TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE
The present invention relates to communications devices for communicating via a mobile
communications network, and methods for communicating.
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
The "background" description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the
context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this
background section, as well as aspects of the description which may not otherwise qualify as prior art
at the time of filing, are neither expressly or impliedly admitted as prior art against the present
invention.
Third and fourth generation mobile telecommunication systems, such as those based on the
3GPP defined UMTS and Long Term Evolution (LTE) architecture are able to support more
sophisticated services than simple voice and messaging services offered by previous generations of
mobile telecommunication systems.
For example, with the improved radio interface and enhanced data rates provided by LTE
systems, a user is able to enjoy high data rate applications such as mobile video streaming and mobile
video conferencing that would previously only have been available via a fixed line data connection.
The demand to deploy third and fourth generation networks is therefore strong and the coverage area
of these networks, i.e. geographic locations where access to the networks is possible, is expected to
increase rapidly.
The anticipated widespread deployment of third and fourth generation networks has led to the
parallel development of a class of devices and applications which, rather than taking advantage of the
high data rates available, instead take advantage of the robust radio interface and increasing ubiquity
of the coverage area. Examples include so-called machine type communication (MTC) applications,
which are typified by semi-autonomous or autonomous wireless communication devices (i.e. MTC
devices) communicating small amounts of data on a relatively infrequent basis. Examples include socalled
smart meters which, for example, are located in a customer's house and periodically transmit
information back to a central MTC server data relating to the customers consumption of a utility such
as gas, water, electricity and so on.
Whilst it can be convenient for a terminal such as an MTC type terminal to take advantage of
the wide coverage area provided by a third or fourth generation mobile telecommunication network
there are at present disadvantages. Unlike a conventional third or fourth generation mobile terminal
such as a smartphone, an MTC-type terminal is preferably relatively simple and inexpensive. The type
of functions performed by the MTC-type terminal (e.g. collecting and reporting back data) do not
require particularly complex processing to perform. However, third and fourth generation mobile
telecommunication networks typically employ advanced data modulation techniques on the radio
interface which can require more complex and expensive radio transceivers to implement. It is usually
justified to include such complex transceivers in a smartphone as a smartphone will typically require a
powerful processor to perform typical smartphone type functions. However, as indicated above, there
is now a desire to use relatively inexpensive and less complex devices to communicate using LTE type
networks.
Generally it is desirable to improve an efficiency with which all types of communications
devices access the communications resources of a mobile communications network.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
According to an example embodiment of the present disclosure there is provided a
communications device for communicating via a mobile communications network, the mobile
communications network including one or more network elements providing a wireless access
interface for transmitting signals to and receiving signals from the communications device. The
communications device comprises a transmitter configured to transmit signals to the mobile
communications network via the wireless access interface provided by the one or more network
elements of the mobile communications network, a receiver configured to receive signals from the
mobile communications network via the wireless access interface provided by the one or more
network elements of the mobile communications network, and a controller. The controller is
configured to control the transmitter to transmit a random access message to a first network element
via a random channel of the wireless access interface which is common to one or more other
communications devices, to receive from the first network element an acknowledgement in response
to the random access message providing an indication of an allocation of the communications
resources of the shared up-link channel for the communications device to transmit signals to the
mobile communications network or a negative acknowledgment providing an indication that the
communications device has not been allocated communications resources of the shared up-link
channel. In response to detection of one or more random access failure conditions by the controller,
the controller is configured in combination with the transmitter to re-transmit the random access
message one or more times, each re-transmission of the random access message being after a variable
delay which is greater than or equal to the delay of a previous re-transmission for each re-transmission.
A communications device which is configured to operate in accordance with the present
technique can be arranged to perform a random access procedure, by transmitting a random access
message in a random access channel of a wireless access interface, which reduces the likelihood of
congestion on the random access channel caused by other communications terminals transmitting
random access messages contemporaneously. h some examples, a large number of communications
devices may be operating within a cell served by a network element. If a significant number of these
devices are caused to access communications resources provided by the network element
contemporaneously, by transmitting random access messages, then congestion may occur because of
the limited bandwidth of the random access channel, processing power of the network element or a
limited bandwidth of the mobile communications network. Accordingly by re-transmitting a random
access message after this has neither been acknowledged or negatively acknowledged (no response)
such as might occur if the network element is not able to cope with a volume of random access
messages, then by increasing the delay between re-transmissions of the random access messages, there
is a greater likelihood that the congestion will clear enough for a response to be transmitted to the
network element.
The random access message transmitted by the communications device may include or be
comprised of a preamble or random access preamble. In one example the random access preamble
may be provided to the communications device by the mobile communications network.
In some examples each of the predetermined times before the re-transmission of the random
access response message is comprised of a minimum delay and a randomly generated delay period so
that in combination the delay is greater than or equal to the delay for a previous re-transmission for
each of the one or more re-transmissions. Accordingly there is provided an arrangement in which each
of one or more other communications devices are arranged to re-transmit one or more other random
access messages at different times to the time of transmission of the communications device.
Various further aspects and embodiments of the invention are provided in the appended
claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with
reference to the accompanying drawings where like parts are provided with corresponding reference
numerals and in which:
Figure 1 provides a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a conventional mobile
telecommunication network;
Figure 2 provides a schematic diagram illustrating a conventional LTE radio frame;
Figure 3 provides a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a conventional LTE
downlink radio sub-frame;
Figures 4a and 4b provide schematic diagrams of LTE random access procedures;
Figure 5 provides a schematic diagram of a variable delay preamble transmission scheme in
accordance with an example of the present invention;
Figure 6 provides a schematic diagram of a variable delay preamble transmission scheme in
accordance with an example of the present invention;
Figure 7A provides a schematic diagram of a variable delay preamble transmission scheme in
accordance with an example of the present invention;
Figure 7B provides a schematic diagram of a variable delay preamble transmission scheme in
accordance with an example of the present invention;
Figure 8 provides a schematic diagram of a variable delay preamble transmission scheme in
accordance with an example of the present invention;
Figure 9 provides a schematic diagram of a variable delay preamble transmission scheme in
accordance with an example of the present invention;
Figure 10 provides a schematic diagram of a variable delay preamble transmission scheme in
accordance with an example of the present invention; and
Figure 11 provides a schematic diagram showing part of an adapted LTE mobile
telecommunication network arranged in accordance with an example of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS
Conventional Network
Figure 1 provides a schematic diagram illustrating the basic functionality of a conventional
mobile telecommunications network.
The network includes a plurality of base stations 101 connected to a core network 102. Each
base station provides a coverage area 103 (i.e. a cell) within which data can be communicated to and
from mobile terminals 104. Data is transmitted from a base station 101 to a mobile terminal 104 within
a coverage area 103 via a radio downlink. Data is transmitted from a mobile terminal 104 to a base
station 101 via a radio uplink. The core network 102 routes data to and from the mobile terminals 104
and provides functions such as authentication, mobility management, charging and so on. The mobile
terminals may also be referred to as user equipment (UE) or communications devices and the base
stations as enhanced node B (eNodeB) or network elements.
Mobile telecommunications systems such as those arranged in accordance with the 3GPP
defined Long Term Evolution (LTE) architecture use an orthogonal frequency division multiplex
(OFDM) based interface for the radio downlink (so-called OFDMA) and the radio uplink (so-called
SC-FDMA). Data is transmitted on the uplink and on the downlink on a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers.
Figure 2 shows a schematic diagram illustrating an OFDM based LTE downlink radio frame
201. The LTE downlink radio frame is transmitted from an LTE base station (known as an enhanced
Node B) and lasts 10 ms. The downlink radio frame comprises ten sub-frames, each sub-frame lasting
1 ms. A primary synchronisation signal (PSS) and a secondary synchronisation signal (SSS) are
transmitted in the first and sixth sub-frames of the LTE frame. A primary broadcast channel (PBCFf) is
transmitted in the first sub-frame of the LTE frame. The PSS, SSS and PBCH are discussed in more
detail below.
Figure 3 provides a schematic diagram providing a grid which illustrates the structure of an
example of a conventional downlink LTE sub-frame. The sub-frame comprises a predetermined
number of symbols which are transmitted over a 1ms period. Each symbol comprises a predetermined
number of orthogonal sub-carriers distributed across the bandwidth of the downlink radio carrier.
The example sub-frame shown in Figure 3 comprises 14 symbols and 1200 sub-carriers
spaced across a 20MHz bandwidth. The smallest unit on which data can be transmitted in LTE is
twelve sub-carriers transmitted over one sub-frame. For clarity, in Figure 3, each individual resource
element is not shown, instead each individual box in the sub-frame grid corresponds to twelve subcarriers
transmitted on one symbol.
Figure 3 shows resource allocations for four LTE terminals 340, 341, 342, 343. For example,
the resource allocation 342 for a first LTE terminal (UE 1) extends over five blocks of twelve subcarriers,
the resource allocation 343 for a second LTE terminal (UE2) extends over six blocks of
twelve sub-carriers and so on.
Control channel data is transmitted in a control region 300 of the sub-frame comprising the
first n symbols of the sub-frame where n can vary between one and three symbols for channel
bandwidths of 3MHz or greater and where n can vary between two and four symbols for channel
bandwidths of 1.4MHz. The data transmitted in the control region 300 includes data transmitted on the
physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the physical control format indicator channel (PCFICFf)
and the physical HARQ indicator channel (PHICH).
The PDCCH contains control data indicating which sub-carriers on which symbols of the subframe
have been allocated to specific communications terminals (UEs). Thus, the PDCCH data
transmitted in the control region 300 of the sub-frame shown in Figure 3 would indicate that UEl has
been allocated the first block of resources 342, that UE2 has been allocated the second block of
resources 343, and so on. In sub-frames where it is transmitted, the PCFICH contains control data
indicating the duration of the control region in that sub-frame (i.e. between one and four symbols) and
the PFflCH contains HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Request) data indicating whether or not previously
transmitted uplink data has been successfully received by the network.
In certain sub-frames, symbols in a central band 310 of the sub-frame are used for the
transmission of information including the primary synchronisation signal (PSS), the secondary
synchronisation signal (SSS) and the physical broadcast channel (PBCH) mentioned above. This
central band 310 is typically 72 sub-carriers wide (corresponding to a transmission bandwidth of 1.08
MHz). The PSS and SSS are synchronisation sequences that once detected allow a communications
terminal 04 to achieve frame synchronisation and determine the cell identity of the base station
(eNodeB) transmitting the downlink signal. The PBCH carries information about the cell, comprising
a master information block (MIB) that includes parameters that the communications terminals require
to access the cell. The data fransmitted to individual communications terminals on the physical
downlink shared channel (PDSCH) can be transmitted in the remaining blocks of communications
resource elements of the sub-frame.
Figure 3 also shows a region of PDSCH containing system information and extending over a
bandwidth of R344. Thus in Figure 3 the central frequency carries control channels such as the PSS,
SSS and PBCH and therefore implies a minimum bandwidth of a receiver of a communications
terminal.
The number of sub-carriers in a LTE channel can vary depending on the configuration of the
transmission network. Typically this variation is from 72 sub carriers contained within a 1.4MHz
channel bandwidth to 1200 sub-carriers contained within a 20MHz channel bandwidth as shown in
Figure 3. As is known in the art, subcarriers carrying data transmitted on the PDCCH, PCFICH and
PHICH are typically distributed across the entire bandwidth of the sub-frame. Therefore a
conventional communications terminal must be able to receive the entire bandwidth of the sub-frame
in order to receive and decode the control region.
In examples where the network of Figure 1 operates in accordance with LTE, the UEs 104 will
be allocated resources in uplink frames by the eNodeB 101. For example, if a UE is in an unconnected
state with the eNodeB and wishes to connect to the eNodeB, the UE is required to perform a random
access procedure which acts as request for access to the network.
LTE Random Access Procedure
Figure 4a illustrates an LTE contention based random access procedure that a UE may
perform in order to request access to an LTE network. Firstly, the UE selects a random access
preamble from a set of contention based random access preambles that has been broadcast in a system
information block (SIB) such as SIB2 in a downlink frame by the eNodeB. The UE transmits the
selected random access preamble 401 as a random access message to the eNodeB where this
transmission acts as an access request message for requesting access to and resources of the network,
and the preamble acts as a UE identifier. The random access preamble may be transmitted on a
physical channel within the wireless access interface such as a physical random access channel
(PRACH) of an uplink frame. Once the random access preamble has been received by the eNodeB, at
step 402 the eNodeB transmits and the UE receives a response message, such as for example, a
random access response (RAR) which provides a positive or negative acknowledgment with regards to
a resource allocation. The resources in time and frequency of a physical downlink shared
channel(PDSCH) in which the UE can find the RAR are indicated in a control message on a control
channel such as physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). The control message is addressed to a
random access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI) and is transmitted in the same subframe
as the response message. This control message is therefore required to be received prior to receiving
the response message. In particular, a downlink control information (DCI) message informing the UE
of the resources where the response message can be found in the current subframe is sent on the
PDCCH, where the RA-RNTI is formed from a time and, in some examples, a frequency identifier of
transmission of the associated access request message. The response message contains at least the
identity of the received preamble, a timing alignment command, an allocated uplink resource grant and
a temporary Cell RNTI (C-RNTI). Upon receiving the response message, the UE transmits a
scheduled transmission containing its intended message, such as a radio resource controller (RRC)
connection request, in the allocated uplink resources as shown by step 403. Finally at step 404, upon
receiving the intended message, the eNodeB transmits a contention resolution message. The
contention resolution message is then acknowledged by the UE to which the contention resolution
message is addressed, for example with a HARQ ACK/NACK. This procedure thus overcomes the
possibility of multiple UEs utilising the same preamble and or transmitting a random access request
over the same channel at the same time.
Figure 4b illustrates an example non-contention based random access procedure for requesting
resources in an LTE network. At step 451, prior to the transmission of a random access preamble from
the UE in the random access message, the eNodeB allocates a preamble from a non-contention based
set of preambles to the UE. This allocation may be performed via a format 1A downlink control
information (DCI) message on the PDCCH or in a handover command if the UE has recently entered a
cell served by the eNodeB. At step 452 the user device transmits its allocated preamble to the eNodeB.
Once the preamble has been received at the eNodeB, the eNodeB transmits a response message, such
as for example a random access response (RAR), at step 453 where the response message contains
similar information to the response message sent at step 402 of Figure 4a. Once the response message
has been received at the UE, the user device then transmits its intended message in the allocated uplink
resources indicated in the response message.
Although the access request procedures of Figures 4a and 4b has been described with
reference to sending and receiving messages directly from a eNodeB, the messages may also be sent
and received via one or more relays using the same procedure.
Response Windowing
Both access request procedures described above are reliant on reception of the preamble at the
eNodeB and the reception of a response message at the UE. In an LTE system the response message is
transmitted on a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) and is scheduled by information on a
physical control channel such as a PDCCH. In order to ensure that a UE does not attempt to receive a
response message continuously from the point in time of the transmission of the access request
message until a response is received, the response message is transmitted by the eNodeB in a
predetermined temporal response message window. When the access request message is a random
access request and the response message is a random access response, such a window may be referred
to as a random access response window or a RAR window. A response window may reduce the
amount of power consumed at the UE because a finite time period during which the UE will attempt to
receive a response message is defined. The response window is defined with respect to the
transmission of the access request message and the UE is configured to begin to attempt to receive the
response message when the response window commences. The process of receiving a response
message includes the UE checking the PDCCH of each subframe within the response window for a
relevant DC1 containing PDSCH scheduling information addressed to its RA- TI. When such
scheduling information is found, the UE receives and decodes the response message in the PDSCH of
the corresponding subframe, where the response message contains an indication of the preamble the
user device sent to the eNodeB in the access request message. Once a response message is successfully
received the UE ceases to check the PDCCH for response message scheduling information. If a
response message is not received by a UE within the response window, after a minimum wait period
the user device begins a subsequent new access request procedure, where the subsequent access
request procedure is similar to those previously described with reference to Figures 4a and 4b.
Multiple response messages for different UEs may be transmitted by the eNodeB within each response
window therefore reducing congestion. If multiple response messages are present in a single response
window the user devices may differentiate between them by means of the RA-RNTI to which they are
addressed and the preamble they each contain.
Although the procedure above provides a method to increase the likelihood of a response
message sent by the eNodeB being received by an UE, it does not provide a robust procedure for
transmitting the preamble in the initial random access request. For example, in some scenarios a large
number of UEs may contemporaneously transmit a random access message in the form of random
access preamble to a same eNodeB. One example where this may occur is when a large number of
machine-type-communication (MTC) devices, such as utility meters, attempt to report an event such as
a power outage. Another example is where there may be a larger number of conventional
communication devices in one location than are normally served at that location, for example because
of a sporting event h such scenarios the eNodeB may be unable to process all the random access
requests and or the random access request may interfere with each other. This may lead to the eNodeB
unsuccessfully processing some or all the random access messages and therefore the requesting UEs
may not receive a random access response message in the form of a resource allocation. The default
response for a UE when a random access response is not received is to retransmit the random access
message and increase the power at which it is transmitted, and continue this repetition until a timer
(T300) expires, the timer expiry indicating that a radio resource controller connection has failed to be
established. However, this default response will exacerbate the problems caused by large numbers of
UEs attempting to access an eNodeB and request resources because the retransmitted messages will
cause additional congestion in both the wireless access interface and at the eNodeB, thus increasing
the interference caused by the retransmitted messages.
A second example where the conventional random access procedure lacks robustness is when
the uplink and downlink paths to and from the UE and eNodeB are significantly different and
therefore the UE camps on to the incorrect eNodeB. This scenario may occur for instance when the
downlink signal is received at the UE at an artificially high power. A problem such as this has been
known to occur in the proximity of a lakes which are situated in between an eNodeB and a UE. In such
circumstances, in the downlink the reflection of the signal from the lake causes the received signal at
the UE to be received at a high amplitude. Consequently, the UE will select this eNodeB as the
network element to communicate with. However, in the uplink the signal from the UE to eNodeB may
be received at a low power or not received at all at the eNodeB. Consequently, if the UE has made a
random access request it is possible that the eNodeB will not properly receive it, and hence the UE
will not receive a response. This will lead the UE to perform a similar procedure to that described
above where it retransmits the random access message and increases the transmission power of the
retransmissions. This can in some circumstances cause the UE to fail to obtain any network service, as
well as an increase in power consumption at the UE.
A further problem posed by the above limitations of the current random access procedure is
that a UE is unlikely to be able to differentiate between the aforementioned problems because the only
indicator available at the UE is an absence of a random access response. Consequently, in would be
beneficial if an approach which is able to mitigate both of the above problems can be achieved.
Solutions have been proposed to mitigate the adverse effects of the above problems but the
solutions have a number of drawbacks. For instance, a proposed solution is for the eNodeB to signal a
timer of a fixed duration to the UE or for the UE to use a hard coded timer value to control random
access message retransmissions. This timer is triggered when the UE has transmitted a number of
random access messages without reply equal to a predetermined threshold. The UE then suspends
transmission of further random access messages until the timer has expired. The intention of this delay
in transmission is to provide a window to the eNodeB in which it may recover and therefore be in a
position to receive and process further random access messages. However, in normal circumstances
implementing this "back-off period may for example result in a call establishment for a UE being
delayed even when there is not a congestion or load problem at the eNodeB but instead a temporary
issue with uplink coverage. Furthermore, the use of a fixed period may also lead to large number of
UEs retransmitting their random access messages at a similar time, thus resulting in the problem being
delayed but not solved. Also, using a fixed delay does not take account of the current network
conditions which may result in the timers either being too long or too short compared to the congestion
in the system. Consequently, it is difficult to configure a timer duration which allows suitable back-off
time in cases of high network congestion whilst not causing too much delay to random access request
in other cases i.e. low congestion or incorrect cell selection.
A solution proposed to rectify UEs incorrectly selecting an eNodeB due to artificially high
downlink signals, is to apply an eNodeB reselection offset so that when a UE detects repeated random
access request failures, the UE selects a different eNodeB. For instance, if the eNodeB providing the
strongest downlink signal is not responding to repeated random access messages the UE may select an
alternative eNodeB from which it receives a downlink signal based on the received signal strength of
the new eNodeB being at least a predetermined proportion lower than the previous eNodeB.
Although these approaches may mitigate some of the issues discussed above, they also have a
number of significant disadvantages. For instance, it is unknown to a UE which experiences a failed
random access request whether the failure has occurred due to incorrectly camping onto an eNodeB or
due to congestion in the wireless access interface or at the eNodeB. Consequently, the aforementioned
techniques are unlikely to be suitable for widespread implementation.
Variable Delay Preamble Transmission
In accordance with the present disclosure, a UE adapts its back-off behaviour and or cell
reselection behaviour in order to manage situations where repeated random access messages are not
acknowledged and therefore the random access request unsuccessful.
In accordance with a first example embodiment, a UE applies a variable back-off or delay
timer when a random access failure condition is detected and increases the back-off time on
subsequent random access message transmissions by a fixed or predetermined increment.
Figure 5 provides a schematic diagram representing a back-off approach in accordance with
the first example embodiment. In Figure 5 the y-axis represents the power at which a preamble is
transmitted as a random access message and the x-axis represents the time at which the preambles are
transmitted as a random access message. Initially the UE operates in accordance with the LTE
standard, for example the UE transmits a first preamble at 501. However, this first transmission does
not result in a random access response from the eNodeB and therefore the UE retransmits the
preamble at 502 at an increased power. This process continues such that the preamble is retransmitted
at 503, 504 and 504 until the preambleTransMax threshold is reached. Reaching this threshold
represents a random access failure condition and therefore once this threshold is reached the UE delays
a subsequent retransmission by N ms thus next retransmitting the preamble at 506. In Figure 5 the
preamble transmission 506 is shown to be transmitted at an increased power compared to the previous
preamble transmission because the maximum transmit power 508 has yet to have be reached.
However, in some examples the maximum transmission power may have already been reached by
preamble transmission 505 and therefore no further increase would be possible. Alternatively, the
transmission power may only be increased every other subsequent preamble retransmission for
example or according to any chosen pattern. If preamble 506 also does not result in the UE receiving a
random access response a subsequent preamble retransmission occurs at 507. However, the
retransmission is delayed by 2N ms relative to the previous retransmission in order to give the eNodeB
further time to recover from any congestion. If preamble 507 did not result in a random access
response form the eNodeB the preamble would be retransmitted after 3N s and so on. In Figure 5 the
delay is calculated in accordance with
Delay =
(premableTransmissionCounter —premableTransMax) x premableTransMaxDelay
however the delay may also be calculated in accordance with any appropriate formulae, such as an
exponential increase or initial offset formula. A number of example formulae and given below
» Delay = preambleTransMaxDelayOffset + (premableTransmissionCounter —
premableTransMax) X premableTransMaxDelay
• Delay =
preambleTransMaxDelayOffset +
premableTransMaxDelay(Prema ieTransm s s u n e r ~Premah, e r s x
• Delay = preambleTransMaxDelayOffset x (premableTransmissionCounter —
premableTransMax) +
premab leTransMaxDelay rema leTransmissionCounter -premab leTransMax)
The present example embodiment allows the UE to begin with a relatively short delay and then
increase the delay if a random access response is not received such that once a random access failure
condition has occurred, the delays between retransmissions is greater than or equal to the delay
between earlier or previous retransmissions.. This provides an advantage over the existing approach
because the length of the delay is effectively dependent on the congestion of the system and a long
delay is not initially used when the UE has no knowledge of the cause of the random access failure.
For example, the number repetitions of the preamble transmission is likely to be correlated with the
congestion of the network. Therefore the longer delay period gives the network longer to recover, this
allows the delay period to automatically adjust to the congestion of the network. Consequently, the use
of an unnecessarily long delay for initial preamble retransmissions has been avoided and the delay in
establishing a call for example has been reduced. The premableTransMaxDelay may either be
signalled in the broadcast system information as described above or may be fixed into the specification
and therefore hardcoded into the UEs. However, in some circumstances parameters such as
preambleTransMax, premableTransMaxDelay, preambleTransMaxDelayOffset or the associated
equations may be dynamically signalled so that the eNodeB can dynamically control the congestion
mitigation techniques.
In some examples, the use of the variable back-off or delay may be dependent on signalling
from the eNodeB. For example, an additional signalling bit may be introduced into the broadcast
system information which specifies whether a UE being served by the eNodeB should implement a
variable delay. This information is preferably included in data structures such as the system
information so that the UE can receive the signalling prior to establishing an RRC connection with the
eNodeB. Although in Figure 5 and in later embodiments the random access failure condition is defined
as transmitting a predetermined number of preambles, the random access failure condition may also
correspond to other scenarios. For example, failing to receive an acknowledgment within a
predetermined period of time such as the T300 timer found in LTE.
Figure 6 provides an illustration of a technique in accordance with a second example
embodiment, where the UE may randomise the delay with which preambles are retransmitted. As in
Figure 5, the transmission of the initial preambles 501 to 505 are performed as normal and once a
random access failure condition occurs i.e. preambleTransMax is reached, an additional delay is
introduced before the next retransmission of the preamble. However, the delay which is introduced is
randomised. For example the next preamble retransmission may take places at any time in the range
represented by 601 to 608 and the decision is a random choice at the UE in accordance with an
appropriate probability distribution, for example a uniform distribution. The range may be set
according to an appropriate duration, for example the range may be calculated in accordance with any
of the formula given below for example.
• DelayRange = preambleTransMaxDelayMin (premableTransmissionCounter —
premableTransMax) X premableTransMaxDelay
however the delay may also be calculated in accordance with any appropriate formulae, such as an
exponential increase or an initial offset formulae .A number of example formula and given below
• Delay —preambleTransMaxDelayMin
premab leTransMaxDelay m leTransmissionCounter -premab leTransMax)
Delay = preambleTransMaxDelayMin x (premableTransmissionCounter —
premableTransMax) :premableTransMaxDelay v e a e ra sm ss o e - ableTrans ax
As a further possibility to derive the randomised delay, there may be a fixed minimum delay
onto which a randomly generated delay period is added. As an alternative to basing the delay or
retransmission time of a subsequent preamble transmission on a random distribution, they could also
be dependent upon a UE's identity such as C-RNTI or MSI. However, randomly determining the
delay may be a fairer way to allocate when a UE is to perform a retransmission such that a UE is not
consistently allocated one delay or retransmission time.
The use of random back-off provides a number of advantages over existing techniques. Firstly
it reduces the chance that preambles which have previously been transmitted contemporaneously with
preambles from other UEs (i.e. 501 to 505) will be retransmitted contemporaneously, thus reduced the
likelihood of further congestion. Furthermore, the use of a randomised delay also means that UEs may
still retransmit preambles whilst others are in a back-off period thus ensuring that not all preamble
retransmissions are suspended. A feature of the proposed techniques is that legacy devices will not
vary the delay associated with retransmission of preambles and therefore compliant UEs may
experience an increased delay compared to legacy UEs. However, the use of a randomised reduces the
probability that a compliant UE will experience an increased delay in retransmitting a preamble
compared to a legacy device.
Figure 7A provides an illustration of a technique in accordance with a third example
embodiment of the present disclosure. In this example embodiment, instead of a delay being changed
for every subsequent preamble retransmission after a random access failure condition has occurred it is
varied after a predetermined number of subsequent preamble retransmissions. For example, the delays
illustrated in Figure 7A are calculated in a manner similar to those of Figure 5 i.e. N, 2N, 3N etc.
however after each delay a group or set of preamble retransmissions take place. h Figure 7A it can be
seen that after the initial five (preambleTransMax) preamble transmissions 501 to 505 and a delay of
N ms, a further five preamble retransmissions takes place 701 to 705 . If a random access response is
still not received, the UE may commence transmitting another set of premableTransMax preambles
after a 2N ms delay, the set beginning with preamble transmission 706. The delay in between sets may
be calculated according to any of the formula given above and each set of preamble transmissions may
be treated as an independent set such that the transmission power of 701 to 705 for example may
correspond to that of preamble transmissions 501 to 505. Alternatively the transmission powers may
increase until the maximum preamble transmission power is reached and then this power maintained
for subsequent preamble transmissions. The approach of the transmission powers increasing until the
maximum preamble transmission power is reached and then this power maintained for subsequent
preamble transmissions is schematically represented in Figure 7A. The approach of each set of
preamble transmissions being treated as an independent set such that an initial transmission power
used for calculating the transmission power for a second set of preamble transmissions corresponds to
that of an initial transmission power used for a first set of preamble transmissions is schematically
represented in Figure 7B. Figure 7B is otherwise similar to, and will be understood from, Figure 7A.
Reselection of eNodeBs to avoid or rectify incorrect camping-on may be introduced into any
of the techniques described. For example, in the technique illustrated in Figure 7A cell or eNodeB
reselection may take place in between the sets of preamble transmissions. For instance, after preamble
transmissions 501 to 505 the UE may remove the current eNodeB from it list of candidate eNodeBs
and then direct the transmissions 701 to 705 towards a different eNodeB. The current eNodeB may be
removed as a result of a default setting that the current eNodeB is removed or may be removed
because it signal strength falls above threshold below which the UE is to select a new eNodeB.
Alternatively, a negative amplitude offset {reslectionOffset) may be applied to the signals received
from the current eNodeB (first eNodeB) and then the eNodeB from which the UE receives the best
signal (taking into account the offset and other parameters such as hysteresis and priority) is selected
(second eNodeB). This offset then may be removed once the UE moves away from or reselects from
the second eNodeB, or after a predetermined period of time, such that the first eNodeB is not
permanently excluded from selection. In an alternative approach, a UE may apply any of the above
described example embodiments but then perform eNodeB reselection once the T300 timer or multiple
instances of the T300 timer have expired. In another approach cell access barring may be applied to
prevent a terminal device from seeking to reselect the relevant eNodeB.
Figure 8 provides an illustration of a random access procedure where eNodeB reselection is
introduced into the technique illustrated in Figure 5. After preambles 801 to 805 have been transmitted
a first random access failure condition occurs, and this triggers the increasing delay between preamble
retransmissions as described above. Once preambles 806, 807, and 808 have been transmitted the
T300 timer expires thus indicating a second different random access failure condition. In response to
this second random access failure condition, the UE performs eNodeB reselection. The network
element reselection comprises applying a negative offset to the amplitude of the signals received from
the current or first eNodeB and then selecting a second eNodeB to which it will transmit subsequent
preambles. This is done by selecting the eNodeB from which it receives what are deemed to be the
best signals according to a cell selection or reselection criterion.
As previously described, a UE is unlikely to be able to establish why a random access failure
has occurred because in general the only indication available is an absence of a random access
response, and this does not allow the UE to differentiate between an overloaded cell or where a cell
has been incorrectly selected. The above described technique of integrated reselection and variable
delay retransmission overcomes this problem by providing an approach which can address both these
failure scenarios. For example, when premableTransMax preambles have been transmitted, action to
address an overloaded cell is performed whereas when the T300 timer runs out action to address
incorrect cell selection is performed.
The above described preamble retransmission techniques and eNodeB reselection techniques
require a number of parameters to be provided to the UEs. These parameters may either hardcoded
into UEs or may for example be signalled to UE in the broadcast system information messages
transmitted by the eNodeB. a the case where the parameters are provided in the system information
they may be provided in a new information element. Such an information element may include one or
more of premableTransMaxDelay, reslectionOffset, premableTransMax and
premableTransMaxDelayOffset. In one example of premableTransMaxDelay and reslectionOffset may
be broadcast together so that signalling overheads in a system are reduced. In some examples UEs may
be provided with default values for the above mentioned parameters, these default parameters may be
used until the network broadcasts new values which are intended to override the default values. As a
further alternative, the technique proposed in this disclosure may only be applied by a UE if a serving
eNodeB indicates to a UE that they should be applied. This approach can once again be achieved by
introducing further signalling into a broadcast message.
Figure 9 provides a diagram of the messages exchanged between a UE and eNodeB operating
in accordance with the technique described with reference to Figure 5. The UE first acquires a
preamble at 901. The UE then repeatedly transmits the preamble to the eNodeB because a random
access response is not received in reply to any of the preamble transmissions 902 to 906. Once the
preamble has been transmitted for the fifth time the number of transmissions has reached
preambleTransMax. Consequently, the UE delays the next transmission of the preamble 907 by Nms.
However, once again this transmission is not successfully acknowledged. The next preamble
transmission 908 is therefore delayed by 2Nms. Preamble transmission 908 is then successfully
received by the eNodeB and a random access response 909 is received by the UE, thus completing the
random access procedure. Although Figure 9 illustrates a delay which increases as an arithmetic
progression the delay may be calculated in accordance with any of the examples described above and
multiple preamble transmission may occur between delays as illustrated in Figures 7A and 7B.
Furthermore, eNodeB reselection may occur during delay period as previously described.
Figure 10 provides a flow diagram which provides an alternative illustration of the operation
at the UE of the technique illustrated in Figure 5 and 6. A preamble is initially transmitted at 1001 and
if a random access response (RAR) is received from the eNodeB in response 1002, a scheduled
transmission occurs and the random access procedure is complete. If a RAR is not received and the
number of preamble transmission has not reached preambleTransMax 1003 then the UE performs a
further transmission of the preamble 1001. However, if preambleTransMax has been reached 1003 the
UE calculates the delay which should be implemented 1004 before the next transmission of the
preamble 1005. This process then continues until either a RAR is received 1006 or the T300 timer
expires 1007 and the random access procedure is deemed to have failed. Steps of cell reselection,
transmission power increase or preamble transmission groupings may also be added to Figure 10 such
that any of the techniques proposed by the present disclosure can be combined. For instance, cell
reselection may occur prior to delay calculation if the outcome of step 1003 is "yes".
Although the solutions described above are more complex than existing approaches as a result
of the variable delay, the increase in complex is marginal because only a small number of extra
mathematical operations are required, for instance the calculation of the delays. Furthermore, the
benefits resulting from more reliable random access requests, reduced power consumption, reduced
random access congestion and the rectification of incorrect eNodeB selection significantly outweigh
the small increase in complexity.
Figure 1 provides a schematic diagram of a UE 1101 and an eNodeB 1105 in which the
techniques described above may be implemented. The UE includes a transmitter 1102 for transmitting
data to the eNodeB 1105 and a receiver 1103 for receiving data from the eNodeB 1105. Under the
control of a controller 1104 the transmitter 1102 and the receiver 103 may allow the UE to transmit a
preamble to the eNodeB and receive a random access response from the eNodeB 1105. The controller
1104 may also calculate the timing of when to transmit the preamble and select the eNodeB to which
the preamble(s) should be transmitted. Although the UE 1101 has been illustrated as including the
transmitter 1102, the receiver 1103 and the controller 1104, the UE 1101 is not limited to including
these elements and may also include further elements such as memory for example. The eNodeB 1105
includes a transmitter 1006 for transmitting data to the UE 1101 and a receiver 1007 for receiving data
from the UE 1101, under the control of a controller 1108. The controller 1108 may control process
received preambles and control the transmitter to transmit random access responses. The controller
may also control the transmitter to transmit signalling which indicates to the UE whether variable
delay preamble transmission should be implemented and the relevant parameters of the variable delay
preamble transmission. As for the UE, although the eNodeB 1105 has been illustrated as including a
transmitter and a receiver, the eNodeB is not limited to including these elements and may also include
further elements such as memory for example.
Various modifications can be made to examples of the present invention. Embodiments of the
present invention have been defined largely in terms of reduced capability terminals transmitting data
via a virtual carrier inserted in a conventional LTE based host carrier. However, it will be understood
that any suitable device can transmit and receive data using the described virtual carriers for example
devices which have the same capability as a conventional LTE type terminal or devices which have
enhanced capabilities.
Furthermore, it will be understood that the general principle of inserting a virtual carrier on a
subset of uplink or downlink resources can be applied to any suitable mobile telecommunication
technology and need not be restricted to systems employing an LTE based radio interface.
Further particular and preferred aspects of the present invention are set out in the
accompanying independent and dependent claims. It will be appreciated that features of the dependent
claims may be combined with features of the independent claims in combinations other than those
explicitly set out in the claims.
Some respective features of the present disclosure are defined by the following two groups of
numbered paragraphs:
1. A communications device for communicating via a mobile communications network,
the mobile communications network including one or more network elements providing a wireless
access interface for transmitting signals to or receiving signals from the communications device, the
communications device comprising: a transmitter configured to transmit the signals to the mobile
communications network via the wireless access interface provided by the one or more network
elements of the mobile communications network, and a receiver configured to receive the signals from
the mobile communications network via the wireless access interface provided by the one or more
network elements of the mobile communications network, and a controller configured to control the
transmitter to transmit a random access message to a first network element via a random access
channel of the wireless access interface which is common to one or more other communications
devices, to receive from the first network element an acknowledgement in response to the random
access message providing an indication of an allocation of communications resources of a shared up
link channel for the communications device to transmit signals to the first network element or a
negative acknowledgement providing an indication that the communications device has not been
allocated communications resources of the shared up-link channel, wherein in response to detection of
one or more random access failure conditions by the controller, the controller is configured in
combination with the transmitter to retransmit the random access message one or more times, each
retransmission of the random access message being after a variable delay which is greater than or
equal to the delay of a previous retransmission.
2. A communications device according to paragraph 1, wherein each delay before the
retransmission of the random access message is comprised of a delay randomly selected from between
a minimum delay period and a maximum delay period, wherein the maximum delay period associated
with each retransmission is greater than that of a previous retransmission.
. A communications device according to paragraphs 1 or 2, wherein in response to the
detection of one or more random access failure conditions by the controller, the controller is
configured in combination with the receiver to select a second network element to which to transmit a
subsequent random access message to, the second network element having been selected in
accordance with a network element selection or reselection criterion.
4. A communications device according to paragraph 3, wherein the network element
selection or reselection criterion includes a negative offset configured to be applied to a signal strength
of signals received from the first network element, and the controller is configured in combination
with the receiver and the transmitter to receive signals transmitted by the one or more network
elements, to determine a signal strength of each of the received signals from each of the one or more
network elements and establishes corresponding parameters associated with the selection or
reselection criterion, to apply the negative offset to the parameter associated with the selection or
reselection criterion associated with the first network element, and to select the second network
element in accordance with the selection or reselection criterion associated with the respective network
elements.
5. A communications device according to paragraph 4, wherein the offset has a size
which has an effect of preventing reselection of the first network element.
6. A communications device according to any of paragraphs 1to 5, wherein the
controller in combination with the transmitter is configured to increase a power with which the random
access message is retransmitted for each of the times which the random access message is
retransmitted.
7. A communications device according to any of paragraphs 1to 6, wherein the random
access failure conditions include transmitting the random access message a predetermined number of
times.
8. A communications device according to any of paragraphs 1 to 7, wherein the random
access failure conditions include failing to receive within a predetermined time an acknowledgement
providing an indication of an allocation of the shared up-link channel.
9. A communications device according to any of paragraphs 1to 8, wherein the
controller is configured in combination with the receiver to receive a broadcast message from the first
network element, the broadcast message indicating one or more of the random access failure
conditions.
10. A communications device according to any of paragraphs 1to 9, wherein the random
access message is retransmitted at a power less than or equal to a maximum transmit power.
11. A communications device according to any of paragraphs 1 to 8, wherein the
controller is configured in combination with the receiver to receive a broadcast message from the first
network element, the delay being calculated n accordance with a parameter indicated in the broadcast
message.
12. A communications device according to any of paragraphs 1to 8, wherein the
controller is configured in combination with the receiver to receive a broadcast message from the first
network element, a network element reselection criterion parameter being indicated in the broadcast
message.
13 . A method of communicating via a mobile communications network, the mobile
communications network including one or more network elements providing a wireless access
interface for transmitting signals to or receiving signals from the communications device, the method
comprising: transmitting the signals to the mobile communications network via the wireless access
interface provided by the one or more network elements of the mobile communications network,
receiving the signals from the mobile communications network via the wireless access interface
provided by the one or more network elements of the mobile communications network, the
transmitting including transmitting a random access message to a first network element via a random
access channel of the wireless access interface which is common to one or more other communications
devices, receiving from the first network element an acknowledgement in response to the random
access message providing an indication of an allocation of communications resources of a shared uplink
channel for the communications device to transmit signals to the first network element or a
negative acknowledgement providing an indication that the communications device has not been
allocated communications resources of the shared up-link channel, wherein in response to detection of
one or more random access failure conditions, re-transmitting the random access message one or more
times, each re-transmission of the random access message being after a variable delay which is greater
than or equal to the delay of a previous re-transmission.
14. A method according to paragraph 13, wherein each delay before the retransmission of
the random access message is comprised of a delay randomly selected from between a minimum delay
period and a maximum delay period, wherein the maximum delay period associated with each
retransmission is greater than that of a previous retransmission.
15. A method according to paragraph 13 or 14, comprising
selecting, in response to detecting of one or more random access failure conditions, a second
network element to which to transmit a subsequent random access message, the second network
element having been selected in accordance with a network element selection or reselection criterion.
16. A method according to paragraph 1 , wherein the network element selection or
reselection criteria includes a negative offset to be applied to a signal strength of the signals received
from the first network element, the method comprising receiving signals transmitted by the one or
more network elements, determining a signal strength of each of the received signals from each of the
one or more network elements and establishes corresponding parameters associated with the selection
or reselection criterion, applying the negative offset to the parameter associated with the selection or
reselection criterion associated with the first network element, and selecting the second network
element in accordance with the selection or reselection criterion associated with the respective network
elements.
17. A method according to paragraph 16, wherein the negative offset has a size which has
an effect of preventing reselection of the first network element.
18. A method according to any of paragraphs 13 to 17, wherein the re-transmitting the
random access message includes increasing a power with which the random access message is r e
transmitted for each of the times which the random access message is re-transmitted.
19. A method according to any of paragraphs 13 to 18, wherein the random access failure
conditions include transmitting the random access message a predetermined number of times.
20. A method according to any of paragraphs 1 to 19, wherein the random access failure
conditions include failing to receive within a predetermined time an acknowledgement providing an
indication of an allocation of the shared up-link channel.
2 1. A method according to any of paragraphs 13 to 20, comprising receiving a broadcast
message from the first network element, the broadcast messages indicating one or more of the random
access failure conditions.
22. A method according to any of paragraphs 13 to 21, wherein the transmitting the
random access message includes retransmitting the random access message at a power less than or
equal to a maximum power.
23. A method according to any of paragraphs 13 to 22, comprising receiving a broadcast
message from the first network element, and calculating the delay in accordance with a parameter
included in the broadcast message.
24. A method according to any of paragraphs 16 to 23, comprising receiving a broadcast
message from the first network element, the broadcast message including an indication of a network
element reselection criterion parameter.

CLAIMS
1. A communications device for communicating via a mobile communications network,
the mobile communications network including one or more network elements providing a wireless
access interface for transmitting signals to or receiving signals from the communications device, the
communications device comprising:
a transmitter configured to transmit the signals to the mobile communications network via
the wireless access interface provided by the one or more network elements of the mobile
communications network, and
a receiver configured to receive the signals from the mobile communications network via the
wireless access interface provided by the one or more network elements of the mobile communications
network, and
a controller configured to control the transmitter
to transmit a random access message to a first network element via a random access channel
of the wireless access interface which is common to one or more other communications devices,
to receive from the first network element an acknowledgement in response to the random
access message providing an indication of an allocation of communications resources of a shared up
link channel for the communications device to transmit signals to the first network element or a
negative acknowledgement providing an indication that the communications device has not been
allocated communications resources of the shared up-link channel, wherein
in response to detection of one or more random access failure conditions by the controller, the
controller is configured in combination with the transmitter
to retransmit the random access message one or more times, each retransmission of the
random access message being after a variable delay which is greater than or equal to the delay of a
previous retransmission.
2. A communications device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein each delay before the
retransmission of the random access message is comprised of a delay randomly selected from between
a minimum delay period and a maximum delay period, wherein the maximum delay period associated
with each retransmission is greater than that of a previous retransmission.
3. A communications device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein in response to the detection
of one or more random access failure conditions by the controller, the controller is configured in
combination with the receiver to select a second network element to which to transmit a subsequent
random access message to, the second network element having been selected in accordance with a
network element selection or reselection criterion.
4. A communications device as claimed in Claim 3, wherein the network element
selection or reselection criterion includes a negative offset configured to be applied to a signal strength
of signals received from the first network element, and the controller is configured in combination
with the receiver and the transmitter
to receive signals transmitted by the one or more network elements,
to determine a signal strength of each of the received signals from each of the one or more
network elements and establish corresponding parameters associated with the selection or reselection
criterion,
to apply the negative offset to the parameter associated with the selection or reselection
criterion associated with the first network element, and
to select the second network element in accordance with the selection or reselection criterion
associated with the respective network elements.
5. A communications device as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the offset has a size which
has an effect of preventing reselection of the first network element.
6. A communications device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the controller in
combination with the transmitter is configured
to increase a power with which the random access message is retransmitted for each of the
times which the random access message is retransmitted.
7. A communications device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the random access failure
conditions include transmitting the random access message a predetermined number of times.
8. A communications device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the random access failure
conditions include failing to receive within a predetermined time an acknowledgement providing an
indication of an allocation of the shared up-link channel.
9. A communications device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the controller is configured
in combination with the receiver to receive a broadcast message from the first network element, the
broadcast message indicating one or more of the random access failure conditions.
10. A communications device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the random access message
is retransmitted at a power less than or equal to a maximum transmit power.
1. A communications device as claimed in claim , wherein the controller is configured
in combination with the receiver to receive a broadcast message from the first network element, the
delay being calculated in accordance with a parameter indicated in the broadcast message.
12. A communications device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the controller is configured
in combination with the receiver to receive a broadcast message from the first network element, a
network element reselection criterion parameter being indicated in the broadcast message.
13. A method of communicating via a mobile communications network, the mobile
communications network including one or more network elements providing a wireless access
interface for transmitting signals to or receiving signals from the communications device, the method
comprising:
transmitting the signals to the mobile communications network via the wireless access
interface provided by the one or more network elements of the mobile communications network,
receiving the signals from the mobile communications network via the wireless access
interface provided by the one or more network elements of the mobile communications network, the
transmitting including
transmitting a random access message to a first network element via a random access channel
of the wireless access interface which is common to one or more other communications devices,
receiving from the first network element an acknowledgement in response to the random
access message providing an indication of an allocation of communications resources of a shared uplink
channel for the communications device to transmit signals to the first network element or a
negative acknowledgement providing an indication that the communications device has not been
allocated communications resources of the shared up-link channel, wherein
in response to detection of one or more random access failure conditions, re-transmitting the
random access message one or more times, each re-transmission of the random access message being
after a variable delay which is greater than or equal to the delay of a previous re-transmission.