TWI895711B - Power-saving system and power-saving method using base station clusters - Google Patents

Abstract

A power-saving system using a cluster of base stations, including multiple base stations set in a service area. The multiple base stations establish multiple clusters, and signal coverage of the multiple clusters fills the service area. The first base station and its first adjacent base station of the multiple base stations belong to a first cluster of the multiple clusters. A coverage area of the first base station partially overlaps with a coverage area of the first adjacent base station. In response to the first base station satisfies a power-saving condition, the first base station activates a deep sleep mode.

Description

Communication system and power saving method using base station cluster

The present invention relates to an energy-saving technology for a communication system, and more particularly to a communication system and a power-saving method utilizing a base station cluster.

In communications systems, base station energy consumption has always been a significant issue, especially in large cities, where high-quality communications services must be provided simultaneously in numerous scenarios, such as commercial districts, residential areas, and transportation hubs. These scenarios have high communication demands and require a large number of base stations to support these services. The high density of base station deployments requires a large amount of power to operate, further increasing base station energy consumption.

While energy-saving technologies are currently being applied in communications systems, the most common ones include base station sleep mode and multi-output power control technology. Sleep mode allows the base station to shut down some or all of its circuits when idle, thereby reducing energy consumption. Multi-output power control, on the other hand, reduces power consumption by adjusting the transmission power of the base station's signals based on the receiver's distance and channel conditions.

However, because existing energy-saving technologies only focus on saving energy at individual base stations, they have certain limitations in improving the overall energy efficiency of the communication system. When the number of base stations is large, existing energy-saving technologies still lead to excessively high energy consumption for the entire communication system. Furthermore, because communication system performance and energy conservation are trade-offs based on different application requirements, existing energy-saving technologies struggle to achieve both energy savings and communication quality.

In view of this, the present invention provides a communication system and power saving method using a base station cluster, which can reduce the energy consumption of the communication system while maintaining communication quality by utilizing the deep sleep of the base station cluster.

An embodiment of the present invention provides a communication system utilizing base station clustering, comprising: a plurality of base stations disposed in a service area, wherein the plurality of base stations form a plurality of clusters, wherein the signal coverage of the plurality of clusters covers the entire service area, wherein a first base station and a first neighboring base station of the plurality of base stations belong to the first of the plurality of clusters, and the coverage area of the first base station partially overlaps with the coverage area of the first neighboring base station, wherein in response to the first base station meeting a power saving condition, the first base station activates a deep sleep mode.

On the other hand, embodiments of the present invention provide a power-saving method utilizing base station clustering, comprising: establishing multiple clusters from multiple base stations located in a service area, wherein the signal coverage of the multiple clusters covers the entire service area, wherein a first base station and a first neighboring base station of the multiple base stations belong to the first cluster of the multiple clusters, and the coverage area of the first base station partially overlaps with the coverage area of the first neighboring base station; and in response to the first base station meeting a power-saving condition, instructing the first base station to activate a deep sleep mode.

Based on the above, the communication system and power-saving method utilizing base station clustering proposed in the present invention combine the characteristics of base station clustering with deep sleep mode to more efficiently utilize these base stations. While maintaining communication system performance, the present invention simultaneously implements deep sleep for base stations, thereby achieving energy savings, reducing communication system operating costs, and improving the energy efficiency of the communication system.

Some embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Component symbols used in the following description will be used to identify identical or similar components when the same component symbols appear in different drawings. These embodiments are only a portion of the present invention and do not disclose all possible implementations of the present invention. Rather, these embodiments are merely examples of the scope of the present invention's patent application. Wherever possible, elements/components/steps with the same reference numbers in the drawings and embodiments represent identical or similar parts. Elements/components/steps with the same reference numbers or the same terminology in different embodiments can be used to refer to each other's related descriptions.

In embodiments of the present invention, the term "base station" or "base station" (BS) may be synonymous with variants or sub-variants of other terms. For example, "gNodeB" (gNB) and "eNodeB" (eNB) are base stations used in 5G and 4G mobile communication systems. In addition, variants or sub-variants such as "Node B," "advanced BS" (ABS), "transmission reception point" (TRP), unlicensed TRP, base transceiver system (BTS), access point, home BS, relay station, scatterer, repeater, intermediate node, and intermediary may also be used. In embodiments of the present invention, these terms all refer to base stations that can be used to implement communication systems.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system utilizing a base station cluster according to an embodiment of the present invention. Communication system 10 includes multiple base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3. These base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 are deployed within a service area. In one embodiment, communication system 10 may include a server, computer, or computing device responsible for monitoring the operating status of the base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 and for controlling and coordinating their functions.

Multiple base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 can establish multiple clusters. The signal coverage areas of the multiple clusters fill the service area. Figure 1 shows an example of a base station cluster in an embodiment of the present invention. Base station BS1 has signal coverage area CV1. Base station BS2 has signal coverage area CV2. Base station BS3 has signal coverage area CV3. It should be noted that the signal coverage area CV1 and the signal coverage area CV2 have a partial overlap area OV1. The signal coverage area CV1 and the signal coverage area CV3 have a partial overlap area OV2. The signal coverage area CV2 and the signal coverage area CV3 have a partial overlap area OV3. In other words, base station BS1 and base station BS2 are neighboring base stations. Base station BS1 and base station BS3 are neighboring base stations. Base station BS2 and base station BS3 are neighboring base stations.

In one embodiment, a first base station of a plurality of base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 and a first neighboring base station belong to a first cluster of a plurality of clusters, and the coverage area of the first base station partially overlaps with the coverage area of the first neighboring base station. Specifically, in one embodiment, in response to the first base station meeting a power-saving condition, the first base station activates deep sleep mode. The deep sleep mode of a base station is an energy-saving mode that can reduce the energy consumption of the base station. In this embodiment of the present invention, when a base station meets certain power-saving conditions, deep sleep mode can be activated to reduce the energy consumption of the base station. For example, during the late night hours when the number of users is lowest, by activating deep sleep mode for base stations in the cluster and the complementary communication feature of neighboring base stations, the energy consumption of the communication system can be significantly reduced while maintaining communication quality.

Multiple base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 are typically distributed across different locations, forming signal coverage areas CV1, CV2, and CV3, respectively. This embodiment of the present invention utilizes base station clustering to group adjacent base stations into clusters, enabling mutual complementation and reciprocity between base stations, thereby improving the efficiency and performance of the entire communication system. Because the coverage areas of adjacent base stations partially overlap, when one base station enters deep sleep mode, the signal from another base station can still reciprocate to its coverage area, ensuring normal operation of the communication system.

For example, if user U1 is located in overlap area OV1, user U1's communication services can be supported by base stations BS1 and BS2, which are neighboring base stations. If user U2 is located in overlap area OV2, user U2's communication services can be supported by base stations BS1 and BS3, which are neighboring base stations. If user U3 is located in overlap area OV3, user U3's communication services can be supported by base stations BS2 and BS3, which are neighboring base stations. Therefore, for the first cluster to which base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 belong, even if any of base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 enter deep sleep mode, the communication quality of users U1, U2, and U3 within the communication system's service area will not be affected.

Specifically, base station clusters can be organized based on various factors, such as geographic location, frequency of interaction between base stations, and user distribution. Within each cluster, a primary base station provides primary communication services, while other base stations serve as secondary base stations, providing additional support. Because each cluster's signal coverage spans the entire service area, energy savings can be achieved without compromising communication quality. For example, a metropolitan area typically has a large number of base stations dispersed across various locations. By organizing these base stations into clusters, efficient energy utilization is achieved. Within a cluster, the primary base station can provide stable bandwidth and transmission rates during peak hours, while other base stations can enter deep sleep mode during off-peak hours, saving energy. Furthermore, the configuration of base station clusters can adapt to changes in user behavior and network traffic. For example, in a commercial area, many users use the mobile network during the day on weekdays, but use is reduced during the evenings and weekends. In this case, base station clusters can be deployed around the commercial area, and some base stations can be placed into deep sleep mode during off-peak hours, thereby saving overall communication system energy consumption.

FIG2 is a flow chart of a power saving method according to an embodiment of the present invention. The method shown in FIG2 is applicable to the communication system 10 shown in FIG1 . In step S201, a plurality of base stations located in a service area establish a plurality of clusters, wherein the signal coverage of the plurality of clusters covers the entire service area. A first base station of the plurality of base stations and a first neighboring base station belong to the first cluster of the plurality of clusters, and the coverage area of the first base station partially overlaps with the coverage area of the first neighboring base station. In step S202, in response to the first base station meeting a power saving condition, the first base station is instructed to activate a deep sleep mode.

In this embodiment of the present invention, base station clustering plays an important role. Because the signal coverage areas of adjacent base stations in a base station cluster partially overlap, mutual complementation and reciprocity between base stations can be achieved. A base station cluster is a communication system structure that can be established by multiple base stations.

When establishing a base station cluster, neighboring base stations are grouped according to areas where their coverage overlaps. This grouping process considers the complementary and reciprocal relationships between base stations to select the appropriate base stations for grouping. Furthermore, each base station cluster also implements coordinated operation between base stations, ensuring that if one base station enters deep sleep mode, other base stations can reciprocate to cover the overlapping area, thus guaranteeing communication quality.

In one embodiment, the most heavily used base station in the service area is selected as the first station, and other stations are selected sequentially until a complete base station cluster is established. Specifically, the most heavily used base station in each sub-area of the service area is first identified as the first station in the base station cluster. Next, all neighboring base stations of the first station are ranked from highest to lowest by the number of handovers that have occurred within a certain period of time, such as a week, and the percentage of these handovers relative to the total number of handovers is calculated. Starting with the highest-ranked neighboring base station, the second station in the base station cluster is identified one by one, and the next stations are selected sequentially. The percentage of handovers is accumulated to complete the establishment of a base station cluster. Repeat the above steps and then create the next cluster until the service area is fully covered by the signal coverage of multiple base stations in the base station cluster.

In practical applications, to determine which base stations in a base station cluster are suitable for entering deep sleep mode, it is necessary to determine whether to activate the base station's deep sleep mode power-saving conditions. The power-saving conditions need to consider various factors, such as system load, base station operating status, average number of users on the base station, the number of hours the base station is in deep sleep mode, and/or the number of base stations in deep sleep. Through system monitoring, deep sleep mode is activated for a base station when the power-saving conditions are met, thereby achieving a balance between base station energy conservation and communication quality. In one embodiment, the power-saving conditions include a first determination condition. The first determination condition includes determining whether the average number of users of the first base station is less than a first threshold. In one embodiment, the power saving condition further includes a second judgment condition, which includes determining whether the number of consecutive hours that the first judgment condition is met is greater than a second threshold. In one embodiment, the power saving condition further includes a third judgment condition, which includes determining whether the number of hours the first base station has been in deep sleep mode is less than a third threshold. In one embodiment, the power saving condition further includes a fourth judgment condition, which includes determining whether the number of base stations in deep sleep mode is less than a fourth threshold.

3 is a flow chart of determining whether a base station meets the power saving condition in an embodiment of the present invention. The communication system 10 begins to determine whether a base station meets the power saving condition and proceeds to step S301.

In step S301, communication system 10 determines whether the base station meets a first determination condition. The first determination condition includes determining whether the average number of users of the base station is less than a first threshold. If the determination result in step S301 is "yes," the process proceeds to step S302. If the determination result in step S301 is "no," the power saving condition determination process is restarted.

Specifically, the average number of users using a base station is related to the base station's load. Base station load refers to the number of users actively using the base station in a communications system. When system load is low, the system can use fewer base stations to achieve the same coverage, thereby reducing system energy consumption. The average number of users using a base station refers to the average number of users connected to the base station over a period of time. The average number of users using a base station is closely related to the base station's load. When the average number of users using a base station is high, it means that the base station has a large number of users connected and the base station is under high load. In this case, the base station enters deep sleep mode, which affects communication quality. Therefore, the first judgment condition is to find base stations with low load conditions over a period of time. In one embodiment, the measurement period is "30 days" and the first threshold is set to "0.5". This means that base stations with an average number of users less than 0.5 over a period of 30 days meet the first judgment condition.

In step S302, communication system 10 determines whether the base station meets the second determination condition. The second determination condition includes determining whether the number of consecutive hours that the base station meets the first determination condition is greater than a second threshold. If the determination result in step S302 is "yes," the process proceeds to step S303. If the determination result in step S302 is "no," the power saving condition determination process is restarted.

The second judgment condition is designed to identify base stations experiencing prolonged periods of low load. When the average number of users at a base station is determined to be less than the first threshold, the base station's load status can be determined based on the first judgment condition. The second judgment condition dynamically manages base stations by determining the duration of such usage. In one embodiment, the second threshold is set to "2 hours." This means that when the average number of users at a base station is less than the first threshold and the duration of such usage is greater than the second threshold, the base station is considered to be at an appropriate point in time to activate deep sleep mode.

In step S303, communication system 10 determines whether the base station meets a third determination condition. The third determination condition includes determining whether the number of hours the base station has been in deep sleep mode is less than a third threshold. If the determination result in step S303 is "yes," the process proceeds to step S304. If the determination result in step S303 is "no," the power saving condition determination process is restarted.

The third judgment condition is to prevent base stations found in the cluster from being in deep sleep mode for extended periods of time, which could prevent the base station from quickly responding to user communication requests, impacting communication quality and user experience. If a base station's deep sleep time exceeds the third threshold, it indicates that the base station may have been in sleep mode for an extended period, necessitating further adjustments to the base station cluster configuration. In one embodiment, the third threshold is set to 18 hours, eliminating base stations that have been in deep sleep mode for excessive periods of time.

In step S304, communication system 10 determines whether the base station meets the fourth determination condition. The fourth determination condition includes determining whether the number of base stations in deep sleep is less than a fourth threshold. If the determination result in step S304 is "yes," the process proceeds to step S305. If the determination result in step S304 is "no," the power saving condition determination process is restarted.

The fourth judgment condition ensures that a certain number of base stations in the base station cluster remain capable of maintaining communication quality. If too many base stations enter deep sleep mode, the base station cluster will lose full signal coverage in the service area, impacting the user's communication experience. In one embodiment, the fourth threshold is set to half the total number of base stations in the cluster, meaning that each cluster will retain at least half of its base stations to maintain a balance between energy conservation and performance in the communication system.

In step S305, in response to the base station meeting the power saving conditions, namely the first judgment condition, the second judgment condition, the third judgment condition, and the fourth judgment condition, the communication system 10 instructs the base station meeting the power saving conditions to activate the deep sleep mode.

It should be noted that the aforementioned first, second, third, and fourth judgment conditions can be combined based on the actual system conditions and application scenario requirements. In some embodiments, the communication system 10 may independently determine the first, second, third, and/or fourth judgment conditions. For example, the communication system may implement stricter control over the first and third judgment conditions to prevent excessive base station load and prolonged deep sleep mode from degrading communication quality. In this case, the system may set lower thresholds for the first and third judgment conditions to ensure base station load balancing and maintain communication quality. For example, the communication system can implement stricter control over the second and fourth criteria to ensure communication quality and coverage integrity. In this case, the system can set lower thresholds for the second and fourth criteria, thereby increasing the number of base stations and ensuring the availability of the base station cluster.

Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating the time-varying power consumption of base stations in an embodiment of the present invention. In Figure 4, the vertical axis represents power consumption (P) and the horizontal axis represents time (T). Figure 4 shows that this embodiment significantly reduces overall system power consumption during periods when base stations enter multiple periods of deep sleep mode (SLP). Specifically, when the system determines that a base station meets power-saving requirements, it instructs the base station to activate deep sleep mode (SLP). At this point, through the mutual and reciprocal complementation of the base station cluster, base station usage is effectively balanced and controlled, ensuring load balancing and maintaining communication quality.

Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing the variation of the amount of data transmitted by a base station over time in an embodiment of the present invention. In Figure 5, the vertical axis represents the amount of data transmitted (V), and the horizontal axis represents time (T). As can be seen from Figure 5, in an embodiment of the present invention, after the system determines that a base station meets power-saving conditions and activates the deep sleep mode (SLP), the amount of data transmitted by the base station will decrease. This is because the load status of the base station is taken into account during the deep sleep mode (SLP), and therefore the base station load is relatively small during the deep sleep mode (SLP). However, Figure 5 also shows that even during the deep sleep mode (SLP), the amount of data transmitted can still be maintained as required by the user. In other words, the deep sleep technology of the base station in the embodiment of the present invention, based on the cluster concept, achieves the technical effect of saving energy while maintaining the performance of the communication system.

In summary, embodiments of the present invention provide a communication system and power-saving method utilizing base station clustering. By combining base station clustering with a deep sleep mode, these methods achieve the technical benefits of conserving energy while maintaining communication system performance. Compared to existing communication system energy-saving methods, the present embodiments utilize base station clustering to achieve energy savings, reducing communication system operating costs and improving the system's energy efficiency. By reducing the energy consumption of the communication system through base station clustering and a deep sleep mode, the present embodiments not only achieve energy and carbon savings but also improve the operational efficiency of the communication system, thereby promoting the sustainable development of the communication system.

Although the present invention has been disclosed above by way of embodiments, they are not intended to limit the present invention. Any person having ordinary skill in the art may make slight modifications and improvements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention shall be determined by the scope of the attached patent application.

10: Communication System BS1, BS2, BS3: Base Stations U1, U2, U3: Users CV1, CV2, CV3: Signal Coverage OV1, OV2, OV3: Overlap Area S201, S202, S301, S302, S303, S304, S305: Steps P: Power Consumption T: Time V: Transmitted Data Volume SLP: Deep Sleep

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system utilizing a base station cluster according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a flow chart of a power saving method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a flow chart of determining whether a base station meets power saving conditions according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the time-varying power consumption of a base station according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating the time-varying amount of data transmitted by a base station according to an embodiment of the present invention.

10: Communication System BS1, BS2, BS3: Base Stations U1, U2, U3: Users CV1, CV2, CV3: Signal Coverage OV1, OV2, OV3: Overlap Area

Claims (2)

A communication system utilizing a base station cluster includes: a plurality of base stations arranged in a service area, wherein the plurality of base stations establish a plurality of clusters, wherein the signal coverage ranges of the plurality of clusters cover the entire service area, wherein a first base station and a first neighboring base station of the plurality of base stations belong to a first cluster of the plurality of clusters, and the coverage area of the first base station partially overlaps with the coverage area of the first neighboring base station, wherein in response to the first base station meeting a power saving condition, the first base station activates a deep sleep mode, wherein the power saving condition includes a first judgment condition, a second judgment condition, a third judgment condition, and a fourth judgment condition, wherein the first judgment condition includes: determining whether the average number of users of the first base station is less than a first threshold value; and when the judgment condition is satisfied, the first base station activates a deep sleep mode. When the average number of users is less than the first threshold, the first judgment condition is determined to be met. The second judgment condition includes: determining whether the number of consecutive hours during which the first judgment condition is met is greater than a second threshold; and when it is determined that the number of consecutive hours is greater than the second threshold, the second judgment condition is determined to be met. The third judgment condition includes: determining whether the number of hours the first base station has been in a deep sleep mode is less than a third threshold; and when it is determined that the number of hours in the deep sleep mode is less than the third threshold, the third judgment condition is determined to be met. The third judgment condition includes: determining whether the number of base stations in deep sleep is less than a fourth threshold; and when it is determined that the number of base stations is less than the fourth threshold, the fourth judgment condition is determined to be met. A power saving method using base station clustering includes: establishing a plurality of clusters by using a plurality of base stations arranged in a service area, wherein the signal coverage ranges of the plurality of clusters cover the entire service area, wherein a first base station and a first neighboring base station of the plurality of base stations belong to the first cluster of the plurality of clusters, and the coverage area of the first base station and the coverage area of the first neighboring base station partially overlap; and in response to the first base station meeting a power saving condition, instructing the first base station to activate a deep sleep mode, wherein the power saving condition includes a first judgment condition, a second judgment condition, a third judgment condition, and a fourth judgment condition, wherein the first judgment condition includes: judging whether the average number of users of the first base station is less than a first threshold value; and judging whether the average number of users of the first base station is less than a first threshold value when the average number of users of the first base station is less than a first threshold value. When the total number of users is less than the first threshold, the first judgment condition is determined to be met. The second judgment condition includes: determining whether the number of consecutive hours during which the first judgment condition is met is greater than a second threshold; and when it is determined that the number of consecutive hours is greater than the second threshold, the second judgment condition is determined to be met. The third judgment condition includes: determining whether the number of hours the first base station has been in a deep sleep mode is less than a third threshold; and when it is determined that the number of hours in the deep sleep mode is less than the third threshold, the third judgment condition is determined to be met. The third judgment condition includes: determining whether the number of base stations in deep sleep is less than a fourth threshold; and when it is determined that the number of base stations is less than the fourth threshold, the fourth judgment condition is determined to be met.