Base station device, terminal device, communication system, and communication control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11201649-B2
Application number	US-201816636194-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 6, 2018
Priority date	Aug 10, 2017
Publication date	Dec 14, 2021
Grant date	Dec 14, 2021

Abstract

In order to prospectively avoid communication failures or reduction in throughput of each user terminal, thereby improving users' satisfaction with communication service, a base station is configured to control wireless communication with a terminal device by using any of multiple transmission beams formed by the base station or those formed by another base station and includes a wireless communication device and a controller configured to acquire correction information used for correcting a measurement value for evaluating reception status of each transmission beam and cause the wireless communication device to transmit the correction information to the user terminal so as to thereby promote the user terminal to use, or inhibit the user terminal from using a specific transmission beam.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A base station device configured to control wireless communication performed by a terminal device using any of multiple transmission beams formed by the base station device or another base station device, the base station device comprising:
a wireless communication device configured to wirelessly communicate with the terminal device; and
a controller configured to acquire correction information including an offset value used for increasing or decreasing a measurement value of received power of each transmission beam at the terminal device and cause the wireless communication device to transmit the correction information to the terminal device so as to thereby promote the terminal device to use a specific transmission beam, or inhibit the terminal device from using the specific transmission beam,
wherein, when a communication environment is constant, the controller acquires a fixed offset value, and when the communication environment is determined to be varying, the controller acquires a variable offset value corresponding to the varying environment.

2. The base station device according to claim 1 , wherein the controller broadcasts the correction information to all terminal devices present in its coverage area, including one or more terminal devices which are currently not connected to the base station device.

3. The base station device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the controller selects the terminal device among multiple terminal devices currently performing communication by using the specific transmission beam, and
wherein the selection is made by according to a predetermined condition, and transmits the correction information to the selected terminal device.

4. The base station device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the multiple transmission beams are placed in a predetermined order and grouped into groups, each group including an equal number of transmission beams, and
wherein the controller acquire the correction information, which include the equal number of transmission beams in a group and a corresponding offset value for one or more measurement values of the transmission beams of each group.

5. The base station device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the multiple transmission beams are placed in a predetermined order and grouped into groups, each group having a corresponding offset value for one or more measurement values of the transmission beams of the group, and
wherein the controller acquire the correction information which include an ID of a first transmission beam and a number of the transmission beams for each group, and a corresponding offset value for one or more measurement values of the transmission beams of the group.

6. The base station device according to claim 1 , wherein the controller determines current congestion status of each transmission beam, and acquires the correction information user for correcting each measurement value so as to inhibit the terminal device from using any transmission beam determined to be in congestion status.

7. The base station device according to claim 1 , further comprising a storage for storing correction information used for correcting each measurement value so as to inhibit the terminal device from using any transmission beam which is constantly in a communication environment having a traffic volume above a predetermined value,
wherein the controller is configured to acquire the correction information stored in the storage.

8. The base station device according to claim 1 , wherein the controller configured to acquire correction information used for correcting each measurement value so as to inhibit the terminal device from using any transmission beam for which a communication environment deteriorates during a current time of day.

9. The base station device according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to acquire correction information used for correcting each measurement value so as to inhibit the terminal device from using any transmission beam for a traffic lane in which an indication of a traffic signal permits traffic to travel based on traffic signal control information.

10. The base station device according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to acquire correction information used for correcting each measurement value so as to inhibit the terminal device from using any transmission beam which is directed towards sky by reflection.

11. The base station device according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to acquire correction information used for correcting each measurement value such that, when the base station device is located on a rear side of a moving direction of a currently-connected terminal device, the controller promotes the terminal device to use a transmission beam formed by an adjacent base station device located on a front side of the moving direction of the currently-connected terminal device, or inhibits the terminal device from using any transmission beam formed by the base station device.

12. The base station device according to claim 11 , further comprising a storage for storing information on past transmission beams used before as historical used-beam information,
wherein the controller is configured to acquire correction information used for correcting each measurement value such that, when the controller determines, based on the historical used-beam information, that the currently-connected terminal device uses a transmission beam formed closest to a coverage of the adjacent base station device, the controller promotes the terminal device to use a transmission beam formed by the adjacent base station device, or inhibits the terminal device from using any transmission beam formed by the base station device.

13. A communication system in which a terminal device performs wireless communication with a base station by using any of multiple transmission beams formed by the base station, wherein the base station comprises:
a wireless communication device configured to wirelessly communicate with the terminal device; and
a controller configured to acquire correction information including an offset value used for increasing or decreasing a measurement value of received power of each transmission beam at the terminal device and cause the wireless communication device to transmit the correction information to the terminal device so as to thereby promote the terminal device to use a specific transmission beam, or inhibit the terminal device from using the specific transmission beam, and
wherein the terminal device comprises:
a terminal wireless communication device configured to wirelessly communicate with the base station device; and
a terminal controller configured such that, when the terminal wireless communication device receives the correction information transmitted from the base station device, the terminal controller corrects a measurement value for evaluating reception status of each transmission beam, and after selection of a transmission beam based on the corrected measurement value, the terminal controller performs wireless communication with the base station device using the selected transmission beam,
wherein, when a communication environment is constant, the controller acquires a fixed offset value, and when the communication environment is determined to be varying, the controller acquires a variable offset value corresponding to the varying environment.

14. A communication control method for controlling wireless communication performed by a terminal device by using any of multiple transmission beams formed by a base station, the communication control method comprising:
a

Assignees

• Panasonic Corp

Inventors

• Shimizu Noriyuki
• Takita Maho
• Asano Hiroaki
• Shingu Hideki

Classifications

• H04B17/24 Primary

  with feedback of measurements to the transmitter · CPC title

• H04B7/061 Primary

  using feedback from receiving side · CPC title

• H04W28/0284

  detecting congestion or overload during communication (monitoring arrangements H04L43/00) · CPC title

• H04B7/024

  Co-operative use of antennas of several sites, e.g. in co-ordinated multipoint or co-operative multiple-input multiple-output [MIMO] systems · CPC title

• H04B7/088

  using beam selection · CPC title