Paging Indicator Reduces Wireless Overhead
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing paging methods in wireless communication, particularly in 5G/NR, are inefficient due to the overhead associated with beam sweeping, leading to wasteful transmissions and increased energy consumption, especially when paging multiple UEs in multiple cells, where only one UE is typically active.
Innovation Solution
A method where a network node transmits a paging indicator to UEs, allowing them to respond with a predefined uplink signal, and subsequently sends a downlink message for identity verification, reducing unnecessary transmissions and energy consumption by using directional reciprocity for power distribution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If beam sweeping is used to transmit paging signals in high frequency bands, then coverage area is improved, but transmission overhead and resource consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The network node transmits a paging indicator before the actual paging message, allowing UEs to determine in advance whether they are being paged. This preliminary action enables UEs to avoid receiving and processing full paging messages when not targeted, significantly reducing downlink resource consumption while maintaining comprehensive coverage through beam sweeping.
Solution Approach 2:
The paging procedure is segmented into two parts: a brief paging indicator transmission and a full paging message transmission. The paging indicator contains minimal information (UE identity subset) that allows UEs to quickly determine relevance, while the full paging message is only transmitted to UEs that indicate interest. This segmentation reduces overall transmission overhead compared to sending complete paging messages to all UEs in the coverage area.
2Reliability
If beam sweeping is used to transmit paging signals, then all UEs in the cell can be reached, but energy consumption increases due to repeated transmissions
Solution Approach 1:
The paging indicator is transmitted in advance using beam sweeping to ensure all UEs receive it reliably. Based on UE responses to this indicator, the network determines which UEs are actually being paged and only transmits full paging messages to those UEs. This approach maintains reliable paging delivery for all UEs while minimizing energy consumption by avoiding unnecessary full message transmissions to UEs not being paged.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where UEs respond to paging indicators by transmitting uplink signals (such as PRACH preambles) if they are being paged. The network node receives these feedback signals and uses them to determine which UEs require full paging messages. This feedback-driven approach ensures reliable paging delivery while optimizing energy consumption by adapting transmissions to actual UE needs.
3Reliability
If full paging messages are transmitted to multiple UEs, then all targeted UEs receive the page, but uplink load and control plane overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The paging procedure is divided into an initial indicator phase and a message transmission phase. The paging indicator contains essential identification information (subset of UE identity) that allows UEs to self-determine relevance. Only UEs that match the indicator and respond receive full paging messages. This segmentation reduces control plane overhead by avoiding the transmission of complete paging messages to all UEs in the cell, while maintaining paging completeness for actually targeted UEs through the response-based transmission approach.
Data Source
AI summary
A method in a network node (115) comprises determining (208, 304) to page one or more user equipments (UEs) (115). The method comprises transmitting (214, 308) a paging indicator associated with the one or more UEs. The method comprises receiving (218, 312), in response to the transmitted paging indicator, a predefined uplink signal from at least one of the one or more UEs. The method comprises sending (220, 316), in response to the received predefined uplink signal, a downlink message for initiating an exchange and verification of one or more paging identities, wherein each of the one or more paging identities is uniquely associated with one of the one or more UEs.