Sprint Spectrum L.p.

Sprint Communications Comapny L.p.

Naresh Madineni

Deveshkumar Narendrapratap Rai

Jasinder P Singh

Rajil Malhotra

Saravana Velusamy

Maulik K Shah

Suryanarayanan Ramamurthy

Sreekar Marupaduga

Siddharth S Oroskar

Andrew Mark Wurtenberger

John William Prock

Ahmad N Saleh

Jose L Hernandez

In a communication system comprising a base station having a set of carrier frequencies, ranging from a lowest to a highest carrier frequency, for serving user equipment devices (UEs), the base station may schedule a first transmission of first bearer traffic to be on a first carrier frequency of the set based at least in part on a correlation between (i) the first bearer traffic being of a first type of bearer traffic and (ii) where the first carrier frequency falls within the range of carrier frequencies. The base station may also schedule a second transmission of second bearer traffic to be on a second, different carrier frequency of the set based at least in part on a correlation between (i) the second bearer traffic being of a second, different type of bearer traffic and (ii) where the second carrier frequency falls within the range of carrier frequencies.

Method and system for selecting a carrier on which to schedule communications of a type of bearer traffic

A wireless User Equipment (UE) attaches to a Fifth Generation New Radio (5GNR) gNodeB in a wireless communication network. The wireless communication network receives a Guaranteed Bit Rate (GBR) request for the UE. In the wireless communication network, a Policy Control Function (PCF) efficiently invokes an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) and a Session Management Function (SMF) to effectively serve the GBR request. The AMF signals the UE and the 5GNR gNodeB to initiate the GBR service over the Long Term Evolution eNodeB. The SMF signals a data gateway to initiate the GBR service with the LTE eNodeB. The UE attaches to the LTE eNodeB. The LTE eNodeB and the data gateway deliver the requested GBR service to the UE.

Wireless guaranteed bit rate (GBR) data service

A wireless relay attaches to a wireless base station and broadcasts a wireless hop count. Another wireless relay receives the wireless hop count and attaches to the wireless relay. The other wireless relay increments the wireless hop count and broadcasts the incremented wireless hop count. The wireless relays receive attachment requests from User Equipment (UEs) responsive to their wireless hop counts. The wireless relays exchange user data with the UEs after the attachments.

Data communication network to provide hop count data for user equipment selection of a wireless relay

A data communication network to provide hop count data for User Equipment (UE) selection of a wireless relay. The data communication network comprises a macro base station and a plurality of wireless relays that serve UEs. The wireless relays receive a hop count, and in response, increment their individual hop count and wirelessly broadcast individual relay Long Term Evolution (LTE) System Information Blocks (SIBs) indicating their individual hop counts. The wireless relays receive wireless UE attachments responsive to the relay LTE SIB broadcasts of their individual hop counts.

A method and system for controlling handover of a WCD based on the WCD's operating temperature. In an example implementation, a determination is made that the WCD's operating temperature is threshold high, and that determination is used as a basis to trigger handover of the WCD to another coverage system, such as to another carrier frequency or to another base station coverage area. Further, in another example implementation, a determination is made that the WCD's operating temperature is threshold low (e.g., is not threshold high), and that determination is used as a basis to trigger handover of the WCD to another coverage system, such as back to the WCD's initially serving coverage system.

Method and system for use of operating temperature as basis to control handover

An example embodiment may involve defining a time-division multiplexed, orthogonal frequency-division multiplexed wireless air interface containing a primary signaling channel. The primary signaling channel may be formed by a first set of modulation symbols that are allocated to a fixed time position of each time-division multiplexed subframe across a plurality of contiguous subcarrier frequencies. A first set of the subcarrier frequencies may be powered at a first level and a second set of subcarrier frequencies may be powered at a second level. The example embodiment may also involve defining a secondary signaling channel. The secondary signaling channel may be formed in the air interface by a second set of modulation symbols that are allocated to dynamic time positions on the first set of the subcarrier frequencies. The example embodiment may further involve transmitting signaling messages to one or more WCDs via the secondary signaling channel.

Control channel indication based on power level

Disclosed are methods and systems to facilitate differential routing of voice handover traffic and non-voice handover traffic. In particular, a wireless communication system may include a controller, a backhaul interface that passes through the controller, an inter-base-station interface that does not pass through the controller, as well as first and second base stations that are communicatively linked via (i) the backhaul interface and (ii) the inter-base-station interface. With this arrangement, the system may encounter a trigger to configure transmission of handover signaling between the first and second base stations, and may responsively configure itself to transmit (i) via the inter-base-station interface handover signaling that facilitates handover between the first and second base stations of ongoing voice communications and (ii) via the backhaul interface handover signaling that facilitates handover between the first and second base stations of communications other than ongoing voice communications.

Differential routing of voice handover traffic and non-voice handover traffic in response to congestion on an inter-base-station interface

A method is disclosed to help register a UE with a different network in the event of an unsuccessful registration with a fallback network. In accordance with the disclosure, a UE may be registered on a first network and may then seek to register with a second network via the first network. The first network may attempt to register the UE with the second network, but the attempt to register the UE with the second network may ultimately fail. In response to such failure, the first network may discontinue providing service to the UE. Discontinuing the providing of service to the UE on the first network may result in the UE seeking to register directly with the second network or with a different network. By registering directly with the second network, or a different network, the UE may be able to initiate and/or receive voice calls via that network.

Multiple-network registration process

A method and system for managing time segments per subframe used for downlink control channel communication by adjacent base stations. The base stations may work with each other to arrange for their respective use of different time segments per subframe for their respective downlink control channel use. Further, each base station may also avoid downlink traffic channel communication in the time segments per subframe that the other base station will be using for control channel communication.

Management of time segment use for wireless communication

Disclosed is a method and system of imposing a policy rule for excessive usage in an access network. According to the disclosure, a policy enforcement point (PEP) may detect that usage by a given client device is threshold high and responsively request, from a policy decision point (PDP), a policy directive that specifies a policy rule to apply to the given client device. However, thereafter, the PEP may determine that the requested policy directive has not been received from the PDP and then responsively apply, to the given client device, a default policy rule for threshold-high usage.

Method and system of imposing a policy rule for heavy usage

A wireless communication device (WCD) is configured to receive and maintain concurrently in data storage at least two different IMS transfer-addresses, such as one for use when the WCD's transition between radio access networks (RANs) is a single-radio transition and the other for use when the WCD's transition between RANs is a dual-radio transition, and/or one for use when the WCD's transition between RANs is packet-to-packet and the other for use when the WCD's transition between RANs is packet-to-circuit. Upon transitioning between RANs, the WCD may then select the appropriate one of these IMS transfer-addresses and transmit the selected IMS transfer-address to a network node to facilitate handover of an ongoing call to be via the WCD's new serving RAN.

Hybrid call continuity for a wireless communication device

A radio access network (RAN) may be configured to manage paging of a wireless communication device (WCD). The RAN may initiate a paging process to page the WCD, and the paging process may comprise the RAN transmitting to the WCD a defined sequence of page attempts until the RAN receives a page response from the WCD or the RAN has transmitted a final page attempt of the sequence. After the RAN has transmitted at least one page attempt of the sequence but before the final page attempt of the sequence has been transmitted, the RAN may determine that the RAN has not received the page response from the WCD, and that the WCD is currently engaged in active data communication, and the RAN may responsively discontinue the paging process.

Method and system for managing paging of a wireless communication device

A method and system to help manage transition of a device between wireless access networks. The device engages in a call served by a given access network and the call ends. Responsive to the call ending, (i) a determination is made as to which base station of that network last served the device, (ii) the determined base station is mapped to a proximate base station of another access network, and (iii) a bearer connection is established in the other access network with the proximate base station in anticipation of the device seeking to be served by that base station.

Pre-provisioning bearer connection with target base station in response to end of call served by nearby base station of other access network

In systems and methods of providing a message notification in a wireless communication system, at least one paging message is sent to a wireless device, and it is determined whether a response is received from the wireless device to any paging message. A timer is initiated comprising a timer value based on a number of the paging messages sent to the wireless device, and whether a response is received from the wireless device to any of the paging messages. When the timer expires, a message notification is sent to the wireless device indicating that the message is available for the wireless device.

Growing community of inventors

Overland Park, KS, United States of America

Naresh Madineni