Multi-PRB operation for narrowband systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10477537-B2
Application number	US-201715428242-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 9, 2017
Priority date	Feb 11, 2016
Publication date	Nov 12, 2019
Grant date	Nov 12, 2019

Abstract

Aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques and apparatus for multiple physical resource block (PRB) operations for narrowband (NB) systems, such as NB internet-of-things (IoT). In one aspect, a method is provided which may be performed by a wireless device such as a user equipment (UE), which may be an NB-IoT device. The method generally includes performing a cell search based on one or more signals received in an anchor RB within a set of RBs available for narrowband communications with a base station (BS); determining a location of at least one additional RB available for the narrowband communications with the BS based on an indication received in the anchor RB; and performing narrowband communications with the BS using at least one of: the anchor RB or the at least one additional resource block.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for wireless communications by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
performing a cell search based on one or more signals received in an anchor resource block (RB) for narrowband communications with a base station (BS);
determining a location of at least one additional RB for the narrowband communications with the BS based on a first indication of an absolute frequency location of the at least one additional RB and a second indication of whether the location of the at least one additional RB is an in-band location, a guard band location, or a standalone location, the first indication and the second indication received via radio resource control (RRC) signaling in the anchor RB; and
performing the narrowband communications with the BS using at least one of: the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more signals comprise at least one of a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), or a physical broadcast channel (PBCH).

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the UE is configured with a limited set of possible RBs for narrowband communications; and
the first indication comprises an indication of at least one of the limited set of possible RBs.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first indication is interpreted based on the second indication.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving one or more types of system information block (SIB) broadcast messages in the anchor RB; and
receiving at least one of: another type of SIB message, a random access response (RAR) message, or a paging message in at least one of: the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein performing the narrowband communications comprises communicating with the BS using only the anchor RB.

7. A method for wireless communications by a user equipment (UE), comprising:
performing a cell search based on one or more signals received in an anchor resource block (RB) for narrowband communications with a base station (BS);
transmitting signaling indicating a capability of the UE to perform the narrowband communications using only the anchor RB or using the anchor RB and at least one additional RB;
determining a location of the at least one additional RB; and
performing the narrowband communications with the BS using at least one of: the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB, according to the indicated capability.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein:
the one or more signals comprise at least one of a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), or a physical broadcast channel (PBCH);
the at least one of the PSS, the SSS, or the PBCH is received at a first periodicity in the anchor RB; and
the method further comprises receiving at least one of another PSS, SSS, or PBCH in the at least one additional RB at a second periodicity, greater than the first periodicity.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein:
the at least one other PSS, SSS, or PBCH received in the at least one additional RB is different than the at least one PSS, SSS, or PBCH received in the anchor RB.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein performing the narrowband communications comprises:
communicating at a first power level in a first additional RB of the at least one additional RB and communicating at a second power level, different than the first power level, in a second additional RB of the at least one additional RB.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein performing the narrowband communications comprises:
transmitting physical random access channel (PRACH) messages and receiving random access response (RAR) messages only in the anchor RB.

12. The method of claim 7 , wherein performing the narrowband communications comprises:
transmitting physical random access channel (PRACH) messages and receiving random access response (RAR) messages in at least one of: the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
identifying a set of RBs, including at least one of the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB, for transmitting the PRACH messages; and
randomly selecting a RACH preamble and at least one of the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB from the set of RBs for transmitting the PRACH messages.

14. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
receiving a first portion of system information block (SIB) information in the anchor RB; and
receiving a second portion of the SIB information in the at least one additional RB.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the anchor RB is located within a first operating bandwidth; and
the at least one additional RB is located within a second operating bandwidth.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one additional RB comprises another anchor RB.

17. The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
monitoring for paging messages in the anchor RB only when the indicated capability indicates narrowband communications using only the anchor RB.

18. The method of claim 17 , further comprising:
receiving a system information block (SIB) indicating a set of RBs, including at least one of the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB, for paging messages from the BS; and
when the indicated capability indicates the capability of the UE to perform the narrowband communications using the anchor RB and the at least one additional RB, selecting at least one of the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB from the set of RBs to monitor for the paging messages, the selection based at least in part on a UE identification.

19. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving an indication that the at least one additional RB is not an anchor RB.

20. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving a system information block (SIB) in the anchor RB having an indication of a change in a SIB transmitted in the at least one additional RB.

21. A method for wireless communications by a base station (BS), comprising:
sending one or more signals in an anchor resource block (RB) for narrowband communications with a user equipment (UE);
signaling, via radio resource control (RRC) signaling in the anchor RB, a first indication of an absolute frequency location of at least one additional RB for the narrowband communications with the UE and a second indication of whether the location of the at least one additional RB is an in-band location, a guard band location, or a standalone location; and
performing the narrowband communications with the UE using at least one of: the anchor RB or the at least one additional RB.

22. The method of claim 21 , wherein the one or more signals comprise at least one of: a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), or a physical broadcast channel (PBCH).

23. The method of claim 21 , wherein:
the method further comprises configuring the UE with a limited set of possible RBs for narrowband communications; and
the first indication comprises an indication of at least one of the limited set of possible RBs.

24. The method of claim 21 , further comprising:
transmitting one or more types of system information block (SIB) broadcast messages in the anchor RB; and
transmitting at least one of: another type of SIB message, a random access response (RAR) message, or a paging message in at least one of: the anchor RB or the at lea

Assignees

• Qualcomm Inc

Inventors

• Rico Alvarino Alberto
• Wang Xiao Feng
• Xu Hao
• Chen Wanshi
• Gaal Peter
• Montojo Juan
• Fakoorian Seyed Ali Akbar

Classifications

• B65G65/30

  Methods or devices for filling or emptying bunkers, hoppers, tanks, or like containers, of interest apart from their use in particular chemical or physical processes or their application in particular machines, e.g. not covered by a single other subclass (devices for tilting and emptying containers B65G65/23; such containers having means facilitating filling or emptying B65D88/54) · CPC title

• B65G63/004

  for containers · CPC title

• B65D2590/0091

  Ladders · CPC title

• B65D2519/00532

  Frame structures · CPC title

• B65D2519/00323

  made of more than one piece · CPC title