Fast millimeter-wave cell acquisition

A mobile wireless communication device, comprising:

• a non-transitory memory storage comprising instructions;
• and
• one or more processors in communication with the memory, wherein the one or more processors execute the instructions to:
• transmit a signal in response to a request from a wireless network;
• receive information from the wireless network that geometrically relates a first base station in the wireless network with a second base station in the wireless network, and comprises a first angular direction from the first base station to a millimeter wave access point (mmW AP) and a second angular direction from the second base station to the mmW AP;
• and
• compute an angular direction from the mobile wireless communication device to the mmW AP based on the information.

A method in a wireless network for providing a mobile wireless communication device with information to access a millimeter wave access point (mmW AP), the method comprising:

• measuring a strength of a signal transmitted by the mobile wireless communication device at a set of base stations of the wireless network;
• accessing a table stored in non-transitory memory storage, the table having entries, each of which maps reference signal strengths at the set of base stations to directional access information to access a mmW AP for the entry;
• comparing the strengths of the signal from the mobile wireless communication device received at the set of base stations to the table entries in order to determine directional access information for the mobile wireless communication device to access a selected mmW AP in the table;
• and
• transmitting, from the wireless network to the mobile wireless communication device, the directional access information for the mobile wireless communication device to access the selected mmW AP in the table.