Capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communications are described. Some wireless communications systems may support determination of user equipment (UE) capabilities, such as categories or coverage levels for broadcast or multicast content. In some cases, a wireless interface may be configured to take into account the capabilities of an indicated target UE. For example, a base station may receive an indication of the capabilities of a particular target UE. The capabilities of the target UE may be specified by a service provider for delivering multicast or broadcast content and subsequently associated with a wireless interface between the base station and the target UE. The wireless interface may then be configured based on the capabilities of the indicated target UE, for example, by configuring a transport block size or bandwidth. The base station may then use the configured wireless interface to send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the invention patent application with the application date of October 24, 2017, application number 201780085547.8, and invention name “Capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast and multicast services”.

[0002] Cross-references

[0003] This patent application claims the priority of Indian Patent Application No. 2017 / 41004261, filed by Rico Alvarino et al. on February 6, 2017, entitled “CAPABILITY AND COVERAGE DETERMINATION FOR MULTIMEDIA BROADCAST MULTICASTSERVICE”, which is assigned to the assignee of this application and is hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0004] The following relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly, to capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services. Background Art

[0005] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc. These systems may be able to support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, and orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems (e.g., long term evolution (LTE) systems or new radio (NR) systems). A wireless multiple access communication system may include several base stations or access network nodes, each of which simultaneously supports communication for multiple communication devices (which may be further referred to as user equipment (UE)).

[0006] In some wireless communication systems supporting multicast and / or broadcast transmissions, different UEs may have various capabilities, such as being able to support a certain bandwidth or maximum transport block (TB) size on a wireless interface with a base station. Therefore, when UEs with different capabilities are added to the field, the newly added UEs may not support the same capabilities as those being used by other connected UEs. In such cases, it may be desirable to implement techniques for configuring radio resources to accommodate a range of UE capabilities. Summary of the invention

[0007] The described techniques relate to improved methods, systems, devices or apparatuses that support determining UE capabilities, such as categories or coverage levels for broadcast or multicast content, e.g., content provided using a Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS). In summary, the described techniques provide for configuring a wireless interface to take into account the capabilities of an indicated target UE. For example, a base station may receive an indication of the capabilities of a particular target UE. The capabilities of the target UE may be specified by a service provider for delivering MBMS content and subsequently associated with a wireless interface between the base station and the target UE. The wireless interface may then be configured based at least in part on the capabilities of the indicated target UE, e.g., by configuring a transport block size or bandwidth. The base station may then use the configured wireless interface to send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE.

[0008] A method of wireless communication is described. The method may include receiving an indication of target UE capabilities, the target UE capabilities being specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between a base station and a UE; configuring the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the target UE capabilities; and sending the broadcast or multicast content to the UE using the configured wireless interface.

[0009] An apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include: means for receiving an indication of target UE capabilities, the target UE capabilities being specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between a base station and a UE; means for configuring the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the target UE capabilities; and means for sending the broadcast or multicast content to the UE using the configured wireless interface.

[0010] Another apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include: a processor, a memory in electronic communication with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be operable to cause the processor to: receive an indication of target UE capabilities, the target UE capabilities being specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between a base station and a UE; configure the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the target UE capabilities; and send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE using the configured wireless interface.

[0011] A non-transitory computer-readable medium for wireless communication is described. The non-transitory computer-readable medium may include instructions operable to cause a processor to: receive an indication of target UE capabilities, the target UE capabilities being specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between a base station and a UE; configure the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the target UE capabilities; and send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE using the configured wireless interface.

[0012] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include processes, features, units, or instructions for performing the following operations: receiving a category of UE from a network node, and the indication of the target UE capabilities includes the category.

[0013] In some examples of the foregoing methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media, the network node includes a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BMSC), or an MBMS Gateway, or a combination thereof.

[0014] In some examples of the foregoing methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media, the indication of the target UE capabilities includes a quality of service (QoS) class identifier (QCI).

[0015] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: identifying a mapping between a QCI and the following: a maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof. Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: configuring a wireless interface based at least in part on the identified mapping.

[0016] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: receiving one or more temporary mobile group identities (TMGIs) from a network node, the one or more TMGIs including an indication of target UE capabilities. Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: determining a category of the UE based at least in part on the received TMGI, the target UE capabilities including the determined category.

[0017] In some examples of the above methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media, configuring the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the target UE capabilities includes: determining a maximum bandwidth to be used for sending broadcast or multicast content, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof.

[0018] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: receiving an indication of a desired coverage level specified by a service provider from a network node. Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: configuring a wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the desired coverage level, the received indication of the target UE capabilities including an indication of the desired coverage level.

[0019] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: sending a UE report to a network node. Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include a process, feature, unit, or instruction for performing the following operations: receiving an updated indication of target UE capabilities from a network node, and modifying the wireless interface at least in part based on the updated target UE capabilities.

[0020] Another method of wireless communication is described. The method may include receiving an indication of a target UE capability for delivering broadcast or multicast content and associated with a wireless interface between a UE and a base station, identifying supported capabilities of the UE, and receiving the broadcast or multicast content using the wireless interface based at least in part on the identified supported capabilities of the UE and based on the target UE capabilities.

[0021] Another apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include means for receiving an indication of a target UE capability for delivering broadcast or multicast content and associated with a wireless interface between a UE and a base station, means for identifying supported capabilities of the UE, and means for receiving the broadcast or multicast content using the wireless interface based at least in part on the identified supported capabilities of the UE and based on the target UE capabilities.

[0022] Another apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include: a processor, a memory in electronic communication with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be operable to cause the processor to: receive an indication of a target UE capability, the target UE capability being used to deliver broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between a UE and a base station; identify supported capabilities of the UE; and receive the broadcast or multicast content using the wireless interface based at least in part on the identified supported capabilities of the UE and based on the target UE capabilities.

[0023] Another non-transitory computer-readable medium for wireless communication is described. The non-transitory computer-readable medium may include instructions operable to cause a processor to: receive an indication of a target UE capability for delivering broadcast or multicast content and associated with a wireless interface between a UE and a base station; identify supported capabilities of the UE; and receive the broadcast or multicast content using the wireless interface based at least in part on the identified supported capabilities of the UE and based on the target UE capabilities.

[0024] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, the indication of the target UE capabilities may be received from a service provider.

[0025] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include processes, features, units, or instructions for performing the following operations: determining whether the supported capabilities may be compatible with the target UE capabilities, where the target UE capabilities may be UE categories or UE coverage enhancement levels. Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include processes, features, units, or instructions for performing the following operations: monitoring broadcast or multicast content based at least in part on determining that the supported capabilities may be compatible with the target UE capabilities.

[0026] In some examples of the above methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media, the target UE capability may be a UE category or a UE coverage enhancement level.

[0027] In some examples of the above-described methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media, receiving an indication of the target UE capabilities includes: receiving an indication of the target UE capabilities in one or more of the following: a user service description (USD), a single-cell multipoint control channel (SC-MCCH), or a system information block (SIB).

[0028] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include processes, features, units, or instructions for performing the following operations: monitoring downlink control information (DCI) formats based at least in part on the SC-MCCH.

[0029] In some examples of the above methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media, receiving the indication of the target UE capabilities includes receiving the indication of the target UE capabilities in a transmission formatted at least in part based on the minimum supported capabilities of the UE.

[0030] In some examples of the above-mentioned methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media, the target UE capabilities include the maximum supported capabilities of the UE targeted by the service provider, or the minimum supported capabilities of the UE targeted by the service provider, or the actual supported capabilities of the UE targeted by the service provider, or a combination thereof.

[0031] Some examples of the above-mentioned methods, devices, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include processes, features, units or instructions for performing the following operations: sending a request for content by a UE to a content provider, wherein the request for content includes a category of the UE, wherein the received indication of the target UE capabilities may be based at least in part on the category of the UE.

[0032] Some examples of the above methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media may also include processes, features, units, or instructions for sending a report indicating successful reception of the broadcast or multicast content.

[0033] Another method of wireless communication is described. The method may include determining a set of wireless access parameters to be used for delivering broadcast or unicast content; sending the set of wireless access parameters to a network node; receiving a message from at least one UE indicating successful reception of the broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE; and modifying the set of wireless access parameters based at least in part on the received message.

[0034] Another apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include means for determining a set of radio access parameters to be used for delivering broadcast or unicast content; means for sending the set of radio access parameters to a network node; means for receiving a message from at least one UE indicating successful reception of the broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE; and means for modifying the set of radio access parameters based at least in part on the received message.

[0035] Another apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include: a processor, a memory in electronic communication with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be operable to cause the processor to: determine a set of radio access parameters to be used for delivering broadcast or unicast content; send the set of radio access parameters to a network node; receive a message from at least one UE indicating successful reception of the broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE; and modify the set of radio access parameters based at least in part on the received message.

[0036] Another non-transitory computer-readable medium for wireless communication is described. The non-transitory computer-readable medium may include instructions operable to cause a processor to: determine a set of radio access parameters to be used for delivering broadcast or unicast content; send the set of radio access parameters to a network node; receive a message from at least one UE indicating successful reception of the broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE; and modify the set of radio access parameters based at least in part on the received message.

[0037] In some examples of the foregoing methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media, the set of radio access parameters includes one or more of: coverage enhancement level, UE category, maximum bandwidth, or maximum transport block size. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0038] Figure 1

[0013] An example of a wireless communication system supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0039] Figure 2

[0013] An example of a wireless communication system supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0040] Figure 3 and Figure 4 An example of a process flow in a wireless communication system supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0041] Figure 5 and Figure 6 A block diagram of a wireless device supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0042] Figure 7 A block diagram of a base station capabilities and coverage manager supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0043] Figure 8 A block diagram of a system including devices supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services is shown in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0044] Fig. 9 and Fig.10 A block diagram of a wireless device supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0045] Fig.11A block diagram of a UE capability and coverage manager supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0046] Fig.12 A block diagram of a system including devices supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services is shown in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0047] Figures 13 to 17 A flow chart illustrating a method for capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0048] In a multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), broadcast or multicast content provided by a service provider may be sent from a broadcast multicast service center (BMSC) to a base station for distribution to one or more user equipments (UEs) using, for example, single cell point-to-multipoint (SC-PTM) technology. Broadcast or multicast distribution may allow for flexible scheduling and efficient use of resources while limiting the complexity of the operations and hardware necessary to receive data. That is, this in turn may allow for efficient narrowband communications within a network, such as narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) or enhanced machine type communications (MTC) (eMTC).

[0049] However, in MBMS, UEs (e.g., IoT or MTC devices) may have different capabilities (e.g., capable of supporting different transport block (TB) sizes or different bandwidths). Each UE may belong to a category based on its capabilities. However, for example, when another UE is added to the field, the UE may have capabilities that are different from those of the already connected UEs. The service provider may accordingly inform the base station of the configurations supported by the UE through the BMSC. Therefore, a method for efficiently optimizing radio resources for communication of UEs that have not yet established a connection with the corresponding BMSC may be desired.

[0050] In some examples, the service provider may explicitly indicate to the BMSC the class of radio interface for the base station to use with the UE. Additionally or alternatively, the base station may implicitly determine the class based on signaling received from the BMSC. In some cases, a range of service identifiers (e.g., temporary mobile group identities (TMGIs)) may be reserved for the class, and the BMSC may determine the corresponding service identifier based on the class to be used and send it to the base station. The maximum UE capabilities may be indicated correspondingly in a User Service Description (USD) in transit, in a Single Cell Multipoint Control Channel (SC-MCCH), or in a System Information Block (SIB).

[0051] In some examples, different UEs in a deployment of multiple UEs may prefer or use different levels of coverage enhancement. The service provider may correspondingly indicate to the BMSC the desired coverage enhancement for the service. Additionally or alternatively, the BMSC may set a target for a level of successful reception of a transmission and adjust the level of coverage enhancement based on a report from the UE indicating whether the UE successfully received the transmission to achieve the set target.

[0052] Aspects of the disclosure are first described in the context of wireless communication systems. Aspects of the disclosure are further illustrated by and described with reference to apparatus diagrams, system diagrams, and flow diagrams relating to capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services.

[0053] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system 100 that supports capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless communication system 100 includes a base station 105, a UE 115, and a core network 130. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may be a long term evolution (LTE) (or advanced LTE (LTE-A)) network, or a new radio (NR) network. In some cases, the wireless communication system 100 may support enhanced broadband communications, ultra-reliable (i.e., mission-critical) communications, low-latency communications, and communications with low-cost and low-complexity devices. The wireless communication system 100 may support an indication of a UE category to enable efficient implementation of wireless resources for UEs 115 that are not yet communicating with a BMSC.

[0054] The base station 105 can communicate wirelessly with the UE 115 via one or more base station antennas. Each base station 105 can provide communication coverage for the corresponding geographic coverage area 110. The communication link 125 shown in the wireless communication system 100 may include: an uplink (UL) transmission from the UE 115 to the base station 105, or a downlink (DL) transmission from the base station 105 to the UE 115. Control information and data can be multiplexed on an uplink channel or a downlink according to various techniques. For example, time division multiplexing (TDM) technology, frequency division multiplexing (FDM) technology, or hybrid TDM-FDM technology can be used to multiplex control information and data on a downlink channel. In some examples, the control information sent during the transmission time interval (TTI) of the downlink channel can be distributed in a cascaded manner between different control areas (e.g., between a common control area and one or more UE-specific control areas).

[0055] UE 115 may be dispersed throughout the wireless communication system 100, and each UE 115 may be stationary or mobile. UE 115 may also be referred to as a mobile station, a user station, a mobile unit, a user unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile user station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other appropriate term. UE 115 may also be a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a personal electronic device, a handheld device, a personal computer, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, an Internet of Everything (IoE) device, an MTC device, an appliance, a car, etc.

[0056] In some cases, UE 115 may also be able to communicate directly with other UEs (e.g., using peer-to-peer (P2P) or device-to-device (D2D) protocols). One or more UEs 115 in a group of UEs 115 utilizing D2D communication may be within the coverage area 110 of a cell. Other UEs 115 in such a group may be outside the coverage area 110 of the cell or otherwise unable to receive transmissions from the base station 105. In some cases, multiple groups of UEs 115 communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, wherein each UE 115 transmits to each other UE 115 in the group. In some cases, the base station 105 facilitates the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other cases, D2D communication is performed independently of the base station 105.

[0057] Some UEs 115 (such as MTC or IoT devices) may be low-cost or low-complexity devices and may provide automated communication between machines, i.e., machine-to-machine (M2M) communication. M2M or MTC may refer to data communication technologies that allow devices to communicate with each other or base stations without human intervention. For example, M2M or MTC may refer to communications from devices that are integrated with sensors or meters that measure or capture information and relay the information to a central server or application, where the central server or application may utilize the information or present the information to humans interacting with the program or application. Some UEs 115 may be designed to collect information or implement automated behavior of machines. Examples of applications for MTC devices include smart metering, inventory monitoring, water level monitoring, equipment monitoring, healthcare monitoring, wildlife monitoring, climate and geological event monitoring, fleet management and tracking, remote security sensing, physical access control, and transaction-based business billing.

[0058] In some cases, MTC devices may operate using half-duplex (one-way) communications at a reduced peak rate. MTC devices may also be configured to enter a power-saving "deep sleep" mode when not engaged in active communications. In some cases, MTC or IoT devices may be designed to support mission-critical functions, and the wireless communication system may be configured to provide ultra-reliable communications for these functions.

[0059] The base stations 105 can communicate with the core network 130 and with each other. For example, the base station 105 can be connected to the core network 130 via a backhaul link 132 (e.g., S1, etc.). The base stations 105 can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through the core network 130) on a backhaul link 134 (e.g., X2, etc.). The base station 105 can perform wireless configuration and scheduling for communication with the UE 115, or can operate under the control of a base station controller (not shown). In some examples, the base station 105 can be a macro cell, a small cell, a hotspot, etc. The base station 105 can also be referred to as a Node B (eNB) 105.

[0060] The base station 105 can be connected to the core network 130 via an S1 interface. The core network can be an evolved packet core (EPC), which can include at least one mobility management entity (MME), at least one S-GW and at least one P-GW. The MME can be a control node that handles signaling between the UE 115 and the EPC. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets can be transmitted through the S-GW, which itself can be connected to the P-GW. The P-GW can provide IP address allocation and other functions. The P-GW can be connected to a network operator IP service. Operator IP services can include the Internet, intranet, IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) and packet switching (PS) streaming service (PSS).

[0061] The core network 130 may provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, IP connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. At least some of the network devices (such as base stations 105-a) may include subcomponents such as access network entities 105-b, which may be examples of access node controllers (ANCs) 105. Each access network entity 105-b may communicate with a plurality of UEs 115 through a plurality of other access network transport entities 105-c (each of which may be an example of an intelligent radio head or a transmit / receive point (TRP)). In some configurations, the various functions of each access network entity or base station 105 may be distributed across various network devices (e.g., radio heads and access network controllers) or merged into a single network device (e.g., base station 105).

[0062] One or more of the network devices 105 may include a base station capabilities and coverage manager 101 that may receive an indication of target UE capabilities, where the target UE capabilities may be specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and are associated with a wireless interface between the network device 105 and the UE 115. In some cases, the base station capabilities and coverage manager 101 may configure a wireless interface based on the received indication of the target UE capabilities and send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE using the configured wireless interface.

[0063] UE 115 may include a UE capabilities and coverage manager 102 that may receive an indication of target UE capabilities for delivering the broadcast or multicast content and that are associated with a wireless interface between UE 115 and base station 105. In some examples, UE capabilities and coverage manager 102 may identify supported capabilities of UE 115 and receive the broadcast or multicast content using the wireless interface based on the identified supported capabilities of UE 115 and the target UE capabilities.

[0064] The wireless communication system 100 may be a packet-based network that operates according to a layered protocol stack. In the user plane, the communication at the bearer or packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer may be IP-based. In some cases, the radio link control (RLC) layer may perform packet segmentation and reassembly to communicate on a logical channel. The medium access control (MAC) layer may perform priority processing and multiplexing of logical channels to transport channels. The MAC layer may also use a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) to provide retransmission at the MAC layer to improve link efficiency. In the control plane, the radio resource control (RRC) protocol layer may provide the establishment, configuration and maintenance of an RRC connection (supporting radio bearers for user plane data) between a UE 115 and a network device (such as a base station 105 (or a component of a base station 105)) or a core network 130. At the physical (PHY) layer, a transport channel may be mapped to a physical channel.

[0065] The wireless communication system 100 may include an RLC layer that connects higher layers (e.g., RRC and PDCP) to lower layers (e.g., MAC layer). The RLC layer may be located between the PDCP layer and the MAC layer in the user plane protocol stack. The RLC layer may perform segmentation and reassembly of upper layer packets to adapt them to a size that can be actually sent over the wireless interface. For radio bearers that benefit from error-free transmission, the RLC layer also performs retransmissions to recover from packet loss. Additionally, the RLC layer may perform reordering to compensate for out-of-order reception due to HARQ operations in the MAC layer. There may be one RLC entity defined per radio bearer.

[0066] In some wireless communication systems, the base station 105 may broadcast or multicast data to the UE 115. The wireless communication system 100 may include a BMSC, which may be a server defined for evolved MBMS (eMBMS) or MBMS, and is configured to send multicast data files to the UE 115 through the base station 105 and the MBMS-GW. The MBMS-GW may be a network entity for forwarding packets in the core network 130. That is, the MBMS-GW may forward packets (e.g., via the MCE) to addresses set by the MME for different ANCs 105.

[0067] For example, single cell point-to-multipoint (SC-PTM) or eMBMS techniques may be used to send broadcast or multicast data on a control channel. These techniques may allow a network to flexibly schedule resources and provide broadcast or multicast services, and may also allow a UE 115 (e.g., an IoT device or an MTC device) to receive services of interest without excessive complexity and overhead. For example, SC-PTM may be associated with a smaller number of resources (e.g., compared to multicast broadcast single frequency network (MBSFN) transmissions) for communications in certain geographic areas, flexible resource allocation (e.g., due to dynamic scheduling), and may be multiplexed with unicast transmissions in the frequency domain to achieve enhanced spectral efficiency. Additionally, with SC-PTM, the broadcast area may be dynamically adjusted to fit a geographic area for certain services (e.g., group calls) without the need to pre-establish MBMS bearers over predefined geographic areas.

[0068] Within the wireless communication system 100, the eMBMS or SC-PTM service may be associated with or identified by a TMGI. For example, a server within the core network 130 may provide a TMGI for identifying an eMBMS or SC-PTM session within the wireless communication system 100. The TMGI may be a combination of a network or system identity, such as a public land mobile network (PLMN) and a service identity.

[0069] UEs 115 in a wireless communication system may be associated with various UE categories that represent the capabilities of the UEs 115, wherein the UE category may define the combined uplink and downlink capabilities of the UEs 115. For example, the UE capabilities may indicate the maximum transport block size (e.g., the number of bits supported) and / or bandwidth supported by the UEs 115. In some cases, the UEs 115 may communicate their capabilities to the network via RRC or non-access stratum (NAS) signaling to ensure that downlink transmissions are supported by the UEs 115. For example, when the UEs 115 initially register with the core network 130, the UEs 115 may send a UE capability information message to the core network 130. Downlink transmissions to the UEs 115 by the ANC 105 may be based on the respective UE categories of different UEs 115.

[0070] The wireless communication system 100 may support determining UE 115 capabilities, such as categories or coverage levels for broadcast or multicast content (e.g., content provided using MBMS). In summary, the described techniques provide for configuring a wireless interface to take into account the capabilities of an indicated target UE 115. For example, a base station may receive an indication of the capabilities of a particular target UE 115. The capabilities of the target UE 115 may be specified by a service provider for delivering MBMS content and subsequently associated with a wireless interface between the base station and the target UE 115. The wireless interface may then be configured based on the indicated capabilities of the target UE 115, for example, by configuring a transport block size or bandwidth. The base station may then use the configured wireless interface to send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE 115.

[0071] Figure 2 An example of a wireless communication system 200 that supports capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless communication system 200 may include a base station 105-a and one or more UEs 115, which may be as described with reference to Figure 1 Examples of corresponding devices described. UE 115-a and UE 115-b can be examples of different types of NB-IoT devices or different types of eMTC devices. UE 115-a and UE 115-b can receive data from base station 105-a via communication links 125-a and 125-b, respectively. The wireless communication system 200 may also include a service provider (i.e., a content provider), a BMSC 210 and an MBMS gateway (MBMS-GW) 215, or a combination thereof. In some cases, the wireless communication system 200 may support broadcast or multicast data.

[0072] The service provider 205 may communicate with the BMSC 210 to negotiate, for example, quality of service (QoS) requirements for broadcast multimedia content (e.g., video streaming). The QoS requirements may include metrics such as delays, error rates, and maximum bit rates that may be supported. The BMSC 210 may then establish an MBMS service (e.g., an MBMS bearer service) with the base station 105-a via the MBMS-GW 215. The BMSC 210 may send the negotiated QoS requirements to the base station 105-a via the MBMS-GW 215, and based on the received QoS requirements, the base station 105-a may then apply a radio configuration to a radio interface with one or more UEs 115. For example, the radio configuration may include a modulation and coding scheme (MCS), which includes a modulation order and a code rate, which may describe the information data rate used for transmission. For example, if a higher data rate is preferred, a relatively high MCS scheme may be used. However, if a higher reliability is preferred, a relatively low MCS scheme may be used.

[0073] In MBMS, different UEs 115 (e.g., IoT or MTC devices) may have different capabilities, such as being able to support larger TB sizes or larger bandwidths (e.g., compared to the TB size of the bandwidth that other UEs 115 are able to support). A UE 115 may belong to a particular category, where the category may include other UEs 115 with similar capabilities. For example, in the case where the UE 115 is a NB-IoT device, the NB-IoT device may belong to one of the categories that define a maximum TB size (e.g., a first category N1 may define a maximum TB size of 680 bits, a second category N2 may define a maximum TB size of 2536 bits, and a third category may define a maximum TB size of 1352 bits). In another example, in the case where the UE 115 is an eMTC device, the MTC device may belong to a class that may define a bandwidth and a maximum TB size (e.g., a first class M1 may define a bandwidth of 1.4 MHz and a maximum TB size of 1000 bits, a second class M2 may define a bandwidth of 5 MHz and a maximum TB size of 4008 bits, and a third class M32 may define a bandwidth of 20 MHz and a maximum TB size of 31704 bits). When the UE 115 is in connected mode (i.e., when the UE 115 may send and receive data), the BMSC 210 may establish an SC-PTM configuration with the UE 115 according to the class in which the capabilities of the UE 115 are supported.

[0074] However, when another UE 115 is added on the scene, the UE 115 may have different capabilities from those of the already connected UE 115. In such a scenario, the service provider 205 may notify the base station 105-a of a configuration including a category of capabilities to support the new UE 115 via the BMSC 210 and the MBMS-GW 215. Therefore, a method for efficiently optimizing radio resources for UEs 115 that have not yet established a connection with the corresponding BMSC 210 may be desired.

[0075] In order to indicate the category corresponding to the capability of the UE 115, the service provider 205 may first determine the corresponding category of the UE 115. The service provider 205 may know the type of UE 115 to which the service of the service provider 205 targets (e.g., UE 115-a for metering service, UE 115-b as a smart watch, etc.), in which case the service provider 205 may determine the category of the UE 115 accordingly. Additionally or alternatively, the service provider 205 may determine the category of the UE 115 based on over-the-top signaling from the UE 115. That is, the UE 115 may directly signal the category corresponding to the capability of the UE 115 to the service provider 205. After determining the category corresponding to the capability of the UE 115, the service provider 205 may send information including the category to the base station 105-a through the BMSC 210 and the MBMS-GW 215. Based on information received from the service provider 205 via the BMSC 210 and the MBMS-GW 215, the base station 105-a may determine parameters for communication with the UE 115 corresponding to the capabilities of the UE 115, including, for example, bandwidth and maximum TB size.

[0076] In a first technique for establishing a class to be used for UE 115, service provider 205 may explicitly indicate to BMSC 210 the class for BMSC 210 to use for the wireless interface with UE 115. When MBMS is started, the class may be indicated in a field in the interface between service provider 205 and BMSC 210. The indicated class may indicate the maximum class to be used. That is, although the indicated class may indicate a class that supports a relatively large maximum TB size, a class that supports a relatively small maximum TB size may still be used. For example, if class M2 (which defines a maximum TB size of, for example, 4008 bits) is indicated, class M1 (which defines a maximum TB size of, for example, 1000 bits) may be used. The class may be included in the QoS requirements that may have been negotiated between service provider 205 and BMSC 210. However, if BMSC 210 determines that another class may be more appropriate, the indicated class may be overridden by BMSC 210, or BMSC 210 may reject the QoS requirement. Alternatively, the interface between the service provider 205 and the BMSC 210 may not provide a class to be used. In this case, the BMSC 210 may determine the class to be used for the wireless interface between the BMSC 210 and the UE 115 on its own.

[0077] Alternatively, in a second technique for establishing a class to be used for UE 115, the class may be implicitly determined based on signaling from BMSC 210 to base station 105-a. In this case, a range of service identifiers (e.g., TMGI) may be reserved for a particular class, and BMSC 210 may determine the corresponding service identifier based on the class to be used. BMSC 210 may then send the determined service identifier to base station 105-a via MBMS-GW 215. Upon receiving the service identifier from BMSC 210, base station 105-a may then determine parameters corresponding to the capabilities of UE 115 for communication with UE 115, including, for example, maximum bandwidth and maximum TB size. Alternatively, instead of determining parameters for communication with UE 115 based on a service identifier, there may be a mapping between a negotiated QoS (e.g., using a QoS class identifier (QCI)) and a maximum bandwidth and TB size corresponding to the capabilities of UE 115. Thus, QoS (e.g., QCI) for UEs or a class of UEs that are capable of using a particular bandwidth or maximum bandwidth may be determined. In other examples, a certain QoS (e.g., QCI) may be associated with a UE or a class of UEs using a certain TB size or a maximum TB size. In other examples, a QoS (or QCI) may be associated with a UE or a group of UEs having capabilities associated with a certain combination of bandwidth and TB size (or a maximum value of these items). Thus, in some examples, the BMSC may define the QCI such that the QCI is an operator-defined QCI, e.g., a non-standardized value that may be pre-arranged between the operator and the service provider 205.

[0078] The capabilities of the UE 115 may be indicated in the USD in the transmission, in the SC-MCCH, or in the SIB. That is, the USD may contain an indication of the maximum capabilities or actual capabilities of the UE 115 as may be received via MBMS or another broadcast channel. For example, a service identifier (e.g., TMGI) included in a transmission from the BMSC 210 to the UE 115 may include a field for a class indicating the maximum capabilities of the UE 115 for that class. Then, if the UE 115 supports the class indicated in the received transmission, the UE 115 may successfully receive the transmission. Alternatively, the USD may be sent using a default or pre-configured service identifier (e.g., TMGI) indicating a reference class corresponding to the minimum capabilities of the UE 115 (e.g., TMGI X for NB-IoT devices, or TMGI Y for eMTC devices, where each of TMGI X and TMGI Y may correspond to a relatively small minimum TB size). Additionally or alternatively, the maximum capabilities or reference capabilities of UE 115 may be sent in radio access network (RAN) signaling, such as in the SC-MCCH or SIB. The received maximum capabilities or reference capabilities may then be used to determine the downlink control information (DCI) format.

[0079] In some cases, different UEs 115 in a deployment of multiple UEs 115 may use different levels of coverage enhancement. For example, a software update for a UE 115 that may be subject to higher path loss (e.g., a UE 115-a for metered services in a basement) may use a relatively large coverage enhancement, while a software update for a UE 115 that may be subject to less path loss (e.g., an audio streaming service for a UE 115-b that is a smartwatch) may use a relatively small coverage enhancement. The service provider 205 may accordingly indicate the desired coverage enhancement for the service to the BMSC 210, for example, in the QoS requirements. For example, based on the known types of typical target UEs 115, the service provider 205 may send a signal with a coverage enhancement level selected from the set {c0, c1, c2, c3}, where c0 may represent no coverage enhancement, c1 may represent a small coverage enhancement, c2 may represent a medium coverage enhancement, and c3 may represent a large coverage enhancement, for example, each representing a dB value.

[0080] Additionally or alternatively, the BMSC 210 may set a target for a successful reception level and adjust the coverage enhancement level based on the response received from the UE 115 to achieve the set target. For example, the BMSC 210 may set a target of 99% service reception. After announcing the service, each UE 115 in communication with the BMSC 210 may report to the BMSC 210 whether the UE 115 received the service. If the BMSC 210 determines that the successful reception target level is not met, the BMSC 210 may increase its coverage enhancement level in an attempt to achieve its successful reception target level. The service provider 205 may similarly apply this technique to adjust the coverage enhancement level in the QoS requirement based on the BMSC 210 reporting the successful reception level to the service provider 205. For example, if the BMSC 210 determines that the successful reception target level is not met, the BMSC 210 may relay this information to the service provider 205, and the service provider 205 may then increase the coverage enhancement level in the QoS requirement (e.g., from c1 to c2).

[0081] Figure 3 An example of a process flow 300 in a wireless communication system supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The process flow 300 includes a UE 115-c and a base station 105-b, which may be represented as shown in FIG. Figure 1 and Figure 2 The process flow 300 also includes a service provider 205-a and a BMSC 210-a, which may be represented as described with reference to FIG. Figure 2 An example of a service provider 205 and a BMSC 210 are depicted. Process flow 300 may be an example of identifying and sending an indication of UE capabilities and sending MBMS content accordingly based on the UE capabilities.

[0082] At 305, UE 115-c may optionally send a request for MBMS content to service provider 205-a, and service provider 205-a may receive the request for MBMS content from UE 115-c. UE 115-c may also indicate a category corresponding to capabilities of UE 115-c in the request for MBMS content, where the category may define parameters (e.g., bandwidth and maximum TB size) for UE 115 with similar capabilities to UE 115-c. The request for content may be sent via super-high layer signaling from UE 115-c to service provider 205-a. That is, UE 115-c may directly signal the category corresponding to capabilities of UE 115-c to service provider 205-a.

[0083] At 310, the service provider 205-a may determine target UE capabilities for the UE 115-c. The service provider 205-a may determine the capabilities based on the category to which the UE 115-c belongs. In order to determine the capabilities or define the categories of corresponding capabilities, the service provider 205-a may already know the type of UE 115 to which the service of the service provider 205-a is targeted (e.g., a UE 115 for metering services, a UE 115 as a smart watch, etc.) and to which the UE 115-c belongs. In this case, the service provider 205-a may determine the category of the UE 115-c accordingly. Additionally or alternatively, the service provider 205-c may determine the category of the UE 115-c based on super-high layer signaling (e.g., a request for MBMS content) from the UE 115-c (e.g., via the request sent at 305).

[0084] At 315, the service provider 205-a may send an indication of the target UE capabilities to the BMSC 210-a, and the BMSC 210-a may receive the indication of the target UE capabilities from the service provider 205-a. The indication of the capabilities of the UE 115-c may be included in the USD, SC-MCCH, or SIB within the transmission.

[0085] At 320, the BMSC 210-a may send an indication of the capabilities of the target UE 115-c to the base station 105-b, and the base station 105-b may receive an indication of the capabilities of the target UE 115-c from the BMSC 210-a. In addition or alternatively, the indication of the capabilities may be sent and received by a network node, where, for example, the network node may be an MBMS-GW or a BMSC 210-a as described above. In some cases, the capabilities may have been specified by the service provider 205-a for delivery of MBMS content. The indication may also include a category corresponding to the UE 115-c. In some examples, the category may correspond to a set of UEs 115 with similar capabilities. For example, the UE 115-c may be an example of a NB-IoT device, and the NB-IoT device may belong to a category that defines a maximum TB size. Alternatively, in the case where the UE 115-c is an eMTC device, the MTC device may belong to a category that may define a bandwidth and a maximum TB size. Alternatively, the indication of capabilities may include one or more TMGIs (ie, service identifiers), where the TMGI may implicitly indicate the category to which the UE 115-c belongs.

[0086] At 325, the base station 105-b may identify capabilities for the target UE 115-c. In one case, the capabilities may be identified based on explicit indications received from the service provider 205-a via the BMSC 210-c and the MBMS-GW. For example, the capabilities of the UE 115-c may be identified based on the indicated category to which the UE 115-c belongs. Alternatively, the category may be implicitly determined based on signaling from a network node (e.g., the BMSC 210 or the MBMS-GW) to the base station 105-b. In this case, a range of TMGIs (i.e., service identifiers) may be reserved for specific categories, and the BMSC 210-a may have determined a corresponding service identifier based on the category corresponding to the UE 115-c. Upon receiving the service identifier, the base station 105-b may then identify parameters corresponding to the capabilities of the UE 115-c for communication with the UE 115-c. As another alternative, rather than determining parameters for communication with the UE 115 based on a service identifier, there may be a mapping between the negotiated QoS (e.g., using a QCI) and the maximum bandwidth and TB size corresponding to the capabilities of the UE 115-c. The base station 105-b may use the identified capabilities to configure the wireless interface between the base station 105-b and the UE 115-c accordingly.

[0087] At 330, the base station 105-b may send an indication of the target UE capabilities (e.g., the capabilities of UE 115-c) to the UE 115-c, and the UE 115-c may receive an indication of the target UE capabilities from the base station 105-b. The target UE capabilities may have been specified by the service provider 205-a for delivering MBMS content. The capabilities may then be associated with the wireless interface between the UE 115-c and the base station 105-b and used to configure the wireless interface. In some cases, the indication may be based on the minimum supported capabilities of the UE 115-c. In other cases, the indication may be based on the maximum supported capabilities of the target UE (e.g., UE 115-c) or the actual supported capabilities of the target UE. The indication may include a category corresponding to the UE 115-c, where the category may correspond to a set of UEs 115 with similar capabilities. The category may define, for example, parameters including bandwidth and maximum TB size. The capabilities or corresponding categories may be indicated in a USD, SC-MCCH, or SIB within a transmission. Based on receiving, for example, the USD, the UE 115-c may then monitor MBMS content (e.g., broadcast or multicast content), as the UE 115-c may receive (illustratively) at 355. The capabilities may also be used to determine the DCI format. In this case, the UE 115-c may monitor the DCI format accordingly based on the SC-MCCH.

[0088] At 335, the base station 105-b may configure a wireless interface based on the capabilities of the indicated target UE 115-c received from the service provider 205-a via the BMSC 210-a and the MBMS-GW. At 340, the UE 115-c may identify supported capabilities of the UE 115-c based on the indication of the capabilities of the UE 115-c received at 330. The capabilities may be included in a category, where the category may define the bandwidth and maximum TB size supported by UEs of the category to which the UE 115-c corresponds. The UE 115-c may also determine whether the supported capabilities are compatible with the capabilities of the UE 115-c. If the supported capabilities are compatible with the capabilities of the UE 115-c, the UE 115-c may then monitor MBMS content (e.g., broadcast or multicast content), as the UE 115-c may receive (illustratively) at 355.

[0089] At 345, the service provider 205-a may send broadcast or multicast content, such as MBMS content, to the BMSC 210-a, and the BMSC 210-a may receive the broadcast or multicast content from the service provider 205-a. At 350, the BMSC 210-a may send the MBMS content to the base station 105-b, and the base station 105-b may receive the MBMS content from the BMSC 210-a. Additionally or alternatively, the MBMS content may be sent and received via a network node, where, for example, the network node may be an MBMS-GW or a BMSC 210-a as described above. At 355, the base station 105-b may send the MBMS content to the UE 115-c using a wireless interface previously configured based on the identified supported capabilities of the UE 115-c, and the UE 115-c may receive the MBMS content from the base station 105-b using the wireless interface.

[0090] Figure 4 An example of a process flow 400 in a wireless communication system supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The process flow 400 includes a UE 115-d and a base station 105-c, which may be represented as shown in FIG. Figure 1 and Figure 2 The process flow 400 also includes a service provider 205-b and a BMSC 210-b, which may be represented as described with reference to FIG. Figure 2 An example of a service provider 205 and a BMSC 210 are depicted. Process flow 400 may be an example of identifying and adjusting a coverage enhancement level for a UE.

[0091] At 405, the service provider 205-b may determine a coverage enhancement level (ie, a desired coverage level) desired for providing desired coverage enhancement to one or more connected UEs (including, for example, UE 115-d).

[0092] At 410, the service provider 205-b may send an indication to the BMSC 210-b specifying the coverage enhancement level determined at 405, and the BMSC 210-b may receive an indication from the service provider 205-b specifying the coverage enhancement level determined at 405. Different UEs 115 in a deployment of multiple UEs 115 may use different coverage enhancement levels. For example, a software update for a UE 115 that may experience higher path loss (e.g., a UE 115 in a basement for a metered service) may use a relatively large coverage enhancement, while a software update for a UE 115 that may experience less path loss (e.g., an audio streaming service for a UE 115 that is a smartwatch) may use a relatively small coverage enhancement. The service provider 205-b may accordingly indicate to the BMSC 210, for example, in a QoS requirement, the desired coverage enhancement for the service. Based on the known type of typical target UE 115 (e.g., UE 115-d), the service provider 205-b may send a signal with a coverage enhancement level selected from the set {c0, c1, c2, c3}, where c0 may represent no coverage enhancement, c1 may represent a small coverage enhancement, c2 may represent a medium coverage enhancement, and c3 may represent a large coverage enhancement, for example, each representing a dB value.

[0093] At 415, the BMSC 210-b may send an indication specifying the determined coverage enhancement level to the base station 105-c, and the base station 105-c may receive an indication specifying the determined coverage enhancement level from the BMSC 210-b. Additionally or alternatively, the indication specifying the determined coverage enhancement level may be sent and received by a network node, which may be, for example, an MBMS-GW or a BMSC 210-b as described above.

[0094] At 420, the base station 105-c may identify a coverage enhancement level. The identified coverage enhancement level may be identified based on the coverage enhancement level determined by the service provider 205-b at 405. At 425, the base station 105-c may send an indication of the target UE capabilities (including the determined coverage enhancement level) to the UE 115-d, and the UE 115-d may receive an indication of the target UE capabilities (including the determined coverage enhancement level) from the base station 105-c.

[0095] At 430, the base station 105-c may configure a wireless interface based on the received indication of the desired coverage level. The indication of the capabilities of the UE 115-d may include an indication of the desired coverage level. At 435, the service provider 205-b may send broadcast or multicast content (such as MBMS content) to the BMSC 210-b, and the BMSC 210-b may receive the broadcast or multicast content from the service provider 205-b.

[0096] At 440, the BMSC 210-b may send the MBMS content to the base station 105-c, and the base station 105-c may receive the MBMS content from the BMSC 210-b. Additionally or alternatively, the MBMS content may be sent and received via a network node, which may be, for example, an MBMS-GW or a BMSC 210-b as described above.

[0097] At 445, the base station 105-c may transmit the MBMS content to the UE 115-d using the wireless interface previously configured based on the identified coverage enhancement level, and the UE 115-d may receive the MBMS content from the base station 105-c using the wireless interface. At 450, the UE 115-d may transmit a report to the base station 105-c indicating whether the UE 115-d successfully received the transmitted MBMS content, and the base station 105-c may receive a report from the UE 115-d indicating whether the UE 115-d successfully received the transmitted MBMS content. The base station 105-c may receive multiple such reports from multiple UEs.

[0098] At 455, the base station 105-c may send a report to the BMSC 210-b indicating whether the UE 115-d successfully received the transmitted MBMS content, and the BMSC 210-b may receive a report from the base station 105-c indicating whether the UE 115-d successfully received the transmitted MBMS content. Additionally or alternatively, reports indicating whether the UE 115 successfully received the transmitted MBMS content may be sent and received by a network node, where, for example, the network node may be an MBMS-GW or a BMSC 210-b as described above. The BMSC 210-b may receive one or more of such reports from a plurality of UEs, and the BMSC 210-b may determine, based on the reports, a proportion of the total number of UEs that successfully received the transmitted MBMS content.

[0099] At 460, the BMSC 210-b may determine an updated coverage enhancement level based on one or more reports received to indicate whether the UE 115 (including, for example, UE 115-d) successfully received the transmitted MBMS content. In some cases, the BMSC 210-b may have set a target for a successful reception level and adjust the coverage enhancement level based on the response received from the UE 115 to achieve the set target. For example, the BMSC 210-b may set a target of 99% service reception. After announcing the service, each UE 115 communicating with the BMSC 210-b may report to the BMSC 210-b whether the UE 115 received the service. Based on these reports, the BMSC 210-b may determine an updated coverage enhancement level to enable the corresponding UE 115 to successfully receive the MBMS content at an expected rate. If the BMSC 210 determines that the successful reception target level is not met, the BMSC 210 may increase its coverage enhancement level to try to achieve its successful reception target level.

[0100] Although 460 discusses determining an updated coverage level, in addition or alternatively, the BMSC 210 may modify other radio access parameters based on one or more reports received indicating whether the UE 115 (including, for example, the UE 115-d) successfully received the transmitted MBMS content. The BMSC 210-b may accordingly determine other parameters based on the capabilities of the responding UE 115. For example, in addition to modifying the coverage enhancement level, the BMSC 210 may also modify the category, maximum bandwidth, or maximum TB size of the UE 115.

[0101] At 465, the BMSC 210-b may send an updated indication to the base station 105-c specifying the updated coverage enhancement level determined at 460, and the base station 105-c may receive an updated indication from the BMSC 210-b specifying the updated coverage enhancement level determined at 460. Additionally or alternatively, the updated indication specifying the updated coverage enhancement level may be sent and received by a network node, which may be, for example, an MBMS-GW or a BMSC 210-b as described above. Furthermore, as discussed with reference to 460, the BMSC 210-b may also send an indication of an update to parameters including, for example, the category of the UE 115, the maximum bandwidth, or the maximum TB size.

[0102] At 470, the base station 105-c may modify the radio interface based on the received updated indication of the updated coverage enhancement level. The base station 105-c may also modify the radio interface based on the updated parameters received in the updated indication at 465, including, for example, the category of UE 115, the maximum bandwidth, or the maximum TB size. The base station 105-c may then use the modified radio interface to send MBMS data to one or more UEs, including, for example, UE 115-d. The process may iterate, thereby providing repeated adjustments to the coverage enhancement level until a desired ratio of connected UEs have successfully received the MBMS data.

[0103] Figure 5 A block diagram 500 of a wireless device 505 supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless device 505 may be as described with reference to Figure 1 Examples of various aspects of base station 105 are described. Wireless device 505 may include a receiver 510, a base station capability and coverage manager 515, and a transmitter 520. Wireless device 505 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0104] The receiver 510 may receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services, etc.). The information may be communicated to other components of the device. The receiver 510 may be as described with reference to Figure 8 Examples of various aspects of transceiver 835 are described.

[0105] Base station capability and coverage manager 515 may be as described with reference to Figure 8 Examples of various aspects of the base station capabilities and coverage manager 815 are described. The base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions of at least some of the base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 and / or its various subcomponents may be performed by 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 in the present disclosure.

[0106] The base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be physically located at various locations, including being distributed so that portions of the functions are implemented by one or more physical devices at different physical locations. In some examples, according to various aspects of the present disclosure, the base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be separate and distinct components. In other examples, according to various aspects of the present disclosure, the base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be combined with one or more other hardware components (including, but not limited to, I / O components, a transceiver, a network server, another computing device, one or more other components described in the present disclosure, or a combination thereof).

[0107] The base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 may perform the following operations: receive an indication of target UE capabilities, the target UE capabilities specified by the service provider for delivery of broadcast or multicast content and associated with a wireless interface between the base station 105 and the UE 115; configure the wireless interface based on the received indication of the target UE capabilities; and use the configured wireless interface to send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE 115. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may include a QCI. In some cases, the base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 may perform the following operations: identify a mapping between the QCI and the following: a maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof; and configure the wireless interface based on the identified mapping. The base station capabilities and coverage manager 515 may also perform the following operations: determine a set of wireless access parameters to be used for delivery of broadcast or unicast content; send the set of wireless access parameters to a network node; receive a message from at least one UE 115 indicating successful reception of the broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE 115; and modify the set of wireless access parameters based on the received message.

[0108] The transmitter 520 may transmit signals generated by other components of the device. In some examples, the transmitter 520 may be co-located with the receiver 510 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 520 may be as described with reference to Figure 8 Examples of aspects of the described transceiver 835. The transmitter 520 may include a single antenna, or it may include a group of antennas.

[0109] Figure 6 A block diagram 600 of a wireless device 605 supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless device 605 may be as described with reference to Figure 1 and Figure 5Examples of various aspects of the wireless device 505 or base station 105 are described. The wireless device 605 may include a receiver 610, a base station capability and coverage manager 615, and a transmitter 620. The wireless device 605 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0110] The receiver 610 may receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services, etc.). The information may be communicated to other components of the device. The receiver 610 may be as described with reference to Figure 8 Examples of various aspects of transceiver 835 are described.

[0111] Base station capability and coverage manager 615 may be as described with reference to Figure 8 Examples of various aspects of the base station capabilities and coverage manager 815 are described. The base station capabilities and coverage manager 615 may also include a target UE capabilities manager 625, a wireless interface manager 630, a broadcast / multicast content component 635, a wireless access parameter manager 640, a messaging component 645, and a wireless access parameter modifier 650.

[0112] The target UE capabilities manager 625 may perform the following operations: receiving an indication of target UE capabilities, the target UE capabilities being specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between the base station 105 and the UE 115; and receiving an updated indication of the target UE capabilities from a network node, the wireless interface being modified based on the updated target UE capabilities. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may include a QCI. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may be received from a service provider.

[0113] The wireless interface manager 630 may configure the wireless interface based on the received indication of the target UE capabilities; and configure the wireless interface based on the received indication of the desired coverage level, wherein the received indication of the target UE capabilities includes an indication of the desired coverage level. In some cases, configuring the wireless interface based on the received indication of the target UE capabilities includes determining a maximum bandwidth to be used for sending broadcast or multicast content, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof.

[0114] The broadcast / multicast content component 635 can use the configured wireless interface to send broadcast or multicast content to the UE 115. The wireless access parameter manager 640 can determine a set of wireless access parameters to be used for delivering the broadcast or unicast content and send the set of wireless access parameters to the network node. In some cases, the set of wireless access parameters includes one or more of the following: coverage enhancement level, UE category, maximum bandwidth, or maximum transmission block size. The message transmission component 645 can receive a message from at least one UE 115 indicating successful reception of the broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE 115.

[0115] The wireless access parameter modifier 650 may modify the wireless access parameter set based on the received message. The transmitter 620 may transmit signals generated by other components of the device. In some examples, the transmitter 620 may be co-located with the receiver 610 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 620 may be as described in reference to Figure 8 Examples of aspects of the transceiver 835 are described. The transmitter 620 may include a single antenna, or it may include a group of antennas.

[0116] Figure 7 A block diagram 700 of a base station capabilities and coverage manager 715 supporting capabilities and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The base station capabilities and coverage manager 715 may be as described with reference to Figure 5 , Figure 6 and Figure 8 Examples of aspects of the described base station capabilities and coverage manager 515, base station capabilities and coverage manager 615, or base station capabilities and coverage manager 815. The base station capabilities and coverage manager 715 may include a target UE capabilities manager 720, a wireless interface manager 725, a broadcast / multicast content component 730, a radio access parameter manager 735, a messaging component 740, a radio access parameter modifier 745, a UE category component 750, a TMGI component 755, a coverage level component 760, and a UE reporting manager 765. Each of these modules may be in communication with each other, directly or indirectly (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0117] The target UE capabilities manager 720 may perform the following operations: receiving an indication of target UE capabilities, the target UE capabilities being specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between the base station 105 and the UE 115; and receiving an updated indication of the target UE capabilities from a network node, the wireless interface being modified based on the updated target UE capabilities. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may include a QCI. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may be received from a service provider.

[0118] The wireless interface manager 725 may configure the wireless interface based on the received indication of the target UE capabilities; and configure the wireless interface based on the received indication of the desired coverage level, wherein the received indication of the target UE capabilities includes an indication of the desired coverage level. In some cases, configuring the wireless interface based on the received indication of the target UE capabilities includes determining a maximum bandwidth to be used for sending broadcast or multicast content, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof.

[0119] The broadcast / multicast content component 730 can use the configured wireless interface to send broadcast or multicast content to the UE 115. The radio access parameter manager 735 can determine a set of radio access parameters to be used for delivering the broadcast or unicast content and send the set of radio access parameters to the network node. In some cases, the set of radio access parameters includes one or more of the following: coverage enhancement level, UE category, maximum bandwidth, or maximum transport block size.

[0120] The messaging component 740 may receive a message from at least one UE 115 indicating successful reception of broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE 115. The radio access parameter modifier 745 may modify a set of radio access parameters based on the received message. The UE category component 750 may receive a category of the UE 115 from a network node, the indication of the target UE capabilities including the category. In some cases, the network node includes a BMSC, or an MBMS-GW, or a combination thereof.

[0121] The TMGI component 755 can perform the following operations: receiving one or more TMGIs from a network node, the one or more TMGIs including an indication of target UE capabilities; and determining a category of the UE based on the received TMGIs, the target UE capabilities including the determined category. The coverage level component 760 can receive an indication of a desired coverage level specified by a service provider from the network node. The UE report manager 765 can send a UE report to the network node.

[0122] Figure 8 A block diagram of a system 800 including a device 805 supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 805 may be an example of or a component including: Figure 1 , Figure 5 and Figure 6) described in the wireless device 505, wireless device 605, or base station 105. Device 805 may include components for two-way voice and data communication, including components for sending and receiving communications, including: base station capability and coverage manager 815, processor 820, memory 825, software 830, transceiver 835, antenna 840, network communication manager 845, and base station communication manager 850. These components can communicate electronically via one or more buses (e.g., bus 810). Device 805 can communicate wirelessly with one or more UEs 115.

[0123] The processor 820 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some cases, the processor 820 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 820. The processor 820 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory to perform various functions (e.g., functions or tasks that support capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services).

[0124] The memory 825 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 825 may store computer-readable, computer-executable software 830 including instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform the various functions described herein. In some cases, the memory 825 may also contain, among other things, a basic input / output system (BIOS), which may control basic hardware and / or software operations (such as, interaction with peripheral components or devices).

[0125] The software 830 may include code for implementing various aspects of the present disclosure, including code for supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services. The software 830 may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium (such as a system memory or other memory). In some cases, the software 830 may not be directly executable by a processor, but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform the functions described herein.

[0126] The transceiver 835 may communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas, wired links, or wireless links as described above. For example, the transceiver 835 may represent a wireless transceiver and may communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 835 may also include a modem for modulating packets and providing the modulated packets to an antenna for transmission, and demodulating packets received from an antenna.

[0127] In some cases, the wireless device may include a single antenna 840. However, in some cases, the device may have more than one antenna 840 that is capable of sending or receiving multiple wireless transmissions simultaneously. The network communication manager 845 may manage communications with the core network (e.g., via one or more wired backhaul links). For example, the network communication manager 845 may manage the delivery of data communications for client devices (such as, one or more UEs 115).

[0128] The base station communication manager 850 may manage communications with other base stations 105 and may include a controller or scheduler for controlling communications with UE 115 in cooperation with other base stations 105. For example, the base station communication manager 850 may coordinate scheduling of transmissions to UE 115 for various interference mitigation techniques such as beamforming or joint transmission. In some examples, the base station communication manager 850 may provide an X2 interface within an LTE or LTE-A wireless communication network technology to provide communications between base stations 105.

[0129] Fig. 9 A block diagram 900 of a wireless device 905 supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless device 905 may be as described with reference to Figure 1 Examples of various aspects of the UE 115 are described. The wireless device 905 may include a receiver 910, a UE capability and coverage manager 915, and a transmitter 920. The wireless device 905 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0130] The receiver 910 may receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services, etc.). The information may be communicated to other components of the device. The receiver 910 may be as described with reference to Fig.12 Examples of various aspects of transceiver 1235 are described.

[0131] UE capability and coverage manager 915 may be as described in reference Fig.12Examples of various aspects of the UE capability and coverage manager 1215 described herein. The UE capability and coverage manager 915 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functionality of at least some of the UE capability and coverage manager 915 and / or its various subcomponents may be performed by a general purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described in the present disclosure.

[0132] The UE capability and coverage manager 915 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be physically located at various locations, including being distributed so that portions of the functionality are implemented by one or more physical devices at different physical locations. In some examples, according to various aspects of the present disclosure, the UE capability and coverage manager 915 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be separate and distinct components. In other examples, according to various aspects of the present disclosure, the UE capability and coverage manager 915 and / or at least some of its various subcomponents may be combined with one or more other hardware components (including, but not limited to, I / O components, a transceiver, a network server, another computing device, one or more other components described in the present disclosure, or a combination thereof).

[0133] The UE capabilities and coverage manager 915 may perform the following operations: receiving an indication of target UE capabilities for delivering broadcast or multicast content and associated with a wireless interface between the UE 115 and the base station 105; identifying supported capabilities of the UE 115; and receiving the broadcast or multicast content using the wireless interface based on the identified supported capabilities of the UE 115 and based on the target UE capabilities. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may include a QCI. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may be received from a service provider.

[0134] The transmitter 920 may transmit signals generated by other components of the device. In some examples, the transmitter 920 may be co-located with the receiver 910 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 920 may be as described with reference to Fig.12 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1235 are described. The transmitter 920 may include a single antenna, or it may include a group of antennas.

[0135] Fig.10 A block diagram 1000 of a wireless device 1005 supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless device 1005 may be as described with reference to Figure 1 and Fig. 9 Examples of various aspects of the wireless device 905 or UE 115 are described. The wireless device 1005 may include a receiver 1010, a UE capability and coverage manager 1015, and a transmitter 1020. The wireless device 1005 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0136] The receiver 1010 may receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services, etc.). The information may be communicated to other components of the device. The receiver 1010 may be as described with reference to Fig.12 Examples of various aspects of transceiver 1235 are described.

[0137] UE capability and coverage manager 1015 may be as described in reference Fig.12 Examples of various aspects of the UE capability and coverage manager 1015 are described. The UE capability and coverage manager 1015 may also include a UE capability manager 1025, a supported capabilities component 1030, and a UE broadcast / multicast content component 1035.

[0138] The UE capability manager 1025 may receive an indication of a target UE capability, the target UE capability being used to deliver broadcast or multicast content and being associated with a wireless interface between the UE 115 and the base station 105. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capability is received from a service provider. In some cases, the target UE capability is a UE category or a UE coverage enhancement level. In some cases, receiving an indication of the target UE capability includes: receiving an indication of the target UE capability in one or more of the following: a USD, a SC-MCCH, or a SIB. In some cases, receiving an indication of the target UE capability includes: receiving an indication of the target UE capability in a transmission formatted based on the minimum supported capability of the UE 115. In some cases, the target UE capability includes one or more of the following: the maximum supported capability of the UE 115 targeted by the service provider, or the actual supported capability of the UE 115 targeted by the service provider.

[0139] Supported capabilities component 1030 can identify supported capabilities of UE 115 and determine whether the supported capabilities are compatible with target UE capabilities.UE broadcast / multicast content component 1035 can receive broadcast or multicast content using a wireless interface based on the identified supported capabilities of UE 115 and based on target UE capabilities.

[0140] The transmitter 1020 may transmit signals generated by other components of the device. In some examples, the transmitter 1020 may be co-located with the receiver 1010 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 1020 may be as described in reference to Fig.12 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1235 are described. The transmitter 1020 may include a single antenna, or it may include a group of antennas.

[0141] Fig.11 A block diagram 1100 of a UE capability and coverage manager 1115 supporting capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The UE capability and coverage manager 1115 may be as described with reference to Fig. 9 , Fig.10 and Fig.12 Examples of various aspects of the described UE capabilities and coverage manager 1115. The UE capabilities and coverage manager 1115 may include a UE capabilities manager 1120, a supporting capabilities component 1125, a UE broadcast / multicast content component 1130, a broadcast / multicast monitoring component 1135, a content request component 1140, and a reporting component 1145. Each of these modules may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0142] The UE capability manager 1120 may receive an indication of a target UE capability for delivering broadcast or multicast content and associated with a wireless interface between the UE 115 and the base station 105. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capability is received from a service provider. In some cases, the target UE capability is a UE category or a UE coverage enhancement level. In some cases, receiving an indication of the target UE capability includes: receiving an indication of the target UE capability in one or more of the following: USD, SC-MCCH, or SIB. In some cases, receiving an indication of the target UE capability includes: receiving an indication of the target UE capability in a transmission formatted based on the minimum supported capability of the UE 115. In some cases, the target UE capability includes one or more of the following: the maximum supported capability of the UE targeted by the service provider, or the actual supported capability of the UE 115 targeted by the service provider.

[0143] Support capabilities component 1125 can identify supported capabilities of UE 115 and determine whether the supported capabilities are compatible with target UE capabilities. UE broadcast / multicast content component 1130 can receive broadcast or multicast content using a wireless interface based on the identified supported capabilities of UE 115 and based on target UE capabilities. Broadcast / multicast monitoring component 1135 can monitor broadcast or multicast content based on determining that the supported capabilities are compatible with target UE capabilities and monitor DCI format based on SC-MCCH.

[0144] Content request component 1140 can send a request for content by UE 115 to a content provider, the request for content including a category of UE 115, wherein the received indication of target UE capabilities is based on the category of UE 115. Report component 1145 can send a report indicating successful reception of broadcast or multicast content.

[0145] Fig.12 1 shows a block diagram of a system 1200 including a device 1205 that supports capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The device 1205 may be as described above (e.g., with reference to Figure 1 ) or include components of UE 115. Device 1205 may include components for two-way voice and data communications, including components for sending and receiving communications, including: UE capability and coverage manager 1215, processor 1220, memory 1225, software 1230, transceiver 1235, antenna 1240, and I / O controller 1245. These components can communicate electronically via one or more buses (e.g., bus 1210). Device 1205 can communicate wirelessly with one or more base stations 105.

[0146] Processor 1220 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some cases, processor 1220 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into processor 1220. Processor 1220 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory to perform various functions (e.g., functions or tasks that support capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services).

[0147] The memory 1225 may include RAM and ROM. The memory 1225 may store computer-readable, computer-executable software 1230 including instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform the various functions described herein. In some cases, the memory 1225 may also include, among other things, a BIOS that may control basic hardware and / or software operations (such as, interaction with peripheral components or devices).

[0148] The software 1230 may include code for implementing various aspects of the present disclosure, including code for supporting capability and coverage determination for multimedia broadcast multicast services. The software 1230 may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as a system memory or other memory. In some cases, the software 1230 may not be directly executable by a processor, but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform the functions described herein.

[0149] The transceiver 1235 can communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas, wired links, or wireless links as described above. For example, the transceiver 1235 can represent a wireless transceiver and can communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 1235 can also include a modem for modulating packets and providing the modulated packets to the antenna for transmission, and demodulating the packets received from the antenna. In some cases, the wireless device may include a single antenna 1240. However, in some cases, the device may have more than one antenna 1240, which can send or receive multiple wireless transmissions simultaneously.

[0150] I / O controller 1245 can manage input and output signals for device 1205. I / O controller 1245 can also manage peripheral devices that are not integrated into device 1205. In some cases, I / O controller 1245 can represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral device. In some cases, I / O controller 1245 can utilize a variety of communication protocols such as TCP / IP or HTTP. , or another known operating system. In other cases, I / O controller 1245 may represent or interact with a modem, keyboard, mouse, touch screen, or similar device. In some cases, I / O controller 1245 may be implemented as part of a processor. In some cases, a user may interact with device 1205 via I / O controller 1245 or via hardware components controlled by I / O controller 1245.

[0151] Fig.13A flow chart illustrating a method 1300 for determining capability and coverage for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1300 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1300 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The base station 105 may be executed by the base station capability and coverage manager described in the following. In some examples, the base station 105 may execute a code set to control the functional elements of the device to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station 105 may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions described below.

[0152] At block 1305, the base station 105 may receive an indication of target UE capabilities that are specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and that are associated with a wireless interface between the base station 105 and the UE 115. The operations of block 1305 may be as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1305 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The target UE capability manager described is executed.

[0153] At block 1310, the base station 105 may configure the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the target UE capabilities. The operation of block 1310 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1310 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The wireless interface manager described herein is executed.

[0154] At block 1315, the base station 105 may use the configured wireless interface to send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE 115. The operation of block 1315 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1315 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The broadcast / multicast content components described are performed.

[0155] Fig.14 A flow chart illustrating a method 1400 for determining capability and coverage for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1400 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1400 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The base station 105 may be executed by the base station capability and coverage manager described in the following. In some examples, the base station 105 may execute a code set to control the functional elements of the device to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station 105 may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions described below.

[0156] At block 1405, the base station 105 may receive a category of the UE 115 from a network node. The operation of block 1405 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1405 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The UE category components described are performed.

[0157] At block 1410, the base station 105 may receive an indication of target UE capabilities, wherein the indication of the target UE capabilities may include a category, and the target UE capabilities are specified by a service provider for delivering broadcast or multicast content and are associated with a wireless interface between the base station 105 and the UE 115. In some cases, the indication of the target UE capabilities may include a QCI. In some cases, the base station 105 may perform the following operations: identify a mapping between the QCI and the following: a maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof; and configure the wireless interface based on the identified mapping. The operation of block 1410 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1410 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The target UE capability manager described is executed.

[0158] At block 1415, the base station 105 may configure the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the target UE capabilities. The operation of block 1415 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1415 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The wireless interface manager described herein is executed.

[0159] At block 1420, the base station 105 may use the configured wireless interface to send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE 115. The operation of block 1420 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1420 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The broadcast / multicast content components described are performed.

[0160] Fig.15 A flow chart illustrating a method 1500 for determining capability and coverage for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1500 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1500 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8The base station 105 may be executed by the base station capability and coverage manager described in the following. In some examples, the base station 105 may execute a code set to control the functional elements of the device to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station 105 may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions described below.

[0161] At block 1505, the base station 105 may receive a QCI, the QCI including an indication of the capabilities of the target UE. The operation of block 1505 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1505 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 Describes the base station capabilities and coverage manager to perform.

[0162] At block 1510, the base station 105 may identify a mapping between the QCI and: a maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof. In some cases, the base station 105 may derive the maximum bandwidth and the maximum transport block size based on the mapping with the QCI. The operation of block 1510 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1510 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 Describes the base station capabilities and coverage manager to perform.

[0163] At block 1515, the base station 105 may configure the wireless interface based on the identified mapping. The operation of block 1515 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1515 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The wireless interface manager described herein is executed.

[0164] At block 1520, the base station 105 may use the configured wireless interface to send the broadcast or multicast content to the UE 115. The operation of block 1520 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1520 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The broadcast / multicast content components described are performed.

[0165] Fig.16 A flow chart illustrating a method 1600 for capability and coverage determination for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1600 may be implemented by a UE 115 or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1600 may be implemented by a UE 115 or a component thereof as described with reference to FIG. Figures 9 to 12In some examples, the UE 115 may execute a code set to control the functional elements of the device to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the UE 115 may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions described below.

[0166] At block 1605, UE 115 may receive an indication of target UE capabilities for delivering broadcast or multicast content and associated with a wireless interface between UE 115 and base station 105. In some cases, the indication of target UE capabilities may include a QCI. The operation of block 1605 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1605 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 9 to 12 The UE capability manager described in this document is used to perform the above operations.

[0167] At block 1610, UE 115 may identify supported capabilities of UE 115. The operations of block 1610 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1610 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 9 to 12 Describes the supported capabilities components to perform.

[0168] At block 1615, UE 115 may determine whether the supported capabilities are compatible with the target UE capabilities. The operation of block 1615 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1615 can be performed as described in reference to Figures 9 to 12 Describes the supported capabilities components to perform.

[0169] At block 1620, UE 115 may monitor the broadcast or multicast content based on determining that the supported capabilities are compatible with the target UE capabilities. The operation of block 1620 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1620 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 9 to 12 The broadcast / multicast monitoring component described is used to perform the above operations.

[0170] At block 1625, the UE 115 may receive the broadcast or multicast content using a wireless interface based at least in part on the identified supported capabilities of the UE 115 and based on the target UE capabilities. The operation of block 1625 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1625 can be performed as described in reference to Figures 9 to 12 The UE broadcast / multicast content component described is performed.

[0171] Fig.17 A flow chart illustrating a method 1700 for determining capability and coverage for a multimedia broadcast multicast service according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1700 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1700 may be implemented by a base station 105 or a component thereof as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The base station 105 may be executed by the base station capability and coverage manager described in the following. In some examples, the base station 105 may execute a code set to control the functional elements of the device to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station 105 may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions described below.

[0172] At block 1705, the base station 105 may determine a set of radio access parameters to be used to deliver the broadcast or unicast content. The operation of block 1705 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1705 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The wireless access parameter manager described herein is used to perform the above operations.

[0173] At block 1710, the base station 105 may send a set of radio access parameters to the network node. The operation of block 1710 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1710 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The wireless access parameter manager described herein is used to perform the above operations.

[0174] At block 1715, the base station 105 may receive a message from at least one UE 115 indicating successful reception of the broadcast or unicast content at the at least one UE 115. The operation of block 1715 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1715 can be performed as described in reference to Figures 5 to 8 The messaging components described are implemented.

[0175] At block 1720, the base station 105 may modify the set of radio access parameters based at least in part on the received message. The operation of block 1720 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 In some examples, aspects of the operation of block 1720 may be performed as described with reference to Figures 5 to 8 The wireless access parameter modifier described is used to perform the above operation.

[0176] In some examples, aspects of two or more of the described methods may be combined.It should be noted that these methods are merely example implementations, and the operations of these methods may be rearranged or otherwise modified so that other implementations are possible.

[0177] The technology described herein can be used in various wireless communication systems, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) and other systems. The terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably. A CDMA system can implement radio technologies such as CDMA2000, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), etc. CDMA2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856 standards. IS-2000 versions can be generally referred to as CDMA2000 1X, 1X, etc. IS-856 (TIA-856) is generally referred to as CDMA2000 1xEV-DO, High Speed ​​Packet Data (HRPD), etc. UTRA includes Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other variants of CDMA. A TDMA system can implement radio technologies such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM).

[0178] OFDMA systems can implement radio technologies such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash OFDM, etc. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). 3GPP LTE and LTE-A are versions of UMTS that use E-UTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A, NR, and GSM are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project" (3GPP). CDMA 2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project 2" (3GPP2). The technology described herein can be used for the systems and radio technologies mentioned above as well as other systems and radio technologies. Although aspects of an LTE or NR system may be described for example purposes, and LTE or NR terminology is used in much of the description, the techniques described herein have applicability beyond LTE or NR applications.

[0179] In LTE / LTE-A networks (including those described herein), the term evolved Node B (eNB) may be generally used to describe a base station. One or more wireless communication systems described herein may include heterogeneous LTE / LTE-A or NR networks in which different types of evolved Node Bs (eNBs) provide coverage for various geographic areas. For example, each eNB, gNB, or base station may provide communication coverage for a macro cell, a small cell, or other types of cells. The term "cell" may be used to describe a base station, a carrier or component carrier associated with a base station, or a coverage area (e.g., a sector, etc.) of a carrier or base station, depending on the context.

[0180] A base station may include or may be referred to by those skilled in the art as a base station transceiver, a wireless base station, an access point, a wireless transceiver, a node B, an evolved node B (eNB), a next generation node B (gNB), a home node B, a home evolved node B, or some other appropriate term. The geographic coverage area of ​​a base station may be divided into sectors, which constitute only a portion of the coverage area. One or more wireless communication systems described herein may include different types of base stations (e.g., macro cell base stations or small cell base stations). The UE described herein is capable of communicating with various types of base stations and network devices (including macro eNBs, small cell eNBs, gNBs, relay base stations, etc.). For different technologies, there may be overlapping geographic coverage areas.

[0181] A macro cell typically covers a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and may allow unrestricted access by a UE with a service subscription to a network provider. Compared to a macro cell, a small cell is a lower power base station that may operate in the same or different (e.g., licensed, unlicensed, etc.) radio frequency spectrum band as a macro cell. According to various examples, a small cell may include a pico cell, a femto cell, and a micro cell. For example, a pico cell may cover a small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by a UE with a service subscription to a network provider. A femto cell may also cover a small geographic area (e.g., a residence) and may provide restricted access by a UE associated with the femto cell (e.g., a UE in a closed subscriber group (CSG), a UE for a user in a residence, etc.). An eNB for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro eNB. An eNB for a small cell may be referred to as a small cell eNB, a pico eNB, a femto eNB, or a home eNB. An eNB may support one or more (e.g., two, three, four, etc.) cells (e.g., component carriers).

[0182] One or more wireless communication systems described herein may support synchronous operation or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, base stations may have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations may be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, base stations may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations may not be aligned in time. The techniques described herein may be used for synchronous operation or asynchronous operation.

[0183] Downlink transmissions described herein may also be referred to as forward link transmissions, and uplink transmissions may also be referred to as reverse link transmissions. Each communication link described herein (including, for example, as referred to in Figure 1 and Figure 2 The wireless communication systems 100 and 200 described herein may include one or more carriers, wherein each carrier may be a signal composed of multiple subcarriers (eg, waveform signals of different frequencies).

[0184] The descriptions set forth herein in conjunction with the accompanying drawings describe exemplary configurations and do not represent all examples that may be implemented or within the scope of the claims. The term "exemplary" as used herein means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration," and is not "preferred" or "advantageous over other examples." For the purpose of providing an understanding of the described techniques, the detailed description includes specific details. However, these techniques may be implemented without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.

[0185] In the drawings, similar components or features may have the same reference number. In addition, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference number with a dash and a second reference that is used to distinguish between similar components. If only the first reference number is used in the specification, the description may apply to any of the similar components having the same first reference number, regardless of what the second reference number is.

[0186] The information and signals described herein may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips mentioned throughout the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0187] The various illustrative blocks and modules described in conjunction with the disclosure herein may be implemented or executed using a general purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an 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 an alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a DSP core, or any other such configuration).

[0188] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted by a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. Other examples and implementations are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described above may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hard wiring, or any combination of these items. Features used to implement the functions may be physically located at various locations, including being distributed so that each part of the function is implemented at different physical locations. As used herein (including in the claims), the term "and / or" when used in a list with two or more items means that any one of the listed items may be adopted individually, or any combination of two or more of the listed items may be adopted. For example, if a composition is described as comprising components A, B, and / or C, the composition may comprise: only A; only B; only C; a combination of A and B; a combination of A and C; a combination of B and C; or a combination of A, B, and C. Furthermore, as used herein (including in the claims), "or" as used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items ending with a phrase such as "at least one of" or "one or more of") indicates an inclusive list, so that, for example, a phrase referring to a list of items "at least one of" refers to any combination of those items, including single members. For example, "at least one of A, B, or C" is intended to cover A, B, C, AB, AC, BC, and ABC, as well as any combination with multiples of the same elements (e.g., AA, AAA, AAB, AAC, ABB, ACC, BB, BBB, BBC, CC, and CCC or any other ordering of A, B, and C).

[0189] Furthermore, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should not be interpreted as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an exemplary step described as "based on condition A" can be based on both condition A and condition B without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should be interpreted in the same manner as the phrase "based at least in part on".

[0190] Computer readable medium includes both non-transitory computer storage medium and communication medium, and the communication medium includes any medium that promotes computer program to be transmitted from one place to another place.Non-transitory storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by general or special-purpose computer.By way of example and not limitation, non-transitory computer readable medium can include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), compact disc (CD) ROM or other optical disc storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage device, or can be used for carrying or storing desired program code unit in the form of instruction or data structure and can be accessed by general or special-purpose computer or general or special-purpose processor any other non-transitory medium.In addition, any connection is appropriately referred to as computer readable medium.For example, if software is sent from website, server or other remote source using coaxial cable, optical fiber cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL) or wireless technology (such as infrared, radio and microwave), coaxial cable, optical fiber cable, twisted pair, DSL or wireless technology (such as infrared, radio and microwave) are included in the definition of medium. As used herein, disk and disc include 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 computer-readable media.

[0191] The description herein is provided to enable those skilled in the art to implement or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is to be given the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication performed at a network device, comprising: Receiving a quality of service class identifier QCI assigned by a service provider for communication of multimedia broadcast multicast service MBMS content; configuring a radio interface between the network device and a UE associated with a user equipment (UE) category based at least in part on one or more radio parameters for communication of the MBMS content, wherein the UE category is based at least in part on the QCI and is associated with the one or more radio parameters; as well as The MBMS content is sent to the UE using the configured radio interface.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: identifying a mapping between the QCI and: a maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof; as well as The wireless interface is configured based at least in part on the identified mapping.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Configuring the wireless interface based at least in part on the one or more wireless parameters includes: A maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof, to be used to transmit the MBMS content is determined.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: receiving, from a network node, an indication of a desired coverage level specified by the service provider; as well as The wireless interface is configured based at least in part on the received indication of the desired coverage level.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Sending UE reports to network nodes; as well as An updated QCI is received from the network node, the wireless interface being modified based at least in part on the updated QCI.

6. A method for wireless communication at a user equipment UE, comprising: receiving an indication of a target UE capability associated with a wireless interface between the UE and a network device, the wireless interface being based at least in part on one or more wireless parameters for communication of multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS) content, wherein the target UE capability is based at least in part on a quality of service class identifier (QCI) for the UE; MBMS content is received using the wireless interface based at least in part on the one or more wireless parameters and the target UE capabilities.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein: The indication of the target UE capabilities comprises the QCI.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein: The indication of the target UE capabilities is received from a service provider.

9. The method according to claim 6, further comprising: Based at least in part on the target UE capabilities, a determination is made to monitor the MBMS content.

10. The method according to claim 6, wherein: Receiving the indication of the target UE capabilities includes receiving the indication of the target UE capabilities in one or more of: a single cell multipoint control channel (SC-MCCH), a user service description, or a system information block.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: determining the target UE capabilities based at least in part on the SC-MCCH; as well as A downlink control information (DCI) format is monitored based at least in part on the target UE capabilities.

12. The method according to claim 6, wherein: Receiving the indication of the target UE capabilities includes receiving the indication of the target UE capabilities in a transmission formatted based at least in part on minimum supported capabilities of the UE.

13. The method according to claim 6, wherein: The target UE capability includes a maximum supported capability of the UE targeted by a service provider, or a minimum supported capability of the UE targeted by a service provider, or an actual supported capability of the UE targeted by a service provider, or a combination thereof.

14. The method according to claim 6, further comprising: A report is sent indicating successful reception of the MBMS content.

15. The method according to claim 6, wherein: A UE category is associated with the one or more radio parameters.

16. An apparatus for wireless communication at a network device, comprising: means for receiving a quality of service class identifier QCI assigned by a service provider for communication of multimedia broadcast multicast service MBMS content; means for configuring a radio interface between the network device and a UE associated with a user equipment (UE) category based at least in part on one or more radio parameters for communication of the MBMS content, wherein the UE category is based at least in part on the QCI and associated with the one or more radio parameters; as well as Means for transmitting the MBMS content to the UE using the configured wireless interface.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising: means for identifying a mapping between the QCI and: a maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof; as well as Means for configuring the wireless interface based at least in part on the identified mapping.

18. The device according to claim 16, wherein: The means for configuring the wireless interface based at least in part on the one or more wireless parameters comprises: Means for determining a maximum bandwidth, or a maximum transport block size, or a combination thereof, to be used for transmitting the MBMS content.

19. The apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising: means for receiving, from a network node, an indication of a desired coverage level specified by the service provider; as well as Means for configuring the wireless interface based at least in part on the received indication of the desired coverage level.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising: means for sending a UE report to a network node; as well as Means for receiving an updated QCI from the network node, the wireless interface being modified based at least in part on the updated QCI.

Images