UE Capability Pooling for Flexible Wireless Network Testing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless telecommunication network testing requires dedicated UEs, leading to high idle time and a large number of devices, as they are uniquely identified, making it difficult to replace failing devices and maintain a sufficient number for testing.
Innovation Solution
A system that allows UEs to be requested based on technical capabilities at an abstract level, enabling multiple devices to satisfy requirements, forming device pools, and managing reservations to optimize device utilization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If dedicated UEs are used for testing, then testing reliability is improved, but device utilization deteriorates due to high idle time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a device pool where multiple UEs with different technical capabilities are registered and categorized. The testing system can allocate any suitable device from the pool based on test requirements, allowing devices to serve multiple testing purposes rather than being dedicated to single tests. This multi-functional approach ensures reliable testing while improving device utilization by reducing idle time between tests.
2Reliability
If dedicated UEs are used for testing, then testing reliability is improved, but the number of devices required increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple dedicated testing devices into a single shared device pool. By combining resources and implementing centralized management, the system can allocate devices dynamically across multiple testing scenarios. This reduces the total number of devices needed while maintaining testing reliability through proper device selection and capability matching.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a device recovery mechanism where UEs are returned to the pool after testing completion or failure. Instead of discarding failed devices or maintaining them in a fixed dedicated state, the system recovers them and makes them available for reassignment to other tests. This maximizes device utilization and reduces the total number of devices required.
3Ease of operation
If UEs are uniquely identified, then device tracking is simplified, but device replacement flexibility deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary layer between the testing system and individual UEs. The device pool management system acts as a mediator that handles device identification, tracking, and allocation. This intermediary maintains tracking information while enabling flexible replacement by managing the mapping between test requirements and available devices, thus preserving both tracking simplicity and replacement flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
The system obtains multiple unique identifiers associated with multiple UEs, where a unique identifier among the multiple unique identifiers identifies a UE among the multiple UEs. Based on the unique identifier, the system determines multiple technical capabilities associated with the multiple UEs. The system receives a request for one or more UEs, where the request includes a number of the one or more UEs and a desired technical capability associated with the one or more UEs, and where the request is specified at a level of abstraction that allows more than one UE among the multiple UEs to satisfy the request. Based on the request for the one or more UEs and the multiple technical capabilities associated with the multiple UEs, the system determines a subset of the multiple UEs satisfying the request, and sends a response to the request indicating the subset of the multiple UEs satisfying the request.