Mobile terminal, wireless relay apparatus, and mobile communication system

• US 7,688,799 B2
• Filed: 08/27/2004
• Issued: 03/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Mobile Communications Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications Japan Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Katsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Pérez-Gutiérrez; Rafael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Patel; Nimesh
• Application Number:
  US10/928,495
• Publication Number:
  US 20050083873A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,041 Days
• Field of Search: 370/345, 370/328, 370/202, 370/521, 370/468, 370/477, 370/28, 375/337, 375/347, 455/67.11, 455/72, 379/88.1, 379/93.08, 709/246, 709/247
• US Class Current: 370/345
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/08 at the receiving station
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/38 by adapting coding or compression rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/02 Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0088 Scheduling hand-off measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/44 in connection with interruption of transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]

Abstract

In a case of being judged that a compressed mode is applied in a mobile terminal, if it is judged that reception quality during data communication is favorable, gap intervals are not created by passing through a processing of gap interval creation. Further, if the data communication over the HS-DSCH is performed, the data communication over the HS-DSCH is continued. This prevents degradation of data transmission rate over a channel for high speed data transmission service, in the presence of a mobile terminal in a favorable reception quality area.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal comprising:

communication means for performing data communication per a fixed time length to a base station end, wherein communication means has at least two channels including a first channel that communicates for said fixed time length and a second channel that communicates for fractional parts of said fixed time length;

mode setting information obtaining means for obtaining predetermined mode setting information notified from said base station end, wherein the predetermined mode is a mode that the mobile terminal is monitoring of neighboring base stations other than a current communication base station end;

free time generation processing means for generating a free time interval at which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length and performing a predetermined processing in the free time interval, by compressing intervals at which data communication is performed in said fixed time length, when said predetermined mode setting information obtained by said mode setting information obtaining means from the base station end;

judging means for judging whether communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end by said communication means is not less than a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end; and

control means, when said judging means judges that the communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end is under the predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end, for controlling said free time generation processing means to generate the free time interval and for controlling said communication means to temporarily stop data communication during the free time interval, and

when said judging means judges that the communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end is not less than the predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end, for controlling said free time generation processing means not to generate the free time interval and also for controlling said communication means to continue performing data communication,

wherein the free time intervals are not generated when communication quality is not less than the preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end.

2. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein said free time generation processing means generates the free time interval at which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length by increasing a transmission rate with regard to a fixed amount data communicated within said fixed time length.

3. A wireless relay apparatus comprising:

communication means for performing data communication per a fixed time length to a base station end, wherein communication means has at least two channels including a first channel that communicates for said fixed time length and a second channel that communicates for fractional parts of said fixed time length;

notifying means for notifying a mobile terminal of predetermined mode setting information from said base station end, wherein the predetermined mode is a mode that the mobile terminal is monitoring of neighboring base stations other than a current communication base station end;

free time generation means for generating a free time interval at which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length, by compressing intervals at which data communication is performed in said fixed time length, when said predetermined mode setting information is notified from said notifying means to a mobile terminal from the base station end;

judging means for judging, on the basis of communication quality information sent from a mobile terminal currently in communication with the base station end, whether communication quality of the second channel between said mobile terminal and the base station end is not less than a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel; and

control means, when said judging means judges that the communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end is under the predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the a base station end, causes said free time generation means to generate the free time interval and also controls said communication means to temporarily stop data communication during the free time interval, and

when said judging means judges that the communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end is not less than the predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end, for controlling said free time generation processing means not to generate the free time interval, and for controlling said communication means to continue performing data communication,

wherein the free time intervals are not generated when communication quality is not less than the preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end.

4. The wireless relay apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said free time generation means generates the free time interval at which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length by increasing a transmission rate with regard to a fixed amount data communicated within said fixed time length.

5. A mobile communication system comprising:

a mobile terminal that, in a case where predetermined mode setting information notified from a wireless relay apparatus end is obtained and data communication is performed, wherein data communication has at least two channels including a first channel that communicates for a fixed time length and a second channel that communicates for fractional parts of said fixed time length, judges whether communication quality of the second channel during the data communication is not less than a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel, and generates a free time interval at which no data communication is performed in a fixed time length, and performs a predetermined processing in the free time interval, and also causes data communication to be stopped temporarily, by compressing intervals at which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length, when judged that communication quality of the second channel during data communication is under a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel, wherein the mobile unit does not generate the free time interval and continues performing data communication, when judged that the communication quality of the second channel during the data communication is not less than a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel; and

a wireless relay apparatus that, in a case where predetermined mode setting information is notified to said mobile terminal and the data communication is performed, judges, on the basis of communication quality information sent from said mobile terminal, whether communication quality of the second channel with said mobile terminal is not less than a predetermined communication quality of the second channel, and compresses intervals at which data communication is performed in a fixed time length, thereby to generate a free time interval at which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length, and also temporarily stops data communication, when judged that communication quality at said mobile terminal is under a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel, wherein the wireless relay apparatus does not generate the free time interval but continues performing data communication, when judged that communication quality at the mobile terminal is not less than a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel, wherein the predetermined mode is a mode that the mobile terminal is monitoring of neighboring base stations other than a current communication base station end,

wherein the free time intervals are not generated when communication quality is not less than the preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end.

6. The mobile communication system according to claim 5, wherein said mobile terminal generates the free time interval at which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length by increasing a transmission rate with regard to a fixed amount data communicated within said fixed time length.

7. A method of data communication by a mobile terminal comprising:

performing data communication for a fixed time length, wherein data communication has at least two channels including a first channel that communicates for said fixed time length and a second channel that communicates for fractional parts of said fixed time length;

obtaining predetermined mode setting information notified from a base station end, wherein the predetermined mode is a mode that the mobile terminal is monitoring of neighboring base stations other than a current communication base station end;

judging whether communication quality of the second channel during data communication is not less than a preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel; and

generating a free time interval and temporarily stopping data communication when the communication quality of the second channel is under the predetermined communication quality of the second channel, and

not generating the free time interval but continuing to perform data communication when the communication quality of the second channel is not less than the predetermined communication quality of the second channel,

wherein the free time interval is an interval in which no data communication is performed in said fixed time length and in which predetermined processing is performed, by compressing intervals at which data communication is performed in said fixed time length based on said predetermined mode setting information,

wherein the free time intervals are not generated when communication quality is not less than the preset predetermined communication quality of the second channel between the mobile terminal and the base station end.