Method for controlling network access points

• US 10,057,922 B2
• Filed: 10/02/2015
• Issued: 08/21/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Soldati, Pablo, Sun, Weijun
• Primary Examiner(s): Roberts, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): Haque, Abu-Sayeed
• Application Number:
  US14/873,475
• Publication Number:
  US 20160029407A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,054 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0206 in access points, e.g. base stations access point devices per se H04W88/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/004 in the uplink, i.e. towards network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/006 in the downlink, i.e. towards the terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/28 Discontinuous transmission [DTX]; Discontinuous reception [DRX]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for controlling network access points in a wireless communicating system, said system comprising: one or more mobile stations, and one or more access points, each access point being arranged for operating in active mode or in inactive mode; said method comprising the steps of: transmitting, by a mobile station, a sensing signal indicating network and/or mobile station specific information associated with at least one mobile station of said system; receiving, by at least one access point or at least one control unit, said sensing signal; and controlling, by said access point or said control unit, transition from active mode to inactive mode, and vice versa, of one or more access points of said system based on said sensing signal.

Claims

1. A method of operating a mobile station in a wireless communication system including the mobile station, at least one other mobile station and one or more network access points, each of the one or more network access points being arranged for operating in an active mode or in an inactive mode, the method comprising:

transmitting, by the mobile station, a sensing signal to one of the one or more network access points, wherein the transmitted sensing signal indicates mobile station specific information associated with the mobile station and further mobile station specific information associated with the at least one other mobile station;

wherein each mobile station specific information comprises at least one of a service type required by the associated mobile station, a spatial position and a mobility of the associated mobile station.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising receiving a sensing response signal sent in response to a transition, by a network access point of the one or more network access points, between the active mode and the inactive mode.

3. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon a computer program instructions, which when executed by a processor, causes the processor to causes said processing the method according to claim 1.

4. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim a, wherein the non-transitory computer readable medium comprises one or more of ROM (Read-Only Memory), PROM (Programmable ROM), EPROM (Erasable PROM), Flash memory, EEPROM (Electrically EPROM) and hard disk drive.

5. A method for controlling a network access point in a wireless communication system including a mobile station and at least one other mobile station and one or more network access points, each network access point being arranged for operating in an active mode or in an inactive mode, the method comprising:

receiving, by a network access point of the one or more network access points, from the mobile station, a sensing signal, wherein the received sensing signal indicates mobile station specific information associated with the mobile station and further mobile station specific information associated with the at least one other mobile station, wherein each mobile station specific information comprises at least one of a service type required by the associated mobile station, a spatial position and a mobility of the associated mobile station; and

controlling, by the one network access point, a transition from an inactive mode to an active mode of the network access point of the communication system based on the sensing signal.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising:

transmitting, in response to said sensing signal, a sensing response signal which enables the transition.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the sensing response signal indicates at least one of an activation acknowledgement of a network access point, a timing advance estimate, a mobile station identity, a synchronization signal, a downlink reference signal, control information and network access information.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the sensing response signal is sent in response to receiving a sensing control signal.

9. A mobile station device arranged for communication in a wireless communication system comprising the mobile station device, at least one other mobile station device, and one or more network access points, each of the one or more network access point being arranged for operating in an active mode or in an inactive mode, the mobile station device comprising:

a transmitter configured to transmit a sensing signal to one of the one or more network access points, wherein the transmitted sensing signal indicates mobile station specific information associated with the mobile station device and further mobile station specific information associated with the at least one other mobile station device;

wherein each mobile station specific information comprises at least one of a service type required by the associated mobile station device, a spatial position and a mobility of the associated mobile station.

10. An apparatus arranged for controlling a network access point in a wireless communication system comprising a mobile station and at least one other mobile station and one or more network access points, each of the one or more network access points being arranged for operating in an active mode or in an inactive mode, the apparatus comprising a processor configured to:

receive, from the mobile station, a sensing signal, wherein the received sensing signal-indicates mobile station specific information associated with the mobile station and further mobile station specific information associated with the at least one other mobile station, and

control a transition from an inactive mode to an active mode of the network access points of the communication system based on the sensing signal;

wherein each mobile station specific information comprises at least one of a service type required by the associated mobile station, a spatial position and a mobility of the associated mobile station.

11. A method for controlling a network access point in a wireless communication system comprising a mobile station and at least one other mobile station and one or more network access points, each of the one or more network access point being arranged for operating in an active mode or in an inactive mode, the method comprising:

transmitting, by the mobile station, a sensing signal, wherein the received sensing signal-indicates mobile station specific information associated with the mobile station and further mobile station specific information associated with the at least one other mobile station;

receiving, by at least one of the one or more network access points, said sensing signal; and

controlling, by said at least one network access point, a transition from an inactive mode to an active mode of the network access point based on said sensing signal;

wherein each mobile station specific information comprises at least one of a service type required by the associated mobile station, a spatial position and a mobility of the associated mobile station.