METHOD AND DEVICE TO SUPPORT SITE ACTIVATION USING A HAILING CHANNEL

• US 20140269521A1
• Filed: 03/13/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: ECONOMY, GEORGE R., VILMUR, ROGER M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,982,825 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information

Abstract

A BS tunes its receiver to the hailing channel and monitors for a hailing signal. A subscriber unit (SU) scans a first set of control channels for a control signal transmitted by a trunked base station (BS) in a trunked radio system. In response to failing to locate a control signal on any one of the first set of control channels, the SU tunes its transmitter to a hailing channel and transmits a hailing signal. In response to receiving a hailing signal from a SU, the BS tunes to a transmit portion of a trunked control channel and transmits a control signal. And the BS subsequently tunes to a receive portion of the trunked control channel and monitors for a registration response. Subsequently, the SU scans a second set of control channels for a control signal transmitted by a BS in the system.

Claims

5-1. The subscriber unit of claim 1, wherein the hailing channel is a particular channel, preconfigured in a trunked radio system in which the subscriber unit operates, that all de-activated trunked base stations in the system monitor for a hailing signal from subscriber units seeking to activate one or more de-activated trunked base stations so as to receive communications services from the trunked radio system.

11. A trunked base station comprising:

a memory;

a transceiver comprising a transmitter and a receiver; and

a processor configured to;

tune the receiver to a pre-configured hailing channel and monitor the hailing channel for a hailing signal indicating a presence of a subscriber unit within the base station'"'"'s coverage area; and

responsive to receiving a particular hailing signal from a particular subscriber unit, tune the transmitter to a transmit portion of a pre-configured trunked control channel and transmit, via the transmitter, a control signal, and tune the receiver to a receive portion of the pre-configured trunked control channel and monitor, via the receiver, for a registration response to the control signal.

12. The base station of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to, while monitoring for the hailing signal, refrain from transmitting signals on any control or traffic channels.

13. The base station of claim 11, wherein the control signal is one of a continuous and periodic signal broadcast on the transmit portion of the control channel within the base station'"'"'s coverage area, a control channel being a channel, including the receive and the transmit portions, dedicated for transmission and reception of control signaling, including the assignment of traffic channels for newly requested radio calls.

14. The base station of claim 13, wherein the control channel is a time division multiple access (TDMA) channel, and the transmit portion and the receive portion of the control channel are separated by time slots on the TDMA control channel.

15. The base station of claim 13, wherein the control channel is a frequency division multiple access (FDMA) channel pair, and the transmit portion and the receive portion of the control channel are separated by frequency.

16. The base station of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to, responsive to failing to receive the registration response to the control signal, re-tune the receiver to the pre-configured hailing channel and monitor the hailing channel for another hailing signal.

17. The base station of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to, responsive to receiving the registration response to the control signal from the subscriber unit, continue to transmit the control signal on the control channel via the transmitter, and monitor for new call requests on the control channel via the receiver.

18. The base station of claim 17, wherein the processor is further configured to, responsive to receiving the registration response to the control signal from the subscriber unit, transmit a notice of registration to a radio controller including an identifier identifying the subscriber unit so that other base stations may be instructed to halt transmitting their corresponding control signals.

19. The base station of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to, responsive to receiving an indication from a radio controller that the subscriber unit has registered with a different base station, halt the transmitting of the control signal.

20. The base station of claim 11, wherein the hailing channel is a particular channel, preconfigured in a trunked radio system in which the trunked base station operates, that all de-activated trunked base stations in the system monitor for a hailing signal from a subscriber unit seeking to activate one or more de-activated trunked base stations so as to receive communications services from the trunked radio system.

21. The base station of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to, responsive to receiving the registration response to the control signal from the subscriber unit, inform the subscriber unit, via the transmitter, of the availability of a second adjacent radio site including identifying where a second control channel for the second adjacent radio site could be found.