WO2019109350A1

WO2019109350A1 - Improving voice over lte (volte) success rate in a dual sim dual standby (dsds) device

Info

Publication number: WO2019109350A1
Application number: PCT/CN2017/115286
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yongsheng Shi; Zhanyi Liu; Jiming Guo; Baojun LU; Uttam Pattanayak; Qingxin Chen; Ammar Kitabi
Original assignee: Qualcomm Inc
Current assignee: Qualcomm Inc
Priority date: 2017-12-08
Filing date: 2017-12-08
Publication date: 2019-06-13
Anticipated expiration: 2020-06-08

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communication are described. A user equipment (UE) may be configured to include procedures to improve voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual subscriber identify module (SIM) dual standby (DSDS) device. For example, when the UE determines that a first subscription service is about to initiate a multimedia messaging service (MMS), or other packet-switched (PS) data call, the UE performs IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) de-registration for a second subscription service to disable voice over LTE (VoLTE) support. After the UE completes IMS de-registration for the second subscription service, the UE starts the MMS on the first subscription service. After the UE completes MMS operation on the first subscription service, the UE performs IMS registration for the first subscription service to enable VoLTE on the first subscription service.

Description

IMPROVING VOICE OVER LTE (VOLTE) SUCCESS RATE IN A DUAL SIM DUAL STANDBY (DSDS) DEVICE

BACKGROUND

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The following relates generally to wireless communication, and more specifically to improve voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual subscriber identify module (SIM) dual standby (DSDS) device.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

Wireless communications systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, and so on. These systems may be capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing the available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power) . Examples of such multiple-access systems include fourth generation (4G) systems such as a Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, and fifth generation (5G) systems which may be referred to as New Radio (NR) systems. These systems may employ technologies such as code division multiple access (CDMA) , time division multiple access (TDMA) , frequency division multiple access (FDMA) , orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) , or discrete Fourier transform-spread-OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) . A wireless multiple-access communications system may include a number of base stations or network access nodes, each simultaneously supporting communication for multiple communication devices, which may be otherwise known as user equipment (UE) .

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a system for wireless communication that supports improving voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual subscriber identify module (SIM) dual standby (DSDS) device in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates a device that supports improving voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual subscriber identify module (SIM) dual standby (DSDS) device in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A user equipment (UE) may support concurrent radio access technologies (RAT) , for example, GSM/UMTS and LTE, using one or more subscriber identity module (SIM) cards. Similarly, a UE may support concurrent subscription services from different mobile network operators using one or more SIM cards.

Aspects of the disclosure are initially described in the context of a wireless communications system. Aspects of the disclosure are further illustrated by and described with reference to apparatus diagrams, system diagrams, and flowcharts that relate to improving voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual SIM dual standby (DSDS) device.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communications system 100 that supports improving voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual subscriber identify module (SIM) dual standby (DSDS) device in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communications system 100 includes base stations 105, UEs 115, and a core network 130. In some examples, the wireless communications system 100 may be a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, an LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) network, or a New Radio (NR) network. In some cases, wireless communications system 100 may support enhanced broadband communications, ultra-reliable (e.g., mission critical) communications, low latency communications, or communications with low-cost and low-complexity devices.

Base stations 105 may wirelessly communicate with UEs 115 via one or more base station antennas. Base stations 105 described herein may include or may be referred to by those skilled in the art as a base transceiver station, a radio base station, an access point, a radio transceiver, a NodeB, an eNodeB (eNB) , a next-generation Node B or giga-nodeB (either of which may be referred to as a gNB) , a Home NodeB, a Home eNodeB, or some other suitable terminology. Wireless communications system 100 may include base stations 105 of different types (e.g., macro or small cell base stations) . The UEs 115 described herein may be able to communicate with various types of base stations 105 and network equipment including macro eNBs, small cell eNBs, gNBs, relay base stations, and the like.

Each base station 105 may be associated with a particular geographic coverage area 110 in which communications with various UEs 115 is supported. Each base station 105 may provide communication coverage for a respective geographic coverage area 110 via communication links 125, and communication links 125 between a base station 105 and a UE 115 may utilize one or more carriers. Communication links 125 shown in wireless communications system 100 may include uplink transmissions from a UE 115 to a base station 105, or downlink transmissions, from a base station 105 to a UE 115. Downlink transmissions may also be called forward link transmissions while uplink transmissions may also be called reverse link transmissions.

The geographic coverage area 110 for a base station 105 may be divided into sectors making up only a portion of the geographic coverage area 110, and each sector may be associated with a cell. For example, each base station 105 may provide communication coverage for a macro cell, a small cell, a hot spot, or other types of cells, or various combinations thereof. In some examples, a base station 105 may be movable and therefore provide communication coverage for a moving geographic coverage area 110. In some examples, different geographic coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may overlap, and overlapping geographic coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may be supported by the same base station 105 or by different base stations 105. The wireless communications system 100 may include, for example, a heterogeneous LTE/LTE-A or NR network in which different types of base stations 105 provide coverage for various geographic coverage areas 110.

The term “cell” refers to a logical communication entity used for communication with a base station 105 (e.g., over a carrier) , and may be associated with an identifier for distinguishing neighboring cells (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCID) , a virtual cell identifier (VCID) ) operating via the same or a different carrier. In some examples, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., machine-type communication (MTC) , narrowband Internet-of-Things (NB-IoT) , enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) , or others) that may provide access for different types of devices. In some cases, the term “cell” may refer to a portion of a geographic coverage area 110 (e.g., a sector) over which the logical entity operates.

UEs 115 may be dispersed throughout the wireless communications system 100, and each UE 115 may be stationary or mobile. A UE 115 may also be referred to as a mobile device, a wireless device, a remote device, a handheld device, or a subscriber device, or some other suitable terminology, where the “device” may also be referred to as a unit, a station, a terminal, or a client. A UE 115 may also be a personal electronic device such as a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA) , a tablet computer, a laptop computer, or a personal computer. In some examples, a UE 115 may also refer to a wireless local loop (WLL) station, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, an Internet of Everything (IoE) device, or an MTC device, or the like, which may be implemented in various articles such as appliances, vehicles, meters, or the like.

Base stations 105 may communicate with the core network 130 and with one another. For example, base stations 105 may interface with the core network 130 through backhaul links 132 (e.g., via an S1 or other interface) . Base stations 105 may communicate with one another over backhaul links 134 (e.g., via an X2 or other interface) either directly (e.g., directly between base stations 105) or indirectly (e.g., via core network 130) .

The core network 130 may provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. The core network 130 may be an evolved packet core (EPC) , which may include at least one mobility management entity (MME) , at least one serving gateway (S-GW) , and at least one Packet Data Network (PDN) gateway (P-GW) . The MME may manage non-access stratum (e.g., control plane) functions such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management for UEs 115 served by base stations 105 associated with the EPC. User IP packets may be transferred through the S-GW, which itself may be connected to the P-GW. The P-GW may provide IP address allocation as well as other functions. The P-GW may be connected to the network operators IP services. The operators IP services may include access to the Internet, Intranet (s) , an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) , or a Packet-Switched (PS) Streaming Service.

At least some of the network devices, such as a base station 105, may include subcomponents such as an access network entity, which may be an example of an access node controller (ANC) . Each access network entity may communicate with UEs 115 through a number of other access network transmission entities, which may be referred to as a radio head, a smart radio head, or a transmission/reception point (TRP) . In some configurations, various functions of each access network entity or base station 105 may be distributed across various network devices (e.g., radio heads and access network controllers) or consolidated into a single network device (e.g., a base station 105) .

In some cases, wireless communications system 100 may be a packet-based network that operate according to a layered protocol stack. In the user plane, communications at the bearer or Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer may be IP-based. A Radio Link Control (RLC) layer may in some cases perform packet segmentation and reassembly to communicate over logical channels. A Medium Access Control (MAC) layer may perform priority handling and multiplexing of logical channels into transport channels. The MAC layer may also use hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) to provide retransmission at the MAC layer to improve link efficiency. In the control plane, the Radio Resource Control (RRC) protocol layer may provide establishment, configuration, and maintenance of an RRC connection between a UE 115 and a base station 105 or core network 130 supporting radio bearers for user plane data. At the Physical (PHY) layer, transport channels may be mapped to physical channels.

FIG. 2 shows a block diagram 200 of a wireless device 205 that supports improving voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual subscriber identify module (SIM) dual standby (DSDS) device in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Wireless device 205 may be an example of aspects of a UE 115 as described herein. Wireless device 205 may include memory 210, processor 220, transceiver 225, antenna 230 and

SIM

235, 237. Each of these modules may communicate, directly or indirectly, with one another (e.g., via one or more buses) .

The memory 210 may include random access memory (RAM) and/or read only memory (ROM) . The memory 210 may store computer-readable, computer-executable software including instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform various functions described herein. In some cases, the software 215 may not be directly executable by the processor but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.

The transceiver 225 may communicate bi-directionally, via one or more antennas, wired, or wireless links, with one or more networks, as described above. For example, the transceiver 225 may communicate bi-directionally with a base station 105 or a UE 115. The transceiver 225 may also include a modem to modulate the packets and provide the modulated packets to the antennas for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antennas.

The processor 220 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a central processing unit (CPU) , a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof) . In some cases, processor 220 may be configured to operate a memory 210 using a memory controller. In other cases, a memory controller may be integrated into processor 220. Processor 220 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory 210 to perform various functions. The term processor is used herein in accordance with its meaning as structure.

The software 215 may include code configured to improve voice over LTE (VoLTE) success rate in a dual subscriber identify module (SIM) dual standby (DSDS) device in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Software 215 may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other memory. In some cases, the software 215 may not be directly executable by the processor but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.

In some cases, the wireless device may include a single antenna 230. However, in some cases the device may have more than one antenna 230, which may be capable of concurrently transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions.

The SIM 235 may be an integrated circuit (IC) that securely stores an international mobile subscriber identify (IMSI) and the related key used to identify and authenticate a wireless device 205. SIM 235 may also contain a unique serial number, e.g., an integrated circuit card identification (ICCID) , security authentication and ciphering information, temporary information related to the local network, a list of the services, a personal identification number (PIN) , and a PIN unblocking key (PUK) for PIN unlocking. In some cases, SIM 235 may be a circuit embedded in a removable card or directly embedded on the wireless device 205, or the UE 115. SIM 235 may be also referred to as universal subscriber identity module (USIM) in LTE network. The UE 115 can have one or more SIMs. For example, the UE 115 may include two

SIMs

235, 237 to support two different subscription services, which is referred to as dual SIM dual standby (DSDS) . Also, a single SIM 235 may support two different subscription services, which is referred to as single SIM dual subscription (SSDS) .

The UE 115 may operate two or more subscription services. For example, the UE 115 may operate two subscription services on LTE network. When the UE 115 determines that a first subscription service is about to initiate a multimedia messaging service (MMS) , or other packet-switched (PS) data call, the UE 115 performs IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) de-registration for a second subscription service to disable voice over LTE (VoLTE) support. After the UE 115 completes IMS de-registration for the second subscription service, the UE 115 starts the MMS on the first subscription service. While the UE 115 is operating MMS on the first subscription service, the network may send circuit-switched (CS) page for a voice call to the UE 115. In this case, the UE 115 may receive the CS page through the second subscription service and respond to the CS page, which may include a CS page indication. If the UE 115 receives a PS page through the second subscription service, the UE 115 ignores the PS page. After the UE 115 completes MMS operation on the first subscription service, the UE 115 performs IMS registration for the first subscription service to enable VoLTE on the first subscription service.

It should be noted that the methods described above describe possible implementations, and that the operations and the steps may be rearranged or otherwise modified and that other implementations are possible. Further, aspects from two or more of the methods may be combined.

Techniques described herein may be used for various wireless communications systems such as code division multiple access (CDMA) , time division multiple access (TDMA) , frequency division multiple access (FDMA) , orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) , single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) , and other systems. A CDMA system may implement a radio technology such as CDMA2000, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA) , etc. CDMA2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95, and IS-856 standards. IS-2000 Releases may be commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1X, 1X, etc. IS-856 (TIA-856) is commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1xEV-DO, High Rate Packet Data (HRPD) , etc. UTRA includes Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other variants of CDMA. A TDMA system may implement a radio technology such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) .

An OFDMA system may implement a radio technology such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB) , Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA) , Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi) , IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX) , IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, etc. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) . LTE and LTE-A are releases of UMTS that use E-UTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A, NR, and GSM are described in documents from the organization named “3rd Generation Partnership Project” (3GPP) . CDMA2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization named “3rd Generation Partnership Project 2” (3GPP2) . The techniques described herein may be used for the systems and radio technologies mentioned above as well as other systems and radio technologies. While aspects of an LTE or an NR system may be described for purposes of example, and LTE or NR terminology may be used in much of the description, the techniques described herein are applicable beyond LTE or NR applications.

A macro cell generally covers a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by UEs 115 with service subscriptions with the network provider. A small cell may be associated with a lower-powered base station 105, as compared with a macro cell, and a small cell may operate in the same or different (e.g., licensed, unlicensed, etc. ) frequency bands as macro cells. Small cells may include pico cells, femto cells, and micro cells according to various examples. A pico cell, for example, may cover a small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by UEs 115 with service subscriptions with the network provider. A femto cell may also cover a small geographic area (e.g., a home) and may provide restricted access by UEs 115 having an association with the femto cell (e.g., UEs 115 in a closed subscriber group (CSG) , UEs 115 for users in the home, and the like) . An eNB for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro eNB. An eNB for a small cell may be referred to as a small cell eNB, a pico eNB, a femto eNB, or a home eNB. An eNB may support one or multiple (e.g., two, three, four, and the like) cells, and may also support communications using one or multiple component carriers.

The wireless communications system 100 or systems described herein may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, the base stations 105 may have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations 105 may be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, the base stations 105 may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations 105 may not be aligned in time. The techniques described herein may be used for either synchronous or asynchronous operations.

Information and signals described herein may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

The various illustrative blocks and modules described in connection with the disclosure herein may be implemented or performed with a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP) , an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) , a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD) , discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration) .

The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Other examples and implementations are within the scope of the disclosure and appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, functions described above can be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or combinations of any of these. Features implementing functions may also be physically located at various positions, including being distributed such that portions of functions are implemented at different physical locations.

Computer-readable media includes both non-transitory computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A non-transitory storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer. By way of example, and not limitation, non-transitory computer-readable media may comprise random-access memory (RAM) , read-only memory (ROM) , electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM) , flash memory, compact disk (CD) ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transitory medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL) , or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include CD, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD) , floppy disk and Blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

As used herein, including in the claims, “or” as used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items prefaced by a phrase such as “at least one of” or “one or more of” ) indicates an inclusive list such that, for example, a list of at least one of A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C) . Also, as used herein, the phrase “based on” shall not be construed as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an exemplary step that is described as “based on condition A” may be based on both a condition A and a condition B without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase “based on” shall be construed in the same manner as the phrase “based at least in part on. ”

In the appended figures, similar components or features may have the same reference label. Further, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label by a dash and a second label that distinguishes among the similar components. If just the first reference label is used in the specification, the description is applicable to any one of the similar components having the same first reference label irrespective of the second reference label, or other subsequent reference label.

The description set forth herein, in connection with the appended drawings, describes example configurations and does not represent all the examples that may be implemented or that are within the scope of the claims. The term “exemplary” used herein means “serving as an example, instance, or illustration, ” and not “preferred” or “advantageous over other examples. ” The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing an understanding of the described techniques. These techniques, however, may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.

The description herein is provided to enable a person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is to be accorded the broadest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

A method for wireless communication, comprising:

determining that a first subscription service is to initiate a packet-switched (PS) data call;

performing an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) de-registration for a second subscription service, wherein the IMS de-registration disables a voice over LTE (VoLTE) support;

initiating the PS data call on the first subscription service;

receiving a circuit-switched (CS) page through the second subscription service; and

performing an IMS registration for the first subscription service, wherein the IMS registration enables the VoLTE support.