Random access procedure in wireless device, radio base station and methods therein

• US 10,143,012 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2014
• Issued: 11/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Stattin, Magnus, Bergquist, Gunnar, Cui, Tao, Folke, Mats, Mildh, Gunnar, Myhre, Elena, Wittberg, Mikael
• Primary Examiner(s): Atkins, George C
• Application Number:
  US14/892,690
• Publication Number:
  US 20160105912A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,651 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0654 using network fault recovery ring fault isolation or reconfiguration in loop networks without recovery actions by a network management system H04L12/437
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/08 Non-scheduled access, e.g. ALOHA hybrid access H04W74/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/0833 Random access procedures, e.g. with 4-step access

Abstract

Embodiments herein relate to a wireless device (10) for handling access to a radio base station (12) in a wireless communication network (1), the wireless device (10) being configured to:

• • initiate a random access procedure in the wireless communication network (1);
  • determine that a problem with the random access procedure has occurred when a certain condition is fulfilled; and
  • perform at least one of the following, when determined that a problem with the random access procedure has occurred: delay a next random access preamble transmission attempt; abort from a higher layer the random access procedure immediately; and stop the random access procedure at a lower layer.

Claims

1. A method in a wireless device for handling access to a radio base station in a wireless communication network, comprising

initiating a lower-layer random access procedure, in the wireless communication network, while one or more timers associated with a Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer procedure are running;

determining, at the RRC layer and subsequent to a first plurality of random access preamble transmission attempts, that a problem with the random access procedure has occurred based on receiving an indication of the problem from the lower layer; and

responsive to determining that the problem occurred,

aborting from the RRC layer the random access procedure immediately and declaring a radio link failure, at the RRC layer, without taking into account the one or more running timers associated with the RRC-layer procedure.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the declaring the radio link failure is performed concurrent with or subsequent to the aborting.

3. A wireless device for handling access to a radio base station in a wireless communication network, the wireless device comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory comprising program instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, configure the wireless device to;

initiate a lower-layer random access procedure, in the wireless communication network, while one or more timers associated with a Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer procedure are running;

determine, at the RRC layer and subsequent to a first plurality of random access preamble transmission attempts, that a problem with the random access procedure has occurred based on receiving an indication of the problem from the lower layer; and

responsive to the determination that the problem with the random access procedure has occurred,

abort from the RRC layer the random access procedure immediately and declare a radio link failure, at the RRC layer, without taking into account the one or more running timers associated with the RRC-layer procedure.

4. The wireless device according to claim 3, being configured by the executed instructions to declare the radio link failure concurrent with or subsequent to the aborting.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a computer program comprising program instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry in a wireless device, configures the wireless device to handle access to a radio base station in a wireless communication network, said computer program comprising program instructions configuring the wireless device to:

initiate a lower-layer random access procedure, in the wireless communication network, while one or more timers associated with a Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer procedure are running;

determine, at the RRC layer and subsequent to a first plurality of random access preamble transmission attempts, that a problem with the random access procedure has occurred based on receiving an indication of the problem from the lower layer; and

responsive to determining that the problem occurred,

abort from the RRC layer the random access procedure immediately and declare a radio link failure, at the RRC layer, without taking into account the one or more running timers associated with the RRC-layer procedure.