FR2 Wireless Repeater Beam Management for Coverage Extension
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless repeaters in the FR2 band face challenges in managing and adjusting transmission and reception beams effectively, leading to performance degradation due to the absence of specifications for beam management, resulting in increased costs and resource consumption for beam acquisition.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus for a wireless repeater that includes transmitting a capability report to a base station, requesting configuration for coverage extension, and relaying communications based on formed beams, with options for radio resource reuse and preference management to enhance beam-based signal relaying.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a simple amplify-and-forward (AF) repeater is used in the FR2 band, then device complexity is reduced, but beam management capability deteriorates leading to performance degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The repeater is designed with dynamic beam management capabilities where transmission and reception beams can be independently configured and adjusted based on channel conditions. The base station can update beam configurations through RRC signaling, allowing the system to adapt to changing environmental conditions while maintaining relatively simple repeater hardware.
Solution Approach 2:
The base station acts as an intermediary that manages and coordinates beam configurations for both the repeater and terminal. Through capability reporting mechanisms and configuration signaling, the base station mediates the beam management process, enabling simple repeaters to achieve reliable beam-based communication without requiring complex onboard processing at the repeater.
2Reliability
If beam-based communication is implemented in the FR2 band, then communication reliability is improved, but resource consumption for beam acquisition increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary beam management by having the repeater report its beam capabilities to the base station in advance. The base station then pre-configures appropriate beam parameters and spatial relations, so that when actual communication is needed, the beams are already optimized and ready to use, reducing on-the-fly acquisition time.
Solution Approach 2:
The repeater provides feedback to the base station about its beam capabilities and supported configurations. This feedback mechanism enables the base station to make informed decisions about beam configuration, selecting optimal beam parameters that balance communication reliability with acquisition efficiency based on the repeater's actual capabilities.
3Measurement precision
If detailed beam capability reporting is implemented, then beam management precision is improved, but signaling overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The capability reporting mechanism is designed to report only the specific beam-related capabilities that are relevant for the given communication scenario. Rather than reporting all possible parameters, the system reports localized, context-specific capability information such as supported beam widths, spatial relation configurations, and TCI state support, reducing overall signaling overhead while maintaining necessary precision.
Data Source
AI summary
An operation method of a repeater relaying wireless communications between a base station and at least one terminal in a communication system may include: transmitting, to the base station, a first capability report including information on beam-related capability supported by the repeater; transmitting, to the base station, a first request signal for requesting to perform first configuration for coverage extension of the repeater; receiving, from the base station, information on the first configuration configured based on the first capability report and the first request signal; and relaying the wireless communications between the base station and the at least one terminal based on one or more beams formed based on the received first configuration.