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AssigneeNokia Corporation
InventorsHarri Jokinen, Sari Korpela, Jussi Numminen, Antti Toskala
Estimating the term…
A method for a mobile station and a base station to which the mobile is being handed over, and corresponding apparatuses for use by the mobile and the base station. The method for use by the mobile station is for determining whether dynamic configurations are in use by the base station to which the mobile is being handed over, and the method for use by the base station is for determining whether to use a dynamic configuration (if the base station uses dynamic configurations) or to switch to a static preconfiguration in communicating with the mobile. The base station to which the mobile is being handed over is of one wireless communication system (such as the UTRA wireless communication system) and the base station doing the handing over is of another type (such as GSM). Both base stations are assumed to broadcast control signals on a respective broadcast control channel.
A method for use by a mobile station in determining whether dynamic configurations are in use by a base station of a first wireless communication system to which the mobile station is being handed over by a base station of a different wireless communication system, the base station of the different wireless communication system broadcasting a control signal on a broadcast control channel, the base station of the first wireless communication system also broadcasting a control signal on a broadcast control channel, the method comprising:
A method for use by a base station of a first wireless communication system in determining whether or not to use dynamic configurations in communicating with a mobile station being handed over by a base station of a different wireless communication system, the communication consisting of uplink signals from the mobile station to the base station of the first wireless communication system and downlink signals from the base station of the first wireless communication system to the mobile station, the mobile station communicating with the base station of the first wireless communication according to a protocol in which a transport format combination indicator (TFCI) is used, the method comprising:
An apparatus (51) for use by a mobile station (50) in determining whether dynamic configurations are in use by a base station (60) of a first wireless communication system to which the mobile station is being handed over by a base station of a different wireless communication system, the base station of the first wireless communication system broadcasting a broadcast control signal on a broadcast control channel, and the base station of the different wireless communication system broadcasting a different broadcast control signal on a different broadcast control channel, the apparatus comprising:
An apparatus (61) for use by a base station (60) of a first wireless communication system in determining whether or not to use dynamic configurations in communicating with a mobile station being handed over by a base station of a different wireless communication system, the communication consisting of uplink signals from the mobile station to the base station of the first wireless communication system and downlink signals from the base station of the first wireless communication system to the mobile station, the mobile station communicating with the base station of the first wireless communication according to a protocol in which a transport format combination indicator (TFCI) is used, the apparatus comprising:
A method, comprising the steps of:
A method, comprising the steps of:
An apparatus (51) for use by a mobile station, comprising:
A system, comprising an apparatus (61) for use by a base station being handed over a mobile station by another base station, the apparatus comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.
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From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.
By measured or perceived connection quality data: due to low signal strength
Reselecting a network or an air interface: over a different radio air interface technology
Access restriction or access information delivery, e.g. discovery data delivery: using downlink control channel
Terminal devices: adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
Term ended 24 Sep 2022 (estimated)
The present invention relates to the field of cellular telephony, and more particularly to the transmission of information from a cellular network to a mobile station concerning handover between cells using different radio access technologies, such as from a cell using a radio access technology according to the Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) to a cell using radio access technology according to the Universal Mobile Telephone System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN).
In a cellular network including different cellular systems, such as GSM and UMTS, which uses so-called wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) and for which access is provided by UTRAN, to make a GSM to UTRAN handover/cell re-selection for a mobile station fast enough, i.e. to make a suitably fast handover from GSM, the current radio access technology (RAT), to UTRAN, the target RAT, it is necessary to transfer various items of information including so-called channel preconfiguration parameters from the target cellular network to the mobile station. For what are called hardcoded or static preconfigurations, standards specify the preconfiguration parameters, i.e. standards provide a certain number of sets of values of the preconfiguration parameters, each set of values defining a configuration. Examples of preconfiguration parameters are parameters indicating transport block size, transport block set size, spreading factor, CRC, and TTI (transmission time interval) value. Because the static preconfiguration parameters are specified in the standards, a mobile station can be expected to know the parameters (i.e. their values) for each static preconfiguration, usually maintaining the static configurations in memory. In addition to static preconfigurations, however, there are what are called dynamic configurations. These are usually information about the operation of the target RAT in addition to what is provided in any of the static preconfigurations. However, a dynamic configuration can also be complete in and of itself, i.e. it can specify all of the configuration parameters of the target RAT by itself, instead of supplementing the information provided by a static preconfiguration, and so by itself completely specify the configuration of the target RAT.
Unlike for static preconfigurations, the sets of preconfiguration parameters making up a dynamic configuration (whether it supplements a static preconfiguration or is intended to be complete by itself) must be provided to the mobile station dynamically, i.e. at or near the time of handover of the mobile station from GSM to UTRAN.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the subsequent detailed description presented in connection with accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a flow chart for a first method, according to the invention, for having a mobile station determine whether dynamic configurations are in use by a UTRA cell to which the mobile station is being handed over by a GSM cell;
FIG. 2 is a flow chart for a second method (a second method that is essentially the first method with an additional, prefatory step), according to the invention, for having a mobile station determine whether dynamic configurations are in use by a UTRA cell to which the mobile station is being handed over by a GSM cell;
The present invention is a method and protocol for use in case of a handover of a mobile station from a cell using GSM to a cell using UTRA; it provides for having the mobile station acquire dynamic configuration parameters, if practicable, to be used in operation in the UTRA cell. Dynamic configuration parameters, as opposed to static preconfiguration parameters (organized into sets, each set describing a particular configuration, the sets specified by a standard and so known in advance to any mobile able to operate in a UTRA cell), are not a priori known to the mobile station and so must be communicated to the mobile station. The dynamic configuration parameters may be in addition to the static configuration parameters to fully specify a configuration, or may be used by themselves. Examples of preconfiguration parameters include parameters indicating transport block size, transport block set size, spreading factor, CRC in use, and TTI (transmission time interval) value. The preconfiguration parameter values are provided to a mobile station according to one of three methods, as described below.
Some mobile stations are equipped to read dynamic configuration parameters and some are not, and the base station to which a mobile station is being handed over must determine which is the case. The invention includes methods by which a mobile station undergoing a GSM to UTRA handover is to obtain dynamic configurations for use in the UTRA cell (either a set of parameters and their values or sets of values of parameters and their values along with an indicator of which set to use) from the base station (node B) to which the mobile station is being handed over (at least in the case that the mobile station is equipped to read dynamic configuration parameters), and also a method, in case of a GSM to UTRA handover, setting out steps to be followed by the UTRA base station (a so-called node B) by which to determine whether the mobile station has read its dynamic configuration parameters or not (the mobile station not having done so because either it is not equipped to do so, or signal conditions are too poor for it to do so).
For example, a network could provide a cell operating according to GSM and another cell according to UTRA, and the base station (node B) for the cell operating according to UTRA could operate according to parameters indicated by a predefined static configuration (i.e. a preconfiguration) and, in addition, according to parameters not predetermined, but instead defined dynamically. To indicate to mobile phones being handed over to it which of the predefined (static) preconfigurations to use (all of which are assumed for purposes of this example to be maintained in a memory device of the mobile station), the UTRA base station could use a default channel preconfiguration indicator having eight possible values (i.e. eight values for the single (hardcoded) preconfiguration indicator, each of the eight values indicating a different preconfiguration as defined by standards). Then for the mobile station being handed over from the GSM channel to the UTRA channel (either a hard handover, a soft handover, or a softer handover), the network (via either the GSM base station or the UTRA base station) must inform the mobile station of the value of the preconfiguration indicator. To do so would require transmitting to the mobile station three bits, which would be done, according to the invention, using a dedicated handover command message (more specifically, a handover to UTRAN command message). In addition, the network could have defined four additional, dynamic configuration parameter values, which, according to the invention, are also signaled to the mobile station on UMTS BCCH (along with the three-bit indicator for the static preconfiguration parameters). In this example, the network (and more particularly, the subject node B) broadcasts only the specific additional dynamic configuration parameters it uses, not sets of dynamic configuration parameters, and so the mobile station need not acquire sets of dynamic configuration parameters and also an indicator for indicating which dynamic configuration set to use, but instead only the additional configuration parameters used by the node B.