Optimizing data transfer in radio system

• US 20040209618A1
• Filed: 05/07/2004
• Published: 10/21/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Pajukoski, Kari, Niemela, Kari
• Granted Patent: US 7,233,796 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/445
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/08 Reselecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/18 for allowing seamless reselection, e.g. soft reselection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/30 by measured or perceived connection quality data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/12 Access point controller devices

Abstract

An arrangement for controlling transfer of information, comprising a radio system and a terminal equipment, which radio system comprises at least two base stations and is configured to set up simultaneous connections between the terminal equipment and at least two base stations, the terminal equipment being configured to measure properties of the connections between the terminal equipment and the base stations, and to select at least one of the base stations as a primary base station, information transfer between the primary base station and the terminal equipment being activated, and the radio system comprising a combining-splitting point, which is configured to carry out combining/splitting functions on information flows transmitted via connections set up over different physical transmission paths. The radio system is configured to restrict transfer of information between at least one secondary base station and the combining-splitting point, the terminal equipment having an inactive connection with the secondary base station.

Claims

1. A method of controlling information transfer in a radio system, the method comprising

setting up connections between a terminal equipment using the radio system and at least two transceivers of the system,

measuring properties of the connections between the terminal equipment and the transceivers,

selecting, based on the measurements of properties, at least one of the transceivers as a primary transceiver, information transfer being activated between the primary transceiver and the terminal equipment, and

restricting at least partly the transfer of information between at least one secondary transceiver and a combining-splitting point of the radio system, information transfer being deactivated between the secondary transceiver and the terminal equipment.

4. A method according to claim 1 or 3, wherein:

receiving, in a transceiver, information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment,

restricting the transfer of information from the transceiver to the combining-splitting point if the information about the primary transceiver indicates that the primary transceiver is other than the transceiver in question.

5. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein:

receiving, in a transceiver, information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment,

transmitting the information about the primary transceiver to the combining-splitting point,

restricting, in the combining-splitting point, the transfer of information in the downlink direction between the combining-splitting point and at least one secondary transceiver.

6. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein:

receiving, in a transceiver, information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment,

transmitting the information about the primary transceiver from the transceiver to the combining-splitting point, if a comparison indicates that the transceiver was previously a secondary transceiver,

restricting, in the combining-splitting point, the transfer of information in the downlink direction between the combining-splitting point and at least one secondary transceiver.

7. A method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein:

measuring one or more of the following variables in the terminal equipment in the measurement of properties of the connections between the terminal equipment and the transceivers;

attenuation of a signal transmitted from a transceiver, signal-to-interference ratio, and power of reception of a signal transmitted from the transceiver,

selecting, based on the measurement of properties, at least one transceiver in the terminal equipment as the primary transceiver,

transmitting the information about the at least one primary transceiver to the transceivers with which the terminal equipment has set up a connection.

8. A method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein using the method in connection with a macrodiversity method.

9. A method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the combining-splitting point is a macrodiversity combining/splitting point (MDC).

10. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein restricting information transfer to a secondary transceiver in the downlink direction in a data link layer of a radio interface that defines the connection.

11. A method according to claim 1 or 3, wherein restricting information transfer in the uplink direction in a physical layer of a radio interface that defines the connection.

12. A method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein selecting the location of the combining-splitting point in the network depending on one or more of the following:

the quality of the connection between the terminal equipment and the transceiver, the mobility status of the terminal equipment, and the properties of the connection between the transceiver and the terminal equipment.

13. A method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the combining-splitting point is a microdiversity combining-splitting point.

2. A method of optimizing information transfer in the downlink direction in a radio system, the method comprising

setting up connections between a terminal equipment using the radio system and at least two transceivers of the system,

measuring properties of the connections between the terminal equipment and the transceivers,

selecting, based on the measurements of properties, at least one of the transceivers as a primary transceiver, information transfer being activated between the primary transceiver and the terminal equipment, and

restricting at least partly the transfer of information from a combining-splitting point of the radio system to a secondary transceiver, information transfer being deactivated between the secondary transceiver and the terminal equipment.

3. A method of optimizing information transfer in the uplink direction in a radio system, the method comprising

setting up connections between a terminal equipment using the radio system and at least two transceivers of the system,

measuring properties of the connections between the terminal equipment and the transceivers,

selecting, based on the measurements of properties, at least one of the transceivers as a primary transceiver, information transfer being activated between the primary transceiver and the terminal equipment, and

restricting at least partly the transfer of information from a secondary transceiver to a combining-splitting point of the radio system, information transfer being deactivated between the secondary transceiver and the terminal equipment.

14. An arrangement for controlling information transfer, comprising a radio system and a terminal equipment using the radio system, the system comprising at least two transceivers and being configured to

set up simultaneous connections between the terminal equipment and the at least two transceivers of the radio system, the terminal equipment being configured to

measure properties of connections between the terminal equipment and the transceivers, and to

select, based on the measurements of properties, at least one of the transceivers as a primary transceiver, information transfer between the primary transceiver and the terminal equipment being activated, and

the radio system comprising a combining-splitting point, which is configured to carry out combining/splitting functions on information flows transmitted via connections set up over different physical transmission paths,

wherein the radio system is configured to restrict at least partly transfer of information between at least one secondary transceiver and the combining-splitting point, the terminal equipment having an inactive connection with the secondary transceiver.

15. An arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the combining-splitting point is configured to restrict at least partly the transfer of information from the combining-splitting point to the secondary transceiver, with which the transceiver has an inactive connection.

16. An arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the secondary transceiver, with which the terminal equipment has an inactive connection, is configured to restrict at least partly the transfer of information from the secondary transceiver to the combining-splitting point.

17. An arrangement according to claim 15, wherein the transceiver is configured to

receive information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment, and to

restrict the uplink transmission of information between the transceiver and the combining-splitting point, if the received information about the primary transceiver indicates that the transceiver is some other transceiver.

18. An arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the transceiver is configured to

receive information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment, and to

transmit the information about the primary transceiver to the combining-splitting point, which is configured to restrict the downlink transmission of information between the combining-splitting point and at least one secondary transceiver.

19. An arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the combining-splitting point is a macrodiversity combining/splitting point (MDC).

20. An arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the combining-splitting point is a microdiversity combining-splitting point.

21. An arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the combining-splitting point is arranged to restrict transfer of information to the secondary transceiver in the downlink direction in a data link layer of a radio interface that defines the connection.

22. An arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the transceiver is arranged to restrict uplink transmission of information in a physical layer of a radio interface that defines the connection.

23. An arrangement according to claim 15, wherein the radio system is configured to select the location of the combining-splitting point in the network depending on one or more of the following:

the quality of the connection between the terminal equipment and a transceiver, mobility status of the terminal equipment, and properties of the connection between the transceiver and the terminal equipment.

24. A transceiver in a radio system, the transceiver being configured to

set up a connection to a terminal equipment in the coverage area of the transceiver, and to

receive information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment,

wherein the transceiver is configured to

transmit the information about the primary transceiver to a combining-splitting point of the radio system in connection with the transceiver.

28. A transceiver according to claim 24 or 25, wherein the combining-splitting point is a macrodiversity combining/splitting point (MDC).

25. A transceiver in a radio system, the transceiver being configured to

set up a connection to a terminal equipment in the coverage area of the transceiver, and to

receive information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment, wherein

the transceiver is configured to restrict the transmission of information from the transceiver to the combining-splitting point of the radio system in connection with the transceiver, if the information about the primary transceiver points at some other transceiver than the transceiver in question.

26. A transceiver according to claim 25, wherein the transceiver is configured to

receive information about one or more primary transceivers from the terminal equipment, and to

transmit the information about the primary transceiver to the combining-splitting point, if the information about the primary transceiver indicates that the transceiver is a primary transceiver and if the transceiver used to be a secondary transceiver.

27. A transceiver according to claim 25, wherein the transceiver is configured to restrict uplink transmission of information in a physical layer of a radio interface that defines the connection.