Methods and apparatus for communicating and/or using transmission power information

• US 9,161,313 B2
• Filed: 10/17/2012
• Issued: 10/13/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Das, Arnab, Rangan, Sundeep
• Primary Examiner(s): Masur, Paul H
• Assistant Examiner(s): JAHANGIR, KABIR U
• Application Number:
  US13/654,360
• Publication Number:
  US 20130230027A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,091 Days
• Field of Search: 370/329, 370/336, 370/341, 370/349, 455/509, 455/522
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/24 with feedback of measurements to the transmitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/146 Uplink power control
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/16 Deriving transmission power values from another channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/325 Power control of control or pilot channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/365 Power headroom reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/367 Power values between minimum and maximum limits, e.g. dynamic range
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/40 during macro-diversity or soft handoff
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/54 Signalisation aspects of the TPC commands, e.g. frame structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A wireless terminal determines the transmission power used for its dedicated control channel at a point in time, and generates a power report indicating a ratio of a maximum wireless terminal transmit power to the transmit power of the dedicated control channel at the point in time. The power report provides a measure of available transmit power for wireless terminal use for other purposes, e.g., uplink traffic channels, after taking into consideration the transmit power used for the dedicated control channel. The point in time has a known time offset from the start of a communications segment in which the power report is transmitted. This allows the base station receiving dedicated control channel uplink signals from the wireless terminal to measure the received signals, receive and process the communicated power report, and correlate information to be used for accurate wireless terminal closed loop power control.

Claims

1. A method of operating a wireless terminal to provide transmission power information to a base station, the method comprising:

determining a power difference between a maximum transmit power of the wireless terminal and a transmit power estimate, the transmit power estimate corresponding to a transmission power level of a tone of a dedicated uplink channel at a point in time;

generating a power report, the power report including the power difference;

transmitting the power report, wherein the point in time is offset from a start of a communications segment in which the power report is transmitted; and

repeating the determining, generating, and transmitting steps according to a report transmission schedule.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the power difference comprises comparing the transmit power estimate of the dedicated uplink channel to the maximum transmit power.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmission power level of the tone of the dedicated uplink channel is controlled by the wireless terminal based on at least one closed loop power level control signal received from the base station.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the dedicated uplink channel includes a control information signal transmitted over the dedicated uplink channel to the base station.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the power report corresponds to the point in time.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein a format of the power report depends on which one of a plurality of information reporting modes used at the time the power report is transmitted.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the power report indicates a dB value.

8. A wireless terminal, comprising:

a report generation module for determining a power difference between a maximum transmit power of the wireless terminal and a transmit power estimate, the transmit power estimate corresponding a transmission power level of a tone of a dedicated uplink channel at a point in time, and generating a power report, the power report including the power difference;

a transmitter for transmitting the power report to a base station, wherein the point in time is offset from a start of a communications segment in which the power report is to be transmitted;

memory storing transmission schedule information for use in controlling the transmission of reports generated by the report generation module according to a report transmission schedule.

9. The wireless terminal of claim 8, wherein determining a difference comprises comparing the transmit power estimate of the dedicated uplink channel to the maximum transmit power.

10. The wireless terminal of claim 8, wherein the transmission power level of the tone of the dedicated uplink channel is controlled by the wireless terminal based on at least one closed loop power level control signal received from the base station.

11. The wireless terminal of claim 10, wherein the dedicated uplink channel includes a control information signal transmitted over a dedicated control channel to the base station.

12. The wireless terminal of claim 8, wherein the power report corresponds to the point in time.

13. The wireless terminal of claim 12, wherein a format of the power report depends on which one of a plurality of control information reporting modes used at the time the power report is transmitted.

14. The wireless terminal of claim 8, wherein the power report indicates a dB value.

15. A wireless terminal, comprising:

means for determining a power difference between a maximum transmit power of the wireless terminal and a transmit power estimate, the transmit power estimate corresponding to a transmission power level of a tone of a dedicated uplink channel at a point in time, and means for generating a power report, the power report including the power difference;

means for transmitting the power report, wherein the point in time is offset from a start of a communications segment in which the power report is to be transmitted; and

means for operating the means for determining, the means for generating, and the means for transmitting according to a report transmission schedule.

16. The wireless terminal of claim 15, wherein the means for determining compares the transmit power estimate of the dedicated uplink channel to the maximum transmit power.

17. A non-transitory computer readable medium embodying computer executable instructions, for use in a wireless terminal, the computer readable medium comprising instructions for causing a processor to perform the steps of:

determining a power difference between a maximum transmit power of the wireless terminal and a transmit power estimate, the transmit power estimate corresponding to a transmission power level of a tone of a dedicated uplink channel at a point in time;

generating a power report, the power report including the power difference;

transmitting the power report, wherein the point in time is offset from a start of a communications segment in which the power report is to be transmitted; and

repeating the determining, generating and transmitting steps according to a report transmission schedule.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein the step of determining compares the transmit power estimate of the dedicated uplink channel to the maximum transmit power.