Peer to peer mobile user equipment communication with on-demand discovery signal transmission

• US 10,728,734 B2
• Filed: 09/10/2018
• Issued: 07/28/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Kim, Yuchul, Wang, Xiaowen, Tabet, Tarik, Zhang, Dawei, Mujtaba, Syed Aon
• Primary Examiner(s): Mered, Habte
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mensah, Prince A
• Application Number:
  US16/125,799
• Publication Number:
  US 20190007823A1
• Time in Patent Office: 687 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0241 where no transmission is received, e.g. out of range of the transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

In some embodiments, a user equipment device (UE) implements a method for discovering the presence of neighboring UEs using an on-demand discovery signal transmission technique. This discovery process may be performed to enable the UEs to perform peer-to-peer communications with each other, wherein peer-to-peer communications is defined as direct communication between the UEs without involving a base station. The UE may be configured to transmit a discovery request signal when it has moved greater than a threshold amount since transmission of a prior discovery request signal. The discovery request signal causes one or more neighboring UEs to each transmit a discovery signal in response, and also causes the UE which generated the discovery request signal to transmit its own discovery signal. The received discovery signal from each of the neighboring UEs is useable to discover, or detect the presence of, these neighboring UEs.

Claims

1. A wireless device, comprising:

at least one antenna;

at least one radio communicatively coupled to the at least one antenna, wherein the at least one radio is configured to perform cellular communication using at least one radio access technology (RAT);

one or more processors communicatively coupled to the at least one radio, wherein the one or more processors and the at least one radio are configured to perform wireless voice and/or data communications using the at least one antenna;

wherein the one or more processors and at least one radio are configured to cause the wireless device to;

monitor one or more discovery request channels in a discovery resource set assigned by a base station;

determine that the wireless device has moved greater than a threshold distance since transmission of a prior discovery request signal to neighboring wireless devices, wherein the threshold distance comprises a specified distance since the transmission of the prior discovery request signal to the neighboring wireless devices; and

transmit, in response to one of determining that a discovery request signal relevant to the wireless device has been received from a neighboring wireless device and determining that the wireless device has moved greater than a threshold distance since transmission of the prior discovery request signal, a discovery signal on a discovery request channel in the discovery resource set.

2. The wireless device of claim 1,

wherein the one or more processors and at least one radio are further configured to cause the wireless device to:

perform peer-to-peer communication with the neighboring wireless device after discovering the neighboring wireless device using the received discovery request signal.

3. The wireless device of claim 1,

wherein the one or more processors and at least one radio are further configured to cause the wireless device to:

determine that the wireless device has moved less than the threshold amount since transmission of the prior discovery request signal; and

not transmit the discovery request signal in response to determining that the wireless device has moved less than the threshold amount since the transmission of the prior discovery request signal.

4. The wireless device of claim 1,

wherein the discovery request channel occurs in a first sub-frame of a discovery resource set.

5. The wireless device of claim 1,

wherein the wireless device further comprises a memory which stores a software application that is executable by the one or more processors;

and

wherein transmission of the discovery signal on the discovery request channel is performed by the software application.

6. The wireless device of claim 1,

wherein the one or more processors and the at least one radio are further configured to cause the wireless device to:

request one or more discovery request channels from the base station.

7. The wireless device of claim 1,

wherein the discovery request channel is assigned to the UE by the base station.

8. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor in communication with the memory, wherein the processor is configured to;

generate instructions to transmit, in response to determining movement greater than a threshold distance since transmission of a prior discovery request signal to neighboring wireless devices, a discovery request signal over a discovery request channel to the neighboring wireless devices, wherein the threshold distance is a specified distance since the transmission of the prior discovery request signal; and

receive, over at least one of one or more discovery channels assigned by a base station, discovery signals from one or more of the neighboring wireless devices in response to transmission of the discovery request signal, wherein the received discovery signals are useable to discover one or more of the neighboring wireless devices.

9. The apparatus of claim 8,

wherein the processor is further configured to:

generate instructions to perform peer-to-peer communication with a first neighboring wireless device of the one or more neighboring wireless devices after discovering the first neighboring wireless device using a received discovery signal.

10. The apparatus of claim 8,

wherein the processor is further configured to:

generate instructions to not transmit the discovery request signal in response to determining movement less than the threshold amount since the transmission of the prior discovery request signal.

11. The apparatus of claim 8,

wherein the discovery request channel occurs in a first sub-frame of a discovery resource set.

12. The apparatus of claim 8,

wherein the discovery request channel is assigned by the base station.

13. The apparatus of claim 8,

wherein the processor is further configured to:

monitor one or more discovery request channels in a discovery resource set.

14. The apparatus of claim 13,

wherein the discovery resource set is assigned by the base station.

15. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor in communication with the memory, wherein the processor is configured to;

generate instructions to monitor one or more discovery request channels in a discovery resource set;

wherein, in response to determining movement greater than a threshold distance since transmission of a prior discovery request signal, the processor is further configured to generate instructions to transmit a discovery signal on a discovery channel in the discovery resource set;

wherein, in response to determining movement less than the threshold distance since the transmission of the prior discovery request signal, the processor is further configured to generate instructions to not transmit the discovery request signal; and

wherein the threshold distance comprises a specified distance since transmission of the prior discovery request signal.

16. The apparatus of claim 15,

wherein the processor is further configured to:

generate instructions to transmit, in response to determining that a relevant discovery request signal relevant has been received from a neighboring wireless device, the discovery signal on a discovery request channel in the discovery resource set; and

generate instructions to perform peer-to-peer communication with the neighboring wireless device based, at least in part, on the received relevant discovery request signal.

17. The apparatus of claim 15,

wherein the discovery request channel occurs in a first sub-frame of the discovery resource set.

18. The apparatus of claim 15,

wherein the discovery request channel is assigned by a base station.

19. The apparatus of claim 15,

wherein the discovery resource set is assigned by a base station.

20. The apparatus of claim 15,

wherein the processor is further configured to:

request one or more discovery request channels from a base station.