Method, device, computer program, and apparatus providing embedded status information in handover control signaling

• US 20080019320A1
• Filed: 07/16/2007
• Published: 01/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Phan, Vinh Van, Yu, Ling, Vainikka, Markku J.
• Application Number:
  US11/879,302
• Publication Number:
  US 20080019320A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/331
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/02 Buffering or recovering information during reselection ; Modification of the traffic flow during hand-off
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/08 Reselecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/38 by fixed network equipment

Abstract

A method providing embedded status information in handover control related messages. The method is operable in an E-UTRAN environment and supports ARQ scheme considerations. A device, computer program and apparatus are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining content of a layer 2 status information element;

including said status information into a handover (HO) control related radio resource control (RRC) message; and

transmitting said resulting HO control related RRC message, where the HO is initiated by a network and the HO includes communication between a source eNode B and a target eNode B.

2. The method of claim 1, where said status information includes an uplink layer 2 status information element, and further where said resulting HO control related RRC message is sent to a user equipment (UE).

3. The method of claim 1, where said status information includes a downlink layer 2 status information element, and further where said resulting HO control related RRC message is sent to a network element.

4. The method of claim 2, where said transmission originates from the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO command message.

5. The method of claim 3, where said transmission originates from a user equipment (UE) and sent to the target eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO confirm message.

6. The method of claim 3, where said transmission originates from the target eNode B and sent to the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO completed message.

7. The method of claim 3, where said transmission originates from the target eNode B and sent to the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a release resource message.

8. The method of claim 1, where said determination is based upon at least one of:

automatic repeat request;

quality of service;

available network resources during the HO; and

efficiency-simplicity trade-off factors of the network operation and performance.

9. The method of claim 1, where said status information comprises:

a last in-order received radio link control service data unit sequence number;

a last in-order received packet data convergence protocol service data unit sequence number;

information descriptive of missing segments and a last received segment;

or

information descriptive of missing service data units and a last received service data unit.

10. The method of claim 1, where the content of said status information is variable from one instance of a HO to another instance.

11. An electronic device comprising:

a circuit configured to determine content of a layer 2 status information element;

a circuit configured to include said status information into a handover (HO) control related radio resource control (RRC) message; and

a transmitter configured to transmit said resulting HO control related RRC message, where the HO is initiated by a network and the HO includes communication between a source eNode B and a target eNode B.

12. The electronic device of claim 11, where said status information includes an uplink layer 2 status information element, and further where said resulting HO control related RRC message is sent to a user equipment (UE).

13. The electronic device of claim 11, where said status information includes a downlink layer 2 status information element, and further where said resulting HO control related RRC message is sent to a network element.

14. The electronic device of claim 12, where said transmission originates from the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO command message.

15. The electronic device of claim 13, where said transmission originates from a user equipment (UE) and sent to the target eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO confirm message.

16. The electronic device of claim 13, where said transmission originates from the target eNode B and sent to the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO completed message.

17. The electronic device of claim 13, where said transmission originates from the target eNode B and sent to the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a release resource message.

18. The electronic device of claim 11, where the content of said status information is variable from one instance of a HO to another instance.

19. The electronic device of claim 11, where said determination is based upon at least one of:

automatic repeat request;

quality of service;

available network resources during the HO; and

efficiency-simplicity trade-off factors of the network operation and performance.

20. The electronic device of claim 11, where said status information comprises:

a last in-order received radio link control service data unit sequence number;

a last in-order received packet data convergence protocol service data unit sequence number;

information descriptive of missing segments and a last received segment;

or

information descriptive of missing service data units and a last received service data unit.

21. A signal bearing medium tangibly embodying a program of machine-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform operations comprising:

determining content of a layer 2 status information element;

including said status information into a handover (HO) control related radio resource control (RRC) message; and

transmitting said resulting HO control related RRC message, where the HO is initiated by a network and the HO includes communication between a source eNode B and a target eNode B.

22. The program of claim 21, where said status information includes an uplink layer 2 status information element, and further where said resulting HO control related RRC message is sent to a user equipment (UE).

23. The program of claim 21, where said status information includes a downlink layer 2 status information element, and further where said resulting HO control related RRC message is sent to a network element.

24. The program of claim 22, where said transmission originates from the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO command message.

25. The program of claim 23, where said transmission originates from a user equipment (UE) and sent to the target eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO confirm message.

26. The program of claim 23, where said transmission originates from the target eNode B and sent to the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a HO completed message.

27. The program of claim 23, where said transmission originates from the target eNode B and sent to the source eNode B, and where said HO control related RRC message is a release resource message.

28. The program of claim 21, where said determination is based upon at least one of:

automatic repeat request;

quality of service;

available network resources during the HO; and

efficiency-simplicity trade-off factors of the network operation and performance.

29. The program of claim 21, where said status information comprises:

a last in-order received radio link control service data unit sequence number;

a last in-order received packet data convergence protocol service data unit sequence number;

information descriptive of missing segments and a last received segment;

or

information descriptive of missing service data units and a last received service data unit.

30. The program of claim 21, where the content of said status information is variable from one instance of a HO to another instance.

31. An apparatus comprising:

means for determining content of a layer 2 status information element;

means for including said status information into a handover (HO) control related radio resource control (RRC) message; and

means for transmitting said resulting HO control related RRC message,

where the HO is initiated by a network and the HO includes communication between a source eNode B and a target eNode B.

32. The apparatus of claim 31, where said status information includes at least one of an uplink layer 2 status information element and a downlink layer 2 status information element.

33. The apparatus of claim 32, where said HO control related RRC message is one of:

a HO command message from the source eNode B sent to a user equipment (UE);

a HO confirm message from a user equipment (UE) sent to the target eNode B;

a HO completed message from the target eNode B sent to the source eNode B; and

a release resource message from the target eNode B sent to the source eNode B.

34. The apparatus of claim 31, where said determination is based upon at least one of:

automatic repeat request;

quality of service;

available network resources during the HO; and

efficiency-simplicity trade-off factors of the network operation and performance.

35. The apparatus of claim 31, where said status information comprises:

a last in-order received radio link control service data unit sequence number;

a last in-order received packet data convergence protocol service data unit sequence number;

information descriptive of missing segments and a last received segment;

or

information descriptive of missing service data units and a last received service data unit.