Flexible Resource Block Signaling in Wireless Control Channels

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional signaling techniques for resource block allocations in wireless communication systems are inflexible and inefficient, especially in broadband environments, leading to significant overhead and performance hampering.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a flexible signaling scheme that splits resource blocks into groups with specific signaling constraints, such as bitmap, contiguous, or tree-based structures, allowing for reduced overhead and improved scheduling flexibility by using group-specific signaling constraints.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of information

If conventional bitmap signaling techniques are used to indicate resource block allocations to access terminals, then complete resource allocation information can be provided, but the number of bits required becomes very large in broadband environments, causing significant overhead and system performance degradation

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveresource allocation information completenessVSAvoidnumber of signaling bits
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the total resource blocks into multiple groups, where each group is represented by a single bit in the bitmap. Instead of using one bit per resource block, the system uses a compact representation where N groups can represent multiple resource blocks each, significantly reducing the total number of bits required for signaling while still providing complete allocation information.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the parameter of resource block representation from individual block-level granularity to group-level granularity. By defining groups of resource blocks and assigning a single bit to represent the allocation status of each group, the system transforms the signaling parameter structure to achieve more efficient bit usage in broadband environments.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Ease of manufacture

If conventional signaling schemes are used for resource block allocations, then a standardized approach can be applied, but the schemes become inflexible and cannot adapt to different broadband communication environments efficiently

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesignaling scheme standardizationVSAvoidsignaling flexibility
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces dynamic group configuration where the number of resource blocks per group and the total number of groups can be adjusted based on system requirements and bandwidth conditions. This dynamic parameter configuration allows the standardized bitmap approach to adapt flexibly to different broadband environments while maintaining the simplicity of the conventional signaling framework.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentEP2475212B1Flexible Signaling of Resources on a Control Channel
Publication Date: 2019.01.23 QUALCOMM INC
  • EP2475212B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2475212B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2475212B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Systems and methodologies are described that facilitate employing flexible signaling of resource block assignments on a control channel. Resource blocks associated with an uplink or downlink channel can be split into a plurality of groups, and group-specific signaling constraints can be utilized with each of these groups. For example, the group-specific signaling constraints can relate to minimum resource block allocation units, signaling structures (e.g., bitmap structure, contiguous allocation structure, tree-based structure, ...), and the like utilized for sending assignment indications that allocate resource blocks within the respective groups. Further, an access terminal can have a common understanding of the group-specific signaling constraints; thus, a received assignment indication can be deciphered by the access terminal by utilizing the group-specific signaling constraints.