Mechanism for improving rational number discontinuous reception cycles

Abstract

This disclosure proposes a solution for improving rational number discontinuous receive (DRX) cycles. Specifically, a network device transmits a discontinuous receive configuration to a terminal device that indicates at least one of a discontinuous receive DRX cycle or the start time offset of said DRX cycle. The terminal device determines a target start time offset relative to the on-period of the DRX cycle without rounding error, based on a predetermined formula. When the DRX cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to match the start time offset of the DRX cycle. The terminal device performs discontinuous receive based on the determined target start time offset. In this way, since there is no rounding error when the DRX cycle is expressed as a rational number, the transmission delay is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Various embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of communications, and in particular, to methods, devices, apparatuses, and computer-readable storage media for improving the discontinuous reception cycle of rational numbers.

Background Art

[0002] With the development of communication technologies, a technique called "Discontinuous Reception (DRX)" has been proposed for power saving purposes. DRX is a technique that allows a user equipment (UE) to turn off its transceiver during the period of a DRX cycle when there is no packet to be received. In other words, during that period, the UE does not need to receive packets and does not monitor the channel. Furthermore, support for non-integer periods of DRX has also been proposed. Therefore, further research on non-integer periods of DRX is needed.

Summary of the Invention

[0003] In a first aspect of the present disclosure, a first device is provided. The first device includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first device to receive, from a second device, a discontinuous reception configuration indicating at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle of discontinuous reception or a start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle; determine, based on a predetermined formula, a target start time offset for an on period of the discontinuous reception cycle without rounding error, where when the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number, it is guaranteed that the target start time offset coincides with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle; and execute discontinuous reception based on the determined target start time offset.

[0004] A second aspect of the present disclosure provides a second device. The second device comprises at least one processor and at least one memory that stores instructions causing the second device to transmit to the first device a configuration of discontinuous reception indicating at least one of discontinuous reception cycles or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle, wherein the target start time offset relative to the on-period of the discontinuous reception cycle is determined without rounding error based on a predetermined formula, and it is ensured that the target start time offset matches the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle if the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number.

[0005] A third aspect of this disclosure provides a method. The method includes: receiving from a second device, in a first device, a configuration of discontinuous reception indicating at least one of discontinuous reception cycles or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle; determining a target start time offset for the on-period of a discontinuous reception cycle without rounding error, based on a predetermined formula, such that if the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle; and performing discontinuous reception based on the determined target start time offset.

[0006] A fourth aspect of the present disclosure provides a method, the method comprising transmitting to a first device a configuration of discontinuous reception indicating at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle, wherein a target start time offset for the on-period of the discontinuous reception cycle is determined without rounding error based on a predetermined formula, and it is ensured that the target start time offset matches the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle when the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number.

[0007] A fifth aspect of this disclosure provides a first apparatus. The first apparatus includes means for receiving a configuration of discontinuous reception from a second apparatus, which indicates at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle; means for determining a target start time offset for the on-period of a discontinuous reception cycle without rounding error, based on a predetermined formula, wherein if the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle; and means for performing discontinuous reception based on the determined target start time offset.

[0008] In a sixth aspect of the present disclosure, a second apparatus is provided. The second apparatus is a means for transmitting to a first apparatus a configuration of discontinuous reception indicating at least one of discontinuous reception cycles or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle, wherein, based on a predetermined formula, a target start time offset relative to the on-period of the discontinuous reception cycle is determined without rounding error, and it is ensured that, if the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset coincides with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle.

[0009] In a seventh aspect of this disclosure, a computer-readable medium is provided. This computer-readable medium stores instructions for causing a device to perform a method according to at least the third aspect.

[0010] In an eighth aspect of this disclosure, a computer-readable medium is provided. This computer-readable medium stores instructions for causing a device to perform a method according to at least the fourth aspect.

[0011] Please understand that the "Abstract" section is not intended to identify the main or essential features of the embodiments of this disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Other features of this disclosure will be readily apparent through the following description. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] Several embodiments will be described with reference to the attached drawings. [Figure 1] Figure 1 shows an example of a communication environment in which an embodiment of the present disclosure can be implemented. [Figure 2] Figure 2 shows a schematic diagram of a simulation according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] Figure 3 shows a signaling chart for determining the start time offset based on the embodiments of this disclosure. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows a schematic diagram of the DRX configuration according to the embodiment of this disclosure. [Figure 5] Figure 5 shows a flowchart of a method implemented in the first apparatus according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows a flowchart of a method implemented in a second apparatus according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows a simplified block diagram of an apparatus suitable for implementing an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] Figure 8 shows a block diagram of an example of a computer-readable medium according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals indicate the same or similar elements. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0013] The principles of this disclosure will be described with reference to several exemplary embodiments. These embodiments are provided for illustrative purposes only and are intended to help those skilled in the art understand and implement this disclosure, and should not be considered to impose any limitations on the scope of this disclosure. The embodiments described herein can be implemented in various other ways than those described below.

[0014] In the following description and claims, unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the meanings generally understood by those skilled in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0015] References in this specification such as “one embodiment,” “a particular embodiment,” and “exemplary embodiment” indicate that the described embodiments may include certain features, structures, or characteristics, but not all embodiments are required to include such features, structures, or characteristics. Furthermore, these expressions do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, if a particular function, structure, or characteristic is described in relation to an embodiment, it is considered to be within the knowledge of those skilled in the art to apply that function, structure, or characteristic in relation to other embodiments, whether or not it is explicitly stated.

[0016] The terms "first," "second," etc., which may be placed before nouns, etc., may be used in this specification to describe various elements, but it should be understood that these elements are not limited by these terms. These terms are used solely to distinguish one element from another and do not limit the order of nouns. For example, the first element may be called the second element, and similarly, the second element may be called the first element, and these do not exceed the scope of the examples. In this specification, the term "and / or" includes any combination of one or more of the listed terms.

[0017] In this specification, "at least one of the following: <list of two or more elements>" and "at least one of the <list of two or more elements>" and similar expressions, where lists of two or more elements are joined by "and" or "or", mean at least one element, at least two or more elements, or all of the elements.

[0018] As used herein, unless explicitly stated otherwise, performing a step "in response to A" does not mean that the step is performed immediately after the occurrence of "A", and one or more intervening steps may be included.

[0019] The terms used herein are for the purpose of describing particular embodiments and are not intended to limit the examples. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" are to be construed to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Further, the terms "comprise", "comprising", "have", "having", "include", and / or "including" as used herein specify the presence of the described features, elements, and / or components, etc., but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof.

[0020] In this application, the term "circuit" refers to (a) circuit implementation by only hardware (such as implementation by only analog and / or digital circuits), and (b) a combination of hardware circuits and software. For example (where applicable), (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware, and (ii) a combination of any part of a hardware processor (including a digital signal processor), software, and memory, which cooperate to cause an apparatus such as a mobile phone or a server to perform various functions, and (c) a hardware circuit and / or processor (such as a microprocessor or a part of a microprocessor) that requires software (such as firmware) for operation, provided that the software may not be present when not required for operation, and may refer to one or more, or all, of the above. [[ID=​The definition of this circuit applies to all uses of this term in this application, and is the same in any claim. As a further example, when used in this application, the term "circuit" includes merely a hardware circuit or a processor (or a plurality of processors), or a part of a hardware circuit or a processor, and the software and / or firmware implementations associated therewith. Also, the term "circuit" includes, for example, a baseband integrated circuit or a processor integrated circuit for a mobile device, or a similar integrated circuit in a server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network devices when applied to a particular claim element.

[0022] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network that complies with any suitable communication standard, such as New Radio (NR), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA (registered trademark)), High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), etc. Further, the communication between the terminal device and the network device in the communication network is performed according to any suitable generation of communication protocol, including, but not limited to, the communication protocols of the first generation (1G), the second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G), the fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G), the sixth generation (6G), and / or any other protocol known currently or developed in the future. Embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to various communication systems. Considering the rapid development of communication technologies, it is natural that there will also be future communication technologies and systems in which the present disclosure can be implemented. The scope of the present disclosure should not be construed as limited only to the aforementioned systems.

[0023] In this specification, the term “network equipment” refers to a node in a communications network from which terminal devices access the network and receive services. Network equipment may also refer to base stations (BS) or access points (APs), such as Node B (NodeB or NB), evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), NR NB (also called gNB), remote radio units (RRUs), radio headers (RHs), remote radio heads (RRHs), repeaters, integrated access backhaul (IAB) nodes, low-power nodes such as femto and pico, satellite network equipment, non-terrestrial network (NTN) or non-terrestrial network equipment such as low orbit (LEO) satellites and geostationary (GEO) satellites, aircraft network equipment, etc., which may vary depending on the terminology and technology applied. In some embodiments, the segmented architecture of a radio access network (RAN) may include centralized units (CUs) and distributed units (DUs) in an IAB donor node. An IAB node includes a mobile terminal (IAB-MT) portion that behaves like a UE to its parent node, and a DU portion of the IAB node that behaves like a base station to the next hop's IAB node.

[0024] The term "terminal device" refers to any termination device capable of wireless communication. While not a limitation, terminal devices may also be called communication devices, user equipment (UE), subscriber stations (SS), portable subscriber stations, mobile stations (MS), or access terminals (AT). Terminal devices may include mobile phones, mobile phone terminals, smartphones, VoIP (Voice over IP) phones, wireless local loop phones, tablets, wearable devices, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), portable computers, desktop computers, image capture devices such as digital cameras, game terminals, music storage and playback devices, in-vehicle wireless terminals, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop-based equipment (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPE), Internet of Things (IoT) devices, watches and other wearables, head-mounted displays (HMDs), vehicles, drones, medical equipment and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial equipment and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in the context of industrial and / or automated processing chains), consumer electronics, devices operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and similar devices. Terminal devices may also correspond to the mobile termination (MT) portion of an IAB node (e.g., a relay node). In the following explanation, the terms “terminal device,” “communication device,” “terminal,” “user device,” and “UE” may be used interchangeably.

[0025] In this specification, the terms “resource,” “transmission resource,” “resource block,” “physical resource block” (PRB), “uplink resource,” or “downlink resource” may refer to any resource for performing communication (e.g., communication between a terminal device and a network device), including time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, spatial-domain resources, code-domain resources, or any combination of time, frequency, spatial, and / or code-domain resources that enable communication. Hereafter, unless otherwise specified, both frequency-domain and time-domain resources will be used as examples of transmission resources to illustrate some embodiments of this disclosure. It should be noted that the embodiments of this disclosure are equally applicable to other resources in other domains.

[0026] In this specification, the terms “RRC connection state” or “RRC connection mode” may refer to a state in which a service radio bearer and a data radio bearer are assigned to a terminal device. In this specification, the terms “RRC idle state” or “RRC idle mode” may refer to a state in which the terminal device is powered on but no established RRC connection exists. In this specification, the terms “RRC inactive state” or “RRC inactive mode” may refer to a state in which a suspended RRC connection exists.

[0027] In this specification, the term “Discontinuous Reception (DRX)” may refer to a technique that enables a device to receive data or enter a sleep state within a set period of time. There are two types of DRX: long DRX and short DRX. In this specification, the term “Discontinuous Transmission (DTX)” refers to a technique that enables a device to transmit data or enter a sleep state within a set period of time. As used in DRX, the terms “on period” or “active period” refer to a period during which the device can monitor a channel (e.g., a physical control channel or a physical shared channel) and receive data or control information on that channel. As used in relation to DRX, the terms “DRX period,” “DRX opportunity,” “off time,” “off period,” and “non-active / inactive period” refer to a period during which the device does not monitor a channel and does not receive data or control information on that channel. As used in this specification, the term “DRX cycle” includes an on period during which the device can monitor a channel and a DRX period during which the device can skip receiving data on the channel. As used herein in relation to DTX, the terms “on period” or “active period” refer to the period during which the device can transmit data or control information over a channel, such as a physical control channel or a physical shared channel. As used herein in relation to DTX, the terms “DTX period,” “DTX opportunity,” “off time,” “off period,” and “non-active / inactive period” refer to the period during which the device does not transmit data or control information over a channel. As used herein, the term “DTX cycle” includes the on period during which the device can transmit data or control information over a channel and the DTX period during which the device can skip transmission to a channel. As used herein, the term “short DRX cycle” may refer to a relatively short DRX cycle, which is used when the device has data to transmit or receive and needs to remain active for a shorter period. As used herein, the term “long DRX cycle” may refer to a relatively long DRX cycle. For example, a short DRX cycle may range from 2 ms to 640 ms, and a long DRX cycle may range from 10 ms to 1024 ms.A longer DRX cycle may provide better power savings for the UE at the cost of longer radio latency, i.e., at the expense of the device being unreachable during the DRX OFF period.

[0028] As mentioned above, this specification also proposes support for non-integer periods of DRX. For example, to improve power efficiency, DRX support for virtual reality and / or augmented reality (XR) frame rates may accommodate non-integer periods (at least through a semi-static mechanism, e.g., RRC signaling). For example, some DRX support for XR periods such as 1 / 60th of a second or 1 / 90th of a second is conceivable. Therefore, a solution for non-integer periods of DRX is needed.

[0029] Figure 1 shows an example of a communication environment 100 that can implement an example of an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the communication environment 100, the first device 110 and the second device 120 communicate with each other.

[0030] For the sake of explanation, several embodiments will be described below in which the first device 110 operates as a terminal device and the second device 120 operates as a network device. However, in some embodiments, the operations described in relation to the terminal device may be implemented in the network device or other devices, and the operations described in relation to the network device may be implemented in the terminal device or other devices.

[0031] In some embodiments, when the first device 110 is a terminal device and the second device 120 is a network device, the link from the second device 120 to the first device 110 is called a downlink (DL), and the link from the first device 110 to the second device 120 is called an uplink (UL). In a DL, the second device 120 is a transmitting (TX) device (or transmitter), and the first device 110 is a receiving (RX) device (or receiver). In a UL, the first device 110 is a TX device (or transmitter), and the second device 120 is an RX device (or receiver).

[0032] Communication in the communication environment 100 may be carried out in accordance with any appropriate communication protocol, including, but not limited to, cellular communication protocols such as first-generation (1G), second-generation (2G), third-generation (3G), fourth-generation (4G), fifth-generation (5G), and sixth-generation (6G), wireless local area network communication protocols such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11, and / or other protocols currently known or to be developed in the future. Furthermore, communication may utilize any appropriate wireless communication technology, including, but not limited to, code division multiplexing (CDMA), frequency division multiplexing (FDMA), time division multiplexing (TDMA), frequency division duplexing (FDD), time division duplexing (TDD), multiple input multiple output (MIMO), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM), and / or other technologies currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0033] In some solutions, uniform DRX cycles, expressed as rational numbers, may be used. For example, if the frame rate of the XR traffic is frames per second (FPS), then the DRX cycles would be 1000 / FPS. If the DRX cycles are rational numbers (e.g., 50 / 3 for 60fps), they are not decimal numbers like 16.67 for 60fps. Furthermore, in the case of rational numbers, there are several ways to implement modulo arithmetic without introducing rounding errors. One example is to apply equation (1) below.

number

[0034] Let's take a long DRX cycle as an example. The DRX start offset for a long DRX cycle can be expressed as follows:

number

number

[0035] Furthermore, since A × C is the product of two integers, it is an integer, and therefore B is also an integer. As a result, (A × C) / B is also a rational number. Thus, floor((A × C) / B) is an integer. However, the fraction B / C is still a rational number, and in particular, when the integer floor((A × C) / B) is multiplied by the fraction B / C, different values ​​may be obtained depending on the numerical precision used to represent the fraction, and this can vary from one computing platform to another.

[0036] More specifically, rational numbers B / C and repeating decimals (e.g., 50 / 3 = 16.6666…) can introduce rounding errors when represented by machines. The numerical representation of fractions can cause their products to round towards infinity. This is considered a machine-dependent problem and cannot be avoided in actual implementations.

[0037] For example, let F be a fraction and I be an integer. The product F × I may have different values ​​depending on how the fraction F is represented in the computer. Let I = 50 and F = 1 / 3 (a typical example of 50 / 3 = 16.6666…). If a fraction F is represented by a computer as F = 1 / 3 = 0.3, then F × I = 50 × 0.3 = 15, and as a result, floor(F × I) = floor(50 × 0.3) = 15. If the fraction F is represented by a computer as F = 1 / 3 = 0.33, then F × I = 50 × 0.33 = 16.5 is obtained, and as a result, floor(F × I) = floor(50 × 0.33) = 16. If the fraction F is represented by a computer as F = 1 / 3 = 0.333, then F × I = 50 × 0.333 = 16.6 is obtained, and as a result, floor(F × I) = floor(50 × 0.333) = 16.

[0038] However, as shown in Figure 2, equation (3) can introduce rounding errors. Furthermore, due to these rounding errors, the result of equation (3) may not match the start offset, resulting in skipped DRX cycles and increased delays. For example, as shown in Figure 2, the first rounding error occurs near SFN250. In this case, equation (3) outputs -1 for drx-StartOffset, which should be 16. Thus, the pattern of drx-StartOffset in this example is {15,16,16}, but the result is -1 instead of 16, meaning that the conditions for starting the DRX cycle are not met, and the DRX cycle is skipped. Therefore, the rounding error needs to be corrected.

[0039] According to embodiments of this disclosure, a solution is proposed for improving rational number DRX cycles. Specifically, a network device transmits to a terminal device a configuration for discontinuous reception indicating at least one of a discontinuous reception DRX cycle or a start time offset of that DRX cycle. The terminal device determines a target start time offset for the on-period of the DRX cycle without rounding error based on a predetermined formula. If the DRX cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the DRX cycle. The terminal device performs discontinuous reception based on the determined target start time offset. In this way, since there is no rounding error when the DRX cycle is expressed as a rational number, the transmission delay is reduced.

[0040] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings.

[0041] Referring to Figure 3, a signaling flow 300 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. For convenience of explanation, the signaling flow 300 will be described, for example, with reference to Figure 1, using the first apparatus 110 and the second apparatus 120.

[0042] The second device 120 transmits the configuration of the discontinuous reception (DRX) to the first device 110 (3010). In other words, the first device 110 receives the DRX configuration from the second device 120. In some embodiments, the DRX configuration may be transmitted via RRC signaling.

[0043] The DRX configuration indicates one or more of the DRX cycles or the start time offsets of the DRX cycles. For example, as shown in Figure 4, the DRX configuration may indicate a DRX cycle 410. The DRX configuration may also indicate an ON period 420 of the DRX during which the first device 110 can receive data and / or control information. Furthermore, the DRX configuration may indicate a start time offset 430 that indicates the start slot of the DRX.

[0044] The first device 110 determines the target start time offset relative to the on-period of the DRX cycle without rounding error based on a predetermined formula (3030). When the DRX cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the DRX cycle. For example, the target start time offset coincides with the start time offset 430 shown in the DRX configuration. In this way, rounding errors can be avoided and transmission delays can be reduced.

[0045] In some embodiments, predetermined formulas for performing floor function, division, and multiplication operations without modifying the current DRX formula may apply only to UE and / or gNB vendor-specific implementations. For example, Table 1 below shows examples of applications of predetermined formulas that may be included in the Technical Specification (TS). Note that Table 1 is only an example. [Table 1]

[0046] For example, in some embodiments, the first device 110 determines whether the DRX cycle is represented as a rational number or as an integer. In one embodiment, if the DRX cycle is represented as a rational number and is a long DRX cycle, the first device 110 obtains the target start time offset by applying a predetermined formula. In this case, the predetermined formula is expressed as follows:

number

number

number

[0047] Alternatively, if the DRX cycle is expressed as a rational number and is a short DRX cycle, the first device 110 can obtain the target start time offset by applying a predetermined formula. In this case, the predetermined formula can be expressed as follows:

number

[0048] In some embodiments, if the DRX cycle is an integer, the first device 110 may determine whether the DRX cycle is a short DRX cycle or a long DRX cycle. In this case, if the DRX cycle is a short DRX cycle, the first device 110 may obtain the target start time offset of the short DRX cycle by applying a predetermined formula. In this case, the predetermined formula is expressed as follows:

number

[0049] Alternatively, if the DRX cycle is an integer and is a long DRX cycle, the first device 110 can obtain the target start time offset of the long DRX cycle by applying a predetermined formula. In this case, the predetermined formula can be expressed as follows:

number

[0050] Alternatively, predetermined formulas for directly performing floor function, division, and multiplication operations could lead to changes in the current DRX formulas and DRX hypercycle configurations in the RRC domain. For example, Table 2 below shows examples of applications of predetermined formulas that may be included in the Technical Specification (TS). Note that Table 2 is only one example. [Table 2]

[0051] For example, the configuration of a DRX represents the number of hyper-DRX cycles and the number of DRX cycles within a hyper-DRX cycle. In this case, the DRX cycle is represented as the hyper-DRX cycle divided by the number of DRX cycles within the hyper-DRX cycle. For example, the configuration of a DRX may represent a tuple of DRX hypercycle configurations that include an integer hypercycle, i.e., drx-HyperCycle, and the number of cycles within the hypercycle, i.e., drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle. In this case, for example, using floor function calculations, a pattern of 17, 17, 16 can be obtained without introducing a counter to identify the DRX cycles that need adjustment. For example, the combinations of hyper-DRX cycles and the number of DRX cycles per hyper-DRX cycle are (100,3), (200,9), (50,3), (125,9), (100,9), and (25,3), which can correspond to frame rates of 30fps, 45fps, 60fps, 72fps, 90fps, and 120fps.

[0052] In one embodiment, if the DRX cycle is a long DRX cycle, the first device 110 can obtain the target start time offset of the long DRX cycle by applying a predetermined formula. In this case, the predetermined formula is expressed as follows:

number

[0053] In another embodiment, if the DRX cycle is a short DRX cycle, the first device 110 can obtain a target start time offset for a long DRX cycle by applying a predetermined formula. In this case, the predetermined formula is expressed as follows:

number

[0054] Referring to Figure 3, the first device 110 performs DRX based on the determined target start time offset (3050). In this way, DRX can be performed without skipping DRX cycles, and delays can be reduced.

[0055] According to embodiments of this disclosure, no rounding error occurs. For example, as shown in Figure 2, if equation (3) is used to determine drx-StartOffset, a rounding error may occur. In the numerical example in Figure 2, the DRX hypercycle is B=50ms and the number of cycles per hypercycle is C=3, so drxLongCycle is expressed as the rational number 50 / 3ms. In this case, it is clear that there are three values ​​that are calculated as -1 for drx-StartOffset. However, by using the equation according to embodiments of this disclosure, this numerical error can be eliminated.

[0056] Figure 5 shows a flowchart of an exemplary method 500 implemented in a first apparatus according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For convenience of explanation, method 500 is described in terms of the first apparatus 110 in Figure 1.

[0057] In block 510, the first device 110 receives a discontinuous reception configuration from the second device 120. The discontinuous reception configuration indicates at least one of the discontinuous reception cycle or the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle.

[0058] In block 520, the first device 110 determines, without rounding error, the target start time offset for the ON period of the discontinuous reception cycle based on a predetermined formula. If the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle.

[0059] In block 530, the first device 110 performs discontinuous reception based on the determined target start time offset.

[0060] In some embodiments, Method 500 determines whether a discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number, and, if the discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number and the discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle,

number

[0061] In some embodiments, Method 500 determines whether a discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number, and, in accordance with the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number and that the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle,

number

[0062] In some embodiments, method 500 further includes determining whether a discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number, and determining whether a discontinuous reception cycle is a short or long discontinuous reception cycle, according to the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer.

[0063] In some embodiments, Method 500 further includes obtaining a target start time offset for a short discontinuous receive cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as floor([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle)) = floor ((drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle)), according to the determination that the discontinuous receive cycle is a short discontinuous receive cycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-ShortCycle represents the short discontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0064] In some embodiments, Method 500 further includes obtaining a target start time offset for a long discontinuous receive cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as floor([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-LongCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, according to the determination that the discontinuous receive cycle is a long discontinuous receive cycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-LongCycle represents the long discontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0065] In some embodiments, the configuration of discontinuous reception is represented by the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles and discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle, where discontinuous reception is expressed as the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles divided by the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle.

[0066] In some embodiments, Method 500 further includes obtaining a target start time offset for a long discontinuous receive cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as floor((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / (drx-HyperCycle))])) / (drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, according to the determination that the discontinuous receive cycle is a long discontinuous receive cycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles in a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0067] In some embodiments, method 500 determines that a discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, and then floors (([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle) = floor ((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor (((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / The method further includes obtaining the target start time offset for the short discontinuous receive cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles within a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0068] Figure 6 shows a flowchart of an exemplary method 600 implemented in a second apparatus according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For convenience of explanation, method 600 is described in terms of the second apparatus 120 in Figure 1.

[0069] In block 610, the second device 120 transmits to the first device 110 a configuration for discontinuous reception indicating at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle. Based on a predetermined formula, the target start time offset relative to the on-period of the discontinuous reception cycle is determined without rounding error. If the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle.

[0070] In some embodiments, when the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number and the discontinuous reception is a long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset is:

number

[0071] In some embodiments, the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number, and if the discontinuous reception is a short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset is:

number

[0072] In some embodiments, when the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer and the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the short discontinuous reception cycle is obtained by applying a predetermined formula expressed as floor([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle)) = floor((drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle)), where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-ShortCycle represents the short discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0073] In some embodiments, when the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer and is a long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the long discontinuous reception cycle is obtained by applying a predetermined formula expressed as floor([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-LongCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-LongCycle represents the long discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0074] In some embodiments, the configuration of discontinuous reception is represented by the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles and discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle, and discontinuous reception is represented as the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles divided by the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle.

[0075] In some embodiments, if the discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the long discontinuous reception cycle is obtained by applying a predetermined formula expressed as floor((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / (drx-HyperCycle))])) / (drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0076] In some embodiments, if the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset for the short discontinuous reception cycle is floor(([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle) = floor ((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor (((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / It is obtained by applying a predetermined formula expressed as drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles within a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0077] In some embodiments, the second device includes a network device, and the first device includes a terminal device.

[0078] In some embodiments, a first apparatus capable of performing any of the methods 500 (e.g., the first apparatus 110 in Figure 1) may include means for performing each operation of the method 500. These means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, such means may be implemented as a circuit or a software module. The first apparatus may be implemented as or included in the first apparatus 110 in Figure 1.

[0079] In some embodiments, the first apparatus includes means for receiving a configuration of discontinuous reception from a second apparatus that indicates at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle; means for determining a target start time offset for the on-period of a discontinuous reception cycle without rounding error based on a predetermined formula, wherein, if the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle; and means for performing discontinuous reception based on the determined target start time offset.

[0080] In some embodiments, the first device includes means for determining whether a discontinuous reception cycle can be represented as a rational number, and, in accordance with the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle can be represented as a rational number and that the discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle,

number

[0081] In some embodiments, the first device includes means for determining whether a discontinuous reception cycle can be represented as a rational number, and, in accordance with the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle can be represented as a rational number and that the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle,

number

[0082] In some embodiments, the first apparatus further includes means for determining whether a discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number, and means for determining whether a discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle or a long discontinuous reception cycle, according to the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer.

[0083] In some embodiments, the first device further provides means for obtaining a target start time offset for a short discontinuous receive cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as flooring [(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle)) = floor((drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle)), according to the determination that the discontinuous receive cycle is a short discontinuous receive cycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-ShortCycle represents the short discontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0084] In some embodiments, the first device further provides means for obtaining a target start time offset for a long discontinuous reception cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as flooring ([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-LongCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, according to the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-LongCycle represents the long discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0085] In some embodiments, the configuration of discontinuous reception is represented by the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles and discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle, and discontinuous reception is represented as the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles divided by the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle.

[0086] In some embodiments, the first device further provides means for obtaining a target start time offset for a long discontinuous receive cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as flooring ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / (drx-HyperCycle))])) / (drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, according to the determination that the discontinuous receive cycle is a long discontinuous receive cycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles in a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0087] In some embodiments, the first device, according to the determination that a discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, flooring (([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle) = floor ((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor (((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / The system further provides means for obtaining a target start time offset for a short discontinuous receive cycle by applying a predetermined formula expressed as drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles within a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0088] In some embodiments, the first device includes a terminal device, and the second device includes a network device.

[0089] In some embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises means for performing other operations in some embodiments of Method 500 or the first apparatus 110. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor and at least one memory for storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus to perform operations.

[0090] In some embodiments, a second apparatus capable of performing any of the methods 600 (e.g., the second apparatus 120 in Figure 1) may include means for performing each operation of the methods 600. These means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, they may be implemented as a circuit or a software module. The second apparatus may be implemented as or included in the second apparatus 120 in Figure 1.

[0091] In some embodiments, the second device includes means for transmitting to the first device a configuration of discontinuous reception indicating at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of a discontinuous reception cycle, and means for determining, without rounding error, a target start time offset for the on-period of a discontinuous reception cycle based on a predetermined formula, wherein, if the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle.

[0092] In some embodiments, when the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number and the discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset is:

number

[0093] In some embodiments, when the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number and the discontinuous reception cycle is short, the target start time offset is:

number

[0094] In some embodiments, when the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer and the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the short discontinuous reception cycle is obtained by applying a predetermined formula expressed as flooring ([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle)) = floor ((drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle)), where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-ShortCycle represents the short discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0095] In some embodiments, when the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer and the discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the long discontinuous reception cycle is obtained by applying a predetermined formula expressed as a means for performing flooring ([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-LongCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-LongCycle represents the long discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0096] In some embodiments, the configuration of discontinuous reception is represented by the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles and discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle, and discontinuous reception is represented as the number of hyperdiscontinuous reception cycles divided by the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyperdiscontinuous reception cycle.

[0097] In some embodiments, if the discontinuous receive cycle is a long discontinuous receive cycle, the target start time offset of that long discontinuous receive cycle is obtained by applying a predetermined formula, which is expressed as a means for performing flooring ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / (drx-HyperCycle))])) / (drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles in the hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0098] In some embodiments, if the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset for the short discontinuous reception cycle is flooring (([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle) = floor ((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor (((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / The SFN is obtained by applying a predetermined formula, which is expressed as a means to perform drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle, where SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles within a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset.

[0099] In some embodiments, the second device includes a network device, and the first device includes a terminal device.

[0100] In some embodiments, the second apparatus further comprises means for performing other operations in some embodiments of Method 600 or the second apparatus 120. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor and at least one memory for storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus to perform operations.

[0101] Figure 7 is a simplified block diagram of a device 700 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 700 is provided for implementing communication devices such as the first device 110 and the second device 120 shown in Figure 1. As shown in the figure, the device 700 includes one or more processors 710, one or more memories 720 connected to the processors 710, and one or more communication modules 740 connected to the processors 710.

[0102] The communication module 740 is for bidirectional communication. The communication module 740 has one or more communication interfaces to facilitate communication with one or more other modules or devices. The communication interfaces can represent any interfaces necessary for communication with other network elements. In some embodiments, the communication module 740 may include at least one antenna.

[0103] The processor 710 is of any type suitable for the technology network and, in non-limiting examples, may include one or more general-purpose computers, dedicated computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), and processors based on multicore processor architectures. The device 700 may have multiple processors, such as application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) chips that are time-dependent to a clock that synchronizes the main processor.

[0104] Memory 720 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM) 724, electrically rewritable read-only memory (EPROM), flash® memory, hard disks, compact discs (CDs), digital video discs (DVDs), optical discs, laser discs, and other magnetic and optical storage devices. Examples of volatile memories include, but are not limited to, random-access memory (RAM) 722 and other volatile memories that are not retained during power-off periods.

[0105] The computer program 730 includes computer-executable instructions that are executed by the associated processor 710. The instructions in program 730 may include instructions for performing operations / actions in some embodiments of the present disclosure. Program 730 may be stored in memory, for example, ROM 724. The processor 710 can perform any appropriate operations and processes by loading program 730 into RAM 722.

[0106] The embodiments of this disclosure are implemented by program 730, which enables the apparatus 700 to perform any of the processes of this disclosure described with reference to Figures 2 to 6. The embodiments of this disclosure may also be implemented by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware.

[0107] In some embodiments, the program 730 may be contained within the device 700 (e.g., in memory 720) or in another storage device accessible from the device 700, and may be tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium. The device 700 can read the program 730 from the computer-readable medium into RAM 722 for execution. In some embodiments, the computer-readable medium may include any type of non-temporary storage medium, such as ROM, EPROM, flash® memory, hard disk, CD, DVD, etc. The term "non-temporary" as used herein refers to the medium itself (i.e., tangible and not signal-based), and not to the persistence of data storage (e.g., RAM vs. ROM).

[0108] Figure 8 shows an example of a computer-readable medium 800, which may take the form of a CD, DVD, or other optical disc. The computer-readable medium 800 stores a program 730.

[0109] In general, various embodiments of this disclosure may be implemented by hardware or dedicated circuitry, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some embodiments may be implemented in hardware, while others may be implemented by firmware or software that can be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Various embodiments of this disclosure are described using block diagrams, flowcharts, or other illustrations, but it should be understood that the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented, in non-limiting examples, by hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuitry or logic, general-purpose hardware, controllers, or other computing devices, or a combination thereof.

[0110] Some embodiments of this disclosure also provide at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium, such as a non-temporary computer-readable medium. This computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as those contained in a program module, which are executed on a device on a target physical or virtual processor to perform any of the methods described above. Generally, a program module includes routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc., that perform a particular task or implement a particular abstract data type. The functionality of program modules may be combined or divided among program modules as needed in various embodiments. The machine-executable instructions for a program module may be executed in a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, the program module may reside on both local and remote storage media.

[0111] Program code for performing the methods of this disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. The program code is provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a dedicated computer, or other programmable data processing device, and when executed by the processor or controller, it causes the functions / operations specified in the flowchart and / or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may run entirely on the machine, partially on the machine, run as a standalone software package, run partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or run entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0112] In the context of this disclosure, computer program code or related data may be transmitted by any suitable medium to enable a device, apparatus, or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of such mediums include signals and computer-readable media.

[0113] Computer-readable media are computer-readable signal media or computer-readable storage media. Computer-readable media include, but are not limited to, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatus, devices, or appropriate combinations thereof. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media include electrical connections with one or more wires, portable computer floppy disks, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash® memory), optical fibers, portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or appropriate combinations thereof.

[0114] Furthermore, while the operations are shown in a specific order, this does not mean that such operations must be performed in a specific order or sequentially as shown, or that all illustrated operations must be performed, in order to achieve the desired result. Under certain circumstances, multitasking or parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, the above description includes details of several specific embodiments, but these should not be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to a particular embodiment. Unless expressly stated, certain features described in the context of an individual embodiment may be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, unless expressly stated, various features described in the context of a single embodiment may be implemented individually or in any appropriate partial combination in multiple embodiments.

[0115] While this disclosure is described using terminology specific to structural features and / or methodological actions, it should be understood that the disclosure as defined in the attached claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features and actions described above. Rather, the specific features and actions described above are disclosed as exemplary forms for carrying out the claims.

Claims

1. It is a device, At least one processor, When executed by the at least one processor, the device: Receiving from a network device the configuration of discontinuous reception which indicates at least one of the discontinuous reception cycle or the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle, Determining, without rounding error, the target start time offset for the ON period of the discontinuous reception cycle based on a predetermined formula, wherein, if the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to match the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle. Based on the determined target start time offset, the discontinuous reception is performed, At least one memory to store instructions to execute, A device equipped with the following features.

2. The aforementioned device is To determine whether the aforementioned discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number, If the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, and the discontinuous reception cycle is determined to be a long discontinuous reception cycle, [Math 1] The target start time offset is obtained by applying the predetermined formula expressed as, It is configured to perform, A is an integer representing [(SFN × 10) + subframe number], SFN represents the system frame number, B / C represents the long discontinuous receive cycle which is a rational number expressed as the ratio of two integers represented by B and C, Z represents an integer representing the target start time offset, and floor represents the floor function. The apparatus according to claim 1.

3. The aforementioned device is To determine whether the aforementioned discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number, The discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, and according to the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, [Math 2] The target start time offset is obtained by applying the predetermined formula expressed as, It is configured to perform, A is an integer representing [(SFN × 10) + subframe number], SFN represents the system frame number, B / C represents the short discontinuous receive cycle which is a rational number expressed as the ratio of two integers represented as B and C, Z represents the target start time offset which is an integer, and floor represents the floor function. The apparatus according to claim 1.

4. The aforementioned device is To determine whether the aforementioned discontinuous reception cycle can be expressed as a rational number, In accordance with the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer, it is determined whether the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle or a long discontinuous reception cycle. The apparatus according to claim 1, configured to perform the following.

5. The aforementioned device is In accordance with the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is the short discontinuous reception cycle, floor([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle)) = floor((drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle)), The system is configured to obtain the target start time offset of the short discontinuous reception cycle by applying the predetermined formula expressed as follows: SFN represents the system frame number, drx-ShortCycle represents the short discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The apparatus according to claim 4.

6. The aforementioned device is In accordance with the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is the long discontinuous reception cycle, floor([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] mod (drx-LongCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, The system is configured to obtain the target start time offset of the long discontinuous reception cycle by applying the predetermined formula expressed as follows: SFN represents the system frame number, drx-LongCycle represents the long discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The apparatus according to claim 4.

7. The configuration of the discontinuous reception described above indicates the number of hyper-discontinuous reception cycles and the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, The discontinuous reception cycle is represented as the value obtained by dividing the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle by the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the discontinuous reception cycle. The apparatus according to claim 1.

8. The aforementioned device is In accordance with the determination that the aforementioned discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle, floor((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / (drx-HyperCycle))])) / (drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, By applying a predetermined formula expressed as, the target start time offset of the long discontinuous reception cycle is obtained. It is configured to perform, SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous receive cycles within a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents a hyperdiscontinuous receive cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The apparatus according to claim 7.

9. The aforementioned device is In accordance with the determination that the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, floor (([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle) = floor ((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor (((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle), The system is configured to obtain the target start time offset of the short discontinuous reception cycle by applying the predetermined formula expressed as follows: SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The apparatus according to claim 7.

10. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the apparatus includes a terminal device.

11. A second device, At least one processor, When executed by the at least one processor, the second device, Transmitting to a first device a configuration of discontinuous reception indicating at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle, wherein the target start time offset relative to the on-period of the discontinuous reception cycle is determined without rounding error based on a predetermined formula, and it is guaranteed that the target start time offset matches the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle when the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number. At least one memory to store instructions to execute, A second device comprising the following:

12. If the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number and the discontinuous reception is a long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset is [Math 3] Obtained by applying the aforementioned predetermined formula, which is expressed as A is an integer representing [(SFN × 10) + subframe number], SFN represents the system frame number, B / C represents the long discontinuous receive cycle which is a rational number expressed as the ratio of two integers represented as B and C, Z represents the target start time offset which is an integer, and floor represents the floor function. The second apparatus according to claim 11.

13. If the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number and the discontinuous reception is a short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset is: [Math 4] Obtained by applying the aforementioned predetermined formula, which is expressed as A is an integer representing [(SFN × 10) + subframe number], SFN represents the system frame number, B / C represents the short discontinuous receive cycle which is a rational number expressed as the ratio of two integers represented as B and C, Z represents the target start time offset which is an integer, and floor represents the floor function. The second apparatus according to claim 11.

14. If the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer and the discontinuous reception cycle is the short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the short discontinuous reception cycle is floor ([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle)) = floor ((drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle)), Obtained by applying the aforementioned predetermined formula, which is expressed as SFN represents the system frame number, drx-ShortCycle represents the short discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The second apparatus according to claim 11.

15. If the discontinuous reception cycle is an integer and the discontinuous reception cycle is the long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the long discontinuous reception cycle is floor([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-LongCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, Obtained by applying the aforementioned predetermined formula, which is expressed as SFN represents the system frame number, drx-LongCycle represents the long discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The second apparatus according to claim 11.

16. The configuration of the discontinuous reception described above indicates the number of hyper-discontinuous reception cycles and the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, The discontinuous reception is represented as the value obtained by dividing the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle by the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle. The second apparatus according to claim 11.

17. If the discontinuous reception cycle is a long discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the long discontinuous reception cycle is floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / (drx-HyperCycle))])) / (drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) = drx-StartOffset, Obtained by applying the aforementioned predetermined formula, which is expressed as SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The second apparatus according to claim 16.

18. If the discontinuous reception cycle is a short discontinuous reception cycle, the target start time offset of the short discontinuous reception cycle is floor (([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor ((([(SFN × 10) + subframe number] × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle) = floor ((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle - [drx-HyperCycle × floor (((drx-StartOffset × drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle)) / drx-HyperCycle)]) / drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle), Obtained by applying the aforementioned predetermined formula, which is expressed as SFN represents the system frame number, drx-NumberOfCyclesPerHyperCycle represents the number of discontinuous reception cycles within the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, drx-HyperCycle represents the hyper-discontinuous reception cycle, and drx-StartOffset represents the target start time offset. The second apparatus according to claim 16.

19. The second device according to any one of claims 11 to 18, wherein the second device includes a network device and the first device includes a terminal device.

20. The first device receives from the second device the configuration of the discontinuous reception, which indicates at least one of the discontinuous reception cycle or the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle. Determining, without rounding error, the target start time offset for the ON period of the discontinuous reception cycle based on a predetermined formula, wherein, if the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to match the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle. Based on the determined target start time offset, the discontinuous reception is performed, Methods that include...

21. The second device transmits to the first device a configuration of discontinuous reception indicating at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle, wherein the target start time offset relative to the on period of the discontinuous reception cycle is determined without rounding error based on a predetermined formula, and it is guaranteed that the target start time offset matches the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle when the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number. Methods that include...

22. The first device, A means for receiving from a second device the configuration of the discontinuous reception, which indicates at least one of the discontinuous reception cycle or the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle, A means for determining, without rounding error, a target start time offset for the on-period of a discontinuous reception cycle based on a predetermined formula, wherein, when the discontinuous reception cycle is represented as a rational number, the target start time offset is guaranteed to coincide with the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle. Means for performing the discontinuous reception based on the determined target start time offset, A first device comprising the following:

23. Means for transmitting a configuration of discontinuous reception to a first device, which indicates at least one of a discontinuous reception cycle or a start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle, wherein, based on a predetermined formula, a target start time offset relative to the on period of the discontinuous reception cycle is determined without rounding error, and when the discontinuous reception cycle is expressed as a rational number, it is guaranteed that the target start time offset matches the start time offset of the discontinuous reception cycle. A second device comprising the following:

24. A computer-readable medium storing instructions for causing a device to perform at least the method according to claim 20 or 21.

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