WO2020113359A1

WO2020113359A1 - Managing cell selection by a wireless device

Info

Publication number: WO2020113359A1
Application number: PCT/CN2018/118874
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rishika TINDOLA; Jun Deng; Hewu GU; Muralidharan Murugan; Anupam Gupta
Original assignee: Qualcomm Inc
Current assignee: Qualcomm Inc
Priority date: 2018-12-03
Filing date: 2018-12-03
Publication date: 2020-06-11
Anticipated expiration: 2021-06-03

Abstract

Various embodiments of the present disclosure include methods, components and wireless devices configured to manage cell selection by wireless devices. In various embodiments, a processor may determine whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell. In some embodiments, the processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell.

Description

Managing Cell Selection by a Wireless Device

BACKGROUND

Communication networks provide wireless access to devices via base stations and wireless access points. The provision of high-speed wireless communication capabilities includes the use of high-frequency radio carriers. While high-frequency radio carriers may provide greater data rate and bandwidth, such radio carriers also have reduced structural penetration characteristics. Network providers are increasingly deploying numerous base stations and wireless access points to provide adequate wireless coverage. A wireless device may detect a plurality of such base stations and wireless access points from any particular location. It is important for the wireless device to select an appropriate base station or wireless access point.

SUMMARY

Various aspects of the present disclosure include methods of managing cell selection by a wireless device, which may include determining, by a processor of the wireless device, determining whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell, and preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell.

In some aspects, determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell may include receiving, by the processor, one or more system information messages, and parsing, by the processor, the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers. In some aspects, determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell may include determining, by the processor, whether the cell identifier is found in an avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device. In some aspects, preventing the wireless device from associating with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell may include preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier is found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device.

Some aspects may further include determining, by the processor, whether one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected in response to determining that the cell identifier is not found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device, and preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected.

Some aspects may further include determining, by the processor, signal strengths of other detected cells, and preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that another detected cell has a higher signal strength.

Some aspects may further include receiving, by the processor, one or more system information messages, parsing, by the processor, the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers, determining, by the processor, whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell, and adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell. In some aspects, parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers may include parsing, by the processor, a system information block type 9 information element. In some aspects, determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell may include determining, by the processor, whether the system information block type 9 information element indicates a small cell.

In some aspects, adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell may include adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 9 information element identifies a small cell. In some aspects, parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers may include parsing, by the processor, a system information block type 1 information element. In some aspects, determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell may include determining, by the processor, whether the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.

Some aspects may further include adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to an avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device in response to determining that the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group. Some aspects may further include determining, by the processor, whether a wired connection with the small cell is already established. In such aspects, adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell may include adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to the avoidance database in response to determining that the wired connection with the small cell is already established.

Some aspects may further include permitting, by the processor, the wireless device to associate with a cell that is not identified as a small cell. Some aspects may further include determining, by the processor, whether a data loop is detected with an associated cell, and adding, by the processor, a cell identifier of the associated cell to an avoidance database in response to determining that a data loop is detected with the associated cell. In some aspects, determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell is performed in response to performing, by the processor, cell selection operations.

Further aspects may include a wireless device having a processor configured to perform one or more operations of the methods summarized above. Further aspects may include a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium having stored thereon processor-executable instructions configured to cause a processor of a wireless device to perform operations of the methods summarized above. Further aspects include a wireless device having means for performing functions of the methods summarized above. Further aspects include a system on chip for use in a wireless device that includes a processor configured to perform one or more operations of the methods summarized above. Further aspects include a system in a package that includes two systems on chip for use in a wireless device that includes a processor configured to perform one or more operations of the methods summarized above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and constitute part of this specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the claims, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description given below, serve to explain the features of the claims.

FIG. 1 is a system block diagram conceptually illustrating an example communications system including a small cell and a problem that can develop in such systems.

FIG. 2 is a component block diagram illustrating a computing system that may be configured to implement management of cell selection in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of an avoidance database in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of an avoidance database in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 5-9C are process flow diagrams illustrating methods of managing cell selection in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a component block diagram of a wireless router device suitable for implementing management of cell selection in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 is a component block diagram of a wireless communication device suitable for implementing management of cell selection in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. References made to particular examples and implementations are for illustrative purposes, and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims.

The term “wireless device” is used herein to refer to any one or all of wireless router devices, wireless appliances, cellular telephones, smartphones, portable computing devices, personal or mobile multi-media players, laptop computers, tablet computers, smartbooks, palmtop computers, wireless electronic mail receivers, multimedia Internet-enabled cellular telephones, wireless gaming controllers, Internet of Things (IoT) devices including large and small machinery and appliances for home or enterprise use, and other network elements capable of wireless communication, autonomous and semiautonomous vehicles, wireless devices affixed to or incorporated into various mobile platforms, and similar electronic devices which include a memory, wireless communication components and a programmable processor.

The term “system on chip” (SOC) is used herein to refer to a single integrated circuit (IC) chip that contains multiple resources and/or processors integrated on a single substrate. A single SOC may contain circuitry for digital, analog, mixed-signal, and radio-frequency functions. A single SOC may also include any number of general purpose and/or specialized processors (digital signal processors, modem processors, video processors, etc. ) , memory blocks (e.g., ROM, RAM, Flash, etc. ) , and resources (e.g., timers, voltage regulators, oscillators, etc. ) . SOCs may also include software for controlling the integrated resources and processors, as well as for controlling peripheral devices.

The term “system in a package” (SIP) may be used herein to refer to a single module or package that contains multiple resources, computational units, cores and/or processors on two or more IC chips, substrates, or SOCs. For example, a SIP may include a single substrate on which multiple IC chips or semiconductor dies are stacked in a vertical configuration. Similarly, the SIP may include one or more multi-chip modules (MCMs) on which multiple ICs or semiconductor dies are packaged into a unifying substrate. A SIP may also include multiple independent SOCs coupled together via high speed communication circuitry and packaged in close proximity, such as on a single motherboard or in a single wireless device. The proximity of the SOCs facilitates high speed communications and the sharing of memory and resources.

The term “multicore processor” may be used herein to refer to a single integrated circuit (IC) chip or chip package that contains two or more independent processing cores (e.g., CPU core, Internet protocol (IP) core, graphics processor unit (GPU) core, etc. ) configured to read and execute program instructions. A SOC may include multiple multicore processors, and each processor in an SOC may be referred to as a core. The term “multiprocessor” may be used herein to refer to a system or device that includes two or more processing units configured to read and execute program instructions.

Wireless networks providing high-speed wireless communication capabilities typically utilize high-frequency radio carriers. For example, fourth-generation (4G) and fifth-generation (5G) wireless communication systems utilize higher frequency bands to provide certain data rates and bandwidths. While high-frequency radio carriers may provide greater data rate and bandwidth, such radio carriers also have reduced structural penetration characteristics, potentially limiting the coverage area of base stations and wireless access points that use such high-frequency carriers.

To provide increased coverage with high-frequency radio carriers, a network provider may deploy a greater number of base stations or wireless access points (referred to herein generally as “base stations” ) . For example, in addition to existing or new macrocells, cells having a smaller range and coverage area, such as femtocells, picocells, and microcells (referred to herein generally as “small cells” ) , may also be deployed.

A wireless device may detect a plurality of such base stations and wireless access points from any particular location. In certain circumstances, it may be important for the wireless device to select an appropriate base station. However, conventional mechanisms used by wireless devices for cell selection, cell reselection, or cell redirection (referred to herein generally as “cell selection” ) may cause the wireless device to select and camp on a small cell that is inappropriate under certain circumstances.

One circumstance in which camping on a small cell by a wireless device is inappropriate and can cause system issues is when the wireless device is a wireless router that has a wired connection to a small cell. Wireless routers may be connected to a small cell by a wired connection as part of a system to provide wireless coverage to an area that is radio opaque to outside signals (e.g., a basement or underground area, a room partially or completely enclosed by radio resistant materials, and the like) . However, in some such situations, the wireless router may detect that the signal strength of the small cell exceeds the signal strength of the nearest macro cell (eNode B) . In this situation, the wireless router may select and camp on the small cell, which creates a data loop along the wired and wireless communication links between the wireless device and the small cell, thereby cutting off the wireless router from the core network.

Another circumstance in which camping on a small cell by a wireless device is inappropriate is when a wireless device seeking access to high-speed communication services supported by a microcell instead detects a small cell because it has a higher signal strength, thus depriving the wireless device of access to the desired high-speed communication services.

Various embodiments include methods and wireless devices configured to implement the methods of managing cell selection by the wireless device. In various embodiments, a wireless device processor may be configured to determine whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell, and in response to determining that the cell identifier is associated with a small cell, the processor may prevent the wireless device from associating with the small cell in certain circumstances. In contrast to typical heterogeneous network architectures that encourage the preferential association of wireless devices with small cells, various embodiments include methods and wireless devices configured to implement the methods for identifying a detected base station or wireless access point as a small cell and preventing a wireless device from associating with the small cell if appropriate. Various embodiments may improve the operation of wireless devices and wireless networks by preventing an association between a wireless device and a base station that may cause a data loop or similar communication dysfunction. Further, various embodiments may improve the operation of wireless devices and wireless networks by preventing an association between a wireless device and a base station that may render certain high-speed communication capabilities (e.g., certain 5G capabilities) inaccessible to the wireless device.

In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to dynamically detect small cells based on information broadcast by the small cells. In some embodiments, a wireless device processor may receive one or more system information messages (e.g., system information block, or SIB, messages) , and may parse the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers. In some embodiments, the wireless device may be configured with an avoidance database stored in local memory that includes cell identifiers of base stations, such as small cells. In some embodiments, the avoidance database may be provisioned on the wireless device by a network provider. In some embodiments, the avoidance database may be a database locally stored in the wireless device in which the processor of the wireless device may record cell identifiers of small cells discovered or determined by the wireless device implementing various embodiments. In some embodiments, the avoidance database may encompass both a network provisioned avoidance database and a separate, supplemental database stored in local memory in which the processor of the wireless device may record cell identifiers of small cells discovered or determined by the wireless device implementing various embodiments. Therefore, the term “avoidance database” is used herein to refer to network provisioned databases, processor generated and locally stored databases, and both network-provisioned and processor-generated supplemented databases stored in local memory.

In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may determine whether a cell identifier is found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may prevent the wireless device from associating with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier is found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device. In various embodiments, establishing a communication link refers to establishing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) Protocol Connected communication link or another suitable communication link. For example, if the wireless device is a wireless router, establishing a communication link with (e.g., “associating with, ” “camping on” or “attaching to” ) a small cell could cause a data loop problem and therefore the wireless router may avoid camping on a small cell listed in the avoidance database stored in memory. As another example, a wireless device seeking a high-speed communication link may avoid establishing a communication link with on a small cell listed in the avoidance database stored in memory if a high-speed communication macro cell signal is also detected.

In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to dynamically improve the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to receive one or more system information messages and parse the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to determine whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to add the cell identifier to an avoidance database (e.g., a supplemental avoidance database) in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell.

In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to analyze detailed system information to dynamically improve a locally generated or supplemental avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to parse a system information block type 9 information element within the signals received from a base station source (e.g., macro cell, wireless router or small cell) , and to determine whether the system information block type 9 information element indicates a small cell. In such embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to add the cell identifier to a locally generated or supplemental avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 9 information indicates a small cell.

In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to parse a system information block type 1 information element within the signals received from a base station source (e.g., macro cell, wireless router or small cell) , and to determine whether the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group (e.g., provides an indication that the base station is a member of a closed subscriber group (CSG) ) . In such embodiments, the wireless device processor may be configured to add the cell identifier to a locally generated or supplemental avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 1 information indicates a closed subscriber group.

In some embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may be configured to permit the wireless device to associate with the cell that is not identified as a small cell. In various embodiments, the wireless device processor may perform various operations to determine whether a cell identifier is associated with a small cell in response to performing cell selection operations.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example communications system 100 in which various embodiments may be performed. In some embodiments, the communications system 100 may include base stations and wireless devices configured to utilize new radio (NR) or 5G network communication capabilities.

The communications system 100 may include a heterogeneous network architecture that includes a core network 112 and a variety of base stations that support wireless communications, such as a macrocell 110 and a small cell 106. The communications system 100 may include wireless devices such as a wireless router device 102 and a wireless communication device 104, as well as a wireless appliance 108. The communications system 100 may include a structure 120, such as a building or other structure, which may include an area above ground and an area below ground. In some embodiments, one or more elements of the communications system 100 may be deployed in the area below ground, such as the wireless appliance 108 and the small cell 106.

The macrocell 110 may communicate with the core network over a wired or wireless communication link 144. The wireless communication device 104 may communicate with the macrocell 110 over a wireless communication link 138. The wireless router device 102 may communicate with the small cell via a wired communication link 132, and with the macrocell 110 over a wireless communication link 136. The wireless appliance 108 may communicate with the small cell 106 over a wireless communication link 134. In some embodiments, the wireless router device 102 may establish an undesired wireless communication link 142 with the small cell 106, as further described below. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 104 may establish an undesired wireless communication link 140 with the small cell 106, as further described below

The

wired communication links

132, 144 may use a variety of wired networks (e.g., Ethernet, TV cable, telephony, fiber optic and other forms of physical network connections) that may use one or more wired communication protocols, such as Ethernet, Point-To-Point protocol, High-Level Data Link Control (HDLC) , Advanced Data Communication Control Protocol (ADCCP) , and Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) . The

wireless communication links

134, 136, 138, 140, and 142 may include a plurality of carrier signals, frequencies, or frequency bands, each of which may include a plurality of logical channels. The

wireless communication links

134, 136, 138, 140, and 142 may utilize one or more radio access technologies (RATs) . Examples of RATs that may be used in a wireless communication link include 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) , 3G, 4G, 5G (e.g., New Radio (NR) ) , Global System for Mobility (GSM) , Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) , Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) , Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) , Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) , and other mobile telephony communication technologies cellular RATs. Further examples of RATs that may be used in one or more of the various wireless communication links within the communication system 100 include medium range protocols such as Wi-Fi, LTE-U, LTE-Direct, LAA, MuLTEfire, and relatively short range RATs such as ZigBee, Bluetooth, and Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) .

Certain wireless networks (e.g., LTE) utilize orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink and single-carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM partition the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also commonly referred to as tones, bins, etc. Each subcarrier may be modulated with data. In general, modulation symbols are sent in the frequency domain with OFDM and in the time domain with SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers may be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) may be dependent on the system bandwidth. For example, the spacing of the subcarriers may be 15 kHz and the minimum resource allocation (called a “resource block” ) may be 12 subcarriers (or 180 kHz) . Consequently, the nominal Fast File Transfer (FFT) size may be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024 or 2048 for system bandwidth of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10 or 20 megahertz (MHz) , respectively. The system bandwidth may also be partitioned into subbands. For example, a subband may cover 1.08 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks) , and there may be 1, 2, 4, 8 or 16 subbands for system bandwidth of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10 or 20 MHz, respectively.

While some embodiments of the examples described herein may be associated with LTE technologies, various embodiments may be applicable to other wireless communications systems, such as new radio (NR) or 5G network. NR may utilize OFDM with a cyclic prefix (CP) on the uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) and include support for half-duplex operation using time division duplex (TDD) . A single component carrier bandwidth of 100 MHz may be supported. NR resource blocks may span 12 sub-carriers with a sub-carrier bandwidth of 75 kHz over a 0.1 ms duration. Each radio frame may consist of 50 subframes with a length of 10 ms. Consequently, each subframe may have a length of 0.2 ms. Each subframe may indicate a link direction (i.e., DL or UL) for data transmission and the link direction for each subframe may be dynamically switched. Each subframe may include DL/UL data as well as DL/UL control data. Beamforming may be supported and beam direction may be dynamically configured. Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) transmissions with precoding may also be supported. MIMO configurations in the DL may support up to 8 transmit antennas with multi-layer DL transmissions up to 8 streams and up to 2 streams per wireless device. Multi-layer transmissions with up to 2 streams per wireless device may be supported. Aggregation of multiple cells may be supported with up to 8 serving cells. Alternatively, NR may support a different air interface, other than an OFDM-based air interface.

The wireless appliance 108 may include any device capable of wireless communication with a base station, but experiences limited wireless communication capability by virtue of its location in a radio signal opaque area, such as the area below ground of the structure 120. In various embodiments, the small cell 106 is deployed in the area below ground to provide wireless communications to devices such as the wireless appliance 108. In many cases, establishing a wired communication link between the small cell 106 and the macrocell 110, or between the small cell 106 and the core network 112, is cost prohibitive. In various embodiments, the wireless router device 102 (such as an LTE router) may facilitate communication between the small cell 106 and the macrocell 110. As noted above, the wireless router device 102 and the small cell 106 may communicate over the wired communication link 132, and the wireless router device and the macrocell 110 may communicate over the wireless communication link 136.

In some situations, the wireless router device 102 may detect a relatively strong signal strength from the small cell 106 and, in response, may perform a cell selection operation and associate with the small cell 106, establishing the wireless communication link 142. By establishing a wireless communication link 142, the wireless router device 102 is unable to communicate with the macrocell 110, causing a communications data loop 150 that prevents communications from the wireless appliance 108 from reaching the macrocell 110.

In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 104 may include a 5G capable or fixed wireless access (FWA) capable device. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 104 may detect a relatively strong signal strength from the small cell 106. In such embodiments, the wireless communication device 104 may perform a cell selection operation and associate with the small cell 106, establishing the wireless communication link 140. However, in various embodiments the small cell 106 may be incapable of providing high-speed communication services (e.g., certain 5G communication capabilities) to the wireless communication device 104, thus depriving the wireless communication device 104 of access to such high-speed communication services.

Various embodiments may be implemented on a number of single processor and multiprocessor computer systems, including a system-on-chip (SOC) or system in a package (SIP) . FIG. 2 illustrates an example computing system or SIP 200 architecture that may be used in wireless devices implementing the various embodiments.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the SIP 200 includes a two

SOCs

202, 204, a clock 206, and a voltage regulator 208. In some embodiments, the first SOC 202 operate as central processing unit (CPU) of the wireless device that carries out the instructions of software application programs by performing the arithmetic, logical, control and input/output (I/O) operations specified by the instructions. In some embodiments, the second SOC 204 may operate as a specialized processing unit. For example, the second SOC 204 may operate as a specialized 5G processing unit responsible for managing high volume, high speed (e.g., 5 Gbps, etc. ) , and/or very high frequency short wave length (e.g., 28 GHz mmWave spectrum, etc. ) communications.

The first SOC 202 includes a digital signal processor (DSP) 210, a modem processor 212, a graphics processor 214, an application processor 216, one or more coprocessors 218 (e.g., vector co-processor) connected to one or more of the processors, memory 220, custom circuity 222, system components and resources 224, an interconnection/bus module 226, one or more temperature sensors 230, a thermal management unit 232, and a thermal power envelope (TPE) component 234. The second SOC 204 includes a 5G modem processor 252, a power management unit 254, an interconnection/bus module 264, a plurality of mmWave transceivers 256, memory 258, and various additional processors 260, such as an applications processor, packet processor, etc.

Each

processor

210, 212, 214, 216, 218, 252, 260 may include one or more cores, and each processor/core may perform operations independent of the other processors/cores. For example, the first SOC 202 may include a processor that executes a first type of operating system (e.g., FreeBSD, LINUX, OS X, etc. ) and a processor that executes a second type of operating system (e.g., MICROSOFT WINDOWS 10) . In addition, any or all of the

processors

210, 212, 214, 216, 218, 252, 260 may be included as part of a processor cluster architecture (e.g., a synchronous processor cluster architecture, an asynchronous or heterogeneous processor cluster architecture, etc. ) .

The first and

second SOC

202, 204 may include various system components, resources and custom circuitry for managing sensor data, analog-to-digital conversions, wireless data transmissions, and for performing other specialized operations, such as decoding data packets and processing encoded audio and video signals for rendering in a web browser. For example, the system components and resources 224 of the first SOC 202 may include power amplifiers, voltage regulators, oscillators, phase-locked loops, peripheral bridges, data controllers, memory controllers, system controllers, access ports, timers, and other similar components used to support the processors and software clients running on a wireless device. The system components and resources 224 and/or custom circuitry 222 may also include circuitry to interface with peripheral devices, such as cameras, electronic displays, wireless communication devices, external memory chips, etc.

The first and

second SOC

202, 204 may communicate via interconnection/bus module 250. The

various processors

210, 212, 214, 216, 218, may be interconnected to one or more memory elements 220, system components and resources 224, and custom circuitry 222, and a thermal management unit 232 via an interconnection/bus module 226. Similarly, the processor 252 may be interconnected to the power management unit 254, the mmWave transceivers 256, memory 258, and various additional processors 260 via the interconnection/bus module 264. The interconnection/

bus module

226, 250, 264 may include an array of reconfigurable logic gates and/or implement a bus architecture (e.g., CoreConnect, AMBA, etc. ) . Communications may be provided by advanced interconnects, such as high-performance networks-on chip (NoCs) .

The first and/or

second SOCs

202, 204 may further include an input/output module (not illustrated) for communicating with resources external to the SOC, such as a clock 206 and a voltage regulator 208. Resources external to the SOC (e.g., clock 206, voltage regulator 208) may be shared by two or more of the internal SOC processors/cores.

In addition to the SIP 200 discussed above, the various embodiments may be implemented in a wide variety of computing systems, which may include a single processor, multiple processors, multicore processors, or any combination thereof.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of an avoidance database 300 that may be stored in memory (e.g., 220) of a wireless device in accordance with various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1–3, the avoidance database 300 may include entries for

network identifiers

302 and 304, and

cell identifiers

306, 308, 310, 312, and 314. The

network identifiers

302, 304 may include, for example, a public land mobile network (PLMN) identifier or another suitable identifier to identify a network associated with one or more base stations. The cell identifiers 306-314 may include information identifying a cell, such as an E-UTRAN (Evolved -Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network) Cell Global Identifier (ECGI) . In some embodiments, the ECGI is constructed from an MCC (Mobile Country Code) , an MNC (Mobile Network Code) and an ECI (E-UTRAN Cell Identifier) . In some embodiments, the avoidance database 300 enables a processor of a wireless device to identify small cells. In some embodiments, a wireless device processor may use the avoidance database 300 to specifically identify open cells. The avoidance database 300 provides a relatively high level of detail, which may require more memory resources of a wireless device to store and/or update.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of an avoidance database 400 that may be stored in memory (e.g., 220) of a wireless device in accordance with various embodiments. With reference to FIGS. 1–4, the avoidance database 400 may include entries for

network identifiers

402 and 404, and tracking area code (TAC)

identifiers

406, 408, and 410. The tracking area code identifiers 406-410 may include information that identifies one or more cells. In some embodiments, a tracking area code may identify one or more small cells. In some embodiment, the avoidance database 400 enables a processor of a wireless device to identify tracking areas that include (or are associated with) one or more small cells. Relative to the avoidance database 300, the avoidance database 400 provides a lower level of detail, which may require fewer memory resources of a wireless device to store and/or update.

FIG. 5 illustrates a method 500 of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–5, the method 500 may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

214, 216, 218, and 260.

In block 502, the processor of the wireless device may determine whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell. In some embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may parse or analyze information received by the wireless device. In some embodiments, the processor may receive information broadcast by a cell. For example, the processor may receive one or more system information block messages (e.g., SIBs) that are broadcast by a cell. In such embodiments, the wireless device processor does not need to establish a communication link with the cell. Based on the analysis of such information, the processor may identify a cell identifier. The processor may determine whether the cell identifiers identifies a small cell. For example, the processor may determine whether the cell identifier is found in an avoidance database (e.g., the avoidance database 300, 400) stored in memory (e.g., 220) of the wireless device. As discussed above, in some embodiments, the avoidance database may encompass both a network provisioned avoidance database and a separate, supplemental database stored in local memory in which the processor of the wireless device may record cell identifiers of small cells discovered or determined by the wireless device implementing various embodiments. Thus, in some embodiments, the operations in block 502 may include comparing the received cell identifier to identifiers in a supplemental avoidance database stored in local memory.

In response to determining that the cell identifier does not identify a small cell (determination block 502 = “No” ) , the processor of the wireless device may determine whether another cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell.

In response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell (determination block 502 = “Yes” ) , the processor of the wireless device may prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in block 504. In some embodiments, during cell selection operations (which may, in various embodiments, include cell selection, cell reselection, and cell redirection operations) the wireless device processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a wireless communication link with the small cell. For example, if the wireless device is a wireless router, the device processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a wireless communication link with the small cell to prevent being trapped in a data loop. As another example, if the wireless device is seeking a high-speed communication link, the device processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a wireless communication link with the small cell to enable establishing a communication link with a base station capable of supporting a high-speed communication link. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link such as an RRC Connected communication link, or another similar communication link, with the small cell.

FIG. 6 illustrates a method 600 of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–6, the method 600 may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

214, 216, 218, and 260.

As discussed above, in various embodiments, the avoidance database may be provisioned on the wireless device by a network provider and/or may be a database locally stored in the wireless device in which the processor of the wireless device may record cell identifiers of small cells discovered or determined by the wireless device implementing various embodiments. In some embodiments, the avoidance database may encompass both a network provisioned avoidance database and a separate, supplemental database stored in local memory in which the processor of the wireless device may record cell identifiers of small cells discovered or determined by the wireless device. In the method 600, the processor of the wireless device may dynamically update a locally stored avoidance database (e.g., a locally generated supplemental avoidance database) to improve its accuracy and effectiveness.

In block 602, the processor of the wireless device may receive an avoidance database (e.g., the avoidance database 300, 400) . In some embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may receive the avoidance database over a wired or wireless communication link. In some embodiments, the processor may receive the avoidance database via an OTA (over the air) communication.

In block 604, wireless device processor may store the avoidance database in a memory of the wireless device (e.g., the memory 220, 258) .

In block 606, the wireless device processor may receive system information from cells. In some embodiments, the system information may include information transmitted by or broadcast by one or more cells. In some embodiments, the system information may include one or more system information block (SIB) information elements. In some embodiments, the one or more SIBs may be broadcast by a cell, and the processor of the wireless device does not need to establish a communication link with the cell to receive the SIB (s) .

In block 608, the wireless device processor may parse the received system information for one or more cell identifiers.

In determination block 610, the wireless device processor may determine whether a cell identifier (i.e., from among the one or more cell identifiers) identifies a small cell. As discussed above, in some embodiments, the avoidance database may encompass both a network provisioned avoidance database and a separate, supplemental database stored in local memory in which the processor of the wireless device may record cell identifiers of small cells discovered or determined by the wireless device implementing various embodiments. Thus, the operations in determination block 610 may include comparing the received cell identifier to identifiers in both a network provisioned avoidance database and a supplemental avoidance database stored in local memory.

In response to determining that the cell identifier does not identify a small cell (i.e., determination block 610 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may receive additional system information from one or more cells in block 606.

In response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell (i.e., determination block 610 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may determine whether the cell identifier is present in the avoidance database in determination block 612.

In response to determining that the cell identifier is present in the avoidance database (i.e., determination block 612 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may not add the cell identifier to the avoidance database (e.g., a supplemental avoidance database) in block 614. The processor of the wireless device may then receive additional information from one or more cells in block 606.

In response to determining that the cell identifier is not present in the avoidance database (i.e., determination block 612 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in block 616. The processor of the wireless device may receive additional information from one or more cells in block 606.

FIG. 7A illustrates a method 700A of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–7A, the method 700A may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

214, 216, 218, and 260. In various embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may process system information from cells with a high degree of specificity, and may dynamically update the avoidance database to improve its accuracy and effectiveness. Thus, similar to the method 600, in the method 700A, the processor may dynamically update a locally stored avoidance database, such as a locally generated supplemental avoidance database.

In block 702, the processor of the wireless device may receive one or more system information messages from one or more cells. In some embodiments, the system information messages may include SIB information elements. In some embodiments, the system information message (s) may be broadcast by a cell, and the processor of the wireless device does not need to establish a communication link with the cell to receive the system information message (s) .

In block 704, the processor of the wireless device may parse a system information block type 9 (SIB9) information element within the received system information messages.

In determination block 706, the wireless device processor may determine whether the SIB9 information element includes information indicating that the transmitting cell is a small cell. For example, the SIB9 information element may include a home eNodeB (HNB) name (e.g., hnb-Name or HNB Name) . In various embodiments, the presence of the home eNodeB name in the SIB9 information element indicates that the cell providing the information is a small cell. Thus, the operations in determination block 706 may involve comparing a cell identifier to a network provisioned avoidance database, a supplemental avoidance database stored in local memory and/or determining whether the home eNodeB name in the SIB9 information element indicates that the cell providing the information is a small cell.

In response to determining that the SIB9 information element does not include information indicating that the cell is a small cell (i.e., determination block 706 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may not add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in block 716.

In response to determining that the SIB9 information element includes information indicating that a cell is a small cell (i.e., determination block 706 = “Yes” ) , the processor of the wireless device may parse a system information block type 1 (SIB1) information element in block 708.

In determination block 710, the wireless device processor may determine whether the SIB1 information element includes information indicating that the cell is in a closed subscriber group (CSG) . In some embodiments, if a cell is not a member of a closed subscriber group, the cell may be operating in an open access mode. Typically, a wireless device is specially provisioned to associate with a CSG cell, whereas a wireless device may readily associate with a cell operating in open access mode.

In response to determining that the SIB1 information element does not include information indicating that the cell is in a closed subscriber group (i.e., determination block 710 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may not add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in block 716.

In response to determining that the SIB1 information element does not include information indicating that the cell is in a closed subscriber group (i.e., determination block 710 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may determine that the cell is an open small cell (i.e., that the cell is a small cell operating in open access mode) in block 712.

In block 714, the processor of the wireless device may add the cell identifier to the avoidance database (e.g., a supplemental avoidance database) stored in memory.

In some embodiments the processor of the wireless device may limit a number of entries of the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device to limit an amount of memory and other resources consumed by storing and/or updating the avoidance database. In some embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may remove entries that are older than a predetermined age. In some embodiments, when the number of entries in the avoidance database has reached a limit, the wireless device processor may delete an oldest entry and add a newest entry.

FIG. 7B illustrates a method 700B of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–7B, the method 700B may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

214, 216, 218, and 260. In various embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may process system information from cells with a high degree of specificity, and may dynamically update the avoidance database to improve its accuracy and effectiveness. Thus, similar to the

methods

600 and 700A, in the method 700B, the processor may dynamically update a locally stored avoidance database, such as a locally generated supplemental avoidance database.

In block 702, the processor of the wireless device may perform operations of the like-numbered block of the method 700A as described.

In block 750, the processor may parse system information block elements (e.g., information elements in one or more SIBs) .

In determination block 752, the wireless device processor may determine whether the system information block information elements include information indicating that the transmitting cell is a small cell. As discussed above, the operations in determination block 752 may involve comparing a cell identifier to a network provisioned avoidance database and/or a supplemental avoidance database stored in local memory.

In response to determining that the system information block elements include information indicating that the cell is a small cell (i.e., determination block 752 = “Yes” ) , the processor of the wireless device may determine whether a wired connection has already been established with the small cell in determination block 754. For example, the processor may determine whether an identifier of the small cell matches or correlates with an identifier of a cell with which the wireless device is connected via a wired communication link (e.g., the wired communication link 132) .

In response to determining that a wired connection has already been established with the small cell (i.e., determination block 754 = “Yes” ) , the processor may add a cell identifier of the small cell to the avoidance database in block 756.

In response to determining that a wired connection has not already been established with the small cell (i.e., determination block 754 = “No” ) , or in response to determining that the system information block elements do not include information that the cell is a small call (i.e., determination block 752 = “No” ) , the processor may not add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in block 758.

FIG. 8 illustrates a method 800 of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–8, the method 800 may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

methods

600, 700A, and 700B, in the method 800, the processor may dynamically update a locally stored avoidance database, such as a locally generated supplemental avoidance database.

In block 802, the processor of the wireless device may receive updated tracking area information. In some embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may receive the updated tracking area information over a wired or wireless communication link. In some embodiments, the processor may receive the updated tracking area information via an OTA (over the air) communication.

In block 804, the processor of the wireless device may parse the tracking area information. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may parse the tracking area information to identify a TAI (tracking area information) value or a (tracking area code) TAC value. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may parse a SIB1 information element to identify a TAI value or a TAC value. In some embodiments, a TAI value identified in the SIB1 information element may include a network identifier (e.g., a PLMN value) and a TAC value.

In determination block 806, the processor of the wireless device may determine whether the tracking area information includes information indicating the presence of a small cell. As discussed above, the operations in determination block 752 may also involve comparing a cell identifier to a network provisioned avoidance database and/or a supplemental avoidance database stored in local memory.

In response to determining that the tracking area information does not include information indicating the presence of a small cell (i.e., determination block 806 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may not add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in block 812.

In response to determining that the tracking area information does include information indicating the presence of a small cell (i.e., determination block 806 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may determine whether the tracking area information is present in the avoidance database in determination block 808.

In response to determining that the tracking area information is present in the avoidance database (i.e., determination block 808 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may not add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in block 812.

In response to determining that the tracking area information is not present in the avoidance database (i.e., determination block 808 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may add the cell identifier to the avoidance database stored in memory in block 810.

In some embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may limit a number of entries of the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device to limit an amount of memory and other resources consumed by storing and/or updating the avoidance database. In some embodiments, the processor of the wireless device may remove entries that are older than a predetermined duration. In some embodiments, when the number of entries in the avoidance database has reached a limit, the wireless device processor may delete an oldest entry and add a newest entry.

FIG. 9A illustrates a method 900A of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–9A, the method 900A may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

methods

600, 700A, 700B, and 800, in the method 900A, the processor may dynamically update a locally stored avoidance database, such as a locally generated supplemental avoidance database.

In block 902, the processor of the wireless device may determine whether to perform cell selection operations. In various embodiments, the wireless device processor may periodically evaluate wireless link and network conditions and determine whether to operations to associate with a new cell (e.g., operations of cell selection, cell reselection, or cell redirection) .

In response to determining not to perform cell selection operations (i.e., determination block 902 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may periodically re-determine whether to perform cell selection operations.

In response to determining to perform cell selection operations (i.e., determination block 902 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may receive one or more system information messages from one or more cell in block 904. In some embodiments, the system information messages may include one or more system information block (i.e., SIB) information elements. In some embodiments, the system information message (s) may be broadcast by a cell, and the processor of the wireless device does not need to establish a communication link with the cell to receive the system information message (s) .

In block 906, the processor of the wireless device may parse the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers.

In block 908, the processor of the wireless device may select a cell identifier. For example, the wireless device processor may select a cell identifier from among the one or more cell identifiers parsed from the system information message (s) .

In determination block 910, the wireless device processor may determine whether the selected cell identifier is found in an avoidance database (e.g., the avoidance database 300, 400) stored in memory of the wireless device. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may determine whether an identifier of a specific cell (e.g., an ECGI or another suitable cell identifier) is found in the avoidance database stored in the memory of the wireless device. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may determine whether tracking area information (e.g., a TAC value or TAI value) is found in the avoidance database. Again, the operations in determination block 910 may also involve comparing a cell identifier or tracking area information to a network provisioned avoidance database and/or a supplemental avoidance database stored in local memory.

In response to determining that the cell identifier is found in the avoidance database (i.e., determination block 910 = “Yes” ) , the processor of the wireless device may prevent the wireless device from establishing a wireless communication link with the cell associated with the selected cell identifier in block 912. In some embodiments, the wireless device processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing an RRC Connected communication link, or another similar communication link, with the cell associated with the selected cell identifier.

In response to determining that the cell identifier is not found in the avoidance database (i.e., determination block 910 = “No” ) , or following the operations preventing the wireless device from establishing the communication link with the cell associated with the selected cell identifier (block 912) , the processor of the wireless device may determine whether any cell identifier is remaining in determination block 914.

In response to determining that a cell identifier is remaining (i.e., determination block 914 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may select another cell identifier in block 908 and perform the operations of block 910-914.

In response to determining that no cell identifier is remaining (i.e., determination block 914 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may permit the wireless device to perform cell selection with a non-prevented (i.e., a permitted) cell in block 916.

For example, if the processor of a wireless router device (e.g., the wireless router device 102) determines that a cell identifier of a small cell (e.g., the small cell 106) is found in an avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless router device, the processor may prevent the wireless router device from establishing a wireless communication link with the identified small cell (e.g., the wireless communication link 142 with the small cell 106) . This prevents the wireless router device from creating a data loop (e.g., the data loop 150) between the wireless router device and the small cell. The wireless router device may then establish a wireless communication link with a macro cell (e.g., the wireless communication link 136 with the macrocell 110) if such signals are detected.

As another example, if the processor of wireless communication device (e.g., the wireless communication device 104) determines that a cell identifier of a small cell (e.g., the small cell 106) is found in an avoidance database stored in a memory of the wireless communication device, the processor may prevent establishing a wireless communication link with the identified small cell (e.g., the wireless communication link 140 with the small cell 106) . This may enable the wireless communication device to establish a wireless communication link with a macro cell capable of providing access to the high-speed communication services (e.g., the wireless communication link 138 with the macrocell 110) .

FIG. 9B illustrates a method 900B of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–9B, the method 900B may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

214, 216, 218, and 260.

In some embodiments, a wireless device processor may detect a data loop (e.g., the data loop 150) between the wireless device and a cell to which the wireless device has performed cell selection (e.g., the small cell 106) . In such embodiments, the wireless device processor may dynamically update the avoidance database. Thus, similar to the

methods

600, 700A, 700B, 800, and 900A, in the method 900B, the processor may dynamically update a locally stored avoidance database, such as a locally generated supplemental avoidance database, in response to detect a data loop.

In determination block 950, the processor of the wireless device may determine whether data loop is detected.

In response to determining that the data loop is not detected (i.e., determination block 950 = “No” ) , the processor may not add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in block 956.

In response to determining that the data loop is detected (i.e., determination block 950 = “Yes” ) , the processor may add the cell identifier to the avoidance database (e.g., a supplemental avoidance database) in block 952.

In block 954, the processor of the wireless device may perform cell selection operations. For example, the wireless device may attempt to perform cell selection to a different cell.

FIG. 9C illustrates a method 900C of managing cell selection in accordance with an embodiment. With reference to FIGS. 1–9C, the method 900C may be performed by a processor or CPU in a wireless device, such as the modem processor 212, the modem processor 252, or the

processors

214, 216, 218, and 260. In blocks 902-914, the processor of the robotic vehicle may perform operations of like-numbered blocks of the method 900A as described.

In determination block 960, the processor of the wireless device may determine whether one or more other cells are detected that support high-speed communication. For example, the processor of the wireless device may scan receivable frequencies to detect a signal within a frequency or frequency band used for certain high-speed communication (e.g., NR or 5G communication) . As another example, the processor of the wireless device may scan receivable frequencies to detect a radio access technology (i.e., RAT) that supports certain high-speed communication (e.g., NR or 5G communication) .

In response to determining that one or more other cells are detected that support high-speed communications (i.e., determination block 960 = “Yes” ) , the wireless device processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the selected cell identifier in block 912. Said another way, the processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with a 4G small cell if one or more 5G cells are detected and thus available for to establish a communication link. On the other hand, if no 5G cell is detected, the processor may allow the wireless device to communicate with a 4G small cell subject to signal strength considerations addressed in determination block 962 discussed below.

In response to determining that no other cells are detect that support high-speed communications (i.e., determination block 960 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may determine whether the cell associated with the selected cell identifier has a highest signal strength (e.g., from among detectable signal strengths) in determination block 962.

In response to determining that the cell does not have the highest signal strength (i.e., determination block 962 = “No” ) , the wireless device processor may prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the cell associated with the selected cell identifier in block 912.

In block 964, the processor of the wireless device may permit cell selection with a non-prevented cell. In some embodiments, a non-prevented cell may include a small cell that does not support high-speed communications. For example, even though a communication link with a small cell may not support high-speed communications, if no better communication link is available, the processor of the wireless device may permit the wireless device to preform cell selection of such small cell.

Various embodiments may be implemented on a variety of wireless devices (e.g., the wireless router device 102) , an example of which is illustrated in FIG. 10 in the form of a wireless router device 1000. Various embodiments may employ a computing device as a network element of a communication network. Such wireless devices may include at least the components illustrated in FIG. 10. With reference to FIGS. 1-10, the router device 1000 may typically include a processor 1001 coupled to volatile memory 1002 and a large capacity nonvolatile memory, such as a disk drive 1003. The server device 1000 may also include a peripheral memory access device such as a floppy disc drive, compact disc (CD) or digital video disc (DVD) drive 1006 coupled to the processor 1001. The server device 1000 may also include network access ports 1004 (or interfaces) coupled to the processor 1001 for establishing data connections with a network, such as the Internet and/or a local area network coupled to other system computers and servers. The server device 1000 may include one or more antennas 1007 for sending and receiving electromagnetic radiation that may be connected to a wireless communication link. The server device 1000 may include additional access ports, such as USB, Firewire, Thunderbolt, and the like for coupling to peripherals, external memory, or other devices.

Various embodiments may be implemented on a variety of wireless communication devices (e.g., the wireless communication device 104) , an example of which is illustrated in FIG. 11 in the form of a smartphone 1100. The smartphone 1100 may include a first SOC 202 (e.g., a SOC-CPU) coupled to a second SOC 204 (e.g., a 5G capable SOC) . The first and

second SOCs

202, 204 may be coupled to

internal memory

1106, 1116, a display 1112, and to a speaker 1114. Additionally, the smartphone 1100 may include an antenna 1104 for sending and receiving electromagnetic radiation that may be connected to a wireless data link and/or cellular telephone transceiver 1108 coupled to one or more processors in the first and/or

second SOCs

202, 204. Smartphones 1100 typically also include menu selection buttons or rocker switches 1120 for receiving user inputs.

A typical smartphone 1100 also includes a sound encoding/decoding (CODEC) circuit 1110, which digitizes sound received from a microphone into data packets suitable for wireless transmission and decodes received sound data packets to generate analog signals that are provided to the speaker to generate sound. Also, one or more of the processors in the first and

second SOCs

202, 204, wireless transceiver 1108 and CODEC 1110 may include a digital signal processor (DSP) circuit (not shown separately) .

The processors of the wireless router device 1000 and the smart phone 1100 may be any programmable microprocessor, microcomputer or multiple processor chip or chips that can be configured by software instructions (applications) to perform a variety of functions, including the functions of the various embodiments described below. In some mobile devices, multiple processors may be provided, such as one processor within an SOC 204 dedicated to wireless communication functions and one processor within an SOC 202 dedicated to running other applications. Typically, software applications may be stored in the

memory

1106, 1116 before they are accessed and loaded into the processor. The processors may include internal memory sufficient to store the application software instructions.

As used in this application, the terms “component, ” “module, ” “system, ” and the like are intended to include a computer-related entity, such as, but not limited to, hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution, which are configured to perform particular operations or functions. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to, a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way of illustration, both an application running on a wireless device and the wireless device may be referred to as a component. One or more components may reside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component may be localized on one processor or core and/or distributed between two or more processors or cores. In addition, these components may execute from various non-transitory computer readable media having various instructions and/or data structures stored thereon. Components may communicate by way of local and/or remote processes, function or procedure calls, electronic signals, data packets, memory read/writes, and other known network, computer, processor, and/or process related communication methodologies.

A number of different cellular and mobile communication services and standards are available or contemplated in the future, all of which may implement and benefit from the various embodiments. Such services and standards include, e.g., third generation partnership project (3GPP) , long term evolution (LTE) systems, third generation wireless mobile communication technology (3G) , fourth generation wireless mobile communication technology (4G) , fifth generation wireless mobile communication technology (5G) , global system for mobile communications (GSM) , universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) , 3GSM, general packet radio service (GPRS) , code division multiple access (CDMA) systems (e.g., cdmaOne, CDMA1020TM) , enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE) , advanced mobile phone system (AMPS) , digital AMPS (IS-136/TDMA) , evolution-data optimized (EV-DO) , digital enhanced cordless telecommunications (DECT) , Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) , wireless local area network (WLAN) , Wi-Fi Protected Access I &II (WPA, WPA2) , and integrated digital enhanced network (iden) . Each of these technologies involves, for example, the transmission and reception of voice, data, signaling, and/or content messages. It should be understood that any references to terminology and/or technical details related to an individual telecommunication standard or technology are for illustrative purposes only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims to a particular communication system or technology unless specifically recited in the claim language.

The various embodiments provide improved methods, systems, and devices for conserving power and improving performance in multicore processors and systems-on-chip. The inclusion of multiple independent cores on a single chip, and the sharing of memory, resources, and power architecture between cores, gives rise to a number of power management issues not present in more distributed multiprocessing systems. Thus, a different set of design constraints may apply when designing power management and voltage/frequency scaling strategies for multicore processors and systems-on-chip than for other more distributed multiprocessing systems.

Various embodiments illustrated and described are provided merely as examples to illustrate various features of the claims. However, features shown and described with respect to any given embodiment are not necessarily limited to the associated embodiment and may be used or combined with other embodiments that are shown and described. Further, the claims are not intended to be limited by any one example embodiment. For example, one or more of the operations of the

methods

500, 600, 700A, 700B, 800, 900A, 900B, and 900C may be substituted for or combined with one or more operations of the

methods

500, 600, 700A, 700B, 800, 900A, 900B, and 900C.

The foregoing method descriptions and the process flow diagrams are provided merely as illustrative examples and are not intended to require or imply that the operations of various embodiments must be performed in the order presented. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art the order of operations in the foregoing embodiments may be performed in any order. Words such as “thereafter, ” “then, ” “next, ” etc. are not intended to limit the order of the operations; these words are used to guide the reader through the description of the methods. Further, any reference to claim elements in the singular, for example, using the articles “a, ” “an, ” or “the” is not to be construed as limiting the element to the singular.

Various illustrative logical blocks, modules, components, circuits, and algorithm operations described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and operations have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such embodiment decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the claims.

The hardware used to implement various illustrative logics, logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed 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, 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 receiver smart objects, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. Alternatively, some operations or methods may be performed by circuitry that is specific to a given function.

In one or more embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored as one or more instructions or code on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or non-transitory processor-readable storage medium. The operations of a method or algorithm disclosed herein may be embodied in a processor-executable software module or processor-executable instructions, which may reside on a non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage medium. Non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage media may be any storage media that may be accessed by a computer or a processor. By way of example but not limitation, such non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, FLASH memory, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage smart objects, or any other medium that may be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that may be accessed by a computer. Disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (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 non-transitory computer-readable and processor-readable media. Additionally, the operations of a method or algorithm may reside as one or any combination or set of codes and/or instructions on a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium and/or computer-readable storage medium, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

The preceding description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the claims. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the scope of the claims. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the following claims and the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

A method of managing cell selection by a wireless device, comprising:

determining, by a processor of the wireless device, whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell; and

preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell.
The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises:

receiving, by the processor, one or more system information messages; and

parsing, by the processor, the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers.
The method of claim 1, wherein:

determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises determining, by the processor, whether the cell identifier is found in an avoidance database; and

preventing the wireless device from associating with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier is found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device.
The method of claim 3, further comprising in response to determining that the cell identifier is not found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device:

determining, by the processor, whether one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected; and

preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected.
The method of claim 4, further comprising in response to determining that no other detected cell supports high speed communication:

determining, by the processor, signal strengths of other detected cells; and

preventing, by the processor, the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that another detected cell has a higher signal strength.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the processor, one or more system information messages;

parsing, by the processor, the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers;

determining, by the processor, whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell; and

adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell.
The method of claim 6, wherein:

parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers comprises parsing, by the processor, a system information block type 9 information element; and

determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises determining, by the processor, whether the system information block type 9 information element indicates a small cell.
The method of claim 7, wherein adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 9 information element identifies a small cell.
The method of claim 6, wherein:

parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers comprises parsing, by the processor, a system information block type 1 information element; and

determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises determining, by the processor, whether the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The method of claim 9, further comprising:

adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The method of claim 6, further comprising determining, by the processor, whether a wired connection with the small cell is already established,

wherein adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises adding, by the processor, the cell identifier to the avoidance database in response to determining that the wired connection with the small cell is already established.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

permitting, by the processor, the wireless device to associate with a cell that is not identified as a small cell.
The method of claim 12, further comprising:

determining, by the processor, whether a data loop is detected with an associated cell; and

adding, by the processor, a cell identifier of the associated cell to an avoidance database in response to determining that a data loop is detected with the associated cell.
The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell is performed in response to performing, by the processor, cell selection operations.
A wireless device, comprising:

a memory;

a wireless transceiver; and

a processor coupled to the memory and the wireless transceiver and configured with processor-executable instructions to:

determine whether a cell identifier received by the wireless transceiver identifies a small cell; and

prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

receive one or more system information messages; and

parse the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers.
The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

determine whether the cell identifier is found in an avoidance database stored in the memory; and

prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier is found in the avoidance database stored in the memory.
The wireless device of claim 17, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

determine whether one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected in response to determining that the cell identifier is not found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device; and

prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected.
The wireless device of claim 18, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

determine signal strengths of other detected cells in response to determining that no other detected cell supports high speed communication; and

prevent the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that another detected cell has a higher signal strength.
The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

receive one or more system information messages;

parse the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers;

determine whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell; and

add the cell identifier to an avoidance database stored in the memory in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 20, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

parse a system information block type 9 information element; and

determine whether the system information block type 9 information element indicates a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 21, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

add the cell identifier to an avoidance database stored in the memory in response to determining that the system information block type 9 information element identifies a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 20, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

parse a system information block type 1 information element; and

determine whether the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The wireless device of claim 23, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

add the cell identifier to an avoidance database stored in the memory in response to determining that the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The wireless device of claim 20, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

determine whether a wired connection with the small cell is already established; and

add the cell identifier to the avoidance database in response to determining that the wired connection with the small cell is already established.
The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

permit the wireless transceiver to associate with a cell that is not identified as a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 26, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to:

determine whether a data loop is detected with an associated cell; and

add a cell identifier of the associated cell to an avoidance database in response to determining that a data loop is detected with the associated cell.
The wireless device of claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured with processor-executable instructions to determine whether the cell identifier received by the wireless transceiver is associated with a small cell is performed in response to performing cell selection operations.
A non-transitory processor-readable medium having stored thereon processor-executable instructions configured to cause a processor of a wireless device to perform operations comprising:

determining whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell; and

preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 29, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations such that determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises:

receiving one or more system information messages; and

parsing the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 29, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations such that:

determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises determining whether the cell identifier is found in an avoidance database stored in memory; and

preventing the wireless device from associating with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier is found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 31, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are further configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations in response to determining that the cell identifier is not found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device comprising:

determining whether one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected; and

preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 32, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are further configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations in response to determining that no other detected cell supports high speed communication comprising:

determining signal strengths of other detected cells; and

preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that another detected cell has a higher signal strength.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 29, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations further comprising:

receiving one or more system information messages;

parsing the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers;

determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell; and

adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 34, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations such that:

parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers comprises parsing a system information block type 9 information element; and

determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises determining whether the system information block type 9 information element indicates a small cell.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 35, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations such that adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 9 information element identifies a small cell.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 34, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations such that:

parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers comprises parsing a system information block type 1 information element; and

determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises determining whether the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 37, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations further comprising:

adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 34, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations further comprising determining whether a wired connection with the small cell is already established,

wherein adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises adding the cell identifier to the avoidance database in response to determining that the wired connection with the small cell is already established.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 29, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations further comprising:

permitting the wireless device to associate with a cell that is not identified as a small cell.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 40, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations further comprising:

determining whether a data loop is detected with an associated cell; and

adding a cell identifier of the associated cell to an avoidance database in response to determining that a data loop is detected with the associated cell.
The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 29, wherein the stored processor-executable instructions are configured to cause the processor of the wireless device to perform operations such that determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell is performed in response to performing cell selection operations.
A wireless device, comprising:

means for determining whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell; and

means for preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 43, wherein means for determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises:

means for receiving one or more system information messages; and

means for parsing the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers.
The wireless device of claim 43, wherein:

means for determining whether the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises means for determining whether the cell identifier is found in an avoidance database; and

means for that preventing the wireless device from associating with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell comprises means for preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier is found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device.
The wireless device of claim 45, further comprising:

means for determining whether one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected in response to determining that the cell identifier is not found in the avoidance database stored in memory of the wireless device; and

means for preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that one or more other cells that support high speed communication are detected.
The wireless device of claim 46, further comprising:

means for determining signal strengths of other detected cells in response to determining that no other detected cell supports high speed communication; and

means for preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that another detected cell has a higher signal strength.
The wireless device of claim 43, further comprising:

means for receiving one or more system information messages;

means for parsing the received one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers;

means for determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell; and

means for adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 48, wherein:

means for parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers comprises means for parsing a system information block type 9 information element; and

means for determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises means for determining whether the system information block type 9 information element indicates a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 49, wherein means for adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises means for adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 9 information element identifies a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 48, wherein:

means for parsing the one or more system information messages for one or more cell identifiers comprises means for parsing a system information block type 1 information element; and

means for determining whether the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises means for determining whether the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The wireless device of claim 51, further comprising:

means for adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the system information block type 1 information element indicates a closed subscriber group.
The wireless device of claim 48, further comprising means for determining whether a wired connection with the small cell is already established,

wherein means for adding the cell identifier to an avoidance database in response to determining that the cell identifier identifies a small cell comprises means for adding the cell identifier to the avoidance database in response to determining that the wired connection with the small cell is already established.
The wireless device of claim 43, further comprising:

means for permitting the wireless device to associate with a cell that is not identified as a small cell.
The wireless device of claim 54, further comprising:

means for determining whether a data loop is detected with an associated cell; and

means for adding a cell identifier of the associated cell to an avoidance database in response to determining that a data loop is detected with the associated cell.
A system on chip (SOC) , comprising:

a memory; and

a processor communicatively connected to the memory and configured with processor-executable instructions to perform operations comprising:

determining whether a cell identifier received by the wireless device identifies a small cell; and

preventing the wireless device from establishing a communication link with the small cell associated with the received cell identifier in response to determining that the cell identifier received by the wireless device is associated with a small cell.