Cellular communication system with moving base stations and methods and apparatus useful in conjunction therewith

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10142906-B2
Application number	US-201514604079-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 23, 2015
Priority date	Jan 28, 2010
Publication date	Nov 27, 2018
Grant date	Nov 27, 2018

Abstract

A mobile communication network system operative in conjunction with a core network including a core device and at least one static base station includes a plurality of base stations. The system further includes a population of mobile stations communicating via antennae with the base stations. The base stations include at least one moving base station which communicates via antennae with the mobile stations and includes base station functionality and a first radio manager and mobile station functionality all co-located with the base station functionality. The base station functionality has a physical back-connection to the first radio manager. The first radio manager has a physical connection with the mobile station functionality. The mobile station functionality communicates via antennae with at least one selectable static base station. The information used to determine whether to reject includes the location of the moving base station and statistics regarding measurements of link quality.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A mobile communication network system operative in conjunction with a core network including a core device and at least one static base station, the system operative in conjunction with a plurality of base stations; and
a population of mobile stations communicating via antennae with the base stations;
the system comprising:
at least one moving base station which communicates via antennae with the mobile stations and includes base station functionality, a first radio manager and mobile station functionality all co-located with the base station functionality,
the base station functionality having a physical back-connection to the first radio manager, the first radio manager having a physical connection with the mobile station functionality, the mobile station functionality communicating via antennae with at least one selectable static base station,

wherein the first radio manager comprises:
a radio resource manager; and
functionality for receiving information from, and sending information to, other radio managers, respectively co-located with other moving base stations, and for using the information received from other radio managers to determine whether to reject at least one mobile station seeking to be served by an individual base station associated with the individual co-located radio manager,

wherein the information used to determine whether to reject includes at least one of the following:
location of said at least one moving base station; and
statistics regarding measurements of link quality,

wherein said information received from other radio managers and used to determine whether to reject comprises information regarding qualities of respective connections of respectively co-located radio managers back to the core network,
wherein said other radio manager is operative to compute, for at least one individual mobile station, route comparison information including a plurality of routes of base stations via which the individual mobile station can communicate with the core network and at least one parameter characterizing the relative quality of each of said routes and to communicate to said individual mobile station information indicative of said route comparison information, and
wherein said parameter characterizing route quality is a combination of measured qualities of route sections and fluctuations thereof such that route sections with larger fluctuating quality measurements are devalued due to their unpredictability relative to route sections with smaller fluctuating quality measurements.

2. The system according to claim 1 wherein said information received from other radio managers and used to determine whether to reject provided by respectively co-located radio managers via a selected one of:
a static base station from among the at least one static base station of the core network; and
a moving base station capable of providing service to the individual radio manager's co-located mobile device.

3. The system according to claim 1 wherein said information regarding quality of its own connection back to the core network is provided by its own co-located mobile station.

4. The system according to claim 1 wherein said information includes information regarding channel quality which other base stations are able to provide mobile stations in the vicinity of the individual co-located radio manager and which is provided by reports generated by said mobile stations in said vicinity.

5. The system according to claim 1 wherein said information regarding quality of service available from its own base station for mobile stations in the vicinity of the individual co-located radio manager is provided by its own co-located mobile station.

6. The system according to claim 1 wherein said individual mobile station is operative to select a base station to be connected to at least partly based on said information indicative of said route comparison information.

7. The system according to claim 6 wherein said parameter is based upon a minimum SNR (signal noise ratio) value, over sections which together compose a route, each section having its own SNR (signal noise ratio) value.

8. The system according to claim 1 wherein at least one individual co-located radio manager includes a mobile-to-mobile direct communication facilitation functionality operative to provide direct communication, not requiring said core network, between a plurality of mobile devices in said individual radio manager's vicinity.

9. The system according to claim 1 wherein said moving base station observes a silence period during which it refrains from transmitting to its own co-located mobile station.

10. The system according to claim 9 wherein at least one characteristic of said silence period is dynamically determined by the moving base station's co-located radio manager.

11. The system according to claim 10 wherein said characteristic comprises a zone in which silence is observed which is defined over at least one of a frequency band and a time window.

12. The system according to claim 1 wherein said network comprises a tactical E-UTRAN network.

13. The system according to claim 1 wherein if a multi-hop communication route is used, in which a relay R that is connected to the core network via another relay A, relay R sends a message to a backhauling relay that R is A's anchor.

14. The method according to claim 13 wherein the backhauling relay becomes aware that another relay is connected to it and finds a location which has a good Quality Grade Result at which to remain.

15. The system according to claim 1 wherein said static base station is co-located with said core device.

16. The system according to claim 1 wherein said physical back-connection comprises an Ethernet back-connection.

17. The system according to claim 1 wherein said radio resource manager comprises an E-UTRAN radio resource manager.

18. The system according to claim 1 wherein users are shown a location which has a good Quality Grade Result (QGR).

19. The method according to claim 18 wherein statistical measurements of a co-located MS in each at least one relay are attached to location results of the relay and wherein said system includes at least one rRM having a functionality that computes and indicates to the user locations with good QGC (quality grade control).

20. The system according to claim 1 wherein said information includes information regarding qualities of other base stations' respective connections back to the core network.

21. The system according to claim 20 wherein said other base stations include all base stations along a route connecting said moving base station and said core, via which route said core serves said moving base station.

22. The system according to claim 1 wherein said information includes information regarding quality of the first radio manager's moving base station's connection back to the core network.

23. The system according to claim 1 wherein said information includes information regarding channel qualities which said first radio manager's own base station, and base stations other than said first radio manager's own base station, are respectively able to provide, to mobile stations in the vicinity of the first radio manager.

24. The system according to claim 1 wherein the information used to determine whether to reject includes location of said at least one moving base station; and statistics regarding measurements

Assignees

• Elta Systems Ltd

Inventors

• Giloh Benjamin

Classifications

• H04W72/542

  using measured or perceived quality · CPC title

• H04W72/20

  Control channels or signalling for resource management · CPC title

• H04W84/005

  Moving wireless networks · CPC title

• H04W88/08

  Access point devices · CPC title

• H04B7/2606

  Arrangements for base station coverage control, e.g. by using relays in tunnels · CPC title