Inserting virtual carrier in conventional OFDM host carrier in communications system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10993233-B2
Application number	US-201916383688-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 15, 2019
Priority date	Feb 4, 2011
Publication date	Apr 27, 2021
Grant date	Apr 27, 2021

Abstract

A network element for use in a mobile communications system and a method of using a network element for communicating data to/from mobile communications devices in a mobile communications system. The network element can provide a wireless access interface for communicating data to/from the mobile communications devices, the wireless access interface including: on a downlink a host carrier, the host carrier providing plural resource elements across a first frequency range; transmit data for a first group of mobile communications devices, wherein the data is distributed within the plural resource elements across the first frequency range; a virtual carrier via the wireless access interface, the virtual carrier providing one or more resource elements within a second frequency range which is within and smaller than the first frequency range; and transmit data for a second group of mobile communications devices via the virtual carrier.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electronic device comprising:
circuitry configured to
locate, within a wireless access interface provided by a base station, a narrowband carrier that includes a first plurality of resource elements across a first range of system resource blocks which is within and smaller than a second range of system resource blocks that span a system frequency bandwidth;
decode a narrowband carrier control portion within the narrowband carrier, the narrowband carrier control portion identifying resource elements within the narrowband carrier that are allocated to the electronic device;
locate the allocated resource elements within the narrowband carrier based on the decoded control portion; and
receive data transmitted by the base station by decoding the allocated resource elements within the narrowband carrier, wherein data transmitted on the narrowband carrier is logically distinct from data transmitted in remaining parts of the second range of system resource blocks.

2. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein
the narrowband carrier control portion within the narrowband carrier is included in a first sub-frame transmitted by the base station, and
the allocated resource elements are included in a second sub-frame, which is transmitted by the base station subsequent to the first sub-frame.

3. The electronic device of claim 2 , wherein the second sub-frame immediately follows the first sub-frame.

4. The electronic device of claim 2 , wherein the allocated resource elements include a subset of resource elements in the narrowband carrier of the second sub-frame.

5. The electronic device of claim 2 , wherein the allocated resource elements include an entirety of resource elements of the narrowband carrier in the second sub-frame.

6. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein
the allocated resource elements include network configuration information, and
the circuitry is configured to decode the allocated resource elements to identify the network configuration information.

7. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is configured to synchronize with the base station based on a primary synchronization signal (PSS) and a secondary synchronization signal (SSS) transmitted by the base station.

8. The electronic device of claim 7 , wherein the circuitry is configured to receive and decode a primary broadcast channel (PBCH) transmitted by the base station after performing the synchronization with the base station and before locating the narrowband carrier.

9. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the first range of system resource blocks includes fewer than one hundred resource blocks.

10. An electronic device comprising:
circuitry configured to
locate, within a wireless access interface provided by a base station, a narrowband downlink carrier that includes a first plurality of resource elements across a first range of system resource blocks which is within and smaller than a second range of system resource blocks that span a system frequency bandwidth;
decode a narrowband carrier control portion within the downlink narrowband carrier, the narrowband carrier control portion identifying a physical random access channel (PRACH) to transmit a random access request to the base station; and
transmit a random access request to the base station on the PRACH based on the decoded control portion within the downlink narrowband carrier, wherein data transmitted on the narrowband carrier is logically distinct from data transmitted in remaining parts of the second range of system resource blocks.

11. The electronic device of claim 10 , wherein the first range of system resource blocks includes fewer than one hundred resource blocks.

12. The electronic device of claim 10 , wherein
the narrowband carrier control portion identifies that the PRACH is in a narrowband uplink carrier, and
the circuitry is configured to transmit the random access request to the base station on the PRACH included in the uplink narrowband carrier.

13. The electronic device of claim 12 , wherein the narrowband uplink carrier includes a same number of resource elements as the downlink narrowband carrier.

14. The electronic device of claim 10 , wherein
the narrowband carrier control portion identifies that the PRACH is in a host carrier bandwidth outside of a narrowband uplink carrier, and
the circuitry is configured to transmit the random access request to the base station on the PRACH included in the host carrier bandwidth.

15. The electronic device of claim 10 , wherein
the narrowband carrier control portion identifies that the PRACH is included in a subset of a plurality of uplink sub-frames, and
the circuitry is configured to transmit the random access request to the base station on the PRACH included in the subset of the plurality of uplink sub-frames.

16. An electronic device comprising:
circuitry configured to
locate, within a wireless access interface provided by a base station, a narrowband carrier that includes a first plurality of resource elements across a first range of system resource blocks which is within and smaller than a second range of system resource blocks that span a system frequency bandwidth;
extract reference signals included in the narrowband carrier;
estimate a channel function applied to data received on the narrowband carrier based on the extracted reference signals;
decode a narrowband carrier control portion within the narrowband carrier based on the estimate channel function, the narrowband carrier control portion identifying resource elements within the narrowband carrier that are allocated to the electronic device;
locate the allocated resource elements within the narrowband carrier based on the decoded control portion; and
receive data transmitted by the base station by decoding the allocated resource elements within the narrowband carrier, wherein data transmitted on the narrowband carrier is logically distinct from data transmitted in remaining parts of the second range of system resource blocks.

17. The electronic device of claim 16 , wherein the first range of system resource blocks includes fewer than one hundred resource blocks.

18. The electronic device of claim 16 , wherein density of reference signals included in the narrowband carrier is greater than a density of reference signals included in the system bandwidth outside of the narrowband carrier.

19. The electronic device of claim 16 , wherein the reference signals are included in edges of a frequency bandwidth of the narrowband carrier.

20. The electronic device of claim 16 , wherein the circuitry is configured to use the reference signals to determine at least one of metrics for received signal power indications, automatic frequency control metrics and automatic gain control metrics.

Assignees

• Sca Ipla Holdings Inc

Inventors

• Mcnamara Darren
• Lillie Andrew
• Darwood Peter
• Beale Martin

Classifications

• H04W72/23

  in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal · CPC title

• H04W72/52

  based on load · CPC title

• H04L27/2626 Primary

  Arrangements specific to the transmitter only · CPC title

• H04W72/0453 Primary

  Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA · CPC title

• H04L5/0007

  the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM(A) or DMT · CPC title