Method and apparatus for enhancing discontinuous reception in wireless systems

• US 9,510,390 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2015
• Issued: 11/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Interdigital Technology Corporation (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Interdigital Technology Corporation (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sammour, Mohammed, Chandra, Arty, Wang, Jin, Somasundaram, Shankar
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, PHUC H
• Application Number:
  US14/717,145
• Publication Number:
  US 20150257202A1
• Time in Patent Office: 559 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0206 in access points, e.g. base stations access point devices per se H04W88/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0216 using a pre-established activity schedule, e.g. traffic indication frame
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/20 Manipulation of established connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/28 Discontinuous transmission [DTX]; Discontinuous reception [DRX]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A method of discontinuous reception (DRX) in a wireless transmit receive unit (WTRU) includes the WTRU receiving DRX setting information over a radio resource control (RRC) signal, and the WTRU receiving DRX activation information over medium access control (MAC) signal.

Claims

1. A method for coordinating uplink and downlink transmissions, the method comprising:

a wireless transmit receive unit (WTRU) receiving discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration information from an evolved Node-B (eNB) via a radio resource control (RRC) message, wherein the DRX configuration information comprises an indication of a length of a minimum active period and an indication of a DRX cycle periodicity;

the WTRU receiving an uplink resource assignment from the eNB, wherein the uplink resource assignment is applicable to a first uplink channel, and the uplink resource assignment is a periodic assignment of the first uplink channel; and

the WTRU transmitting to the eNB in accordance with the uplink resource assignment, wherein transmissions sent on the first uplink channel according to the periodic assignment coincide with an active period of a DRX cycle associated with the DRX configuration information.

2. The method as in claim 1, wherein the minimum active period corresponds to a minimum amount of time during which the WTRU is active at a beginning of given DRX cycle.

3. The method as in claim 1, further comprising the WTRU transmitting user data using a second uplink channel in accordance with a received allocation for the second uplink channel.

4. The method as in claim 3, wherein the first uplink channel is an uplink thin channel and the second uplink channel is a shared data channel.

5. The method as in claim 1, wherein each respective DRX cycle comprises a respective active period and a respective sleep period, the WTRU transmits the transmissions sent on the first uplink channel during the respective active periods, and the WTRU does not transmit any of the transmissions on the first uplink channel during the respective sleep periods.

6. The method as in claim 1, further comprising the WTRU determining to enter DRX based on detecting a period of transmission inactivity.

7. The method as in claim 6, wherein the WTRU sends a request to enter DRX to the eNB in order to resume performing DRX.

8. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

the WTRU receiving a downlink resource assignment from the eNB during the minimum active period of a given DRX cycle;

the WTRU remaining awake to receive downlink data in accordance with the downlink resource assignment;

the WTRU receiving a DRX activation command in a medium access control (MAC) message; and

the WTRU resuming DRX operation in response to receiving the DRX activation command in the MAC message.

9. A wireless transmit receive unit (WTRU) comprising a processor configured, at least in part, to:

receive discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration information from an evolved Node-B (eNB) via a radio resource control (RRC) message, wherein the DRX configuration information comprises an indication of a length of a minimum active period and an indication of a DRX cycle periodicity;

receive an uplink resource assignment from the eNB, wherein the uplink resource assignment is applicable to a first uplink channel, and the uplink resource assignment is a periodic assignment of the first uplink channel; and

transmit to the eNB in accordance with the uplink resource assignment, wherein the WTRU is configured to send transmissions on the first uplink channel according to the periodic assignment in a manner such that the transmissions coincide with an active period of a DRX cycle associated with the DRX configuration information.

10. The WTRU as in claim 9, wherein the minimum active period corresponds to a minimum amount of time during which the WTRU is configured to be active at a beginning of given DRX cycle.

11. The WTRU as in claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to transmit user data using a second uplink channel in accordance with a received allocation for the second uplink channel.

12. The WTRU as in claim 11, wherein the first uplink channel is an uplink thin channel and the second uplink channel is a shared data channel.

13. The WTRU as in claim 9, wherein each respective DRX cycle comprises a respective active period and a respective sleep period, the WTRU is configured such that the transmissions sent on the first uplink channel are sent during the respective active periods and not during the respective sleep periods.

14. The WTRU as in claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to determine to enter DRX based on detecting a period of transmission inactivity.

15. The WTRU as in claim 14, wherein the processor is configured to send a request to enter DRX to the eNB in order to resume performing DRX.

16. The WTRU as in claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive a downlink resource assignment from the eNB during the minimum active period of a given DRX cycle;

receive downlink data in accordance with the downlink resource assignment, wherein the processor is configured to keep the WTRU awake beyond the minimum active period of the given DRX cycle based on receiving the downlink resource assignment;

receive a DRX activation command in a medium access control (MAC) message; and

resume DRX operation in response to receiving the DRX activation command in the MAC message.

17. An evolved Node-B (eNB) comprising a processor configured, at least in part, to:

send discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration information to a wireless transmit receive unit (WTRU) via a radio resource control (RRC) message, wherein the DRX configuration information comprises an indication of a length of a minimum active period and an indication of a DRX cycle periodicity;

send an uplink resource assignment to the WTRU, wherein the uplink resource assignment is applicable to a first uplink channel, and the uplink resource assignment is a periodic assignment to the WTRU for use of the first uplink channel; and

receive transmissions from the WTRU in accordance with the uplink resource assignment, wherein the eNB is configured to receive the transmissions on the first uplink channel in accordance with the periodic assignment such that the transmissions to the eNB on the first uplink channel coincide with an active period of a DRX cycle configured for the WTRU.

18. The eNB as in claim 17, wherein the minimum active period corresponds to a minimum amount of time during which the WTRU is configured to be active at a beginning of given DRX cycle.

19. The eNB as in claim 17, wherein the processor is further configured to receive user data from the WTRU via a second uplink channel in accordance with an allocation of the second uplink channel that was sent to the WTRU from the eNB.

20. The eNB as in claim 19, wherein the first uplink channel is an uplink thin channel and the second uplink channel is a shared data channel.