Predictive Beam Alignment for Low-Latency Mobile Wireless Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless communication systems face challenges in achieving high-reliability, low-latency connectivity, especially in mobility applications, due to initial access latency, quality of experience (QoE) issues, heterogeneity of interfaces and computing technologies, dynamic nature of surroundings, and battery drainage in UEs switching between radio access technologies.
Innovation Solution
A communication system utilizing a central cloud server and inference servers to manage beam alignment and provide proactive wireless connectivity options, reducing initial access latency and ensuring seamless connectivity by using an intelligent database and sensing information to predict and mitigate signal obstructions, while supporting multiple wireless carrier networks and computing technologies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If standard beam sweeping operation is used for initial access, then all UEs can find suitable beams, but initial access latency increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent pre-determines and stores beam association relationships between gNBs and UEs before actual communication needs arise. The intelligent database pre-calculates which beams should be associated with which UEs based on historical data, location information, and channel characteristics, so that when initial access is needed, the UE can directly use the pre-determined beam association without performing time-consuming beam sweeping operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates virtual beam associations in the intelligent database that replicate successful beam configurations from historical communications. Instead of rediscovering beam relationships through physical beam sweeping, the system copies and reuses proven beam association patterns from the database, significantly reducing the time required for initial access while maintaining connection reliability.
2Reliability
If beam sweeping operation is performed frequently to handle dynamic surroundings, then connectivity reliability improves, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-determines beam associations and stores them in the intelligent database before they are needed. When a UE moves or the environment changes, the system queries the pre-stored beam association information rather than performing energy-intensive beam sweeping operations, thus maintaining connectivity reliability while minimizing energy consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The intelligent database automatically updates and maintains beam association information based on historical communication data and UE movement patterns. The system serves itself by learning from past communications and automatically adjusting beam associations, reducing the need for frequent active beam sweeping and thereby lowering UE energy consumption while maintaining reliable connectivity.
3Loss of time
If edge computing is deployed close to UEs to reduce latency, then communication speed improves, but infrastructure cost increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intelligent database as an intermediary layer between the core network and UEs. This database stores pre-determined beam association information and provides quick access to optimal beam configurations, effectively reducing latency without requiring expensive edge computing infrastructure deployment. The intelligent database acts as a lightweight mediator that delivers low-latency performance through intelligent information retrieval rather than through physical proximity of computing resources.
4Speed
If handover is performed rapidly in mobile systems, then mobility support improves, but access latency and connection instability increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent pre-determines beam associations for potential handover scenarios and stores this information in advance in the intelligent database. When handover is needed during mobility, the UE can quickly retrieve pre-calculated beam association information for the target gNB, avoiding the need to perform time-consuming beam sweeping operations during the handover process itself, thus reducing access latency while maintaining fast handover capability.
Data Source
AI summary
An edge device including a processor that captures sensing information of surrounding area of the edge device, obtains a primary wireless connectivity option from a central cloud server for a first upcoming location along a first travel path to be traversed by the edge device, obtains a set of alternative wireless connectivity options from the central cloud server for the first upcoming location along the first travel path and one or more second upcoming locations along the first travel path, and selects one or more alternative wireless connectivity options from the set of alternative wireless connectivity options at the first upcoming location and the one or more second upcoming locations along the first travel path.