Serving Grant Maintenance During Cell Change in HSUPA

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Solution Overview

Problem

In wireless communication systems, particularly in HSUPA, maintaining service continuity and efficient resource allocation during cell changes is challenging due to limitations in packet scheduler functionality and bandwidth constraints, leading to spectral inefficiency and errors in assessing the Serving Grant (SG) value.

Innovation Solution

A method and apparatus for a mobile terminal to store and manage the Serving Grant (SG) value, allowing it to maintain the current SG value during cell changes unless a new value is explicitly provided through higher-layer signaling, ensuring seamless service continuity and efficient resource allocation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the packet scheduler is located in the RNC with conservative allocation to accommodate inactive users, then service continuity is maintained, but spectral efficiency deteriorates for high allocated data-rates and long release timer values

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveservice continuityVSAvoidspectral efficiency
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the scheduling functionality by introducing a secondary cell-specific scheduler at the Node B level that operates independently from the RNC scheduler. This allows the RNC to maintain conservative scheduling for service continuity while the Node B scheduler provides aggressive, fast scheduling for spectral efficiency in the secondary cell

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism where the RNC provides a Serving Grant (SG) value that acts as a reference for the Node B scheduler. The Node B uses this SG value to determine the secondary grant, enabling coordinated scheduling between RNC and Node B that balances reliability and productivity

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If the RNC reassesses the SG value during cell change through RRC signaling, then service continuity can be maintained, but measurement precision deteriorates due to difficulty in assessing the value of SG and large errors

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveservice continuityVSAvoidSG value assessment accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by having the RNC provide the SG value before the cell change occurs through RRC signaling. This pre-configured SG value serves as a reference that the UE and Node B use during the cell change, eliminating the need for reassessment and avoiding measurement errors

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses copying by having the UE store and reuse the SG value from the source cell in the target cell. The SG value is copied from the RRC connection reconfiguration message and maintained by the UE, avoiding the need for the RNC to reassess and potentially err in the new cell conditions

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

3Productivity

If the SG is transferred to Node B scheduler with EDCH, then resource allocation efficiency improves, but device complexity increases due to distributed scheduling functionality

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveresource allocation efficiencyVSAvoidscheduling system complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the scheduling functionality into two distinct components: the RNC scheduler that provides the Serving Grant (SG) for service continuity, and the Node B scheduler that provides the secondary grant for resource allocation efficiency. This segmentation allows each component to specialize without excessive complexity

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces dynamics by making the scheduling system adaptive through the relationship between SG and secondary grant. The Node B scheduler dynamically adjusts the secondary grant based on the SG value and current channel conditions, enabling efficient resource allocation without static complexity

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentEP1922895B1Apparatus, method and computer program product to maintain user equipment serving grant at cell change
Publication Date: 2014.09.24 NOKIA CORP
  • EP1922895B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP1922895B1 patent drawingFigure 2~2A
  • EP1922895B1 patent drawingFigure 2B

AI summary

A method includes storing a first Serving Grant (SG) value for use in a first serving cell, entering a second serving cell, receiving an information element from a higher layer, maintaining the first SG value if the information element does not include a second SG value, and changing the first SG value to the second SG value if the information element includes a second SG value.