Scalable TTI Design for Low Latency Mission Critical Traffic

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Solution Overview

Problem

Wireless communication networks face challenges in achieving low latency and high reliability, particularly for mission critical traffic that requires timely and error-free transmission, as existing HARQ schemes rely on round trip times that can be lengthy, impacting the efficiency and reliability of data transmission.

Innovation Solution

The implementation of a scalable transmission time interval (TTI) design with optimized HARQ, where data is transmitted during a first TTI and feedback is processed and transmitted during subsequent TTIs, allowing for early pilot and acknowledgement scheduling, and using multi-symbol TTIs to reduce latency and increase link budget, enabling faster turn-around HARQ and improved communication performance.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If traditional HARQ schemes are used with fixed TTI duration, then system compatibility is maintained, but latency is increased and reliability is reduced for mission critical traffic

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecommunication reliabilityVSAvoidlatency
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements dynamic TTI scaling where the TTI duration is adjusted based on traffic requirements. For mission critical traffic, the TTI is scaled down to a shorter duration (e.g., 0.5ms or 0.25ms) to reduce latency, while for non-critical traffic, the traditional TTI duration is maintained. This dynamic adaptation allows the system to optimize latency and reliability for different traffic types without compromising overall system compatibility.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the TTI duration parameter from a fixed value to a scalable parameter. By introducing a scaling factor that can adjust the TTI duration based on traffic characteristics, the system can modify this key parameter to achieve lower latency for mission critical traffic while maintaining compatibility with existing systems that use traditional TTI durations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Loss of time

If TTI duration is reduced to decrease latency, then latency is improved, but processing time for feedback generation is reduced which may impact reliability

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovelatencyVSAvoidfeedback processing reliability
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of timeVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the TTI into distinct phases: a first portion for data transmission and a second portion for feedback processing and transmission. This segmentation allows the data to be transmitted in a shortened TTI to reduce latency, while the feedback processing occurs in a separate, adequately timed portion that ensures reliable processing. The feedback TTI is scaled appropriately to provide sufficient processing time without increasing the overall latency of the data transmission.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

3Adaptability or versatility

If scalable TTI with multiple configurations is implemented, then adaptability to different traffic requirements is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetraffic type adaptabilityVSAvoidsystem configuration complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements dynamic TTI scaling where the TTI duration is adjusted based on traffic requirements. For mission critical traffic, the TTI is scaled down to a shorter duration (e.g., 0.5ms or 0.25ms) to reduce latency, while for non-critical traffic, the traditional TTI duration is maintained. This dynamic adaptation allows the system to optimize latency and reliability for different traffic types without compromising overall system compatibility.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the TTI duration parameter from a fixed value to a scalable parameter. By introducing a scaling factor that can adjust the TTI duration based on traffic characteristics, the system can modify this key parameter to achieve lower latency for mission critical traffic while maintaining compatibility with existing systems that use traditional TTI durations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentEP3272048B1Scalable TTI with advanced pilot and control
Publication Date: 2020.06.24 QUALCOMM INC
  • EP3272048B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3272048B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3272048B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The disclosure relates in some aspects to a scalable transmission time interval (TTI) and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) design. The TTI is scalable to, for example, achieve latency and/or efficiency tradeoffs for different types of traffic (e.g., mission critical traffic versus traffic with more relaxed latency requirements). In the event a longer TTI is employed, various techniques are disclosed for ensuring a fast turn-around HARQ, thereby maintaining a high level of communication performance.