Millimeter Wave Relay Link for 5G UE Power Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
5G wireless devices face power consumption issues due to high transmission power requirements for millimeter wave communications, which can drain battery life and exceed maximum permissible exposure limits when used near human tissue.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method where a wireless device can establish a relay link with another device to reduce transmission power and use alternative antenna modules, allowing communication through a relay node while maintaining data rates and performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If millimeter wave transmission is used for 5G communications, then data rate and performance are improved, but power consumption increases and battery life decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a relay node as an intermediary device that receives signals from the base station and retransmits them to the UE. This mediator allows the UE to communicate with the base station using lower power millimeter wave transmissions to the relay, while the relay handles higher power communications with the base station, thus resolving the contradiction between maintaining data rate and reducing power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The communication path is segmented into two separate links: UE-to-relay link and relay-to-base station link. This segmentation allows each link to be optimized independently, with the UE using low-power millimeter wave to the relay, and the relay using appropriate power levels to the base station, thereby reducing overall UE power consumption while maintaining performance.
2Reliability
If high transmission power is used for millimeter wave communications, then communication reliability is improved, but maximum permissible exposure limits are exceeded
Solution Approach 1:
The relay node serves as an intermediary that receives high-power transmissions from the base station and retransmits them at lower power to the UE. This mediator structure allows the UE to maintain communication reliability through the relay without being exposed to high-power electromagnetic radiation, thus resolving the contradiction between reliability and exposure limits.
3Device complexity
If direct communication link is used between UE and base station, then connection simplicity is maintained, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The relay node is introduced as a mediator that simplifies the UE's communication task by providing a nearby low-power target for millimeter wave transmission. While this adds a relay component to the network architecture, it significantly reduces UE power consumption and maintains effective communication, resolving the contradiction between connection simplicity and power consumption from the UE perspective.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communications are described. In one example, a first user equipment (UE) identifies a trigger condition associated with a first communication link with a base station and establishes a second communication link with a second UE. The UE may transmit a relay request to the second UE based on the trigger condition, wherein the relay request instructs the second UE to relay communications for the first UE. The first UE communicates with the base station via the second communication link. In another example, a base station establishes communication links with a first and second UE. The base station receives a data forwarding request that instructs the base station to use the second UE to relay communications between it and the first UE. The base station communicates with the first UE via the second communication link based at least in part on the relay request.