Mobile communication system, mobile station device, base station device and handover method

• US 8,599,882 B2
• Filed: 04/14/2009
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: Sahara, Toru
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh, Ayaz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wong, Blanche
• Application Number:
  US12/988,306
• Publication Number:
  US 20110034172A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,694 Days
• Field of Search: 370/464, 370/498, 370/503
• US Class Current: 370/503
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/18 for allowing seamless reselection, e.g. soft reselection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/00 Synchronisation arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/002 Mutual synchronization

Abstract

A mobile station which performs a soft handover from a serving base station to a base station in which frame synchronization is established in the uplink direction with the base station calculates the time difference between the receive timing of a downlink signal sent from the base station and the receive timing of a broadcast control channel sent from the base station at S100 to use as a timing correct amount, and corrects the transmission timing of an uplink ANCH to the base station, based on the transmission timing of an uplink signal to the base station and the time difference calculated at S126, to thereby establish frame synchronization in the uplink direction with the base station.

Claims

1. A mobile communication system comprising:

a first base station device;

a second base station device; and

a mobile station device which performs a soft handover from the first base station device to the second base station device, the mobile station device having first frame synchronization in an uplink direction with the first base station device,

wherein the mobile station device

calculates a time difference between a time of receipt of a downlink common channel signal or downlink individual channel signal sent from the first base station device and a time of receipt of a broadcast channel signal sent from the second base station device, and

corrects a transmission timing of an uplink anchor channel signal to the second base station device, based, at least in part, on the time difference, to thereby establish second frame synchronization in the uplink direction with the second base station device.

2. The mobile communication system according to claim 1, wherein the second base station device comprises:

communication channel determination means for determining a communication channel to be allocated to the mobile station device in response to a switching request received via the first base station device from the mobile station device; and

communication channel notifying means for notifying the mobile station device of the communication channel determined by the communication channel determination means via a switching response generated by the first base station device and sent from the first base station device to the mobile station device, and wherein

the mobile station device sends the uplink signal to the second base station device, using the communication channel notified via the switching response.

3. The mobile communication system according to claim 1, wherein the first base station device and the second base station device communicate with the mobile station device, using an orthogonal frequency division multiple access system.

4. A mobile station device for performing a soft handover from a first base station device to a second base station device, the mobile station device having first frame synchronization in an uplink direction with the first base station, the mobile station device comprising:

a receive timing difference calculator for calculating a time difference between a time of receipt of a downlink common channel signal or downlink individual channel sent from the first base station device and a time of receipt of a broadcast channel signal sent from the second base station device; and

an uplink frame synchronizer for correcting a transmission timing of an uplink anchor channel signal to the second base station device, based, at least in part, on the time difference, to thereby establish second frame synchronization in the uplink direction with the second base station device.

5. A handover method for carrying out a soft handover, in a mobile station device, from a first base station device to a second base station device, the mobile station device having first frame synchronization in an uplink direction with the first base station, the method comprising:

a step of calculating a time difference between a time of receipt of a downlink common channel signal or downlink individual channel signal sent from the first base station device and a time of receipt of a broadcast channel signal sent from the second base station device; and

a step of correcting a transmission timing of an uplink anchor channel signal to the second base station device, based, at least in part, on the time difference, to thereby establish second frame synchronization in the uplink direction with the second base station device.