METHOD OF JOINT RESOURCE ALLOCATION AND CLUSTERING OF BASE STATIONS

• US 20100034151A1
• Filed: 08/07/2008
• Published: 02/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/07/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: HUANG, HOWARD C., BOCCARDI, FEDERICO, ALEXIOU, ANGELIKI
• Granted Patent: US 8,391,206 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/022 Site diversity; Macro-diversity using two or more spaced independent antennas H04B7/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0408 using two or more beams, i.e. beam diversity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/542 using measured or perceived quality

Abstract

The present invention provides a method for implementation in a first functional entity in a wireless communication system that includes a first plurality of base stations for providing wireless connectivity to at least one mobile unit. In one embodiment of the method includes receiving, at the first functional entity, channel state information associated with a plurality of wireless communication channels between the first plurality of base stations and the mobile unit. Selection of a second plurality of base stations from the first plurality of base stations is performed jointly with resource allocation to the second plurality of base stations using the channel state information. The first functional entity then communicates information indicative of the selected second plurality of base stations and the allocated resources to the selected second plurality of base stations.

Claims

1. A method for implementation in a first functional entity in a wireless communication system that includes a first plurality of base stations for providing wireless connectivity to at least one mobile unit, comprising:

receiving, at the first functional entity, channel state information associated with a plurality of wireless communication channels between the first plurality of base stations and said at least one mobile unit;

jointly selecting a second plurality of base stations from the first plurality of base stations and allocating resources to the second plurality of base stations for communication with said at least one mobile unit, the joint selection and allocation being performed using the channel state information; and

communicating information indicative of the selected second plurality of base stations and the allocated resources to the selected second plurality of base stations.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the channel state information comprises receiving information indicative of at least one of a phase of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, amplitude of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, long-term variations in the plurality of wireless communication channels, fast fading of the plurality of wireless communication channels, covariance of the plurality of wireless communication channels, and a location of said at least one mobile unit.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving information indicating scheduling requirements of said at least one mobile unit.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein jointly selecting the second plurality of base stations and allocating resources to the second plurality of base stations comprises jointly selecting and allocating resources using the channel state information and the scheduling requirements.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein jointly selecting the second plurality of base stations and allocating resources to the second plurality of base stations comprises determining at least one of a beamforming coefficient, a power allocation, indexes of the second plurality of base stations, or an index of said at least one mobile user.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the second plurality of base stations comprises selecting a subset of the first plurality of base stations that includes less than all of the first plurality of base stations.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein selecting the subset of the first plurality of base stations comprises selecting one of a predetermined plurality of subset of the first plurality of base stations.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein selecting the subset of the first plurality of base stations comprises iteratively adding base stations from the first plurality of base stations to the subset.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein selecting the subset of the first plurality of base stations comprises iteratively adding base stations based on at least one of a throughput until the number of base stations in the selected subset reaches a selected maximum dimension or a maximum backhaul throughput.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein communicating the information indicative of the selected second plurality of base stations and the allocated resources comprises transmitting the information to the second plurality of base stations so that signals transmitted or received over the plurality of wireless communication channels between the second plurality of base stations and said at least one mobile unit can be combined coherently.

11. A method for implementation in a first base station in a wireless communication system that includes a first plurality of base stations for providing wireless connectivity to at least one mobile unit, comprising:

transmitting, to a first functional entity in the wireless communication system, channel state information associated with at least one wireless communication channel between the first base station and said at least one mobile unit;

receiving, from the first functional entity, information indicating that the first base station is one of a second plurality of base stations that is jointly selected from the first plurality of base stations and information indicating resources that are jointly allocated to the second plurality of base stations for communication with said at least one mobile unit, the joint selection and allocation being performed by the first functional entity using the channel state information.

12. The method of claim 11, comprising measuring the channel state information associated with said at least one wireless communication channel and then transmitting the measured channel state information to the first functional entity.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein transmitting the channel state information comprises transmitting information indicative of at least one of a phase of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, amplitude of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, long-term variations in the plurality of wireless communication channels, fast fading of the plurality of wireless communication channels, covariance of the plurality of wireless communication channels, and a location of said at least one mobile unit.

14. The method of claim 12, comprising transmitting at least one scheduling requirement associated with said at least one mobile unit so that the first functional entity can jointly select and allocate resources to the second plurality of base stations based on the channel state information and said at least one scheduling requirement.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein receiving the information indicating the allocated resources comprises receiving information indicating at least one of a transmission time, a beamforming coefficient, a power allocation, indexes of the second plurality of base stations, or at least one index of said at least one mobile user.

16. The method of claim 12, comprising sharing at least one of data intended for transmission to said at least one mobile unit or data received from said at least one mobile unit with the second plurality of base stations.

17. The method of claim 16, comprising coordinating operation of the second plurality of base stations so that signals transmitted or received over the plurality of wireless communication channels between the second plurality of base stations and said at least one mobile unit can be combined coherently.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein coordinating operation of the second plurality of base stations comprises transmitting, from the first base station, information using the allocated resources so that the transmitted information combines coherently at said at least one mobile unit with the same information transmitted by other base stations in the second plurality of base stations.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein coordinating operation of the second plurality of base stations comprises:

collecting information received from said at least one mobile unit at each of the second plurality of base stations; and

coherently combining the received information.

20. A resource allocator in a wireless communication system that includes a first plurality of base stations for providing wireless connectivity to at least one mobile unit, the resource allocator configured to:

receive channel state information associated with a plurality of wireless communication channels between the first plurality of base stations and said at least one mobile unit;

jointly select a second plurality of base stations from the first plurality of base stations and allocate resources to the second plurality of base stations for communication with said at least one mobile unit, the joint selection and allocation being performed using the channel state information; and

communicate information indicative of the selected second plurality of base stations and the allocated resources to the selected second plurality of base stations.

21. The resource allocator of claim 20, wherein the resource allocator is configured to perform the joint selection using at least one of a phase of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, amplitude of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, long-term variations in the plurality of wireless communication channels, fast fading of the plurality of wireless communication channels, covariance of the plurality of wireless communication channels, and a location of said at least one mobile unit.

22. The resource allocator of claim 20, wherein the resource allocator is configured to determine, using the channel state information, at least one of a beamforming coefficient, a power allocation, indexes of the second plurality of base stations, or an index of said at least one mobile user.

24. The first base station of claim 20, wherein the first base station is configured to transmit at least one of a phase of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, amplitude of a signal transmitted over the wireless communication channels, long-term variations in the plurality of wireless communication channels, fast fading of the plurality of wireless communication channels, covariance of the plurality of wireless communication channels, and a location of said at least one mobile unit.

25. The first base station of claim 20, wherein the first base station is configured to receive, from the first functional entity, at least one of a beamforming coefficient, a power allocation, indexes of the second plurality of base stations, or an index of said at least one mobile user.

23. A first base station in a wireless communication system that includes a first plurality of base stations for providing wireless connectivity to at least one mobile unit, the first base station is configured to:

transmit, to a first functional entity in the wireless communication system, channel state information associated with at least one wireless communication channel between the first base station and said at least one mobile unit;

receive, from the first functional entity, information indicating that the first base station is one of a second plurality of base stations that is jointly selected from the first plurality of base stations and information indicating resources that are jointly allocated to the second plurality of base stations for communication with said at least one mobile unit, the joint selection and allocation being performed by the first functional entity using the channel state information.