METHOD OF OPERATING TERMINAL IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM AND THE TERMINAL

• US 20200137739A1
• Filed: 07/17/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kim, Ki-young, Lee, Kyung-hwan
• Granted Patent: US 11,240,810 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 using beam steering
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/12 using downlink control channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/02 Selection of wireless resources by user or terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/046 the resource being in the space domain, e.g. beams

Abstract

A method of operating a terminal is provided. The method includes: selecting a first pattern as a pattern of a reception beam; searching for cells in the wireless communication system using the reception beam of the first pattern; determining a first candidate group including at least one candidate for a beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam, wherein each of the at least one candidate corresponds to a transmission beam pattern and a cell; determining whether to decode a physical broadcast channel received from a first candidate of the first candidate group; decoding the PBCH based on the determining; and selecting one of the transmission beam patterns for the beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam from the first candidate group based on the decoding.

Claims

1. A method of operating a terminal in a wireless communication system, the method comprising:

selecting a first pattern as a pattern of a reception beam;

searching for a plurality of cells in the wireless communication system using the reception beam of the first pattern;

determining a first candidate group comprising at least one candidate for a transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam, from among transmission beam patterns of the plurality of cells based on the searching, wherein each of the at least one candidate corresponds to a transmission beam pattern of the transmission beam patterns and a cell of the plurality of cells;

determining whether to decode a physical broadcast channel (a PBCH) received from a first candidate of the first candidate group;

decoding the PBCH based on the determining; and

selecting one of the transmission beam patterns for the transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam from the first candidate group based on the decoding.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the searching for the plurality of cells further comprises:

measuring correlation powers between synchronization signals received through the transmission beam patterns of the plurality of cells and sequences respectively corresponding to the synchronization signals.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the determining of the first candidate group further comprises:

identifying the transmission beam pattern corresponding to each correlation power that is equal to or greater than a first reference value as the at least one candidate.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the determining of whether to decode the PBCH further comprises:

selecting a candidate from the first candidate group according to a magnitude of the correlation power; and

determining whether to decode the PBCH received through the candidate by using the candidate.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of whether to decode the PBCH further comprises:

selecting the first candidate from the first candidate group;

generating a first measured value corresponding to strength of a first reference signal received through the first candidate; and

determining whether to decode a first PBCH received through the first candidate using the first measured value and a second reference value.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the generating of the first measured value further comprises:

measuring strengths for the first reference signal based on a plurality of strength measurement methods; and

combining the strengths to generate the first measured value corresponding to the first candidate.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the determining of whether to decode the first PBCH comprises determining to decode the first PBCH based on the first measured value being equal to or greater than the second reference value.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of whether to decode the PBCH received from the first candidate group further comprises:

generating measured values corresponding to strengths of reference signals received through a plurality of first candidates of the first candidate group;

comparing the measured values with a second reference value;

identifying a sub candidate group from the first candidate group, the sub candidate group including sub candidates with a corresponding measured value that exceeds the second reference value; and

determining whether to decode the PBCH using the sub candidate group.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the determining of whether to decode the PBCH using the sub candidate group further comprises:

selecting a sub candidate from the sub candidate group according to a magnitude of the measured values; and

determining whether to decode the PBCH received through the candidate using the sub candidate.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising, based on the decoding of the PBCH failing:

selecting a second pattern as the pattern of the reception beam;

re-searching for the plurality of cells in the wireless communication system using the reception beam of the second pattern;

determining a second candidate group comprising at least one second candidate for the transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the second pattern of the reception beam, from among the transmission beam patterns of the plurality of cells, based on the re-searching;

re-determining whether to decode the PBCH received from a second candidate of the second candidate group;

decoding the PBCH based on the re-determining; and

selecting one of the transmission beam patterns from the transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the second pattern of the reception beam from the second candidate group based on the decoding.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of whether to decode the PBCH comprises measuring a variation between a measured value generated by measuring strength of a reference signal received through the first candidate and a re-measured value generated by re-measuring the strength of the reference signal received through the candidate in the decoding of the PBCH;

and

wherein the method of operating the terminal further comprises determining whether to stop the decoding of the PBCH received through the candidate, based on the variation.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the method of operating the terminal further comprises performing a camp-on operation on the cell corresponding to the one of the transmission beam patterns.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

counting a number of camp-on failures;

determining whether the number of camp-on failures is equal to or greater than a threshold number; and

adjusting at least one from among a first reference value used in searching for the plurality of cells based on whether the number of camp-on failures is equal to or greater than the threshold number and a second reference value used in determining whether to decode the PBCH.

8. (canceled)

15. (canceled)

16. A terminal configured to operate in a wireless communication system, the terminal comprising:

;

a plurality of antennas; and

a baseband processor configured to;

control the plurality of antennas such that a reception beam of the terminal has a pattern;

control a beam sweep operation using the reception beam of the pattern;

search for a plurality of cells in the wireless communication system using the pattern the reception beam as a first pattern for a first beam sweep operation;

determine a first candidate group comprising at least one candidate that is selectable for the transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam from transmission beam patterns of the plurality of cells based on a result of the searching;

determine whether to decode a physical broadcast channel (a PBCH) received from a first candidate of the first candidate group;

decode the PBCH based on the determining; and

select one of the transmission beam patterns for the transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam from the first candidate group.

17. The terminal of claim 16, wherein the baseband processor is further configured to, based on failing to select the one of the transmission beam patterns based on the first beam sweep operation, control the plurality of antennas such that the reception beam of the terminal has a second pattern and perform a second beam sweep operation by using the reception beam of the second pattern.

18. The terminal of claim 16, wherein the terminal further comprises a signal measurement circuit configured to measure correlation powers between synchronization signals received through the transmission beam patterns of the plurality of cells and sequences respectively corresponding to the synchronization signals, and

wherein the baseband processor is further configured to identify a transmission beam pattern corresponding to each correlation power that is equal to or greater than a first reference value from among the correlation powers as the at least one candidate.

19. The terminal of claim 16, wherein the baseband processor is further configured to select a candidate from the first candidate group and determine whether to decode the PBCH received through the candidate using a measured strength corresponding to strength of a reference signal received through the candidate and a second reference value, and

wherein the terminal further comprises a signal measurement circuit configured to measure the strength of the reference signal.

20. The terminal of claim 19, wherein the baseband processor is further configured to determine to decode the PBCH received through the candidate based on the measured strength of the reference signal being equal to or greater than the second reference value, and determine whether to stop decoding the PBCH based on a variation between re-measured strength of the reference signal and the measured strength of the reference signal when decoding the PBCH, and

wherein the signal measurement circuit is further configured to re-measure the strength of the reference signal when decoding the PBCH.

22. The terminal of claim 16, wherein the baseband processor is further configured to, based on the decoding of the PBCH received through the first candidate selected using the first candidate selected in the first candidate group being successful, terminate the first beam sweep operation and to determine the first pattern of the reception beam and the first candidate for the transmission and reception beam pattern pair.

21. (canceled)

23. (canceled)

24. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer readable instructions, the computer readable instructions, when executed by a processor in a terminal that determines a transmission and reception beam pattern pair, cause the terminal to:

select a first pattern as a pattern of a reception beam;

search for a plurality of cells using the reception beam of the first pattern;

determine a first candidate group comprising a candidate for the transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam, from among transmission beam patterns of the plurality of cells;

determining whether to decode a physical broadcast channel (a PBCH) received from a first candidate of the first candidate group;

decode the PBCH based on the determining; and

select one of the transmission beam patterns for the transmission and reception beam pattern pair with the first pattern of the reception beam based on the decoding.

25. (canceled)