Method for discontinuous reception and energy saving in NR-based unlicensed carrier communications

Abstract

A user equipment (UE) or other network component may be operable to generate a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation to manage power consumption by configuring discontinuous reception (DRX) in a dynamic manner. The UE may configure an extended active time of the DRX based on whether the LBT is successful and an acquisition channel indication from a base station, such as a next-generation Node B (gNB). The UE may operate aperiodic wake-up occasions together with or independently of a periodic DRX on-duration to better manage power while monitoring a channel for unlicensed carrier communications.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 824,961, filed on March 27, 2019, entitled “METHODS FOR DISCONTINUOUS RECEPTION AND ENERGY SAVINGS IN NR BASED UNLICENSED CARRIER COMMUNICATION,” the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates to wireless technologies, including discontinuous reception and energy saving in New Radio (NR) based unlicensed carrier communications. Background Art

[0004] Mobile communications in the next generation wireless communication system 5G or New Radio (NR) networks will provide ubiquitous connectivity and access to information and the ability to share data on a global scale. 5G networks and network slices will be unified, service-based frameworks that will target common and sometimes conflicting performance standards and provide services to extremely diverse application domains ranging from enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) to massive machine type communications (mMTC), ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC) and other communications. In general, NR will evolve based on the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) Advanced technology and additional enhanced radio access technologies (RATs) to achieve seamless and faster wireless connectivity solutions.

[0005] Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) are introduced in fifth generation (5G) New Radio (NR) systems with the goal of flexibly and dynamically configuring the user equipment (UE) operating bandwidth to achieve power efficiency. Generally speaking, a UE may monitor a set of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates in one or more control resource sets (CORESETs) on an active downlink (DL) BWP on each activated serving cell according to a corresponding search space, where monitoring means or refers to decoding some or all of the PDCCH candidates in the PDCCH candidate set according to the monitored downlink control information (DCI) format. A set of PDCCH candidates to be monitored by the UE may be defined according to a PDCCH search space. The search space may be a common search space (CSS) or a UE-specific search space (USS). According to the current NR implementation, the UE may monitor PDCCH candidates in a discontinuous reception (non-DRX) time slot (or time slots) in one or more of the various defined search spaces.

[0006] Ideally, a UE may be able to monitor PDCCH candidates configured by the next generation Node B (gNB) so that maximum / optimal scheduling flexibility can be achieved. However, due to terminal complexity and cost issues, the maximum number of blind decoding attempts and the number of control channel elements (CCEs) used for channel estimation in the UE may be limited. With the emergence of NR unlicensed communication use cases expected to be supported both in-coverage and out-of-coverage, there is a need to consider methods for defining an efficient mechanism for providing power management control between different UEs operating in discontinuous (DRX) transmission. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a user equipment (UE) communicatively coupled to a network component as a peer device via a network that can be used in conjunction with various embodiments (aspects) described herein.

[0008] Figure 2 is an exemplary architecture of a network system according to various embodiments.

[0009] Figure 3 is an exemplary simplified block diagram of a user equipment wireless communication device or other network device / component (e.g., gNB) according to various aspects described.

[0010] Figure 4 is an exemplary block diagram of channel conditions for discontinuous reception (DRX) in unlicensed communications according to various embodiments described herein.

[0011] Figure 5 is another exemplary block diagram of a DRX configuration for an unlicensed channel according to various embodiments described herein.

[0012] Figure 6 is an example of a table of different responses to channel conditions for DRX according to various embodiments described herein.

[0013] Figure 7 is another exemplary block diagram of a DRX configuration for an unlicensed channel according to various embodiments described herein.

[0014] Figure 8 is another exemplary block diagram of a DRX configuration for an unlicensed channel according to various embodiments described herein.

[0015] Fig. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary process flow for configuring DRX for unlicensed communications according to various embodiments described herein.

[0016] Fig.10Various protocol functions that may be implemented in a wireless communication device according to various embodiments are shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] 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.

[0018] The present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein throughout the text, similar figure numerals are used to refer to similar elements, and the structures and devices shown therein need not be drawn to scale. As used herein, the terms "component", "system", "interface", etc. are intended to refer to entities, hardware, software (e.g., in execution) and / or firmware related to a computer. For example, a component may be a processor (e.g., a microprocessor, a controller or other processing device), a process running on a processor, a controller, an object, an executable file, a program, a storage device, a computer, a tablet computer, and / or a user equipment (e.g., a mobile phone, etc.) with a processing device. By way of example, an application program and a server running on a server may also be a component. One or more components may reside in a process, and a component may be located on a computer and / or distributed between two or more computers. This article may describe a set of elements or other component sets, wherein the term "set" may be interpreted as "one or more".

[0019] In addition, the components can execute from various computer-readable storage media having various data structures stored thereon, such as using modules, for example. The components can communicate via local and / or remote processes, such as according to signals having one or more data packets (e.g., data from one component interacts with another component in a local system, a distributed system, and / or throughout a network, such as the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, or a similar network with other systems via signals).

[0020] As another example, a component may be a device having a specific function provided by a mechanical component operated by electrical or electronic circuitry, wherein the electrical or electronic circuitry may be operated by a software application or firmware application executed by one or more processors. The one or more processors may be internal or external to the device and may execute at least a portion of the software or firmware application. As another example, a component may be a device that provides a specific function by an electronic component without the need for a mechanical component; the electronic component may include one or more processors therein to execute at least a portion of the software and / or firmware that imparts the function to the electronic component.

[0021] The use of the word "exemplary" is intended to present concepts in a specific way. As used in this application, the term "or" is intended to mean an inclusive "or" rather than an exclusive "or". That is, unless otherwise specified or clear from the context, "X employs A or B" is intended to mean any natural inclusive arrangement. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both A and B, then "X employs A or B" is satisfied in any of the foregoing cases. In addition, the articles "one" and "an" used in this application and the appended claims should generally be interpreted as meaning "one or more" unless otherwise specified or clear from the context to point to a singular form. In addition, to the extent that the terms "including", "comprising", "having", "having", "with" or variations thereof are used in the detailed description and claims, such terms are intended to be included in a manner similar to the term "comprising". In addition, where one or more numbered items (e.g., "first X", "second X", etc.) are discussed, generally, the one or more numbered items may be different or they may be the same, but in some cases, the context may indicate that they are different or that they are the same.

[0022] As used herein, the term "circuit" may refer to, may be a part of, or may include an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), electronic circuit, processor (shared, dedicated, or group), or associated memory (shared, dedicated, or group) operably coupled to the circuit that executes one or more software or firmware programs, combinational logic circuits, or other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality. In some embodiments, the circuit may be implemented in one or more software or firmware modules, or the functionality associated with the circuit may be implemented by one or more software or firmware modules. In some embodiments, the circuit may include logic that is at least partially operable in hardware.

[0023] Various issues of managing DRX active time are considered in order to manage power consumption at a user equipment (UE) communicating via an unlicensed carrier or channel. Listen before talk (LBT) may be performed on an unlicensed channel while also monitoring a channel acquisition indication from a next generation (g) Node B (gNB). The UE may be operable to dynamically extend the DRX active time or change the DRX cycle based on LBT and whether a channel acquisition indication is received. Other aspects and details of the present disclosure are further described below with respect to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] Figure 1An exemplary architecture of a system 100 of a network according to various embodiments is shown. The following description is provided for an exemplary system 100 operating in conjunction with LTE system standards and 5G or NR system standards provided by 2GPP technical specifications. However, the exemplary embodiments are not limited in this regard, and the embodiments may be applied to other networks that benefit from the principles described herein, such as future 2GPP systems (e.g., sixth generation (6G)) systems, IEEE 802.16 protocols (e.g., WMAN, WiMAX, etc.), and the like.

[0025] like Figure 1 As shown, system 100 includes UE 101a and UE 101b (collectively referred to as "UE 101"). In this example, UE 101 is shown as a smart phone (e.g., a handheld touch screen mobile computing device that can connect to one or more cellular networks), but may also include any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as a consumer electronic device, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a feature phone, a tablet computer, a wearable computer device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a pager, a wireless handheld device, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, an in-vehicle infotainment (IVI), an in-car entertainment (ICE) device, an instrument panel (IC), a head-up display (HUD) device, an on-board diagnostic (OBD) device, a dashtop mobile equipment (DME), a mobile data terminal (MDT), an electronic engine management system (EEMS), an electronic / engine electronic control unit (ECU), an electronic / engine electronic control module (ECM), an embedded system, a microcontroller, a control module, an engine management system (EMS), a networked or "smart" appliance, a machine type communication (MTC) device, a machine to machine (M2M) device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.

[0026] In some embodiments, any of the UEs 101 may be an IoT UE, which may include a network access layer designed for low-power IoT applications that utilize short-term UE connections. The IoT UE may utilize technologies such as M2M or MTC to exchange data with an MTC server or device via a public land mobile network (PLMN), a short-range service (ProSe) or a device-to-device (D2D) communication, a sensor network, or an IoT network. The M2M or MTC data exchange may be a machine-initiated data exchange. The IoT network describes interconnected IoT UEs, which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within the Internet infrastructure) with short-lived connections. The IoT UE may execute background applications (e.g., keep-alive messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate connectivity to the IoT network.

[0027] UE 101 may be configured to connect, e.g., be communicatively coupled, to a radio access network (RAN) 110. In an embodiment, RAN 110 may be a next generation (NG) RAN or 5G RAN, an evolved-UMTS terrestrial RAN (E-UTRAN), or a traditional RAN, such as UTRAN or GERAN. As used herein, the term "NG RAN" or the like may refer to a RAN 110 operating in an NR or 5G system 100, while the term "E-UTRAN" or the like may refer to a RAN 110 operating in an LTE or 4G system 100. UE 101 utilizes connections (or channels) 102 and 104, respectively, each of which includes a physical communication interface or layer (discussed in further detail below).

[0028] In this example, connection 102 and connection 104 are shown as air interfaces to achieve communication coupling, and may be consistent with a cellular communication protocol, such as a global mobile communication (GSM) protocol, a code division multiple access (CDMA) network protocol, a push-to-talk (PTT) protocol, a cellular PTT (POC) protocol, a universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) protocol, a 2GPP LTE protocol, a 5G protocol, a NR protocol, and / or any of the other communication protocols discussed herein. In an embodiment, the UE 101 may directly exchange communication data via the ProSe interface 105. The ProSe interface 105 may alternatively be referred to as a SL interface 105 and may include one or more logical channels, including, but not limited to, a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), and a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH).

[0029] UE 101b is shown configured to access AP 106 (also referred to as "WLAN node 106," "WLAN 106," "WLAN terminal 106," "WT 106," etc.) via connection 107. Connection 107 may include a local wireless connection, such as a connection consistent with any IEEE 802.11 protocol, wherein AP 106 will include Wireless Fidelity. router. In this example, AP 106 is shown connected to the Internet without being connected to the core network of the wireless system (described in further detail below). In various embodiments, UE 101b, RAN 110, and AP 106 may be configured to utilize LTE-WLAN aggregation (LWA) operation and / or LTE / WLAN radio level operation integrated with IPsec tunnel (LWIP). LWA operation may involve UE 101b in a radio resource control RRC_CONNECTED state being configured by RAN nodes 111a-111b to utilize radio resources of LTE and WLAN. LWIP operation may involve UE 101b using WLAN radio resources (e.g., connection 107) via an IPsec protocol tunnel to authenticate and encrypt packets (e.g., IP packets) sent through connection 107. IPsec tunneling may include encapsulating the entire original IP packet and adding a new packet header, thereby protecting the original header of the IP packet.

[0030] The RAN 110 includes one or more access AN nodes or RAN nodes 111a and 111b (collectively referred to as "RAN nodes 111") that enable connections 102 and 104. As used herein, the terms "access node", "access point", etc. may describe equipment that provides radio baseband functions for data and / or voice connections between a network and one or more users. These access nodes may be referred to as BS, gNB, RAN node, eNB, NodeB, RSU, transmit receive point (TRxP) or TRP, etc., and may include ground stations (e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite stations that provide coverage within a geographic area (e.g., a cell). As used herein, the terms "NG RAN node" and the like may refer to a RAN node 111 (e.g., a gNB) operating in an NR or 5G system 100, while the terms "E-UTRAN node" and the like may refer to a RAN node 111 (e.g., an eNB) operating in an LTE or 4G system 100. According to various embodiments, the RAN node 111 may be implemented as one or more of a dedicated physical device such as a macrocell base station and / or a low power (LP) base station for providing a femtocell, picocell or other similar cell with a smaller coverage area, smaller user capacity or higher bandwidth than a macrocell.

[0031] In some embodiments, all or part of the plurality of RAN nodes 111 may be implemented as one or more software entities running on a server computer as part of a virtual network that may be referred to as a centralized RAN (CRAN) and / or a virtual baseband unit pool (vBBUP). In these embodiments, the CRAN or vBBUP may implement RAN functional partitioning such as a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) partitioning, where the radio resource control (RRC) and PDCP layers are operated by the CRAN / vBBUP, while other L2 protocol entities are operated by individual RAN nodes 111; a media access control (MAC) / physical (PHY) layer partitioning, where the RRC, PDCP, RLC, and MAC layers are operated by the CRAN / vBBUP, and the PHY layer is operated by individual RAN nodes 111; or a "lower PHY" partitioning, where the RRC, PDCP, RLC, MAC layer, and upper portions of the PHY layer are operated by the CRAN / vBBUP, and the lower portions of the PHY layer are operated by individual RAN nodes 111. This virtualization framework allows idle processor cores of the plurality of RAN nodes 111 to execute other virtualized applications. In some implementations, the individual RAN nodes 111 may represent individual gNB distributed units (DUs) connected to a gNB central unit (CU) via respective F1 interfaces. In these implementations, the gNB-DU may include one or more remote radio heads or RF front end modules (RFEMs) (not shown), and the gNB-CU may be operated by a server (not shown) located in the RAN 110 or by a server pool in a manner similar to CRAN / vBBUP. In addition or alternatively, one or more of the multiple RAN nodes 111 may be a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), which is a RAN node that provides E-UTRA user plane and control plane protocol terminals to the UE 101 and is connected to the 5GC via an NG interface.

[0032] In a V2X scenario, one or more of the RAN nodes 111 may be or act as an RSU. The term "roadside unit" or "RSU" may refer to any traffic infrastructure entity used for V2X communication. The RSU may be implemented in or by a suitable RAN node or a stationary (or relatively stationary) UE, wherein an RSU implemented in or by a UE may be referred to as a "UE-type RSU", an RSU implemented in or by an eNB may be referred to as an "eNB-type RSU", an RSU implemented in or by a gNB may be referred to as a "gNB-type RSU", etc. In one example, the RSU is a computing device coupled to a radio frequency circuit located on the road side that provides connectivity support to a passing vehicle UE 101 (vUE 101). The RSU may also include internal data storage circuitry for storing intersection map geometry, traffic statistics, media, and applications / software for sensing and controlling ongoing vehicle and pedestrian traffic. The RSU may operate on the 5.9 GHz DSRC band to provide extremely low latency communications required for high-speed events, such as collision avoidance, traffic warnings, etc. In addition or alternatively, the RSU may operate on the cellular V2X band to provide the aforementioned low latency communications as well as other cellular communication services. In addition or alternatively, the RSU may operate as a Wi-Fi hotspot (2.4 GHz band) and / or provide connectivity to one or more cellular networks to provide uplink and downlink communications. Some or all of the computing device and the RSU's RF circuitry may be packaged in a weather-resistant enclosure suitable for outdoor installation, and may include a network interface controller to provide a wired connection (e.g., Ethernet) to a traffic signal controller and / or backhaul network.

[0033] Any of the RAN nodes 111 may serve as a termination point for the air interface protocol and may be the first point of contact for the UE 101. In some embodiments, any of the RAN nodes 111 may perform various logical functions of the RAN 110, including but not limited to the functions of a radio network controller (RNC), such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamic radio resource management and data packet scheduling, and mobility management.

[0034] In an embodiment, UE 101 may be configured to communicate with each other or with any of RAN nodes 111 over a multi-carrier communication channel using orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) communication signals according to various communication techniques, such as, but not limited to, OFDMA communication techniques (e.g., for downlink communications) or single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) communication techniques (e.g., for uplink and ProSe or sidelink communications), although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. OFDM signals may include multiple orthogonal subcarriers.

[0035] In some embodiments, a downlink resource grid may be used for downlink transmissions from any of the RAN nodes 111 to the UE 101, while uplink transmissions may utilize similar techniques. The grid may be a time-frequency grid, referred to as a resource grid or a time-frequency resource grid, which is a physical resource in the downlink in each time slot. For OFDM systems, such a time-frequency plane representation is common practice, which makes wireless resource allocation intuitive. Each column and each row of the resource grid corresponds to an OFDM symbol and an OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource grid in the time domain corresponds to a time slot in a radio frame. The smallest time-frequency unit in the resource grid is represented as a resource element. Each resource grid includes a plurality of resource blocks, which describe the mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements. Each resource block includes a set of resource elements; in the frequency domain, this may represent the minimum amount of resources that can currently be allocated. Such resource blocks are used to transmit several different physical downlink channels.

[0036] According to various embodiments, the UE 101 and the RAN node 111 communicate data (e.g., transmit data and receive data) through a licensed medium (also referred to as a "licensed spectrum" and / or a "licensed frequency band") and an unlicensed shared medium (also referred to as an "unlicensed spectrum" and / or an "unlicensed frequency band"). The licensed spectrum may include channels operating in a frequency range of approximately 400 MHz to approximately 2.8 GHz, and the unlicensed spectrum may include a 5 GHz frequency band.

[0037] To operate in the unlicensed spectrum, the UE 101 and the RAN node 111 may operate using license assisted access (LAA), eLAA, and / or feLAA mechanisms. In these implementations, the UE 101 and the RAN node 111 may perform one or more known medium sensing operations and / or carrier sensing operations to determine whether one or more channels in the unlicensed spectrum are unavailable or otherwise occupied before transmitting in the unlicensed spectrum. The medium / carrier sensing operations may be performed according to a listen-before-talk (LBT) protocol.

[0038] LBT is a mechanism by which equipment (e.g., UE 101, RAN node 111, etc.) senses a medium (e.g., a channel or carrier frequency) and transmits when the medium is sensed to be idle (or when a particular channel in the medium is sensed to be unoccupied). The medium sensing operation may include a clear channel assessment (CCA) that utilizes at least energy detection (ED) to determine whether other signals are present on the channel in order to determine whether the channel is occupied or clear. The LBT mechanism allows cellular / LAA networks to coexist with existing systems in unlicensed spectrum and with other LAA networks. ED may include sensing RF energy over a period of time on an intended transmission band and comparing the sensed RF energy to a predefined or configured threshold.

[0039] Typically, existing systems in the 5 GHz band are WLANs based on IEEE 802.11 technology. WLAN adopts a contention-based channel access mechanism called CSMA / CA. Here, when a WLAN node (e.g., a mobile station (MS) such as UE 101, AP 106, etc.) intends to transmit, the WLAN node may first perform CCA before transmission. In addition, in the case where more than one WLAN node senses the channel as idle and transmits at the same time, a backoff mechanism is used to avoid conflicts. The backoff mechanism can be a counter randomly introduced within the CWS, which increases exponentially when a conflict occurs and is reset to a minimum value when the transmission is successful. The LBT mechanism designed for LAA is somewhat similar to CSMA / CA for WLAN. In some implementations, the LBT process for a downlink (DL) or uplink (UL) transmission burst (including a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission) may have a variable length LAA contention window between X extended CCA (ECCA) slots and Y extended CCA (ECCA) slots, respectively, where X and Y are the minimum and maximum values ​​of the contention window size (CWS) for LAA. In one example, the minimum CWS for LAA transmissions may be 9 microseconds (μs); however, the size of the CWS and the maximum channel occupancy time (MCOT) (e.g., a transmission burst) may be based on government regulatory requirements.

[0040] The LAA mechanism is built on the carrier aggregation (CA) technology of the LTE-Advanced system. In CA, each aggregated carrier is called a component carrier (CC). A CC may have a bandwidth of 1.4MHz, 2MHz, 5MHz, 10MHz, 15MHz, or 20MHz, and up to about five or other numbers of CCs may be aggregated, so the maximum aggregate bandwidth may be, for example, about 100MHz. In a frequency division duplex (FDD) system, the number of aggregated carriers may be different for DL ​​and UL, where the number of UL CCs is equal to or lower than the number of DL component carriers. In some cases, each CC may have a different bandwidth from other CCs. In a time division duplex (TDD) system, the number of CCs and the bandwidth of each CC are typically the same for DL ​​and UL.

[0041] CA also includes individual serving cells to provide individual CCs. The coverage of the serving cells may be different, for example, because CCs on different frequency bands will experience different path losses. The primary serving cell or PCell may provide the primary component carrier for both UL and DL, and may handle radio resource control (RRC) and non-access layer (NAS) related activities. Other serving cells are called SCells, and each SCell may provide a single secondary component carrier (SCC) for both UL and DL. SCCs may be added and removed as needed, and changing PCCs may require UE 101 to undergo switching. In LAA, eLAA, and feLAA, some or all of the SCells may operate in an unlicensed spectrum (referred to as "LAA SCells"), and the LAA SCells are assisted by PCells operating in a licensed spectrum. When a UE is configured with more than one LAA SCell, the UE may receive UL grants on the configured LAA SCells, indicating different PUSCH start positions within the same subframe.

[0042] The PDSCH carries user data and higher layer signaling to multiple UEs 101. The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries information about the transport format and resource allocation related to the PDSCH channel, among other things. It may also inform the UE 101 about the transport format, resource allocation, and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlink scheduling (allocation of control and shared channel resource blocks to UE 101b within a cell) may be performed at any one of the RAN nodes 111 based on channel quality information fed back from any one of the UEs 101. Downlink resource allocation information may be sent on the PDCCH for (e.g., allocated to) each of the UEs 101.

[0043] PDCCH uses control channel elements (CCE) to transmit control information. Before being mapped to resource elements, the PDCCH complex-valued symbols can first be organized into quadruplets, which can then be arranged using a sub-block interleaver for rate matching. One or more of these CCEs can be used to transmit each PDCCH, where each CCE can correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements, respectively, called REGs. Four quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) symbols can be mapped to each REG. Depending on the size of the DCI and channel conditions, one or more CCEs can be used to transmit the PDCCH. There may be four or more different PDCCH formats defined in LTE with different numbers of CCEs (e.g., aggregation levels, L=1, 2, 4, or 8).

[0044] Some embodiments may use the concept of resource allocation for control channel information, which is an extension of the above concept. For example, some embodiments may utilize an extended (E)-PDCCH that uses PDSCH resources for control information transmission. One or more ECCEs may be used to transmit EPDCCH. Similar to the above, each ECCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements, referred to as EREG. In some cases, ECCE may have other numbers of EREGs.

[0045] The plurality of RAN nodes 111 may be configured to communicate with each other via an interface 112. In an embodiment where the system 100 is an LTE system, the interface 112 may be an X2 interface 112. The X2 interface may be defined between two or more RAN nodes 111 (e.g., two or more eNBs, etc.) connected to an evolved packet core (EPC) or core network 120, and / or between two eNBs connected to the EPC 120. In some implementations, the X2 interface may include an X2 user plane interface (X2-U) and an X2 control plane interface (X2-C). The X2-U provides a flow control mechanism for user packets transmitted over the X2 interface, and may be used to transmit information about the delivery of user data between eNBs. For example, X2-U may provide specific sequence number information about user data transmitted from the master eNB (MeNB) to the secondary eNB (SeNB); information about successful in-sequence delivery of PDCP packet data units (PDUs) from the SeNB to the UE 101 for user data; information about PDCP PDUs that were not delivered to the UE 101; information about the current minimum expected buffer size at the SeNB for transmitting user data to the UE; etc. The X2-C may provide intra-LTE access mobility functions, including context transfer from the source eNB to the target eNB, user plane transmission control, etc.; load management functions; and inter-cell interference coordination functions.

[0046] In an embodiment where the system 100 is a 5G or NR system, the interface 112 may be an Xn interface 112. The Xn interface is defined between two or more RAN nodes 111 (e.g., two or more gNBs, etc.) connected to the 5GC 120, between a RAN node 111 (e.g., a gNB) and an eNB connected to the 5GC 120, and / or between two eNBs connected to the 5GC 120. In some specific implementations, the Xn interface may include an Xn user plane (Xn-U) interface and an Xn control plane (Xn-C) interface. The Xn-U may provide non-guaranteed delivery of user plane PDUs and support / provide data forwarding and flow control functions. The Xn-C may provide management and error handling functions for managing the functions of the Xn-C interface; mobility support for UE 101 in a connected mode (e.g., CM-CONNECTED) includes functions for managing UE mobility in a connected mode between one or more RAN nodes 111. The mobility support may include context transfer from the old (source) serving RAN node 111 to the new (target) serving RAN node 111; and control of the user plane tunnel between the old (source) serving RAN node 111 and the new (target) serving RAN node 111. The protocol stack of Xn-U may include a transport network layer built on an Internet Protocol (IP) transport layer, and a GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTP-U) layer of the user plane on top of the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) or IP layer, or both, for carrying user plane PDUs. The Xn-C protocol stack may include an application layer signaling protocol (referred to as the Xn Application Protocol (Xn-AP)) and a transport network layer built on a stream control transmission protocol (SCTP). SCTP may be on top of the IP layer and may provide guaranteed delivery of application layer messages. In the transport IP layer, point-to-point transport is used to deliver signaling PDUs. In other specific implementations, the Xn-U protocol stack and / or the Xn-C protocol stack may be the same or similar to the user plane and / or control plane protocol stacks shown and described herein.

[0047] RAN 110 is shown as being communicatively coupled to a core network—in this embodiment, communicatively coupled to a core network (CN) 120. CN 120 may include a plurality of network elements 122 configured to provide various data and telecommunication services to customers / subscribers (e.g., users of UE 101) connected to CN 120 via RAN 110. The components of CN 120 may be implemented in one physical node or separate physical nodes, including components for reading and executing instructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium). In some embodiments, NFV may be used to virtualize any or all of the above-mentioned network node functions via executable instructions stored in one or more computer-readable storage media (described in further detail below). A logical instance of CN 120 may be referred to as a network slice, and a logical instance of a portion of CN 120 may be referred to as a network sub-slice. Network Function Virtualization (NFV) architecture and infrastructure may be used to virtualize one or more network functions onto physical resources comprising a combination of industry-standard server hardware, storage hardware, or switches (alternatively performed by proprietary hardware). In other words, the NFV system may be used to perform a virtual or reconfigurable implementation of one or more Evolved Packet Core (EPC) components / functions.

[0048] In general, the application server 130 may be an element that provides applications that use IP bearer resources with the core network (e.g., Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Packet Service (UMTS PS) domain, LTE PS data service, etc.). The application server 130 may also be configured to support one or more communication services for the UE 101 via the EPC 120 (e.g., VoIP sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, social network services, etc.).

[0049] In an embodiment, CN 120 may be a 5GC (referred to as “5GC 120”, etc.), and RAN 110 may be connected to CN 120 via an NG interface 112. In an embodiment, NG interface 112 may be divided into two parts: a next generation (NG) user plane (NG-U) interface 114, which carries traffic data between RAN node 111 and user plane function (UPF); and an S1 control plane (NG-C) interface 115, which is a signaling interface between RAN node 111 and access and mobility management function (AMF). Core network CN 120 may also be 5GC 120.

[0050] In an embodiment, CN 120 may be a 5G CN (referred to as "5GC 120", etc.), while in other embodiments, CN 120 may be an EPC. In the case where CN 120 is an EPC (referred to as "EPC 120", etc.), RAN 110 may be connected to CN 120 via an S1 interface 112. In an embodiment, S1 interface 112 may be divided into two parts: an S1 user plane (S1-U) interface 114, which carries traffic data between RAN node 111 and S-GW; and an S1-MME interface 115, which is a signaling interface between RAN node 111 and MME.

[0051] Figure 2 Exemplary components of a device 200 according to some embodiments are shown. In some embodiments, the device 200 may include at least an application circuit 202, a baseband circuit 204, a radio frequency (RF) circuit 206, a front-end module (FEM) circuit 208, one or more antennas 210, and a power management circuit (PMC) 212 coupled together as shown. The components of the illustrated device 200 may be included in a UE or a RAN node, such as a UE 101 / 102 or an eNB / gNB 111 / 112. In some embodiments, the device 200 may include fewer elements (e.g., the RAN node cannot utilize the application circuit 202, but includes a processor / controller to process IP data received from the EPC). In some embodiments, the device 200 may include additional elements, such as a memory / storage device, a display, a camera, a sensor, or an input / output (I / O) interface. In other embodiments, the following components may be included in more than one device (e.g., the circuit may be included separately in more than one device for a cloud-RAN (C-RAN) implementation).

[0052] The application circuit 202 may include one or more application processors. For example, the application circuit 202 may include circuits such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor may include any combination of general-purpose processors and special-purpose processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processor may be coupled to or may include a memory / storage device and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory / storage device to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the device 200. In some embodiments, the processor of the application circuit 202 may process IP data packets received from the EPC.

[0053] The baseband circuit 204 may include circuits such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The baseband circuit 204 may include one or more baseband processors or control logic components to process baseband signals received from the receive signal path of the RF circuit 206 and generate baseband signals for the transmit signal path of the RF circuit 206. The baseband processing circuit 204 may interact with the application circuit 202 to generate and process baseband signals and control the operation of the RF circuit 206. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuit 204 may include a third generation (3G) baseband processor 204A, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor 204B, a fifth generation (5G) baseband processor 204C, or other baseband processors 204D of other existing generations, under development, or to be developed in the future (e.g., second generation (2G), sixth generation (6G), etc.). The baseband circuit 204 (e.g., one or more baseband processors 204A-D) may handle various radio control functions, which may communicate with one or more radio networks via the RF circuit 206. In other embodiments, some or all of the functions of the baseband processors 204A-D may be included in a module stored in the memory 204G and executed via the central processing unit (CPU) 204E. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation / demodulation, encoding / decoding, radio frequency shifting, etc. In some embodiments, the modulation / demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry 204 may include fast Fourier transform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping / demapping functions. In some embodiments, the encoding / decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry 204 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, or low-density parity check (LDPC) encoder / decoder functions. The implementation of the modulation / demodulation and encoder / decoder functions is not limited to these examples, and may include other suitable functions in other embodiments.

[0054] In addition, memory 204G (and other memory components discussed herein, such as memory, data storage device, etc.) may include one or more machine-readable media, including instructions, which when executed by the machine or component herein, cause the machine to perform the method or device or system for concurrent communication using multiple communication technologies according to the embodiments and examples described herein. It should be understood that the aspects described herein can be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, the function can be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium (e.g., a memory or other storage device described herein) or transmitted by a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, and the communication media include any media that helps to transfer a computer program from one place to another. Storage media or computer-readable storage devices can be any available media that can be accessed by a general or special-purpose computer. By way of example only and not limitation, such computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage devices, disk storage devices or other magnetic storage devices or other tangible and / or non-transient media, which can be used to carry or store required information or executable instructions. Moreover, any connection may also be referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium.

[0055] In some embodiments, the baseband circuit 204 may include one or more audio digital signal processors (DSPs) 204F. The audio DSP 204F may include elements for compression / decompression and echo cancellation, and may include other suitable processing elements in other embodiments. In some embodiments, the components of the baseband circuit may be appropriately combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on the same circuit board. In some embodiments, some or all of the components of the baseband circuit 204 and the application circuit 202 may be implemented together, such as, for example, on a system on a chip (SOC).

[0056] In some embodiments, baseband circuitry 204 may provide communications compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some embodiments, baseband circuitry 204 may support communications with an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN) or other wireless metropolitan area network (WMAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), wireless personal area network (WPAN). Embodiments in which baseband circuitry 204 is configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

[0057] RF circuit 206 can communicate with a wireless network through a non-solid medium using modulated electromagnetic radiation. In various embodiments, RF circuit 206 may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc. to facilitate communication with a wireless network. RF circuit 206 may include a receive signal path, which may include circuits that down-convert RF signals received from FEM circuit 208 and provide baseband signals to baseband circuit 204. RF circuit 206 may also include a transmit signal path, which may include circuits that up-convert baseband signals provided by baseband circuit 204 and provide RF output signals to FEM circuit 208 for transmission.

[0058] In some embodiments, the receive signal path of the RF circuit 206 may include a mixer circuit 206a, an amplifier circuit 206b, and a filter circuit 206c. In some embodiments, the transmit signal path of the RF circuit 206 may include a filter circuit 206c and a mixer circuit 206a. The RF circuit 206 may also include a synthesizer circuit 206d for synthesizing the frequencies used by the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert the RF signal received from the FEM circuit 208 based on the synthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuit 206d. The amplifier circuit 206b may be configured to amplify the down-converted signal, and the filter circuit 206c may be a low pass filter (LPF) or a band pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signal to generate an output baseband signal. The output baseband signal may be provided to the baseband circuit 204 for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signal may be a zero frequency baseband signal, although this is not required.In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path may include a passive mixer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0059] In some embodiments, mixer circuit 206a of the transmit signal path can be configured to upconvert an input baseband signal based on a synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuit 206d to generate an RF output signal for FEM circuit 208. The baseband signal can be provided by baseband circuit 204 and can be filtered by filter circuit 206c.

[0060] In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 206a of the receiving signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmission signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for orthogonal down-conversion and up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 206a of the receiving signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmission signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for image suppression (e.g., Hartley image suppression). In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 206a of the receiving signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmission signal path may be arranged for direct down-conversion and direct up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 206a of the receiving signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmission signal path may be configured for superheterodyne operation.

[0061] In some embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternative embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be digital baseband signals. In these alternative embodiments, RF circuit 206 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuits, and baseband circuit 204 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with RF circuit 206.

[0062] In some dual-mode embodiments, separate radio IC circuits may be provided to process signals for each spectrum, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0063] In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 206d may be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional-N / N+1 synthesizer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect, as other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizer circuit 206d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer including a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider.

[0064] Synthesizer circuit 206d may be configured to synthesize an output frequency based on the frequency input and the divider control input for use by mixer circuit 206a of RF circuit 206. In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 206d may be a fractional-N / N+1 synthesizer.

[0065] In some embodiments, the frequency input may be provided by a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), although this is not required. The divider control input may be provided by baseband circuitry 204 or application processor 202 depending on the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, the divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a lookup table based on the channel indicated by application processor 202.

[0066] The synthesizer circuit 206d of the RF circuit 206 may include a frequency divider, a delay locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer, and a phase accumulator. In some embodiments, the frequency divider may be a dual-mode frequency divider (DMD), and the phase accumulator may be a digital phase accumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by N or N+1 (e.g., based on carry) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, the DLL may include a cascaded, tunable, delay element, a phase detector, a charge pump, and a D-type flip-flop set. In these embodiments, the delay element may be configured to divide the VCO cycle into Nd equal phase groups, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

[0067] In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuit 206d can be configured to generate a carrier frequency as an output frequency, while in other embodiments, the output frequency can be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency) and used with a quadrature generator and divider circuit to generate multiple signals with multiple different phases relative to each other at the carrier frequency. In some embodiments, the output frequency can be the LO frequency (fLO). In some embodiments, the RF circuit 206 can include an IQ / polarity converter.

[0068] The FEM circuitry 208 may include a receive signal path that may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from the one or more antennas 210, amplify the received signals, and provide an amplified version of the received signals to the RF circuitry 206 for further processing. The FEM circuitry 208 may also include a transmit signal path that may include circuitry configured to amplify transmit signals provided by the RF circuitry 206 for transmission via one or more of the one or more antennas 210. In various embodiments, amplification by either the transmit or receive signal path may be accomplished only in the RF circuitry 206, only in the FEM 208, or in both the RF circuitry 206 and the FEM 208.

[0069] In some embodiments, the FEM circuit 208 may include a TX / RX switch to switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuit may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuit may include an LNA to amplify a received RF signal and provide the amplified received RF signal as an output (e.g., to the RF circuit 206). The transmit signal path of the FEM circuit 208 may include a power amplifier (PA) to amplify an input RF signal (e.g., provided by the RF circuit 206), and one or more filters to generate an RF signal for subsequent transmission (e.g., through one or more of the one or more antennas 210).

[0070] In some embodiments, PMC 212 can manage the power provided to baseband circuit 204. Specifically, PMC 212 can control power selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-DC conversion. When device 200 is capable of being powered by a battery, for example, when the device is included in a UE, PMC 212 can generally be included. PMC 212 can improve power conversion efficiency while providing a desired implementation size and heat dissipation characteristics.

[0071] and Figure 2 PMC 212 is shown coupled only to baseband circuit 204. However, in other embodiments, PMC 212 may additionally or alternatively be coupled to other components (such as, but not limited to, application circuit 202, RF circuit 206, or FEM 208) and perform similar power management operations.

[0072] In some embodiments, the PMC 212 may control or otherwise be part of various power saving mechanisms of the device 200. For example, if the device 200 is in the RRC_Connected state, where it is still connected to the RAN node as expected to receive traffic soon, then after a period of inactivity, it may enter a state known as discontinuous reception mode (DRX). During this state, the device 200 may be powered off for short time intervals, thereby saving power.

[0073] If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, the device 200 may transition to the RRC_Idle state, in which it is disconnected from the network and does not perform operations such as channel quality feedback, handover, etc. The device 200 enters a very low power state, and it performs paging, in which it wakes up periodically again to listen to the network, and then powers down again. The device 200 cannot receive data in this state, and in order to receive data, it must transition back to the RRC_Connected state.

[0074] An additional power saving mode can keep a device from using the network for longer than the paging interval (which can range from a few seconds to several hours). During this time, the device is completely unable to connect to the network and can be completely powered down. Any data sent during this time will be significantly delayed, and it is assumed that the delay is acceptable.

[0075] The processor of the application circuit 202 and the processor of the baseband circuit 204 can be used to execute elements of one or more instances of the protocol stack. For example, the processor of the baseband circuit 204 can be used alone or in combination to perform the functions of Layer 3, Layer 2, or Layer 1, and the processor of the application circuit 204 can utilize data received from these layers (e.g., packet data) and further perform the functions of Layer 4 (e.g., Transport Communication Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) layers). As mentioned herein, Layer 3 may include a radio resource control (RRC) layer, which will be described in further detail below. As mentioned herein, Layer 2 may include a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, which will be described in further detail below. As mentioned herein, Layer 1 may include a physical (PHY) layer of a UE / RAN node, which will be described in further detail below.

[0076] refer to Figure 3 , a block diagram of a user equipment wireless communication device (UE) or other network device / component (e.g., a gNB, eNB, or other participating entity) is shown. The UE device 300 includes: one or more processors 310 (e.g., one or more baseband processors), the one or more processors including processing circuits and associated interfaces; transceiver circuits 320 (e.g., including RF circuits, the RF circuits may include transmitter circuits (e.g., associated with one or more transmit chains) and / or receiver circuits (e.g., associated with one or more receive chains), the transmitter circuits and receiver circuits may use common circuit elements, different circuit elements, or a combination thereof); and a memory 330 (which may include any of a variety of storage media and may store instructions and / or data associated with one or more of the processors 310 or the transceiver circuits 320).

[0077] In various embodiments (aspects) discussed herein, a signal or message may be generated and output for transmission, and / or a transmitted message may be received and processed. Depending on the type of signal or message generated, output for transmission (e.g., by processor 310, processor 310, etc.) may include one or more of the following operations: generating a set of associated bits encoding the content of the signal or message; encoding (e.g., may include adding a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) and / or encoding via a turbo code, a low-density parity check (LDPC) code, a tail-biting convolutional code (TBCC), etc.); scrambling (e.g., based on a scrambling seed); modulation (e.g., via one of binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), or some form of quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), etc.); and / or resource mapping (e.g., mapping to a scheduled resource set, mapping to a time and frequency resource set authorized for uplink transmission, etc.). Depending on the type of signal or message received, processing (e.g., by processor 310) may include one or more of the following operations: identifying physical resources associated with the signal / message, detecting the signal / message, resource element group deinterleaving, demodulating, descrambling and / or decoding.

[0078] According to various embodiments, discontinuous reception (DRX) in NR is configured to optimize power consumption at UE 101 while still allowing substantial flexibility in scheduling transmissions to UE 101. Specifically, the UE's active time can be "elastic" and can be extended based on the amount of data scheduled by gNB 110 for UE 101. If gNB 110 has little or no data to transmit to UE 101, UE 101 can resume DRX sleep immediately after the on-duration. Utilizing this mechanism, UE 101 can be configured to have a fairly short on-duration while still allowing a large amount of data to be delivered within the DRX cycle. This ensures that the active time is mostly short and can only be longer if there is a large amount of buffered data for UE 101 at NB 110.

[0079] For operation of NR on an unlicensed carrier (referred to as NR-u in 3GPP) and associated with embodiments / aspects / examples in the present disclosure, transmissions may be performed after ensuring that the channel is not already in use by another device. This is accomplished using a process known as listen before talk (LBT), where a device (e.g., gNB 110) wishing to transmit performs channel measurements to check if the channel is busy. The device transmits only if LBT is successful (i.e., the channel is found to be not busy) or is idle / available for use.

[0080] One consequence of the requirement to perform LBT is that transmissions may be delayed. If the gNB 110 has data for the UE 101 and the UE 101 is in its active time (awake and not itself asleep in idle mode), the gNB 110 may still not necessarily be able to transmit to the UE 101 because the channel is busy. This is natural given the shared nature of the unlicensed medium; however, it means that in order to achieve the same latency for the data, the network (or gNB 110) must configure DRX for the UE 101 such that the UE 101 wakes up more frequently (e.g., with a shorter DRX cycle than before the (re)configuration of DRX) or stays awake longer (e.g., the DRX duration is extended). In fact, it has been shown in past studies for LTE Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) that even a modest increase in activity on the carrier significantly increases the required active time (and accordingly the power consumption of the UE 101).

[0081] Therefore, various embodiments / aspects / examples herein target 3GPP standards for adoption and implementation in NR products supporting NR-unlicensed (NR-u). Such embodiments are presented as methods, operations, devices, or components that minimize the impact of NR-u operations associated with DRX in NR-based unlicensed communications on UE 101 power consumption.

[0082] Figure 4 4 is a block diagram 400 showing various DRX parameters associated with a UE 101 to be monitored for enabling NR unlicensed communications. The UE 101 is configured with DRX parameters including a DRX cycle duration or DRX cycle 406 and an offset (between On-periods) and a DRX On-Duration period 408. The DRX cycle duration 406 and the offset define the time at which the UE 101 needs to begin monitoring a channel. The UE 101 monitors the channel for at least the DRX On-Duration period 408. If the UE 101 receives a PDCCH from its gNB 110 during the On-Duration 408, the UE 101 continues to monitor for additional transmissions from the gNB 110. Thus, the active time is at least the On-Duration 408 and may be dynamically extended, for example, if the UE 101 receives a PDCCH during the On-Duration 408.

[0083] On the NR-u carrier, the gNB 110 is configured to perform LBT (e.g., LBT failure 402) prior to transmission to ensure that other networks are not already transmitting at this time. Transmissions by all devices on the carrier are limited to a maximum channel occupancy duration (e.g., maximum channel occupancy time (MCOT). The gNB 110 may frequently find that the channel 404 is occupied during the UE's on-duration 408, and therefore may be unable to transmit data to the UE 101, which causes data transmission to the UE 101 to experience delays. In order to minimize the situations in which the gNB 110 cannot transmit to the UE 101, the gNB 110 may configure DRX such that the DRX cycle 406 is short (shorter), or the DRX on-duration 408 is long (longer). Both of these may otherwise result in increased power consumption at the UE 101.

[0084] Figure 5 5 is another block diagram of active time extension based on channel activity from other networks according to various embodiments. If a channel (e.g., an unlicensed channel for UE 101) is busy and gNB 110 is not expected to acquire the channel, it may be wasteful for UE 101 to monitor transmissions from gNB 110 (e.g., via a physical downlink channel, PDCCH, etc.). To avoid unnecessary monitoring of the channel, various embodiments may be configured to manage or reduce power consumption at UE 101.

[0085] In one embodiment, UE 101 performs LBT (e.g., 506) during the on-duration 502 to see if the channel is busy, such as due to other channel activity 504. The LBT parameters may be configured by gNB 110 (e.g., gNB 110 may configure the duration of the LBT). If the channel is found to be busy at LBT 506, UE 101 may be configured to extend, modify, or activate an extension of its active time 502 by a predefined duration 510. The underlying assumption is that gNB 110 may potentially have data for UE 101, such as by acquiring the channel and transmitting PDCCH 508, and may have been unable to transmit to UE 101 due to LBT failure 506. Extending the active time 510 enables significantly more scheduling opportunities.

[0086] In other aspects, the LBT results at the gNB 110 and the UE 101 may be different (e.g., when a hidden node is present), such that one of the gNB 110 or the UE 101 may hear / detect the hidden node but the other may not hear / detect the hidden node. To minimize the impact of having different LBT results at the UE 101 and the gNB 110, the gNB 110 may configure a specific time for the UE 101 to perform LBT 512, during which time the activity extension time cannot be configured as an option thereafter.

[0087] If LBT fails at gNB 110, but instead succeeds at UE 101, gNB 110, on the other hand, may assume that the Active Time has been extended with Active Time Extension 510, and still transmit to UE 101 within the extended Active Time. In this case, if gNB 110 detects the absence of an ACK or NACK from UE 101, it may stop further transmissions until the next DRX On Duration.

[0088] Figure 6 Tables 610 and 620 are examples of different implementations of UE 101 and gNB 110 actions in response to LBT results and whether to generate a channel acquisition indication. Tables 610 and 620 illustrate different responses of UE 101 and gNB 110 based on LBT and channel acquisition relative to DRX of unlicensed channels.

[0089] Tables 610 and 620 provide categories in the top row, including from right to left: whether the result of LBT is successful (idle) or unsuccessful (busy), whether channel acquisition is received, and the implications of the actions of gNB 110 and the corresponding UE 101.

[0090] In one embodiment, UE 101 monitors a signal (channel acquisition indication) from gNB 110 that indicates that gNB 110 has acquired a channel (e.g., NR / unlicensed channel). UE 101 performs LBT during the on-duration to see if the channel is busy. UE 101 behavior is based on the result of the LBT at UE 101 and whether UE 101 receives the channel acquisition indication. If the LBT result is successful and channel acquisition is received, one possible behavior is that the UE goes to a DRX off cycle, where when gNB 110 has no data to send for UE 101, the UE immediately goes to sleep to avoid the need for gNB 110 to send an explicit enter sleep signal. Implicit here is that gNB 110 acquired the channel, but the channel (NR-u) is no longer busy and gNB 110 is no longer transmitting data.

[0091] If the LBT result is successful and no channel acquisition indication is received (no channel acquisition indication condition exists), one possible behavior is that the UE Figure 4 The opening duration 408 or Figure 5 The DRX off cycle is entered at the end of the on-duration 502 of the gNB 110. It is implicit here that gNB 110 has not acquired the channel and the channel is not busy, and therefore, gNB 110 can still acquire the channel before the on-duration ends.

[0092] If the LBT result is unsuccessful and a channel acquisition indication is received, one possible behavior is that the UE extends the DRX Active Time for a predefined period of t milliseconds (ms) where no PDCCH is received at the end of the DRX On Duration. It is implicit here that gNB 110 acquired the channel and the channel is still busy, so gNB 110 is still transmitting, but it can transmit to other UEs. Alternatively, as shown in table 620, which is different from table 610, UE 101 can go to sleep at the end of the On Duration instead of extending its DRX Active Time.

[0093] If the LBT result is unsuccessful and no channel acquisition indication is received, one possible behavior is that the UE goes to a DRX off period. It is implicit here that gNB 110 has not acquired the channel and the channel is not busy, and therefore, gNB 110 may still acquire the channel before the end of the on-duration. Alternatively, as shown in table 620, which is different from table 610, UE 101 extends the DRX active time by the number of t milliseconds (ms) as a predefined period, where no PDCCH is received at the end of the DRX on-duration.

[0094] In one aspect, the channel acquisition indication may be part of a transmission by gNB 110 that is not or may not be intended for UE 101. For example, if gNB 110 transmits a PDCCH to another UE, UE 101 may detect a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) in the PDCCH to determine that gNB 110 has acquired the channel.

[0095] Figure 7 804 is a block diagram of channel activity on an unlicensed channel for power management control according to various embodiments. Channel traffic 700 illustrates examples of aperiodic wake-up occasions configured by gNB 110 according to DRX at UE 101, as well as other traffic 804.

[0096] Traffic on the channel may be observed at a certain time (x-axis from left to right), and the gNB 110 identifies a pattern of activity. The pattern exists primarily due to the nature of the application and the implementation of the Maximum Channel Occupancy Time (MCOT). This allows the gNB 110 to identify periods when the probability of the channel being unoccupied is higher than at other times. The UE 101 is then configured with two components: 1) periodic on-durations 702 and 706, as in DRX in NR, according to the DRX configuration (e.g., as provided at 706); and 2) a sequence of aperiodic wake-up opportunities 710. The difference between the periodic on-durations 702 and the aperiodic wake-up opportunities 708 is that the duration between the aperiodic wake-up opportunities changes in a specified pattern. The gNB 110 selects the aperiodic opportunities 708 by identifying times when the probability of the channel being occupied is likely to be lower (lower) than at other times.

[0097] UE 101 may start DRX operation with only periodic on-duration 702. After receiving PDCCH 706, UE switches to aperiodic wake-up occasion 708 for a configured duration 710. After the configured duration 710, UE 101 may switch back to periodic on-duration. The duration between aperiodic wake-ups may change or repeat in a predefined pattern, such as overlapping with or replacing the periodic on-duration, such as Figure 8 shown.

[0098] Figure 8 An example of channel activity 800 is shown with on-duration 802, aperiodic wake-ups 806, an example of channel activity for other traffic 804, and the duration between aperiodic wake-ups 810. As channel activity changes, gNB 110 may modify the aperiodic wake-up sequence. gNB 110 may update aperiodic wake-ups 806 without updating the periodic on-duration.

[0099] In another embodiment, the periodic on-duration and the aperiodic wake-up can be superimposed. That is, after UE 101 receives the PDCCH, the UE uses the aperiodic wake-up in addition to the periodic on-duration. This makes it easier to add and remove aperiodic on-durations because gNB 110 can rely on UE 101 to always wake up for the periodic on-duration.

[0100] Although the method described in the present disclosure is shown and described as a series of actions or events in this article, it should be understood that the order of such actions or events shown should not be interpreted as having a limiting meaning. For example, some actions can occur in different orders and / or simultaneously with other actions or events other than those shown and / or described herein. In addition, all the actions shown may not be required to implement one or more aspects or embodiments of this specification. In addition, one or more actions in the actions depicted herein may be performed in one or more separate actions and / or stages. For ease of description, reference may be made to the above-mentioned accompanying drawings. However, the method is not limited to any specific embodiment or example provided in the present disclosure, and may be applied to any system in the system disclosed herein.

[0101] refer to Fig. 9 , shows an exemplary processing flow 900 for a network device or component (e.g., UE 101, gNB 110, or other network component) to perform admission / congestion control operations for V2X communications between UE peer devices on an NR sidelink channel.

[0102] At 910, process flow 900 includes receiving a discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration including at least one of a DRX on-duration or a DRX cycle.

[0103] At 920, LBT operations can be performed on an unlicensed channel.

[0104] At 930, a channel (eg, a PDCCH or other physical channel) can be monitored or used for a channel acquisition indication.

[0105] At 940, process flow 900 may include determining whether to extend a discontinuous reception (DRX) activity time of a DRX on duration or to modify a DRX cycle based on the LBT operation and the channel acquisition indication.

[0106] Other embodiments or aspects may include that in response to determining that the unlicensed channel is busy based on the LBT operation, the UE 101 or gNB 110 may extend the DRX active time by a predefined period. In response to the result that the LBT operation is unsuccessful / busy and the channel acquisition indication is being received, it is determined whether to extend the DRX active time by a predefined period or enter a DRX off period based on the demodulation reference signal (DRMS) of the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). Alternatively or in addition, in response to the LBT operation indicating a busy condition or the LBT operation is unsuccessful, and the channel acquisition indication is being received, the UE 101 or gNB 110 may enter a DRX off period. Alternatively or in addition, in response to the LBT operation indicating an idle condition or the LBT operation is successful, and no channel acquisition indication is being received, the DRX off period is entered. Alternatively or in addition, in response to the LBT operation indicating an idle condition or the LBT operation being successful, and receiving a channel acquisition indication, the UE 101 or gNB 110 may enter a DRX off period or extend the activity time based on determining that the DMRS of the channel indicates the channel acquisition indication and the channel acquisition indication is not associated with the UE.

[0107] Fig.10 Various protocol functions that can be implemented in a wireless communication device according to various embodiments are shown. Specifically, Fig.10 An arrangement 1000 is included to show the interconnection between various protocol layers / entities. Various protocol layers / entities operating in conjunction with 5G / NR system standards and LTE system standards are provided. Fig.10 The following description, but Fig.10 Some or all aspects of the invention may also be applicable to other wireless communication network systems.

[0108] The protocol layers of arrangement 1000 may include, among other higher layer functions not shown, one or more of the following: a physical layer (PHY) 1010, a medium access control layer (MAC) 1020, a radio link control layer (RLC) 1030, a packet data convergence protocol layer (PDCP) 1040, a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) 1047, a radio resource control layer (RRC) 1055, and a non-access layer (NAS) 1057. The protocol layers may include one or more service access points (e.g., NAS) that can provide communication between two or more protocol layers. Fig.10 Items 1059, 1056, 1050, 1049, 1045, 1035, 1025 and 1015).

[0109] PHY 1010 can transmit and receive physical layer signals 1005, which can be received from or transmitted to one or more other communication devices. Physical layer signals 1005 may include one or more physical channels, such as those discussed herein. PHY 1010 may also perform link adaptation or adaptive modulation and coding (AMC), power control, cell search (e.g., for initial synchronization and switching purposes) and other measurements used by higher layers (e.g., RRC 1055). PHY 1010 may also further perform error detection on transmission channels, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of transmission channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. In an embodiment, an instance of PHY 1010 may process a request from an instance of MAC 1020 via one or more PHY-SAP 1015, and provide an indication thereto. According to some embodiments, the request and indication transmitted via PHY-SAP 1015 may include one or more transmission channels.

[0110] An instance of MAC 1020 may process requests from an instance of RLC 1030 via one or more MAC-SAPs 1025 and provide indications thereto. These requests and indications transmitted via MAC-SAP 1025 may include one or more logical channels. MAC 1020 may perform mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs from one or more logical channels onto TBs to be delivered to PHY 1010 via transport channels, demultiplexing MAC SDUs from TBs delivered from PHY 1010 via transport channels to one or more logical channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via HARQ, and logical channel prioritization.

[0111] An instance of RLC 1030 may process requests from an instance of PDCP 1040 via one or more radio link control service access points (RLC-SAPs) 1035 and provide indications thereto. These requests and indications transmitted via RLC-SAPs 1035 may include one or more RLC channels. RLC 1030 may operate in a variety of operating modes, including: transparent mode (TM), unacknowledged mode (UM), and acknowledged mode (AM). RLC 1030 may perform transmission of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs), error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ) for AM data transmission, and concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transmission. RLC 1030 may also perform resegmentation of RLC data PDUs for AM data transmission, reorder RLC data PDUs for UM and AM data transmission, detect duplicate data for UM and AM data transmission, discard RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transmission, detect protocol errors for AM data transmission, and perform RLC re-establishment.

[0112] An instance of PDCP 1040 may process requests from an instance of RRC 1055 and / or an instance of SDAP 1047 via one or more Packet Data Convergence Protocol Service Points (PDCP-SAP) 1045 and provide indications thereto. These requests and indications transmitted via PDCP-SAP 1045 may include one or more radio bearers. PDCP 1040 may perform header compression and decompression of IP data, maintain PDCP sequence numbers (SNs), perform in-order delivery of upper layer PDUs when lower layers are reestablished, eliminate duplication of lower layers when reestablishing lower layer SDUs for radio bearers mapped on RLC AM, encrypt and decrypt control plane data, perform integrity protection and integrity verification on control plane data, control timer-based data discard, and perform security operations (e.g., encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification, etc.).

[0113] An instance of SDAP 1047 may process requests from one or more higher layer protocol entities via one or more SDAP-SAPs 1049 and provide instructions thereto. These requests and instructions transmitted via SDAP-SAP 1049 may include one or more QoS flows. SDAP 1047 may map QoS flows to DRBs and vice versa, and may also mark QFIs in DL packets and UL packets. A single SDAP entity 1047 may be configured for a separate PDU session. In the UL direction, NG-RAN 110 may control the mapping of QoS flows to DRBs in two different ways (reflective mapping or explicit mapping). For reflective mapping, SDAP 1047 of UE 101 may monitor the QFI of the DL packets of each DRB, and may apply the same mapping to packets flowing in the UL direction. For DRBs, SDAP 1047 of UE 101 may map UL packets belonging to a QoS flow corresponding to the QoS flow ID and PDU session observed in the DL packets of the DRB. To implement reflective mapping, NG-RAN may mark DL packets with a QoS flow ID over the Uu interface. Explicit mapping may involve RRC 1055 configuring SDAP 1047 with explicit mapping rules for QoS flows to DRBs, which may be stored and followed by SDAP 1047. In an embodiment, SDAP 1047 may be used only in NR implementations and may not be used in LTE implementations.

[0114] The RRC 1055 may configure aspects of one or more protocol layers, which may include one or more instances of PHY 1010, MAC 1020, RLC 1030, PDCP 1040, and SDAP 1047, via one or more Management Service Access Points (M-SAPs). In an embodiment, an instance of the RRC 1055 may process requests from one or more NAS entities 1057 and provide instructions thereto via one or more RRC-SAPs 1056. The main services and functions of the RRC 1055 may include broadcasting of system information (e.g., included in a MIB or SIB related to NAS), broadcasting of system information related to the access stratum (AS), paging, establishment, maintenance, and release of an RRC connection between the UE 101 and the RAN 110 (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), establishment, configuration, maintenance, and release of point-to-point radio bearers, security functions including key management, inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting. These MIBs and SIBs may include one or more IEs, each of which may include a separate data field or data structure.

[0115] NAS 1057 may form the highest level of the control plane between UE 101 and AMF. NAS 1057 may support the mobility and session management procedures of UE 101 to establish and maintain an IP connection between UE 101 and P-GW in the LTE system.

[0116] According to various embodiments, one or more protocol entities of arrangement 1000 may be implemented in UE 101, RAN node 111, AMF in NR implementation or MME in LTE implementation, UPF in NR implementation or S-GW and P-GW in LTE implementation, etc., for control plane or user plane communication protocol stacks between the aforementioned devices. In such embodiments, one or more protocol entities that may be implemented in one or more of UE 101, gNB 111, AMF, etc. may communicate with corresponding peer protocol entities that may be implemented in or on another device (using the services of corresponding lower layer protocol entities to perform such communication). In some embodiments, the gNB-CU of gNB 111 may host the RRC 1055, SDAP 1047, and PDCP 1040 of the gNB that control the operation of one or more gNB-DUs, and the gNB-DUs of gNB 111 may each host the RLC 1030, MAC 1020, and PHY 1010 of gNB 111.

[0117] In a first example, the control plane protocol stack may include, in order from the highest layer to the lowest layer, NAS 1057, RRC 1055, PDCP 1040, RLC 1030, MAC 1020, and PHY 1010. In this example, an upper layer 1060 may be built on top of NAS 1057, which includes an IP layer 1061, SCTP 1062, and an application layer signaling protocol (AP) 1063.

[0118] In a NR specific implementation, AP 1063 can be an NG application protocol layer (NGAP or NG-AP) 1063 for the NG interface 113 defined between the NG-RAN node 111 and the AMF, or AP 1063 can be an Xn application protocol layer (XnAP or Xn-AP) 1063 for the Xn interface defined between two or more RAN nodes 111.

[0119] The NG-AP 1063 may support the functionality of the NG interface 113 and may include an elementary procedure (EP). The NG-AP EP may be an interaction unit between the NG-RAN point 111 and the AMF. The NG-AP 1063 services may include two groups: UE-associated services (e.g., services related to the UE 101) and non-UE-associated services (e.g., services related to the entire NG interface instance between the NG-RAN node 111 and the AMF). These services may include functions including, but not limited to: a paging function for sending a paging request to the NG-RAN node 111 involved in a specific paging area; a UE context management function for allowing the AMF to establish, modify and / or release the UE context in the AMF and the NG-RAN node 111; a mobility function for the UE 101 in ECM-CONNECTED mode, for intra-system HO to support mobility within the NG-RAN, and for inter-system HO to support mobility from / to the EPS system; a NAS signaling transport function for transmitting or rerouting NAS messages between the UE 101 and the AMF; a NAS node selection function for determining the association between the AMF and the UE 101; an NG interface management function for setting up the NG interface and monitoring errors through the NG interface; a warning message sending function for providing a means for transmitting a warning message via the NG interface or cancelling an ongoing warning message broadcast; a configuration transmission function for requesting and transmitting RAN configuration information (e.g., SON information, performance measurement (PM) data, etc.) between two RAN nodes 111 via the CN 120; and / or other similar functions.

[0120] The XnAP 1063 may support the functions of the Xn interface and may include XnAP basic mobility procedures and XnAP global procedures. The XnAP basic mobility procedures may include procedures for handling UE mobility within the NG RAN 111 (or E-UTRAN), such as handover preparation and cancellation procedures, SN state transfer procedures, UE context retrieval and UE context release procedures, RAN paging procedures, procedures related to dual connectivity, etc. The XnAP global procedures may include procedures unrelated to a specific UE 101, such as Xn interface setup and reset procedures, NG-RAN update procedures, cell activation procedures, etc.

[0121] In an LTE specific implementation, AP 1063 may be an S1 application protocol layer (S1-AP) 1063 for an S1 interface 113 defined between an E-UTRAN node 111 and an MME, or AP 1063 may be an X2 application protocol layer (X2AP or X2-AP) 1063 for an X2 interface defined between two or more E-UTRAN nodes 111.

[0122] The S1 application protocol layer (S1-AP) 1063 may support the functionality of the S1 interface, and similar to the NG-AP discussed previously, the S1-AP may include an S1-AP EP. The S1-AP EP may be an interaction unit between the E-UTRAN node 111 and the MME within the CN 120 (e.g., as an LTE or NR CN). The S1-AP 1063 services may include two groups: UE-associated services and non-UE-associated services. The functions performed by these services include, but are not limited to: E-UTRAN Radio Access Bearer (E-RAB) management, UE capability indication, mobility, NAS signaling transmission, RAN Information Management (RIM), and configuration transmission.

[0123] X2AP 1063 may support the functions of the X2 interface XQ12 and may include X2AP basic mobility procedures and X2AP global procedures. The X2AP basic mobility procedures may include procedures for handling UE mobility within the E-UTRAN XQ20, such as handover preparation and cancellation procedures, SN state transmission procedures, UE context retrieval and UE context release procedures, RAN paging procedures, procedures related to dual connectivity, etc. The X2AP global procedures may include procedures that are not related to a specific UE XQ01, such as X2 interface setup and reset procedures, load indication procedures, error indication procedures, cell activation procedures, etc.

[0124] The SCTP layer (alternatively referred to as the SCTP / IP layer) 1062 may provide guaranteed delivery of application layer messages (e.g., NGAP or XnAP messages in NR implementations, or S1-AP or X2AP messages in LTE implementations). The SCTP 1062 may ensure reliable delivery of signaling messages between the RAN node 111 and the AMF / MME based in part on the IP protocol supported by the IP 1061. The Internet Protocol layer (IP) 1061 may be used to perform packet addressing and routing functions. In some implementations, the IP layer 1061 may deliver and transmit PDUs using point-to-point transport. In this regard, the RAN node 111 may include L2 and L1 layer communication links (e.g., wired or wireless) with the MME / AMF to exchange information.

[0125] In a second example, the user plane protocol stack may include SDAP 1047, PDCP 1040, RLC 1030, MAC 1020, and PHY 1010 in order from the highest layer to the lowest layer. The user plane protocol stack may be used for communication between UE 101, RAN node 111, and UPF in NR implementation, or communication between S-GW and P-GW in LTE implementation. In this example, the upper layer 1051 may be built on top of SDAP 1047 and may include a user datagram protocol (UDP) and IP security layer (UDP / IP) 1052, a general packet radio service (GPRS) tunneling protocol for a user plane layer (GTP-U) 1053, and a user plane PDU layer (UP PDU) 1063.

[0126] The transport network layer 1054 (also referred to as the "transport layer") may be built on top of the IP transport, and the GTP-U 1053 may be used on top of the UDP / IP layer 1052 (including the UDP layer and the IP layer) to carry the user plane PDU (UP-PDU). The IP layer (also referred to as the "Internet layer") may be used to perform packet addressing and routing functions. The IP layer may assign IP addresses to user data packets, for example, in any of the IPv4, IPv6, or PPP formats.

[0127] GTP-U 1053 may be used to carry user data within the GPRS core network and between the radio access network and the core network. For example, the transmitted user data may be packets in any of the IPv4, IPv6 or PPP formats. UDP / IP 1052 may provide a checksum for data integrity, a port number for addressing different functions at the source and destination, and encryption and authentication of selected data flows. The RAN node 111 and the S-GW may exchange user plane data using the S1-U interface via a protocol stack including an L1 layer (e.g., PHY 1010), an L2 layer (e.g., MAC 1020, RLC 1030, PDCP 1040 and / or SDAP 1047), a UDP / IP layer 1052, and a GRP-U 1053. The S-GW and the P-GW may exchange user plane data using an S5 / S8a interface via a protocol stack including an L1 layer, an L2 layer, a UDP / IP layer 1052, and a GTP-U 1053. As previously discussed, the NAS protocol may support mobility of UE 101 and session management procedures to establish and maintain an IP connection between UE 101 and the P-GW.

[0128] In addition, despite Fig.10Not shown, but an application layer may exist above the AP 1063 and / or transport network layer 1054. The application layer may be a layer where a user of the UE 101, RAN node 111, or other network element interacts with a software application, for example, executed by the application circuit XS105 or the application circuit XS205, respectively. The application layer may also provide one or more interfaces for the software application to interact with the communication system (such as the baseband circuit XT110) of the UE 101 or RAN node 111. In some specific implementations, the IP layer and / or the application layer may provide the same or similar functionality as layers 5 to 7 of the open system interconnection (OSI) model or portions thereof (e.g., OSI layer 7—application layer, OSI layer 6—presentation layer, and OSI layer 5—session layer).

[0129] Various embodiments / aspects / examples may include the following:

[0130] A method for managing DRX active time may be performed at a UE. This may include performing a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation and monitoring a channel acquisition indication indicating that the gNB has acquired a channel. The UE may also determine whether an extension of the DRX active time is required based on the success of the listen-before-talk operation (e.g., idle, available for use by the UE, or reserved by the UE) and the receipt of the channel acquisition indication at the UE.

[0131] A method for managing power consumption at a UE via a DRX active time by a gNB may include performing an LBT operation. In response to determining that the channel is busy, a data packet is transmitted to the UE after a DRX on duration of the UE (e.g., within an extended active duration). If the gNB fails to receive an ACK / NACK indication from the UE, additional transmissions to the UE may be stopped until a next DRX on duration of the UE.

[0132] A method for managing power consumption in a gNB operating on an unlicensed carrier may be configured based on periodic wake-up opportunities and aperiodic wake-up opportunities. The gNB may determine a first set of repeating patterns of periods where the probability of the channel being occupied due to transmissions of other systems operating on the unlicensed carrier is low, and configure a sequence of wake-up opportunities at the UE to overlap with the period of the first set of repeating patterns. The data may be transmitted to the UE during one or more of the wake-up opportunity sequences in the sequence of wake-up opportunities.

[0133] A method for a UE to manage power consumption may include: receiving a configuration of DRX from a gNB, the configuration of DRX including a wake-up opportunity sequence, wherein a duration between consecutive wake-up opportunities is not constant; and monitoring transmissions from the gNB during the wake-up opportunity sequence.

[0134] A first set of embodiments may include the following:

[0135] A first embodiment may include a method of providing additional scheduling opportunities to the network while managing UE power consumption.

[0136] A second embodiment may include the method of the first embodiment, wherein the DRX active time and the DRX off cycle of the UE and the network are based on the LBT result.

[0137] The third embodiment may include the second embodiment or the third embodiment, wherein if the LBT result is unsuccessful (eg, the channel is busy), the UE and the network may extend the DRX activity time by a predefined period.

[0138] The fourth embodiment may include any one of the first to third embodiments, wherein the DRX active time and the DRX off period of the UE and the network are based on the LBT result and whether the UE receives a channel acquisition indication from the network.

[0139] The fifth embodiment may include the fourth embodiment, wherein if the LBT result is unsuccessful and a channel acquisition indication is received, one possible behavior is that the UE extends the DRX activity time by a predefined period.

[0140] The sixth embodiment may include any one of the first to fifth embodiments, wherein if the LBT result is unsuccessful and no channel acquisition indication is received, a possible behavior is that the UE switches to a DRX off cycle.

[0141] The seventh embodiment may include any one of the first to sixth embodiments, wherein if the LBT result is successful and no channel acquisition indication is received, a possible behavior is that the UE switches to a DRX off cycle.

[0142] The eighth embodiment may include any one of the first to seventh embodiments, wherein if the LBT result is successful and channel acquisition is received at the same time, a possible behavior is that the UE switches to a DRX off cycle.

[0143] The ninth embodiment may include any one of the first to eighth embodiments, wherein when the UE receives its PDCCH, the UE switches from a normal periodic pattern to a non-periodic pattern for DRX active time, and switches back to the normal periodic pattern after a predefined period.

[0144] The tenth embodiment may include any one of the first to ninth embodiments, wherein the network may update the non-periodic pattern.

[0145] The eleventh embodiment may include any one of the first to tenth embodiments, wherein when the UE receives its PDCCH, the UE uses both the aperiodic pattern and the normal periodic pattern for the DRX active time.

[0146] A twelfth embodiment may include a method comprising: listening for traffic on a channel from one or more other devices during a listen-before-talk (LBT) activity time period; determining that the channel is busy; and extending the activity time period based on the determination.

[0147] A thirteenth embodiment may include the twelfth embodiment, wherein the activity time period is extended by a predefined duration.

[0148] A fourteenth embodiment may include any one of the twelfth to thirteenth embodiments, further comprising receiving LBT configuration information including an indication of when an active time period occurs.

[0149] The fifteenth embodiment may include any one of the twelfth to fourteenth embodiments, wherein the method is performed by a UE or a part thereof.

[0150] A sixteenth embodiment may include a method comprising: receiving configuration information to indicate a periodic on-duration and aperiodic wake-up occasion of an LBT process on a channel; and performing the LBT process on the channel based on the configuration information.

[0151] The seventeenth embodiment may include the sixteenth embodiment, wherein the method is performed by a UE or a part thereof.

[0152] An eighteenth embodiment may include a method comprising: monitoring traffic on a channel on which an LBT process is used for communication; determining a periodic on-duration and aperiodic wake-up timing used by the UE for the LBT process on the channel based on the monitored traffic; and transmitting or causing configuration information to be transmitted to the UE to indicate the periodic on-duration and aperiodic wake-up timing.

[0153] The nineteenth embodiment may include the eighteenth embodiment, wherein the method is performed by the gNB or a part thereof.

[0154] The twentieth embodiment may include any one of the twelfth to nineteenth embodiments, wherein the channel is a New Radio (NR) channel.

[0155] The twenty-first embodiment may include any one of the twelfth to twentieth embodiments, wherein the channel is a random access channel.

[0156] The twenty-second embodiment may include an apparatus including means for performing one or more elements of the method described in or related to any one of the first through twenty-first embodiments, or any other method or process described herein.

[0157] The twenty-third embodiment may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media, which include instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of an electronic device, cause the electronic device to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments or any other method or process described herein.

[0158] The twenty-fourth embodiment may include an apparatus comprising logic components, modules, or circuits for performing one or more elements of the method described in or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments or any other method or process described herein.

[0159] The twenty-fifth embodiment may include a method, technique or process, or a portion or component thereof, as described or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments.

[0160] The twenty-sixth embodiment may include a device comprising: one or more processors and one or more computer-readable media, the one or more computer-readable media comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform a method, technique, process, or portion thereof as described in or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments.

[0161] The twenty-seventh embodiment may include a signal as described or related to any one of embodiments 1 to 21, or a portion or component thereof.

[0162] The twenty-eighth embodiment may include a datagram, packet, frame, segment, protocol data unit (PDU) or message or a portion or component thereof as described or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments, or otherwise described in the present disclosure.

[0163] The twenty-ninth embodiment may include a signal encoded with data, or a portion or component thereof, as described or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments, or as otherwise described in this disclosure.

[0164] The thirtieth embodiment may include a signal encoded with a datagram, packet, frame, segment, protocol data unit (PDU) or message, or a portion or component thereof, as described in or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments, or otherwise described in the present disclosure.

[0165] The thirty-first embodiment may include an electromagnetic signal carrying computer-readable instructions, wherein execution of the computer-readable instructions by one or more processors will cause the one or more processors to execute a method, technique, process, or portion thereof as described in or related to any one of the first to thirty-first embodiments.

[0166] The thirty-second embodiment may include a computer program comprising instructions, wherein execution of the program by a processing element will cause the processing element to perform a method, technique or process, or portion thereof, as described in or related to any one of the first to twenty-first embodiments.

[0167] A thirty-third embodiment may include signals in a wireless network as shown and described herein.

[0168] A thirty-fourth embodiment may comprise a method of communicating in a wireless network as shown and described herein.

[0169] A thirty-fifth embodiment may include a system for providing wireless communications as shown and described herein.

[0170] A thirty-sixth embodiment may include an apparatus for providing wireless communications as shown and described herein.

[0171] As used in this specification, the term "processor" may refer to substantially any computing processing unit or device, including but not limited to single-core processors; single processors with software multi-threaded execution capabilities; multi-core processors; multi-core processors with software multi-threaded execution capabilities; multi-core processors with hardware multi-threading technology; parallel platforms; and parallel platforms with distributed shared memory. In addition, a processor may refer to an integrated circuit, an application-specific integrated circuit, a digital signal processor, a field programmable gate array, a programmable logic controller, a complex programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions and / or processes described herein. The processor may utilize nanoscale architectures, such as but not limited to molecular and quantum dot-based transistors, switches, and gates, in order to optimize space usage or enhance the performance of mobile devices. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing processing units.

[0172] Embodiments (implementations) may include subject matter, such as methods, devices for performing actions or frames of the method, and at least one machine-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a machine (e.g., a processor with memory, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), etc.), cause the machine to perform the actions of a method or device or system for concurrent communication using multiple communication technologies according to the embodiments and examples described herein.

[0173] A second set of embodiments may include the following:

[0174] The first embodiment, as an apparatus adopted in a user equipment (UE), includes: a processing circuit, the processing circuit being configured to: perform a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation on an unlicensed channel; a channel acquisition indication of a monitoring channel; and determine whether to configure an extension of a discontinuous reception (DRX) activity time based on the LBT operation; and a radio frequency (RF) interface, the RF interface being configured to provide data for transmission or reception of NR communications associated with the unlicensed channel to the RF circuit based on the LBT operation and the channel acquisition indication, for managing or reducing power consumption.

[0175] A second embodiment may include the first embodiment, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to determine whether to configure an extension of the DRX active time based on an LBT operation and a channel acquisition indication on a channel, wherein the channel comprises a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0176] A third embodiment may include any one of the first embodiment or the second embodiment, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to extend the DRX active time in response to the LBT operation indicating that the unlicensed channel is busy.

[0177] The fourth embodiment may include any one of the first to third embodiments, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to shorten the DRX cycle of the DRX active time or increase the DRX on duration based on the LBT operation and whether a channel acquisition indication is received.

[0178] A fifth embodiment may include any one of the first to fourth embodiments, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to determine that the channel acquisition indication being received corresponds to the UE based on a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) in a channel, wherein the channel includes a PDCCH.

[0179] The sixth embodiment may include any one of the first to fifth embodiments, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to process a configuration of DRX, wherein the configuration of DRX configures a non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence, through which the channel is monitored, wherein the duration between the non-periodic wake-up opportunities varies within the sequence.

[0180] The seventh embodiment may include any one of the first to sixth embodiments, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to superimpose the non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence with the periodic on duration, or switch to the non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence based on the configured duration in response to receiving a channel acquisition indication via the PDCCH, and switch to the periodic on duration after the configured duration.

[0181] An eighth embodiment may include any one of the first to seventh embodiments, wherein the non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence is based on an occupancy probability of an unlicensed channel.

[0182] A ninth embodiment is a tangible computer-readable storage device storing executable instructions that, in response to execution, cause one or more processors of a user equipment (UE) to perform operations, the operations comprising: receiving a discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration, the DRX configuration comprising at least one of: a DRX on duration or a DRX cycle; performing a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation on an unlicensed channel; monitoring a channel acquisition indication of a channel; and determining, based on the LBT operation and the channel acquisition indication, whether to extend the DRX active time of the DRX on duration or to modify the DRX cycle.

[0183] A tenth embodiment may include the ninth embodiment, the operations further comprising: in response to determining that the unlicensed channel is busy based on the LBT operation, extending the DRX active time by a predefined period.

[0184] The eleventh embodiment may include any one of the ninth to tenth embodiments, and these operations also include: in response to the result that the LBT operation is unsuccessful or the channel is busy and the channel acquisition indication is being received, determining whether to extend the DRX active time for a predefined period or enter a DRX off period based on the demodulation reference signal (DRMS) of the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0185] The twelfth embodiment may include any one of the ninth to eleventh embodiments, and these operations further include: in response to the LBT operation indicating a busy condition or an unsuccessful LBT operation, and receiving a channel acquisition indication, entering a DRX off cycle.

[0186] The thirteenth embodiment may include any one of the ninth to twelfth embodiments, which operations also include: in response to the LBT operation indicating an idle condition or a successful LBT operation, and no indication of channel acquisition being received, entering a DRX off cycle.

[0187] The fourteenth embodiment may include any one of the ninth to thirteenth embodiments, and these operations also include: in response to the LBT operation indicating an idle condition or a successful LBT operation, and receiving a channel acquisition indication, based on determining that the DMRS of the channel indicates the channel acquisition indication and the channel acquisition indication is not associated with the UE, entering a DRX off period or extending the activity time.

[0188] The fifteenth embodiment may be a tangible computer-readable storage device storing executable instructions that, in response to execution, cause one or more processors of a next-generation Node B (gNB) to perform operations, the operations comprising: performing a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation to determine whether an unlicensed channel is idle or busy; transmitting data after a DRX on-duration; and providing a channel acquisition indication in response to the unlicensed channel being idle; and in response to not receiving an ACK / NACK indication, stopping additional transmissions via a physical downlink channel until the next DRX on-duration.

[0189] A sixteenth embodiment includes the fifteenth embodiment, the operations further comprising: providing data within the extended active time in response to the LBT operation determining that the unlicensed channel is busy and receiving an ACK / NACK indication.

[0190] The seventeenth embodiment includes any one of the fifteenth to sixteenth embodiments, wherein the operations further include: determining a first set of repeating patterns of a period, wherein the probability of an unlicensed channel being occupied on the unlicensed channel has a lower probability than the probability of being occupied in other periods; providing a configuration of a wake-up timing sequence that overlaps with the period of the first set of repeating patterns; and transmitting data to the UE during one or more wake-up timing sequences in the wake-up timing sequence, wherein the wake-up timing of the wake-up timing sequence is non-periodic and the period is periodic.

[0191] An eighteenth embodiment includes any one of the fifteenth to seventeenth embodiments, the operations further comprising: providing an update of the non-periodic pattern of the wake-up opportunity sequence based on a change of lower probability.

[0192] A nineteenth embodiment includes any one of the fifteenth to eighteenth embodiments, wherein the operations further include: providing LBT operation configuration information, the LBT operation configuration information including an indication of when an active time period occurs.

[0193] The twentieth embodiment includes any one of the fifteenth to nineteenth embodiments, which operations also include: monitoring traffic on an unlicensed channel on which LBT operation is used for communication; determining a periodic on-duration and aperiodic wake-up timing for the UE to use for LBT operation on the unlicensed channel based on the monitored traffic; and transmitting configuration information to the UE to indicate the periodic on-duration and aperiodic wake-up timing.

[0194] In addition, various aspects or features described herein may be implemented as methods, devices or articles using standard programming and / or engineering techniques. As used herein, the term "article" is intended to cover a computer program accessible from any computer-readable device, carrier or medium. For example, a computer-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, a magnetic storage device (e.g., a hard disk, a floppy disk, a magnetic strip), an optical disk (e.g., a compact disk (CD), a digital versatile disk (DVD), etc.), a smart card, and a flash memory device (e.g., an EPROM, a card, a stick, a key drive, etc.). In addition, the various storage media described herein may represent one or more devices and / or other machine-readable media for storing information. The term "machine-readable medium" may include, but is not limited to, wireless channels and various other media capable of storing, containing and / or carrying instructions and / or data. In addition, a computer program product may include a computer-readable medium having one or more instructions or codes that are operable to cause a computer to perform the functions described herein.

[0195] Communication media embodies computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other structured or unstructured data in a data signal such as a modulated data signal, such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, and includes any information delivery or transmission medium. The term "modulated data signal" or signal refers to a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in a manner that encodes information in one or more signals. By way of example, and not limitation, communication media include wired media such as a wired network or direct wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and other wireless media.

[0196] An exemplary storage medium may be coupled to a processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. In an alternative, the storage medium may be integrated with the processor. In addition, in some aspects, the processor and the storage medium may reside in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC may reside in a user terminal. In an alternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside in a user terminal as discrete components. In addition, in some aspects, the process and / or action of the method or algorithm may reside on a machine-readable medium and / or a computer-readable medium as one or any combination or set of codes and / or instructions, and may be incorporated into a computer program product.

[0197] In this regard, although the subject matter disclosed in the present invention has been described in conjunction with various embodiments and corresponding drawings, it should be understood that other similar embodiments may be used or modifications and additions may be made to the described embodiments to perform the same, similar, alternative or alternative functions of the disclosed subject matter without departing from the described embodiments. Therefore, the disclosed subject matter should not be limited to any single embodiment described herein, but should be interpreted according to the breadth and scope of the following claims.

[0198] In particular, with respect to the various functions performed by the above-mentioned components (assemblies, devices, circuits, systems, etc.), unless otherwise specified, the terms used to describe such components (including references to "means") are intended to correspond to any component or structure that performs the specified function of the component (e.g., functionally equivalent), even if not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure that performs the function in the exemplary implementation of the present disclosure shown herein. In addition, although specific features have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, for any given or specific application, such features may be combined with one or more other features of other implementations, which may be desirable and advantageous.

Claims

1. A baseband processor used in a user equipment UE, the baseband processor include: A processing circuit, the processing circuit being configured to: Performing listen-before-talk (LBT) operation on unlicensed channels for new radio (NR) communications; A channel acquisition indication from a base station monitoring channel; and In response to the LBT operation indicating that the unlicensed channel is busy and the channel acquisition indication is being received, determining to extend the discontinuous reception DRX activity time, and in response to the LBT operation indicating that the unlicensed channel is idle and the channel acquisition indication is being received, determining to enter a DRX off cycle and sleep immediately; as well as Based on the LBT operation and the channel acquisition indication, data for NR communications associated with the unlicensed channel is received.

2. The baseband processor of claim 1, wherein the channel comprises a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

3. The baseband processor of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to shorten the DRX cycle of the DRX active time or increase the DRX on duration based on the LBT operation and whether the channel acquisition indication is received. 4 . The baseband processor according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to determine that the channel acquisition indication is received based on a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) in the channel.

5. A baseband processor according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to process a DRX configuration, wherein the DRX configuration configures a non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence, and the channel is monitored by the non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence, wherein the duration between the non-periodic wake-up opportunities varies within the sequence.

6. The baseband processor of claim 5 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to superimpose the non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence with a periodic on duration, or to switch to the non-periodic wake-up opportunity sequence based on a configured duration in response to receiving the channel acquisition indication via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and to switch to the periodic on duration after the configured duration.

7. The baseband processor of claim 5, wherein the sequence of non-periodic wake-up opportunities is based on an occupancy probability of the unlicensed channel.

8. A tangible computer-readable storage device storing executable instructions that, in response to being executed, cause one or more processors of a user equipment (UE) to perform operations, the operations include: Processing a discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration, the DRX configuration comprising at least one of: a DRX on duration or a DRX cycle; Perform listen-before-talk (LBT) operation on unlicensed channels; A channel acquisition indication from a base station monitoring channel; and In response to the LBT operation indicating that the unlicensed channel is busy and the channel acquisition indication is being received, determining the DRX activity time for extending the DRX on duration, and in response to the LBT operation indicating that the unlicensed channel is idle and the channel acquisition indication is being received, determining to enter a DRX off cycle and sleep immediately.

9. The tangible computer readable storage device of claim 8, wherein the operation further comprises: include: In response to determining that the unlicensed channel is busy based on the LBT operation and determining that the channel acquisition indication is being received, it is determined based on a demodulation reference signal DRMS ​​of a physical downlink control channel PDCCH whether to extend the DRX active time for a predefined time period or to enter a DRX off period at the end of the DRX on duration.

10. The tangible computer readable storage device of claim 8, wherein the operation further comprises: include: In response to determining that the unlicensed channel is idle based on the LBT operation and determining that the channel acquisition indication is not being received, entering a DRX off cycle at the end of the DRX on duration.

11. The tangible computer readable storage device of claim 8, wherein the operation further comprises: include: In response to determining that the unlicensed channel is idle based on the LBT operation and determining that the channel acquisition indication is being received, entering a DRX off period or extending the DRX active time based on determining that the DMRS of the channel indicates the channel acquisition indication and the channel acquisition indication is not associated with the UE.

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