NTN Sleep-Wakeup Scheduling for Discontinuous Satellite Coverage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Non-terrestrial networks (NTN) provide discontinuous radio coverage due to satellite revisit times, leading to inefficient power consumption and signaling overhead for user equipment (UE) during coverage gaps, as the UE and network attempt to reconnect, causing paging failures and spectral inefficiencies.
Innovation Solution
User equipment (UE) enters a power saving state upon detecting an out-of-coverage condition and sends an indication to the network when it expects to return to in-coverage, allowing the network to adjust communication strategies, such as releasing the UE to a power saving state before the coverage gap, and extending or overriding power saving configurations to avoid monitoring during gaps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the UE continuously monitors for network coverage and attempts to reconnect during coverage gaps, then communication reliability is maintained, but power consumption increases and spectral efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The network entity provides advance notification of upcoming coverage gaps to the UE before the actual gap occurs. This allows the UE to proactively enter power saving state in anticipation of the gap, rather than continuously monitoring and attempting reconnection during the gap. The preliminary action of advance notification enables both parties to prepare for the discontinuous coverage period, reducing unnecessary power consumption while maintaining communication reliability through coordinated behavior.
2Reliability
If the UE and network continuously attempt communication during coverage gaps, then connection reliability is maintained, but signaling overhead increases and spectral efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The network entity notifies the UE in advance of the upcoming coverage gap, allowing the UE to prepare for the discontinuous coverage period by entering power saving state before the gap occurs. This preliminary coordination prevents unnecessary signaling attempts during the gap, reducing signaling overhead while maintaining connection reliability through proactive rather than reactive communication strategies.
3Use of energy by moving object
If the UE enters power saving state during coverage gaps, then power consumption is reduced, but communication responsiveness may be delayed
Solution Approach 1:
The network provides advance notification of coverage gaps before they occur, allowing the UE to enter power saving state proactively rather than reactively after the gap begins. This timing optimization ensures the UE is already in the appropriate power state when the gap starts, minimizing the latency penalty of power saving while still achieving power consumption benefits. The preliminary notification enables precise timing of power state transitions.
Solution Approach 2:
The network entity provides feedback to the UE about the upcoming coverage gap status, enabling the UE to adjust its power state accordingly. This feedback mechanism allows the UE to transition to power saving state at the optimal moment before the gap, ensuring minimal latency while maximizing power savings. The feedback loop ensures coordinated behavior between network and device.
Data Source
AI summary
Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for resuming communications with a non-terrestrial network in discontinuous coverage. A method that may be performed by a user equipment (UE) includes determining that the UE is or will be in an out-of-coverage state with a non-terrestrial network (NTN) for a first duration; entering a power saving state in response to the determination; exiting the power saving state when the UE expects to be in an in-coverage state with the NTN; and taking one or more actions to resume communications with the NTN.