Flight-Aware Conditional Handover for Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Uncrewed aerial vehicles face challenges in performing serving cell handover accurately and quickly due to their unique flight-related parameters, which differ from conventional ground-based communication environments, leading to potential misconnections and inefficiencies in cell handover processes.
Innovation Solution
A communication method and apparatus that utilize candidate conditional handover configurations based on flight-related parameters such as flight height, path, and location to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of cell handover by matching these parameters with predefined configurations, allowing terminals to select the most appropriate target cell for seamless transitions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional ground-based handover procedures are used for uncrewed aerial vehicles, then the communication system can maintain standard operating protocols, but the handover accuracy and speed deteriorate due to differences in flight-related parameters such as height, speed, and path
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces flight-related parameters (flight height, flight speed, flight path) as additional dimensions for handover decision-making. The network device obtains these parameters from the uncrewed aerial vehicle and uses them to determine appropriate handover configurations, thereby adapting the handover process to the unique characteristics of aerial mobility rather than relying solely on ground-based protocols
Solution Approach 2:
The handover configuration is made dynamic by continuously monitoring flight-related parameters and adjusting the handover decision based on current flight state. The network device determines handover configurations adaptively according to the uncrewed aerial vehicle's real-time flight height, speed, and path, allowing the system to respond to changing flight conditions rather than using static ground-based thresholds
2Measurement precision
If flight-related parameters are incorporated into handover configurations, then handover accuracy for uncrewed aerial vehicles improves, but the complexity of the handover process increases due to additional parameter matching requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The network device performs preliminary actions by obtaining and storing multiple candidate handover configurations in advance, each associated with specific flight-related parameter ranges. When handover is needed, the terminal device simply needs to match its current flight parameters against these pre-prepared configurations rather than computing optimal parameters in real-time, thereby improving accuracy without significantly increasing runtime complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The handover configuration space is segmented into multiple discrete candidate configurations, each optimized for specific flight parameter ranges (e.g., different height bands, speed ranges). This segmentation allows the system to handle complexity by breaking down the continuous parameter space into manageable discrete options that can be efficiently searched and matched
3Reliability
If multiple candidate handover configurations are provided for different flight parameters, then the terminal device can select the most appropriate configuration, but the time required to determine the target handover configuration increases due to parameter matching
Solution Approach 1:
The network device prepares multiple candidate handover configurations in advance, each pre-tagged with associated flight parameter characteristics. This preliminary preparation allows the terminal device to perform rapid matching by comparing current flight parameters against pre-categorized configurations rather than evaluating all possibilities from scratch, thereby reducing decision time while maintaining reliability
Solution Approach 2:
Different candidate configurations are optimized for local flight parameter ranges (e.g., configurations suited for low-altitude vs. high-altitude flight). The terminal device selects the configuration whose local optimization matches its current flight state, allowing for rapid selection based on which pre-optimized configuration best fits the current local flight conditions rather than performing global optimization
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatuses are provided. An example method includes receiving a candidate conditional handover configuration group for handing over the terminal to another access network device. The candidate conditional handover configuration group includes candidate conditional handover configurations that correspond to a flight-related parameter of the terminal. The flight-related parameter includes flight path information including flight point information of each of one or more flight points. The example further includes obtaining a current flight parameter of the terminal that includes a current flight point parameter. The example further includes determining a target conditional handover configuration by at least determining a target flight point from the flight points based on a matching relationship between the current flight point parameter and the flight point information, and obtaining, from the candidate conditional handover configuration group, a candidate conditional handover configuration corresponding to the target flight point as the target conditional handover configuration.