System and method for coverage enhancements of broadcast channels

A method comprising:

• transmitting, by a base station to a first User Equipment (UEs), a first broadcast channel in a first Sub-Frame (SF) of every frame in every quadruple of frames and in the center six Resource Blocks (RBs) of a bandwidth and a second broadcast channel in a one or more SFs of every frame in a first number of quadruples of frames and in the center six RBs of the bandwidth, wherein a frame includes ten SFs, the first number of quadruples of frames is from a second number of quadruples of frames with the first number being smaller than the second number, and wherein the first broadcast channel conveys a first encoded Master Information Block (MIB) for the quadruple of frames and the second broadcast channel conveys a second encoded MIB for the quadruple of frames,
• wherein the one or more SFs of every frame are either the first subframe or the first SF and the sixth SF,
• wherein the information contents of the first MIB include all information contents of the second MIB and also include additional information contents,
• wherein the symbols of the one or more SFs in every frame are the same for a Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) communication system and a Time Division Duplex (TDD) communication system and wherein, for a TDD communication system, the base station does not transmit the second broadcast channel in symbols of the one or more SFs that convey synchronization signals for a FDD communication system,
• wherein the base station transmits the second broadcast channel starting from the fourth symbol for each of the one or more SFs and wherein the base station can transmit control signaling over a maximum of the first three symbols of a SF for a first transmission bandwidth and over a maximum of the first four symbols of a SF for a second transmission bandwidth,
• wherein the base station informs at least one of a second UE by higher layer signaling or a second base station by interface signaling, of the quadruples of frames in the first number of quadruples of frames,
• wherein the quadruples of frames in the first number of quadruples of frames occur periodically and the base station informs either the period and a number of successive quadruples of frames or informs a bit-map wherein the bit-map size is equal to a maximum period and a bit-map element correspond to a quadruple of frames and indicates whether or not the base station transmits the second broadcast channel in the quadruple of frames.