Flexible Guard Period Patterns for SRS Antenna Switching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current 3GPP specifications for SRS antenna switching in 5G NR do not adequately support flexible guard period placement before and after SRS resources, leading to inefficiencies and reduced system capacity, particularly in scenarios with multiple antenna ports and carrier aggregation.
Innovation Solution
Implementing guard period patterns that allow for flexible placement of guard periods before and after SRS resources, enabling UEs to optimize antenna usage and improve communication performance by supporting UE capabilities for guard period insertion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If guard periods are placed before and after SRS resources according to flexible patterns, then antenna resource efficiency and system capacity are improved, but device complexity and configuration management become more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic guard period placement by introducing multiple guard period patterns (first pattern with guard period before first SRS resource, second pattern with guard period after last SRS resource, third pattern with both, fourth pattern with neither) that can be flexibly selected and configured based on specific communication scenarios, antenna port configurations, and carrier aggregation settings, thereby optimizing antenna resource efficiency while maintaining manageable device complexity through structured pattern-based control
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of guard period positioning by defining distinct patterns that specify different temporal locations for guard periods relative to SRS resources. These patterns serve as configurable parameters that can be adjusted according to system requirements, enabling flexible optimization of antenna switching performance without requiring complex ad-hoc configurations
2Productivity
If guard periods are placed before first SRS resource and/or after last SRS resource, then antenna switching efficiency is improved, but uplink resource utilization may be reduced due to additional guard period overhead
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by allowing guard periods to be placed selectively at specific locations (before first SRS resource, after last SRS resource, both, or neither) based on the chosen pattern, rather than uniformly applying guard periods across all SRS resources. This localized approach optimizes antenna switching efficiency only where necessary while minimizing unnecessary uplink resource overhead in other positions
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are example embodiments of methods and apparatuses for guard period optimization for sounding reference signal (SRS) antenna port switching. A method implemented at a terminal device may comprise transmitting a guard period pattern supported at the terminal device to a network device. The guard period pattern may at least define whether a guard period is placed before a first sounding reference signal (SRS) resource in an SRS resource set and/or whether a guard period is placed after a last SRS resource in the SRS resource set. The method may further include receiving an SRS resource set configuration from the network device. The SRS resource set configuration may include at least one SRS resource set configured according to said guard period pattern.