Common packet channel assignment method and apparatus

Abstract

A method and device for initiating uplink data packet communication from a mobile device to a base station on a common packet channel is disclosed. The communication is initiated when the mobile device reads broadcast status of common packet channels, after which the mobile device sends an access preamble to the base station that is acknowledged by the base station, and then the mobile device sends a collision preamble which the base station answers with a matching collision response. If the base station's response to the collision preamble also includes a channel allocation message, then the base station begins uplink data packet communication on an allocated channel provided that the allocated channel previously had free broadcast status. However, if the base station's response to the collision preamble includes a channel allocation message designating channel(s) not previously having free broadcast status, then the mobile device's access attempt is aborted.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] A method and apparatus for transmitting data from user equipment (UE) to a radio network subsystem within a mobile telephone system, and in particular for selecting the common packet channel (CPCH) to be used for the data transmission, within a universal mobile telephone system (UMTS). BACKGROUND ART [0002] One of the major problems in mobile telephone systems with packet data transmission in the uplink is how to divide the access resources to different users when the need for resources varies between users at a given point in time. [0003] In current systems, each user is reserved a certain amount of capacity and base station hardware resources during a circuit-switched call for as long as communication capability is needed. However, when using circuit-switched transmission of packet data in this way wherein data to be transmitted is typically very bursty in nature, it is a waste of radio capacity and physical hardware resources to keep a sing...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0011] It is an object of the invention to solve reliability problems of the uplink CPCH by developing a method and apparatus for improved reliability of the channel allocation within a WCDMA system. This invention combines and improves aspects of existing related art access methods, including UCS and VCAM, in a way which substantially eliminates problems posed by those related art access methods.

[0013] According to this invention, the radio network subsystem may have already informed the user equipment (UE) of one or more possible uplink CPCH channels to be used for packet data transmission if those channels are free. The radio network subsystem may also have already informed the user equipment (UE) of the respective data bit rates, codes, and / or other parameters corresponding to the possible uplink CPCH channels. A primary purpose of the present invention is to efficiently determine which uplink CPCH channel the UE should use to communicate data packets to the radio network subsystem.

[0017] This invention is substantially based on restricting the valid channel allocation message values based on the information previously given by the status broadcast transmission. The method and apparatus of the invention provide several advantages. Problems with data transmission reliability are solved for all users in the system, by minimizing the probability for two users to follow a single power control stream and thus create excessive interference. Also, for a single user, reliability problems of the channel allocation message decoding are solved, thereby improving the probability of a successful packet transmission attempt. This invention thereby enables efficient use of radio capacity. Moreover, in the present claimed invention, the effects of delay in channel selection are minimized via the claimed channel assignment method. The channel assignment errors are minimized by increasing the probability that free channels will be assigned. The invention is backward compatible with the related art UE channel selection (UCS) in the sense that the invention can be adapted as a supplement to UCS.

Problems solved by technology

One of the major problems in mobile telephone systems with packet data transmission in the uplink is how to divide the access resources to different users when the need for resources varies between users at a given point in time.

However, when using circuit-switched transmission of packet data in this way wherein data to be transmitted is typically very bursty in nature, it is a waste of radio capacity and physical hardware resources to keep a single user's connection reserved all the time according to the greatest possible momentary data transmission need.

Thus, packet-switched transmission of packet data is preferable, but having the connection totally disconnected between data transmissions can mean a lengthy process with a lot of signaling via the Random Access Channel (RACH) every time there is data to be transmitted.

In future systems, the applications are expected to have a larger range, from database applications, to email and internet browsing, to any other TCP / IP traffic, and consequently the current types of systems are not acceptable.

However, Uplink CPCH suffers from a reliability problem.

Using Uplink CPCH, the proposed channel allocation procedures may lead to two or more user equipments transmitting their data on the same CPCH channel and thus causing excessive interference.

In other words, user channel selection (UCS) proceeds by the user selecting and accessing a free CPCH channel according to the description of free channels sent to the UE over a broadcast channel (BCH); however, the delay in the access method and in the BCH transmission may cause UE to access a channel which is already reserved.

The problem with this related art technique is that AICH typically has an error rate in the range of one percent (1%).

VCAM, however, requires reliable signaling, and therefore the high AICH error rate often will cause two UEs to transmit into the same CPCH.

The UEs consequently would follow a single power-control stream, often causing severe noise levels at the receiver.

Images