Satellite mobile communication systems considering evolution of satellite mobile communication services market and method for communication using the system

• US 8,665,771 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2011
• Issued: 03/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: Nam, Seung Hyun, Kim, Hee Wook, Kang, Kun Seok, Ahn, Do Seob, Lee, Ho Jin
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Chi
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHOWDHURY, FAHMIDA S
• Application Number:
  US13/090,237
• Publication Number:
  US 20120033599A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,050 Days
• Field of Search: 370/395.4, 370/458, 370/459, 370/468
• US Class Current: 370/312
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18539 Arrangements for managing radio, resources, i.e. for establishing or releasing a connection

Abstract

Disclosed is a communication method of a satellite mobile communication system. The communication method of a satellite mobile communication system, includes: receiving system information indicating frame intervals in which first user equipments using a satellite radio interface in commonality with a terrestrial radio interface do not perform communications from a base station; accessing the base station in the rest frame intervals other than frame intervals in which the first user equipments do not perform communications, based on the system information; transmitting the system information from the base station to second user equipments using a satellite radio interface optimized for satellite environment; and accessing the base station in the rest frame intervals based on the system information received in the second user equipments.

Claims

1. A communication method of a satellite mobile communication system, comprising:

receiving, by first user equipment from a base station, system information indicating a first time slot in which the first user equipment using a satellite radio interface in commonality with a terrestrial radio interface does not perform communications with the base station;

accessing the base station by the first user equipment in a second time slot different from the first time slot indicated by the received system information;

receiving the system information from the base station by second user equipment using a satellite radio interface optimized for a satellite environment; and

accessing the base station by the second user equipment in the first time slot indicated by the received system information;

further comprising allocating multimedia broadcast and multicast service single frequency network (MBSFN) subframes to a frame for a third generation partnership project (3GPP) long term evolution (LTE) radio interface by the base station, so that the second user equipment simultaneously supports the 3GPP LTE radio interface, wherein the terrestrial radio interface includes the 3GPP LTE radio interface,

wherein the allocating of the MBSFN subframes includes;

calculating, by the base station, a first system capacity including a transmission amount or a number of users of the first user equipment and a second system capacity including a transmission amount or a number of users of the second user equipment; and

determining a number of MBSFN subframes according to a ratio of the calculated first system capacity of the first user equipment to the calculated second system capacity of the second user equipment, and allocating the MBSFN subframes according to the determined number, wherein the base station uses only a common reference signal (CRS) of subframes of number 0 and 5 for paging, and increases a number of MBSFN subframes other than the subframes of number 0 and 5 so as to be flexibly transited from the satellite radio interface in commonality with the terrestrial radio interface to the satellite radio interface optimized for the satellite environment, wherein the base station adds to a MBSFN subframe structure that is not present in the 3GPP LTE radio interface to the satellite radio interface in commonality with the 3GPP LTE radio interface, and reduces a signaling overhead including the CRS or a control channel for the first user equipment;

wherein the base station allocates all frames through the system information without considering limitations for subframes of number 0, 4, 5, and 9 to be forcibly transmitted to the first and second user equipments as unicasting subframes for RPM measurement and paging.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the system information by the first user equipment includes allowing the first user equipment to obtain control information or a reference signal for channel estimation in the second time slot.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the satellite radio interface optimized for the satellite environment does not define power control information unnecessarily transmitted in the satellite environment and is further provided with an interleaver so as to overcome slow-fading of a satellite channel.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the allocating of the MBSFN subframes includes allocating the MBSFN subframes other than subframes of number 0, 4, 5, and 9.

5. A satellite mobile communication system, comprising:

first user equipment using a satellite radio interface in commonality with a terrestrial radio interface; and

second user equipment using a satellite radio interface optimized for satellite environment, wherein the first user equipment receives, from a base station, system information indicating a first time slot in which the first user equipment does not perform communications with the base station, and accesses the base station in a second time slot different from the first time slot, and

the second user equipment receives the system information from the base station, and accesses the base station in the first time slot;

further comprising allocating multimedia broadcast and multicast service single frequency network (MBSFN) subframes to a frame for a third generation partnership project (3GPP) long term evolution (LTE) radio interface by the base station, so that the second user equipment simultaneously supports the 3GPP LTE radio interface, wherein the terrestrial radio interface includes the 3GPP LTE radio interface,

wherein the allocating of the MBSFN subframes includes;

calculating, by the base station, a first system capacity including a transmission amount or a number of users of the first user equipment and a second system capacity including a transmission amount or a number of users of the second user equipment; and

determining a number of MBSFN subframes according to a ratio of the calculated first system capacity of the first user equipment to the calculated second system capacity of the second user equipment, and allocating the MBSFN subframes according to the determined number, wherein the base station uses only a common reference signal (CRS) of subframes of number 0 and 5 for paging, and increases a number of MBSFN subframes other than the subframes of number 0 and 5 so as to be flexibly transited from the satellite radio interface in commonality with the terrestrial radio interface to the satellite radio interface optimized for the satellite environment, wherein the base station adds to a MBSFN subframe structure that is not present in the 3GPP LTE radio interface to the satellite radio interface in commonality with the 3GPP LTE radio interface, and reduces a signaling overhead including the CRS or a control channel for the first user equipment;

wherein the base station allocates all frames through the system information without considering limitations for subframes of number 0, 4, 5, and 9 to be forcibly transmitted to the first and second user equipments as unicasting subframes for RPM measurement and paging.

6. The satellite mobile communication system of claim 5, wherein the first user equipment obtains control information or a reference signal for channel estimation in the second time slot.

7. The satellite mobile communication system of claim 5, wherein the terrestrial radio interface is a third generation partnership project (3GPP) long term evolution (LTE) radio interface, and

the base station allocates multimedia broadcast and multicast service single frequency network (MBSFN) subframes to a frame for the 3GPP LTE radio interface.

8. The satellite mobile communication system of claim 7, wherein the base station allocates the MBSFN subframes to subframes other than subframes of number 0, 4, 5, and 9.

9. The satellite mobile communication system of claim 7, wherein

the base station calculates a first system capacity including a transmission amount or a number of users of the first user equipment and a second system capacity including a transmission amount or a number of users of the second user equipment;

and

determines a number of MBSFN subframes according to a ratio of the calculated first system capacity of the first user equipment to the calculated second system capacity of the second user equipment.

10. The satellite mobile communication system of claim 9, wherein the base station uses only a common reference signal (CRS) of subframes of number 0 and 5 for paging, and increases a number of MBSFN subframes other than subframes of number 0 and 5 so as to be flexibly transited from the satellite radio interface in commonality with the terrestrial radio interface to the satellite radio interface optimized for the satellite environment.