Infrastructure equipment and method

• US 10,397,762 B2
• Filed: 09/09/2016
• Issued: 08/27/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SCA IPLA Holdings Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: SCA IPLA Holdings Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Zakrzewski, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Beharry, Noel R
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thomas, Wilfred
• Application Number:
  US15/261,494
• Publication Number:
  US 20160381724A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0007 the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM(A), DMT
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• 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 74/0808 using carrier sensing, e.g. carrier sense multiple access [CSMA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/0833 Random access procedures, e.g. with 4-step access
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/11 Allocation or use of connection identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support

Abstract

An infrastructure equipment for forming part of a mobile radio network includes a transmit and receive unit, to transmit and receive data to and from mobile communications devices via a wireless access interface, and a controller processing requests for communications resources from the mobile communications devices. Plural associated communications devices are arranged to form a group, and each of the associated communications devices of the group includes a same common identifier, with respect to which communications sessions can be established to communicate data via the mobile radio network, and the controller is arranged in combination with the transmit and receive unit to respond to a request from one of the communications devices of the group to establish a communications bearer using the common identifier.

Claims

1. A base station for forming part of a mobile radio network, the base station comprising:

circuitry including at least a transceiver and a processor, the circuitry configured to;

provide each of associated mobile communications devices of a group with one of a set of predefined sequences of data for use in forming a random access burst for transmission in a random access channel of a wireless access interface, the set of predefined sequences being uniquely associated with the group;

transmit a signaling message in response to the random access burst, using a unique data sequence which is used to form the random access burst received from one of the associated mobile communications devices;

receive sensor data from each of the associated mobile communications devices of the group via the mobile radio network using an identifier that is common to all the associated mobile communications devices of the group;

arrange one of the associated mobile communication devices of the group as a master communications device;

process a request for communications resources from the master communications device of the associated mobile communication devices of the group;

respond to the request to establish a communications bearer using the identifier; and

establish a communication session for the group in response to receiving signaling information including the identifier from the master communications device.

2. The base station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the identifier, which is used to establish the communication session, is provided using a subscriber identifier module or universal subscriber identity module, which includes the identifier for each of the associated mobile communications devices.

3. The base station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the identifier is a network temporary identifier or is used to generate a unique resource location or unique resource identifier.

4. The base station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base station is arranged to identify each of the associated mobile communications devices using an equipment identification number, the equipment identification number being used by a radio link layer to identify each of the associated mobile communications devices of the group.

5. The base station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base station is configured to transmit signaling information to the associated mobile communications devices in response to the signaling information transmitted by the master communications device, with an effect that each of the associated mobile communications devices can transmit data to the mobile radio network and receive data from the mobile radio network using the communications bearer established by the master communications device using the identifier for all of the associated mobile communications devices of the group.

6. The base station as claimed in claim 5, wherein the signaling information transmitted in response to the master communications device includes information required for mobility management and connection.

7. The base station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the random access burst received from the one of the associated mobile communications devices includes data representing a request for uplink resources and, in response to the transmitted random access burst, the circuitry is further configured to communicate a grant of uplink resources to the associated mobile communications devices, which is identified using the predefined sequences allocated to the one of the associated mobile communications devices and received in the random access burst.

8. A method of communicating data from a base station forming part of a mobile radio network, the method comprising:

providing, to each of associated mobile communications devices of a group, one of a set of predefined sequences of data for use in forming a random access burst for transmission in a random access channel of a wireless access interface, the set of predefined sequences being uniquely associated with the group;

transmitting, from the base station, a signaling message in response to the random access burst, using a unique data sequence which is used to form the random access burst transmitted by the one of the associated mobile communications devices;

receiving sensor data from each of the associated mobile communications devices of the group via the mobile radio network using an identifier that is common to all the associated mobile communications devices of the group;

arranging one of the associated mobile communication devices of the group as a master communications device;

processing a request for communications resources from the master communications device of the associated mobile communication devices of the group;

responding to the request to establish a communications bearer using the identifier; and

establishing a communications session for the group in response to receiving signaling information including the identifier from the master communications device.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising:

receiving the identifier, which is used to establish the communication session, from a subscriber identifier module or universal subscriber identity module, which includes the identifier in each of the associated mobile communications devices.

10. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the identifier is a network temporary identifier or is used to generate a unique resource location or unique resource identifier.

11. The method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising:

transmitting signaling information including the identifier for each of the associated mobile communications devices when the associated mobile communications devices are in a listening mode in which the signaling information can be received in response to the signaling information transmitted by the master communications device, with an effect that each of the associated mobile communications devices can transmit data to the base station and receive data from the base station using the communications bearer established by the master communications device using the identifier which is common for all of the associated mobile communications devices of the group.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the signaling information received from the base station in response to the master communications device includes information required for mobility management and connection.

13. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the base station provides the wireless access interface which includes a random access communications channel for uplink transmission of a burst of signals, the method further comprising:

allocating a time to each of the associated mobile communications devices of the group for transmitting a random access burst in the random access communications channel in accordance with a predetermined arrangement.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the predetermined arrangement includes allocating a time to each of the associated mobile communications devices of the group, when one or more of the associated mobile communications devices can transmit the random access burst in the random access communications channel.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, further comprising:

receiving, in the base station, the random access burst from one or more of the associated mobile communications devices, the random access burst transmitted in the random access channel of the wireless access interface using the one of the set of predefined sequences allocated to each of the associated mobile communications devices.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the random access burst includes data representing a request for uplink resources, the method further comprising:

in response to the received random access burst, communicating from the base station to the associated mobile communications devices a grant of uplink resources, which is identified using the predefined sequences allocated to the one of the associated mobile communications devices.