Minimizing interference caused by high-powered uplink transmissions

• US 10,368,321 B1
• Filed: 05/25/2017
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/25/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LLC (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Spectrum LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Sitaram, Krishna, Liu, Chunmei, Pawar, Hemanth, Kothari, Pratik
• Primary Examiner(s): Weidner, Timothy J
• Application Number:
  US15/605,015
• Time in Patent Office: 796 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/18 Monitoring during normal operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/024 Co-operative use of antennas of several sites, e.g. in co-ordinated multipoint or co-operative multiple-input multiple-output [MIMO] systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0404 the mobile station comprising multiple antennas, e.g. to provide uplink diversity
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0686 Hybrid systems, i.e. switching and simultaneous transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0035 Resource allocation in a cooperative multipoint environment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0089 due to addition or removal of users or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0221 power availability or consumption
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0236 radio quality, e.g. interference, losses or delay
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0247 based on conditions of the access network or the infrastructure network central resource management H04W28/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0284 detecting congestion or overload during communication monitoring arrangements H04L43/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0289 Congestion control load shedding arrangements in network planning H04W16/08; performing reselection for handling the traffic H04W36/22; wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/10 using broadcasted information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/146 Uplink power control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/243 taking into account interferences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/246 where the output power of a terminal is based on a path parameter calculated in said terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/247 where the output power of a terminal is based on a path parameter sent by another terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/248 where transmission power control commands are generated based on a path parameter
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/343 taking into account loading or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/346 : distributing total power among users or channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/386 : centralized, e.g. when the radio network controller or equivalent takes part in the power control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0473 : the resource being transmission power
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/51 : based on terminal or device properties
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/52 : based on load
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/15 : Setup of multiple wireless link connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/245 : from a network towards a terminal

Abstract

Systems, methods, and processing nodes for minimizing interference caused by high-powered wireless devices to other wireless devices in the network by determining an increase in a number of high-powered wireless devices attached to a serving access node causing a corresponding increase in a potential interference to standard-powered wireless devices attached to the serving access node. In response to determining this increase, the methods include activating a coordinated transmission mode for one or more standard-powered wireless devices.

Claims

1. A method for minimizing interference in a wireless network, the method comprising:

determining an increase in a number of high-powered wireless devices attached to a serving access node, wherein the increase in the number of high-powered wireless devices causes a corresponding increase in a potential interference to standard-powered wireless devices attached to the serving access node; and

activating a coordinated transmission mode for one or more standard-powered wireless devices responsive to the determining the increase in the number of high-powered wireless devices.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining that the one or more standard-powered wireless devices are within an overlapping coverage area shared by the serving access node and at least one neighboring access node, wherein the coordinated transmission mode enables the one or more standard-powered wireless devices to transmit uplink data via a combination of the serving access node and the at least one neighboring access node.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

monitoring a congestion level of the serving access node and the at least one neighboring access node; and

incrementally activating and deactivating the coordinated transmission more mode for the one or more standard-powered wireless devices to maintain the congestion level to within a threshold congestion level.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the potential interference exceeds a threshold interference; and

deactivating a high-powered transmission mode for at least one of the one or more high-powered wireless devices.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the determination that the potential interference exceeds a threshold interference is based on the number of high-powered wireless devices exceeding a threshold number of high-powered wireless devices.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein deactivating the high-powered transmission mode for said at least one of the one or more high-powered wireless devices comprises deactivating the high-powered transmission mode for all high-powered wireless devices attached to the serving access node.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein deactivating the high-powered transmission mode comprises broadcasting a reduced maximum power from the serving access node.

8. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

determining that the potential interference stops exceeding the threshold interference; and

activating the high-powered transmission mode for at least one of the one or more high-powered wireless devices.

9. A system for minimizing interference in a wireless network, the system comprising:

a processing node; and

a processor coupled to the processing node, the processor for configuring the processing node to perform operations comprising;

identifying a plurality of high-powered wireless devices and a plurality of standard-powered wireless devices attached to a serving access node, wherein uplink transmissions from the plurality of high-powered wireless devices causes a potential interference to one or more of the plurality of standard-powered wireless devices;

determining that a number of high-powered wireless devices meets a threshold number of high-powered wireless devices; and

deactivating a high-powered transmission mode for one or more of the plurality of high-powered wireless devices responsive to the determining that the number of high-powered wireless devices meets the threshold.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein deactivating the high-powered transmission mode for the one or more high-powered wireless devices comprises broadcasting a reduced maximum power from the serving access node.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the number of high-powered wireless devices does not meets the threshold number of high-powered wireless devices; and

activating the high-powered transmission mode.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the operations further comprise activating a coordinated transmission mode for the one or more standard-powered wireless devices based on the determining that the number of high-powered wireless devices meets the threshold, wherein the coordinated transmission mode enables the one or more standard-powered wireless devices to transmit uplink data via a combination of the serving access node and at least one neighboring access node.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise monitoring a traffic level of a communication link between the serving access node and the at least one neighboring access node for congestion.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the traffic level meets a threshold traffic level; and

incrementally deactivating the coordinated transmission mode for each of the one or more standard powered wireless devices until the traffic level does not meet the threshold traffic level.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the traffic level does not meet a threshold traffic level; and

incrementally activating the coordinated transmission mode for each of the one or more standard powered wireless devices until the traffic level meets the threshold traffic level.

16. A processing node for minimizing interference in a wireless network, the processing node being configured to perform operations comprising:

determining an increase in a number of high-powered wireless devices attached to a serving access node, wherein the increase in the number of high-powered wireless devices causes a corresponding increase in a potential interference to standard-powered wireless devices attached to the serving access node; and

activating a coordinated transmission mode for one or more standard-powered wireless devices responsive to the determining the increase in the number of high-powered wireless devices.

17. The processing node of claim 16, wherein the operations further comprise determining that the one or more standard-powered wireless devices are within an overlapping coverage area shared by the serving access node and at least one neighboring access node, wherein the coordinated transmission mode enables the one or more standard-powered wireless devices to transmit uplink data via a combination of the serving access node and the at least one neighboring access node.

18. The processing node of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

monitoring a congestion level of the serving access node and the at least one neighboring access node; and

incrementally activating and deactivating the coordinated transmission mode for the one or more standard-powered wireless devices to maintain the congestion level to within a threshold congestion level.

19. The processing node of claim 16, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining that the potential interference exceeds a threshold interference; and

deactivating a high-powered transmission mode for at least one of the one or more high-powered wireless devices.

20. The processing node of claim 19, wherein the determination that the potential interference exceeds a threshold interference is based on the number of high-powered wireless devices exceeding a threshold number of high-powered wireless devices.