This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority of the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2014-122816, filed on Jun. 13, 2014, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The embodiments discussed herein are related to a base station device and a band control method.
In recent years, regarding wireless systems, such as mobile phone networks, studies are in progress to install femto base stations (Home eNodeBs (HeNBs)), which form small wireless cells for wirelessly connecting communication terminal devices (User Equipments (UEs)), in ordinary residences, enterprises, and the like in order to improve the qualities of phone services in the installed areas or to enhance service areas.
As a countermeasure against the signal interference between the neighboring HeNBs 101, a band control process has been known that controls allocation of transmission bands such that the transmission bands to be used do not overlap between the neighboring HeNBs 101.
The HeNB 101A illustrated in
The HeNB 101A, upon detecting the signal interference on the downlink side, controls the currently-used band on the downlink side as illustrated in
The HeNB 101B detects, as an interference difference, a large difference between the CQI of the transmission band on the high band side and the CQI of the transmission band on the low band side in the currently-used transmission band. The HeNB 101B, upon detecting the interference difference in the CQI, recognizes that the neighboring HeNB 101A side has controlled the band. Upon recognizing that the neighboring HeNB 101A side has controlled the band, the HeNB 101B controls the currently-used band on the downlink side as illustrated in
Namely, the HeNB 101A turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side, and the HeNB 101B turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side. Consequently, the transmission bands used by the neighboring HeNBs 101 do not overlap each other, so that it becomes possible to avoid signal interference on the downlink side.
As described above, the HeNB 101, even without a means for notifying the neighboring HeNB 101 of the transmission band to be used, recognizes that the neighboring HeNB 101 has controlled the band on the basis of the communication quality of each of the transmission bands, and autonomously controls the band for the currently-used link. Consequently, it is possible to avoid signal interference on the uplink side or the downlink side.
Patent Literature 1: Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2010-103753
Non Patent Literature 1: 3GPP TS36.921 v9.0.0
Non Patent Literature 2: 3GPP TS36.922 v9.1.0
For example, when the HUE 102A approaches the neighboring HeNB 101B and the HUE 102A is subjected to signal interference on the downlink side by the HeNB 101B, each of the HeNBs 101 controls a band on the downlink side.
As illustrated in
The HeNB 101A, upon detecting the signal interference on the downlink side, controls the currently-used band on the downlink side as illustrated in
Accordingly, as illustrated in
Further, for example, when the HUE 102A approaches the neighboring HeNB 101B and the HeNB 101B is subjected to signal interference on the uplink side by the HUE 102A, each of the HeNBs 101 controls a band on the uplink side.
As illustrated in
The HeNB 101B, upon detecting the signal interference on the uplink side, controls the band on the uplink side as illustrated in
Accordingly, as illustrated in
Namely, in a situation in which the HeNB 101A, as one of the neighboring HeNBs 101, is not influenced by the signal interference, the HeNB 101A is unable to recognize that the HeNB 101B side, as the other one of the neighboring HeNBs 101, controls a band. Therefore, it is difficult to control the bands between the neighboring HeNBs 101, making it difficult to avoid the signal interference between the neighboring HeNBs 101.
According to an aspect of the embodiments, a base station device includes a measuring unit, a first control unit and a second control unit. The measuring unit measures a communication quality of a transmission band on each of an uplink side and a downlink side. The first control unit, upon detecting a difference in the communication quality in the transmission band on each of the uplink side and the downlink side on the basis of a result of measurement by the measuring unit, allocates a band, in which the communication quality satisfies a predetermined condition, to communication in the transmission band in which the difference in the communication quality is detected. The second control unit, upon detecting signal interference in one of the uplink side and the downlink side on the basis of the result of the measurement by the measuring unit, controls communication allocation for a transmission band on the one link side in which the signal interference is detected, and controls communication allocation for a transmission band on other one of the uplink side and the downlink side corresponding to the one link side in the transmission band, in cooperation with control of the communication allocation for the transmission band on the one link side.
The object and advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the claims.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to accompanying drawings. The disclosed technology is not limited to the embodiments. The embodiments described below may be combined appropriately as long as no contradiction is derived.
[a] First Embodiment
The HeNB 2A includes a wireless transmitting/receiving unit 21, a call admission control unit 22, and a signal processing control unit 23. The wireless transmitting/receiving unit 21 is a communication function to transmit and receive wireless signals in the RF unit 12. The call admission control unit 22 performs a termination process or the like on a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message when performing wireless communication with the HUE 3. The RRC message is, for example, a message indicating a resource status of the femto wireless system 1.
The signal processing control unit 23 is a control function to control various signal processes, such as a baseband signal process, in the signal processing unit 13. The signal processing control unit 23 includes a scheduler unit 23A that performs a scheduling process on a plurality of the HUEs 3 wirelessly connected to the HeNB 2. For example, the scheduler unit 23A selects a resource allocation in a time-axis direction and a frequency-axis direction when the HUEs 3 share a channel resource as in the LTE system.
The scheduler unit 23A includes a CQI acquiring unit 31, an SIR acquiring unit 32, an interference detecting unit 33, a quality checking unit 34, a cooperation determining unit 35, and a control unit 36. The CQI acquiring unit 31 is, for example, a measuring unit that collects reports on a CQI indicating a communication quality on the downlink side from the wirelessly connected HUE 3, and acquires the CQI. The SIR acquiring unit 32 is, for example, a measuring unit that acquires an SIR indicating a communication quality on the uplink side with respect to the wirelessly-connected HUE 3. The interference detecting unit 33 detects signal interference on the uplink side and signal interference on the downlink side on the basis of the CQI and the SIR. The interference detecting unit 33 detects signal interference on the uplink side and signal interference on the downlink side on the basis of the amount of interference indicating a level of the measured signal interference.
The quality checking unit 34 collects the CQI from the CQI acquiring unit 31, and collects the SIR from the SIR acquiring unit 32. The quality checking unit 34 checks the communication quality on the downlink side on the basis of the collected CQI, and checks the communication quality on the uplink side on the basis of the collected SIR. The cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether it is possible to control bands on the uplink side and the downlink side in a cooperative manner.
The control unit 36 includes a transmission power control unit 41 that controls transmission power of a transmission band on the uplink side or the downlink side, and a bandwidth control unit 42 that controls a bandwidth of the transmission band on the uplink side or the downlink side. The control unit 36 corresponds to a first control unit and a second control unit, for example. The transmission power control unit 41 adjusts the amount of transmission power of a transmission band. The bandwidth control unit 42 adjusts a bandwidth of a transmission band, and divides the transmission band for allocation to communication into a high band and a low band, for example. In the case of controlling a band on the uplink side, the control unit 36 instructs the HUE 3 wirelessly connected to the HeNB 2 to control the band on the uplink side.
The control unit 36, in the case of controlling a band, divides the transmission band into a high band and a low band through the bandwidth control unit 42. After dividing the transmission band into the high band and the low band, the control unit 36 turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side through the transmission power control unit 41, for example. Further, the control unit 36 is able to adjust the amount of transmission power through the transmission power control unit 41 in addition to ON/OFF of the transmission power of the transmission band.
The control unit 36, upon detecting signal interference on the downlink side, controls a band on the downlink side to avoid the signal interference on the downlink side. When it is still difficult to avoid the signal interference on the downlink side after controlling the band on the downlink side, the control unit 36 controls a band on the uplink side corresponding to the downlink. The transmission band on the uplink side and the transmission band on the downlink side are neighboring bands at different frequencies. At this time, when the control unit 36 turns OFF the transmission band on the high band side and turns ON the transmission band on the low band side when controlling the band on the downlink side, the control unit 36 turns OFF the transmission band on the high band side and turns ON the transmission band on the low band side even when controlling the band on the uplink side. Namely, the control unit 36 matches band allocations between the transmission band on the uplink side and the transmission band on the downlink side. Then, the control unit 36 controls the band on the uplink side, in addition to controlling the band on the downlink side, in a cooperative manner.
The control unit 36, upon detecting signal interference on the uplink side, controls a band on the uplink side to avoid the signal interference on the uplink side. When it is still difficult to avoid the signal interference on the uplink side after controlling the band on the uplink side, the control unit 36 controls a band on the downlink side corresponding to the uplink. At this time, when the control unit 36 turns ON the transmission band on the high band side and turns OFF the transmission band on the low band side when controlling the band on the uplink side, the control unit 36 turns ON the transmission band on the high band side and turns OFF the transmission band on the low band side on the downlink side even when controlling the band on the downlink side. Namely, the control unit 36 matches band allocations between the transmission band on the uplink side and the transmission band on the downlink side. Then, the control unit 36 controls the band on the downlink side, in addition to controlling the band on the uplink side, in a cooperative manner.
The cooperation determining unit 35 performs a cooperation availability determination process of determining whether cooperation in band control on the uplink side and the downlink side is possible. For example, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether a transmission pattern as transmission data is present on the uplink side corresponding to the downlink, and when the transmission pattern is present, determines that cooperation in the band control is possible. Accordingly, the control unit 36 controls a band on the uplink side and a band on the downlink side in a cooperative manner. When the transmission pattern is absent on the uplink side, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that cooperation in the band control is impossible.
Operation performed by the femto wireless system 1 of the first embodiment will be described below.
In
The interference detecting unit 33 in the scheduler unit 23A determines whether signal interference on the downlink side with respect to the neighboring HeNB 2 is large on the basis of the CQI acquired by the CQI acquiring unit 31 (Step S12). Specifically, the process of determining whether the signal interference is large is a process of determining whether the influence of the signal interference on communication exceeds an acceptable threshold, and determining that the signal interference is large when the influence exceeds the acceptable threshold. When the signal interference on the downlink side is large (YES at Step S12), the control unit 36 in the scheduler unit 23A determines whether a band on the downlink side is being controlled (Step S13).
When the band on the downlink side is not being controlled (NO at Step S13), the control unit 36 starts to control the band on the downlink side (Step S14), and proceeds to Step S11 in order to measure a communication quality. Specifically, the control unit 36 divides the transmission band on the downlink side into a high band and a low band, and controls the band on the downlink side to turn OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side and turn ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side, for example.
When the band on the downlink side is being controlled (YES at Step S13), the control unit 36 determines whether a band on the uplink side is being controlled (Step S15). When the band on the uplink side is not being controlled (NO at Step S15), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether cooperation with band control on the uplink side is possible on the basis of a result of the cooperation availability determination process to be described later (Step S16).
When the cooperation with the band control on the uplink side is possible (YES at Step S16), the cooperation determining unit 35 starts to control the band on the uplink side (Step S17), and proceeds to Step S11 in order to measure a communication quality. Specifically, the control unit 36 divides the transmission band on the uplink side into a high band and a low band. Further, the control unit 36 controls the band on the uplink side to turn OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side and turn ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side on the uplink side, so as to match the band allocation in the band control on the downlink side.
When the band on the uplink side is being controlled (YES at Step S15), the control unit 36 proceeds to Step S11 in order to measure a communication quality. When the cooperation with the band control on the uplink side is not possible (NO at Step S16), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S11 in order to measure a communication quality.
When the signal interference on the downlink side is not large (NO at Step S12), the quality checking unit 34 determines whether there is a deviation between a communication quality obtained before the band control and a current communication quality (Step S18). When there is a deviation between the communication quality obtained before the band control and the current communication quality (YES at Step S18), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S11 in order to measure a communication quality while continuing the currently-performing band control. The currently-performing band control is the control of the band on the downlink side or the control of the bands on the downlink side and the uplink side.
When there is no deviation between the communication quality obtained before the band control and the current communication quality (NO at Step S18), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that the signal interference on the downlink side is reduced for some reasons. Then, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether cooperation with the band control on the uplink side is being performed (Step S19). When the cooperation with the band control on the uplink side is being performed (YES at Step S19), the control unit 36 cancels the cooperation with the band control on the uplink side (Step S20). Then, the control unit 36 turns ON the transmission power of all of the transmission bands before the band on the downlink side is controlled (before the band is divided) (Step S21), and proceeds to Step S11 in order to measure a communication quality. When the cooperation with the band control on the uplink side is not being performed (NO at Step S19), the control unit 36 proceeds to Step S21 in order to turn ON the transmission power of all of the transmission bands on the downlink side.
The HeNB 2A that performs the downlink band control process, upon detecting signal interference on the downlink side, controls a band on the downlink side, and causes the neighboring HeNB 2B side to recognize that the HeNB 2A side controls the band. Therefore, the neighboring HeNB 2B is also able to avoid the signal interference on the downlink side between the neighboring HeNBs 2 by controlling the band on the downlink side.
Upon continuously detecting the signal interference on the downlink side after controlling the band on the downlink side, the HeNB 2A controls the band on the uplink side in cooperation with the control of the band on the downlink side, in order to enable the neighboring HeNB 2B side to easily recognize that the HeNB 2A side controls the bands. Further, the neighboring HeNB 2B is also able to avoid the signal interference on the downlink side between the neighboring HeNBs 2 by controlling the band on the uplink side and controlling the band on the downlink side in a cooperative manner.
The HeNB 2A, upon detecting the signal interference on the downlink side, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Further, the HeNB 2B controls the band on the downlink side as illustrated in
Namely, the HeNB 2A turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side for the uplink and the downlink, and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side for the uplink and the downlink. The HeNB 2B turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side for the uplink and the downlink, and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side for the uplink and the downlink. Therefore, the uplink and downlink transmission bands used by the neighboring HeNBs 2 do not overlap each other, so that it becomes possible to avoid not only signal interference on the downlink side but also signal interference on the uplink side.
In
When the band on the uplink side is not being controlled (NO at Step S53), the control unit 36 starts to control the band on the uplink side (Step S54), and proceeds to Step S51 in order to measure a communication quality. Specifically, the control unit 36 divides the transmission band on the uplink side into a high band and a low band, and controls the band on the uplink side to turn ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side and turn OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side, for example.
When the band on the uplink side is being controlled (YES at Step S53), the control unit 36 determines whether a band on the downlink side is being controlled (Step S55). When the band on the downlink side is not being controlled (NO at Step S55), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether cooperation with band control on the downlink side is possible on the basis of a result of the cooperation availability determination process (Step S56).
When the cooperation with the band control on the downlink side is possible (YES at Step S56), the cooperation determining unit 35 starts to control the band on the downlink side (Step S57), and proceeds to Step S51 in order to measure a communication quality. Specifically, the control unit 36 divides the transmission band on the downlink side into a high band and a low band. The control unit 36 controls the band on the downlink side to turn ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side and turn OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side on the downlink side, so as to match the band allocation in the band control on the uplink side.
When the band on the downlink side is being controlled (YES at Step S55), the control unit 36 proceeds to Step S51 in order to measure a communication quality. When the cooperation with the band control on the downlink side is not possible (NO at Step S56), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S51 in order to measure a communication quality.
When the signal interference on the uplink side is not large (NO at Step S52), the quality checking unit 34 determines whether there is a deviation between a communication quality obtained before the band control and a current communication quality (Step S58). When there is a deviation between the communication quality obtained before the band control and the current communication quality (YES at Step S58), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S51 in order to measure a communication quality while continuing the currently-performing band control. The currently-performing band control is the control of the band on the uplink side or the control of the bands on the uplink side and the downlink side.
When there is no deviation between the communication quality obtained before the band control and the current communication quality (NO at Step S58), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that the signal interference on the uplink side is reduced for some reason. Then, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether cooperation with the band control on the downlink side is being performed (Step S59). When the cooperation with the band control on the downlink side is being performed (YES at Step S59), the control unit 36 cancels the cooperation with the band control on the downlink side (Step S60). The control unit 36 turns ON the transmission power of all of the transmission bands before the band on the uplink side is controlled (before the band is divided) (Step S61), and proceeds to Step S51 in order to measure a communication quality. When the cooperation with the band control on the downlink side is not being performed (NO at Step S59), the control unit 36 proceeds to Step S61 in order to turn ON the transmission power of all of the transmission bands on the uplink side.
The HeNB 2B that performs the uplink band control process, upon detecting signal interference on the uplink side, controls a band on the uplink side, and causes the neighboring HeNB 2A to recognize that the HeNB 2B side controls the band. Therefore, the neighboring HeNB 2A is also able to avoid the signal interference on the uplink side between the neighboring HeNBs 2 by controlling the band on the uplink side.
Upon continuously detecting the signal interference on the uplink side after controlling the band on the uplink side, the HeNB 2B controls the band on the downlink side in cooperation with the control of the band on the uplink side, in order to enable the neighboring HeNB 2A side to easily recognize that the HeNB 2B side controls the bands. Further, the neighboring HeNB 2A is also able to avoid the signal interference on the uplink side between the neighboring HeNBs 2 by controlling the band on the uplink side and controlling the band on the downlink side in a cooperative manner.
The HeNB 2B, upon detecting the signal interference on the uplink side, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Further, the HeNB 2A controls the band on the uplink side as illustrated in
Namely, the HeNB 2B turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side for the uplink and the downlink, and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side for the uplink and the downlink. The HeNB 2A turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side for the uplink and the downlink, and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side for the uplink and the downlink. Therefore, the uplink and downlink transmission bands used by the neighboring HeNBs 2 do not overlap each other, so that it becomes possible to avoid not only signal interference on the uplink side but also signal interference on the downlink side.
Incidentally, when controlling the band on the uplink side, the HeNB 2A of the above described first embodiment divides the transmission band on the uplink side into a high band and a low band, turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side, and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side. However, the disclosed technology is not limited to this example, and it may be possible to turn OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side and turn ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side after dividing the transmission band.
Further, when controlling the band on the downlink side, the HeNB 2A of the above described first embodiment divides the transmission band on the downlink side into a high band and a low band, turns OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side, and turns ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side. However, the disclosed technology is not limited to this example, and it may be possible to turn OFF the transmission power of the transmission band on the low band side and turn ON the transmission power of the transmission band on the high band side after dividing the transmission band.
Incidentally, the HeNB 2A illustrated in
[b] Second Embodiment
In a method of determining an uplink transmission pattern implemented by the control unit 36, a target amount of interference to be applied to the HeNB 2 is taken into account in order to enable the HeNB 2B to recognize that the HeNB 2A side has controlled a band on the uplink side from an uplink giving interference caused by uplink transmission by the HUE 3A. For example, the amount of uplink transmission power of the HUE 3A is determined by an expression such that MIN (the maximum amount of electric power of the HUE, the amount of uplink transmission power on the HUE 3A side)≧(the target amount of uplink interference given to the HeNB 2B)+(the amount of path loss between the HeNB 2B and the HUE 3A).
Incidentally, the target amount of uplink interference is estimated by using an operation parameter, which is designated by a higher-level network device or the like and which is common to the HeNBs 2, or by using an acceptable value of the amount of uplink interference that is acceptable by each of the HeNBs 2 in the uplink communication with the HUE 3, for example. Further, when the condition of the above described expression is not satisfied only by increasing the amount of the transmission power of the HUE 3A, it may be possible to increase the bandwidth of the uplink transmission band of the HUE 3A depending on the deficiency in the amount of interference, as a way of adjustment.
By causing the HeNB 2A side to adjust the transmission pattern when controlling a band, it is possible to enable the HeNB 2B side to easily recognize an interference difference in the transmission pattern in the transmission band on the uplink side. Consequently, the HeNB 2B is able to easily recognize that the HeNB 2A side has controlled the band.
In the downlink band control process illustrated in
In the uplink band control process illustrated in
In the above described first embodiment, as described above, it is determined whether the transmission pattern on the uplink side is present as a method of determining whether cooperation in the band control for the uplink and the downlink is possible, and when the transmission pattern is absent, it is determined that the cooperation in the band control for the uplink and the downlink is impossible. However, even when the transmission pattern is absent, it may be possible to use a dummy signal as a substitute for the transmission pattern; therefore, an embodiment of this case will be described below as a third embodiment.
[c] Third Embodiment
In
When it is possible to transmit a dummy signal on the uplink side as a substitute for the transmission pattern (YES at Step S32), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether the communication quality on the uplink side is influenced (Step S33). Specifically, the process at Step S33 is a process of checking whether the communication quality on the uplink side meets a target quality when band control on the uplink side is performed in cooperation with band control on the downlink side. When the communication quality on the uplink side is influenced (YES at Step S33), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether there is room to ease cooperation conditions (Step S34). Specifically, the room to ease the cooperation conditions is room for the transmission pattern to be adjusted within the range in which the communication quality meets the target quality. When there is the room to ease the cooperation conditions (YES at Step S34), the control unit 36 adjusts the transmission pattern on the uplink side (Step S35). Meanwhile, adjustment of the transmission pattern includes a process of increasing the transmission power or adjusting the bandwidth of the transmission band on the uplink side within the range in which the communication quality on the uplink side meets the target quality. Further, adjustment of the transmission pattern may include adjustment to reduce the influence caused by the cooperation by limiting the period of the cooperation with the band control on the uplink side.
Then, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether interference control on the uplink side is influenced (Step S36). Meanwhile, when the band control on the uplink side is performed in cooperation with the band control on the downlink side, in some cases, signal interference on the uplink side may occur between the neighboring HeNBs 2 even on the uplink side. Specifically, the influence on the interference control is an influence on the interference control on the uplink side that may occur when there is no transmission band on the downlink side corresponding to the transmission band on the uplink side to avoid the signal interference on the uplink side.
When the interference control on the uplink side is influenced (YES at Step S36), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines whether there is room to adjust the interference control on the uplink side (Step S37). Specifically, the room to adjust the interference control is room to reduce the priority of the interference control on the uplink side. When there is the room to adjust the interference control on the uplink side (YES at Step S37), the cooperation determining unit 35 adjusts the transmission pattern on the uplink side (Step S38), determines that the cooperation in the band control for the uplink and the downlink is possible (Step S39), and terminates the processing operation illustrated in
When it is determined that it is impossible to transmit a dummy signal on the uplink side as a substitute for the transmission pattern (NO at Step S32), the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that the cooperation in the band control for the uplink and the downlink is impossible (Step S40), and terminates the processing operation illustrated in
When there is no room to ease the cooperation conditions (NO at Step S34), or when there is no room to adjust the interference control on the uplink side (NO at Step S37), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S40 in order to determine that the cooperation in the band control for the uplink and the downlink is impossible.
When the transmission pattern on the uplink side is present (YES at Step S31), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S33 in order to determine whether the communication quality on the uplink side is influenced. When the communication quality on the uplink side is not influenced (NO at Step S33), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S36 in order to determine whether interference control on the uplink side is influenced.
When the interference control on the uplink side is not influenced (NO at Step S36), the cooperation determining unit 35 proceeds to Step S39 in order to determine whether the cooperation in the band control for the uplink and the downlink is possible.
Even when a transmission pattern on the uplink side is present while a band on the downlink side is being controlled, when the communication quality on the uplink side is not influenced and when the interference control on the uplink side is not influenced, the cooperation determining unit 35 that performs the uplink cooperation availability determination process illustrated in
Even when a transmission pattern on the uplink side is absent, when there is a dummy signal, when the communication quality on the uplink side is not influenced, and when the interference control on the uplink side is not influenced, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that the cooperation in the band control is possible while ensuring the communication quality.
Even when the communication quality on the uplink side is influenced, when there is room to ease the cooperation conditions, and when the interference control on the uplink side is not influenced through adjusting the transmission pattern on the uplink side, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that the cooperation in the band control is possible while ensuring the communication quality.
Even when the interference control on the uplink side is influenced, when there is room to adjust the interference control on the uplink side, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that the cooperation in the band control is possible while ensuring the communication quality by adjusting the transmission pattern on the uplink side.
When there is no dummy signal on the uplink side, when there is no room to ease the cooperation conditions, or when there is no room to adjust the interference control on the uplink side, the cooperation determining unit 35 determines that the cooperation in the band control is impossible.
Incidentally, the uplink cooperation availability determination process illustrated in
In the above described third embodiment, when it is determined that cooperation with band control on the uplink side is possible while a band on the downlink side is being controlled, a band on the uplink side is controlled. However, when it is determined that the cooperation is possible, it is not necessary to reduce a bandwidth, into which the transmission band on the uplink side is to be divided, down to the same bandwidth obtained in the band control on the downlink side. It may be possible to permit the cooperation after performing adjustment to allow flexibility for the bandwidth needed for the band control.
In the third embodiment, even when the HeNB 2A controls a band on one link side and the neighboring HeNB 2B side is unable to recognize that the HeNB 2A side controls the band, the HeNB 2A controls a band on the other link side in cooperation with the control of the band on the one link side. Then, the HeNB 2B recognizes that the HeNB 2A side has controlled the bands from an interference difference in the transmission band on the other link side, and controls the band on the one link side. Consequently, both of the HeNBs 2 avoid signal interference related to the transmission bands on the one link side by mutually controlling the bands, and also improve the throughput of the wirelessly-connected HUE 3.
Incidentally, in the above described embodiments, the HeNBs 2 that do not include means for notifying the neighboring HeNBs 2 of the transmission bands to be used for the uplink and the downlink are described by way of example; however, the disclosed technology is not limited to the HeNBs 2 but may be applied to communication apparatuses that do not include a means for notifying each other of transmission bands to be used for the uplink and the downlink.
Further, in the above described embodiments, uplink and downlink wireless systems employing an FDD method are described by way of example; however, the disclosed technology may be applied to wireless systems employing a Time Division Duplex (TDD) method.
In the above described embodiments, for example, when the downlink band control process is to be performed, a band on the downlink side is first controlled and thereafter a band on the uplink side is controlled in a cooperative manner; however, it may be possible to first control the band on the uplink side and thereafter control the band on the downlink side. Further, when the uplink band control process is to be performed, a band on the uplink side is first controlled and thereafter a band on the downlink side is controlled in a cooperative manner; however, it may be possible to first control the band on the downlink side and thereafter control the band on the uplink side.
The various processing functions implemented by the HeNB 2 of the above described embodiments are implemented by causing the signal processing unit 13 in the HeNB 2 to execute programs stored in various memories, such as nonvolatile storage media; however, it may be possible to cause the CPU 16 to execute the programs.
Further, the HeNB 2 of the embodiments is described as an integrated device with a wireless function and a control function; however, the disclosed technology is not limited to this example. It may be possible to configure the HeNB such that a wireless device and a control device are separated. In this case, the wireless device includes the antenna 11 and the RF unit 12 inside thereof, and the control device includes the signal processing unit 13, the external signal I/F 14, the memory 15, and the CPU 16 inside thereof.
The components of each of the units illustrated in the drawings need not necessarily be physically configured in the manner illustrated in the drawings. In other words, specific forms of distribution and integration of each of the units are not limited to those illustrated in the drawings, and all or part of the units may be functionally or physically distributed or integrated in arbitrary units depending on various loads or use conditions.
Further, various processing functions implemented by each apparatus are realized as described below. Specifically, all or an arbitrary part of the processing functions may be realized by a microprocessor, such as a CPU (or a Micro Processing Unit (MPU). Further, all or an arbitrary part of the processing functions may be realized by a program analyzed and executed by the CPU, or may be realized by hardware using wired logic.
According to an embodiment, it is possible to avoid uplink/downlink signal interference between neighboring base stations.
All examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for pedagogical purposes of aiding the reader in understanding the invention and the concepts contributed by the inventors to further the art, and are not to be construed as limitations to such specifically recited examples and conditions, nor does the organization of such examples in the specification relate to a showing of the superiority and inferiority of the invention. Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, it should be understood that the various changes, substitutions, and alterations could be made hereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2014-122816 | Jun 2014 | JP | national |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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20100120446 | Gaal | May 2010 | A1 |
20120263047 | Love | Oct 2012 | A1 |
20120282889 | Tanaka | Nov 2012 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
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2010-103753 | May 2010 | JP |
Entry |
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3GPP TR 36.921 v9.0.0 (Mar. 2010) Technical Specification Group Radio Access Network; Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); FDD Home eNode B (HeNB) Radio Frequency (RF) requirements analysis (Release 9), pp. 1-45. |
3GPP TR 36.922 v9.1.0 (Jun. 2010) Technical Specification Group Radio Access Network; Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); TDD Home eNode B (HeNB) Radio Frequency (RF) requirements analysis (Release 9), pp. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20150365958 A1 | Dec 2015 | US |