Patent ID: 9723647
Date: 2017-08-01
CPC Classifications: H04W

Claim:
1. A method for handling a radio link failure in a communications system, the method comprising: in response to detecting, in a first user terminal, a radio link problem during a first phase of a radio link failure, transmitting an indication of a detection of the radio link problem from the first user terminal to a second user terminal over a device-to-device link; receiving, in the first user terminal from the second user terminal over the device-to-device link, a confirmation on a status of a report on the radio link problem detection of the first user terminal, the report being sent from the second user terminal to a network apparatus, the confirmation on the status of the report being based on an acknowledgement sent by the network apparatus to the second user terminal; based on the confirmation, deciding in the first user terminal whether to stop a first radio link failure timer, reset the first radio link failure timer or extend the first radio link failure timer; wherein the method further comprises: indicating a selected cell to the network apparatus in order the network to be able to prepare the selected cell for first user terminal's access, wherein when the first user terminal selects a cell of a different network apparatus after the radio failure is detected, the first user terminal indicates to the network via the second user terminal a cell identifier of the selected cell and the cell serving the first user terminal before the radio link failure happens; and recovering the first user terminal from the radio link failure, wherein activity is resumed in the first user terminal by requesting RRC connection re-establishment to the selected cell without going via an RRC_IDLE mode.