Battery saving with radio control based on cellular condition data

• US 9,900,845 B2
• Filed: 09/23/2014
• Issued: 02/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.), AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cui, Zhi, Brisebois, Arthur Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Chriss, Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): Preval, Voster
• Application Number:
  US14/494,487
• Publication Number:
  US 20160088570A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,246 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0209 in terminal devices terminal devices per se H04W88/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/18 TPC being performed according to specific parameters
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Battery power of a dual radio (e.g., Wi-Fi and cellular radios) user equipment (UE) is conserved based on limiting simultaneous (or substantially simultaneous) usage of the radios based on user preference, cellular network condition, device speed, and/or network operator policies. In one aspect, the UE can receive, by employing a first radio (e.g., cellular radio), an adaptable signal strength criterion related to real-time network load conditions of a first radio access network (e.g., cellular network). Moreover, if the signal strength criterion is satisfied, the UE can switch on a second radio (e.g., Wi-Fi radio) to facilitate connection with a second radio network (e.g., Wi-Fi network). The signal strength criterion is updated such that second radios of UEs that are located closer to a cell edge of the first radio access network are switched on before switching on second radios of UE that are located closer to the serving access point.

Claims

1. A user equipment, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising;

receiving a first signal representative of signal strength criterion data from a first network device of a first radio access network by employing a first radio of the user equipment, wherein the first signal is a data signal, and wherein the signal strength criterion data comprises a variable signal strength threshold that is modified based on a change in load data indicative of a load associated with the first radio access network,

receiving, from the network device, classification data indicative of a type of radio access technology utilized by a second network device of a second radio access network, wherein the variable signal strength threshold has been modified based on the classification data, and

based on comparing signal strength data, indicative of a strength of a second signal received from the first network device, with the variable signal strength threshold, controlling a power of a second radio of the user equipment that is employable to communicatively couple the user equipment with the second network device.

2. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the controlling comprises switching on the second radio in response to determining that the strength of the second signal is less than the variable signal strength threshold.

3. The user equipment of claim 2, wherein the switching on the second radio comprises switching on the second radio in response to determining that load data received from the first network device satisfies a defined high load criterion.

4. The user equipment of claim 2, wherein the switching on the second radio comprises switching on the second radio in response to receiving input data instructing the user equipment to switch on the second radio.

5. The user equipment of claim 2, wherein the switching on the second radio comprises switching on the second radio in response to determining that motion data representing a motion of the user equipment satisfies a defined slow motion criterion.

6. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the controlling comprises switching off the second radio in response to determining that the strength of the second signal is greater than the variable signal strength threshold.

7. The user equipment of claim 6, wherein the switching off the second radio comprises switching off the second radio in response to determining that the load data received from the first network device satisfies a defined low load criterion.

8. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the variable signal strength threshold is a first variable signal strength threshold that is modified based on historical data indicative of a second variable signal strength threshold that has been utilized to increase network efficiency of the first network device.

9. The user equipment of claim 6, wherein the switching off the second radio comprises switching off the second radio in response to determining that motion data representing a motion of the user equipment satisfies a defined fast motion criterion.

10. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the variable signal strength threshold is modified to steer traffic from selected user equipment, including the user equipment, to the second device.

11. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the variable signal strength threshold is decreased in response to determining that congestion within the first radio access network has decreased.

12. The user equipment of claim 1, wherein the variable signal strength threshold is increased in response to determining that congestion within the first radio access network has increased.

13. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a user equipment comprising a processor, a data signal that represents signal strength criterion data from a first network device of a first radio access network by employing a first radio of the user equipment, wherein the signal strength criterion data represents an adaptable signal strength threshold that is determined based on load data indicative of a load associated with the first radio access network;

receiving, by the user equipment, category data indicative of a category of radio access technology utilized by a second network device of a second radio access network, wherein the adaptable signal strength threshold has been modified based on the category data, and

based on comparing signal strength data, representing a strength of a signal received from the first network device, with the adaptable signal strength threshold, denying, by the user equipment, a provision of power to a second radio of the user equipment that is employable to communicatively couple the user equipment with the second network device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the denying comprises denying the provision of the power to the second radio in response to determining that the strength of the signal is greater than the adaptable signal strength threshold.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the denying comprises denying the provision of the power to the second radio based on speed data indicative of a speed of the user equipment.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the denying comprises denying the provision of the power to the second radio based on load data indicative of congestion associated with the first radio access network.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the denying comprises denying the provision of the power to the second radio based on policy data received via the first network device.

18. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor of a user equipment, facilitate the performance of operations, comprising:

receiving a data signal that represents congestion data associated with a first device of a first radio access network device, to which the user equipment is coupled via a first radio, wherein the congestion data is determined to satisfy a high congestion criterion;

receiving, from the first device, cell type data that specifies a radio access technology employed by a second device, of a second access network device, to which the user equipment can communicate via a second radio, wherein the congestion data has been adjusted based on the cell type data;

in response to verifying that location data indicative of a location of the user equipment satisfies a cell edge criterion, activating the second radio; and

in response to verifying that the location data does not satisfy the cell edge criterion, deactivating the second radio.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the data signal is a first signal, and wherein the verifying that location data satisfies a cell edge criterion is based on a comparison of the signal strength data associated with a second signal received from the first radio access network device with an adaptable signal strength criterion that is modified based on the congestion data.

20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to determining that the congestion data has been updated and that the updated congestion data does not satisfy the high congestion criterion, deactivating the second radio.