Method and apparatus for controlling discontinuous reception in mobile communication system

• US 20100111039A1
• Filed: 11/02/2009
• Published: 05/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Velde, Himke Van Der, Kim, Soeng Hun
• Granted Patent: US 8,902,813 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/331
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0225 using monitoring of external events, e.g. the presence of a signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/28 Discontinuous transmission [DTX]; Discontinuous reception [DRX]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A method and apparatus is configured to control a discontinuous reception (DRX) in a mobile communication system. The method includes: interrupting the DRX operation when a radio resource control (RRC) connection reestablishment procedure is initiated; transmitting an RRC connection reestablishment request message from the user equipment to an evolved node B (ENB); receiving an RRC connection reestablishment message from the ENB to the user equipment; and resuming, if the received RRC connection reestablishment message contains new DRX setting information, the interrupted DRX operation according to the new DRX setting information. The DRX operation can be interrupted or resumed at a proper time point when an RRC connection is reestablished or reconfigured or a handover is performed, thereby reducing power consumption in the user equipment.

Claims

1. A method for controlling discontinuous reception (DRX) of user equipment in a mobile communication system, the method comprising:

interrupting the DRX operation when a radio resource control (RRC) connection reestablishment procedure is initiated;

transmitting, by the user equipment, an RRC connection reestablishment request message to an evolved node B (ENB);

receiving, by the user equipment, an RRC connection reestablishment message from the ENB; and

resuming, if the received RRC connection reestablishment message contains new DRX setting information, the interrupted DRX operation according to the new DRX setting information.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

resuming, if the received RRC connection reestablishment message does not contain new DRX setting information, the interrupted DRX operation according to DRX setting information that was set before the DRX operation was interrupted.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, if the received RRC connection reestablishment message does not contain new DRX setting information, an RRC connection reconfiguration message.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

resuming, if the received RRC connection reconfiguration message contains new DRX setting information, the interrupted DRX operation according to the new DRX setting information.

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

resuming, if the received RRC connection reconfiguration message does not contain DRX operation setting information, the DRX operation according to the DRX setting information that was set before the DRX operation was interrupted.

6. A method for controlling discontinuous reception (DRX) when user equipment performs a handover, the method comprising:

performing measurement according to measurement configuration received from a source evolved node B (source ENB);

transmitting a measurement result report message for a measurement that is set to interrupt the DRX operation to the source ENB and interrupting the DRX operation; and

resuming the interrupted DRX operation after the user equipment receives a handover command from the source ENB and has completed a random access with a target evolved node B (target ENB).

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the measurement configuration comprises at least one of a measurement identifier, a measurement object identifier, a measurement report configuration identifier, and a DRX interruption indicator (OutOfDrx indicator).

8. The method of claim 6, wherein, if the received handover command contains new DRX operation setting information, the interrupted DRX operations is resumed according to the new DRX operation setting information.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein, if the received handover command does not contain new DRX operation setting information, the interrupted DRX operations is resumed according to the DRX setting information that was set before the DRX operation was interrupted.

10. An apparatus capable of controlling a discontinuous reception (DRX) in a mobile communication system, the apparatus comprising:

a radio resource controller configured to interrupt the DRX operation when a radio resource control (RRC) connection reestablishment procedures is initiated, the radio resource controller further configured to resume, if an RRC connection reestablishment message contains new DRX operation setting information, the interrupted DRX operation according the new DRX operation setting information; and

a DRX controller configured to control the DRX operation for the transmission and reception of the user equipment according to the control of the radio resource controller.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein, if the received RRC connection reestablishment message does not contain new DRX setting information, the radio resource controller is configured to resume the interrupted DRX operation according to DRX setting information that was set before the DRX operation was interrupted.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the radio resource controller is configured to receive an RRC connection reconfiguration message if the received RRC connection reestablishment message does not contain new DRX setting information.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the radio resource controller is configured to resume the interrupted DRX operation according to the new DRX setting information if the received RRC connection reconfiguration message contains new DRX setting information.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein, if the received RRC connection reconfiguration message does not contain DRX operation setting information, the radio resource controller is configured to resume the DRX operation according to the DRX setting information that was set before the DRX operation was interrupted.

15. An apparatus capable of controlling discontinuous reception (DRX) when a handover is performed, comprising:

a radio resource controller configured to interrupt the DRX operation when user equipment transmits a measurement result report message for a measurement set to interrupt a DRX to a source evolved node B (source ENB), and resume the interrupted DRX operation when the user equipment receives a handover command from the source ENB and completes a rand access with a target evolved node B (target ENB); and

a DRX controller configured to control the DRX operation for the transmission and reception of the user equipment according to the control of the radio resource controller.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the measurement set comprises at least one of a measurement identifier, a measurement object identifier, a measurement report configuration identifier, and a DRX interruption indicator (OutOfDrx indicator).

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein, if the received handover command contains new DRX operation setting information, the radio resource controller is configured to resume the interrupted DRX operation according to the new DRX operation setting information.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein, if the received handover command does not contains new DRX operation setting information, the radio resource controller is configured to resume the interrupted DRX operation according to the DRX setting information that was set before the DRX operation was interrupted.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising a transceiver configured to be turned on or off according to the control of the DRX controller.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, further comprising a HARQ processor configured to processes a first HARQ packet, received by the transceiver, via an HARQ operation and further configured to transmit a second HARQ packet with no error to a de-multiplexer.