Flexible Carrier Pairing for 5G Base Stations
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current wireless communication systems face challenges in efficiently managing uplink and downlink channels, particularly in high-traffic urban areas where carrier aggregation benefits decrease, and passive intermodulation interference becomes significant due to symmetric and contiguous band assignments.
Innovation Solution
Implementing flexible carrier uplink and downlink pairing, allowing base stations to assign non-contiguous and asymmetric bandwidths for uplink and downlink channels, reducing passive intermodulation interference and optimizing channel allocation based on load and interference levels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If symmetric and contiguous band assignments are used for uplink and downlink channels, then device complexity is reduced and ease of operation is improved, but passive intermodulation interference increases and system throughput decreases in high-traffic areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by allowing uplink and downlink channels to be assigned to different frequency bands with different bandwidths, rather than requiring symmetric contiguous assignments. This enables the system to avoid interference-prone band combinations while optimizing throughput for each direction independently, directly reducing passive intermodulation interference at the cost of increased assignment complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic channel assignment where the base station can flexibly pair uplink and downlink channels based on current traffic conditions, interference levels, and band utilization. This dynamic approach allows the system to adapt to changing conditions and avoid static symmetric assignments that cause interference, resolving the contradiction between simplicity and interference reduction
2Productivity
If carrier aggregation is used to increase bandwidth, then data throughput is improved, but the benefits decrease in high-traffic urban areas where interference becomes significant
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the frequency spectrum into multiple bands and allows selective pairing of uplink and downlink channels from different bands. This segmentation enables the system to aggregate carriers for increased throughput while avoiding combining bands that would create significant passive intermodulation interference, thus maintaining throughput benefits while reducing interference in high-traffic areas
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by allowing different bandwidth allocations and band pairings for different geographic locations and traffic conditions. In high-traffic urban areas, the system can select band combinations that minimize interference, while in other areas it can use broader aggregations for maximum throughput, optimizing performance locally rather than applying a uniform carrier aggregation strategy
3Productivity
If flexible non-contiguous and asymmetric bandwidth pairing is implemented, then system throughput is enhanced by utilizing underutilized bands and reducing interference, but device complexity and channel management complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the base station to autonomously perform flexible channel pairing and band selection based on reported band capabilities and current network conditions. The mobile device simply reports its supported bands and the base station autonomously determines the optimal uplink-downlink pairing, achieving high throughput without requiring complex processing or decision-making at the mobile device
Data Source
AI summary
Various embodiments disclosed herein provide for flexible carrier uplink and downlink pairing for 4G, 5G and future networks. Downlink and uplink channels can be assigned to different bands that are not contiguous or bands that have different bandwidths. This enables base station devices to have the flexibility to assign uplink and downlink communications to bands that have lower load and thus improve the efficiency and throughput of the communication link for both uplink and downlink. The base station device can also assign uplink and downlink pairing in order to minimize passive intermodulation interference. Passive intermodulation interference from a transmission can cause interference in bands near the transmission band, and so the base station device can assign downlink and uplink bands that are separate from each other in order to reduce the passive intermodulation interference.