METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TRANSMITTING UPLINK BEAM SCANNING SIGNAL IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

• US 20180191417A1
• Filed: 06/27/2016
• Published: 07/05/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2015
• Status: Active Application

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Granted Patent: US 10,848,216 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/04 using two or more spaced independent antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0404 the mobile station comprising multiple antennas, e.g. to provide uplink diversity
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0413 MIMO systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0617 for beam forming
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0695 using beam selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00885 Power supply means, e.g. arrangements for the control of power supply to the apparatus or components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/02 Selection of wireless resources by user or terminal

Abstract

A method and apparatus for transmitting an uplink beam scanning signal in a wireless communication system is provided. A terminal first performs downlink beam scanning, and then transmits the uplink beam scanning signal to a base station through a time-frequency resource corresponding to a beam selected according to the downlink beam scanning. The terminal may transmit information on the downlink beam scanning to the base station. The base station may divide a plurality of terminals into a plurality of groups on the basis of information on downlink beam scanning, received from the plurality of terminals, and perform uplink beam scanning for only uplink beams which are selected corresponding to the plurality of groups among all the uplink beams.

Claims

1. A method for transmitting an uplink beam scanning signal by a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system, the method comprising:

performing downlink beam scanning; and

transmitting the uplink beam scanning signal to a base station through a time-frequency resource corresponding to a beam selected according to the downlink beam scanning.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the uplink beam scanning signal is either a physical random access channel (PRACH) or a sounding reference signal (SRS).

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the time-frequency resource is either a PRACH resource through which the PRACH is transmitted or an SRS resource through which the SRS is transmitted.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the UE belongs to one group configured by the base station.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein UEs belonging to the one group are oriented toward a same beam direction.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein a same reception beamforming is applied to the UEs belonging to the one group.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting information about the downlink beam scanning to the base station.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the uplink beam scanning signal is transmitted within an uplink beam scanning period configured by the base station on the basis of information about the downlink beam scanning.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein a length of the uplink beam scanning period corresponds to a number of a plurality of groups configured by the base station.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein a period in which no corresponding UEs exist from the uplink beam scanning period is set as a scanning muting period.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein a length of the uplink beam scanning period corresponds to a number of groups having corresponding UEs among a plurality of groups configured by the base station.

12. The method of claim 8, further comprising receiving information about a length and a period of the uplink beam scanning period from the base station.

13. A method for performing uplink beam scanning by a base station in a wireless communication system, the method comprising:

dividing a plurality of UEs into a plurality of groups on the basis of information about downlink beam scanning received from the plurality of UEs; and

performing uplink beam scanning only for an uplink beam selected corresponding to the plurality of groups among entire uplink beams.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein UEs belonging to one of the plurality of groups are oriented toward a same beam direction.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein a same reception beamforming is applied for UEs belonging to one of the plurality of groups.