SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CHANNEL TIMING OFFSET

• US 20110044261A1
• Filed: 08/21/2009
• Published: 02/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: McBeath, Sean, Xu, Hua, Earnshaw, Mark, Heo, Youn Hyoung, Fong, Mo-Han, Cai, Zhijun
• Granted Patent: US 8,848,623 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0053 Allocation of signaling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0055 Physical resource allocation for ACK/NACK for physical mapping arrangements in ARQ protocols H04L1/1861
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0091 Signaling for the administration of the divided path
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/23 in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal

Abstract

A method for receiving data using a user agent (UA) configured to communicate with a wireless communications network using a first and second communication carrier is presented. The method includes receiving control information during a first time interval. The control information allocates a resource on at least one of the first communication carrier and the second communication carrier. When the control information allocates a resource on the first communication carrier, the method includes receiving data using the first communication carrier during a second time interval. When the control information allocates a resource on the second communication carrier, the method includes receiving data using the second communication carrier during a third time interval, the third time interval being offset from the first time interval.

Claims

1. A method for receiving data using a user agent (UA) configured to communicate with a wireless communications network using a first and second communication carrier, comprising:

receiving control information during a first time interval, the control information allocating a resource on at least one of the first communication carrier and the second communication carrier;

when the control information allocates a resource on the first communication carrier, receiving data using the first communication carrier during a second time interval; and

when the control information allocates a resource on the second communication carrier, receiving data using the second communication carrier during a third time interval, the third time interval being offset from the first time interval.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first time interval, the second time interval, and the third time interval identify subframes on at least one of the first and second communication carrier.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first time interval occurs at approximately the same time as the second time interval.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second time interval is offset from the first time interval.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first time interval is a first subframe on the first communication carrier, the second time interval is a second subframe on the first communication carrier, and the third time interval is a third subframe on the second communication carrier, the third subframe being subsequent to the first subframe.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the third subframe on the second communication carrier is offset from the first subframe on the first communication carrier by 4 subframes.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the control information is received using the first communication carrier.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset between the third time interval and the first time interval is less than one subframe.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset of between the third time interval and the first time interval is configured using Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset between the third time interval and the first time interval is approximately 4 subframes.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset between the third time interval and the first time interval is implicitly signaled by a carrier index value of the second communication carrier.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset between the third time interval and the first time interval is implicitly signaled by a predefined mapping rule.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the predefined mapping rule uses a location of the control information on a Physical Downlink Control CHannel (PDCCH) provided by the first communication carrier.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset between the third time interval and the first time interval is preconfigured.

15. The method of claim 1, including, when the control information allocates a resource on a third communication carrier, receiving data using the third communication carrier during the second time interval.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the control information allocates a resource on at least one of the first and second communication carrier in accordance with a quality of service (QoS) requirement of the wireless communications network.

17. The method of claim 1, including:

when the control information allocates a resource on the first communication carrier, transmitting at least one of an acknowledgement and a non-acknowledgement (ACK/NACK) message using a first ACK/NACK resource; and

when the control information allocates a resource on the second communication carrier, transmitting an ACK/NACK message using a second ACK/NACK resource.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the allocated resource for the ACK/NACK is signaled using Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the allocated resource for the ACK/NACK is specified using a lowest control channel element (CCE) on the control channel and an indicator of the second communication carrier.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the offset of the third time interval is dynamically signaled within the control channel.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the offset of the third time interval is dynamically signaled using a downlink control information (DCI) message transmitted over the control channel.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the offset of the third time interval is dynamically signaled using a resource location of a data control information (DCI) transmission within the control channel.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein the control information allocates a plurality of resources on the second communication carrier, each of the plurality of resources being allocated at different subframes on the second communication carrier.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the control information is transmitted over the physical downlink shared channel of the first communication carrier.

25. A user agent (UA) configured to communicate with a wireless communications network using a first and second communication carrier, comprising:

a processor, the processor being configured to;

receive control information during a first time interval, the control information allocating a resource on at least one of the first communication carrier and the second communication carrier,

when the control information allocates a resource on the first communication carrier, receive data using the first communication carrier during a second time interval, and

when the control information allocates a resource on the second communication carrier, receive data using the second communication carrier during a third time interval, the third time interval being offset from the first time interval.

26. The UA of claim 25, wherein the first time interval is a first subframe on the first communication carrier, the second time interval is a second subframe on the first communication carrier, and the third time interval is a third subframe on the second communication carrier, the third subframe being subsequent to the first subframe.

27. The UA of claim 25, wherein the control information is received using the first communication carrier.

28. The UA of claim 25, wherein the offset of the third time interval from the first time interval is less than one subframe.

29. The UA of claim 25, wherein the offset of the third time interval from the first time interval is configured using Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages.

30. The UA of claim 25, wherein the offset of the third time interval from the first time interval is approximately 4 milliseconds (4 ms).

31. The UA of claim 25, wherein, when the control information allocates a resource on a third communication carrier, the processor is configured to receive data using the third communication carrier during a fourth time interval.

32. The UA of claim 25, wherein:

when the control information allocates a resource on the first communication carrier, the processor is configured to transmit at least one of an acknowledgement and a non-acknowledgement (ACK/NACK) message using a first ACK/NACK resource; and

when the control information allocates a resource on the second communication carrier, the processor is configured to transmit an ACK/NACK message using a second ACK/NACK resource.

33. A wireless communications system for allocating resources on at least one of a first and second communication carrier of the wireless communications system to a user agent (UA), comprising:

a base station, the base station being configured to;

transmit control information during a first time interval using a control channel of the base station, the control information allocating a resource on at least one of the first communication carrier and the second communication carrier;

when the control information allocates a resource on the first communication carrier, transmit data using the first communication carrier during a second time interval; and

when the control information allocates a resource on the second communication carrier, transmit data using the second communication carrier during a third time interval, the third time interval being offset from the first time interval.

34. The wireless communications system of claim 33, wherein the first time interval is a first subframe on the first communication carrier, the second time interval is a second subframe on the first communication carrier, and the third time interval is a third subframe on the second communication carrier, the third subframe being subsequent to the first subframe.

35. The wireless communications system of claim 33, wherein the control information is received using the first communication carrier.

36. The wireless communications system of claim 33, wherein the offset of the third time interval from the first time interval is less than one subframe.

37. The wireless communications system of claim 33, wherein the offset of the third time interval from the first time interval is configured using Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages.

38. The wireless communications system of claim 33, wherein the offset of the third time interval from the first time interval is approximately 4 milliseconds (4 ms).

39. The wireless communications system of claim 33, including, when the control information allocates a resource on a third communication carrier, the base station is configured to transmit data using the third communication carrier during a fourth time interval.

40. A wireless communications system for allocating resources on at least one of a first and second communication carrier of the wireless communications system to a user agent (UA), comprising:

a first base station providing the first communication carrier, the first base station being configured to;

transmit control information during a first time interval using a control channel of the first base station, the control information allocating a resource on at least one of the first communication carrier and the second communication carrier, and

when the control information allocates a resource on the first communication carrier, transmit data using the first communication carrier during the first time interval; and

a second base station providing the second communication carrier and being configured to, when the control information allocates a resource on the second communication carrier, transmit data using the second communication carrier during a second time interval, the second time interval being offset from the first time interval.