Method and Arrangement for Signaling of Parameters in a Wireless Network

• US 20110312316A1
• Filed: 10/01/2010
• Published: 12/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Original Assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
• Inventors: Baldemair, Robert, Sagfors, Mats
• Granted Patent: US 9,106,380 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/422.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/101 for measurement of specific parameters of the transmitter or components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/001 the frequencies being arranged in component carriers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0048 Allocation of pilot signals, i.e. of signals known to the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0053 Allocation of signaling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0073 Allocation arrangements that take into account other cell interferences for intercell interference mitigation or co-ordination in orthogonal multiplex systems H04J11/005
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0091 Signaling for the administration of the divided path
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information

Abstract

According to some embodiments, a method in a user equipment (920) is provided. According to the method, the user equipment receives, over a first cell (970) configured on a carrier frequency, at least one parameter associated with a second cell (980) configured on a carrier frequency. The at least one parameter comprises a cell identity. The user equipment (920) then derives (1050) at least one physical layer characteristic for the second cell (980) based on the received at least one parameter. Thereby, the user equipment (920) is able to receive transmissions over the second cell (980), even if it could not initially detect the presence of the cell.

Claims

1-30. -30. (canceled)

31. A method in a user equipment, the method comprising:

receiving, over a first cell configured on a carrier frequency, at least one parameter associated with a second cell configured on a carrier frequency, wherein the at least one parameter comprises a cell identity; and

deriving at least one physical layer characteristic for the second cell based on the received at least one parameter, thereby enabling the user equipment to receive transmissions over the second cell.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising receiving, over the first cell, an indication that the user equipment should use the received at least one parameter to derive at least one physical layer characteristic for the second cell.

33. The method of claim 31, further comprising receiving, over the first cell, an indication that no cell-specific reference signals are detectable in the second cell.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein, in response to the indication that no cell-specific reference signals are detectable, the user equipment does not attempt to perform any measurement on cell-specific reference signals in the second cell.

35. The method of claim 31, wherein the at least one physical layer characteristic comprises one or more of:

a scrambling code, a reference signal configuration, a control signaling configuration.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein at least one physical layer characteristic comprises one or more of:

a PUSCH scrambling code, a PDSCH scrambling code, a L1/L2 control signaling scrambling code.

37. The method of claim 35, wherein the at least one physical layer characteristic comprises one or more of:

a cell-specific reference signal configuration, a sounding reference signal configuration, an MBSFN reference signal configuration, an uplink demodulation reference signal configuration, a reference signal hopping pattern, a PUSCH hopping pattern, a downlink control channel configuration, an uplink control channel configuration.

38. The method of claim 31, wherein the at least one parameter further comprises one or more of:

carrier frequency, number of transmit antenna ports, bandwidth, cyclic prefix length indication.

39. The method of claim 31, further comprising receiving, over the first cell, information indicating a user-specific reference signal configuration associated with the user equipment in the second cell.

40. The method of claim 31, wherein the at least one parameter is received over a broadcast channel.

41. The method of claim 31, wherein the at least one parameter is received in a dedicated message to the user equipment.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein the cell identity is comprised in a measurement request.

43. The method of claim 42, further comprising detecting the second cell by means of the cell identity received in the measurement request message.

44. The method of claim 31, wherein the at least one physical layer characteristics comprises a reference signal configuration, the method further comprising:

performing a measurement of a signal received over the second cell, by means of the reference signal configuration; and

transmitting a measurement report.

45. The method of claim 41, wherein the cell identity is included in a request to add a secondary cell.

46. The method of claim 45, further comprising:

adding a secondary cell corresponding to the received cell identity.

47. The method of claim 31, wherein the first cell is configured on the same carrier frequency as the second cell.

48. The method of claim 31, wherein if the user equipment does not receive one or more of the parameters carrier frequency, number of transmit antenna ports, bandwidth, or cyclic prefix length indication, the user equipment assumes that the parameters not received have the same value in the second cell as in the first cell.

49. A method in a network node, the network node serving a first cell configured on a carrier frequency, the method comprising:

transmitting, over the first cell, at least one parameter associated with a second cell configured on a carrier frequency, wherein the at least one parameter comprises a cell identity, and an indication to use the at least one parameter to derive at least one physical layer characteristic for the second cell.

50. The method of claim 49, wherein the network node serves the second cell, the method further comprising transmitting synchronization signals, reference signals or parts of system information over the second cell with reduced or zero power.

51. The method of claim 49, wherein the at least one parameter further comprises one or more of:

carrier frequency, number of transmit antenna ports, bandwidth, cyclic prefix length indication.

52. The method of claim 49, further comprising transmitting, over the first cell, an indication that no cell-specific reference signals are detectable in the second cell.

53. The method of claim 49, wherein a user equipment is connected to the first cell, the method further comprising transmitting, over the first cell, information indicating a user-specific reference signal configuration associated with the user equipment in the second cell.

54. The method of claim 49, where the transmitting is performed over a broadcast channel.

55. The method of claim 49, wherein a user equipment is connected to the first cell, and the transmitting is performed in a dedicated message to the user equipment.

56. The method of claim 55, wherein the cell identity is comprised in a measurement request transmitted to the user equipment.

57. The method of claim 55, wherein the cell identity is comprised in a request to add a secondary cell, transmitted to the user equipment.

58. The method of claim 49, wherein for each of the parameters carrier frequency, number of transmit antenna ports, bandwidth, or cyclic prefix length indication, the network node transmits the parameter only if it has a different value in the second cell than in the first cell.

59. A mobile terminal, comprising a transceiver and one or more processing circuits, wherein the processing circuits are configured to:

receive, over a first cell configured on a carrier frequency, at least one parameter associated with a second cell configured on a carrier frequency, wherein the at least one parameter comprises a cell identity; and

derive at least one physical layer characteristic for the second cell based on the received at least one parameter, thereby enabling the user equipment to receive transmissions over the second cell.

60. A network node, comprising a transceiver and one or more processing circuits, the processing circuits being configured to:

transmit, over a first cell configured on a carrier frequency, at least one parameter associated with a second cell configured on a carrier frequency, wherein the at least one parameter comprises a cell identity, and an indication to use the at least one parameter to derive at least one physical layer characteristic for the second cell.