Configured Grant Small Data Transmission Timer Management

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Solution Overview

Problem

The management of uplink synchronization for Small Data Transmission (SDT) procedures, particularly for Configured Grant (CG)-SDT, is not clearly defined, leading to potential data communication latency and network inefficiencies due to premature expiration of timers.

Innovation Solution

A User Equipment (UE) ensures that the CG-SDT timer is not prematurely stopped or reset by resetting the Medium Access Control (MAC) entity and then starting the CG-SDT timer in response to an RRC release message, while maintaining the timer active even after resetting the MAC entity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the MAC entity is reset during CG-SDT procedure, then the UE can maintain uplink synchronization, but the CG-SDT timer may be prematurely stopped or reset causing communication latency

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveuplink synchronizationVSAvoiddata communication latency

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by configuring the MAC entity to refrain from stopping or resetting the CG-SDT timer when resetting the MAC entity during CG-SDT procedure. This preventive measure ensures the timer continues running without interruption, avoiding premature expiration and the associated communication latency that would require UE to transition to connected state for timer reconfiguration.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Ease of operation

If the CG-SDT timer is stopped or reset upon MAC entity reset, then the timer management follows conventional procedures, but network efficiency deteriorates due to premature timer expiration

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetimer managementVSAvoidnetwork efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring the MAC entity with specific behavior instructions to maintain the CG-SDT timer during MAC entity reset operations. This proactive configuration prevents timer expiration issues before they occur, ensuring continuous small data transmission capability without requiring UE to transition to connected state for timer reconfiguration, thereby maintaining network efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Reliability

If the UE transitions to connected state to reconfigure the timer, then the timer can be properly reset, but the complexity of the procedure increases and SDT benefits are lost

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetimer reconfigurationVSAvoidprocedure complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies the taking out principle by extracting the timer management issue from the conventional MAC entity reset procedure. Instead of following the standard procedure where timer reset is coupled with MAC entity reset (which would require connected state transition), the solution separates these operations by configuring the MAC entity to maintain the CG-SDT timer independently during reset, allowing small data transmission to continue without state transition.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS20250142663A1Managing small data transmission with a configured grant configuration

Publication Date: 2025.05.01 GOOGLE LLC

AI summary

In a method of managing a configured grant small data transmission (CG-SDT) time alignment timer that indicates validity of a CG-SDT configuration, a user equipment (UE) receives a radio resource control (RRC) release message from a radio access network (RAN). In response to the RRC release message, the UE resets a medium access control (MAC) entity of the UE and, after resetting the MAC entity, starts the CG-SDT time alignment timer.