Idle mode handoff in a mobile communications system
AssigneeLG Electronics Inc.
InventorYoung-Jae Park
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for idle mode handoff in an overlapping area of a multi-channel cell is provided. By monitoring different frequencies serviced by neighboring base stations, when a mobile station is located in an overlapping region between cells and the frequency channel being serviced in a multi-channel region is different from a channel being serviced in the neighboring base station, an idle mode handoff between cells may be smoothly performed.
Claims27
A method for performing handoff in a mobile station, the method comprising:
- receiving an overhead message from a network, the network comprising a plurality of cells with corresponding base stations;
- determining whether a current location is a multi-channel region based on the overhead message;
- determining whether the current location is an overlap region based on the overhead message, an overlap region being a region where two or more of the plurality of cells overlap;
- monitoring channels in the current location and determining whether an active monitored channel has the greatest signal strength if the current location is both a multi-channel region and an overlap region;
- determining a difference between the signal strength of the active channel and the signal strength of one of the monitored channels that has the greatest signal strength and comparing the difference to a threshold value if the active monitored channel does not have the greatest signal strength;
- and
- requesting a handoff to one of the corresponding base stations that is transmitting on the channel having the greatest signal strength if the difference is greater than the threshold value.
A mobile station adapted to perform handoff, the mobile station comprising:
- a transceiver adapted to receive an overhead message from a network, the network comprising a plurality of cells with corresponding base stations;
- and
- a processor operatively coupled to the transceiver and adapted to determine whether a current location is a multi-channel region and whether the current location is an overlap region based on the received overhead message, an overlap region being a region where two or more of the plurality of cells overlap, monitor channels in the current location and determine whether an active monitored channel has the greatest signal strength if the current location is both a multi-channel region and an overlap region, determine a difference between the signal strength of the active channel and the signal strength of one of the monitored channels that has the greatest signal strength and compare the difference to a threshold value if the active monitored channel does not have the greatest signal strength, and request a handoff to one of the corresponding base stations that is transmitting on the channel having the greatest signal strength if the difference is greater than the threshold value.
A method for performing idle handoff of a mobile communications terminal, the method comprising:
- determining that the mobile communications terminal is located in an overlapping region between a first cell, in which a currently acquired base station provides at least one active frequency channel, and a second cell;
- monitoring frequency channels other than the active frequency channel;
- selecting a frequency channel having the greatest signal strength of the monitored frequency channels;
- determining whether the selected frequency channel is provided from a base station in the first cell or the second cell;
- and
- performing an idle handoff from the first cell to the second cell if it is determined that the selected frequency channel is provided from a base station in the second cell.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.