of sector a becomes poor. Even if the terminal device moves from overlap area 1 to overlap area 2, it continues to exist in the central area of ​​sector A. Therefore, the channel quality in sector A remains good. Here, good means that the channel quality is equal to or higher than the first threshold, and poor means that the channel quality is lower than the first threshold.

[0065] The terminal device acquires channel qualities in sectors a, A, and b (step S401). These channel qualities may be summarized as a channel quality report. The channel quality report may also include channel qualities in other sectors, such as sectors c, B, and C.

[0066] The terminal device transmits a channel quality report to the control device 3001 (step S402). The acquisition unit 32 of the control device 3001 acquires the channel quality report by the channel quality acquisition unit .

[0067] The acquiring unit 32 of the control device 3001 acquires the location information of the terminal device by the location information acquiring unit 36 ​​(step S403). This location information allows the control device 3001 to determine where the terminal device is located in the overlapping area. In addition, based on this location information, priority allocation control for priority scheduling and handover control for inter-sector handover may be performed.

[0068] The allocation control unit 33 of the control device 3001 judges whether the terminal device is in a cell center area or a cell edge area based on the location information (step S404). The cell center area refers to an area inside the vicinity of the circumference of the cell, where the channel quality is good. On the other hand, the cell edge refers to an area near the circumference of the cell, where the channel quality is lower than that of the cell center area, where the channel quality is good.

[0069] If it is determined that the sector is in the cell central area, the allocation control unit 33 determines whether the channel quality of each sector used for carrier aggregation is smaller than a first threshold (step S405).

[0070] If the channel quality of sector A used for carrier aggregation is lower than the first threshold, priority scheduling is determined to set sector A as a priority sector for priority allocation control (step S406).

[0071] The allocation control unit 33 transmits a priority scheduling instruction to the terminal device to set sector A as a priority sector for priority allocation control (step S407). The terminal device is triggered by receiving the priority scheduling instruction to allocate sector A as a priority sector.

[0072] Furthermore, when the handover control unit 34 determines that the terminal device is present in the cell central area, the control unit 21 determines whether the channel quality of each sector used in carrier aggregation is smaller than a second threshold (step S408). The second threshold is a threshold for determining the necessity of handover, and when the channel quality is smaller than the second threshold, it is determined that the sector needs to be handed over to a sector with better channel quality. When the channel quality of sector a is smaller than the second threshold and the channel quality of sector b is equal to or greater than the second threshold, it is determined to hand over from sector a to sector b (step S409).

[0073] The handover control unit 34 in the control unit 31 transmits a handover command to the terminal device (step S410). The terminal device executes a handover, triggered by receiving the handover command.

[0074] Upon the terminal device executing handover from sector a to sector b, the terminal device transmits a handover completion message (step S411).

[0075] Next, we will describe the specific movement of the terminal device. Consider a situation in which the terminal device is present in overlap area 2 (overlapped area of ​​sector b and sector A) in Fig. 6 and is moving in a direction bordering overlap area 3 (overlapped area of ​​sector b and sector B) (not approaching the boundary between overlap areas 2 and 3). In other words, it is a situation in which it is moving in a direction in which the channel quality in sector A deteriorates and the channel quality in sector B improves. Even if the terminal device moves from overlap area 1 to overlap area 2, it continues to exist in the central area of ​​sector b. Therefore, the channel quality in sector b remains good.

[0076] The terminal device acquires channel qualities in sectors b, A, and B (step S412). These channel qualities may be compiled as a channel quality report. The channel quality report may include channel qualities in other sectors, such as sector a, sector c, and sector C.

[0077] The terminal device transmits a channel quality report to the control device 3001 (step S413). The acquisition unit 32 acquires the channel quality report by the channel quality acquisition unit 35. The control device 3001 may cancel the priority scheduling or perform priority allocation control for the priority scheduling based on the channel quality report.

[0078] The acquiring unit 32 of the control device 3001 acquires the location information of the terminal device by the location information acquiring unit 36 ​​(step S414).

[0079] The allocation control unit 33 of the control device 3001 determines whether the terminal device is located in a cell central area or a cell edge area based on the location information (step S415).

[0080] When it is determined that the terminal device is present in the cell central area, the control unit 21 determines whether the channel quality of each sector used for carrier aggregation is smaller than a first threshold (step S416).

[0081] If the channel quality of sector A is lower than the first threshold, the allocation control unit 33 determines to cancel the priority scheduling that sets sector A as the priority sector (step S417).

[0082] The control device 3001 transmits a priority scheduling cancellation instruction to the terminal device (step S418).

[0083] Next, the specific behavior of the terminal device will be described. As with the behavior described in paragraph 0074 above, consider a situation in which the terminal device is in overlap area 2 in FIG. 6 and is moving in a direction bordering overlap area 3 (approaching the boundary between overlap areas 2 and 3). Here, it is considered that the channel quality in sector A further deteriorates and becomes unstable near the boundary between overlap areas 2 and 3.

[0084] The terminal device acquires channel qualities in sectors b, A, and B (step S419). These channel qualities may be compiled as a channel quality report. The channel quality report may include channel qualities in other sectors, such as sector a, sector c, and sector C.

[0085] The terminal device transmits a channel quality report to the control device 3001 (step S420). The acquisition unit 32 acquires the channel quality report by the channel quality acquisition unit 35. The control device 3001 may cancel the priority scheduling or perform priority allocation control for the priority scheduling based on the channel quality report.

[0086] The acquiring unit 32 of the control device 3001 acquires the location information of the terminal device by the location information acquiring unit 36 ​​(step S421).

[0087] The control unit 31 determines whether the terminal device is located in a cell edge area or a cell central area (step S422).

[0088] When it is determined that the terminal device is present in the cell central area, the control unit 21 determines whether the channel quality of each sector used for carrier aggregation is smaller than a first threshold (step S423).

[0089] The allocation control unit 33 of the control device 3001 determines whether the channel quality of sector A is smaller than a first threshold based on the channel quality acquired from the terminal device. If the channel quality of sector A is smaller than the first threshold, the allocation control unit 33 determines priority scheduling to set sector b as a priority sector for priority allocation control (step S424).

[0090] The allocation control unit 33 transmits a priority scheduling instruction to the terminal device to set the sector b as a priority sector for priority allocation control (step S425). The terminal device is triggered by receiving the priority scheduling instruction to allocate the sector b as a priority sector.

[0091] <Other embodiments> In the first and second embodiments, the data transmission resource allocation instruction of the terminal device and the inter-sector handover are described on the assumption that one base station forms a first cell of a first frequency and a second cell of a second frequency. However, the present disclosure is not limited to this.

[0092] For example, the first cell of the first frequency and the second cell of the second frequency may be formed by different base stations. In this case, messages may be exchanged between the base stations so that the channel quality of the sectors between the base stations, the location information of the terminal device, and the like can be appropriately updated and shared.

[0093] 11 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a base station. A base station having the control device 1001, the control device 2001, or the control device 3001 therein may have the hardware configuration shown in FIG.

[0094] In FIG. 11, the base station 4001 includes a transmitter TX / receiver RX 4004 for transmitting and receiving with a terminal device, and a processing means 4006. The processing means 4006 may include at least one processor 4002, such as a data processor, and at least one memory 4003 coupled to the processor 4002. The memory 4003 may be a non-transitory computer readable medium and may store a program 4005. The program 4005 may include instructions that, when executed in the associated processor 4002, enable the base station 4001 to operate according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, for example, to execute the process flow shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, or FIG. 10A-FIG. 10C. The combination of the at least one processor 4002 and the at least one memory 4003 may form a processing means 4006 adapted to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0095] 12 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of the control device. The above-mentioned control device 1001, control device 2001, or control device 3001 may have the hardware configuration shown in FIG.

[0096] In FIG. 12, the control device 5001 may include at least one processor 5002, such as a data processor, and at least one memory 5003 coupled to the processor 5002. The control device 5001 may further include a transmitter TX / receiver RX 4004 shown in FIG. 11. The memory 5003 may be a non-transitory computer readable medium and may store a program 5004. The program 5004 may include instructions that, when executed in the associated processor 5002, enable the control device 5001 to operate according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, for example, to execute the process flow shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, or FIG. 10A-FIG. 10C. The combination of the at least one processor 5002 and the at least one memory 5003 may form a processing means 5005 adapted to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0097] In the above embodiment, the present disclosure has been described as a hardware configuration, but is not limited to this. Any process of the present disclosure can be realized by causing a CPU to execute a computer program.

[0098] In the examples of FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the program can be stored and supplied to the computer using various types of non-transitory computer readable media. The non-transitory computer readable media includes various types of tangible storage media. Examples of the non-transitory computer readable media include magnetic recording media (e.g., flexible disks, magnetic tapes, hard disk drives), magneto-optical recording media (e.g., magneto-optical disks), CD-ROM (Read Only Memory), CD-R, CD-R / W, DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), and semiconductor memory (e.g., mask ROM, PROM (Programmable ROM), EPROM (Erasable PROM), flash ROM, and RAM (Random Access Memory). The program may also be supplied to the computer by various types of transitory computer readable media. Examples of the transitory computer readable media include electric signals, optical signals, and electromagnetic waves. The transitory computer readable media can supply the program to the computer via a wired communication path such as an electric wire and an optical fiber, or a wireless communication path.

[0099] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and may be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. In addition, the present disclosure may be implemented by appropriately combining the respective embodiments.

[0100] A part or all of the above-described embodiments may be described as, but are not limited to, the following supplementary notes.

[0101] (Appendix 1) A control device that controls a base station that communicates with User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, The first sector is one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided, The second sector is one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, each first type sector overlaps a portion of each of two second type sectors among the plurality of second type sectors; The control device includes: an acquisition unit for acquiring information regarding channel quality of a sector; a control unit that sets the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a condition including that a channel quality of the first sector is smaller than a first threshold is satisfied; Equipped with Control device.

[0102] (Appendix 2) The condition includes that the UE is present in a cell center area excluding a cell edge area of ​​the first cell, and the UE is present in a cell center area excluding a cell edge area of ​​the second cell. 2. The control device according to claim 1.

[0103] (Appendix 3) When a channel quality of the second sector becomes lower than the first threshold, the control unit cancels the setting of the second sector as a sector to be preferentially assigned. 3. The control device according to claim 2.

[0104] (Appendix 4) the control unit controls a handover from the first sector to the third sector when a channel quality of the first sector is lower than a second threshold and a channel quality of the third sector, which is the first type sector, is equal to or higher than the second threshold. 4. The control device according to claim 3.

[0105] (Appendix 5) When a channel quality of the second sector is lower than the first threshold and a channel quality of the third sector is equal to or higher than the first threshold, the control unit sets the third sector as the priority allocation target sector. 5. The control device according to claim 4.

[0106] (Appendix 6) The first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value. 5. The control device according to claim 4.

[0107] (Appendix 7) The acquisition unit acquires location information, The control unit determines whether the UE is in the cell central area based on the location information. 3. The control device according to claim 2.

[0108] (Appendix 8) A base station comprising a control device according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 7.

[0109] (Appendix 9) A program for causing a control device to execute processing for controlling a base station that communicates with User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, The first sector is one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided, The second sector is one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, each first type sector overlaps a portion of each of two second type sectors among the plurality of second type sectors; The process includes setting the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a channel quality of the first sector becomes lower than a first threshold. program.

[0110] (Appendix 10) 1. A method performed by a controller that controls a base station that communicates with User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, the method comprising: The first sector is one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided, The second sector is one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, each first type sector overlaps a portion of each of two second type sectors among the plurality of second type sectors; The method includes setting the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a channel quality of the first sector becomes lower than a first threshold. method.

[0111] Note that, like Supplementary Note 1, the embodiments of Supplementary Note 9 to Supplementary Note 10 can be expanded to the embodiments of Supplementary Note 2 to Supplementary Note 7. [Explanation of symbols]

[0112] 11 Control section 12 Acquisition Department 21 Control section 22 Acquisition Department 23 Allocation control section 24 Handover control unit 25 Channel quality acquisition unit 26 Location information acquisition section 31 Control Unit 32 Acquisition Department 33 Allocation control section 34 Handover control unit 35 Channel quality acquisition unit 36 Location information acquisition unit 1001 Control device 2001 Control device 3001 Control device 4001 base station 4002 Processor 4003 Memory 4004 Transmitter TX / Receiver RX 4005 Program 4006 Processing means 5001 Control device 5002 processor 5003 Memory 5004 Program 5005 Processing means

Claims

1. A control device that controls a base station that communicates with a User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, The first sector is one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided, The second sector is one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, each first type sector overlaps a portion of two second type sectors among the plurality of second type sectors; The control device includes: an acquisition unit for acquiring information regarding channel quality of a sector; a control unit that sets the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a condition including that a channel quality of the first sector is smaller than a first threshold is satisfied; Equipped with Control device.

2. The condition includes that the UE is present in a cell center area excluding a cell edge area of ​​the first cell, and the UE is present in a cell center area excluding a cell edge area of ​​the second cell. The control device according to claim 1.

3. When a channel quality of the second sector becomes lower than the first threshold, the control unit cancels a setting of the second sector as a sector to be preferentially assigned. The control device according to claim 2.

4. the control unit controls a handover from the first sector to the third sector when a channel quality of the first sector is lower than a second threshold and a channel quality of the third sector, which is the first type sector, is equal to or higher than the second threshold. The control device according to claim 3.

5. the control unit sets the third sector as the priority allocation target sector when a channel quality of the second sector is lower than the first threshold and a channel quality of the third sector is equal to or higher than the first threshold. The control device according to claim 4.

6. The first threshold value is greater than the second threshold value. The control device according to claim 4.

7. The acquisition unit acquires location information, The control unit determines whether the UE is in the cell center area based on the location information. The control device according to claim 2.

8. A base station comprising a control device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. A program for causing a control device to execute processing to control a base station that communicates with a User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, The first sector is one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided, The second sector is one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, each first type sector overlaps a portion of each of two second type sectors among the plurality of second type sectors; The process includes setting the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a channel quality of the first sector becomes lower than a first threshold. program.

10. 1. A method performed by a controller for controlling a base station communicating with a User Equipment (UE) by carrier aggregation using a first sector of a first frequency and a second sector of a second frequency, the method comprising: The first sector is one of a plurality of first type sectors into which a first cell of the first frequency of the base station is divided, The second sector is one of a plurality of second type sectors into which a second cell of the second frequency of the base station is divided, each first type sector overlaps a portion of each of two second type sectors among the plurality of second type sectors; The method includes setting the second sector as a priority allocation target sector to which resources used for the carrier aggregation are preferentially allocated when a channel quality of the first sector becomes lower than a first threshold. method.

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