RF Bandwidth Parts for High-Resolution Cellular Sensing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing BWP allocation practices in wireless devices fail to consider the individual capabilities of user devices for performing RF sensing functions, leading to sub-optimal allocation and inefficient use of bandwidth resources.
Innovation Solution
A method for configuring user devices to utilize an RF BWP based on their sensing capabilities, allowing for flexible allocation of bandwidth parts that can be larger than the baseband BWP used for communication, enabling high-resolution sensing operations while optimizing power consumption and device capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a wideband RF BWP is allocated for sensing operations, then sensing resolution is improved, but power consumption and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic BWP switching that allows the device to transition between different bandwidth configurations based on operational mode. During sensing operations, the device can dynamically allocate a wider RF BWP to achieve high-resolution measurements, while during normal communication or idle periods, it switches to a narrower bandwidth to conserve power. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by making bandwidth allocation flexible rather than fixed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the bandwidth parameter of the RF BWP based on the operational requirements. By adjusting the bandwidth parameter dynamically - using wider bandwidth for sensing operations requiring high resolution and narrower bandwidth for power-saving modes - the system optimizes the trade-off between sensing resolution and power consumption without requiring permanent hardware over-provisioning.
2Measurement precision
If a wideband RF BWP is allocated for sensing operations, then sensing resolution is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the RF BWP allocation mechanism universal by designing it to serve multiple functions: communication operations and sensing operations. The same RF BWP allocation framework is used for both data communication and RF sensing tasks, allowing the device to achieve high-resolution sensing when needed without requiring separate dedicated hardware paths. This multi-functionality reduces overall device complexity while maintaining sensing capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The dynamic nature of the BWP switching mechanism allows the device to only activate wideband sensing capabilities when actually needed, rather than maintaining constant wideband processing capability. This on-demand activation reduces the effective complexity of the device by keeping simple narrowband processing as the default state and only engaging complex wideband processing during sensing operations.
3Measurement precision
If RF BWP allocation is optimized for sensing capabilities, then sensing performance is improved, but inter-operability with standard communication protocols may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic BWP switching that allows the device to adapt between different operational modes. The device can switch between standard communication BWPs that ensure inter-operability with existing protocols and specialized RF sensing BWPs that optimize sensing performance. This dynamic adaptation maintains compatibility with standard protocols during communication while enabling optimized sensing operations when required.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the RF BWP allocation into separate configurable portions - one set for standard communication operations and another set for sensing operations. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each function while maintaining both capabilities within the same device framework, ensuring that sensing optimization does not compromise communication inter-operability.
Data Source
AI summary
A method performed by a user equipment (UE) can include transmitting, to a configuring node, capability information that includes a radio frequency (RF) bandwidth supported by the UE for sensing functions, and receiving from the configuring node, configuration information in the form of a message indicating allocation of a first RF bandwidth part (BWP) to the UE by the configuring node. The UE may utilize the first RF BWP for performing sensing functions. Another method performed by a configuring node can include receiving, from a UE, capability information that includes an RF bandwidth supported by the UE for sensing functions. The configuring node may allocate to the UE, a first RF BWP that can be based on the RF bandwidth supported by the UE for sensing functions, and may transmit to the user equipment, information about the first RF BWP.