Method for Indicating Cell Coverage Enhancement Mode and Base Station

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016338008-A1
Application number	US-201615223260-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 29, 2016
Priority date	Jan 29, 2014
Publication date	Nov 17, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A transmitter, configured to send system information to a terminal, where the system information is used for indicating to the terminal whether a cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement, and the system information includes a master information block MIB and/or a system information block SIB. According to the base station provided in an embodiment of the present invention, a transmitter sends, to a terminal, system information used for indicating whether a cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement, so that the terminal can accurately learn whether the cell supports communication in a coverage enhancement mode, and the terminal is notified in a timely manner when the cell does not support communication in the coverage enhancement mode, which avoids blind access of the terminal and reduces power consumption of the terminal.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A base station comprising:
a transmitter configured to send system information to a terminal, wherein the system information is used for indicating to the terminal whether a cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement, and wherein the system information comprises a master information block (MIB) and/or a system information block (SIB).

2 . The base station according to claim 1 , wherein the system information comprises first system information, wherein the first system information includes coverage enhancement mode indication information, wherein the coverage enhancement mode indication information is used for indicating to the terminal whether the cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement, wherein the transmitter is further configured to send, on a first time-frequency resource within at least one first period, the first system information to the terminal so that the terminal learns, according to the coverage enhancement mode indication information, whether the cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement.

3 . The base station according to claim 2 , wherein if the first system information is the SIB, the coverage enhancement mode indication information is an indicator bit in the SIB or scheduling information of an SIBX, wherein the SIBX is a public radio resource configuration information block in a coverage enhancement mode.

4 . The base station according to claim 1 , wherein the system information is second system information, wherein the transmitter is further configured to send, on a second time-frequency resource within at least one second period, the second system information to the terminal so that the terminal learns, according to the second system information, that the cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement.

5 . The base station according to claim 4 , wherein a time interval between two consecutive times of sending the second system information by the transmitter is not greater than a first preset time period.

6 . The base station according to claim 5 , further comprising a processor configured t,:
before the transmitter sends the second system information to the terminal, negotiate with the terminal about the at least one second period for sending the second system information.

7 . The base station according to claim 1 , wherein the transmitter is further configured to send a first paging message to the terminal, wherein the first paging message comprises coverage enhancement status indication information, which is used for indicating a current coverage enhancement status of the cell covered by the base station to the terminal.

8 . The base station according to claim 1 , wherein the system information comprises coverage enhancement status indication information and a radio resource public information parameter in a coverage enhancement mode, and if a current coverage enhancement status of the cell covered by the base station changes and/or the radio resource public information parameter in the system coverage enhancement mode changes, the transmitter is further configured to send a second paging message to the terminal, wherein the second paging message is used for indicating to the terminal that the current coverage enhancement status of the cell covered by the base station changes and/or the radio resource public information parameter in the system coverage enhancement mode changes so that the terminal re-acquires new system information and learns, according to the new system information, a changed coverage enhancement status of the cell covered by the base station and/or a changed radio resource public information parameter in the coverage enhancement mode.

9 . The base station according to claim 1 , wherein the system information comprises coverage enhancement status indication information and a radio resource public information parameter in a coverage enhancement mode, and if a current coverage enhancement status of the cell covered by the base station changes, the transmitter is further configured to send a third paging message to the terminal, wherein the third paging message carries the coverage enhancement status indication information so that the terminal learns, according to the coverage enhancement status indication information in the third paging message, a changed coverage enhancement status of the cell covered by the base station.

10 . The base station according to claim 1 , wherein the system information comprises a quantity of resources used in a coverage enhancement mode and a maximum quantity of access times of attempting, by the terminal, to access the cell covered by the base station so that the terminal determines, according to whether the quantity of times of accessing the cell covered by the base station reaches the maximum quantity of access times, a current coverage enhancement status of the cell covered by the base station.

11 . A method for indicating a cell coverage enhancement mode, the method comprising:
sending, by a base station, system information to a terminal, wherein the system information is used for indicating to the terminal whether a cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement, and wherein the system information comprises a master information block (MIB) and/or a system information block (SIB).

12 . The method according to claim ii, wherein sending, by the base station, system information to the terminal comprises sending, by the base station on a first time-frequency resource within at least one first period first system information to the terminal so that the terminal learns, according to the coverage enhancement mode indication information, whether the cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement, wherein the system information comprises the first system information, and wherein the first system information comprises coverage enhancement mode indication information, and wherein the coverage enhancement mode indication information is used for indicating to the terminal whether the cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement,

13 . The method according to claim 12 , wherein if the first system information is the SIB, the coverage enhancement mode indication information is an indicator bit in the SIB or scheduling information of an SIBX, wherein the SIBX is a public radio resource configuration information block in a coverage enhancement mode.

14 . The method according to claim ii, wherein sending, by the base station, system information to the terminal comprises sending, by the base station on a second time-frequency resource within at least one second period, wherein the system information comprises second system information, and wherein the second system information is sent to the terminal so that the terminal learns, according to the second system information, that the cell covered by the base station supports coverage enhancement.

15 . The method according to claim 14 , wherein sending, by the base station on a second time-frequency resource within at least one second period, a time interval between two consecutive times of sending the second system information by the base station being not greater than a first preset time period.

16 . The method according to claim 15 , further comprises, before sending, by the base station on a second time-frequency resource within at least one second period, the second system information to the terminal, negotiating, by the base station, with the terminal about the at least one second period for sending the second system information.

Assignees

• Huawei Tech Co Ltd

Inventors

• Xia Jinhuan

Classifications

• H04W68/02 Primary

  Arrangements for increasing efficiency of notification or paging channel · CPC title

• H04W16/26

  Cell enhancers {or enhancement}, e.g. for tunnels, building shadow · CPC title

• H04L69/28

  Timers or timing mechanisms used in protocols · CPC title

• H04W88/08

  Access point devices · CPC title

• H04W48/10 Primary

  using broadcasted information · CPC title