US 11,109,351 B2 · Method and apparatus for enhancing coverage of machine type communication (MTC) devices

Abstract

A method and apparatus are described for a low cost machine-type-communication (LC-MTC) wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) to enhance coverage. An example method for physical broadcast channel (PBCH) enhancement includes receiving system information on an enhanced PBCH (ePBCH). The ePBCH is located in a set of radio frames which is a subset of available radio frames, where the subset includes fewer than all the available radio frames. The ePBCH is received in at least one radio frame of the set of radio frames. An example method for physical random access channel (PRACH) enhancement includes receiving configuration of legacy PRACH resources and enhanced PRACH (ePRACH) resources. The WTRU selects one of legacy PRACH resources or ePRACH resources based on a coverage capability. Another example method for PRACH enhancement includes receiving configuration of ePRACH resources. The ePRACH resources include multiple ePRACH resource types, each ePRACH resource type being associated with a coverage capability.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method for a wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU), the method comprising:

determining radio link parameters based on a coverage enhancement mode and a repetition level of a downlink control channel transmission;
monitoring radio link quality for a period of time;
determining sync information, wherein the determining is based on comparing the radio link quality to the radio link parameters;
and
transmitting a radio resource control signal based on the determined sync information.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

16/192,486Filed 15 Nov 2018 · continuation

Priority

5 Oct 2012

Published

US 2019/0090219 A121 Mar 2019

Granted

31 Aug 2021

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification24 codes

H04W 72/30
Local resource management: resource management for broadcast services
H04B 17/328
Received signal strength: reference signal received power [RSRP]; Reference signal received quality [RSRQ]
H04L 1/1819
Hybrid protocols; Hybrid automatic repeat request [HARQ]: with retransmission of additional or different redundancy
H04L 1/189
Arrangements specially adapted for the transmitter end: transmission or retransmission of more than one copy of a message

Family

Application61/710,315Us provisional application · filed 5 Oct 2012

Application61/753,263Us provisional application · filed 16 Jan 2013

Application61/807,945Us provisional application · filed 3 Apr 2013

Application61/863,223Us provisional application · filed 7 Aug 2013

Application14/046,173Parent of this continuation · filed 4 Oct 2013

US 2019/0090219 A1Pre-grant publication · published 21 Mar 2019

US 10,142,962 B2Parent of this continuation

US 2014/0098761 A1Published application

US 11,109,351 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

Method and apparatus for enhancing coverage of machine type communication (MTC) devices

Life of this patent

Method and apparatus for enhancing coverage of machine type communication (MTC) devices

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims20