HK1084810A - System and method for battery conservation with assistance from the network and radio resource management - Google Patents

Description

System and method for battery storage assisted by network and radio resource management

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a wireless transmit/receive unit (wtru) battery reservation in a wireless communication system, and more particularly, to a method for achieving wtru battery reservation with network and radio data management (RRM).

Background

It is well known that battery life of a wtru is an important characteristic of the quality of service perceived by end users, and how to conserve battery life is a desirable achievement in the design of wireless communication systems. Some prior systems and methods of conserving battery power have been directed to reducing power to at least some wireless transmit/receive units to conserve battery life. For example, U.S. patent number 5,539,925 discloses that a base station sends a signal to a mobile station in a message to shut down the mobile station for a period of time. After the "off" time has expired, the mobile station will automatically resume to determine if it needs to remain active, or shut down for an additional period of time.

U.S. patent number 6,463,042 discloses a method in which a wireless terminal receives a header packet and evaluates the power level of the header packet. The wireless terminal then receives a portion of a subsequent data packet and evaluates the power level of the data packet.

The power level of the header packet is compared with the power level of the data packet. If the power levels are approximately equal, the wireless terminal receives and processes the remaining portions of the data packet. If the power level of the header packet is greater than the power level of the data packet, which is an indication that the base station is operating in a quasi-interrupt transmission (Q-DTX) mode, the wireless terminal may disregard the remainder of the data packet and place some of its components in a low power mode.

In U.S. patent number 6,463,307, a base station or mobile station issues a sleep request. Parameters associated with the sleep period, including when to wake up the mobile terminal to check for a pager message, or whether the mobile terminal has a data packet to send, are set by the base station and transmitted to the mobile terminal. After the sleep period, if any waiting paging message exists, the mobile terminal is awakened and checks the paging message. If there is no paging message, it should be determined whether the mobile terminal has to send out the message packet. If the information packet is to be sent, the mobile terminal is awakened and sends out the packet. If there is no packet to be sent, the mobile terminal returns to the sleep mode.

The above-described systems and methods relate only to turning off power to components to conserve battery power, and not to conserving battery power when the wtru is actively transmitting. Therefore, it is most desirable to achieve battery savings when the wtru is actively transmitting.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention can make Radio Resource Management (RRM) in the radio network side reduce battery consumption of a wireless transmission/reception unit (wireless transmission/reception unit). The wireless transmit/receive unit reports its battery potential information to the network. The RRM in the network may then make decisions to maximize the battery life of the wtru while maintaining the required quality of service (QoS) and system capacity. Based on the reported battery level, different RRMs may take actions regarding call admission control, congestion control, user link maintenance, handover, power control, block error rate target (BLER), and application configuration. The description of the invention refers to the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Frequency Division Duplex (FDD)/Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, but is applicable to any wireless system, including the IEEE 802.11 and global systems for mobile communications (GSM).

According to the method for battery conservation in wireless communication of the present invention, a request for battery potential measurement of a wireless transmit/receive unit (wtru) by a rnc (rnc) is initiated. The battery potential is measured at the wtru and reported to the rnc. The battery level measurements are stored in the rnc, which can be accessed by the RRM process. The battery level measurement is applied to the RRM procedure to adjust the procedure according to the battery level measurement, so that the battery of the wtru is reserved.

Drawings

A more particular understanding of the invention may be derived from the following description of the preferred embodiments, given by way of example, and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates RRM actions of a Radio Network Controller (RNC) based on the battery level of a WTRU;

FIG. 2 is a flow chart of the radio network controller RRM behavior when receiving the battery level of the WTRU;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a call admission control process incorporating checking of the battery level of a wireless transmit/receive unit;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart incorporating a congestion control procedure for checking the battery potential of a wireless transmit/receive unit;

FIGS. 5a-5c are flow charts of a subscriber link maintenance procedure incorporating checking the battery potential of a wireless transmit/receive unit; and

fig. 6 is a flow chart incorporating a process of checking the delivery of the battery potential of a wireless transmit/receive unit.

Detailed Description

The implementation of the present invention is illustrated in the following preferred embodiments, which can be applied to a UMTS (FDD/TDD) system. The present invention is applicable to any wireless system, including IEEE 802.11 and GSM. Thereafter, a wireless transmit/receive unit includes, but is not limited to, a user equipment, a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a pager, or any other type of device capable of operating in a wireless environment. Reference hereinafter to a base station includes, but is not limited to, a base station, a node B, a base station controller, an access point or other interfacing device in a wireless environment.

Fig. 1 shows the exchange of information in a UTMS system 100, the system 100 including a wtru 102 and a rnc 104. The wtru 102 reports its battery potential to the network as follows. The rnc 104 requests the wtru 102 to report its battery level measurements, i.e., sends a measurement control message 110 in the downlink. In message 110, the rnc 104 configures the wtru 102 with measurement reporting criteria, such as a frequency report of a periodic reference report or a threshold of a threshold reference report. The wtru 102 sends a measurement report message 112 reporting its battery level according to a reporting criteria specified by the rnc 104. To conserve battery power, the report message 112 may be transmitted simultaneously with other measurements. For example, in a UMTS network, the battery potential may be reported (i.e., via Radio Resource Control (RRC) signals) in a manner similar to any measurement.

The information contained in the report message 112 may include the remaining minutes of talk time and the remaining minutes of idle time. This number can be an instantaneous value based on the current transmission environment and the current service type (voice or data) or an average based on the previous X minute condition. The wtru 102 may be configured to periodically transmit the reporting message 112 or to send the reporting message 112 when a threshold is reached. The periodic report may range from one second to ten minutes, with one minute being a preferred default. For threshold-based reporting, the wtru may take frequency measurements, but only send a measurement report to the rnc when a certain threshold is reached. The types of evaluation thresholds include low, medium and high thresholds, which will be discussed in detail below.

The RRM in the rnc 104 makes the decision based on the reported battery level of the wtru 102. Generally, RRM uses the measurement to make the decision as is typical for each type of decision used in this technology, and the battery level of the wtru 102 is used as an additional criterion. Other measurements used by RRM include downlink Interference Signal Code Power (ISCP), Received Signal Code Power (RSCP) and path loss.

The procedure affected by the cell potential measurement will be discussed in detail below. The admission control process 120 is triggered by an admission request 122 from the wtru 102, which is considered to be a handshake between the wtru 102 and the rnc 104. The admission control 120 indicates that a call has been admitted by issuing an admission response 124. A congestion control process 130 sends a signal 132 to configure the wtru 102 to a new transmission rate. A link maintenance program 140 sends a signal 142 to configure the wtru 102 to a new transmission rate. A handoff procedure 150 issues a signal 152 to configure the wtru 102 as handoff. A power control routine 160 sends a signal 162 to change the BLER target for the wtru 102.

Fig. 2 illustrates RRM behavior 200 in the rnc 104 after receiving the battery level report message 112 from the wtru 102. The RRM in the rnc 104 first receives the wtru battery measurement report message 112 (step 202). The rnc RRM then updates the wtru battery level parameters and stores them in the database (step 204). All other procedures have access to this parameter because the procedure is specifically changed based on the wtru battery potential, as described in each of the procedures below. Three cell potential thresholds were used as trigger waves: low, medium and high. These thresholds are the same as the thresholds for threshold-based battery potential reporting described above. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the particular battery potential and threshold are design parameters that vary with each implementation. Therefore, these specific potentials and thresholds will not be described further.

The wtru battery level is checked to determine if it is below a low threshold (step 206). If the battery level is above the low threshold, then the wtru battery level is checked (step 210) to determine if it is above the medium threshold. The higher the BLER target, the higher the required transmission power, and the faster the battery drain. Therefore, it is desirable that the BLER target should be adjusted according to the battery potential. If the battery level is below the intermediate threshold, the BLER target is maintained (step 212) and the process terminates (step 214).

If the battery level is above the medium threshold (step 210), the BLER target number is determined to be a "high BLER" target (step 220). Next, the compressed current potential is examined (step 222). If the current compression potential is the highest potential for compression, then switch to a lower compression potential (step 224) and terminate the process (step 214). Otherwise, the current compression potential is maintained and the process terminates (step 214).

If the wtru battery level is below the low threshold (step 206), then the BLER target is set to a "low BLER" target (step 230) to extend battery life. Next, link maintenance is triggered (step 232) to reduce the battery drain rate, as explained below. The configuration and compression potential are applied for adjustment (step 234) to conserve battery power, as described below. The routine then terminates (step 214).

Call admission control

Referring now to fig. 3, a Call Admission Control (CAC) procedure 300 begins with triggering CAC (step 302) when wtru 102 admits a call from rnc 104 (signal 122 in fig. 1). Whereupon the battery potential of the wtru is checked (step 304). The next step taken by CAC routine 300 is directly related to the battery potential and whether the current call is true (indicated by "RT" in fig. 3) or not (indicated by "NRT" in fig. 3). .

If the battery level is low, the CAC only allows guaranteed bit rates to be delivered to a cell for true calls, and only allows minimum bit rates (TFC1) to be delivered to a cell for non-true calls (step 306). If the battery level is medium, the CAC only allows calls at the guaranteed bit rate for true calls and allows calls at TFC2 (the second lowest bit rate) or lower bit rates for false calls (step 308). If the battery potential is high, the CAC will allow calls at the maximum bit rate or lower rate, either true or not (step 310). The CAC behavior according to the cell potential is summarized in the table below.

TABLE 1 according to the batteryPotential CAC behavior

Potential of battery	CAC behavior (real time service)	CAC behavior (non-real time service)
			1. Is low in	Only allowed to be delivered to a unit and considering guaranteed bit rates for entry decisions and physical resource management. Not allowing other types of access	Only allowed to be delivered to one cell and considered to be delivered to TFC1 (lowest rate) determined by the incoming. Actual resources are specified according to the accepted bit rate. Other accesses are not allowed.
2. Medium and high grade	Considering only the guaranteed bit rate of the incoming decision and assigning physical resources according to the guaranteed bit rate	Consider the lower rate entering TFC2 (second lowest rate) decision. Specifying physical data based on the received bit rate (wherein TFC4 rate > TFC3 rate > TFC2 rate > TFC1 rate > 0)
			3. Height of	Maximum bit rate considering entry decision and assignment of physical resources based on accepted bit rate	Maximum bit rate taking into account entry decisions and assigning physical resources based on accepted bit rate

After determining the current wtru battery level bit rate (step 306, 308 or 310), CAC process 300 proceeds to step 312 and checks the cell load to determine the allowable call entry bit rate. The accepted bit rate for the call is selected by selecting a lower entry rate and is determined by the battery potential and cell load (step 314). Finally, the physical resources for the call are allocated (step 316), and the process terminates (step 318).

In addition to conventional criteria for determining whether to admit a user and the incoming bit rate (i.e., interference, carrier power, cell load), rnc 104 adjusts the specified bit rate depending on wtru battery level. The criteria evaluated for CAC are related to the programming and are different in each known CAC program.

In addition, code blocking in TDD for low battery wireless transmit/receive units is minimized. There are typically multiple schemes for specifying the Orthogonal Variable Spreading Factor (OVSF) required for a call, depending on the number of time slots used and which code to use in the tree. The less time slots are used, the lower the partitioned block storage of the code. To minimize the block storage, the rnc RMM should allocate codes within the minimum time interval. This may reduce the likelihood that the wtru 102 will raise its power level when it is further away from the base station. Once the call has been admitted, the rnc 104 sends a response message to the wtru (signal 124 of fig. 1).

Congestion control

Congestion control performs rate reduction and rate restoration in both the uplink and downlink. In the present invention, the wtru's battery level must be considered in performing rate recovery in the uplink and in performing rate reduction in the downlink. Fig. 4 shows a flow chart of a congestion control procedure 400 of the present invention. Note that the criteria used in the congestion control procedure 400 are related to the design of the procedure. Fig. 4 shows a slow congestion control procedure that uses average noise rise in the uplink and average transmit power in the downlink to determine whether to trigger rate control. It should be appreciated that the slow congestion control procedure is only an example, and the present invention can be applied to any congestion control procedure.

Referring to fig. 4, a congestion control procedure 400 begins with receiving interference and transmit power measurement reports for each user (step 402). Second, the average noise rise in the uplink and the transmit power in the downlink are calculated for all users (step 404). These measurements are stored in the rnc and used several times during this procedure. When evaluating the uplink, a determination is made as to whether the average noise rise exceeds a rate reduction threshold (step 406). If the average noise rise is above the rate reduction threshold, then the rate reduction is performed for the user at the highest interference level (step 408), and the process terminates (step 409).

If the average noise rise is below the rate reduction threshold (step 406), the average noise rise is compared to the rate recovery threshold to make a separate determination (step 410). If the average noise rises above the rate recovery threshold, then rate recovery need not be implemented (step 412) and the process terminates (step 409). If the average noise rises above the rate recovery threshold, the user with the lowest measured interference is selected (step 414). As described above, the interference of all users at step 402 is measured and may be stored at step 402 or at step 414. Next, the battery level of the selected subscriber's wtru checks to determine if it is below the low battery level (step 416). If the battery potential is above the low potential, then rate recovery is performed for the selected user (step 418), where the process terminates (step 409). If the battery level is below the low level, the next user will be selected as the candidate table for rate recovery (step 420), and step 416 is repeated.

On the downlink, the average transmit power is compared to a rate reduction threshold (step 430). If the average transmit power is below the rate reduction threshold, the average transmit power is compared to the rate recovery threshold to make another determination (step 432). If the average transmit power is above the rate recovery threshold, then rate control need not be resorted to (step 434), and the process terminates (step 409). If the average transmit power is below the rate recovery threshold, then rate recovery is performed for the user at the lowest transmit power (step 436), where the routine terminates (step 409). As described above, the transmission power per user is stored in step 402, and may be stored in step 402 or step 436.

If the average transmit power is above the rate reduction threshold (step 430), then the user with the highest transmit power is selected (step 438). Next, the wtru battery level of the selected subscriber is checked to determine if it is below the low battery level (step 440). If the battery level is above the low level, then a power reduction is performed for the selected user (step 442), and the process is terminated (step 409). If the battery level is below the low level, step 440 is repeated the next time a user is selected as in the reduced rate list (step 444).

In the uplink procedure 400, if the rnc 104 detects that the congestion condition has resolved (the average noise rise is below the rate recovery threshold), the rnc 104 uses the battery level of the wtru 102 as a criterion. Increasing the uplink transmission rate will drain the battery faster because higher transmission rates use more power than lower transmission rates. Congestion control ranks the wtru 102 as low interference to high interference according to its interference potential. The congestion control then selects the wtru 102 with the lowest interference potential. If the battery level of the wtru is below the low threshold, the congestion control should select the next wtru 102 in the candidate list. If the battery level of the wtru 102 is higher than the low level, rate recovery may be implemented.

In the downlink procedure 400, the radio network controller 104 detects congestion based on the most recently received average of measurements. Upon detection of congestion (average transmit power greater than the rate reduction threshold), the rnc 104 selects the user with the highest transmit power for rate reduction. Lowering the downlink reception bit rate drains the battery faster because the wtru 102 needs more time to receive the same amount of data. Therefore, the rnc 104 uses the battery level of the wtru 102 as an additional criterion for deciding whether to implement power reduction. If the battery level of the selected wtru is below the low threshold, congestion control selects the secondary wtru 102 in the candidate list. Otherwise, a rate reduction may be implemented for the selected ETRU. If the average transmit power is below the rate recovery threshold, rate recovery should be implemented. Increasing the downlink reception bit rate reduces the time that wtru 102 receives the same amount of data, thereby extending battery life. Therefore, the wireless transmit/receive unit 102 battery potential is not a criterion for rate recovery in the downlink.

Once the rate reduction or rate restoration is implemented at the radio network controller 104, the radio network controller 104 reconfigures the wtru 102 to the new rate (signal 132 in fig. 1).

User link maintenance

Referring to fig. 5a-5c, the user link maintenance procedure may be triggered in three different cases, (1) when the radio network controller receives a battery potential measurement report, (2) when the radio transmit/receive unit transmits a power measurement report on the uplink, (3) when the downlink receives a code transmit power measurement.

Fig. 5a shows a user link maintenance procedure 500, which is implemented when a battery potential measurement report is received (step 502). It is determined whether the wtru battery potential is below the low potential (step 504). If the battery level is below the low level, the user bit rate is decreased for uplink operation and increased for downlink operation (step 506), where the procedure terminates (step 507).

If the battery potential is higher than the lower potential (step 504), then a separate determination is made as to whether the battery potential is higher than the high potential (step 508). If the battery level is lower than the high level, the link rate control is not required to be resorted to (step 510), and the process terminates (step 507). If the battery level is higher than the high level, then a separate decision is made to determine if the user's link rate is being reduced by triggering a queue-ready measurement report (step 512), and by another rate reduction procedure. If the link rate has not been previously reduced, a determination is made whether the transmit power and the measured interference are too low (step 514). If the transmit power is not low relative to the measured interference, then link rate control need not be resorted to (step 510), and the routine then terminates (step 507). If both the transmission power and the measured interference are low, rate recovery is performed, wherein the user rates on the uplink and downlink are recovered to the rates used before the rate reduction (step 516) and the sequencing is terminated (step 507).

Fig. 5b shows a user link maintenance procedure 520 which is implemented upon receipt of the transmit power of the wtru in the uplink (step 522). The wtru transmit power is checked to determine if it is above a rate reduction threshold (step 524). If the transmit power is above the rate reduction threshold, then rate reduction is performed (step 526) and the procedure terminates (step 527). If the transmit power is below the rate reduction threshold (step 524), a separate determination is made to determine if the wtru transmit power is below the rate recovery threshold (step 528). If the transmit power is below the rate recovery threshold, another determination is made to determine if the wtru battery potential is below a low level (step 530). If the battery potential is higher than the low potential, then rate recovery is performed (step 532) and the process terminates (step 527). If the battery potential is below the low potential, rate recovery is not implemented (step 534) and the process terminates (step 527). If the transmit power is above the rate recovery threshold (step 528), no rate recovery is performed (step 534) and the process terminates (step 527).

Fig. 5c shows a user link maintenance procedure 540, which is performed after receiving code transmit power measurements in the downlink (step 542). After the code transmit power check, a determination is made as to whether the code transmit power is above a rate reduction threshold (step 544). If the code transmit power rate is below the rate recovery threshold, a determination is made as to whether the code transmit power is below the rate recovery threshold (step 546). If the code transmit power is above the rate recovery threshold, then link rate control need not be resorted to (step 548), and the process terminates (step 549). If the code transmit power is above the rate recovery threshold, then rate recovery is performed (step 550) and the routine terminates (step 549).

If the code transmit power is above the rate reduction threshold (step 544), the wtru battery level needs to be checked if it is below the low level (step 522). If the battery level is higher than the low level, a rate reduction is performed (step 554) and the process terminates (step 549). If the battery potential is below the low level, no rate reduction is performed (step 556), and the process terminates (step 549).

The wtru battery measurement report may be a trigger for a user link maintenance procedure. If the rnc 104 receives the battery report message 112 indicating a low battery level, the wtru bit rate on the uplink is reduced to reduce the battery consumption rate, which is particularly useful for long distance calls. Radio network controller 104 configures wireless transmit/receive unit 102 to be a low bit rate (signal 142 in fig. 1). In the downlink, the rnc 104 increases the bit rate transmitted to the wtru 102, thereby reducing the on-time of the wtru 102. If the rnc 104 receives the battery report message 112 indicating that the battery level is higher than the low level, the uplink and downlink link rates will return to the rates before the last rate reduction if the bit rate has decreased because of the low battery.

In the downlink, the rnc 104 uses another criterion of rate reduction for the battery level of the wtru 102, as triggered by another measurement, such as code transmit power, for example, as triggered by user link maintenance. The criteria used are related to the link maintenance control procedures 500, 520, 540. Different methods of implementing link maintenance control may utilize different standards. For example, the link maintenance control procedure described above utilizes the uplink wtru transmit power and the downlink code transmit power. If the battery level of the wtru is below the low level, decreasing the downlink bit reception bit rate will increase the time that the wtru 102 receives the same amount of data, thereby consuming the battery power of the wtru 102 more quickly, and thus link maintenance should not decrease the wtru 102 reception bit rate.

In the uplink, e.g., where uplink maintenance is triggered by another measurement, e.g., the transmit power of wtru R, rnc 104 utilizes the battery level of wtru 102 as an additional criterion for rate recovery. If the wtru battery level is below the low threshold, increasing the uplink transmission bit rate will drain the battery faster. Thus, link maintenance should not increase the transmission bit rate of wtru 102.

Delivery of

FIG. 6 shows a delivery process 600 of the present invention. The rnc first receives a handover request (step 602) and checks that the handover request is pending without waiting (step 604). If no other requests are submitted, the wtru with the lowest battery potential is selected (step 606). Next, a number of soft handover legs are determined, which number should be kept to a minimum when operating in FDD (step 608). If there are no additional requests at step 604, step 606 skips and the process continues to step 608. Finally, the delivery is performed (step 610) and the procedure terminates (step 612).

A high priority is given to the wtru 102 (signal 152 of fig. 1) having a low battery potential. The battery potential can be used to determine the number of FDD soft handover legs, the lower the battery potential, the fewer number of handover legs should be specified. In FDD, the wtru 102 may be simultaneously connected to different cell radio links (soft handover leg). The more hands-off pins that are established, the faster the wireless transmit/receive unit battery drains because of the additional processing required by the additional hands-off pins.

Power control

BLER target root radio transmit/receive unit battery potential change. When the call is allowed to enter, the RNC checks the service and determines the BLER target based on the service type. The service type is a quality of service class, such as session, flow, interaction/background, signaling AM/UM, or other service type. There are two possible BLER targets for the rnc RM per service type when considering the wtru battery potential.

The first possible BLER target is a "low quality BLER," which is the lowest BLER that can be used by the network receiver and wtru when the battery potential is below a low threshold. The second possible BLER target is a "high quality BLER", preferably a lower quality BLER, which may be used by the wtru 102 when the battery level is above a medium threshold. A wtru needs to transmit at a higher power to achieve a high quality BLER target, so the battery must have sufficient power to prevent rapid drain.

During a call, power control is triggered based on the wtru battery potential (signal 162 in fig. 1). Table 2 shows two BLER values for several different service types. These values may be job, administration and maintenance configurations (OA & M). The power control procedure may be triggered by a battery potential measurement report, as in steps 220, 230 of fig. 2.

TABLE 2 BLER target for different cell potentials

Communication level	Uplink link		Downlink link
						Low quality	High quality	Low quality	High quality
Conversation	10-2	5×102	102	5×10-2
					Flow path	102	5×10-2	10-2	5×10-2
Interaction/background	10-3	5×10-3	10-2	5×10-3
					Signal AM/UM	10-3	5×10-3	10-2	5×10-3

Application configuration

In the case of non-real time (NRT) calls, the compression layer may be configured to provide multi-potential code compression of code compression. The application configuration uses the battery potential of the wtru 102 as the only criterion to determine the compression potential. The lower the cell potential, the higher the compression potential of the cell configuration. Outside of the application potential, i.e., UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), the application may be optimized to provide information on different potentials. For example, during a network tour, under low battery potential, an application may be configured to only allow downloads of text, but not pictures. The battery level measurement report may trigger the application configuration process, as described in steps 224, 234 of fig. 2.

While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (31)

1. A method for battery conservation in a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc, the method comprising:

requesting a battery level measurement from the wtru by the rnc to the wtru;

measuring a battery potential at the wireless transmit/receive unit;

reporting battery quasi-measurements from the wtru to a rnc;

storing the battery potential measurement in a wireless network controller;

accessing, by a radio resource management program in a radio network controller, a battery level measurement; and

the battery level measurement is applied to the radio resource management procedure, thereby conserving the battery of the wtru due to the procedure adjustments made based on the battery level measurement.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the requesting step includes sending a measurement control message from the rnc to the wtru.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the measurement control message includes measurement reporting criteria.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the reporting step includes sending a measurement report message from the wtru to the rnc.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the measurement report message includes the number of minutes remaining for talk time and the number of minutes remaining for idle time.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the measurement report message includes a percentage of available battery power remaining.

7. A system for battery conservation in a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc, comprising:

a request device, which is used by the wireless network controller to request a battery potential measurement from the wireless transmitting/receiving unit;

a measuring device for measuring the battery potential at the wireless transmit/receive unit;

a reporting device for reporting the battery potential measurement from the wireless transmitting/receiving unit to the wireless network controller;

a storage device for storing the battery potential measurement;

an access device for accessing the battery level measurement by a radio resource management procedure in a radio network controller; and

an applying means for applying the battery potential measurement to a radio resource management procedure, thereby enabling battery conservation of the wtru due to the procedure adjustment based on the battery potential measurement.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the requesting device includes a measurement control message sent from the rnc to the wtru.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the measurement control message includes measurement reporting criteria.

10. The system of claim 7 wherein the reporting means includes a measurement report message sent from the wtru to the rnc.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the measurement report message includes the remaining minutes of talk time and the remaining minutes of idle time.

12. The system of claim 10 wherein the measurement report message includes a percentage of available remaining battery power.

13. The system of claim 7 wherein the storage device comprises a database in a radio network controller.

14. A method for call admission control in a wireless communication system having a wtru and a radio controller, comprising the steps of:

requesting, by the wtru, a call grant from the rnc;

checking a battery potential of a wireless transmit/receive unit and determining a first bit rate based on the battery potential;

checking cell load and determining a second bit rate based on the cell load;

selecting a lower bit rate between the first bit rate and the second bit rate;

allocating physical resources of the call; and

allowing calls at lower bit rates.

15. A method of congestion control in an uplink of a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving an interference report of each user;

(b) calculating the average noise rise of each user;

(c) comparing the noise rise to a rate reduction threshold;

(d) when the average noise rise is greater than a rate reduction threshold, performing rate reduction for the user with the highest interference level, and terminating the method; and

(e) when the average noise rise is less than the rate reduction threshold, then

(i) Comparing the average noise rise to a rate recovery threshold;

(ii) when the average noise rise is less than the rate recovery threshold, then

(A) Ranking users in a candidate list according to interference potentials from lowest to highest;

(B) selecting the user with the lowest interference potential from the candidate list;

(C) checking the selected user wireless transmit/receive unit battery potential;

(D) performing rate recovery for the selected user when the battery potential is below the lower potential, and terminating the method;

(E) when the battery level is higher than the low level, selecting the next user from the candidate list and repeating steps (e) (ii) (C).

16. A method for congestion control in an uplink of a wireless communication system having a wtru and a radio network controller, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving an interference report of each user;

calculating an average noise rise;

congestion relief measures are implemented based on the average noise rise and the wireless transmit/receive unit battery level.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the performing step comprises the steps of:

comparing the average noise rise to a rate reduction threshold;

when the average noise rise is greater than the rate reduction threshold, performing rate reduction and terminating the method for the user with the highest interference level;

when the average noise rise is less than the rate reduction threshold, comparing the average noise rise to a rate recovery threshold; and

when the average noise rise is less than the rate recovery threshold, rate recovery is performed based on the interference level and the battery level of the wtru.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein said performing a rate recovery step comprises the steps of:

ranking users according to interference potential into a candidate list from lowest to highest;

selecting the user with the lowest interference potential from the candidate list;

checking a wireless transmitting/receiving unit battery potential of the selected user;

when the battery potential is below the low potential, implementing a rate recovery and termination method for the selected user;

when the battery level is higher than the low level, the next user is selected from the candidate list and the checking step is repeated.

19. A method for congestion control in a downlink of a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a transmission power report for each user;

(b) calculating the transmission power of each user;

(c) comparing the average transmission power to a rate reduction threshold;

(d) when the average transmission power is greater than the rate reduction threshold, then comparing the average transmission power to a rate reduction threshold;

(i) when the average transmission power is greater than the rate reduction threshold, then performing rate recovery for the user with the lowest transmission power, and terminating the method;

(e) when the average transmit power is less than the rate reduction threshold, then ranking the users in a candidate list based on the transmit power from highest to lowest;

(i) selecting a user with the highest transmission power from the candidate list;

(ii) checking a wireless transmitting/receiving unit battery potential of the selected user;

(iii) performing a rate reduction and terminating the method when the battery potential is below a low potential;

(iv) when the battery level is higher than the low level, selecting the next user from the candidate list and repeating the steps (e) (ii).

20. A method for congestion control in a downlink of a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc, comprising the steps of:

receiving a transmission power report for each user;

calculating the transmission power of each user;

and implementing congestion control measures according to the average transmission power and the battery potential of the wireless transmitting/receiving unit.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the performing step comprises:

comparing the average transmission power to a rate reduction threshold;

comparing the average transmission power with a rate recovery threshold when the average transmission power is greater than the rate reduction threshold;

when the average transmission power rate is greater than the recovery threshold, then implementing the rate recovery of the user with the lowest transmission power and terminating the method;

when the average transmission power is less than a rate reduction threshold, rate reduction is performed based on the average transmission power and the wireless transmit/receive unit cell potential.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the performing a rate reduction step comprises:

ranking users in a candidate list according to transmission power from highest to lowest;

selecting a user with the highest transmission power from the candidate list;

checking a wireless transmitting/receiving unit battery potential of the selected user;

performing a rate reduction and terminating the method when the battery potential is below a low potential;

when the battery potential is above the low potential, then the next user is selected from the candidate list and the checking step is repeated.

23. A method for user link maintenance in a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc (rnc), the method being triggered by receiving a wtru battery potential measurement, and comprising the steps of:

comparing the measured battery potential with a low potential;

when the battery level is below the low level, decreasing the bit rate of the uplink user, increasing the bit rate of a downlink user, and terminating the method;

when the battery potential is higher than the low potential, comparing the battery potential with a high potential;

when the battery level is higher than the high level, determining whether the link rate has previously decreased;

when the link rate has previously decreased, then determining whether a measured transmit power and a measured interference are low;

when both the transmission power and the interference are low, rate recovery is performed, and the uplink rate and the downlink rate of the user are recovered to the last rate before rate reduction occurs.

24. A method for user link maintenance in a wireless communication system having a wireless transmit/receive unit and a radio network controller, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a transmission power measurement of a wireless transmit/receive unit in an uplink;

comparing the power measurement to a rate reduction threshold;

when the power measurement is above a rate reduction threshold, performing a rate reduction and terminating the method;

when the transmission power is below a rate reduction threshold, comparing the power measurement to a rate recovery threshold;

when the power measurement is lower than the rate recovery threshold, checking the battery potential of the wireless transmitting/receiving unit;

when the battery potential of the wireless transmitting/receiving unit is higher than the low potential, the speed recovery is implemented.

25. A method of user link maintenance in a downlink of a wireless communication system having a wireless transmit/receive unit and a radio network controller, the method comprising:

receiving a code transmission power measurement in a downlink;

comparing the power measurement to a rate reduction threshold; and

when the power measurement is above the rate reduction threshold, then

Checking a battery potential of the wireless transmitting/receiving unit; and

when the battery potential is higher than the low potential, the implementation rate is reduced;

when the power measurement is below a rate reduction threshold, comparing the power measurement to a rate recovery threshold;

when the power measurement is below a rate recovery threshold, rate recovery is implemented.

26. A method for performing handover in a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc, comprising the steps of:

receiving a handover request at a radio network controller;

determining whether additional handover requests are waiting at the rnc;

if additional submission requests exist, then

Arranging the wireless transmitting/receiving units by using the battery potential from lowest to highest; and

selecting a wireless transmitting/receiving unit of the lowest battery potential;

determining the number of soft handover legs; and

as few soft hand-offs as possible are utilized to perform the hand-off.

27. A method for power control in a wireless communication system having a wtru and a rnc, comprising the steps of:

obtaining a battery potential measurement from the wireless transmit/receive unit; and

operating parameters of the wireless transmit/receive unit are adjusted in response to the battery potential measurement.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the obtaining step comprises the steps of:

requesting a battery level measurement from the wireless transmit/receive unit by the wireless network controller;

measuring a battery potential at the wireless transmit/receive unit;

reporting the battery potential measurement from the wireless transmit/receive unit to the wireless network controller;

the stored battery potential measurements are stored in a radio network controller.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein the adjusting step comprises the steps of:

comparing the battery potential measurement to a low potential;

configuring the wireless transmit/receive unit to have a low battery potential setting when the battery potential measurement is less than the low potential;

when the battery potential measurement is higher than the low potential, comparing the battery potential with the medium potential;

when the battery potential measurement is greater than the medium potential, then the wireless transmit/receive unit is configured to the high battery potential setting.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein configuring the wtru to have a low battery potential setting comprises:

setting the BLER to a low quality value;

starting a link maintenance procedure; and

application parameters are set to reserve battery life for the highest available compression potential.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein the step of configuring the wtru to a high battery potential setting comprises the steps of;

setting the BLER to a high quality value;

checking the currently used compressive potential; and

when the highest compression potential is utilized, the application parameters are set to use a low compression potential.