Communication control device, communication control method, terminal device, and program

• US 9,661,613 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2013
• Issued: 05/23/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Yoshizawa, Atsushi
• Primary Examiner(s): MATTIS, JASON E
• Application Number:
  US14/431,494
• Publication Number:
  US 20150230226A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,335 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/00 User notification, e.g. alerting and paging, for incoming communication, change of service or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/005 Transmission of information for alerting of incoming communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 68/02 Arrangements for increasing efficiency of notification or paging channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0446 Resources in time domain, e.g. slots or frames
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/23 in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/006 in the downlink, i.e. towards the terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/0833 Random access procedures, e.g. with 4-step access
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/14 Direct-mode setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/18 between terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

There is provided a communication control device including a decision unit configured to decide radio resources available for inter-device communication within a cell, and a notification unit configured to notify a terminal device located within the cell of the radio resources. When the radio resources are modified, the notification unit gives notification of modification of the radio resources through paging. When the radio resources are modified, the radio resources before the modification refrain from being used for the inter-device communication after a predetermined timing and the radio resources after the modification are used for the inter-device communication after the predetermined timing.

Claims

1. A communication control device comprising:

circuitry configured to

identify radio resources available for inter-device communication within a cell, the identified radio resources being assigned to a group of terminal devices for D2D communication in an idle mode, the identified radio resources being selected among radio resources available for communication in the idle mode and being different than radio resources used for a random access procedure in the idle mode; and

notify a terminal device of the group of terminal devices and located within the cell of the radio resources,

wherein, when the radio resources are modified, the circuitry notifies the terminal device of modification of the radio resources through a paging message including a flag indicating that modified radio resources will be described in a subsequent message, the flag being used for indicating modified radio resources for the group of terminal devices and being used for the random access procedure, and

wherein, when the radio resources are modified, the radio resources before the modification refrain from being used for the inter-device communication after a predetermined timing and the radio resources after the modification are used for the inter-device communication after the predetermined timing.

2. The communication control device according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry gives notification of the radio resources available for the inter-device communication in system information of the cell.

3. The communication control device according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry gives notification of the radio resources available for the inter-device communication through signaling to an individual terminal device.

4. The communication control device according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry identifies the radio resources available for the inter-device communication based on information regarding specific radio resources used by a terminal device in an idle mode of radio resource control.

5. The communication control device according to claim 4, wherein the circuitry identifies any radio resources excluding the specific radio resources as the radio resources available for the inter-device communication.

6. The communication control device according to claim 5, wherein the circuitry identifies radio resources of any subframe not including the specific radio resources as the radio resources available for the inter-device communication.

7. The communication control device according to claim 4, wherein the specific radio resources include radio resources for paging.

8. The communication control device according to claim 7, wherein the radio resources for the paging are radio resources used for paging in regard to a terminal device performing the inter-device communication.

9. The communication control device according to claim 4, wherein the specific radio resources include radio resources used in a random access procedure for transition to a connection mode of the radio resource control.

10. The communication control device according to claim 9, wherein the radio resources used in the random access procedure are radio resources of a physical random access channel.

11. The communication control device according to claim 9, wherein the radio resources used in the random access procedure are radio resources selected in advance as the radio resources used in the random access procedure by a terminal device performing the inter-device communication.

12. The communication control device according to claim 1,

wherein the circuitry identifies the radio resources available for the inter-device communication for each group of the inter-device communication, and

wherein the circuitry gives notification of the radio resources identified for each group of the inter-device communication.

13. The communication control device according to claim 12, wherein the circuitry identifies the radio resources available for the inter-device communication in a manner that the radio resources available for the inter-device communication do not overlap between the groups of the inter-device communication.

14. The communication control device according to claim 13, wherein the circuitry identifies the radio resources available for the inter-device communication in a manner that the radio resources available for the inter-device communication do not overlap between a first group of the inter-device communication and a second group of the inter-device communication located near the first group.

15. The communication control device according to claim 2, wherein the circuitry gives notification of the modification of the radio resources available for the inter-device communication as modification of the system information through paging.

16. The communication control device according to claim 2, wherein the circuitry gives notification of the modification of the radio resources available for the inter-device communication as modification different from modification of the system information through paging and refrains from giving the notification of the modification of the radio resources as the modification of the system information through the paging.

17. The communication control device according to claim 1, wherein the radio resources available for the inter-device communication are used for the inter-device communication by a terminal device in an idle mode of radio resource control and refrain from being used for the inter-device communication by a terminal device in a connection mode of the radio resource control.

18. A communication control method comprising:

identifying radio resources available for inter-device communication within a cell, the identified radio resources being assigned to a group of terminal devices for D2D communication in an idle mode, the identified radio resources being selected among radio resources available for communication in the idle mode and being different than radio resources used for a random access procedure in the idle mode;

notifying a terminal device of the group of terminal devices and located within the cell of the radio resources; and

when the radio resources are modified, notifying the terminal device of modification of the radio resources through a paging message including a flag indicating that modified radio resources will be described in a subsequent message, the flag being used for indicating modified radio resources for the group of terminal devices and being used for the random access procedure, and

wherein, when the radio resources are modified, the radio resources before the modification refrain from being used for the inter-device communication after a predetermined timing and the radio resources after the modification are used for the inter-device communication after the predetermined timing.

19. A terminal device comprising:

circuitry configured to

recognize radio resources available for inter-device communication within a cell when the radio resources are identified and notification thereof is given, the radio resources being assigned to a group of terminal devices including the terminal device for D2D communication in an idle mode, the radio resources being selected among radio resources available for communication in the idle mode and being different than radio resources used for a random access procedure in the idle mode;

control the inter-device communication in a manner that the recognized radio resources are used for the inter-device communication; and

recognize modification of the radio resources when the radio resources are modified and notification of the modification of the radio resources is given through a paging message including a flag indicating that modified radio resources will be described in a subsequent message, the flag being used for indicating modified radio resources for the group of terminal devices and being used for the random access procedure, and

wherein, when the radio resources are modified, the circuitry controls the inter-device communication in a manner that the radio resources before the modification refrain from being used for the inter-device communication after a predetermined timing and the radio resources after the modification are used for the inter-device communication after the predetermined timing.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions thereon, which, when executed by a terminal device, cause the terminal device perform a method, the method comprising:

recognizing radio resources available for inter-device communication within a cell when the radio resources are identified and notification thereof is given, the radio resources being assigned to a group of terminal devices including the terminal device for D2D communication in an idle mode, the radio resources being selected among radio resources available for communication in the idle mode and being different than radio resources used for a random access procedure in the idle mode;

controlling the inter-device communication in a manner that the recognized radio resources are used for the inter-device communication; and

recognizing modification of the radio resources when the radio resources are modified and notification of the modification of the radio resources is given through a paging message including a flag indicating that modified radio resources will be described in a subsequent message, the flag being used for indicating modified radio resources for the group of terminal devices and being used for the random access procedure, and

wherein, when the radio resources are modified, the controlling controls the inter-device communication in a manner that the radio resources before the modification refrain from being used for the inter-device communication after a predetermined timing and the radio resources after the modification are used for the inter-device communication after the predetermined timing.

21. An electronic device comprising:

circuitry configured to

receive radio resource information for Device-to-Device (D2D) communication, the radio resources indicated by the radio resource information being assigned to a group of electronic devices including the electronic device for D2D communication in an idle mode, the radio resources being selected among radio resources available for communication in the idle mode and being different than radio resources used for a random access procedure in the idle mode;

perform D2D communication with another electronic device in the idle mode;

obtain modified radio resource information for the D2D communication after receiving, in the idle mode, a paging message including a flag indicating that the modified radio resources will be described in a subsequent message, the flag being used for indicating modified radio resources for the group of electronic devices and being used for the random access procedure; and

communicate with another electronic apparatus via the D2D communication using resources indicated by the modified radio resource information.