Base Station Inactivity Timer Prediction for Handover Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
In wireless communication systems, handover of a connected-mode UE to a target base station can fail if the inactivity timer expires before the handover command message is sent, leading to resource wastage and handover failures.
Innovation Solution
The serving base station predicts whether the inactivity timer will expire before directing the UE to handover, and if so, it forgoes handover preparation signaling, allowing the UE to transition to idle mode and perform an idle-mode handover instead.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the serving base station initiates handover preparation signaling when a handover trigger is detected, then the handover process can proceed, but the inactivity timer may expire before the handover command is sent, causing handover failure and resource wastage
Solution Approach 1:
The base station performs preliminary action by predicting the remaining inactivity timer duration before initiating handover preparation signaling. This allows the system to assess whether there is sufficient time to complete handover before the timer expires, preventing wasted signaling resources and avoiding handover failures due to timer expiration.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts handover initiation decisions based on the real-time status of the inactivity timer. By continuously monitoring the remaining timer duration and comparing it with the expected handover preparation time, the base station makes adaptive decisions about whether to proceed with handover signaling, thereby optimizing both success rate and resource efficiency.
2Reliability
If the base station continues to maintain connected-mode resources for a UE with an approaching inactivity timer expiration, then the UE can potentially complete handover, but system resources are wasted if the timer expires first
Solution Approach 1:
The base station performs preliminary assessment of the inactivity timer status before committing resources to handover preparation. By predicting whether the timer will expire before handover completion, the system avoids wasting energy on unnecessary signaling and resource allocation when the probability of successful handover is low.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the decision parameter for initiating handover from a static threshold-based approach to a dynamic approach that incorporates the remaining inactivity timer duration. This parameter change enables the base station to optimize resource allocation based on the time-critical nature of the handover process.
Data Source
AI summary
When a serving base station encounters a trigger for handover of a UE to a target base station, the serving base station will responsively predict whether, before the serving base station would direct the UE to handover to the target base station, an inactivity timer for the UE will expire, and the serving base station will then control the handover based on that prediction. For instance, responsive to the predicting being that the inactivity timer will expire before the serving base station would send a handover command message to the UE, the serving base station could forgo engaging in handover-preparation signaling with the target base station for the handover, instead allowing the UE to transition to idle mode upon expiration of the timer, at which point the UE could then engage in idle-mode handover to the target base station.