APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PROXIMITY-BASED SERVICE COMMUNICATION

• US 20180020397A1
• Filed: 11/05/2015
• Published: 01/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: AMINAKA, Hiroaki, SUGAHARA, Hiroto
• Application Number:
  US15/545,777
• Publication Number:
  US 20180020397A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/183 Processing at user equipment or user record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/24 Transfer of terminal data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/18 between terminal devices

Abstract

A radio terminal (1) updates a preconfigured radio parameter (409, 814) stored in a memory (406, 810) coupled to the radio terminal (1). The preconfigured radio parameter (409, 814) is used by the radio terminal (1) to perform at least one of discovery and direct communication without the assistance of a Public Land Mobile Network (100). This contributes, for example, to flexible adaptation to conditions under which the ProSe communication without the assistance of a network is performed.

Claims

1. A radio terminal comprising:

at least one radio transceiver including a radio transceiver for communicating with a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN);

at least one processor coupled to the at least one radio transceiver;

a protocol module including a software module to be executed by the at least one processor, the protocol module being configured to perform, using the at least one radio transceiver, at least one of PLMN-assisted discovery and PLMN-assisted direct communication within a coverage of the PLMN, the protocol module being configured to perform, using the at least one radio transceiver, at least one of non-PLMN-assisted discovery and non-PLMN-assisted direct communication according to a preconfigured radio parameter; and

an updating module configured to update the preconfigured radio parameter stored in a memory coupled to the radio terminal.

2. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the updating module includes a first software module executed by the at least one processor.

3. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein

the memory includes a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC), the preconfigured radio parameter is stored in the UICC, and

the updating module includes a second software module executed by the UICC.

4. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein

the at least one processor is integrated on a single System on Chip (SoC),

the memory includes a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC), the preconfigured radio parameter is stored in the UICC,

the radio terminal further comprises a second processor integrated on a chip other than the SoC, and

the updating module includes a third software module executed by the second processor.

5. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the updating module is configured to communicate with a remote management server and update the preconfigured radio parameter according to an instruction from the remote management server.

6. The radio terminal according to claim 5, wherein the updating module is configured to communicate with the remote management server via a network other than the PLMN.

7. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the updating module is configured to:

acquire, via the protocol module, a first radio parameter sent from the PLMN for at least one of the PLMN-assisted discovery and the PLMN-assisted direct communication; and

update the preconfigured radio parameter based on the first radio parameter.

8. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the updating module is configured to update the preconfigured radio parameter according to an instruction from a user via a user interface provided by the radio terminal.

9. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the updating module is configured to update the preconfigured radio parameter based on one or both of time and place where the radio terminal performs at least one of the non-PLMN-assisted discovery and the non-PLMN-assisted direct communication.

10. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein a first radio resource specified by the preconfigured radio parameter is a subset of second radio resources specified by a master configuration managed by the radio terminal, a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC), or a remote management server.

11. The radio terminal according to claim 10, wherein the updating module is configured to determine, out of the second radio resources, the first radio resource based on a magnitude of interference that the radio terminal is subjected to.

12. The radio terminal according to claim 10, wherein the updating module is configured to determine, out of the second radio resources, the first radio resource based on radio quality measured by the radio terminal.

13. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the preconfigured radio parameter specifies at least one of a frequency band identifier, a frequency identifier, maximum transmission power, a Time Division Duplex (TDD) uplink-downlink configuration, and a resource block.

14. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the updating of the preconfigured radio parameter includes one or both of deleting the preconfigured radio parameter and newly generating the preconfigured radio parameter.

15. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the radio terminal is configured to disconnect or deactivate a connection to the PLMN, and perform at least one of the non-PLMN-assisted discovery and the non-PLMN-assisted direct communication.

16. The radio terminal according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor includes a baseband processor and an application processor.

17. A Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) configured to be coupled to a radio terminal, the UICC comprising:

a processor;

a memory area configured to store a preconfigured radio parameter used by the radio terminal to perform at least one of non-Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN)-assisted discovery and non-PLMN-assisted direct communication; and

a software module to be executed by the processor to update the preconfigured radio parameter stored in the memory area.

18. The UICC according to claim 17, wherein the software module is configured to communicate with a remote management server and update the preconfigured radio parameter according to an instruction from the remote management server.

19. The UICC according to claim 18, wherein the software module is configured to communicate with the remote management server via a network other than the PLMN.

20-30. -30. (canceled)

31. A method performed in a radio terminal, the method comprising:

updating a preconfigured radio parameter stored in a memory coupled to the radio terminal, wherein

the preconfigured radio parameter is used by the radio terminal to perform at least one of non-Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN)-assisted discovery and non-PLMN-assisted direct communication.

32-39. -39. (canceled)