TELECOMMUNICATIONS APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR COMMUNICATING WITH A FIRST AND A SECOND TYPE OF DEVICES

• US 20150043408A1
• Filed: 04/10/2013
• Published: 02/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SCA IPLA Holdings Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Morioka, Yuichi
• Granted Patent: US 9,756,567 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/311
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0219 where the power saving management affects multiple terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A wireless telecommunications system including at least one base station, a first terminal device and a second terminal device, wherein the first terminal device is a terminal device of a first type and the second terminal device is a terminal device of a second type, the second type being different from the first type, and wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the first terminal device in a synchronous manner and to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner.

Claims

1. A wireless telecommunications system comprising at least one base station, a first terminal device and a second terminal device, wherein the first terminal device is a terminal device of a first type and the second terminal device is a terminal device of a second type, the second type being different from the first type, and wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the first terminal device in a synchronous manner and to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner.

2. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner only during time periods determined in accordance with a predefined timing schedule.

3. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner using a predefined frequency range which is narrower than and within an operating frequency range for the at least one base station.

4. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an indication of an identity of the second terminal device.

5. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises user-plane data for the second terminal device.

6. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 5, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an indication of a coding scheme for the user-plane data for the second terminal device.

7. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an indication of a time and/or frequency on which user-plane data for the second terminal device is transmitted by the at least one base station.

8. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner by transmitting said data in association with a predefined signature sequence.

9. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 8, wherein the at least one base station is configured to transmit the data which is specific to the second terminal device in a packet format for which the predefined signature sequence comprises a portion selected from the group comprising a pre-amble portion, a mid-amble portion, a post-amble portion, a pilot portion, and a scattered pilot portion.

10. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 9, wherein the packet format further comprises a header portion comprising an indication of an identity of the second terminal device.

11. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 9, wherein the packet format further comprises a payload portion comprising user-plane data for the second terminal device.

12. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 11, wherein the packet format further comprises an indication of resources encompassed by the payload portion of the packet which are not used to convey the data which is specific to the second terminal device.

13. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 8, wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to another terminal device in a non-synchronous manner by transmitting said data specific to said another terminal device in association with the predefined signature sequence.

14. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 8, wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to another terminal device in a non-synchronous manner by transmitting said data specific to said another terminal device in association with another predefined signature sequence.

15. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 8, wherein the predefined signature sequence is one of a set of predefined signature sequences for use by the at least one base station for non-synchronously communicating data with terminal devices of the second type.

16. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 15, wherein the predefined signature sequence is one of a subset of the set of predefined signature sequences, and wherein the base station is configured to select one of the subset of the set of predefined signature sequences to be used for non-synchronously communicating data with the second terminal device.

17. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 8, wherein the second terminal device is configured to search transmissions from the at least one base station to identity the predefined signature sequence and to determine if an identified transmission of the predefined signature sequence is associated with data which is specific to the second terminal device.

18. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the second terminal device is configured to transmit acknowledgement signalling to the at least one base station after successful receipt of the data which is specific to the second terminal.

19. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 18, wherein the second terminal device is configured to transmit the acknowledgement signalling a predefined time after receiving the predefined signature sequence.

20. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the at least one base station is configured to transmit a radio frame structure including a control region for control data for terminal devices of the first type, and wherein the at least one base station is configured to communicate with the second terminal device at times and frequencies outside the control region for terminal devices of the first type.

21. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an instruction for the second terminal device to proceed to synchronise to a frame structure transmitted by the at least one base station in order to receive further data synchronously.

22. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the at least one base station is further configured to communicate data with the second terminal device in a synchronous manner.

23. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the second type of terminal device is a machine-type communication, MTC, terminal device.

24. The wireless telecommunications system of claim 1, wherein the wireless telecommunications system is based around a 3rd Generation Partnership Project, 3GPP, architecture.

25. A method of operating a wireless telecommunications system comprising at least one base station, a first terminal device and a second terminal device, wherein the first terminal device is a terminal device of a first type and the second terminal device is a terminal device of a second type, the second type being different from the first type, the method comprising communicating data which is specific to the first terminal device in a synchronous manner and communicating data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner.

26. A base station for communicating data with a first terminal device of a first type and a second terminal device of a second type, the second type being different from the first type, wherein the base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the first terminal device in a synchronous manner and to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner.

27. The base station of claim 26, wherein the base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner only during time periods determined in accordance with a predefined timing schedule.

28. The base station of claim 26, wherein the base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner using a predefined frequency range which is narrower than and within an operating frequency range for the base station.

29. The base station of claim 26, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an indication of an identity of the second terminal device.

30. The base station of claim 26, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises user-plane data for the second terminal device.

31. The base station of claim 30, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an indication of a coding scheme for the user-plane data for the second terminal device.

32. The base station of claim 26, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an indication of a time and/or frequency on which user-plane data for the second terminal device is transmitted by the at least one base station.

33. The base station of claim 26, wherein the base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner by transmitting said data in association with a predefined signature sequence.

34. The base station of claim 33, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device is transmitted in a packet format for which the predefined signature sequence comprises a portion selected from the group comprising a pre-amble portion, a mid-amble portion, a post-amble portion, a pilot portion, and a scattered pilot portion.

35. The base station of claim 34, wherein the packet format further comprises a header portion comprising an indication of an identity of the second terminal device.

36. The base station of claim 34, wherein the packet format further comprises a payload portion comprising user-plane data for the second terminal device.

37. The base station of claim 36, wherein the packet format further comprises an indication of resources encompassed by the payload portion of the packet which are not used to convey the data which is specific to the second terminal device.

38. The base station of claim 33, wherein the base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to another terminal device in a non-synchronous manner by transmitting said data specific to said another terminal device in association with the predefined signature sequence.

39. The base station of claim 33, wherein the base station is configured to communicate data which is specific to another terminal device in a non-synchronous manner by transmitting said data specific to said another terminal device in association with another predefined signature sequence.

40. The base station of claim 33, wherein the predefined signature sequence is one of a set of predefined signature sequences for use by the base station for non-synchronously communicating data with terminal devices of the second type.

41. The base station of claim 40, wherein the predefined signature sequence is one of a subset of the set of predefined signature sequences, and wherein the base station is configured to select one of the subset of the set of predefined signature sequences to be used for non-synchronously communicating data with the second terminal device.

42. The base station of claim 26, wherein the base station is configured to receive acknowledgement signalling from the second terminal indicating successful receipt of the data which is specific to the second terminal.

43. The base station of claim 42, wherein the base station is configured to receive the acknowledgement signalling at a time which depends on a predetermined time after transmitting the predefined signature sequence.

44. The base station of claim 26, wherein the base station is configured to transmit a radio frame structure including a control region for control data for terminal devices of the first type, and wherein the base station is configured to communicate with the second terminal device at times and frequencies outside the control region for terminal devices of the first type.

45. The base station of claim 26, wherein the data which is specific to the second terminal device comprises an instruction for the second terminal device to proceed to synchronise to a frame structure transmitted by the base station in order to receive further data synchronously.

46. The base station of claim 26, wherein the base station is further configured to communicate data with the second terminal device in a synchronous manner.

47. The base station of claim 26, wherein the second type of terminal device is a machine-type communication, MTC, terminal device.

48. The base station of claim 26, wherein the wireless telecommunications system is based around a 3rd Generation Partnership Project, 3GPP, architecture.

49. A method of operating a base station of a wireless telecommunications system for communicating data with a first terminal device of a first type and a second terminal device of a second type, the second type being different from the first type, wherein the method comprises communicating data which is specific to the first terminal device in a synchronous manner and communicating data which is specific to the second terminal device in a non-synchronous manner.