Method and apparatus for communicating protocol data unit in radio access network

• US 8,442,000 B2
• Filed: 06/04/2012
• Issued: 05/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Pirskanen, Juho, Malkamaki, Esa, Barreto, Luis
• Primary Examiner(s): LY, ANH VU H
• Application Number:
  US13/487,486
• Publication Number:
  US 20120243489A1
• Time in Patent Office: 344 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1621 Group acknowledgement, i.e. the acknowledgement message defining a range of identifiers, e.g. of sequence numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1664 the supervisory signal being transmitted together with payload signals; piggybacking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1812 Hybrid protocols; Hybrid automatic repeat request [HARQ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1845 Combining techniques, e.g. code combining
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 Network addressing or numbering for mobility support

Abstract

A new protocol data unit is used in communications in a radio access network. When a user equipment requests a radio resource controller connection, the UE includes its identity in the request message. In establishing the connection to UE, a serving radio network controller allocates a logical channel to the UE for communications and identifies the logical channel in the header of the protocol data unit so as to allow a receiver of the PDU to know the UE identity in an out-of-band signaling fashion, depending upon a state of the transmitter of the PDU. When the transmitter changes its state, the receiver can change state accordingly. The new PDU structure allows continuous reception of the HS-DSCH downlink channel during state transition form CELL_FACH or CELL_PCH or URA_PCH to CELL_DCH and vice versa. This new PDU structure also allows continuous HS_DSCH retransmissions.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

indicating identity of a first network component in a radio access network in out-of-band signaling, the first network component configured for communicating a protocol data unit to a second network component over a logical channel in the radio access network, wherein the first network component comprises a user equipment device, and wherein said out-of-band signaling is carried out in radio resource control signaling; and

identifying the logical channel and routing of the logical channel in the protocol data unit.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the logical channel and the routing are identified in the protocol data unit in common state.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the logical channel and the routing are identified in the protocol data unit in dedicated state.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user equipment device is communicating the protocol data unit in the radio access network.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the protocol data unit comprises a common control channel message.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the protocol data unit comprises dedicated control channel data for allocating the identity of the user equipment device.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the identity of the user equipment device is specific for broadcast control channel transmission.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the identity of the user equipment device is indicated in a medium access control layer or in a radio resource controller layer.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the logical channel has an identity and the protocol data unit comprises a plurality of fields in a header section, wherein one of the fields comprises information indicative of the identity of the logical channel, including logical channel type and instance.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second network component comprises a receiver in the radio access network and the protocol data unit is communicated to the receiver in a high-speed medium access control or enhanced high-speed medium access control layer, the protocol data unit comprising a header section including a field indicative of reordering queue in the receiver, and wherein the logical channel has an identity, said method further comprising:

indicating the reordering queue by the identity of the logical channel.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the protocol data unit is communicated in a high-speed medium access control layer, the protocol data unit comprising a service data unit and a header section, the header section comprising one or more fields indicative of number or size of one or more subsequent protocol data units, said method further comprising:

replacing said one or more of the fields in the header section by a field indicative of a length of the service data unit.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the protocol data unit is communicated to a receiver in the radio access network, the protocol data unit having a format, and the receiver has a receiver identity, wherein the receiver is configured to recognize the format by the out-of-band signaling of the receiver identity.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the protocol data unit comprises a service data unit and a header section, said method comprising:

indicating in the header section whether one or more service data units are present in the protocol data unit by segmentation control field.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the protocol data unit is communicated in a high-speed medium access control layer, and wherein said one or more service data units comprise a plurality of segments, said method further comprising:

indicating the segments of said one or more high-speed medium access control service data units in the header section of the protocol data unit.

15. An apparatus comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program code, where the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to at least;

indicate identity of a first network component in a radio access network in out-of-band signaling, the first network component configured for communicating a protocol data unit to a second network component over a logical channel in the radio access network, wherein the first network component comprises a user equipment device, and wherein said out-of-band signaling is carried out in radio resource control signaling; and

identify the logical channel and routing of the logical channel in the protocol data unit.

16. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the identity of the first network component is specific for broadcast control channel transmission, or is indicated in a medium access control layer or in a radio resource controller layer.

17. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the protocol data unit comprises a service data unit and a header section, and wherein the at least one memory including the computer program code is configured with the at least one processor to cause the apparatus to:

identify the logical channel in the header section; and

indicate in the header section whether one or more service data units are present in the protocol data unit by segmentation control field.

18. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the logical channel has an identity and the protocol data unit comprises a plurality of fields in a header section, wherein one of the fields comprises information indicative of the identity of the logical channel, including logical channel type and instance.

19. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the second network component comprises a receiver in the radio access network and the protocol data unit is communicated to the receiver in a high-speed medium access control or enhanced high-speed medium access control layer, the protocol data unit comprising a header section including a field indicative of reordering queue in the receiver, and wherein the logical channel has an identity, and wherein the at least one memory including the computer program code is configured with the at least one processor to cause the apparatus to indicate the reordering queue by the identity of the logical channel.

20. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the user equipment device is communicating the protocol data unit in the radio access network.