UE Uplink Beam Sweeping with Trigger Rules for Fast Recovery
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Solution Overview
Problem
5G NR systems face challenges with millimeter wave transmissions being susceptible to blockage and interference, leading to delayed beam failure recovery processes that are too long for use cases like mMTC and URLLC.
Innovation Solution
Implementing beam sweeping techniques at the UE and base station based on trigger rules and measurement configurations to quickly adapt and recover from blockage by preparing and using alternative beams for communication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional beam failure recovery processes are used in 5G NR systems, then system reliability is maintained through established procedures, but recovery time becomes too long for low-latency use cases like mMTC and URLLC
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring trigger rules and measurement configurations at the UE before beam failure occurs. The UE continuously monitors beam characteristics against predefined thresholds and has ready-made alternative beam candidates prepared through prior measurement, enabling immediate switching without waiting for traditional failure detection and reporting procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the UE to autonomously detect beam failure conditions using pre-configured trigger rules and to autonomously select and switch to alternative beams without requiring network intervention or traditional MAC CE reporting. The UE independently completes the entire recovery process from detection to recovery, dramatically reducing recovery time.
2Reliability
If beam sweeping is performed continuously to maintain beam diversity, then communication reliability improves, but device complexity and processing overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic action by configuring the UE to perform beam measurements and evaluations at specific periodic intervals rather than continuously. The network configures measurement configurations that define when and how often beam characteristics should be measured, allowing the system to maintain beam diversity while reducing processing overhead through time-discretized measurements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses parameter changes by dynamically adjusting measurement configurations and trigger rules based on network conditions and service requirements. The network can modify measurement periodicity, threshold values, and beam sweeping patterns to optimize the balance between beam diversity maintenance and device complexity, adapting parameters rather than maintaining fixed complex procedures.
3Speed
If multiple alternative beams are prepared and monitored, then recovery speed improves when blockage occurs, but loss of energy increases due to continuous measurement and monitoring
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by having the UE pre-measure and evaluate a limited set of candidate beams before failure occurs, storing their characteristics for quick comparison during failure events. This preliminary measurement phase allows rapid recovery without requiring intensive real-time monitoring of all possible alternative beams, reducing ongoing energy consumption while maintaining fast recovery capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements skipping by enabling the UE to rapidly evaluate and skip through pre-configured candidate beams during failure recovery using simple threshold comparisons against stored measurements, rather than performing comprehensive re-measurement of all alternatives. This rushed evaluation process minimizes energy expenditure during the critical recovery window while achieving fast beam switching.
Data Source
AI summary
A user equipment (UE) of a wireless communication network receives conditions for sweeping beams between a base station of the network and the UE. The conditions include a beam sweeping trigger rule, and a beam measurement configuration for measuring at least one characteristic of each of the beams on downlink. The UR measures at least one characteristic of each of the beams in accordance with the measurement configuration. After the measuring, the UE detects a trigger in accordance with the trigger rule. In response to detecting the trigger, the UE sweeps the beams on uplink based on the measuring.