Dynamic point selection with combined PUCCH/PUSCH feedback

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9220087-B1
Application number	US-201213610904-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Sep 12, 2012
Priority date	Dec 8, 2011
Publication date	Dec 22, 2015
Grant date	Dec 22, 2015

Abstract

A method includes receiving in a mobile communication terminal signals from multiple cells that coordinate transmission of the signals with one another in a Cooperative Multipoint (CoMP) scheme. A respective channel feedback for each of the multiple cells, and a single additional rich channel feedback having a higher information content than the channel feedback computed for the multiple cells, are calculated in the terminal based on the received signals. The channel feedback for the multiple cells is transmitted on a periodic uplink control channel, and the single rich channel feedback is transmitted on an a-periodic uplink channel.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for providing channel feedback within a system comprising (i) a mobile communication terminal and (ii) three or more cells, the method comprising:
receiving, in the mobile communication terminal, signals from multiple cells of the three or more cells that coordinate transmission of the signals with one another in a Dynamic Point Selection (DPS) Cooperative Multipoint (CoMP) scheme, wherein, in accordance with the DPS CoMP scheme, a single cell of the multiple cells is selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal in a given time-frequency resource;
calculating in the terminal, based on the received signals, (i) a respective channel feedback for each of the multiple cells, and (ii) a single rich channel feedback, wherein the single rich channel feedback comprises, per spectral sub-band, only a single-bit indication that identifies the single cell selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal, and wherein the single-bit indication is sufficient to identify the multiple cells of the three or more cells that cooperate in the DPS CoMP scheme; and
transmitting the channel feedback for the multiple cells on a periodic uplink control channel, and transmitting the single rich channel feedback on an a-periodic uplink channel.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein transmitting the channel feedback on the periodic uplink control channel comprises sending the channel feedback on a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), and wherein transmitting the rich channel feedback on the a-periodic uplink channel comprises sending the rich channel feedback on a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH).

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein calculating the rich channel feedback comprises assessing in the terminal a mode of cooperation used by the multiple cells to transmit the signals, and computing the rich channel feedback in accordance with the assessed mode of cooperation.

4. Apparatus, comprising:
a receiver configured to receive signals from multiple cells of three or more cells that coordinate transmission of the signals with one another in a Dynamic Point Selection (DPS) Cooperative Multipoint (CoMP) scheme, wherein, in accordance with the DPS CoMP scheme, a single cell of the multiple cells is selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal in a given time-frequency resource;
processing circuitry configured to calculate, based on the received signals, a respective channel feedback for each of the multiple cells, and a single rich channel feedback, wherein the single rich channel feedback comprises, per spectral sub-band, only a single-bit indication that identifies the single cell selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal, and wherein the single-bit indication is sufficient to identify the multiple cells of the three or more cells that cooperate in the DPS CoMP scheme; and
a transmitter configured to transmit the channel feedback for the multiple cells on a periodic uplink control channel, and to transmit the single rich channel feedback on an a-periodic uplink channel.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the channel feedback on a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), and to transmit the rich channel feedback on a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH).

6. The apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the processing circuitry is configured to assess a mode of cooperation used by the multiple cells to transmit the signals, and to compute the rich channel feedback in accordance with the assessed mode of cooperation.

7. A mobile communication terminal comprising the apparatus of claim 4 .

8. A chipset for processing signals in a mobile communication terminal, comprising the apparatus of claim 4 .

9. A method for a central scheduler to configure transmission from multiple cells to a mobile communication terminal within a system comprising (i) the mobile communication terminal and (ii) three or more cells, the method comprising:
receiving, on a periodic uplink control channel, channel feedback from the mobile communication terminal, wherein the channel feedback comprises channel feedback for multiple cells of the three or more cells that coordinate transmission to the terminal in a Dynamic Point Selection (DPS) Cooperative Multipoint (CoMP) scheme, wherein, in accordance with the DPS CoMP scheme, a single cell of the multiple cells is selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal in a given time-frequency resource;
receiving, on an a-periodic uplink channel, a single rich channel feedback from the mobile communication terminal, wherein the single rich channel feedback comprises, per spectral sub-band, only a single-bit indication that identifies the single cell selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal, and wherein the single-bit indication is sufficient to identify the multiple cells of the three or more cells that cooperate in the DPS CoMP scheme; and
configuring, by the central scheduler, the transmission of the multiple cells to the terminal based on (i) the channel feedback and (ii) the single rich channel feedback.

10. The method according to claim 9 , wherein configuring the transmission comprises selecting a mode of cooperation among the cells based on the channel feedback, and configuring the transmission in the selected mode of cooperation based on the single rich feedback.

11. A wireless communication network system, comprising:
three or more cells, wherein multiple cells of the three or more cells are configured to coordinate transmission to a mobile communication terminal in a Dynamic Point Selection (DPS) Cooperative Multipoint (CoMP) scheme, wherein, in accordance with the DPS CoMP scheme, a single cell of the multiple cells is selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal in a given time-frequency resource; and
a central scheduler configured to
receive, from the mobile communication terminal via the cells, channel feedback for the multiple cells,
receive, from the mobile communication terminal via the cells, a single rich channel feedback, wherein the single rich channel feedback comprises, per spectral sub-band, only a single-bit indication that identifies the single cell selected to transmit to the mobile communication terminal, and wherein the single-bit indication is sufficient to identify the multiple cells of the three or more cells that cooperate in the DPS CoMP scheme, and
configure the transmission of the multiple cells to the terminal based on (i) the channel feedback and (ii) the single rich channel feedback.

12. The system according to claim 11 , wherein the central scheduler is configured to select a mode of cooperation among the cells based on the channel feedback, and to configure the transmission of CoMP transmissions from the multiple cells to the terminal in the selected mode of cooperation based on the single rich feedback.

Assignees

• Gomadam Krishna Srikanth
• Zhang Yan
• Marvell Int Ltd

Inventors

• Gomadam Krishna Srikanth
• Zhang Yan

Classifications

• H04W88/08

  Access point devices · CPC title

• H04W72/04 Primary

  Wireless resource allocation · CPC title

• H04B7/024 Primary

  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

• H04B7/0647

  Variable feedback rate · CPC title

• H04B7/065

  Variable contents, e.g. long-term or short-short · CPC title