SYSTEM INFORMATION BROADCAST IN MACHINE-TO-MACHINE RADIO ACCESS SYSTEMS

• US 20160212686A1
• Filed: 02/10/2014
• Published: 07/21/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo Singapore Pte Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: VIOREL, Dorin G., BUCKNELL, Paul, ITO, Akira
• Granted Patent: US 10,349,342 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/10 using broadcasted information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/04 Wireless resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/51 based on terminal or device properties

Abstract

A method may include detecting multiple system-information block (SIB) blocks and associated content. The associated content may be stored. The method may further include detecting multiple change flags associated with the multiple SIB blocks, each of the multiple change flags associated with one of the multiple SIB blocks. In response to detecting a change flag having a first change flag value, content of the SIB block associated with the first change flag may be reused. The first change flag value may represent an absence of a change to the content of the SIB block associated with the first change flag. In response to detecting the change flag having a second change flag value, the SIB block associated with the second change flag may be detected and the associated content stored. The second change flag value may represent a change to the content of the associated SIB blocks.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

detecting, from a downlink channel in a wireless communication network, a plurality of system-information block (SIB) blocks and content associated with each of the plurality of SIB blocks;

storing the content associated with each of the plurality of SIB blocks;

detecting, from the downlink channel in the wireless communication network, a transmission including a plurality of change flags associated with the plurality of SIB blocks, each of the plurality of change flags associated with one of the plurality of SIB blocks;

in response to detecting a change flag of the plurality of change flags having a first change flag value, reusing the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag, the first change flag value representing an absence of a change to the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag;

in response to detecting the change flag having a second change flag value, detecting the SIB block associated with the change flag and storing the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag, the second change flag value representing a change to the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag; and

selectively detecting SIB blocks having changed content based on the change flag values of the plurality of change flags.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of SIB blocks includes;

a system-information-block-one (SIB1) block including first system information content;

a system-information-block-two (SIB2) block including second system information content; and

a system-information-block-x (SIBx) block, the SIBx block including third system information content, the third system information content having a higher refresh rate than both the first system information content and the second information content; and

the plurality of change flags includes;

a first change flag associated with the SIB1 block;

a second change flag associated with the SIB2 block; and

a third change flag associated with the SIBx block.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the SIBx block includes a system-information-block-two-machine-type-communication (SIB2) block including content associated with a configuration of a random access channel associated with machine-type-communication (MTC) devices.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein one or more of:

the transmission including the plurality of change flags,

the SIB1 block,

the SIB2 block, and

the SIB2 block

are received in a machine-type-communication (MTC) resource allocation.

5. A terminal including a non-transitory computer-readable medium having encoded therein programming code executable by a processor or processor system to perform operations comprising:

detecting a plurality of system-information block (SIB) blocks and content associated with each of the plurality of SIB blocks;

storing the content associated with each of the plurality of SIB blocks;

detecting a transmission including a plurality of change flags associated with the plurality of SIB blocks, each of the plurality of change flags associated with at least one of the plurality of SIB blocks; and

in response to detecting a change flag of the plurality of change flags having a first change flag value, reusing the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag having the first change flag value, the first change flag value representing an absence of a change to the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag.

6. The terminal of claim 5, wherein the plurality of SIB blocks includes:

a system-information-block-one (SIB1) block including first system information content;

a system-information-block-two (SIB2) block including second system information content; and

a system-information-block-x (SIBx) block, the SIBx block including third system information content, the third system information content having a higher refresh rate than both the first system information content and the second information content.

7. The terminal of claim 6, wherein the SIBx block includes a system-information-block-two-machine-type-communication (SIB2) block.

8. The terminal of claim 7, wherein the SIB2 block includes content associated with a configuration of a random access channel associated with machine-type-communication (MTC) devices.

9. The terminal of claim 6, wherein:

in response to the change flag of the plurality of change flags having a second change flag value, detecting the SIB block associated with the change flag and storing the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag, the second change flag value representing a change to the content of the SIB block associated with the change flag;

the plurality of change flags include;

a first change flag associated with the SIB1 block;

a second change flag associated with the SIB2 block; and

a third change flag associated with the SIBx block;

in response to receiving the first change flag having the second change flag value, detecting the SIB1 block and storing the first system information content;

in response to receiving the second change flag having the second change flag value, detecting the SIB2 block and storing the second system information content; and

in response to receiving the third change flag having the second change flag value, detecting the SIBx block and storing the third system information content.

10. The terminal of claim 5, wherein a master-information block (MIB) block includes the plurality of change flags.

11. The terminal of claim 10, wherein the MIB block is received in a machine-type communication (MTC) resource allocation.

12. The terminal of claim 5, wherein one or more of the plurality of SIB blocks are received in a machine-type communication (MTC) resource allocation.

13. A base station including a non-transitory computer-readable medium having encoded therein programming code executable by a processor to perform operations comprising:

transmitting a plurality of system-information block (SIB) blocks including content associated with each of the plurality of SIB blocks; and

transmitting a plurality of change flags associated with the plurality of SIB blocks, each of the plurality of change flags associated with one of the plurality of SIB blocks; and

each of the plurality of change flags having a first change flag value or a second change flag value, the first change flag value representing an absence of a change to the content of the associated SIB block and the second change flag value representing a change to the content of the associated SIB block.

14. The base station of claim 13, wherein transmitting the plurality of SIB blocks includes:

transmitting a system-information-block-one (SIB1) block including first system information content;

transmitting a system-information-block-two (SIB2) block including second system information content; and

transmitting a system-information-block-x (SIBx) block, the SIBx block including third system information content, the third system information content having a higher refresh rate than both the first system information content and the second information content.

15. The base station of claim 14, wherein the SIBx block includes a system-information-block-two-machine-type-communication (SIB2) block including content associated with a configuration of a random access channel associated with machine-type-communication (MTC) devices.

16. The base station of claim 14, wherein the plurality of change flags include:

a first change flag associated with the SIB1 block;

a second change flag associated with the SIB2 block; and

a third change flag associated with the SIBx block.

17. The base station of claim 13, the operations further comprising transmitting a master-information block (MIB) including the plurality of change flags.

18. The base station of claim 17, wherein the MIB block is transmitted in a central resource allocation.

19. The base station of claim 17, wherein the MIB block is transmitted in a machine-type communication (MTC) resource allocation.

20. The base station of claim 13, wherein one or more of the plurality of SIB blocks are transmitted in a machine-type communication (MTC) resource allocation.