Radio network controller and frame transmission adjusting method
In adjusting transmission timings of frames sequentially transmitted from a radio network controller to a base transceiver station, the frame transmission schedule is changed in appropriate manner in response to a necessary Timing Adjustment control frame (TA). In a first period of time, which is a period of ignoring the received TA, the adjustment of the transmission timings of the frames is suspended. Also, out of the first period, the first period is varied in accordance with a variety of the delayed amount in transmission between the radio network controller and the base transceiver station. There is provided a period of ignoring a first control frame to be informed from the radio base transceiver station to the radio network controller. By setting the period to be a variable value, the synchronization control is accomplished with certainty.
1. A radio network controller, comprising:
a transmission timing adjusting unit for adjusting transmission timings of downlink frames to be sequentially transmitted from the radio network controller to a base transceiver station having a receiving window, after receiving from the base transceiver station a first timing adjustment control frame for informing of a difference between a reception timing of a downlink frame applied with a frame sequence number and an expected reception timing of the downlink frame to be received by the base transceiver station, when the downlink frame is received outside of the receiving window by the base transceiver station;
a control unit for controlling a transmission schedule of the downlink frame not to change, even if another timing adjustment control frame is received in a first period that begins immediately after the transmission timing is adjusted, as a period of ignoring the timing adjustment control frame that has been received; and
a changing unit for changing the first period in accordance with a change in a transmission delay between the radio network controller and the base transceiver station;
wherein the first period is set to a period α plus a round-trip time, the period α being greater than 0 and smaller than a transmission interval of the downlink frames, the round-trip time being a period from a time when the downlink frame is transmitted to the base transceiver station from the radio network controller to a time when the radio network controller receives the timing adjustment control frame in response to the downlink frame.
2. The radio network controller according to claim 1 , wherein the round-trip time is set based upon a period from a time when any one of the radio network controller and the base transceiver station transmits an ICMP ECHO request to a time when said any one of the radio network controller and the base transceiver station receives a response of the ICMP ECHO request.
3. The radio network controller according to claim 1 , wherein the round-trip time is set based upon a temporal difference between a transmission time of a DL Synchronisation frame, and a reception time of a UL Synchronization frame, the DL Synchronization frame and the UL Synchronization frame being transmitted and received between the radio network controller and the base transceiver station, in Transport Channel Synchronisation specified in 3GPP TS 25.402.
4. A frame transmission timing adjusting method comprising the steps of:
adjusting transmission timings of downlink frames to be sequentially transmitted from a radio network controller to a base transceiver station having a receiving window, after receiving from the base transceiver station a timing adjustment control frame for informing of a difference between a reception timing of a downlink frame applied with a frame sequence number and an expected reception timing of the downlink frame to be received by the base transceiver station, when the downlink frame is received outside of the receiving window by the base transceiver station;
controlling a transmission schedule of the downlink frame not to change, even if another timing adjustment control frame is received in a first period that begins immediately after the transmission timing is adjusted, as a period of ignoring the timing adjustment control frame that has been received; and
changing of the first period in accordance with a change in a transmission delay between the radio network controller and the base transceiver station;
wherein the first period is set to a period α plus a round-trip time, the period α being greater than 0 and smaller than a transmission interval of the downlink frames, the round-trip time being a period from a time when the downlink frame is transmitted to the base transceiver station from the radio network controller to a time when the radio network controller receives the timing adjustment control frame in response to the downlink frame.