UE Slot Aggregation Activation for Poor Uplink Quality
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Solution Overview
Problem
Poor uplink quality between user equipment (UE) and a base station often results in dropped or delayed packets, which can lead to unnecessary handovers to different radio bands, exacerbated by infrequent triggering of slot aggregation by the base station.
Innovation Solution
The UE or base station determines that uplink quality meets an activation threshold for slot aggregation, triggering repeated packet transmissions in consecutive slots, using performance indicators like jitter, MOS, NACKs, BLER, and SINR, and continues until a deactivation threshold is met, thereby improving data transmission reliability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the base station triggers slot aggregation infrequently, then device complexity and control overhead are reduced, but uplink transmission reliability deteriorates due to packet loss and delays
Solution Approach 1:
The UE autonomously determines whether to activate slot aggregation based on monitoring uplink quality metrics (BLER, SINR, throughput) against configured thresholds, eliminating the need for frequent base station control signals. This self-service mechanism improves transmission reliability by enabling timely slot aggregation activation while minimizing control overhead.
Solution Approach 2:
The UE continuously monitors uplink quality metrics and provides feedback to the base station regarding slot aggregation performance. This feedback loop enables dynamic adjustment of slot aggregation activation/deactivation thresholds, improving transmission reliability while optimizing control overhead based on actual channel conditions.
2Reliability
If slot aggregation is activated frequently, then uplink transmission reliability improves through repeated packet transmissions, but productivity decreases due to increased transmission time and resource consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The slot aggregation configuration is dynamically adjusted based on real-time uplink quality conditions. The UE activates slot aggregation only when quality metrics fall below thresholds, and deactivates when conditions improve. This dynamic adaptation ensures reliable packet delivery during poor conditions while maintaining high throughput during good conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the aggregation factor parameter based on channel conditions. When uplink quality deteriorates, the aggregation factor increases to provide more redundant transmissions. When quality improves, the aggregation factor decreases to maximize throughput. This parameter adaptation resolves the contradiction between reliability and productivity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the UE autonomously determines slot aggregation activation, then responsiveness to channel conditions improves, but device complexity increases due to additional monitoring and decision-making functions
Solution Approach 1:
The UE utilizes existing uplink quality measurement functions (BLER monitoring, SINR measurement, throughput calculation) for their primary purpose of channel assessment, and simultaneously employs these same measurements for slot aggregation activation decisions. This multi-functionality approach enables autonomous adaptation without requiring separate dedicated monitoring systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The UE performs self-assessment of uplink quality using existing measurement capabilities and autonomously makes slot aggregation activation decisions based on configured thresholds. This self-service mechanism improves responsiveness to channel conditions while minimizing additional device complexity by leveraging existing functions.
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein are a user equipment (UE) and base station configured to activate slot aggregation for the UE. The UE is configured to determine that one or more performance indicators of uplink quality meet an activation threshold for slot aggregation and, in response, to transmit a packet repeatedly to the base station in consecutive slots. The base station can also be configured to determine that one or more performance indicators of uplink quality from the UE meet an activation threshold for slot aggregation. In response, the base station may schedule consecutive slots for transmission of a packet from the UE to the base station.