Handover Configuration Segmentation for NTN Signaling Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
NTN systems face significant challenges in managing handover signaling due to large cell sizes and satellite movement, leading to high overhead and potential service continuity issues during handovers, especially in scenarios involving a large number of UEs.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method where handover configuration is split into common and dedicated parts, with the common configuration being broadcast to multiple UEs in a point-to-multipoint transmission, followed by dedicated configuration specific to each UE, to reduce signaling overhead.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional handover signaling is used in NTN systems, then service continuity can be maintained during handover, but signaling overhead increases significantly and cell congestion occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The handover configuration is segmented into common configuration information (applicable to all UEs in the cell) and dedicated configuration information (specific to individual UEs). The common configuration includes parameters such as target cell ID, frequency information, and basic access parameters that are broadcast to all UEs. The dedicated configuration includes UE-specific parameters such as power control settings and timing adjustments. This segmentation reduces signaling overhead by avoiding redundant transmission of common parameters to each UE individually.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a universal handover configuration framework where a single common configuration message serves all UEs in the cell simultaneously. The common configuration information is designed to be universally applicable across multiple UEs, containing parameters that are identical or similar for all users in the same cell. This multi-functional approach allows one signaling message to perform the handover configuration function for multiple UEs, significantly reducing overall signaling overhead.
2Manufacturing precision
If handover configuration is transmitted individually to each UE, then dedicated configuration accuracy is improved, but signaling overhead and transmission time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The configuration message is divided into common and dedicated parts, with the common part containing parameters that can be shared across multiple UEs. This segmentation allows the system to transmit only the necessary UE-specific parameters individually, rather than repeating all configuration parameters for each UE, thereby reducing transmission time while maintaining configuration accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The common configuration information is prepared and broadcast in advance to all UEs before individual handover execution. This preliminary action allows UEs to pre-configure basic handover parameters, so that when individual handover is triggered, only minor UE-specific adjustments are needed, significantly reducing the time required for individual configuration transmission and processing.
3Quantity of substance
If common configuration is broadcast to all UEs, then signaling overhead is reduced, but configuration specificity for individual UEs is decreased
Solution Approach 1:
The configuration is segmented into common parameters (broadcast to all) and dedicated parameters (transmitted individually). The common configuration includes cell-level parameters such as target cell identification, frequency information, and basic access parameters. The dedicated configuration includes UE-specific parameters such as power control settings, timing adjustments, and resource allocation. This segmentation maintains configuration specificity for individual UEs while reducing overall signaling overhead by broadcasting common parameters once.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of transmitting complete individual configurations to each UE, the system transmits only the necessary dedicated portion of the configuration individually, while the common portion is broadcast once for all UEs. This partial action approach transmits only the minimal necessary information individually to each UE, reducing signaling overhead while maintaining adequate configuration specificity through the combination of common and dedicated parameters.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods discussed herein relate to handover signaling reduction in the cases where one or more user equipments (UEs) are to be handed over from a source serving cell of a source base station to a target serving cell of a target base station based on common configuration information for operating on the target serving cell and dedicated configuration information for each specific UE. In various cases, a point-to-multipoint (PTM) transmission includes the common configuration information for the UEs, a handover command instructs a UE to independently acquire common configuration information from system information blocks (SIBs) of the target serving cell, or a handover command for a UE indicates that the UE is to re-use a common configuration for the source serving cell. Handover commands may be used to provide dedicated configuration information for each UE. Configuration related communications sent on Xn and F1 interfaces are also discussed.