WO2014134780A1

WO2014134780A1 - Apparatus and method for sharing dedicated control channel in wireless communications network

Info

Publication number: WO2014134780A1
Application number: PCT/CN2013/072177
Authority: WO
Inventors: Liangming WU; Yin Huang; Sony J. Akkarakaran; Peyman RAZAGHI; Sharad D. Sambhwani
Original assignee: Qualcomm Incorporated
Priority date: 2013-03-05
Filing date: 2013-03-05
Publication date: 2014-09-12

Abstract

Method and apparatus for improving the downlink bandwidth efficiency of a wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA) communication device are described. During a voice call, DTCH and DCCH carry voice data and signaling individually, and are mapped on the same DCH then DPDCH. According to aspects of this disclosure, a new downlink physical shared dedicated control channel (DPSCCH) can be used in mapping DCCH from different voice calls, leaving all available bandwidth of DPDCH to DTCH traffic, hence improving the bandwidth efficiency of DPDCH.

Description

APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SHARING DEDICATED CONTROL CHANNEL IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] Aspects of the present disclosure relate generally to wireless communication systems, and more particularly, to communications between user equipments and a base station using downlink dedicated physical channels.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Wireless communication networks are widely deployed to provide various communication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcasts, and so on. Such networks, which are usually multiple access networks, support communications for multiple users by sharing the available network resources. One example of such a network is the UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN). The UTRAN is the radio access network (RAN) defined as a part of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), a third generation (3G) mobile phone technology supported by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). UMTS, which is the successor to Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) technologies, currently supports various air interface standards, such as Wideband-Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), Time Division-Code Division Multiple Access (TD- CDMA), and Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD- SCDMA). UMTS also supports enhanced 3G data communications protocols, such as High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), which provides higher data transfer speeds and capacity to associated UMTS networks.

[0003] In W-CDMA, a Downlink Dedicated Channel (DCH) at the transport layer is transmitted or mapped on a Downlink Dedicated Physical Channel (Downlink DPCH). The Downlink DPCH applies time multiplexing for transmitting physical control information in a dedicated physical control channel (DPCCH) and user data transmission in a dedicated physical data channel (DPDCH). The DPDCH may be used to transfer both payload data and signaling data from upper layers. For example, data of a Dedicated Traffic Channel (DTCH) and data of a Dedicated Control Channel (DCCH) at the media access control (MAC) layer may be mapped onto the DPDCH using time multiplexing. As the demand for mobile broadband access continues to increase, research and development continue to advance the UMTS technologies not only to meet the growing demand for mobile broadband access, but to advance and enhance the user experience with mobile communications.

SUMMARY

[0004] The following presents a simplified summary of one or more aspects of the present disclosure, in order to provide a basic understanding of such aspects. This summary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated features of the disclosure, and is intended neither to identify key or critical elements of all aspects of the disclosure nor to delineate the scope of any or all aspects of the disclosure. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects of the disclosure in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[0005] Aspects of the disclosure provide a mechanism for moving DCCH out of

DPDCH to a shared type channel, hence DTCH can occupy all DPDCH. Another aspect of the disclosure provides a mechanism for multiplexing more DTCH channels on one orthogonal variable spreading factor (OVSF) code.

[0006] In one aspect, the disclosure provides a method of wireless communication in a

Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network. The method includes: transmitting user data and corresponding control data to a user equipment (UE) by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0007] Another aspect of the disclosure provides an apparatus for wireless communication in a UMTS network. The apparatus includes: means for transmitting user data and corresponding control data to a UE by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; means for mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and means for mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0008] Another aspect of the disclosure provides a computer program product. The computer product includes a computer-readable storage medium including code for causing a Node B in a UMTS network, to: transmit user data and corresponding control data to a UE by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; map a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and map a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0009] Another aspect of the disclosure provides an apparatus for wireless communication in a UMTS network. The apparatus includes: at least one processor; a communication interface coupled to the at least one processor; and a memory coupled to the at least one processor. The at least one processor is configured to: transmit user data and corresponding control data to a UE by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; map a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and map a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0010] Another aspect of the disclosure provides a method of wireless communication in a UMTS network. The method includes: receiving user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0011] Another aspect of the disclosure provides an apparatus for wireless communication in a UMTS network. The apparatus includes: means for receiving user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; means for mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and means for mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0012] Another aspect of the disclosure provides a computer program product, including a computer-readable storage medium that includes code for causing a UE in a UMTS network to: receive user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; map a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and map a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0013] Another aspect of the disclosure provides an apparatus for wireless communication in a UMTS network. The apparatus includes: at least one processor; a communication interface coupled to the at least one processor; and a memory coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to: receive user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; map a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and map a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

[0014] These and other aspects of the invention will become more fully understood upon a review of the detailed description, which follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] FIG. 1 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an example of a wireless telecommunications system.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of an access network.

[0017] FIG. 3 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an example of a Node B in communication with a user equipment in a telecommunications system.

[0018] FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a radio protocol architecture for the user and control plane.

[0019] FIG. 5 is a drawing conceptually illustrating the mapping between logical channels and transport channels in the downlink direction.

[0020] FIG. 6 is a drawing conceptually illustrating the mapping among some logical channels, transport channels, and physical channels.

[0021] FIG. 7 is a drawing conceptually illustrating a Downlink DPCH frame and related information of one slot in the related art.

[0022] FIG. 8 is a drawing conceptually illustrating the mapping of dedicated logical channels, transport channels, and physical channels in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure.

[0023] FIG. 9 is a drawing conceptually illustrating a modified Downlink DPCH frame and a new DPSCCH frame in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure. [0024] FIG. 10 is a drawing conceptually illustrating some of the processes for handling

DCCH and DTCH at a MAC layer according to aspects of the disclosure.

[0025] FIG. 11 is a drawing conceptually illustrating a downlink multiplexing and channel coding chain for DPSCCH according to aspects of the disclosure.

[0026] FIG. 12 is a flow chart illustrating a method of wireless communications at a

Node B using dedicated physical channels including a dedicated physical data channel and a dedicated physical shared control channel in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure.

[0027] FIG. 13 is a flow chart illustrating a method of wireless communications at a user equipment using dedicated physical channels including a dedicated physical data channel and a dedicated physical shared control channel in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well known structures and components are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring such concepts.

[0029] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to possible enhancements to the current

W-CDMA standard, for example, improvement to the utilization of a Dedicated Physical Data Channel (DPDCH) in downlink communication. In the current W-CDMA standard, data from a Dedicated Traffic Channel (DTCH) and data of a corresponding Dedicated Control Channel (DCCH) are time-multiplexed onto the DPDCH. Because DCCH data generally occurs infrequently as compared to that of the DTCH, bandwidth of the DPDCH allocated to DCCH data is often wasted or not fully utilized. According to aspects of the disclosure, the current W-CDMA standard may be modified to introduce a modified DPDCH or a new dedicated physical data channel for transferring DTCH data, and another new dedicated physical shared control channel for transferring DCCH data. [0030] The various concepts presented throughout this disclosure may be implemented across a broad variety of telecommunication systems, network architectures, and communication standards. Referring now to FIG. 1, as an illustrative example without limitation, various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated with reference to a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) system 100. A UMTS network includes three interacting domains: a core network 104, a radio access network (RAN) (e.g., the UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN) 102), and a user equipment (UE) 110. Among several options available for a UTRAN 102, in this example, the illustrated UTRAN 102 may employ a W-CDMA air interface for enabling various wireless services including telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcasts, and/or other services. The UTRAN 102 may include a plurality of Radio Network Subsystems (RNSs) such as an RNS 107, each controlled by a respective Radio Network Controller (RNC) such as an RNC 106. Here, the UTRAN 102 may include any number of RNCs 106 and RNSs 107 in addition to the illustrated RNCs 106 and RNSs 107. The RNC 106 is an apparatus responsible for, among other things, assigning, reconfiguring, and releasing radio resources within the RNS 107. The RNC 106 may be interconnected to other RNCs (not shown) in the UTRAN 102 through various types of interfaces such as a direct physical connection, a virtual network, or the like using any suitable transport network.

[0031] The geographic region covered by the RNS 107 may be divided into a number of cells, with a radio transceiver apparatus serving each cell. A radio transceiver apparatus is commonly referred to as a Node B in UMTS applications, but may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a base station (BS), a base transceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), an access point (AP), or some other suitable terminology. For clarity, three Node Bs 108 are shown in each RNS 107; however, the RNSs 107 may include any number of wireless Node Bs. The Node Bs 108 provide wireless access points to a core network 104 for any number of mobile apparatuses. Examples of a mobile apparatus include a cellular phone, a smart phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a notebook, a netbook, a smartbook, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system (GPS) device, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (e.g., MP3 player), a camera, a game console, or any other similar functioning device. The mobile apparatus is commonly referred to as user equipment (UE) in UMTS applications, but may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a mobile station (MS), a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communications device, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal (AT), a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a terminal, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other suitable terminology. In a UMTS system, the UE 110 may further include a universal subscriber identity module (USIM) 111, which contains a user's subscription information to a network. For illustrative purposes, one UE 110 is shown in communication with a number of the Node Bs 108. The downlink (DL), also called the forward link, refers to the communication link from a Node B 108 to a UE 110 and the uplink (UL), also called the reverse link, refers to the communication link from a UE 110 to a Node B 108.

[0032] The core network 104 can interface with one or more access networks, such as the UTRAN 102. As shown, the core network 104 is a UMTS core network. However, as those skilled in the art will recognize, the various concepts presented throughout this disclosure may be implemented in a RAN, or other suitable access network, to provide UEs with access to types of core networks other than UMTS networks.

[0033] The illustrated UMTS core network 104 includes a circuit- switched (CS) domain and a packet- switched (PS) domain. Some of the circuit- switched elements are a Mobile services Switching Centre (MSC), a Visitor Location Register (VLR), and a Gateway MSC (GMSC). Packet- switched elements include a Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN) and a Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN). Some network elements, like EIR, HLR, VLR, and AuC may be shared by both of the circuit- switched and packet- switched domains.

[0034] In the illustrated example, the core network 104 supports circuit-switched services with an MSC 112 and a GMSC 114. In some applications, the GMSC 114 may be referred to as a media gateway (MGW). One or more RNCs, such as the RNC 106, may be connected to the MSC 112. The MSC 112 is an apparatus that controls call setup, call routing, and UE mobility functions. The MSC 112 also includes a visitor location register (VLR) that contains subscriber-related information for the duration that a UE is in the coverage area of the MSC 112. The GMSC 114 provides a gateway through the MSC 112 for the UE to access a circuit-switched network 116. The GMSC 114 includes a home location register (HLR) 115 containing subscriber data, such as the data reflecting the details of the services to which a particular user has subscribed. The HLR is also associated with an authentication center (AuC) that contains subscriber- specific authentication data. When a call is received for a particular UE, the GMSC 114 queries the HLR 115 to determine the UE's location and forwards the call to the particular MSC serving that location.

[0035] The illustrated core network 104 also supports packet- switched data services with a serving GPRS support node (SGSN) 118 and a gateway GPRS support node (GGSN) 120. General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) is designed to provide packet-data services at speeds higher than those available with standard circuit- switched data services. The GGSN 120 provides a connection for the UTRAN 102 to a packet-based network 122. The packet-based network 122 may be the Internet, a private data network, or some other suitable packet-based network. The primary function of the GGSN 120 is to provide the UEs 110 with packet-based network connectivity. Data packets may be transferred between the GGSN 120 and the UEs 210 through the SGSN 118, which performs primarily the same functions in the packet-based domain as the MSC 212 performs in the circuit-switched domain.

[0036] The UTRAN 102 is one example of a RAN that may be utilized in accordance with the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 2, by way of example and without limitation, a simplified schematic illustration of a RAN 200 in a UTRAN architecture is illustrated. The system includes multiple cellular regions (cells), including cells 202, 204, and 206, each of which may include one or more sectors. Cells may be defined geographically (e.g., by coverage area) and/or may be defined in accordance with a frequency, scrambling code, etc. That is, the illustrated geographically-defined cells 202, 204, and 206 may each be further divided into a plurality of cells, e.g., by utilizing different scrambling codes. For example, cell 204a may utilize a first scrambling code, and cell 204b, while in the same geographic region and served by the same Node B 344, may be distinguished by utilizing a second scrambling code.

[0037] In a cell that is divided into sectors, the multiple sectors within a cell can be formed by groups of antennas with each antenna responsible for communication with UEs in a portion of the cell. For example, in cell 202, antenna groups 212, 214, and 216 may each correspond to a different sector. In cell 204, antenna groups 218, 220, and 222 may each correspond to a different sector. In cell 206, antenna groups 224, 226, and 228 may each correspond to a different sector.

[0038] The cells 202, 204, and 206 may include several UEs that may be in communication with one or more sectors of each cell 202, 204, or 206. For example, UEs 230 and 232 may be in communication with Node B 242, UEs 234 and 236 may be in communication with Node B 244, and UEs 238 and 240 may be in communication with Node B 246. Here, each Node B 242, 244, and 246 may be configured to provide an access point to a core network 104 (see FIG. 1) for all the UEs 230, 232, 234, 236, 238, and 240 in the respective cells 202, 204, and 206.

[0039] During a call with a source cell, or at any other time, the UE 236 may monitor various parameters of the source cell as well as various parameters of neighboring cells. Further, depending on the quality of these parameters, the UE 236 may maintain communication with one or more of the neighboring cells. During this time, the UE 236 may maintain an Active Set, that is, a list of cells to which the UE 336 is simultaneously connected (i.e., the UTRAN cells that are currently assigning a downlink dedicated physical channel DPCH or fractional downlink dedicated physical channel F-DPCH to the UE 236 may constitute the Active Set).

[0040] The UTRAN air interface may be a spread spectrum Direct-Sequence Code

Division Multiple Access (DS-CDMA) system, such as one utilizing the W-CDMA standards. The spread spectrum DS-CDMA spreads user data through multiplication by a sequence of pseudorandom bits called chips. The W-CDMA air interface for the UTRAN 102 is based on such DS-CDMA technology and additionally calls for a frequency division duplexing (FDD). FDD uses a different carrier frequency for the uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) between a Node B 108 and a UE 110. Another air interface for UMTS that utilizes DS-CDMA, and uses time division duplexing (TDD), is the TD-SCDMA air interface. Those skilled in the art will recognize that although various examples described herein may refer to a W-CDMA air interface, the underlying principles are equally applicable to a TD-SCDMA air interface or any other suitable air interface.

[0041] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary Node B 310 in communication with an exemplary UE 350, where the Node B 310 may be the Node B 108 in FIG. 1, and the UE 350 may be the UE 110 in FIG. 1. In the downlink communication, a transmit processor 320 may receive data from a data source 312 and control signals from a controller/processor 340. The transmit processor 320 provides various signal processing functions for the data and control signals, as well as reference signals (e.g., pilot signals). For example, the transmit processor 320 may provide cyclic redundancy check (CRC) codes for error detection, coding and interleaving to facilitate forward error correction (FEC), mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase- shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM), and the like), spreading with orthogonal variable spreading factors (OVSF), and multiplying with scrambling codes to produce a series of symbols. Channel estimates from a channel processor 344 may be used by a controller/processor 340 to determine the coding, modulation, spreading, and/or scrambling schemes for the transmit processor 320. These channel estimates may be derived from a reference signal transmitted by the UE 350 or from the feedback from the UE 350. The symbols generated by the transmit processor 320 are provided to a transmit frame processor 330 to create a frame structure. The transmit frame processor 330 creates this frame structure by multiplexing the symbols with information from the controller/processor 340, resulting in a series of frames. The frames are then provided to a transmitter 332, which provides various signal conditioning functions including amplifying, filtering, and modulating the frames onto a carrier for downlink transmission over the wireless medium through antenna 334. The antenna 334 may include one or more antennas, for example, including beam steering bidirectional adaptive antenna arrays or other similar beam technologies.

At the UE 350, a receiver 354 receives the downlink transmission through an antenna 352 and processes the transmission to recover the information modulated onto the carrier. The information recovered by the receiver 354 is provided to a receive frame processor 360, which parses each frame, and provides information from the frames to a channel processor 394 and the data, control, and reference signals to a receive processor 370. The receive processor 370 then performs the inverse of the processing performed by the transmit processor 320 in the Node B 310. More specifically, the receive processor 370 descrambles and despreads the symbols, and then determines the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the Node B 310 based on the modulation scheme. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates computed by the channel processor 394. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data, control, and reference signals. The CRC codes are then checked to determine whether the frames were successfully decoded. The data carried by the successfully decoded frames will then be provided to a data sink 372, which represents applications running in the UE 350 and/or various user interfaces (e.g., display, speakers, etc.). Control signals carried by successfully decoded frames will be provided to a controller/processor 390. When frames are unsuccessfully decoded by the receiver processor 370, the controller/processor 390 may also use an acknowledgement (ACK) and/or negative acknowledgement (NACK) protocol to support retransmission requests for those frames.

[0043] In the uplink, data from a data source 378 and control signals from the controller/processor 390 are provided to a transmit processor 380. The data source 378 may represent applications running in the UE 350 and various user interfaces (e.g., keyboard). Similar to the functionality described in connection with the downlink transmission by the Node B 310, the transmit processor 380 provides various signal processing functions including CRC codes, coding and interleaving to facilitate FEC, mapping to signal constellations, spreading with orthogonal variable spreading factors (OVSFs), and scrambling to produce a series of symbols. Channel estimates, derived by the channel processor 394 from a reference signal transmitted by the Node B 310 or from feedback contained in the midamble transmitted by the Node B 310, may be used to select the appropriate coding, modulation, spreading, and/or scrambling schemes. The symbols produced by the transmit processor 380 will be provided to a transmit frame processor 382 to create a frame structure. The transmit frame processor 382 creates this frame structure by multiplexing the symbols with information from the controller/processor 390, resulting in a series of frames. The frames are then provided to a transmitter 356, which provides various signal conditioning functions including amplification, filtering, and modulating the frames onto a carrier for uplink transmission over the wireless medium through the antenna 352.

[0044] The uplink transmission is processed at the Node B 310 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver function at the UE 350. A receiver 335 receives the uplink transmission through the antenna 334 and processes the transmission to recover the information modulated onto the carrier. The information recovered by the receiver 335 is provided to a receive frame processor 336, which parses each frame, and provides information from the frames to the channel processor 344 and the data, control, and reference signals to a receive processor 338. The receive processor 338 performs the inverse of the processing performed by the transmit processor 380 in the UE 350. The data and control signals carried by the successfully decoded frames may then be provided to a data sink 339 and the controller/processor, respectively. If some of the frames were unsuccessfully decoded by the receive processor, the controller/processor 340 may also use an acknowledgement (ACK) and/or negative acknowledgement (NACK) protocol to support retransmission requests for those frames. [0045] The controller/processors 340 and 390 may be used to direct the operation at the

Node B 310 and the UE 350, respectively. For example, the controller/processors 340 and 390 may provide various functions including timing, peripheral interfaces, voltage regulation, power management, and other control functions. The computer readable media of memories 342 and 392 may store data and software for the Node B 310 and the UE 350, respectively. A scheduler/processor 346 at the Node B 310 may be used to allocate resources to the UEs and schedule downlink and/or uplink transmissions for the UEs.

[0046] In a wireless telecommunication system, the communication protocol architecture may take on various forms depending on the particular application. For example, in a 3GPP UMTS system, the signaling protocol stack is divided into a Non- Access Stratum (NAS) and an Access Stratum (AS). The NAS provides the upper layers, for signaling between the UE 110 and the core network 104 (referring to FIG. 1), and may include circuit switched and packet switched protocols. The AS provides the lower layers, for signaling between the UTRAN 102 and the UE 110, and may include a user plane and a control plane. Here, the user plane or data plane carries user traffic, while the control plane carries control information (i.e., signaling).

[0047] Turning to FIG. 4, the AS is shown with three layers: Layer 1, Layer 2, and

Layer 3. Layer 1 is the lowest layer and implements various physical layer signal processing functions. Layer 1 will be referred to herein as the physical layer 406. The data link layer, called Layer 2 408, is above the physical layer 406 and is responsible for the link between the UE 110 and Node B 108 over the physical layer 406.

[0048] At Layer 3, the RRC layer 416 handles the control plane signaling between the

UE 110 and the Node B 108. RRC layer 416 includes a number of functional entities for routing higher layer messages, handling broadcasting and paging functions, establishing and configuring radio bearers, etc.

[0049] In the illustrated air interface, the L2 layer 408 is split into sublayers. In the control plane, the L2 layer 408 includes two sublayers: a medium access control (MAC) sublayer 410 and a radio link control (RLC) sublayer 412. In the user plane, the L2 layer 408 additionally includes a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) sublayer 414. Although not shown, the UE may have several upper layers above the L2 layer 408 including a network layer (e.g., IP layer) that is terminated at a PDN gateway on the network side and an application layer that is terminated at the other end of the connection (e.g., far end UE, server, etc.). [0050] The PDCP sublayer 414 provides multiplexing between different radio bearers and logical channels. The PDCP sublayer 414 also provides header compression for upper layer data packets to reduce radio transmission overhead, security by ciphering the data packets, and handover support for UEs between Node Bs.

[0051] The RLC sublayer 412 generally supports an acknowledged mode (AM) (where an acknowledgment and retransmission process may be used for error correction), an unacknowledged mode (UM), and a transparent mode for data transfers, and provides segmentation and reassembly of upper layer data packets and reordering of data packets to compensate for out-of-order reception due to a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) at the MAC layer. In the acknowledged mode, RLC peer entities such as an RNC and a UE may exchange various RLC protocol data units (PDUs) including RLC Data PDUs, RLC Status PDUs, and RLC Reset PDUs, among others. In the present disclosure, the term "packet" may refer to any RLC PDU exchanged between RLC peer entities.

[0052] The MAC sublayer 410 provides multiplexing between logical channels (e.g., a dedicated control channel (DCCH) and a dedicated traffic channel (DTCH)) and transport channels (e.g., a dedicated channel (DCH)). The MAC sublayer 410 is also responsible for allocating the various radio resources (e.g., resource blocks) in one cell among the UEs. The MAC sublayer 410 includes various MAC entities, including but not limited to a MAC-d entity. The MAC-d entity is responsible for handling dedicated channels (e.g., DCHs) allocated to a UE in connected mode. There is one MAC-d entity in the UE and one MAC-d entity in the UTRAN (in the serving RNC) for each UE.

[0053] FIG. 5 is a drawing illustrating the mapping between these logical channels 502 and transport channels 504 in the downlink direction. The data transfer services of the MAC layer 410 are provided on the logical channels 502. The logical channels are divided into two groups: control channels and traffic channels. The control channels are used to transfer control-plane information, and the traffic channels are used for user- plane information.

[0054] The control channels include a Broadcast Channel (BCCH) for broadcasting system control information, a Paging Channel (PCCH) for transferring paging information, a Dedicated Control Channel (DCCH) for transmitting dedicated control information between a UE and the RNC, and a Common Control Channel (CCCH) for transmitting control information between the network and UEs. The traffic channels include a Dedicated Traffic Channel (DTCH) for transferring user information dedicated to one UE and a Common Traffic Channel (CTCH) for transferring dedicated user information for all or a group of specified UEs. The DCCH and DTCH are both point-to-point bidirectional channels. In the downlink direction, the logical channels DCCH and DTCH can be mapped to a dedicated transport channel (DCH). The DCH carries all the information intended for the given user coming from layers above the physical layer 406, including data for the actual service as well as higher layer control information. The content of the information carried on the DCH is not visible to the physical layer; thus, higher layer control information and user data are treated in the same way.

[0055] In the physical layer 406, the different transport channels 504 are mapped to different physical channels. FIG. 6 is a drawing illustrating the mapping among some of the logical channels, transport channels, and physical channels. Referring to FIG. 6, a DCCH 602 and a DTCH 604 may be mapped to a DCH 606 transport channel. The DCH is mapped onto a Downlink Dedicated Physical Channel (Downlink DPCH) 608. The Downlink DPCH 608 applies time multiplexing for physical control information using a Dedicated Physical Control Channel (DPCCH) 610 and user data transmission using a Dedicated Physical Data Channel (DPDCH) 612. FIG. 7 is a drawing illustrating a Downlink DPCH frame 700 and related information of a slot in the related art as an example. Each Downlink DPCH frame 700 includes 15 slots, and each slot can time- multiplex control information and user data (payload) in the same slot. For example, user data (e.g., DPDCH 612) and control information (e.g., DPCCH 610) are multiplexed in a slot 702. The DPDCH 612 can carry data for the DCH 606 that may be mapped to a DCCH 602 and a DTCH 604 (see FIG. 6). In other words, different portions of a DPDCH 612 can be allocated to carry data for both DCCH 602 and DTCH 604 in a time-multiplexed manner. However, DCCH generally occurs with relatively low probability as compared to DTCH. Therefore, the bandwidth allocated to the DCCH may often be wasted in the DPDCH.

[0056] In accordance with aspects of this disclosure, the DTCH may be mapped to occupy an entire DCH, hence an entire DPDCH, and the DCCH can be carried using a separate physical shared channel to carry DCCH data. FIG. 8 is a drawing illustrating the mapping of dedicated logical channels (e.g., DTCH, DCCH), transport channels, and physical channels in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure. In FIG. 8, a DCCH 802 is mapped to a DCH 804, and a DTCH 806 is mapped to a DCH 808. The DCH 804 carrying the DCCH data can be mapped to a new Dedicated Physical Shared Control Channel 810 (hereafter "DPSCCH"). A Node B 310 may communicate with a UE 350 in a downlink direction using the DCCH 802, DTCH 806, DPSCCH 810, and Downlink DPCH 812. In other aspects, the new physical channel DPSCCH 810 may be given any suitable name when incorporated into the relevant standards. The DCH 808 can be mapped to a Downlink DPCH 812 that includes a modified DPDCH 814 and a DPCCH 816. In some aspects, instead of mapping the DCH 808 to the modified DPDCH 814, a suitable new dedicated physical data channel may be created to carry data from the DCH 808. Accordingly, data of the DTCH 806 can occupy the entire DCH 808 and the corresponding modified DPDCH 814, while data of the DCCH 802 is carried by the new DPSCCH 810.

[0057] FIG. 9 is a drawing illustrating a modified Downlink DPCH frame 900 and a new DPSCCH frame 902 in accordance with an aspect of the disclosure. Each modified Downlink DPCH frame 900 includes 15 slots, and each slot can time-multiplex control information and user data (payload) in the same slot. For example, user data (e.g., DPDCH 814) and physical layer control information (e.g., DPCCH 816) are multiplexed in a slot 906. The DPDCH 814 can carry data for the DCH 808 that may be mapped to a DTCH 804 (see FIG. 8). Therefore, the entire DPDCH 814 can be allocated to carry data for the DTCH 806. The DCCH 802 control data may be carried by a frame 904 of the new DPSCCH 902. Accordingly, the bandwidth utilization of the modified DPDCH 814 may be improved because it no longer carries DCCH data which can occur infrequently. Furthermore, the code rate of the voice frame may be lower, which can enhance link efficiency for the DTCH to carry voice data.

[0058] FIG. 10 is a drawing illustrating some of the processes for handling DCCH and

DTCH at a MAC layer 410 according to aspects of the disclosure. The MAC layer 410 is responsible for timely scheduling and multiplexing the DCCH 802 from different voice UEs (e.g., UEi to UE_n) on the same DCH using a scheduler. A priority queue/buffer on the MAC layer 410 may be utilized when a DPSCCH is not able to support all DCCH for transmission. When a DCCH 802 is being scheduled by the MAC layer 410, a DCCH presence indicator bit (e.g., DCCH indicator) 1000 is added to the DTCH 806 for the targeting UE to indicate the transmission of DCCH. A receiving UE decodes the DCCH indicator 1000 and checks if DCCH is being scheduled. In a further aspect of the disclosure, three voice UEs may be mapped into one OVSF code by time division multiplexing, resulting in 1/3 reduction of OVSF code usage. Spreading factor is firstly reduced by half for the OVSF code, then three voice UEs may be mapped into this OVSF code.

[0059] FIG. 11 is a drawing conceptually illustrating a downlink multiplexing and channel coding chain for DPSCCH according to aspects of the disclosure. Referring to FIG. 11, first interleaving is applied (block 1100) to DCCHs corresponding to different UEs (e.g., UEi to UE_n). In order to distinguish different DCH in a DPSCCH 810, UE specific scrambling code is applied (block 1102) to the 1^st interleaving output. Then, transport channel multiplexing (1104) and second interleaving (1106) are performed in sequence. Finally, physical channel mapping to DPSCCH is performed (1108). As illustrated in the nonlimiting example of FIG. 13, channelization and cell specific scrambling are applied to the DPSCCH 810 such that a receiver UE may perform blind decoding by trying UE specific scrambling code for all DCCH channels within the DPSCCH 810 to recover the DCCH data.

[0060] FIG. 12 is a flow chart illustrating a method 1200 of wireless communications using dedicated physical channels including a dedicated physical data channel and a dedicated physical shared control channel in accordance with aspects of the disclosure. In block 1202, a Node B (e.g., a Node B 310) transmits user data and corresponding control data to a plurality of UEs (e.g., a UE 350) by utilizing a plurality of dedicated data logical channels (e.g., DTCH 806) and a plurality of dedicated control logical channels (e.g., DCCH 802), respectively. In block 1204, a first transport channel (e.g., DCH 808) corresponding to the plurality of dedicated data logical channels is mapped to a dedicated physical data channel (e.g., DPDCH 814). In block 1206, a second transport channel (e.g., DCH 804) corresponding to the plurality of dedicated control logical channels is mapped to a dedicated physical shared control channel (e.g., DPSCCH 810).

[0061] FIG. 13 is a flow chart 1300 illustrating a method of wireless communications using dedicated physical channels including a dedicated physical data channel and a dedicated physical shared control channel in accordance with aspects of the disclosure. In block 1302, a UE (e.g., a UE 350) receives user data and corresponding control data from a Node B (e.g., a Node B 310) by utilizing a plurality of dedicated data logical channels (e.g., DTCH 806) and a plurality of dedicated control logical channels (e.g., DCCH 802), respectively. In block 1304, a first transport channel (e.g., DCH 808) corresponding to the plurality of dedicated data logical channels is mapped to a dedicated physical data channel (e.g., DPDCH 814). In block 1306, a second transport channel (e.g., DCH 804) corresponding to the plurality of dedicated control logical channels is mapped to a dedicated physical shared control channel (e.g., DPSCCH 810).

[0062] In one configuration, the Node B 310 includes means for transmitting user data and corresponding control data to a user equipment (UE) by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; means for mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to the dedicated physical data channel; and mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to the dedicated physical shared control channel. In one aspect, the aforementioned means may be the processor(s) 320, 330, 336, 338, 340, and or 344, configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means. In another aspect, the aforementioned means may be a module or any apparatus configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means.

[0063] In one configuration, the user equipment 350 includes means for receiving user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; means for mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to the dedicated physical data channel; and means for mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to the dedicated physical shared control channel. In one aspect, the aforementioned means may be the processor(s) 360, 370, 380, 382, 390, and or 394, configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means. In another aspect, the aforementioned means may be a module or any apparatus configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means.

[0064] Several aspects of a telecommunications system have been presented with reference to a W-CDMA system. As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, various aspects described throughout this disclosure may be extended to other telecommunication systems, network architectures and communication standards.

[0065] By way of example, various aspects may be extended to other UMTS systems such as TD-SCDMA and TD-CDMA. Various aspects may also be extended to systems employing Long Term Evolution (LTE) (in FDD, TDD, or both modes), LTE- Advanced (LTE- A) (in FDD, TDD, or both modes), CDMA2000, Evolution-Data Optimized (EV- DO), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Ultra- Wideband (UWB), Bluetooth, and/or other suitable systems. The actual telecommunication standard, network architecture, and/or communication standard employed will depend on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the system.

[0066] It is to be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the methods disclosed is an illustration of exemplary processes. Based upon design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the methods may be rearranged. The accompanying method claims present elements of the various steps in a sample order, and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented unless specifically recited therein.

[0067] The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language of the claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one" unless specifically so stated, but rather "one or more." Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term "some" refers to one or more. A phrase referring to "at least one of a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including single members. As an example, "at least one of: a, b, or c" is intended to cover: a; b; c; a and b; a and c; b and c; and a, b and c. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §112, sixth paragraph, unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase "means for" or, in the case of a method claim, the element is recited using the phrase "step for."

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, comprising:

transmitting user data and corresponding control data to a user equipment (UE) by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively;

mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and

mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated physical data channel and the dedicated physical shared control channel are separate channels at a physical layer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting user data and corresponding control data, comprises transmitting the user data using the dedicated physical data channel only.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the transmitting user data and corresponding control data, comprises transmitting the corresponding control data using the dedicated physical shared control channel only.

5. The method of claim 4,

wherein the UE comprises a plurality of UEs; and

wherein the transmitting the control data further comprises multiplexing the control data of the plurality of UEs on the dedicated physical shared control channel, using a plurality of codes.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated data logical channel comprises a dedicated traffic channel (DTCH) at a medium access control layer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated control logical channel comprises a dedicated control channel (DCCH) at a medium access control layer.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting user data and corresponding control data, comprises transmitting dedicated user information between the UE and a radio network controller (RNC) using the dedicated data logical channel.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the transmitting user data and corresponding control data, further comprises transmitting dedicated control information between the UE and the RNC using the dedicated control logical channels.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising mapping three UEs into one channelization code.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the channelization code comprises an orthogonal variable spreading factor code.

12. An apparatus for wireless communication in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, comprising:

means for transmitting user data and corresponding control data to a user equipment (UE) by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively;

means for mapping a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and

means for mapping a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

13. A computer program product, comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium comprising code for causing a Node B in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, to:

transmit user data and corresponding control data to a user equipment (UE) by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively;

map a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and map a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

14. An apparatus for wireless communication in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, comprising:

at least one processor;

a communication interface coupled to the at least one processor; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to:

map a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and

map a second transport channel corresponding to the dedicated control logical channel, to a dedicated physical shared control channel.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the dedicated physical data channel and the dedicated physical shared control channel are separate channels at a physical layer.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit the user data using the dedicated physical data channel only.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit the corresponding control data using the dedicated physical shared control channel only.

18. The apparatus of claim 17,

wherein the UE comprises a plurality of UEs; and

wherein the at least one processor is further configured to multiplex the control data of the plurality of UEs on the dedicated physical shared control channel, using a plurality of codes.

19. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the dedicated data logical channel comprises a dedicated traffic channel (DTCH) at a medium access control layer.

20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the dedicated control logical channel comprises a dedicated control channel (DCCH) at a medium access control layer.

21. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit dedicated user information between the UE and a radio network controller (RNC) using the dedicated data logical channel.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit dedicated control information between the UE and the RNC using the dedicated control logical channels.

23. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to map three UEs into one channelization code.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the channelization code comprises an orthogonal variable spreading factor code.

25. A method of wireless communication in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, comprising:

receiving user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively;

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the dedicated physical data channel and the dedicated physical shared control channel are separate channels at a physical layer.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the receiving user data and corresponding control data, comprises receiving the user data using the dedicated physical data channel only at a user equipment (UE).

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the receiving user data and corresponding control data, comprises receiving the corresponding control data using the dedicated physical shared control channel only.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the receiving the corresponding control data comprises demultiplexing the control data using a code assigned to the UE.

30. The method of claim 25, wherein the dedicated data logical channel comprises a dedicated traffic channel (DTCH) at a medium access control layer.

31. The method of claim 25, wherein the dedicated control logical channel comprises a dedicated control channel (DCCH) at a medium access control layer.

32. The method of claim 25, wherein the receiving user data and corresponding control data, comprises receiving dedicated user information from a radio network controller (RNC) using the dedicated data logical channels.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the receiving user data and corresponding control data, further comprises receiving dedicated control information from the RNC using the dedicated control logical channels.

34. The method of claim 25, further comprising sharing a channelization code with at least two or more other user equipments.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein the channelization code comprises an orthogonal variable spreading factor code.

36. An apparatus for wireless communication in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, comprising: means for receiving user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively;

37. A computer program product, comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium comprising code for causing a user equipment (UE) in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, to:

receive user data and corresponding control data from a base station by utilizing a dedicated data logical channel and a dedicated control logical channel, respectively; map a first transport channel corresponding to the dedicated data logical channel, to a dedicated physical data channel; and

38. An apparatus for wireless communication in a Universal Mobile Telecommunication Services (UMTS) network, comprising:

at least one processor;

a communication interface coupled to the at least one processor; and

39. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the dedicated physical data channel and the dedicated physical shared control channel are separate channels at a physical layer.

40. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive the user data using the dedicated physical data channel only.

41. The apparatus of claim 40, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive the corresponding control data using the dedicated physical shared control channel only.

42. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to demultiplex the control data using a code assigned to the apparatus.

43. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the dedicated data logical channel comprises a dedicated traffic channel (DTCH) at a medium access control layer.

44. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the dedicated control logical channel comprises a dedicated control channel (DCCH) at a medium access control layer.

45. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive dedicated user information from a radio network controller (RNC) using the dedicated data logical channels.

46. The apparatus of claim 45, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive dedicated control information from the RNC using the dedicated control logical channels.

47. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to share a channelization code with at least two or more other user equipments.

48. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein the channelization code comprises an orthogonal variable spreading factor code.