Energy Efficient RRM via Selective PBCH Decoding
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Solution Overview
Problem
In wireless communications, particularly in mmWave frequencies, signal attenuation and path loss lead to increased energy consumption when decoding synchronization signals, such as PBCH, for cell measurement and synchronization, which is resource-intensive and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A method where a UE receives an RRM mode indicator from a base station to determine which beams to perform cell measurements on and whether to decode the PBCH, allowing it to refrain from decoding the PBCH in certain situations, thereby reducing resource usage and managing SS block repetitions for energy-efficient radio resource management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a UE decodes PBCH in every SS block to obtain beam index and timing information, then synchronization accuracy and cell measurement precision are improved, but energy consumption and processing resources increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential timing information from SS blocks without requiring full PBCH decoding. The UE determines timing of SS blocks relative to frame boundaries using simplified methods, obtaining necessary synchronization information while avoiding the energy-intensive PBCH decoding process for every SS block.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by performing cell measurements on a subset of SS blocks rather than all SS blocks. The network can configure the UE to measure only certain SS blocks within a burst set, reducing the total number of decoding operations while maintaining adequate measurement coverage for handover decisions.
2Reliability
If a base station transmits multiple SS blocks with duplicative signals on different beams, then coverage and signal reliability are improved, but UE processing complexity and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the SS block burst set into multiple beams transmitted at different time instances. Each SS block carries synchronization signals on a specific beam, and the UE processes them sequentially rather than simultaneously. This segmentation in time domain reduces the peak processing complexity while maintaining multi-beam coverage reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the SS block structure universal by designing it to carry both synchronization signals and beam identification information in a standardized format. The same SS block template is reused across different beams with only beam-specific parameters changed, allowing the UE to apply the same processing algorithm universally without increasing complexity.
3Loss of information
If a UE performs cell measurements on all beams in an SS burst set, then comprehensive mobility information is obtained, but time consumption and measurement overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by configuring the UE to perform cell measurements on only a subset of SS blocks within the burst set rather than all SS blocks. The network can indicate which specific SS blocks should be measured, reducing measurement time while obtaining sufficient mobility information for handover decisions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by having the network pre-configure the UE with measurement configurations before actual measurements begin. The network can indicate which SS blocks are relevant for measurement in advance, allowing the UE to prepare measurement resources efficiently and reduce actual measurement time while ensuring comprehensive mobility information is captured.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of wireless communications at a user equipment (UE) includes receiving, from a serving cell associated with a wireless network, a radio resource management (RRM) mode indicator that indicates a set of one or more beams for which cell measurement and reporting is to be performed by the UE; performing at least one cell measurement on at least one synchronization signal (SS) block received from at least one neighboring cell; determining, based at least in part on the RRM mode indicator, whether to decode a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) received in each SS block of the at least one SS block; and transmitting a cell measurement report, the cell measurement report based at least in part on the at least one cell measurement, the cell measurement report selectively including at least one beam index based at least in part on whether the PBCH is decoded.