METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR POWER CONSUMPTION MANAGEMENT DURING DISCONTINUOUS RECEPTION

• US 20130176873A1
• Filed: 09/20/2012
• Published: 07/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Ji, Zhu, Shi, Jason, Sebeni, Johnson, Su, Li, Damji, Navid
• Granted Patent: US 9,686,750 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/252
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0283 with sequential power up or power down of successive circuit blocks, e.g. switching on the local oscillator before RF or mixer stages
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/28 Discontinuous transmission [DTX]; Discontinuous reception [DRX]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for adaptively adjusting temporal parameters such as e.g., wake-up times of digital tracking algorithms (such as timing, frequency and power control). In one exemplary embodiment, wake-up times for tracking loops are based on success/error metrics (e.g., Block Error Rate (BLER), Bit Error Rate (BER), Packet Error Rate (PER), Cyclic Redundancy Checks (CRC), etc.) of one or more previous discontinuous reception (DRX) cycles. In a second embodiment, wake-up times for tracking loops are based on residual frequency and timing errors, etc.

Claims

1. A method for adaptively managing a tracking loop component of a mobile radio communications device, the method comprising:

storing, within a memory in the mobile radio communications device, a wake-up time for the tracking loop component; and

for each of a plurality of discontinuous reception (DRX) cycles;

initializing the tracking loop component using the wake-up time, such that the tracking loop component is powered on for a reception period during the DRX cycle;

receiving data during the reception period;

measuring performance data for the data received during the reception period; and

updating the wake-up time based on the performance data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the performance information comprises a Block Error Rate (BLER).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the tracking loop component comprises a tracking loop selected from the group consisting of (i) a frequency tracking loop (FTL), (ii) a time tracking loop (TTL), and (iii) power tracking loop.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the wake-up time is adjusted with a multiplication by a scaling factor.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wake-up time is adjusted with an addition or subtraction of an increment factor.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the updating the wake-up time based on the performance data includes increasing the wake-up time if the performance data indicates performance below a performance threshold and decreasing the wake-up time if the performance data indicates performance above the performance threshold.

7. A long term evolution (LTE)-enabled wireless network user equipment (UE) mobile radio communications apparatus comprising:

a processor;

a wireless interface; and

power management logic in communication with the processor and the wireless interface and configured to;

initialize a tracking loop runtime, the initialization characterized by a wake-up time;

decode a logical channel associated with the network;

determine an error measure associated with the decode of the logical channel; and

based on the error measure being less than a target value, reduce the wake-up time.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the power management logic is further configured to, when the error measure is greater than a target value, increase the wake-up time.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the logical channel comprises one of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), or physical downlink shared channel (PDCCH).

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the error measure comprises any of block error rate (BLER), bit error rate (BER), packet error rate (PER), and Cyclic Redundancy Checks (CRC).

11. Computer readable apparatus having a plurality of computer readable instructions stored thereon, the instructions configured to, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

obtain a performance measure associated with communicating first data over a wireless link using a temporal parameter;

store the performance measure in a storage medium;

obtain another performance measure associated with communicating second data over the wireless link using the temporal parameter; and

based on a comparison between the another performance measure and the stored performance measure;

adjust the temporal parameter; and

store the adjusted temporal parameter in the storage medium.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein:

the performance measure comprises a characteristic of a tracking loop; and

the temporal parameter comprises an initialization time of the tracking loop.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to:

when the performance measure associated with the second data is greater than the stored performance measure, cause the adjustment to shorten the initialization time.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the instructions are further configured to cause the processor to:

when the second performance measure is less than the stored performance measure, cause the adjustment to lengthen the initialization time.

15. A method of operating a base station in a long term evolution (LTE) cellular wireless communications network, the method comprising:

configuring one or more mobile devices operable within the network to conserve energy associated with a plurality of discontinuous reception cycles, the configuration causing the one or more mobile devices to;

access historic performance information;

reduce one or more parameters of a tracking loop at least in part on the historic performance information;

operate the tracking loop according to the one or more reduced parameters; and

update the historic performance information based at least in part on the reduction.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the one or more parameters comprises an initialization time of the tracking loop.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the configuring the one or more mobile devices enables the one or more mobile devices to operate in radio resource connection (RRC) idle mode within one or more of the plurality of discontinuous reception cycles, the operation in RRC idle mode comprising:

entry into a low power state characterized by powering-off the tracking loop;

based on an event, power-up of the tracking loop and configuration of tracking loop initialization time;

decode of a paging packet, the decode of the paging packet characterized by an error measure;

comparison of the error measure to another error measure of the historic performance information; and

based on the error measure being less than the another error measure, reduction of the initialization time.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein configuring the one or more mobile devices enables the one or more mobile devices to communicate with the base station in radio resource connection (RRC) connected mode using one or more of the plurality of discontinuous reception cycles, the communication comprising:

decoding a downlink (DL) packet, the decoding characterized by an error measure;

entering a low power state characterized by powering-off the tracking loop;

based on an event, powering-up the tracking loop and configuring tracking loop initialization time;

decoding another DL packet, the decode another DL packet characterized by another error measure; and

based on the another error measure being less than the error measure, reducing the initialization time;

wherein the historic performance information comprises at least one of the error measure and the another error measure.

19. A wireless base station apparatus, comprising:

one or more processors;

at least one wireless cellular interface in data communication with the one or more processors; and

power management logic in data communication with the one or more processors and the wireless interface, and configured to reduce energy use associated with operation of user equipment (UE) apparatus under discontinuous reception, by at least;

initialization of a tracking loop runtime, the initialization characterized by a wake-up time;

decode of a logical channel associated with the network;

determination of an error measure associated with the decode of the logical channel; and

based on the error measure being less than a target value, reduction of the wake-up time.

20. Computer readable apparatus comprising a plurality of computer readable instructions configured to, when executed by a processor in a mobile wireless device, cause the mobile wireless device to:

obtain a performance measure associated with communicating first data over a wireless link using temporal parameter;

store the performance measure in a storage medium;

obtain another performance measure associated with communicating additional data over the wireless link using the temporal parameter; and

based on a comparison between the another performance measure and the stored performance measure;

adjust the temporal parameter; and

store the adjusted temporal parameter in the storage medium.