Zero-Power Downlink Control Channel Candidates for Latency Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing number of user equipment (UEs) and data transmission requirements in wireless communication systems pose challenges in efficiently utilizing limited radio resources, particularly in reducing latency and supporting new radio access technologies.
Innovation Solution
The method involves transmitting and receiving downlink signals by designating zero-power resources within the downlink control channel candidates, allowing for power boosting of nonzero-power resources and separate interference measurement for control and data channels, thereby optimizing resource utilization and reducing latency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the number of DL control channel candidates is increased to support more UEs and data transmission, then the system capacity and data throughput are improved, but the latency increases and resource utilization efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the DL control channel candidates into two distinct groups: zero-power candidates and nonzero-power candidates. This segmentation allows the system to process control channel candidates more efficiently by identifying and prioritizing those with actual signal content, thereby reducing the time required to scan through all candidates and lowering latency while maintaining high system capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by providing zero-power information to the UE in advance, enabling the UE to pre-identify which DL control channel candidates will contain actual control information. This advance knowledge allows the UE to skip unnecessary scanning of zero-power candidates, reducing processing time and latency while maintaining efficient resource utilization.
2Reliability
If power boosting is applied to nonzero-power resources to improve signal quality, then the reliability of control channel reception is improved, but the overall energy consumption and interference to data channels increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by concentrating power boosting resources specifically on nonzero-power DL control channel candidates rather than uniformly distributing power across all candidates. This localized power enhancement improves the reliability of control channel reception where it is most needed, while avoiding unnecessary energy consumption on zero-power candidates that do not carry control information.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of power boosting causing interference into a benefit by precisely targeting only the nonzero-power candidates. The zero-power information acts as a filtering mechanism that directs power boosting resources exclusively to candidates that actually contain control signals, thereby improving reliability without proportionally increasing overall energy consumption or interference to data channels.
3Measurement precision
If separate interference measurement is implemented for control and data channels, then the measurement precision is improved, but the device complexity and processing overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the interference measurement process into separate measurements for control channels and data channels. By utilizing the zero-power information to identify which candidates are control channels versus data channels, the system can perform targeted interference measurements for each type, improving measurement precision without requiring complex unified measurement algorithms.
Solution Approach 2:
The zero-power information serves a dual purpose: it identifies control channel locations for the UE and simultaneously provides the basis for separate interference measurement. This self-service approach allows the same information to drive both control channel detection and interference measurement, reducing processing complexity while maintaining high measurement precision.
Data Source
AI summary
According to the present invention, a base station transmits zero-power information with respect to a downlink control channel, sets some of downlink control channel candidates in a slot at zero-power in accordance with the zero-power information, and transmits the downlink control channel via the downlink control channel candidates User equipment receives the zero-power information with respect to the downlink control channel and receives the downlink control channel via the downlink control channel candidates in the slot. The user equipment detects the downlink control channel by assuming, on the basis of the zero-power information, that the some of downlink control channel candidates are zero-power.