Secondary SPS Configuration via Common DCI for Coverage Enhancement
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Wireless communication systems face performance degradation due to weak or shadowed narrow unicast beams affecting multiple user equipment (UEs), leading to excessive resource and signaling overhead in coverage enhancement efforts.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a secondary semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) configuration with enhanced resources, indicated via a common downlink control information (DCI) message, to improve communication reliability and efficiency across UEs, reducing signaling overhead compared to individual configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If coverage enhancement is implemented at UEs to maintain performance over weak unicast beams, then communication reliability is improved, but resource overhead and signaling overhead increase excessively
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the coverage enhancement signaling for multiple UEs into a single common DCI (Downlink Control Information) message. Instead of sending separate DCI messages to each UE for coverage enhancement configuration, the base station transmits one common DCI that simultaneously configures coverage enhancement parameters for multiple UEs, thereby reducing signaling overhead while maintaining communication reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The common DCI message serves multiple functions: it simultaneously provides coverage enhancement configuration for multiple UEs, indicates secondary SPS (Semi-Persistent Scheduling) configuration, and coordinates resource allocation for enhanced coverage transmissions. This multi-functional approach reduces the overall signaling burden compared to separate dedicated messages for each function.
2Reliability
If separate DCI transmissions are sent to each UE for coverage enhancement, then individual UE performance is optimized, but control signaling overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple individual DCI transmissions into a single common DCI that addresses multiple UEs simultaneously. This common DCI includes coverage enhancement parameters and secondary SPS configuration that are applicable to multiple UEs, thereby reducing control signaling overhead while still enabling individual UE performance optimization through the shared configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
The base station pre-configures coverage enhancement parameters and secondary SPS configuration in the common DCI before the actual enhanced coverage transmissions occur. This preliminary configuration allows UEs to prepare their reception parameters in advance, reducing the need for subsequent individual signaling messages and enabling efficient resource utilization.
3Reliability
If additional resources are allocated for downlink transmissions via secondary SPS configuration, then transmission reliability is improved, but system resource consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic resource allocation where the base station activates the secondary SPS configuration with additional resources only when coverage enhancement is actually needed, rather than continuously reserving these resources. The common DCI dynamically indicates when UEs should use the enhanced configuration, allowing the system to adapt resource consumption to actual transmission conditions and maintain reliability only when necessary.
Solution Approach 2:
The base station changes the SPS configuration parameters (such as time resources, frequency resources, and transmission repetitions) based on the detected coverage conditions. When poor coverage is detected, the system switches to the secondary SPS configuration with enhanced parameters; when coverage is adequate, the system uses the default configuration. This parameter adaptation optimizes the balance between reliability and resource consumption.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communications are described. A user equipment (UE) may monitor a unicast channel for a first downlink transmission from a base station using a first semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) configuration. The UE may receive downlink control information (DCI) from the base station indicating a second SPS configuration associated with a different coverage level than the first SPS configuration. In some cases, the DCI may be DCI that is common to a set of UEs. Here, the DCI may indicate the second SPS configuration and the UE may identify a set of parameters associated with the second SPS configuration based on a radio resource control (RRC) message received prior to the DCI. Based on receiving the indication of the second SPS configuration, the UE may monitor the unicast channel for a second downlink transmission from the base station using the second SPS configuration.