Scrambling Code Blacklist for UE Measurement Reduction

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Solution Overview

Problem

In mobile communication networks, especially public land mobile networks, the complexity of inter-radio access technology and inter-frequency measurements leads to inefficient use of user equipment and network resources due to unsatisfactory frequency planning at territorial borders, resulting in interference and sub-optimal customer experience.

Innovation Solution

A method that blocks the usage and measurement of specific scrambling codes by user equipment, reducing uplink signalling load and measurement time by transmitting blacklist information via dedicated or broadcast control channels, thereby preventing the use of certain radio cells and optimizing resource usage.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If user equipment performs inter-RAT and inter-frequency measurements to identify better radio conditions, then mobility and handover reliability are improved, but power consumption and processing resources are excessively consumed

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvehandover reliabilityVSAvoidpower consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The network provides blacklist information to the user equipment in advance, indicating scrambling codes of cells that should not be measured. This preliminary action allows the UE to skip unnecessary measurements before they are performed, thereby reducing power consumption while maintaining handover reliability for valid target cells.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The invention extracts and removes unnecessary measurement objects from the measurement set by identifying cells with blacklisted scrambling codes. The UE excludes these cells from inter-RAT and inter-frequency measurements, thereby reducing overall measurement complexity and power consumption while focusing resources on meaningful handover candidates.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Measurement precision

If user equipment performs comprehensive measurements on all target cells, then measurement accuracy and handover decision quality are improved, but measurement time and uplink signalling load increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemeasurement accuracyVSAvoidmeasurement time
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts and removes cells with blacklisted scrambling codes from the measurement set. This reduces the total number of cells the UE needs to measure, thereby reducing measurement time and uplink signalling load while maintaining measurement accuracy for the remaining valid target cells.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of performing exhaustive measurements on all possible target cells, the invention applies partial action by measuring only a subset of cells that are not blacklisted. This selective measurement approach reduces time and signalling overhead while still providing sufficient accuracy for handover decisions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Reliability

If frequency planning is performed to avoid interference at territorial borders, then customer experience is improved, but network complexity and coordination requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecustomer experienceVSAvoidnetwork complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The blacklist information acts as an intermediary mechanism that simplifies frequency planning at territorial borders. Instead of complex coordinated frequency planning between neighboring networks, the blacklist provides a straightforward indication to UEs about which cells to avoid, thereby improving customer experience while reducing network planning complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentEP2874431B1Prevent measurements by using blacklists of scrambling codes
Publication Date: 2019.09.04 DEUTSCHE TELEKOM AG
  • EP2874431B1 patent drawingFigure 1

AI summary

The invention relates to a method for enhancing the usage of user equipment resources and/or network resources in a mobile communication network by preventing the use of certain radio cells by user equipments in the mobile communication network, wherein the cellular telecommunications network comprises an access network, wherein a user equipment is located in a radio cell of the access network, the radio cell being served by a serving base station entity, wherein the user equipment - besides receiving radio signals from the serving base station entity - at least potentially receives radio signals also from target base station entities, each target base station entity having assigned a scrambling code, respectively, wherein the serving base station entity transmits a blacklist information regarding scrambling codes to the user equipment, the blacklist information referring to at least one blacklisted scrambling code of at least one blacklisted base station entity that shall be prevented to be used by the user equipment, wherein the method comprises the following steps: -- transmitting, in a first step, a measurement configuration information from the mobile communication network to the user equipment, the measurement configuration information comprising an indication, to the user equipment, to perform measurements with regard to the target base station entities, wherein a control channel of the mobile communication network is used for the transmission of the measurement configuration information, -- conducting, by the user equipment and in a second step subsequent to the first step, the requested measurements and thereby obtaining a local network information, -- transmitting, in a third step subsequent to the second step, the local network information from the user equipment to the base station entity, wherein the at least one blacklisted base station entity corresponding to the at least one blacklisted scrambling code is either prevented to be measured in the second step or a measurement result corresponding to the at least one blacklisted scrambling code prevented to be transmitted to the base station entity in the third step.