Intra-UE coexistence between non-standalone and standalone modes

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to intra-UE coexistence between non-standalone and standalone modes. An apparatus, system, and method for a user equipment device (UE) to perform intra-UE coexistence between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes. The UE may be configured to connect to a first radio access network (RAN) operating according to a first radio access technology (RAT) via a first radio component, and to connect to a second RAN operating according to a second RAT via a second radio component. The UE may provide configuration information to the first RAN during a radio resource control (RRC) connection process. The configuration information may indicate a dual connectivity state of the UE. The dual connectivity state may include an indication of disabling (enabling) the dual connectivity of the UE, an operating frequency associated with the second RAN, and / or a configuration associated with the second RAN. The UE may receive a dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN, the dual connectivity configuration may be based on the dual connectivity state of the UE, and operate accordingly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to wireless devices, and more particularly to apparatus, systems, and methods for intra-UE coexistence between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes.

[0002] Related technical description

[0003] The use of wireless communication systems is growing rapidly. In recent years, wireless devices such as smart phones and tablet computers have become increasingly sophisticated. In addition to supporting phone calls, many mobile devices now also provide access to the Internet, email, text messaging, and navigation using the Global Positioning System (GPS), and are capable of operating sophisticated applications that utilize these functions.

[0004] Long Term Evolution (LTE) has become the technology of choice for most wireless network operators around the world to provide mobile broadband data and high-speed Internet access to their user base. LTE defines a number of downlink (DL) physical channels classified as transport or control channels to carry information blocks received from the medium access control (MAC) and higher layers. LTE also defines the number of physical layer channels for the uplink (UL).

[0005] For example, LTE defines a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) as a DL transport channel. PDSCH is the primary data bearing channel allocated to users on a dynamic and opportunistic basis. PDSCH carries data in a transport block (TB) corresponding to a MAC protocol data unit (PDU), which is passed from the MAC layer to the physical (PHY) layer once per transmission time interval (TTI). PDSCH is also used to transmit broadcast information such as system information blocks (SIBs) and paging messages.

[0006] As another example, LTE defines the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) as a DL control channel that carries the resource allocation of the UE contained in the downlink control information (DCI) message. Multiple PDCCHs can be transmitted in the same subframe using control channel elements (CCEs), each of which is nine groups of four resource elements called resource element groups (REGs). PDCCH uses quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) modulation, where four QPSK symbols are mapped to each REG. In addition, depending on the channel conditions, 1, 2, 4, or 8 CCEs can be used to ensure sufficient robustness.

[0007] In addition, LTE defines the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) as a UL channel shared by all devices (user equipment, UE) in a radio cell to transmit user data to the network. The scheduling of all UEs is under the control of the LTE base station (enhanced Node B or eNB). The eNB uses an uplink scheduling grant (DCI format 0) to inform the UE of the resource block (RB) allocation and the modulation and coding scheme to be used. PUSCH typically supports QPSK and orthogonal amplitude modulation (QAM). In addition to user data, PUSCH also carries any control information required to decode the information, such as a transport format indicator and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) parameters. The control data is multiplexed with the information data before the digital Fourier transform (DFT) is unfolded.

[0008] The next telecommunication standard proposed to go beyond the current International Mobile Telecommunications Advanced (IMT-Advanced) standard is called the 5th Generation Mobile Network or 5th Generation Wireless System, or 5G for short (also called 5G-NR for 5G New Radio, also referred to as NR for short). Compared to the current LTE standard, 5G-NR proposes higher capacity for a higher density of mobile broadband users, while supporting device-to-device ultra-reliable and massive machine communications, as well as lower latency and lower battery consumption. In addition, the 5G-NR standard may allow for less restrictive UE scheduling than the current LTE standard. Therefore, efforts are underway to take advantage of the higher throughput possible at higher frequencies in the ongoing development of 5G-NR. Summary of the invention

[0009] Embodiments relate to apparatus, systems, and methods for coexistence within a UE between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes.

[0010] In some embodiments, a wireless device (e.g., such as a user equipment device (UE)) may be configured to connect to a first radio access network (RAN) operating according to a first radio access technology (RAT) via a first radio component, and to connect to a second RAN operating according to a second RAT via a second radio component. The UE may provide configuration information to the first RAN during a radio resource control (RRC) connection procedure. The configuration information may indicate a dual connectivity state of the UE. The dual connectivity state may include any one, any combination, and / or all of an indication that the dual connectivity of the UE is disabled (and / or enabled), an operating frequency associated with the second RAN (e.g., a frequency that the UE is using to communicate with the second RAN), and / or a configuration associated with the second RAN (e.g., whether the UE is in standalone mode, a serving frequency of the second RAN, etc.). The UE may receive a dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN, which may be based on the dual connectivity state of the UE and operate according to the dual connectivity configuration.

[0011] In some embodiments, a wireless device (e.g., such as a user equipment device (UE)) may be configured to connect to a first radio access network (RAN) operating according to a first radio access technology (RAT) via a first radio component and to a second RAN operating according to a second RAT via a second radio component. The UE may receive a dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN and enable multiple instances of a communication stack associated with the second RAN. The first instance of the communication stack may support a non-independent operation mode of the first RAN and the second RAN, and the second instance of the communication stack may support an independent operation mode of the second RAN.

[0012] In some embodiments, a base station (or network entity) operating according to a first RAT may be configured to connect to a UE and receive configuration information from the UE. The configuration information may be provided during a radio resource control (RRC) connection process and may indicate a dual connectivity state of the UE. The dual connectivity state may include any one, any combination, and / or all of an indication of disabling (and / or enabling) the dual connectivity of the UE, an operating frequency associated with a second RAN connected to the UE (e.g., a frequency that the UE is using to communicate with the second RAN), and / or a configuration associated with the second RAN (e.g., whether the UE is in standalone mode, a serving frequency of the second RAN, etc.). The second RAN may operate according to a second RAT. The base station may transmit the dual connectivity configuration to the UE.

[0013] The techniques described herein may be implemented in and / or used with a number of different types of devices, including, but not limited to, any of cellular telephones, tablet computers, wearable computing devices, portable media players, and a variety of other computing devices.

[0014] This disclosure is intended to provide a brief overview of some of the topics described in this document. Therefore, it should be understood that the above features are only examples and should not be interpreted as narrowing the scope or essence of the topics described herein in any way. Other features, aspects and advantages of the topics described herein will become apparent through the following detailed description, drawings and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] A better understanding of the present subject matter may be obtained when the following detailed description of various embodiments is considered in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0016] Figure 1A An exemplary wireless communication system is shown in accordance with some embodiments.

[0017] Figure 1B Examples of base stations (BSs) and access points in communication with user equipment (UE) devices are shown in accordance with some embodiments.

[0018] Figure 2 An exemplary simplified block diagram of a WLAN access point (AP) is shown in accordance with some embodiments.

[0019] Figure 3 An example block diagram of a UE according to some embodiments is shown.

[0020] Figure 4 An example block diagram of a BS according to some embodiments is shown.

[0021] Figure 5 An example block diagram of cellular communication circuitry is shown according to some embodiments.

[0022] Fig. 6A An example of the connection between the EPC network, LTE base stations (eNBs), and 5G NR base stations (gNBs) is shown.

[0023] Figure 6B An example of a protocol stack for eNB and gNB is shown.

[0024] Fig. 7A An example of a 5G network architecture according to some embodiments is shown, which combines 3GPP (e.g., cellular) and non-3GPP (e.g., non-cellular) access in the 5G CN.

[0025] Figure 7B An example of a 5G network architecture according to some embodiments is shown, which combines dual 3GPP (e.g., LTE and 5G NR) access and non-3GPP access in the 5G CN.

[0026] Figure 8 An example of a baseband processor architecture for a UE according to some embodiments is shown.

[0027] Fig. 9A Connections for a UE in non-standalone mode are shown.

[0028] Fig. 9B The connections of a UE in an EN-DC configuration are shown.

[0029] Fig. 10A The connections of a UE in standalone mode are shown.

[0030] Fig. 10B Connections of UEs in a NE-DC configuration are shown.

[0031] Fig. 10C The connections of a UE in an NR-DC configuration are shown.

[0032] Fig.11A The connection of an LTE connection is shown.

[0033] Fig. 11B The connections for a 5G NR connection are shown.

[0034] Fig. 11C The connection of simultaneous LTE and 5G NR connections is shown.

[0035] Fig.11D Shown is the connection of simultaneous LTE and 5G NR connections and an attempt to reconfigure the UE to an EN-DC configuration.

[0036] Fig.12 The signaling for simultaneous LTE and 5G NR connections and an attempt to reconfigure the UE to an EN-DC configuration are shown.

[0037] FIG. 13A to FIG. 13B A block diagram illustrating an example of a method for coexistence within a UE between non-standalone mode and standalone mode according to some embodiments.

[0038] Fig.14 A block diagram is shown of an example architecture for a UE supporting multiple instances of a 5G NR stack according to some embodiments.

[0039] Fig.15 A block diagram illustrating an example of a method for dynamically enabling multiple instances of a 5G NR stack according to some embodiments.

[0040] Although the features described herein are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereof are not intended to limit this document to the specific forms disclosed, but on the contrary, their purpose is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives that fall within the spirit and scope of the subject matter as defined by the appended claims. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] the term

[0042] The following is a glossary of terms used in this disclosure:

[0043] Memory medium - any of various types of non-transitory memory devices or storage devices. The term "memory medium" is intended to include installation media, such as CD-ROM, floppy disk or tape devices; computer system memory or random access memory such as DRAM, DDR RAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM, etc.; non-volatile memory such as flash memory, magnetic media, for example, hard disk drive or optical storage device; registers or other similar types of memory elements, etc. The memory medium may also include other types of non-transitory memory or combinations thereof. In addition, the memory medium may be located in the first computer system executing the program, or may be located in a different second computer system connected to the first computer system via a network such as the Internet. In the latter case, the second computer system may provide program instructions to the first computer for execution. The term "memory medium" may include two or more memory media that may reside in different locations in different computer systems connected, for example, via a network. The memory medium may store program instructions (e.g., expressed as a computer program) that may be executed by one or more processors.

[0044] Carrier Medium—storage media as described above, and physical transmission media such as a bus, network, and / or other physical transmission media that transport signals such as electrical, electromagnetic or digital signals.

[0045] Programmable hardware element - includes various hardware devices that include multiple programmable function blocks connected via programmable interconnects. Examples include FPGA (field programmable gate array), PLD (programmable logic device), FPOA (field programmable object array), and CPLD (complex PLD). Programmable function blocks can vary from fine-grained (combinational logic unit or lookup table) to coarse-grained (arithmetic logic unit or processor core). Programmable hardware elements may also be referred to as "configurable logic units".

[0046] Computer System - Any of various types of computing or processing systems, including a personal computer system (PC), a mainframe computer system, a workstation, a network appliance, an Internet appliance, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a television system, a grid computing system, or other devices or combinations of devices. In general, the term "computer system" can be broadly defined to encompass any device (or combination of devices) having at least one processor that executes instructions from a memory medium.

[0047] User Equipment (UE) (or "UE device") - any of various types of computer system devices that are mobile or portable and that perform wireless communications. Examples of UE devices include mobile phones or smart phones (e.g., iPhone TM , based on Android TMphones), portable gaming devices (e.g., Nintendo DS TM , PlayStation Portable TM 、Gameboy Advance TM , iPhone TM ), laptops, wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart glasses), PDAs, portable Internet devices, music players, data storage devices or other handheld devices, etc. In general, the term "UE" or "UE device" can be broadly defined to cover any electronic device, computing device and / or telecommunication device (or combination of devices) that can be easily transmitted by a user and capable of wireless communication.

[0048] Base Station—The term “base station” has the full breadth of its ordinary meaning and includes at least a wireless communication station that is installed at a fixed location and used to communicate as part of a wireless telephone system or radio system.

[0049] Processing element - refers to various elements or combinations of elements that are capable of performing functions in a device such as a user device or a cellular network device. A processing element may include, for example, a processor and associated memory, portions or circuits of individual processor cores, entire processor cores, processor arrays, circuits such as ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), programmable hardware elements such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and any of the above combinations.

[0050] Channel - a medium used to transmit information from a sender (transmitter) to a receiver. It should be noted that since the characteristics of the term "channel" may vary according to different wireless protocols, the term "channel" used herein may be considered to be used in a manner that conforms to the standards of the type of device to which the term is used. In some standards, the channel width may be variable (e.g., depending on device capabilities, frequency band conditions, etc.). For example, LTE may support scalable channel bandwidths of 1.4 MHz to 20 MHz. In contrast, a WLAN channel may be 22 MHz wide, while a Bluetooth channel may be 1 MHz wide. Other protocols and standards may include different definitions of channels. In addition, some standards may define and use multiple types of channels, such as different channels for uplink or downlink and / or different channels for different purposes such as data, control information, etc.

[0051] Frequency band—The term “frequency band” has the full breadth of its ordinary meaning and includes at least a segment of the spectrum (eg, radio frequency spectrum) in which channels are used or set aside for the same purpose.

[0052] Automatic—refers to an action or operation performed by a computer system (e.g., software executed by a computer system) or a device (e.g., a circuit, a programmable hardware element, an ASIC, etc.) without the need for user input to directly specify or perform the action or operation. Thus, the term "automatic" is in contrast to a user manually performing or specifying an action, where the user provides input to directly perform the action. An automatic process may be initiated by input provided by a user, but subsequent actions performed "automatically" are not specified by the user, i.e., are not performed "manually," where the user specifies each action to be performed. For example, a user filling out an electronic form by selecting each field and providing input specifying information (e.g., by typing in information, selecting check boxes, radio selections, etc.) is manually filling out the form, even though the computer system must update the form in response to the user action. The form may be automatically filled out by a computer system, where the computer system (e.g., software executed on the computer system) analyzes the fields of the form and fills out the form without any user input specifying the answers to the fields. As indicated above, a user may invoke automatic filling out of a form, but not participate in the actual filling out of the form (e.g., the user does not manually specify the answers to the fields but rather they are automatically completed). This specification provides various examples of operations that are automatically performed in response to actions taken by a user.

[0053] Approximately - refers to a value that is close to a correct or exact value. For example, approximately can refer to a value that is within 1% to 10% of an exact (or desired) value. However, it should be noted that the actual threshold value (or tolerance) may depend on the application. For example, in some embodiments, "approximately" can mean within 0.1% of some specified value or desired value, while in various other embodiments, the threshold value may be, for example, 2%, 3%, 5%, etc., depending on the expectations or requirements of a particular application.

[0054] Concurrency - refers to parallel execution or implementation, where tasks, processes, or programs are executed in an at least partially overlapping manner. For example, concurrency can be achieved using "strong" or strict parallelism, where tasks are executed (at least partially) in parallel on respective computing elements, or using "weak parallelism", where tasks are executed in an interleaved manner (e.g., by time multiplexing of execution threads).

[0055] Various components may be described as being "configured to" perform one or more tasks. In such environments, "configured to" is a broad statement that generally means "having a structure" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Thus, even when the component is not currently performing the task, the component can be configured to perform the task (e.g., a set of electrical conductors can be configured to electrically connect a module to another module even when the two modules are not connected). In some environments, "configured to" can be a broad statement that generally means "having a circuit" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Thus, even when the component is not currently turned on, the component can be configured to perform the task. Typically, the circuitry that forms the structure corresponding to "configured to" may include hardware circuits.

[0056] For ease of description, various components may be described as performing one or more tasks. Such descriptions should be interpreted as including the phrase "configured to". The description of a component being configured to perform one or more tasks is expressly intended not to invoke 35 U.S.C. §112(f) interpretation of that component.

[0057] Figure 1A and Figure 1B -Communication system

[0058] Figure 1A A simplified exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments is shown. Note that the system of FIG. 1 is only one example of a possible system, and features of the present disclosure may be implemented in any of a variety of systems as desired.

[0059] As shown, the exemplary wireless communication system includes a base station 102A, which communicates with one or more user equipment 106A, user equipment 106B, etc., to user equipment 106N via a transmission medium. Each of the user equipments may be referred to herein as a "user device" (UE). Therefore, user equipment 106 is referred to as a UE or UE device.

[0060] The base station (BS) 102A may be a base transceiver station (BTS) or a cell site ("cellular base station") and may include hardware that enables wireless communications with the UEs 106A through 106N.

[0061] The communication area (or coverage area) of a base station may be referred to as a "cell". The base station 102A and the UE 106 may be configured to communicate over a transmission medium using any of a variety of radio access technologies (RATs), which are also referred to as wireless communication technologies or telecommunication standards, such as GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, Advanced LTE (LTE-A), 5G New Radio (5G NR), HSPA, 3GPP2CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), and the like. Note that if the base station 102A is implemented in the context of LTE, it may alternatively be referred to as an "eNodeB" or "eNB". Note that if the base station 102A is implemented in the context of 5G NR, it may alternatively be referred to as a "gNodeB" or "gNB".

[0062] As shown, base station 102A may also be configured to communicate with network 100 (e.g., a cellular service provider's core network, a telecommunications network such as a public switched telephone network (PSTN), and / or the Internet, among other possibilities). Thus, base station 102A may facilitate communications between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. In particular, cellular base station 102A may provide UE 106 with various communication capabilities, such as voice, SMS, and / or data services.

[0063] Base station 102A and other similar base stations (such as base stations 102B...102N) operating according to the same or different cellular communication standards can therefore be provided as a network of cells that can provide continuous or nearly continuous overlapping service to UE 106A-N and similar devices over a geographic area via one or more cellular communication standards.

[0064] Thus, although base station 102A may act as a "serving cell" for UEs 106A-N as shown in FIG. 1 , each UE 106 may also be able to receive signals from (and possibly be within communication range of) one or more other cells (which may be provided by base stations 102B-N and / or any other base stations), which may be referred to as "neighboring cells." Such cells may also be able to facilitate communications between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. Such cells may include "macro" cells, "micro" cells, "pico" cells, and / or cells of any various other granularity of service area size. For example, base stations 102A-B shown in FIG. 1 may be macro cells, while base station 102N may be a micro cell. Other configurations are also possible.

[0065] In some embodiments, base station 102A may be a next generation base station, e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station or "gNB". In some embodiments, a gNB may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to an NR core (NRC) network. In addition, a gNB cell may include one or more transition and reception points (TRPs). In addition, a UE capable of operating in accordance with 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0066] It should be noted that the UE 106 may be capable of communicating using multiple wireless communication standards. For example, in addition to at least one cellular communication protocol (e.g., GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interface), LTE, LTE-A, 5G NR, HSPA, 3GPP2CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), etc.), the UE 106 may be configured to communicate using wireless networking (e.g., Wi-Fi) and / or peer-to-peer wireless communication protocols (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi peer-to-peer, etc.). If desired, the UE 106 may also or alternatively be configured to communicate using one or more global navigation satellite systems (GNSS, such as GPS or GLONASS), one or more mobile television broadcast standards (e.g., ATSC-M / H or DVB-H), and / or any other wireless communication protocols. Other combinations of wireless communication standards (including more than two wireless communication standards) are also possible.

[0067] Figure 1B A user device 106 (e.g., one of device 106A-106N) is shown in communication with base station 102 and access point 112 according to some embodiments. UE 106 may be a device with cellular communication capabilities and non-cellular communication capabilities (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc.), such as a mobile phone, handheld device, computer or tablet, or virtually any type of wireless device.

[0068] UE 106 may include a processor configured to execute program instructions stored in a memory. UE 106 may perform any of the method implementations described herein by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively or in addition, UE 106 may include a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) configured to perform any of the method implementations described herein or any part of any of the method implementations described herein.

[0069] UE 106 may include one or more antennas for communicating using one or more wireless communication protocols or technologies. In some embodiments, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using, for example, CDMA2000 (1xRTT / 1xEV-DO / HRPD / eHRPD), LTE / Advanced LTE, or 5G NR using a single shared radio component and / or GSM, LTE, Advanced LTE, or 5G NR using a single shared radio component. The shared radio component may be coupled to a single antenna, or may be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., for MIMO) for performing wireless communications. Typically, the radio component may include any combination of a baseband processor, an analog RF signal processing circuit (e.g., including filters, mixers, oscillators, amplifiers, etc.) or a digital processing circuit (e.g., for digital modulation and other digital processing). Similarly, the radio component may use the aforementioned hardware to implement one or more receive chains and transmit chains. For example, UE 106 may share one or more parts of a receive chain and / or transmit chain between multiple wireless communication technologies such as those discussed above.

[0070] In some embodiments, the UE 106 may include a separate transmit chain and / or receive chain (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol with which it is configured to communicate. As another possibility, the UE 106 may include one or more radio components shared between multiple wireless communication protocols, and one or more radio components used uniquely by a single wireless communication protocol. For example, the UE 106 may include a shared radio component for communicating using either LTE or 5GNR (or LTE or 1xRTT, or LTE or GSM), and an independent radio component for communicating using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are also possible.

[0071] Figure 2 -Access Point Block Diagram

[0072] Figure 2 An exemplary block diagram of an access point (AP) 112 is shown. Note that Figure 2 The AP block diagram of FIG. 1 is merely one example of a possible system. As shown, the AP 112 may include one or more processors 204 that may execute program instructions for the AP 112. The processor 204 may also be coupled (directly or indirectly) to a memory management unit (MMU) 240 or other circuit or device that may be configured to receive addresses from the processor 204 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 260 and read-only memory (ROM) 250).

[0073] AP 112 may include at least one network port 270. Network port 270 may be configured to couple to a wired network and provide access to the Internet for multiple devices such as UE 106. For example, network port 270 (or an additional network port) may be configured to couple to a local network, such as a home network or an enterprise network. For example, port 270 may be an Ethernet port. The local network may provide a connection to an additional network such as the Internet.

[0074] The AP 112 may include at least one antenna 234, which may be configured to function as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with the UE 106 via the wireless communication circuit 230. The antenna 234 communicates with the wireless communication circuit 230 via a communication chain 232. The communication chain 232 may include one or more receive chains, one or more transmit chains, or both. The wireless communication circuit 230 may be configured to communicate via Wi-Fi or WLAN, such as 802.11. For example, when the AP is co-located with a base station in the case of a small cell, or in other cases where it may be desirable for the AP 112 to communicate via a variety of different wireless communication technologies, the wireless communication circuit 230 may also or alternatively be configured to communicate via various other wireless communication technologies, including, but not limited to, 5G NR, Long Term Evolution (LTE), Advanced LTE (LTE-A), Global System for Mobile (GSM), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), CDMA2000, etc.

[0075] In some embodiments, as further described below, AP 112 may be configured to perform methods for coexistence within a UE between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes as further described herein.

[0076] Figure 3 —UE block diagram

[0077] Figure 3 An example simplified block diagram of a communication device 106 according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 3The block diagram of the communication device is only an example of a possible communication device. According to the embodiment, the communication device 106 can be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (such as a laptop, a notebook or a portable computing device), a tablet computer and / or a combination of devices, in addition to other devices. As shown in the figure, the communication device 106 may include a group of components 300 configured to perform core functions. For example, the group of components may be implemented as a system on a chip (SOC), which may include parts for various purposes. Alternatively, the group of components 300 may be implemented as a separate component or a group of components for various purposes. This group of components 300 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to various other circuits of the communication device 106.

[0078] For example, the communication device 106 may include various types of memory (e.g., including NAND flash memory 310), input / output interfaces such as a connector I / F 320 (e.g., for connecting to a computer system; a docking station; a charging station; an input device such as a microphone, a camera, a keyboard; an output device such as a speaker; etc.), a display 360 that may be integrated with the communication device 106 or external to the communication device, and cellular communication circuits 330 such as for 5G NR, LTE, GSM, etc., and short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuits 329 (e.g., Bluetooth TM In some embodiments, the communication device 106 may include wired communication circuitry (not shown), such as, for example, a network interface card for Ethernet.

[0079] Cellular communication circuitry 330 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as, for example, antennas 335 and 336, as shown. Short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 may also be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as, for example, antennas 337 and 338, as shown. Alternatively, short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to antennas 335 and 336 in addition to or in lieu of being (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to antennas 337 and 338. Short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 and / or cellular communication circuitry 330 may include multiple receive chains and / or multiple transmit chains for receiving and / or transmitting multiple spatial streams, such as in a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) configuration.

[0080] In some embodiments, as further described below, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include dedicated receive chains (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) dedicated processors and / or radio components) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). In addition, in some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include a single transmit chain that can switch between radio components dedicated to specific RATs. For example, a first radio component may be dedicated to a first RAT, such as LTE, and may communicate with a dedicated receive chain and a transmit chain shared with an additional radio component, such as a second radio component that may be dedicated to a second RAT (e.g., 5G NR) and may communicate with the dedicated receive chain and the shared transmit chain.

[0081] The communication device 106 may also include and / or be configured for use with one or more user interface elements. The user interface elements may include various elements such as a display 360 (which may be a touch screen display), a keyboard (which may be a separate keyboard or may be implemented as part of a touch screen display), a mouse, a microphone and / or speakers, one or more cameras, one or more buttons, and / or any of a variety of other elements capable of providing information to a user and / or receiving or interpreting user input.

[0082] The communication device 106 may also include one or more smart cards 345 having SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) functionality, such as one or more UICC cards (one or more Universal Integrated Circuit Cards) 345 .

[0083] As shown, the SOC 300 may include one or more processors 302 that may execute program instructions for the communication device 106 and a display circuit 304 that may perform graphics processing and provide display signals to a display 360. The one or more processors 302 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 340 (which may be configured to receive addresses from the one or more processors 302 and convert those addresses to locations in a memory (e.g., memory 306, read-only memory (ROM) 350, NAND flash memory 310)) and / or to other circuits or devices (such as display circuit 304, short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuit 329, cellular communication circuit 330, connector I / F 320, and / or display 360). The MMU 340 may be configured to perform memory protection and page table translation or setup. In some embodiments, the MMU 340 may be included as part of the one or more processors 302.

[0084] As described above, the communication device 106 may be configured to communicate using wireless and / or wired communication circuitry.The communication device 106 may be configured to perform a method for coexistence within a UE between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes as further described herein.

[0085] As described herein, the communication device 106 may include hardware and software components for implementing the above-described features of the communication device 106 to send a scheduling profile for power saving to the network. The processor 302 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), the processor 302 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or in addition), in combination with one or more of the other components 300, 304, 306, 310, 320, 329, 330, 340, 345, 350, 360, the processor 302 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein.

[0086] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 302 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processor 302 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 302. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of one or more processors 302.

[0087] Further, as described herein, the cellular communication circuit 330 and the short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuit 329 may each include one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in the cellular communication circuit 330, and similarly, one or more processing elements may be included in the short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuit 329. Thus, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the cellular communication circuit 330. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include a circuit (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the cellular communication circuit 330. Similarly, the short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuit 329 may include one or more ICs configured to perform the functions of the short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuit 329. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include a circuit (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuit 329.

[0088] Figure 4 —Block diagram of a base station

[0089] Figure 4An example block diagram of a base station 102 according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 4 The base station of is only one example of a possible base station. As shown, the base station 102 may include one or more processors 404 that may execute program instructions for the base station 102. The one or more processors 404 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 440 (which may be configured to receive addresses from the one or more processors 404 and convert these addresses to locations in memory (e.g., memory 460 and read-only memory (ROM) 450)) or other circuits or devices.

[0090] Base station 102 may include at least one network port 470. Network port 470 may be configured to couple to a telephone network and provide access to the network as described above in FIG. Figure 2 Multiple devices of the telephone network described in, such as UE device 106.

[0091] The network port 470 (or an additional network port) may also or alternatively be configured to couple to a cellular network, such as a core network of a cellular service provider. The core network may provide mobility-related services and / or other services to multiple devices, such as the UE device 106. In some cases, the network port 470 may be coupled to a telephone network via the core network, and / or the core network may provide a telephone network (e.g., in other UE devices served by the cellular service provider).

[0092] In some embodiments, base station 102 may be a next generation base station, e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station or "gNB". In such embodiments, base station 102 may be connected to a legacy Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network and / or to an NR Core (NRC) network. Furthermore, base station 102 may be considered a 5G NR cell and may include one or more transition and reception points (TRPs). Furthermore, a UE capable of operating in accordance with 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0093] The base station 102 may include at least one antenna 434 and possibly multiple antennas. At least one antenna 434 may be configured to function as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with the UE device 106 via the radio component 430. The antenna 434 communicates with the radio component 430 via a communication chain 432. The communication chain 432 may be a receive chain, a transmit chain, or both. The radio component 430 may be configured to communicate via various wireless communication standards, including but not limited to 5G NR, LTE, LTE-A, GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, Wi-Fi, and the like.

[0094] Base station 102 may be configured to perform wireless communications using multiple wireless communication standards. In some cases, base station 102 may include multiple radio components that enable base station 102 to communicate according to multiple wireless communication technologies. For example, as one possibility, base station 102 may include an LTE radio component for performing communications according to LTE and a 5G NR radio component for performing communications according to 5G NR. In this case, base station 102 may be able to operate as both an LTE base station and a 5G NR base station. As another possibility, base station 102 may include a multimode radio component that can perform communications according to any one of multiple wireless communication technologies (e.g., 5G NR and Wi-Fi, LTE and Wi-Fi, LTE and UMTS, LTE and CDMA2000, UMTS and GSM, etc.).

[0095] As further described later herein, BS 102 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting implementations of the features described herein. The processor 404 of base station 102 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the implementations of the methods described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively, processor 404 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) or a combination thereof. Alternatively (or in addition thereto), in combination with one or more of the other components 430, 432, 434, 440, 450, 460, 470, the processor 404 of BS 102 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the implementations of the features described herein.

[0096] In addition, as described herein, the one or more processors 404 may be composed of one or more processing elements. In other words, the one or more processing elements may be included in the one or more processors 404. Therefore, the one or more processors 404 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the one or more processors 404. In addition, each integrated circuit may include a circuit (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the one or more processors 404.

[0097] Additionally, as described herein, radio 430 may be comprised of one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in radio 430. Thus, radio 430 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of radio 430. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of radio 430.

[0098] Figure 5 : Block diagram of a cellular communication circuit

[0099] Figure 5 An example simplified block diagram of a cellular communication circuit according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 5 The block diagram of the cellular communication circuit of is only one example of one possible cellular communication circuit. According to an embodiment, the cellular communication circuit 330 may be included in a communication device such as the communication device 106 described above. As described above, the communication device 106 may be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop, notebook, or portable computing device), a tablet computer, and / or a combination of devices, among other devices.

[0100] Cellular communication circuitry 330 may be (eg, communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as ( Figure 3 In some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include dedicated receive chains (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) dedicated processors and / or radio components) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). For example, Figure 5 As shown, cellular communication circuitry 330 may include modem 510 and modem 520. Modem 510 may be configured for communication according to a first RAT, such as, for example, LTE or LTE-A, and modem 520 may be configured for communication according to a second RAT, such as, for example, 5G NR.

[0101] As shown, the modem 510 may include one or more processors 512 and a memory 516 in communication with the processor 512. The modem 510 may communicate with a radio frequency (RF) front end 530. The RF front end 530 may include circuits for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, the RF front end 530 may include a receiving circuit (RX) 532 and a transmitting circuit (TX) 534. In some embodiments, the receiving circuit 532 may communicate with a downlink (DL) front end 550, which may include circuits for receiving radio signals via an antenna 335a.

[0102] Similarly, the modem 520 may include one or more processors 522 and a memory 526 in communication with the processor 522. The modem 520 may communicate with the RF front end 540. The RF front end 540 may include circuits for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, the RF front end 540 may include a receiving circuit 542 and a transmitting circuit 544. In some embodiments, the receiving circuit 542 may communicate with the DL front end 560, which may include circuits for receiving radio signals via the antenna 335b.

[0103] In some embodiments, the switch 570 may couple the transmission circuit 534 to an uplink (UL) front end 572. In addition, the switch 570 may couple the transmission circuit 544 to the UL front end 572. The UL front end 572 may include circuitry for transmitting radio signals via the antenna 336. Thus, when the cellular communication circuit 330 receives an instruction to transmit according to a first RAT (e.g., via a transmission chain including the transmission circuit 534 and the UL front end 572) supported by the modem 510, the switch 570 may be switched to a first state that allows the modem 510 to transmit signals according to the first RAT (e.g., via a transmission chain including the transmission circuit 534 and the UL front end 572). Similarly, when the cellular communication circuit 330 receives an instruction to transmit according to a second RAT (e.g., via a transmission chain including the transmission circuit 544 and the UL front end 572) supported by the modem 520, the switch 570 may be switched to a second state that allows the modem 520 to transmit signals according to the second RAT (e.g., via a transmission chain including the transmission circuit 544 and the UL front end 572).

[0104] In some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 330 may be configured to perform a method for coexistence within a UE between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes as further described herein.

[0105] As described herein, the modem 510 may include hardware and software components for implementing the above-described features or for time-division multiplexing UL data for NSA NR operations and various other techniques described herein. The processor 512 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), the processor 512 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or in addition), in combination with one or more of the other components 530, 532, 534, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336, the processor 512 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein.

[0106] In addition, as described herein, processor 512 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processor 512 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 512. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 512.

[0107] As described herein, the modem 520 may include hardware and software components intended to implement the above-described features for transmitting a power-saving scheduling profile to a network, as well as various other techniques described herein. The processor 522 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), the processor 522 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or in addition), in combination with one or more of the other components 540, 542, 544, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336, the processor 522 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein.

[0108] In addition, as described herein, processor 522 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processor 522 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 522. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 522.

[0109] 5G NR architecture with LTE

[0110] In some implementations, fifth generation (5G) wireless communications will initially be deployed concurrently with current wireless communications standards (e.g., LTE). For example, dual connectivity between LTE and 5G New Radio (5G NR or NR) has been specified as part of the initial deployment of NR. FIG. 6A to FIG. 6B As shown, the evolved packet core (EPC) network 600 may continue to communicate with the current LTE base station (e.g., eNB 602). In addition, the eNB 602 may communicate with the 5G NR base station (e.g., gNB 604), and data may be transferred between the EPC network 600 and the gNB 604. Thus, the EPC network 600 may be used (or reused), and the gNB 604 may serve as additional capacity for the UE, for example, to provide increased downlink throughput for the UE. In other words, LTE may be used for control plane signaling, and NR may be used for user plane signaling. Thus, LTE may be used to establish a connection with the network, and NR may be used for data services.

[0111] Figure 6B The proposed protocol stack for the eNB 602 and the gNB 604 is shown. As shown, the eNB 602 may include a medium access control (MAC) layer 632 that interfaces with the radio link control (RLC) layers 622a-b. The RLC layer 622a may also interface with the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer 612a, and the RLC layer 622b may interface with the PDCP layer 612b. Similar to the dual connectivity specified in LTE-Advanced Release 12, the PDCP layer 612a may interface with the EPC network 600 via a master cell group (MCG) bearer, while the PDCP layer 612b may interface with the EPC network 600 via a separate bearer.

[0112] In addition, as shown, the gNB 604 may include a MAC layer 634 that interfaces with the RLC layers 624a-b. The RLC layer 624a may interface with the PDCP layer 612b of the eNB 602 via an X2 interface for information exchange and / or coordination (e.g., scheduling UEs) between the eNB 602 and the gNB 604. In addition, the RLC layer 624b may interface with the PDCP layer 614. Similar to the dual connectivity specified in Advanced LTE Release 12, the PDCP layer 614 may interface with the EPC network 600 via a secondary cell group (SCG) bearer. Thus, the eNB 602 may be considered a master node (MeNB) and the gNB 604 may be considered a secondary node (SgNB). In some cases, the UE may be required to maintain a connection with both the MeNB and the SgNB. In such a case, the MeNB may be used to maintain a radio resource control (RRC) connection with the EPC, while the SgNB may be used for capacity (e.g., additional downlink and / or uplink throughput).

[0113] 5G Core Network Architecture—Interworking with Wi-Fi

[0114] In some embodiments, the 5G core network (CN) can be accessed via (or through) a cellular connection / interface (e.g., via a 3GPP communication architecture / protocol) and a non-cellular connection / interface (e.g., a non-3GPP access architecture / protocol such as a Wi-Fi connection). Fig. 7AAn example of a 5G network architecture according to some embodiments is shown, which combines 3GPP (e.g., cellular) and non-3GPP (e.g., non-cellular) access in 5G CN. As shown, a user device (e.g., UE 106) can access 5G CN through both a radio access network (RAN, such as a gNB or base station 604) and an access point such as AP 112. AP 112 may include a connection to the Internet 700 and a connection to a non-3GPP interworking function (N3IWF) 702 network entity. N3IWF may include a connection to a core access and mobility management function (AMF) 704 of 5G CN. AMF 704 may include an instance of a 5G mobility management (5G MM) function associated with UE 106. In addition, RAN (e.g., gNB 604) may also have a connection to AMF 704. Therefore, 5G CN can support unified authentication on two connections and allow UE 106 access to be registered simultaneously via gNB 604 and AP 112. As shown, the AMF 704 may include one or more functional entities associated with the 5G CN (e.g., a network slice selection function (NSSF) 720, a short message service function (SMSF) 722, an application function (AF) 724, a unified data management (UDM) 726, a policy control function (PCF) 728, and / or an authentication server function (AUSF) 730). Note that these functional entities may also be supported by the session management function (SMF) 706a and SMF 706b of the 5G CN. The AMF 706 may be connected to (or communicate with) the SMF 706a. In addition, the gNB 604 may communicate with (or be connected to) a user plane function (UPF) 708a, which may also communicate with the SMF 706a. Similarly, the N3IWF 702 may communicate with the UPF 708b, which may also communicate with the SMF 706b. Both UPFs may communicate with data networks (eg, DNs 710a and 710b) and / or the Internet 700 and the IMS core network 710.

[0115] Figure 7BAn example of a 5G network architecture according to some embodiments is shown, which combines dual 3GPP (e.g., LTE and 5G NR) access and non-3GPP access in 5G CN. As shown, a user device (e.g., UE 106) can access 5GCN through both a radio access network (RAN, such as gNB or base station 604 or eNB or base station 602) and an access point such as AP 112. AP 112 may include a connection to the Internet 700 and a connection to the N3IWF 702 network entity. N3IWF may include a connection to the AMF 704 of the 5G CN. AMF 704 may include an instance of a 5G MM function associated with UE 106. In addition, the RAN (e.g., gNB 604) may also have a connection to AMF 704. Therefore, 5G CN can support unified authentication on two connections and allow UE 106 access to be registered simultaneously via gNB 604 and AP 112. In addition, 5G CN can support dual registration of UE on both traditional networks (e.g., LTE via base station 602) and 5G networks (e.g., via base station 604). As shown, base station 602 can have connections to mobility management entity (MME) 742 and service gateway (SGW) 744. MME 742 can have connections to both SGW 744 and AMF 704. In addition, SGW 744 can have connections to both SMF 706a and UPF 708a. As shown, AMF 704 can include one or more functional entities associated with 5G CN (e.g., NSSF 720, SMSF 722, AF724, UDM 726, PCF 728 and / or AUSF 730). It should be noted that UDM 726 can also include home subscriber server (HSS) functions, and PCF can also include policy and charging rules functions (PCRF). It should also be noted that these functional entities can also be supported by SMF 706a and SMF 706b of 5G CN. AMF 706 can be connected to (or communicate with) SMF 706a. In addition, gNB 604 can communicate with (or be connected to) UPF 708a, which can also communicate with SMF 706a. Similarly, N3IWF 702 can communicate with UPF 708b, which can also communicate with SMF 706b. Both UPFs can communicate with data networks (e.g., DN 710a and 710b) and / or the Internet 700 and IMS core network 710.

[0116] Note that in various embodiments, one or more of the above-mentioned network entities may be configured to perform methods for improving security checks in 5G NR networks, including, for example, mechanisms for intra-UE coexistence between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes as further described herein.

[0117] Figure 8 An example of a baseband processor architecture for a UE (e.g., UE 106) according to some embodiments is shown. As described above, Figure 8 The baseband processor architecture 800 described in the figure can be implemented on one or more radio components (e.g., the radio components 329 and / or 330 described above) or modems (e.g., modems 510 and / or 520) as described above. As shown in the figure, the non-access layer 810 may include a 5G NAS 820 and a traditional NAS 850. The traditional NAS 850 may include a communication connection with a traditional access layer (AS) 870. The 5G NAS 820 may include a communication connection with a 5G AS 840 and a non-3GPP AS 830 and a Wi-Fi AS 832. The 5G NAS 820 may include functional entities associated with two access layers. Therefore, the 5G NAS820 may include multiple 5G MM entities 826 and 828 and 5G session management (SM) entities 822 and 824. The traditional NAS 850 may include functional entities such as a short message service (SMS) entity 852, an evolved packet system (EPS) session management (ESM) entity 854, a session management (SM) entity 856, an EPS mobility management (EMM) entity 858, and a mobility management (MM) / GPRS mobility management (GMM) entity 860. In addition, the traditional AS 870 may include functional entities such as an LTE AS 872, a UMTS AS 874, and / or a GSM / GPRS 876.

[0118] Therefore, the baseband processor architecture 800 allows for a common 5G-NAS for both 5G cellular and non-cellular (e.g., non-3GPP access). Note that, as shown, 5G MM can maintain a separate connection management and registration management state machine for each connection. In addition, a device (e.g., UE106) can register to a single PLMN (e.g., 5G CN) using 5G cellular access as well as non-cellular access. In addition, a device can be in a connected state in one access and in an idle state in another access, or vice versa. Finally, there may be a common 5G-MM procedure (e.g., registration, deregistration, identification, authentication, etc.) for both accesses.

[0119] It should be noted that in various embodiments, one or more of the above-mentioned functional entities of the 5G NAS and / or 5G AS may be configured to perform, for example, a method for intra-UE coexistence between non-standalone (NSA) and standalone (SA) modes as further described herein.

[0120] In-UE coexistence between NSA and SA

[0121] In existing implementations, a mobile device may operate in a standalone mode (e.g., connected to a 5G core and / or next generation core network with a primary connection via a 5G base station (e.g., gNB)) or a non-standalone mode (e.g., connected to an enhanced packet core (EPC) network with a primary connection via a 4G base station (e.g., eNB). In non-standalone mode, the wireless device may have a control plane connection to the eNB and the EPC, and a user plane connection that allows data transport through the eNB and the gNB via the EPC. Thus, in non-standalone mode, there may be data flow aggregation across an LTE (Long Term Evolution) base station (e.g., eNB) and a 5G NR (Fifth Generation New Radio) base station (e.g., gNB) via the EPC. For example, as shown by FIG. 9A to FIG. 9B As shown, a UE such as UE 940 (UE 940 may include an application layer 942, an LTE modem 944, and an NR modem 946) may be connected to an eNB 904 (e.g., via connection 912) and a gNB 906 (e.g., via connection 922). In non-standalone mode, the eNB 904 and the gNB 906 may be connected to the EPC 902, and the UE 940 may communicate with the EPC 902 via the eNB 904 via communication 932. As shown, the eNB 904 may communicate with the EPC 902 via connection 910. The connection 910 may support control signaling (e.g., via a control plane) exchange and data transport (e.g., via a user plane) with the UE 940. In addition, the gNB 906 may communicate with the EPC 902 via connection 920. The connection 920 may support data transport (e.g., via a user plane) with the UE 940. In addition, the connection 930 between the eNB 904 and the gNB 906 may support both data exchange (e.g., via a user plane) and control signaling (e.g., via a control plane) between the base stations.

[0122] In standalone mode, the wireless device may have a connection to the 5G core. Fig. 10A As shown, the wireless device may be supported by a connection 1010 that includes a control plane connection to the 5G core 1004 via the gNB 906 and a user plane connection that allows data transport through the gNB 906 via the 5G core 1004. Fig. 10B As shown, the wireless device may be supported by connection 1010 and connection 1030. Connection 1030 may include a user plane connection that allows data transport through eNB 904. Further, connection 1034 between eNB 904 and gNB 906 may support data exchange (e.g., via a user plane) and control signaling (e.g., via a control plane) between base stations. As another alternative, as shown by Fig. 10CAs shown, the wireless device may be supported by connection 1010 and connection 1036. Connection 1032 may include a user plane connection that allows data transport through gNB 916. Further, connection 1036 between gNB 906 and gNB 916 may support data exchange (e.g., via a user plane) and control signaling (e.g., via a control plane) between base stations.

[0123] Further, if FIG. 11A to FIG. 11D As shown, a wireless device such as UE 940 may include an architecture that allows connection to LTE, 5G NR, and / or a combination of LTE and 5G NR (e.g., a standalone mode for 5G NR). Fig.11A UE 940 is shown connected to EPC 902 in LTE-only connection mode. As shown, LTE modem 944 can be connected to EPC 902 (e.g., connection 932) via connection 1112 with eNB 904 and connection 1110 between eNB 904 and EPC 902 via user plane and control plane. Fig. 11B As shown, UE 940 can be connected to 5G core 1004 in 5G NR only connection mode. As shown, 5G NR modem 946 can be connected to 5G core 1004 (e.g., connection 1134) via connection 1132 with gNB 906 and connection 1130 between gNB 906 and 5G core 1004 via user plane and control plane. Fig. 11C As shown, the UE 940 can be connected to both the EPC 902 and the 5G core 1004. As shown, the LTE modem 944 can be connected to the EPC 902 (e.g., connection 932) via a user plane and a control plane via a connection 1112 with the eNB 904 and a connection 1110 between the eNB 904 and the EPC 902. In addition, the 5G NR modem 946 can be connected to the 5G core 1004 (e.g., connection 1134) via a connection 1132 with the gNB 906 and a connection 1130 between the gNB 906 and the 5G core 1004 via the user plane and the control plane.

[0124] Therefore, a UE supporting both LTE and NR modems may operate in LTE-only mode (e.g. Fig.11A ), non-independent mode (for example, Fig. 9B ), standalone mode (for example, Fig. 11B ) or with simultaneous connections to LTE and 5G NR (e.g. Fig. 11C ) operation. However, the UE cannot support both non-standalone mode operation and standalone mode operation at the same time, for example, as Fig.11DAs shown, since the UE has a single NR modem 946, the UE cannot maintain connections 920 and 1130. In other words, if the UE is independently connected to both the LTE and NR cells (e.g., as shown by Fig. 11C ) and the eNB 904 attempts to configure the UE to be in non-standalone mode, the UE may reject the configuration, which may cause the LTE connection to fail, for example, as caused by Fig.12 As shown. Fig.12 As shown, UE 940 may establish connection 1134 with gNB 906 and connection 932 with eNB 904. While establishing connection 932, eNB 904 may attempt to reconfigure UE 940 for non-standalone mode via reconfiguration message 1202. However, since UE 940 cannot support non-standalone mode due to the already established connection 1134, at 1220, UE 940 may reject the configuration and cause the connection between UE 940 and eNB 904 to fail.

[0125] The embodiments described herein provide mechanisms that allow coexistence within a UE between a non-standalone mode and a standalone mode. For example, a UE (such as UE106) capable of supporting both a standalone mode and a non-standalone mode may be connected to a network via an LTE link and an NR link at the same time, and the embodiments described herein may allow the network to understand the capabilities and / or configurations of the two radio access technologies (e.g., LTE and 5G NR RAT), and based on the capabilities and / or configurations of the two RATs, the network may perform appropriate configurations relative to the two RATs, thereby avoiding configuration failures of one of the links. In some embodiments, if the UE has established a 5G NR standalone connection and is intended to be connected to an LTE cell, the UE may, for example, provide configuration information to the LTE cell during a radio resource control (RRC) connection setup / recovery process. For example, in some embodiments, the UE may provide an E-UTRAN New Radio Dual Connectivity (EN-DC) disable indication to notify the LTE cell (and more generally, the EPC of the LTE network) to perform only LTE configuration, for example, the UE is currently unable to support non-standalone mode. In some embodiments, the UE may provide the current 5G NR operating frequency and / or configuration to the LTE cell. In such an implementation, the LTE cell may only provide an EN-DC configuration with a 5G NR configuration together with the current 5G NR standalone configuration if the combination of configurations does not exceed the 5G NR radio frequency (RF) capability of the UE.

[0126] In some embodiments, if the LTE cell (or more generally, the LTE network and / or EPC) intends to enable EN-DC configuration to the UE, the LTE cell may first check (e.g., query) the 5G NR network about the UE's NR operating state and service frequency and / or configuration. The LTE cell may then decide (e.g., based on the UE's NR operating state and service frequency and / or configuration) whether to configure EN-DC to the UE or to configure EN-DC considering the UE's current NR configuration. In some embodiments, it may be assumed that the LTE cell (network) knows the link between the UE's LTE link and the 5G NR standalone link, for example, via a UE identifier (ID). In some embodiments, the LTE cell may check the EPC and / or other connected 5G NR cells to determine (and / or learn) the UE's 5G NR operating state (e.g., whether the UE is connected to a 5G NR cell). In some embodiments, the LTE cell may not perform EN-DC configuration when (or if) the UE is in 5G NR connected mode. In some embodiments, when (or if) the UE is in 5G NR connected mode, the LTE cell may perform EN-DC configuration, however, the 5G NR configuration together with the 5G NR standalone configuration may not exceed the UE EN-DC / 5G NR capability. In some embodiments, when the UE 5G NR standalone connection is released and / or suspended, the LTE cell may, for example, switch on and / or change the EN-DC configuration based on the increased UE EN-DC capability.

[0127] Similarly, such a scheme (or process) may also be applicable to NR-DC (NR dual connectivity), NGEN-DC (NG-RAN-E-UTRAN dual connectivity) and / or NE-DC (5G NR-E-UTRAN dual connectivity) scenarios.

[0128] FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a method for coexistence within a UE between non-standalone mode and standalone mode according to some embodiments. Fig.13A The method shown can be used in conjunction with any of the systems or devices shown in the above figures. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown can be performed concurrently in an order different from the order shown, or can be omitted. Additional method elements can also be performed as required. As shown, the method can be operated as follows.

[0129] At 1302, a UE such as UE 106 may connect to a radio access network (RAN) via a first base station (or cell) such as base station 102. The first RAN may operate according to a first radio access technology (RAT) (e.g., such as 3GPP LTE and / or 3GPP 5G NR). The connection may be an independent connection. In some embodiments, the connection to the first RAN may be via a first radio component of the UE configured to operate according to the first RAT.

[0130] At 1304, the UE may connect to a second RAN via a second base station (or cell), such as base station 102. The second RAN may operate according to a second radio access technology (RAT), such as, for example, 3GPP LTE and / or 3GPP 5G NR. The connection may be an independent connection. In some embodiments, the connection to the second RAN may be via a second radio component of the UE configured to operate according to the second RAT.

[0131] At 1306, the UE may provide configuration information to the first RAN (e.g., via the first base station). The configuration information may be provided during a radio resource control (RRC) connection procedure and may indicate a dual connectivity state of the UE. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity state may include any, any combination, and / or all of an indication that dual connectivity of the UE is disabled (and / or enabled), an operating frequency associated with the second RAN (e.g., a frequency that the UE is using to communicate with the second RAN), and / or a configuration associated with the second RAN (e.g., whether the UE is in a standalone mode, a serving frequency of the second RAN, etc.).

[0132] At 1308, the UE may receive a dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN (e.g., based on the dual connectivity state of the UE). In some embodiments, the dual connectivity configuration may include configuring the UE for an independent operation mode with the first RAN. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity configuration may include configuring the UE for a non-independent operation mode with the first RAN and the second RAN. In some embodiments, such a configuration for the non-independent operation mode may accommodate a UE operating in an independent mode with the second RAN. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity configuration in conjunction with the UE operating in an independent mode with the second RAN may not exceed the radio frequency capabilities of the second radio component of the UE.

[0133] As further described herein, in some embodiments, in order to support the dual connectivity configuration received from the first RAN, the UE may dynamically enable multiple instances of the communication stack associated with the second RAN. In some embodiments, the first instance of the stack may support a non-independent operation mode of the first RAN and the second RAN. In some embodiments, the second instance of the stack may support an independent operation mode of the second RAN. In some embodiments, multiple instances of the communication stack may be supported by a single SIM profile. In some embodiments, the first instance and the second instance of the communication stack may share physical resources associated with the second radio component. In some embodiments, higher-level service levels and lower-level RF arbitration may, for example, decide (or determine) which instance has access rights for transmission and / or reception at any particular time based on the current service requirements across each instance and / or the priority of the services supported by the instance at the radio level. In some embodiments, when the instance of the communication stack is no longer needed, the second instance of the communication stack may be deactivated, and the physical resources of the second radio component may be reallocated to the first instance of the communication stack.

[0134] In some embodiments, the UE may release and / or suspend the connection with the second RAN, and based on the release and / or suspension of the connection with the second RAN, receive an updated dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN. In such embodiments, the updated dual connectivity configuration may reconfigure the UE for dual connectivity with the first RAN and the second RAN.

[0135] In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE), and the second RAT may be 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR). In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP 5G NR, and the second RAT may be 3GPP5G NR. In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP 5G NR, and the second RAT may be 3G3GPP LTE. In some embodiments, the first RAT may be a legacy RAT (e.g., such as GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, LTE, LTE-A), and the second RAT may be a next generation RAT (e.g., a new standardized RAT, such as 5G NR). In some embodiments, the first RAT may be a next generation RAT, and the second RAT may be a legacy RAT.

[0136] Fig. 13B A block diagram illustrating an example of a method for coexistence within a UE between non-standalone mode and standalone mode according to some embodiments. Fig. 13BThe method shown in the figure can be used in conjunction with any of the systems or devices shown in the above figures. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown can be performed concurrently in an order different from the order shown, or can be omitted. Additional method elements can also be performed as needed. As shown in the figure, the method can be operated as follows.

[0137] At 1312, a UE such as UE 106 may connect to a first radio access network (RAN) via a first base station (or cell) such as base station 102. The first RAN may operate according to a first radio access technology (RAT) (e.g., such as 3GPP LTE and / or 3GPP 5G NR). The connection may be an independent connection. In some embodiments, the connection to the first RAN may be via a first radio component of the UE configured to operate according to the first RAT.

[0138] At 1314, the first RAN may receive (e.g., via the first base station) configuration information from the UE. The configuration information may be provided during a radio resource control (RRC) connection process and may indicate a dual connectivity state of the UE. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity state may include any one, any combination, and / or all of an indication of disabling (and / or enabling) the dual connectivity of the UE, an operating frequency associated with a second RAN connected to the UE (e.g., a frequency that the UE is using to communicate with the second RAN), and / or a configuration associated with the second RAN (e.g., whether the UE is in standalone mode, a serving frequency of the second RAN, etc.). In some embodiments, the second RAN may be configured to operate according to a second RAT. In some embodiments, the first RAN may communicate with the second RAN and receive a serving frequency and / or configuration associated with the UE's connection with the second RAN from the second RAN. In such embodiments, the dual connectivity configuration of the UE may be further based on a serving frequency and / or configuration associated with the UE's connection with the second RAN. In some embodiments, the first RAN may determine that the second RAN is serving the UE based on an identifier of the UE.

[0139] As further described herein, in some embodiments, in order to support the dual connectivity configuration received from the first RAN, the UE may dynamically enable multiple instances of the communication stack associated with the second RAN. In some embodiments, the first instance of the stack may support a non-independent operation mode of the first RAN and the second RAN. In some embodiments, the second instance of the stack may support an independent operation mode of the second RAN. In some embodiments, multiple instances of the communication stack may be supported by a single SIM profile. In some embodiments, the first instance and the second instance of the communication stack may share physical resources associated with the second radio component. In some embodiments, higher-level service levels and lower-level RF arbitration may, for example, decide (or determine) which instance has access rights for transmission and / or reception at any particular time based on the current service requirements across each instance and / or the priority of the services supported by the instance at the radio level. In some embodiments, when the instance of the communication stack is no longer needed, the second instance of the communication stack may be deactivated, and the physical resources of the second radio component may be reallocated to the first instance of the communication stack.

[0140] At 1318, the first RAN may transmit (eg, via the first base station) a dual connectivity configuration (eg, based on the dual connectivity state of the UE) to the UE.

[0141] In some embodiments, the first RAN may receive an indication that the UE has released and / or suspended a connection with the second RAN. The first RAN may determine an updated dual connectivity configuration for the UE based on the release and / or suspension of the connection with the second RAN, and transmit the updated dual connectivity configuration to the UE. In such embodiments, the updated dual connectivity configuration may reconfigure the UE for dual connectivity with the first RAN and the second RAN.

[0142] In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE), and the second RAT may be 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR). In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP 5G NR, and the second RAT may be 3GPP5G NR. In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP 5G NR, and the second RAT may be 3G3GPP LTE. In some embodiments, the first RAT may be a legacy RAT (e.g., such as GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, LTE, LTE-A), and the second RAT may be a next generation RAT (e.g., a new standardized RAT, such as 5G NR). In some embodiments, the first RAT may be a next generation RAT, and the second RAT may be a legacy RAT.

[0143] In some embodiments, a UE such as UE 106 may dynamically enable multiple instances of a 5G NR stack. Such embodiments may allow the UE to dynamically switch between a non-standalone mode (e.g., EN-DC configuration) and an independent mode, thereby avoiding instances where 5G NR resources will be unavailable. In some embodiments, when both the non-standalone mode and the independent mode need to be active at the same time, the stack architecture may enable the creation of additional instances of the 5G NR stack (e.g., assuming that the UE is already in a 5G NR independent operation mode on one 5G NR stack instance). In such embodiments, multiple instances of the 5G NR stack may allow the first instance to be used for an independent configuration and allow the second instance to be used for a non-standalone configuration (e.g., such as EN-DC). In some embodiments, unlike traditional multi-SIM (MUSIM) devices, all instances of the 5G NR stack may share the same SIM profile. In addition, all instances of the 5G NR stack may share the same physical RF (5G NR) resources. In some embodiments, higher layer service level and lower level RF arbitration may decide (or determine) which instance will have access rights for transmission and / or reception at any particular time, for example based on current service requirements across each instance and / or priority of service at the radio level. In some embodiments, in the event that one of the 5G NR stack instances is no longer needed (e.g., EN-DC deactivation), the 5G NR stack instance will be deactivated and the entire 5G NR physical RF resources may be reallocated to the remaining 5G NR stack instances.

[0144] For example, Fig.14A block diagram of an example architecture of a UE for supporting multiple instances of a 5G NR stack according to some embodiments is shown. As shown, UE 1406 (UE 1406 may be UE106) may include an application layer 1446 that communicates with an LTE modem 1416 and multiple instances of a 5G NR stack (e.g., NR modem_0 1426 and NR modem_1 1436). As shown, LTE modem 1416 and NR modem_0 1426 may be in a non-independent configuration, whereas NR modem_1 1436 may be configured to have an independent configuration. Therefore, RF resources may be shared between NR modem_0 1426 and NR modem_1 1436. In addition, UE 1406 may be connected (via connection 1452) to EPC 1402 via eNB 602 (e.g., via connections 1412 and 1430) in the user plane and the control plane. In addition, gNB 604 can support user plane connection 1420 with EPC 1402 and transport data to UE 1406 via connection 1422. Further, UE 1406 can connect (via connection 1454) to 5G Core 1404 via gNB 614 (gNB 614 can also be gNB 604) in both the user plane and the control plane (e.g., via connections 1450 and 1452).

[0145] Fig.15 A block diagram of an example of a method for dynamically enabling multiple instances of a 5G NR stack according to some embodiments is shown. Among other devices, Fig.15 The method shown in can be used in conjunction with any one of the systems or devices shown in the above figures. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown can be performed concurrently in an order different from the order shown, or can be omitted. Additional method elements can also be performed as required. As shown in the figure, the method can be operated as follows.

[0146] At 1502, a UE such as UE 106 may connect to a first radio access network (RAN) via a first base station (or cell) such as base station 102. The first RAN may operate according to a first radio access technology (RAT) (e.g., such as 3GPP LTE and / or 3GPP 5G NR). The connection may be an independent connection. In some embodiments, the connection to the first RAN may be via a first radio component of the UE configured to operate according to the first RAT.

[0147] At 1504, the UE may connect to a second RAN via a second base station (or cell), such as base station 102. The second RAN may operate according to a second radio access technology (RAT), such as, for example, 3GPP LTE and / or 3GPP 5G NR. The connection may be an independent connection. In some embodiments, the connection to the second RAN may be via a second radio component of the UE configured to operate according to the second RAT.

[0148] At 1506, the UE may receive a dual connectivity from the first RAN. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity configuration may include configuring the UE for an independent operation mode with the first RAN. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity configuration may include configuring the UE for a non-independent operation mode with the first RAN and the second RAN. In some embodiments, such a configuration for the non-independent operation mode may accommodate a UE operating in an independent mode with the second RAN. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity configuration in conjunction with the UE operating in an independent mode with the second RAN may not exceed the radio frequency capabilities of the second radio component of the UE.

[0149] In some embodiments, the UE may provide configuration information to the first RAN (e.g., via the first base station). The configuration information may be provided during a radio resource control (RRC) connection process and may indicate a dual connectivity state of the UE. In some embodiments, the dual connectivity state may include any one, any combination, and / or all of an indication that dual connectivity of the UE is disabled (and / or enabled), an operating frequency associated with the second RAN (e.g., a frequency that the UE is using to communicate with the second RAN), and / or a configuration associated with the second RAN (e.g., whether the UE is in standalone mode, a serving frequency of the second RAN, etc.).

[0150] At 1508, the UE may enable multiple instances of a communication stack associated with the second RAN to support a dual connectivity configuration. In some embodiments, a first instance of the stack may support a non-independent operation mode of the first RAN and the second RAN. In some embodiments, a second instance of the stack may support an independent operation mode of the second RAN. In some embodiments, multiple instances of the communication stack may be supported by a single SIM profile. In some embodiments, the first instance and the second instance of the communication stack may share physical resources associated with the second radio component. In some embodiments, higher-level service levels and lower-level RF arbitration may, for example, decide (or determine) which instance has access rights for transmission and / or reception at any particular time based on current service requirements across each instance and / or the priority of services supported by the instance at the radio level. In some embodiments, when an instance of the communication stack is no longer needed, the second instance of the communication stack may be deactivated, and the physical resources of the second radio component may be reallocated to the first instance of the communication stack.

[0151] In some embodiments, the UE may release and / or suspend the connection with the second RAN, and based on the release and / or suspension of the connection with the second RAN, receive an updated dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN. In such embodiments, the updated dual connectivity configuration may reconfigure the UE for dual connectivity with the first RAN and the second RAN.

[0152] In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE), and the second RAT may be 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR). In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP 5G NR, and the second RAT may be 3GPP5G NR. In some embodiments, the first RAT may be 3GPP 5G NR, and the second RAT may be 3G3GPP LTE. In some embodiments, the first RAT may be a legacy RAT (e.g., such as GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, LTE, LTE-A), and the second RAT may be a next generation RAT (e.g., a new standardized RAT, such as 5G NR). In some embodiments, the first RAT may be a next generation RAT, and the second RAT may be a legacy RAT.

[0153] It is understood that the use of personally identifiable information should be subject to privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized to meet or exceed industry or government requirements for maintaining user privacy. Specifically, personally identifiable information data should be managed and processed to minimize the risk of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of the authorized use should be clearly stated to users.

[0154] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in any of a variety of forms. For example, some embodiments may be implemented as computer-implemented methods, computer-readable storage media, or computer systems. Other embodiments may be implemented using one or more custom-designed hardware devices such as ASICs. Other embodiments may be implemented using one or more programmable hardware elements such as FPGAs.

[0155] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may be configured such that it stores program instructions and / or data, wherein if the program instructions are executed by a computer system, the computer system is caused to perform a method, such as any one of the method embodiments described herein, or any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or any subset of any of the method embodiments described herein or any combination of such subsets.

[0156] In some embodiments, a device (e.g., UE 106) may be configured to include a processor (or a group of processors) and a memory medium, wherein the memory medium stores program instructions, wherein the processor is configured to read and execute the program instructions from the memory medium, wherein the program instructions are executable to implement any of the various method implementations described herein (or any combination of the method implementations described herein, or any subset of any of the method implementations described herein, or any combination of such subsets). The device may be implemented in any of various forms.

[0157] Although the above embodiments have been described in considerable detail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to encompass all such variations and modifications.

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE), comprising: one or more antennas; one or more radio components, wherein each of the one or more radio components is configured to perform cellular communications using at least one radio access technology (RAT); one or more processors coupled to the one or more radios, wherein the one or more processors and the one or more radios are configured to perform voice and / or data communications; The one or more processors are configured to cause the UE to: connecting via a first radio component of the one or more radio components to a first radio access network (RAN) operating according to a first RAT; connecting via a second radio component of the one or more radio components to a second RAN operating according to a second RAT; providing configuration information to the first RAN during a radio resource control (RRC) connection procedure, wherein the configuration information indicates a dual connectivity state of the UE, wherein the dual connectivity state includes a configuration associated with the second RAN, and wherein the configuration associated with the second RAN includes whether the UE is configured for communication with the second RAN in a standalone mode; and A dual connectivity configuration is received from the first RAN, wherein the dual connectivity configuration is based on the dual connectivity state of the UE.

2. The UE according to claim 1, The dual connection state also includes one or more of the following: an indication to disable dual connectivity of the UE; or An operating frequency associated with the second base station.

3. The UE according to claim 1, The dual connectivity configuration includes configuring the UE for an independent operation mode with a first base station.

4. The UE according to claim 1, The dual connectivity configuration includes configuring the UE for a non-standalone operation mode with the first RAN and the second RAN, wherein the non-standalone operation mode accommodates the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second RAN.

5. The UE according to claim 4, wherein the dual connectivity configuration in combination with the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second RAN does not exceed the radio frequency capabilities of the second radio.

6. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the first RAT is one of 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) and 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR); and The second RAT is one of 3GPP LTE and 3GPP 5G NR.

7. The UE according to claim 1, The one or more processors are further configured to cause the UE to: releasing or suspending the connection with the second RAN; and receiving an updated dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN based on the releasing or suspending.

8. The UE according to claim 1, The one or more processors are further configured to cause the UE to: A plurality of instances of a communication stack associated with the second RAN are enabled, wherein a first instance of the communication stack supports a dependent operation mode of the first RAN and the second RAN, and a second instance of the communication stack supports an independent operation mode of the second RAN.

9. A network entity, comprising: at least one antenna; at least one radio component, wherein the at least one radio component is configured to perform cellular communications using at least one radio access technology (RAT); one or more processors coupled to the at least one radio, wherein the one or more processors and the at least one radio are configured to perform voice and / or data communications; wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause the network entity to: Connecting to a user equipment (UE); receiving configuration information from the UE during a radio resource control (RRC) connection procedure, wherein the configuration information indicates a dual connectivity state of the UE, wherein the dual connectivity state includes a configuration associated with the second RAN, and wherein the configuration associated with the second RAN includes whether the UE is configured for communication with the second RAN in a standalone mode; Determining a dual connectivity configuration of the UE based on the dual connectivity state of the UE; as well as The dual connectivity configuration is transmitted to the UE.

10. The network entity according to claim 9, The dual connection state also includes one or more of the following: an indication to disable dual connectivity of the UE; or An operating frequency associated with a second network entity connected to the UE, wherein the second network entity operates according to a second RAT.

11. The network entity according to claim 9, wherein the dual connectivity configuration comprises configuring the UE for a non-standalone mode of operation with support of a second network entity operating in accordance with a second RAT, wherein the non-standalone mode of operation accommodates the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second network entity; and The dual connectivity configuration in combination with the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second network entity does not exceed the radio frequency capability of the UE.

12. The network entity according to claim 9, Wherein the dual connectivity is configured with a second network entity, wherein the second network entity operates according to 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR).

13. The network entity according to claim 9, The one or more processors are further configured to cause the network entity to: communicating with a second network entity, wherein the second network entity also serves the UE, and wherein the second network entity operates according to a second RAT, and wherein the second network entity is identified based on an identifier of the UE; and receiving, from the second network entity, a serving frequency and / or a configuration associated with the connection of the UE with the second network entity, wherein the dual connectivity configuration of the UE is further based on the serving frequency and / or the configuration associated with the connection of the UE with the second network entity.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing program instructions executable by a processing circuit to cause a user equipment device (UE): connecting via a first radio component to a first radio access network (RAN) operating according to a first radio access technology (RAT); connecting via a second radio component to a second RAN operating according to a second RAT; receiving a dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN, wherein the dual connectivity configuration is based on a dual connectivity state of the UE, wherein the dual connectivity state comprises a configuration associated with the second RAN, and wherein the configuration associated with the second RAN comprises whether the UE is configured in a standalone mode for communicating with the second RAN; as well as A plurality of instances of a communication stack associated with the second RAN are enabled, wherein a first instance of the communication stack supports a dependent operation mode of the first RAN and the second RAN, and a second instance of the stack supports an independent operation mode of the second RAN.

15. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 14, Wherein the first instance of the communication stack and the second instance of the communication stack are supported by a single SIM profile of the UE.

16. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 14, Wherein the first instance of the communication stack and the second instance of the communication stack share physical resources associated with the second radio.

17. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 14, Wherein the higher layer service level of the UE and the lower level radio frequency arbitration of the UE determine that an instance of the communication stack has access rights for transmission and / or reception at any particular time based at least in part on one or more of the service requirements of each instance of the communication stack or the priority of services supported by the instance of the communication stack.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing program instructions executable by a processing circuit to cause a network entity to: Connecting to a user equipment (UE); receiving configuration information from the UE during a radio resource control (RRC) connection procedure, wherein the configuration information indicates a dual connectivity state of the UE, wherein the dual connectivity state includes a configuration associated with the second RAN, and wherein the configuration associated with the second RAN includes whether the UE is configured for communication with the second RAN in a standalone mode; Determining a dual connectivity configuration of the UE based on the dual connectivity state of the UE; as well as The dual connectivity configuration is transmitted to the UE.

19. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 18, The dual connection state also includes one or more of the following: an indication to disable dual connectivity of the UE; or An operating frequency associated with a second network entity connected to the UE, wherein the second network entity operates according to a second RAT.

20. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 18, wherein the dual connectivity configuration comprises configuring the UE for a non-standalone mode of operation with support of a second network entity operating in accordance with a second RAT, wherein the non-standalone mode of operation accommodates the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second network entity; and The dual connectivity configuration in combination with the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second network entity does not exceed the radio frequency capability of the UE.

21. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 18, Wherein the dual connectivity is configured with a second network entity, wherein the second network entity operates according to 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR).

22. The non-transitory computer readable memory medium of claim 18, The program instructions may also be executed by the processing circuit to cause the network entity to: communicating with a second network entity, wherein the second network entity also serves the UE, and wherein the second network entity operates according to a second RAT, and wherein the second network entity is identified based on an identifier of the UE; and receiving, from the second network entity, a serving frequency and / or a configuration associated with the connection of the UE with the second network entity, wherein the dual connectivity configuration of the UE is further based on the serving frequency and / or the configuration associated with the connection of the UE with the second network entity.

23. A communication method for a user equipment (UE), comprising: connecting to a first radio access network (RAN) operating according to a first RAT via a first radio component of one or more radio components of the UE, each of the one or more radio components being configured to perform cellular communications using at least one radio access technology (RAT); connecting via a second radio component of the one or more radio components to a second RAN operating according to a second RAT; providing configuration information to the first RAN during a radio resource control (RRC) connection procedure, wherein the configuration information indicates a dual connectivity state of the UE, wherein the dual connectivity state includes a configuration associated with the second RAN, and wherein the configuration associated with the second RAN includes whether the UE is configured for communication with the second RAN in a standalone mode; and A dual connectivity configuration is received from the first RAN, wherein the dual connectivity configuration is based on the dual connectivity state of the UE.

24. The communication method according to claim 23, The dual connection state also includes one or more of the following: an indication to disable dual connectivity of the UE; or An operating frequency associated with the second base station.

25. The communication method according to claim 23, The dual connectivity configuration includes configuring the UE for an independent operation mode with a first base station.

26. The communication method according to claim 23, The dual connectivity configuration includes configuring the UE for a non-standalone operation mode with the first RAN and the second RAN, wherein the non-standalone operation mode accommodates the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second RAN.

27. The communication method according to claim 26, wherein the dual connectivity configuration in combination with the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second RAN does not exceed the radio frequency capabilities of the second radio.

28. The communication method according to claim 23, wherein the first RAT is one of 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) and 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR); and The second RAT is one of 3GPP LTE and 3GPP 5G NR.

29. The communication method according to claim 23, further comprising: releasing or suspending the connection with the second RAN; as well as receiving an updated dual connectivity configuration from the first RAN based on the releasing or suspending.

30. The communication method according to claim 23, further comprising: A plurality of instances of a communication stack associated with the second RAN are enabled, wherein a first instance of the communication stack supports a dependent operation mode of the first RAN and the second RAN, and a second instance of the communication stack supports an independent operation mode of the second RAN.

31. A communication method for a network entity, comprising: Connecting to a user equipment (UE); receiving configuration information from the UE during a radio resource control (RRC) connection procedure, wherein the configuration information indicates a dual connectivity state of the UE; determining a dual connectivity configuration of the UE based on the dual connectivity state of the UE, wherein the dual connectivity state comprises a configuration associated with the second RAN, and wherein the configuration associated with the second RAN comprises whether the UE is configured for communication with the second RAN in a standalone mode; and The dual connectivity configuration is transmitted to the UE.

32. The communication method according to claim 31, The dual connection state also includes one or more of the following: an indication to disable dual connectivity of the UE; or An operating frequency associated with a second network entity connected to the UE, wherein the second network entity operates according to a second RAT.

33. The communication method according to claim 31, wherein the dual connectivity configuration comprises configuring the UE for a non-standalone mode of operation with support of a second network entity operating in accordance with a second RAT, wherein the non-standalone mode of operation accommodates the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second network entity; and The dual connectivity configuration in combination with the UE operating in a standalone mode with the second network entity does not exceed the radio frequency capability of the UE.

34. The communication method according to claim 31, Wherein the dual connectivity is configured with a second network entity, wherein the second network entity operates according to 3GPP Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR).

35. The communication method according to claim 31, further comprising: communicating with a second network entity, wherein the second network entity also serves the UE, and wherein the second network entity operates according to a second RAT, and wherein the second network entity is identified based on an identifier of the UE; as well as receiving, from the second network entity, a serving frequency and / or a configuration associated with the connection of the UE with the second network entity, wherein the dual connectivity configuration of the UE is further based on the serving frequency and / or the configuration associated with the connection of the UE with the second network entity.

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