COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

• US 20150156708A1
• Filed: 06/27/2013
• Published: 06/04/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Tietz, Robert, Kawaguchi, Kenji
• Granted Patent: US 9,788,262 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/20 Services signaling; Auxiliary data signalling, i.e. transmitting data via a non-traffic channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/085 involving different upper layer protocol versions, e.g. LCS - SUPL or WSN-SOA-WSDP
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/005 Moving wireless networks

Abstract

A system is disclosed in which a communication node provides information relating to a location of a user device in a communication system. The communication node associates with a relay node for providing the user device with access to the communication system via a cell operated by the relay node. The communication node obtains an indication of whether or not said cell is configured as a mobile cell and provides, when the cell is configured as a mobile cell, information indicating that the cell is configured as a mobile cell to a further communication node.

Claims

1. A communication node for providing information relating to a location of a user device in a communication system, the communication node comprising:

means for associating with a relay node for providing said user device with access to the communication system via a cell operated by the relay node;

means for obtaining an indication of whether or not said cell is configured as a mobile cell; and

means for providing, when said cell is configured as a mobile cell, information indicating that said cell is configured as a mobile cell to a further communication node.

7. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein said means for providing is operable to provide updated information indicating that said cell no longer associated with said communication node in response to said associating means de-associating with said relay node.

14. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein said means for providing is operable to provide information identifying said relay node and/or information identifying said cell, and wherein said obtaining means is operable to compare said information identifying said cell with information identifying a list of mobile cells whereby to determine whether or not said cell is configured as a mobile cell.

15. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein said obtaining means is operable to obtain said indication of whether or not said cell is configured as a mobile cell either directly or indirectly from said relay node.

18. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein the communication node is configured as a base station;

and preferably,

wherein said means for providing is operable to provide said information indicating that said cell is configured as a mobile cell via another network entity (for example a mobility management entity ‘

MME’

).

20. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein the communication node is configured as a mobility management entity ‘

MME’

; and

preferably,

wherein said obtaining means is operable to obtain said indication of whether or not said cell is configured as a mobile cell from a base station.

24. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein said means for providing is operable to provide information identifying the relay node and/or information identifying said at least one cell;

and, preferably,

wherein said information identifying said relay node comprises an identifier for identifying the relay node as a target communication device (e.g. an ‘

MRN UE ID’

) and/or wherein said information identifying said at least one cell comprises a cell identifier, for example an E-UTRAN Cell Global Identifier ‘

ECGI’

; and

or wherein said information indicating that said cell is configured as a mobile cell comprises a ‘

Mobile Cell Indication’

information element.

26. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein said means for providing is operable to do at least one of the following:

i) provide said information indicating that said at least one cell is configured as a mobile cell responsive to the relay node receiving a request, via said base station, to provide information relating to the location of said user device;

ii) provide information identifying said user device (e.g. ‘

UE ID’

);

iii) provide said information indicating that said at least one cell is configured as a mobile cell in response to said associating means associating with said base station; and

/or

iv) provide said information indicating that said cell is configured as a mobile cell in response to a change in the configuration of said cell to become configured as a mobile cell.

29. The communication node according to claim 1, further comprising means for obtaining location related data for the relay node and/or said user device;

and preferably,

wherein the relay node is a mobile relay node, and wherein means for obtaining location related data is operable to provide, to a further communication node, information related to a current location of the relay node for use by said further communication node in a determination of a current position of the relay node and/or said at least one cell the relay node operates, whereby to determine a position of said user device based on said current position of the relay node and/or said at least one cell.

31. The communication node according to claim 1 wherein said means for providing is operable to provide said information indicating that said cell is configured as a mobile cell using at least one message;

and/or

wherein said at least one message comprises at least one of an LTE (Long Term Evolution) Positioning Protocol ‘

LPP’

message, an LTE Positioning Protocol Annex ‘

LPPa’

message, and a Radio Resource Control ‘

RRC’

protocol message; and

preferably

wherein said at least one message comprises at least one of an ‘

E-CID Measurement Initiation Response’

, an ‘

OTDOA Information Response’

, a ‘

Provide Capabilities’

message, a ‘

Mobile Cell Information’

message, a ‘

Mobile Cell Information Response’

, an ‘

E-CID Measurement Initiation Failure’

, an ‘

OTDOA Information Failure’

, and a ‘

Mobile Cell Position’

message.

35. The communication node according to claim 1, further comprising a location services client for requesting location related information for a target communication device.

58. A system comprising the communication node of claim 1.

63. A computer program product comprising computer implementable instructions for causing a programmable computer device to become configured as the communication node of claim 1.

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23. A communication node in the form of a relay node for providing information relating to a location of a user device in a communication system wherein said relay node is operable as a mobile relay node and wherein the relay node comprises:

means for associating with a base station;

means for operating at least one cell for providing the user equipment access to the communication system;

means for providing information indicating that said at least one cell is configured as a mobile cell when said relay node is operating as a mobile relay node.

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37. A communication node for providing information relating to a location of a target user device, wherein said target user device is served by a relay node, the communication node comprising:

means for receiving a request for positioning said target user device from a client in a further communication node;

means for identifying a cell in which said target user device is located;

means for initiating a positioning procedure for obtaining information relating to a location said target user device responsive to receiving said request;

means for determining, as part of said positioning procedure, whether or not said identified cell is configured as a mobile cell; and

means for responding, as part of said positioning procedure, to said request for positioning the target user device, in dependence on whether or not said identified cell is configured as a mobile cell.

38. The communication node according to claim 37, further comprising at least one of:

means for obtaining a geographical location of the user device and/or the mobile cell; and

means for obtaining information identifying said cell wherein, preferably, said information identifying said cell comprises a cell identifier, for example an E-UTRAN Cell Global Identifier ‘

ECGI’

.

41. The communication node according to claim 37 wherein said determining means is operable to do at least one of the following:

i) determine whether or not said identified cell is configured as a mobile cell based on information obtained when said relay node associates with a base station and/or mobility management entity (MME) of the communication system; and

/or

ii) determine whether or not said identified cell is configured as a mobile cell based on information received in response to a request sent by the communication node to said relay node or to a base station and/or mobility management entity (‘

MME’

) associated with said relay node.

43. The communication node according to claim 37 wherein the responding means is operable to do at least one of:

i) respond to said request for positioning said target user device by sending, to said client, a failure indication when said identified cell is determined to be configured as a mobile cell;

ii) respond to said request for positioning said target user device by determining a current location of said relay node and/or cell when said identified cell is determined to be configured as a mobile cell; and

iii) respond to said request for positioning said target user device;

a) by sending, to said client, said current location of the relay node and/or cell when said identified cell is determined to be configured as a mobile cell;

or b) by determining a location of said target user device based on said current location of the relay node and/or cell and a position of said target user device relative to said current location of the relay node and/or cell, when said identified cell is determined to be configured as a mobile cell.

47. The communication node according to claim 43 wherein said position of said target user device relative to said current location of the relay node is determined based on information received from said relay node and/or a base station with which said relay node is associated.

48. The communication node according to claim 38 wherein the responding means is operable to respond to said request for positioning said target user device by determining a location of said target user device based on a satellite positioning scheme when said identified cell is determined to be configured as a mobile cell.

49. The communication node according claim 43 wherein the responding means is operable to further respond to said request for positioning said target user device by sending, to said client, the determined location of the target user device.

50. The communication node according to claim 37, further comprising a client for generating a request for positioning said relay node, whereby to obtain a location of the relay node;

and preferably comprising means for obtaining an identifier for said relay node (e.g. an ‘

MRN UE ID’

) for use in identifying said relay node to be a target communication device in said request for positioning said relay node.

52. The communication node according to claim 37 wherein said determining means is operable to compare said information identifying said cell with information identifying a list of mobile cells whereby to determine whether or not said cell is configured as a mobile cell.

53. The communication node according to claim 37 wherein said determining means is operable to obtain said information indicating that said cell is configured as a mobile cell from at least one received message.

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57. A user device for requesting information relating to a location of a target communication device in a communication system, the communication device comprising:

means for generating a request for positioning the target user device; and

means for communicating with a communication node in pursuance of said generated request, said communicating means being operable to;

send the generated request to the communication node; and

receive, from said communication node, a response to said request wherein said response takes account of whether or not a cell in which said communication device is located is configured as a mobile cell.

59. A method performed by a communication node for providing information relating to a location of a user device in a communication system, the method comprising:

associating with a relay node for providing said user device with access to the communication system via a cell operated by the relay node;

obtaining an indication of whether or not said cell is configured as a mobile cell; and

when said cell is configured as a mobile cell, providing information, to another communication node, indicating that said cell is configured as a mobile cell.

60. A method performed by a relay node for providing information relating to a location of a user device in a communication system wherein said relay node is operable as a mobile relay node, the method comprising:

associating with a base station; and

providing information indicating that at least one cell operated by the relay node is configured as a mobile cell when said relay node is operating as a mobile relay node.

61. A method performed by a communication node for providing information relating to a location of a target user device, wherein said target user device is served by a relay node of a communication system, the method comprising:

receiving, from a client in a further communication node, a request for positioning the target user device;

identifying a cell in which said target user device is located;

initiating a positioning procedure for obtaining information relating to a location said target user device responsive to receiving said step of request said request;

determining, as part of said positioning procedure, whether or not said identified cell is configured as a mobile cell; and

responding, as part of said positioning procedure, to said request for positioning the target user device, in dependence on whether or not said identified cell is configured as a mobile cell.

62. A method performed by a user device for requesting information relating to a location of a target user device, the method comprising:

generating a request for positioning the target user device;

sending the generated request to a communication node; and

receiving, from said communication node, a response to said request wherein said response takes account of whether or not a cell in which said communication device is located is configured as a mobile cell.