User equipment, base station and methods thereof

Abstract

A user equipment, a base station and methods thereof are provided. The user equipment includes a memory storing instructions and at least one processor configured to process the instructions to configure a plurality of bandwidth parts for transmission and reception of control information, each of the plurality of bandwidth parts being included in a system bandwidth and being different from each other, configure, for each of the plurality of bandwidth parts, at least one respective control resource set for a common search space (CSS) determined based on a corresponding bandwidth, and monitor control information transmitted on one of the plurality of bandwidth parts using at least one respective control resource set corresponding to the one of the plurality of bandwidth parts.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of Chinese invention patent application filed on March 22, 2018, with application number 201880020803.X and invention title "Communication System". Technical Field

[0002] This invention relates to communication systems. In particular, but not exclusively, the invention relates to wireless communication systems and apparatuses operating according to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards or their equivalents or derivatives. In particular, but not exclusively, the invention relates to bandwidth adaptation in so-called "next-generation" systems. Background Technology

[0003] The latest developments in 3GPP standards are known as the Long Term Evolution (LTE) of the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network and the Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), often referred to as "4G." Additionally, the terms "5G" and "New Radio" (NR) refer to the evolving communication technologies expected to support a wide range of applications and services. Details about 5G networks are described, for example, in the Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN) Alliance's "NGMN 5G White Paper" V1.0, which is available at https: / / www.ngmn.org / 5g-white-paper.html. 3GPP aims to support 5G through the so-called 3GPP Next Generation Radio Access Network (RAN) and the 3GPP Next Generation Core Network.

[0004] Under the 3GPP standard, a NodeB (or "eNB" in LTE, and "gNB" in 5G) is a base station through which a communication device (User Equipment or "UE") connects to the core network and communicates with other communication devices or remote servers. For simplicity, this application will use the term "base station" to refer to any such base station, and the term "mobile device" or "UE" to refer to any such communication device. The core network (e.g., EPC in the case of LTE) hosts functions such as subscriber management, mobility management, billing, security, and call / session management, and provides the communication device with connectivity to external networks such as the Internet.

[0005] For example, a communication device can be a mobile communication device such as a mobile phone, smartphone, user equipment, personal digital assistant, laptop / tablet computer, web browser, and / or e-book reader. Such mobile (or even generally fixed) devices are typically operated by a user, but so-called "Internet of Things" (IoT) devices and similar machine-type communication (MTC) devices can also be connected to a network. For simplicity, this application relates to the mobile device (or UE) described in the specification; however, it should be understood that the described technology can be implemented on any communication device (mobile and / or generally stationary) that can be connected to a communication network to send / receive data, regardless of whether such communication device is controlled by manual input or by software instructions stored in memory.

[0006] In 3GPP networks, user data is transmitted between the base station and the UE via the so-called Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), but other channels (e.g., broadcast channels) can also be used. The so-called Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) (which is typically provided in the same frequency band as the PDSCH) carries the UE's downlink control information (DCI). The DCI specifies which UE is being scheduled for transmission (via the PDSCH) and through which specific communication resources.

[0007] 3GPP Technical Report (TR) 23.799 V0.7.0 describes the possible architecture and general process for NextGen (5G) systems planned for Release 14 of the 3GPP standard. 3GPP also studied the potential use of frequency bands up to 100 GHz for the new (5G) radio access network, with a maximum channel bandwidth of 400 MHz per NR carrier in Rel-15. Directional beamforming and massive MIMO techniques can also be used to overcome the severe channel attenuation characteristics associated with certain high-frequency bands, such as mm-wave bands. The term "massive MIMO" refers to an antenna with a large number of antenna elements (e.g., 100 or more) arranged in an array. In practice, such massive MIMO can be used to communicate with multiple users simultaneously, thereby facilitating multi-user multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission. The base station (also referred to as the transmit-receive point (TRP) in this case) can be configured to form corresponding beams for communicating with multiple UEs substantially in parallel and using associated directional beamforming.

[0008] 3GPP aims to provide one or more TRPs for each New Radio (NR) base station (i.e., a 5G base station or gNB). The anticipated NR control structure has already been presented in 3GPP Technical Report (TR) 38.802 V2.0.0, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. This technical report describes protocols related to: appropriate mechanisms for recovery from beam failures; the possibility of applying radio frequency (RF) bandwidth adaptation; and the motivation for NR to perform bandwidth adaptation.

[0009] In NR networks, the air interface between the base station and user equipment may require system bandwidths of up to hundreds or thousands of MHz. The motivation for bandwidth adaptation in NR networks is summarized in 3GPP Tdoc R1-1611041. This document discloses that in LTE, the UE consumes over 60% of its power for low data rate services and decoding the PDCCH (which carries downlink control information (DCI) for the UE). UE power consumption is essentially proportional to its operating bandwidth (the greater the bandwidth used, the greater the associated power consumption). Therefore, it appears more power-efficient for the UE to adapt its operating bandwidth to match its incoming (downlink) traffic. Summary of the Invention

[0010] The problem the invention aims to solve

[0011] 3GPP believes that NR-PDCCH transmission will support robustness against beampup link blocking, and the UE can be configured to simultaneously monitor NR-PDCCH on beampup links in the number of “M” (where M is the number of beampup links).

[0012] [Formula 1]

[0013] ,

[0014] And the maximum value of M can depend at least on the UE's capabilities. However, it is still under investigation whether the UE should be allowed to select at least one beam from the M beams for NR-PDCCH reception.

[0015] In NR, a UE can be configured to monitor NR-PDCCHs on different beampup links within different NR-PDCCH orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols. However, it is still under investigation whether the UE should monitor the NR-PDCCH on a beampup link with a shorter duty cycle compared to other beampup links. The temporal granularity of the configuration (e.g., slot-level configuration, symbol-level configuration) has not yet been determined. This configuration can also be applied to scenarios where the UE may not have multiple RF chains.

[0016] GPP still needs to determine the definition of NR-PDCCH on the monitoring beampair link. It can be assumed that the parameters related to the UE Rx (receiver) beam settings used for monitoring NR-PDCCH on multiple beampair links will be configured by higher-layer signaling or MACCE and / or will be considered in the search space design, but the required parameters and the requirements for supporting both higher-layer signaling and MACCE are still under investigation.

[0017] Regarding bandwidth adaptation, the following agreement was reached at the 3GPP RAN1 #86bis meeting: At least for single-carrier operation, the NR should allow the UE to operate in such a way that the UE receives at least downlink control information in the first RF bandwidth and the UE is not expected to receive in a second RF bandwidth larger than the first RF bandwidth within less than “X” microseconds (the value of X will be determined later).

[0018] Further research is needed on whether the first RF bandwidth is located within the second RF bandwidth, whether the first RF bandwidth is located at the center of the second RF bandwidth, the maximum ratio of the first RF bandwidth to the second RF bandwidth, the detailed mechanism, and how to achieve RF bandwidth adaptation for RRM measurement.

[0019] 3GPP also defines various control sets (communication resource sets for transmitting control data), but has not yet specified how to use such control resource sets to support the greater bandwidth available in NR (e.g., compared to LTE). The inventors have also recognized that, in the case of using multiple beams and appropriate bandwidth adaptation, there may also be a need to reduce complexity at the UE (e.g., which may be monitoring multiple NR-PDCCHs).

[0020] Therefore, preferred exemplary embodiments of the present invention are intended to provide methods and apparatus for solving or at least partially addressing the above-mentioned problems related to bandwidth adaptation.

[0021] Although this invention will be described in detail in the context of 3GPP systems (5G networks) for the sake of understanding efficiency for those skilled in the art, the principles of this invention can be applied to other systems.

[0022] Solution for solving the problem

[0023] In one aspect, the present invention provides a method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving an associated communication area, the method comprising: performing communication using a first bandwidth; monitoring control data transmitted by the base station using a first control resource set transmitted in the first bandwidth; switching to performing communication using a second bandwidth, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and monitoring control data transmitted by the base station using a second control resource set transmitted in the second bandwidth.

[0024] The present invention also provides a method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a related communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising: monitoring control data transmitted by the base station using a first beam during a first monitoring opportunity; monitoring control data transmitted by the base station using a second beam during a second monitoring opportunity; receiving control data transmitted using at least one of: the first beam during the first monitoring opportunity; and the second beam during the second monitoring opportunity; and identifying a serving beam based on the reception of the control data.

[0025] The present invention also provides a method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a related communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising: receiving first control data transmitted by the base station using a first beam; receiving second control data transmitted by the base station using a second beam; wherein the second control data is a copy of the first control data.

[0026] The present invention also provides a method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a relevant communication area, the method comprising: communicating using a first bandwidth according to a first discontinuous reception configuration, i.e., a first DRX configuration; switching to using a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and communicating using the second bandwidth according to a second DRX configuration; wherein the first DRX configuration represents a DRX mode different from the second DRX configuration.

[0027] The present invention also provides a method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a related communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, wherein each beam has an associated monitoring opportunity in which the base station can transmit control data, the method comprising: performing communication according to a discontinuous reception mode, i.e., a DRX mode, having an on period and an off period; and monitoring, based on the DRX mode, control data transmitted by the base station using the at least one beam during a monitoring opportunity associated with at least one beam; wherein the communication device monitors the control data during the monitoring opportunity associated with the at least one beam during the on period of the DRX mode, but does not monitor the control data during the monitoring opportunity during the off period of the DRX mode.

[0028] The present invention also provides a method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area in the communication system, the method comprising: using a first bandwidth to communicate with a communication device; using a first control resource set transmitted in the first bandwidth to send control data to the communication device; switching to using a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and using a second control resource set transmitted in the second bandwidth to send control data to the communication device.

[0029] The present invention also provides a method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising: after transmitting control data using a first beam, monitoring feedback from a communication device related to the control data transmitted using the first beam; after transmitting control data using a second beam, monitoring feedback from the communication device related to the control data transmitted using the second beam; receiving feedback from the communication device related to at least one of: control data transmitted using the first beam; and control data transmitted using the second beam; and identifying a serving beam based on the reception of the feedback.

[0030] The present invention also provides a method for a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a related communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising: transmitting first control data to at least one communication device using a first beam; and transmitting second control data to the at least one communication device using a second beam; wherein the second control data is a copy of the first control data.

[0031] The present invention also provides a method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a relevant communication area in the communication system, the method comprising: using a first bandwidth to communicate with a communication device according to a first discontinuous reception configuration, i.e., a first DRX configuration; switching to using a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and using the second bandwidth to communicate with the communication device according to a second DRX configuration; wherein the first DRX configuration represents a DRX mode different from the second DRX configuration.

[0032] The present invention also provides a method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a related communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, each beam having an associated monitoring opportunity in which the base station can transmit control data, the method comprising: communicating with a communication device according to a discontinuous reception mode, i.e., a DRX mode, having an on period and an off period; and, based on the DRX mode, using the at least one beam in a transmission opportunity associated with at least one beam to transmit control data to the communication device, such that: during the on period of the DRX mode, control data is transmitted in the transmission opportunity associated with the at least one beam, but during the off period of the DRX mode, control data is not transmitted in the monitoring opportunity.

[0033] The invention extends to corresponding systems, devices, and computer program products storing instructions, such as computer-readable storage media, wherein these instructions are operable to program a programmable processor to perform the methods described in these aspects and the possibilities set forth above or recited in the claims, and / or to program a suitably configured computer to provide the device recited in any of the claims.

[0034] Features disclosed in this specification (the term includes the claims) and / or shown in the drawings may be incorporated into the invention independently of any other disclosed and / or shown features (or in combination with such features). Specifically, but not limitingly, features of any claim dependent on a particular independent claim may be introduced into that independent claim in any combination or individually.

[0035] Exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the following figures. Attached Figure Description

[0036] Figure 1 The illustration schematically depicts a cellular telecommunications system to which exemplary embodiments of the present invention can be applied;

[0037] Figure 2 yes Figure 1A summary of a typical bandwidth adaptive scenario in the system shown;

[0038] Figure 3 It is formed Figure 1 A block diagram of a mobile device that is part of the system shown;

[0039] Figure 4 It is formed Figure 1 A block diagram of a base station, which is part of the system shown.

[0040] Figure 5 schematically shown in Figure 1 The system can provide a typical way to aggregate and control resource sets;

[0041] Figure 6 schematically shown in Figure 1 The system can provide a typical way to aggregate and control resource sets;

[0042] Figure 7 This schematically illustrates that user equipment can... Figure 1 Typical methods for monitoring beams and selecting appropriate beams in a system;

[0043] Figure 8 An exemplary embodiment of discontinuous reception that can be used for bandwidth adaptation is schematically illustrated; and

[0044] Figure 9 An exemplary embodiment of discontinuous reception that can be used for bandwidth adaptation is illustrated schematically. Detailed Implementation

[0045] summary

[0046] Figure 1 The illustration schematically depicts a telecommunications network 1 (e.g., a 3GPP NR network), in which user equipment 3 (mobile phones and / or other mobile devices) can communicate with each other via a base station 5 (denoted as "gNB") using appropriate radio access technology (RAT). It should be understood that in 5G systems, the base station is also referred to as a transmit / receive point (TRP). As those skilled in the art will understand, although... Figure 1 For illustrative purposes, five mobile devices 3 and one base station 5 are shown, but in practice, the system will typically include other base stations and mobile devices.

[0047] Each base station 5 is connected via a TRP located at the base station and / or one or more TRPs located at a distance. Figure 1(Not shown) to operate one or more associated cells. In this example, for simplicity, base station 5 operates a single cell. Base station 5 is connected to core network 7 (e.g., via appropriate gateways and / or user plane / control plane functions), and adjacent base stations are also connected to each other (directly or via appropriate base station gateways). Core network 7 may include control plane manager entities and user plane manager entities, one or more gateways (GWs) for providing connectivity between base station 5 and other networks (such as the Internet), and / or servers hosted outside the core network.

[0048] Mobile device 3 connects to the appropriate cell by establishing a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection with base station 5 operating in the cell (this depends on its location and other possible factors such as signal conditions, data subscription, and / or capacity). Mobile device 3 and base station 5 (and other transmitting points in the network) communicate via the appropriate air interface, which depends on the RAT used. Mobile device 3 uses so-called Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signaling to communicate with core network nodes, where NAS signaling is relayed between mobile device 3 and the appropriate core network node via base station 5 / TRP serving mobile device 3.

[0049] In this example, base station 5 and mobile device 3 use a multi-antenna scheme to communicate with each other. Specifically, base station 5 operates with an associated antenna array (e.g., a massive MIMO) providing multiple directional beams to communicate with various mobile devices 3 within its cell. Each beam is arranged to span (transmit) in different directions (along three dimensions, including elevation). Each beam may have a unique associated identifier (e.g., an appropriate "beam ID") (at least within the cell).

[0050] exist Figure 1 In the network shown (and generally in NR networks), beam management can be viewed as a set of appropriate (e.g., L1 / L2) procedures for acquiring and maintaining a set of TRP and / or UE beams available for downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmission / reception of a particular mobile device 3. For example, beam management may advantageously include one or more of the following:

[0051] - Beam determination: Used for TRP or UE to select its own Tx / Rx beam;

[0052] - Beam measurement: Used for TRP or UE to measure the characteristics of the received beamforming signal;

[0053] - Beam Reporting: Information used by the UE to report beamforming signals based on beam measurements; and

[0054] - Beam scanning: The operation of covering a spatial area using beams that are transmitted and / or received in a predetermined manner during a time interval.

[0055] The beam configuration used in a cell defines the number of beams and the associated beam pattern. Figure 1 In the example shown, the total number of beams is “N”, meaning that beams #1 to #N are currently configured for the cell of base station 5 (“N” is a positive integer of at least “1”).

[0056] Base station 5 is advantageously configured to transmit one or more reference signals, such as a set of beam-specific reference signals (BRS), in its cell (or in each cell if the base station operates multiple cells). Mobile device 3 can be configured to use the relevant reference signals to perform signal strength and channel estimation measurements (beam reporting) for each beam. (Base station and / or mobile device 3) use such beam-specific measurements to configure an appropriate set of beams(one or more) for mobile device 3, which may be referred to as the operating beam set (OBS) of mobile device 3.

[0057] The OBS can be dynamically updated, for example, based on signal conditions, cell load, throughput required by mobile device 3, and / or quality of service (QoS). Advantageously, when the OBS includes multiple beams, the likelihood of mobile device 3 suffering a radio link failure (RLF) (i.e., losing connection with base station 5) is greatly reduced because in most cases, there is at least one directional beam that mobile device 3 can use, and / or new beams can be added to the OBS as needed (at least temporarily).

[0058] It should be understood that the bandwidth used by a particular mobile device 3 when communicating with base station 5 (and via base station 5 with other nodes) depends on the number of beams included in its associated OBS. However, it should also be understood that the bandwidth allocated for / available to mobile device 3 within any beam will not necessarily remain constant (i.e., the bandwidth in any beam may depend on the throughput required by the service used by mobile device 3 and may also be (e.g., temporarily) affected by changes in signal conditions).

[0059] In this system, advantageously, base station 5 is configured to adaptively allocate bandwidth to mobile device 3 based on the currently applicable throughput requirements of communication with mobile device 3 (which generally depend on, for example, the services / applications being used by mobile device 3 and / or its users). Specifically, base station 5 is configured to control mobile device 3 to use a default (e.g., relatively low) bandwidth for its communication with base station 5, unless mobile device 3 (or the node communicating with mobile device 3) requests a different (e.g., relatively high) bandwidth for mobile device 3. This relatively high bandwidth may be referred to as a “wideband data pipeline” and may be enabled at least temporarily (e.g., whenever it is determined that increased bandwidth is needed and / or until a relevant timer expires).

[0060] Base station 5 can be configured to provide this (UE-specific) broadband data pipeline in a variety of ways, including, for example:

[0061] - Change the bandwidth of each beam (in at least one beam used by the mobile device 3);

[0062] - Change the number of beams used by mobile device 3 (add / remove beams to / from OBS); and / or

[0063] - Change the DRX setting of the beam associated with mobile device 3.

[0064] It should be understood that bandwidth adaptation may be applied to mobile device 3 temporarily (e.g., for a predetermined duration and / or until mobile device 3 or network node is deactivated), or as long as mobile device 3 remains connected to network 1, bandwidth adaptation may be applied to mobile device 3.

[0065] Figure 2 This is a summary of an exemplary bandwidth adaptive scenario. It can be seen that bandwidth adaptation can be performed based on the (changing) data transmission needs of mobile device 3. In this example, mobile device 3 may initially be configured with a relatively small (e.g., default) bandwidth (or "data pipeline"), such as when mobile device 3 is powered on or when it first accesses the network or a specific beam / cell / base station. Optionally, mobile device 3 may be configured with the appropriate bandwidth requested by mobile device 3 and / or the bandwidth last used.

[0066] Base station 5 is configured to periodically transmit downlink control data 10 (via DCI such as PDCCH) in each subframe, for example. Downlink control data 10 includes information for identifying which mobile device 3 is being scheduled in that (or subsequent) subframe / slot, and scheduled downlink data 12 is transmitted based on the information included in downlink control data 10. It can be seen that mobile device 3 has relatively narrow bandwidth during its initial access, therefore downlink control data 10 is also transmitted using narrow (same) bandwidth. Therefore, advantageously, the power consumption of mobile device 3 associated with receiving and decoding downlink control data 10 and any associated downlink data 12 can be kept relatively low. Furthermore, base station 5 is advantageously able to allocate its remaining resources to other users, resulting in better overall system efficiency.

[0067] When mobile device 3 requires greater bandwidth (e.g., due to an application on mobile device 3 initiating data communication with a remote node, such as a video stream), base station 5 is configured to adapt the relevant bandwidth (data pipeline) accordingly (at least temporarily). Thus, it can be seen that when the broadband data pipeline is enabled, the bandwidth available for downlink data 12 (compared to its previous size) increases, allowing mobile device 3 to communicate a larger amount of data in each scheduling round (e.g., subframe). It should be understood that the relevant downlink control data 10 can also be beneficially transmitted on the increased bandwidth (but not necessarily over the entire broadband data pipeline). Then, when the transmission by mobile device 3 requiring wider bandwidth ends, the broadband data pipeline associated with mobile device 3 can be deactivated (or reconfigured to a suitable lower bandwidth, possibly different from the initial bandwidth). The broadband data pipeline can be deactivated automatically (e.g., when all data has been transmitted / received and / or when the relevant "activity" timer expires) or when indicated by base station 5 (which may occur at the request of mobile device 3). Beneficially, the adaptive bandwidth allows mobile device 3 (and base station 5) to operate more efficiently, while still allowing mobile device 3 to use the appropriate broadband data pipeline when needed (e.g., temporarily).

[0068] There are several ways to perform bandwidth adaptation. For example, one or more of the following methods can be used to enable / disable appropriate (e.g., wider) bandwidth.

[0069] To enable a larger bandwidth (compared to the current bandwidth), base station 5 can be configured to add appropriate signaling (e.g., 1 bit) to the DCI format to notify mobile device 3 that it needs to open a wider bandwidth in the next possible time slot (e.g., in the next subframe). Base station 5 can also apply cross-time slot scheduling, where in this case, base station 5 can be configured to schedule mobile device 3 to use a different bandwidth (e.g., greater than the current bandwidth) in the next possible time slot. In other words, an indication to open a larger bandwidth can be sent via cross-time slot scheduling. To deactivate the wider bandwidth, an inactivity timer can be used (thus avoiding the need for additional signaling). In this case, mobile device 3 can be configured to return to a smaller bandwidth (or its previous bandwidth) when the inactivity timer expires (when a predetermined amount of time has elapsed since the last data transmission by the mobile device requiring the current / wider bandwidth). It should be understood that base station 5 can also be configured to indicate a wider (or different) bandwidth to mobile device 3 using appropriate Media Access Control (MAC) control elements (CE).

[0070] Advantageously, to facilitate bandwidth adaptation, multiple predefined control resource sets can be provided (e.g., resource sets semi-statically configured to transmit control data using RRC signaling) (e.g., to form an aggregated control resource set comprising an aggregation of multiple smaller control resource sets). In one example, at least a first (“primary”) control resource set (preferably with narrow RF bandwidth) is provided, which comprises an appropriate aggregation of control resource sets in the time domain. Mobile device 3 can use this primary control resource set as a default or initial control resource set (or as a common search space), through which mobile device 3 expects to receive its control data and optional related user data (e.g., as long as the bandwidth meets the UE's requirements). However, a second (“secondary”) (preferably wider) control resource set can also be provided, which typically comprises an appropriate aggregation of control resource sets in the frequency domain (i.e., a wideband data pipeline). Thus, when mobile device 3 needs to enable a wideband data pipeline, data can also be transmitted via resources corresponding to the secondary control resource set (e.g., in addition to the primary control resource set). It should be understood that the primary control resource set and the secondary control resource set can be provided via predetermined resources known to both the mobile device 3 and the base station 5. The control resource set can be specific to each UE, for example, allocated based on information associated with the mobile device 3 and / or using formulas or functions that yield different control resource sets for different UEs. Optionally, the locations of the primary control resource set and the secondary control resource set can be explicitly notified to the mobile device 3 in the form of signals.

[0071] Advantageously, to further optimize the complexity and power consumption of mobile device 3, base station 5 can be configured to transmit control data via a limited number of beams assigned to a particular mobile device 3, rather than all beams. For example, each mobile device 3 can be configured to monitor the control channel using multiple (e.g., two or three) optimal beams in a TDM manner. In another example, mobile device 3 can be configured to monitor all associated beams it uses for control channel transmission, but only one beam at a time. For this purpose, appropriate monitoring timing can be configured for each beam. Thus, even if a beam (e.g., the currently serving beam) suffers a beam failure, mobile device 3 can advantageously receive its control data via a different beam during the relevant monitoring timing (and subsequently switch to that beam as its new serving beam). In yet another example, control channel transmissions for a particular mobile device 3 can be effectively duplicated (transmitted simultaneously on two or more beams), resulting in control transmission overlay.

[0072] In a particularly advantageous example, base station 5 and mobile device 3 can be configured to apply a bandwidth-adaptive DRX method, in which the actual DRX setting being applied depends on the current bandwidth used by mobile device 3. For example, such a "bandwidth-adaptive" DRX configuration may include multiple different DRX configurations (different DRX periods and / or on / off time periods) with different bandwidths available to mobile device 3. It should be understood that the DRX period can also be combined with the beam-specific monitoring timing described above. In this case, the effective DRX "on" time period can be derived as a combination of the applicable beam scanning time period and the configured DRX mode. In other words, mobile device 3 can be configured to monitor its assigned beam only during the "on" time period of its currently applicable DRX period (within the corresponding associated beam monitoring timing for each beam).

[0073] Therefore, it can be seen that appropriate bandwidth adaptation provides many benefits, such as flexibility in serving mobile devices via base station cells, improved power consumption (longer battery life), and more efficient use of base station communication resources.

[0074] NR Summary

[0075] The following is a concise overview of NR (5G) networks and related terminology.

[0076] It should be understood that multiple numbers (subcarrier spacing and scaling factors) can be supported in NR systems. In the context of NR technology, a specific number is defined by its associated subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix (CP) overhead. Multiple subcarrier spacings can be derived by scaling the basic subcarrier spacing by an integer "N". The number of numbers used can be selected independently of the frequency band.

[0077] A Physical Resource Block (PRB) is defined such that the number of subcarriers per PRB is the same for all digital symbols (12 subcarriers per PRB).

[0078] Multiplexing different digital symbols can be performed using time-division multiplexing (TDM) and / or frequency-division multiplexing (FDM) methods for both downlink and uplink. From the UE's perspective, different digital symbols can be multiplexed within or across a set of (one or more) subframes.

[0079] For 2 m The subcarrier spacing is ×15 kHz, and the subcarriers are mapped in the frequency domain in a nested manner to a subset / superset of the subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz. The PRB grid is defined in the frequency domain in a nested manner as a subset / superset of the PRB grid with a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz.

[0080] From a network perspective, multiplexing of transmissions with different latency and / or reliability requirements for Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) / Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC) in the downlink can be supported by using the same subcarrier spacing with the same CP overhead or by using different subcarrier spacings. NR supports dynamic resource sharing between eMBB / URLLC in the downlink with different latency and / or reliability requirements. Dynamic resource sharing between URLLC and eMBB can be supported by sending URLLC scheduled services, where URLLC transmissions can occur within resources scheduled for ongoing eMBB services. Dynamic resource sharing between eMBB and URLLC in the downlink can be achieved without preemption by scheduling eMBB and URLLC services on non-overlapping time / frequency resources.

[0081] <Control Channel>

[0082] Multiple control channels (e.g., NR-PDCCH) can be used to control communication between the base station and user equipment. It should be understood that, as is generally the case in NR systems, at least the QPSK modulation scheme is supported for NR-PDCCH modulation. For single-level downlink control information (DCI), the NR-PDCCH modulation scheme is QPSK. In the frequency domain, the resource element size (which may or may not include any demodulation reference signal (DM-RS)) of a particular control channel can be a single PRB or multiple PRBs. It should be understood that NR-PDCCH candidates can contain a set of NR-CCEs, and NR-CCEs can contain a fixed number of resource element groups (REGs). During an OFDM symbol (OS) (at least for one or more OSes where the DL control area contains time slots or “micro-time slots”), a REG can be a RB (which may or may not include DM-RS). However, at least for eMBB, multiple NR-CCEs cannot be transmitted on the same REG in an OFDM symbol except for spatial multiplexing for different UEs (MU-MIMO).

[0083] A control resource set is defined as a set of REGs based on a given digital symbol. At least for a single-level DCI design, each UE is configured to monitor relevant downlink control information in one or more control resource sets (which may be UE-specific). The BW used by a control resource set is less than or equal to the carrier bandwidth (up to a certain limit). A control resource set is the set of REGs that the UE attempts to blindly decode downlink control information. REGs may be frequency-contiguous or not. Where a control resource set spans multiple OFDM symbols, control channel candidates may be mapped to multiple OFDM symbols or a single OFDM symbol. The gNB can be configured to notify the UE which control channel candidates are mapped to subsets of OFDM symbols in the control resource set. This does not preclude the UE from receiving additional control information in the same or different OFDM symbols, either within or outside the control resource set. It should be understood that each UE may have one or more control resource sets. NR networks anticipate supporting, at least in the frequency domain, dynamic reuse of at least a portion of the resources in the control resource set used for data by (the same or different UEs). From the gNB's perspective, the DL control channel can be located at the first OFDM symbol in a time slot and / or micro-time slot. The timing of UE-specific DL control information monitoring can be configured at least in the time domain. It should be understood that the minimum granularity of DCI monitoring timing can be configured (e.g., per UE). For example, the minimum granularity of DCI monitoring timing could be once per time slot (e.g., for a single-level DCI design).

[0084] Beam Management

[0085] In an NR network, a UE can trigger appropriate mechanisms for recovery from beam failures. A UE can be configured to trigger these mechanisms when it has determined that a beam failure has occurred. For example, a UE can determine that a beam failure event has occurred if the quality of the beampair link on the relevant control channel (e.g., compared to a threshold and / or when the relevant timer times out) deteriorates sufficiently and / or if any other predetermined conditions are met. While beampair links are used as an example here, it should be understood that other suitable measures can also be used. The network (gNB) configures appropriate resources for the UE to transmit signals via UL for recovery purposes. Resource configuration is supported in locations where the base station is listening from all or part of the direction (e.g., random access areas). UL transmissions / resources used to report beam failures can be located at the same time as the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) (e.g., resources orthogonal to PRACH resources) or at a different time (which can be configurable for each UE). DL signal transmission is supported to allow the UE to monitor the beam and identify new potential beams.

[0086] NR supports beam management with and without beam correlation indication. With beam correlation indication provided, information related to the UE-side beamforming / reception process for CSI-RS-based measurements can be indicated to the UE via quasi-co-location (QCL). NR supports using the same or different beams on control channels and corresponding data channels.

[0087] For NR-PDCCH transmission that supports robustness against beampup link blocking, each UE can be configured to simultaneously monitor NR-PDCCH on M beampup links, where

[0088] [Equation 2]

[0089] ,

[0090] Furthermore, the maximum value of M can depend at least on the UE's capabilities. The UE can be configured to monitor NR-PDCCH on different beampup links in different NR-PDCCH OFDM symbols. Parameters related to the UE Rx beam settings used for monitoring NR-PDCCH on multiple beampup links can be configured by higher-layer signaling or MAC CE and / or considered in the search space design.

[0091] mobile devices

[0092] Figure 3 It is shown Figure 1The diagram shows a block diagram of the main components of a mobile device 3 (e.g., a mobile phone or other user equipment). As shown, the mobile device 3 has a transceiver circuit 31 that is operatively capable of transmitting and receiving signals from a base station 5 via one or more antennas 33. The mobile device 3 has a controller 37 for controlling the operation of the mobile device 3. The controller 37 is associated with a memory 39 and coupled to the transceiver circuit 31. Although not essential for operation, the mobile device 3 may of course have all the common functions of a conventional mobile phone 3 (such as a user interface 35, etc.), and these functions may be appropriately provided by any one or any combination of hardware, software, and firmware. The software may be pre-installed in the memory 39 and / or, for example, can be downloaded via a telecommunications network or from a removable data storage device (RMD).

[0093] In this example, the controller 37 is configured to control the overall operation of the mobile device 3 via program instructions or software instructions stored in the memory 39. As shown, these software instructions include an operating system 41, a communication control module 43, a beam configuration module 44, a bandwidth adaptation module 45, and a DRX module 46, etc.

[0094] The communication control module 43 can operatively control the communication between the mobile device 3 and its serving base station 5 (and other communication devices connected to the base station 5, such as other mobile devices and / or core network nodes)).

[0095] The beam configuration module 44 is responsible for managing the beams (allocated for use) used by the mobile device 3 in the current serving cell (one or more serving cells), for example, by maintaining an appropriate OBS (or corresponding OBS) for the mobile device 3. This includes, for example, adding and removing cells for the set of cells allocated for the mobile device 3 (e.g., based on information provided by the base station 5 and / or the DRX module 46).

[0096] The bandwidth adaptive module 45 is responsible for controlling the switching between appropriate bandwidths corresponding to the current needs (or configuration) of the mobile device 3. Specifically, the bandwidth adaptive module 45 controls the enabling / disabling of appropriate broadband data pipelines. In some examples, this is achieved by switching between using an appropriate primary control resource set and (e.g., in addition to the primary control resource set) an auxiliary control resource set.

[0097] DRX module 46, when configured via base station 5, is responsible for controlling transceiver 31 for discontinuous reception (and / or transmission). In some examples, this discontinuous reception / transmission can be employed for individual beams. In this case, bandwidth adaptation can be facilitated by changing the DRX mode employed by mobile device 3.

[0098] although Figure 3 Although not shown, it should be understood that the mobile device 3 may also include a suitable measurement and reporting module for performing signal quality measurements and reporting (to base station 5). Such signal quality measurements can be performed using a (beam-specific) reference signal transmitted by base station 5 and based on a suitable measurement configuration provided by the serving base station 5. Signal quality measurements may include, for example, (detailed) channel condition information (CSI) measurements, reference signal received power (RSRP) measurements, reference signal received quality (RSRQ) measurements, received signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) measurements, and / or signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) measurements and related reporting.

[0099] base station

[0100] Figure 4 It is shown Figure 1 The diagram shows a block diagram of the main components of base station 5. As shown, base station 5 has transceiver circuitry 51 for transmitting and receiving signals from communication devices (such as mobile device 3 / user equipment, etc.) via one or more antennas 53 (e.g., antenna array / massive antenna), and a network interface 55 for transmitting and receiving signals from network nodes (e.g., other base stations and / or nodes in the core network 7). Base station 5 also has a controller 57 for controlling the operation of base station 5. Controller 57 is associated with memory 59. For example, software may be pre-installed in memory 59 and / or may be downloaded via communication network 1 or from a removable data storage device (RMD). In this example, controller 57 is configured to control the overall operation of base station 5 via program instructions or software instructions stored in memory 59. As shown, these software instructions include operating system 61, communication control module 63, beam control module 64, bandwidth adaptation module 65, and DRX control module 66.

[0101] The communication control module 63 is operable to control communication between the base station 5 and the mobile device 3 (user equipment) and other network entities connected to the base station 5. The communication control module 63 also controls the separate flow of control data to be transmitted to communication devices associated with the base station 5 and downlink user services (via associated data radio bearers), wherein the control data includes, for example, control data for core network services and / or movement of the mobile device 3 (and also includes general (non-UE-specific) system information and reference signals).

[0102] The beam control module 64 is responsible for managing the beams (allocated for use) used by each mobile device 3 in one or more cells of the base station 5, for example, by maintaining the appropriate OBS (or corresponding OBS) for the mobile device 3. This includes, for example, adding cells to and removing cells from the set of cells allocated for a particular mobile device 3, based on information such as signal measurements provided by the mobile device 3, associated bandwidth requirements, services used, mobility of the mobile device, and / or other cell-related information such as load information.

[0103] The bandwidth adaptive module 65 is responsible for controlling the switching between appropriate bandwidths corresponding to the current needs (or configuration) of the mobile device 3 served by the base station 5. Specifically, the bandwidth adaptive module 65 controls the enabling / disabling of appropriate broadband data pipelines. In some examples, this is achieved by switching between using an appropriate (UE-specific) primary control resource set and (e.g., in addition to the primary control resource set) an auxiliary control resource set.

[0104] The DRX control module 66 is responsible for configuring the mobile device 3 for discontinuous reception (and / or transmission) as appropriate. In some examples, this discontinuous reception / transmission can be employed for individual beams. In this case, bandwidth adaptation can be facilitated by changing the DRX mode employed by the mobile device 3.

[0105] In the above description, for ease of understanding, mobile device 3 and base station 5 are described as having a number of discrete modules (such as a communication control module and a bandwidth adaptation module). While these modules may be provided in this manner for specific applications, such as modifying existing systems to implement the present invention, in other applications (e.g., in systems designed from the outset with the inventive features in mind), these modules may be integrated into the entire operating system or code, and therefore may not be identified as discrete entities. These modules may be implemented in the form of software, hardware, firmware, or a combination thereof.

[0106] operate

[0107] Now (for reference) Figures 5-9 This section describes in more detail some ways that bandwidth adaptation can be implemented for communication between user equipment and TRP (base station).

[0108] Figure 5 and 6 schematically shown in Figure 1 The system can provide some typical ways to control resource sets. Specifically, Figure 5 Examples are shown where each PDSCH resource 71 has the same number (e.g., one) of associated control resource sets 72 (which may or may not be aggregated), and Figure 6 This illustrates various ways that can provide (UE-specific) aggregated control resource set 72.

[0109] This set of control resources 72 can be advantageously configured for a particular mobile device 3 to allow the mobile device 3 to adjust its bandwidth to its current needs (e.g., at least temporarily increase bandwidth).

[0110] Each control resource set 72 is a PRB in the frequency domain (in Figure 5 The set of PRBs (where X is the number of PRBs) is configured for mobile device 3 to attempt blind decoding of its DCI (if present). In the time domain, the number of OFDM symbols (OS) can be fixed or variable (e.g., 1, 2, or 3 for a given UE). Each PRB set includes a predefined number of control channel elements (CCEs).

[0111] For initial access, the control resource set 72 is preferably pre-configured. For example, the mobile device 3 can obtain the control resource set 72 based on the Master Information Block (MIB) or system information (broadcast by the base station 5), or implicitly derive the control resource set 72 based on the initial access information. In effect, this pre-configured control resource set 72 represents a common search space (CSS) for a specific UE (or group of UEs). After initial access, other control resource sets 72 can be configured in a UE-specific manner, for example using higher-layer signaling (RRC configuration, etc.). This additional control resource set 72 may be referred to as a UE-specific search space (USS).

[0112] The control resource set 72 can be configured for localized or distributed transmission. In the localized case, the control resource set 72 is substantially contiguous, while in the distributed case, the control resource set 72 is not contiguous (i.e., they are spaced apart). The control resource sets may also overlap in the frequency domain.

[0113] exist Figure 5 In the example shown, in each PDSCH section 71, a control resource set 72 (CSS and / or USS) is provided at the start of each DCI monitoring event (e.g., on the preceding one or two OFDM symbols of each time slot). It should be understood that some or all of the control resource sets 72 can be configured as a common control resource set (i.e., CSS), for example... Figure 5 The control resource set 72 is #3. However, where appropriate, some or all of the control resource sets 72 may also be configured as UE-specific control resource sets (i.e., USS).

[0114] In this example, mobile device 3 can be configured (restricted) to: by default use only a predetermined set (e.g., one control resource set) and associated PDSCH portion 71 from control resource set 72; and to use a larger set (e.g., all control resource sets 72) and associated (e.g., all) PDSCH portions 71 in cases of its associated broadband data pipeline activity. In other words, base station 5 can adopt appropriate bandwidth adaptation by changing the amount of control resource set 72 and / or PDSCH portion 71 allocated to mobile device 3. Therefore, base station 5 can advantageously configure mobile device 3 to communicate using only its default (e.g., relatively narrow) bandwidth most of the time, unless mobile device 3 requires relatively large bandwidth, in which case base station 5 can at least temporarily allocate additional control resource set 72 (and additional associated PDSCH portion 71) to mobile device 3.

[0115] It should be understood that the smaller or default set in the control resource set 72 may be referred to as the main control resource set 72p, and the additional set in the control resource set 72 may be referred to as the auxiliary control resource set 72s (for a given mobile device 3).

[0116] exist Figure 6 In the example shown, with Figure 5 Similarly, mobile device 3 is initially configured to monitor a relatively small RF bandwidth (which may be applicable to the common search space and / or its UE-specific search space). In this example, bandwidth adaptation is achieved by changing the amount and / or aggregation (and / or the associated PDSCH portion 71) of the control resource set 72 for mobile device 3.

[0117] Within a relatively small RF bandwidth (here referred to as its primary control resource set 72p), the mobile device 3 can be configured with an aggregated (continuous) control resource set 72 in the time domain (e.g., in a time slot). Specifically, in Figure 6 In the example shown, three control resource sets 72 (control resource sets #1 to #3, each comprising two OFDM symbols) are assigned to the primary control resource set 72p of mobile device 3 (“UE1”). It should be understood that the primary control resource set 72p can carry DCI and / or any related user data for mobile device 3 (but can also schedule user data for different PDSCH regions 71 and / or different time slots, i.e., outside the control resource set 72 of mobile device 3).

[0118] In this system, a so-called auxiliary control resource set 72s can also be provided to compatible user equipment. This auxiliary control resource set 72s includes other aggregated control resource sets 72 in the frequency domain (but some auxiliary control resource sets 72s may also be provided in the time domain where appropriate). It should be understood that the auxiliary control resource sets 72s can be substantially continuous, but... Figure 6 In the example shown, they are non-contiguous. Control resource sets may also overlap in the frequency domain.

[0119] When the mobile device 3 requires only a small amount of RF bandwidth, the mobile device 3 monitors its primary control resource set 71p, and when the mobile device 3 requires a large amount of RF bandwidth, the mobile device 3 also monitors its secondary control resource set 72s.

[0120] In fact, the mobile device 3 and the base station 5 are configured to adopt a two-dimensional control structure, wherein the mobile device 3 is configured to monitor the control resource set 72 in the video domain when operating in a large RF bandwidth (when its broadband data pipeline is active), and to monitor the control resource set 72 in the time domain when operating in a small RF bandwidth.

[0121] The bandwidth of a smaller RF or main control resource set is 72p (in Figure 6 The RF bandwidth (represented by "X") can be advantageously defined based on the number of PRBs (e.g., 4, 6, 8, or 24 RBs) or based on MHz (e.g., 1.4MHz, 5MHz, 10MHz, etc.). It should also be understood that the smaller RF bandwidth can be the same size as the bandwidth of the synchronization signals (PSS and SSS) transmitted in the cell of base station 5. For different UEs, the primary control resource set 72p and the secondary control resource set 72s can be the same or different, for example, to avoid congestion and / or to extend the control load in the frequency domain.

[0122] Operation - Determine the default control resource set

[0123] It should be understood that, in reality, there may be many sets of control resources 72 within a given system bandwidth, but each mobile device 3 is assigned its own corresponding primary set of control resources 72p to monitor while operating in a small (default) RF bandwidth mode.

[0124] The following is a description of some typical ways in which the mobile device 3 can determine the (at least one) control resource set 72 included in its default control resource set 72.

[0125] Specifically, in the first example, the mobile device 3 is configured to determine at least one (e.g., a first) control resource set (“set 1”) in the frequency domain associated with the mobile device 3 based on information used to identify the mobile device 3 (e.g., an appropriate UE identifier (UEID)). For example, if there are N control resource sets in the system bandwidth, the formula “UEID mod (modulo) N” can be used (where “UEID” represents the appropriate UE identifier associated with the mobile device 3 to which control resource set 72 applies).

[0126] In the second example, mobile device 3 is configured to determine at least one (e.g., a first) control resource set (“set 1”) associated with mobile device 3 based on information implicitly notified by the network in the form of signals. In this case, base station 5 may be configured to send corresponding information to each UE (or UE group) in a connected state to identify which control resource set 72 should be used as the starting set of the primary control resource set for that UE / UE group.

[0127] In the third example, at least one (first) control resource set can be implicitly derived by the mobile device 3, for example, based on initial access information (e.g., based on an appropriate (e.g., one-to-one) mapping between each PRACH resource and the corresponding starting set 72 in the UE's main control resource set 72p).

[0128] In the fourth example, at least one (first) control resource set 72 can be randomly selected (e.g., using a pseudo-random function or hash function). In this case, the selection of the initial control resource set 72 has an equal probability among all control resource sets 72. This solution avoids scenarios where the UE selects the same primary control resource set 72p, and thus minimizes conflicts between transmissions for different UEs.

[0129] For example, mobile device 3 and base station 5 can be configured to use the following hash function to derive the initial control resource set 72 in a given time slot:

[0130]

[0131] Where Y-1 = RNTI (Radio Network Temporary Identifier); A = 39827; D = 65537; N = the total number of control resource sets 72 in the system bandwidth (within a given cell), and k is the slot index (e.g., 0 ... 19).

[0132] In the examples above, the remaining control resource set 72 (for a given UE) may be fixed in the time domain (e.g., having a predetermined position relative to the first control resource set), or they may be configurable (i.e., variable) for the base station 5.

[0133] The auxiliary control resource set 72s can also be implicitly derived from the primary control resource set 72p (e.g., according to its first set), for example by applying a fixed offset relative to the primary control resource set 72p or by applying an odd or even resource set 72 in the frequency domain. It should also be understood that the auxiliary control resource set 72s can be explicitly notified by a higher layer in the form of a signal.

[0134] Operational complexity and power consumption associated with bandwidth adaptation

[0135] As described above, NR networks employ beam-oriented transmission technology, where mobile device 3 is configured to monitor the NR-PDCCH on its serving beam used for DCI transmission. However, beam blocking can frequently occur (especially in the higher frequency bands used in NR networks), therefore, NR-compatible mobile device 3 is capable of monitoring multiple beams used to receive NR-PDCCH.

[0136] Therefore, each mobile device 3 can be configured to monitor (e.g., from N beams) multiple NR-PDCCHs even when it is using a relatively small RF bandwidth (e.g., its associated main control resource set 72p).

[0137] However, if mobile device 3 monitors multiple NR-PDCCHs on multiple beams, the processing complexity will increase (proportionally to the number of beams) to receive and decode multiple NR-PDCCHs. In other words, even if the broadband data pipeline is down, mobile device 3 may still need to perform processing-intensive monitoring and related decoding of multiple beams (to determine whether a DCI has been sent to mobile device 3).

[0138] The inventors hypothesize that the mobile device 3 can be configured to report appropriate feedback (to its serving base station 5) relating to the optimal N beams (N depending on the configuration), including their associated CSI values ​​(etc.). Thus, the base station 5 receiving the feedback can assume that at least one beam is active, but it (due to potential beam blocking of one or more reported beams) does not know which beam is active.

[0139] If mobile device 3 fails to successfully decode the control channels from all beams, it is configured to declare a radio link failure (RLF) and initiate an appropriate PRACH transmission procedure to re-establish its connection with base station 5.

[0140] Advantageously, in this system, mobile device 3 is configured to monitor a small number of beams in a TDM manner (e.g., the two or three strongest beams or the N best beams may be configured for each UE, e.g., N = 3 for UE1 / N = 2 for UE2). Mobile device 3 can be configured to monitor these beams substantially continuously (but it is not necessary to monitor all beams associated with mobile device 3). It should be understood that even in the case of beam scanning, beams are typically transmitted in a TDM manner, therefore, mobile device 3 can still monitor a small number of beams as described above. Advantageously, since mobile device 3 does not need to monitor a large number (e.g., all) of beams, its associated complexity and power consumption can be reduced.

[0141] It should be understood that if the serving base station 5 detects DTX feedback from the PDSCH 71 scheduled on the beam, the serving base station 5 can determine which beam has failed. In this case, the mobile device 3 and the base station 5 can replace the failed beam with the next suitable beam when appropriate.

[0142] <Periodic monitoring of the beam>

[0143] Figure 7 This schematically illustrates another typical way in which the mobile device 3 can monitor its associated beam.

[0144] In this example, mobile device 3 is configured to periodically monitor each associated beam during individual beam monitoring times 75 (preferably different for each beam), rather than monitoring a limited (few) number of beams substantially continuously. For example, mobile device 3 may be configured to monitor each beam in a polling manner or similar manner. The monitoring times 75 for each beam should preferably be predefined (e.g., configured by the serving base station 5) to ensure that base station 5 and mobile device 3 are aligned and to prevent mobile device 3 from losing its DCI transmissions.

[0145] In principle, the optimal beam for a particular mobile device 3 is the serving beam 76, which is used to schedule data transmissions (control and user data) for that mobile device 3. In addition to the serving beam 76, the mobile device 3 may also need to monitor other beams for potential beam switching (e.g., due to a failure of the serving beam 76).

[0146] In this example, base station 5 is configured to assume a possible beam failure for a specific beam if it does not receive any (explicit) Ack / Nack feedback (i.e., DTX) from mobile device 3 after transmitting a PDSCH on that specific beam (serving beam 76). If base station 5 determines a potential beam failure, it is configured to switch to another suitable beam and begin transmitting control channels on that beam. Since mobile device 3 is configured to periodically monitor each beam, it is likely that during each beam monitoring period 75, it will be able to receive a (re)transmission of PDSCH on another beam and acknowledge receipt by generating and transmitting appropriate feedback. Once a control channel is received in the new beam, mobile device 3 is configured to switch to that beam as its new serving beam 76.

[0147] exist Figure 7 In the scenario shown, mobile device 3 initially monitors beam #1 (its current serving beam 76) and also monitors beams #2 and #3 during the relevant monitoring period 75. When mobile device 3 detects a control channel transmission (e.g., DCI) on its current serving beam 76, it is configured to seek downlink transmissions via serving beam 76 (and / or any other beam specified by the DCI). However, when mobile device 3 detects a control channel transmission (e.g., DCI) on a different beam (beam #3 in this example), it is configured to switch to that beam as its new serving beam 76 (provided that serving beam 76 remains an appropriate beam for mobile device 3, and / or until serving beam 76 is otherwise configured).

[0148] <Copy PDCCH and send>

[0149] In yet another example, base station 5 can be configured to replicate its NR-PDCCH transmission in each beam (N beams), so that mobile device 3 can see the superimposed version of the NR-PDCCH (similar to single-frequency network (SFN) transmission).

[0150] To achieve SFN-type transmission, all involved beams need to be coordinated, and the transmission should preferably have the same initialization. SFN transmission can be applied to all time slots, or to a subset of time slots, where the mobile device 3 and base station 5 are aware of and aligned during the corresponding beam monitoring timing 75. Advantageously, this alternative can be used even when CSI feedback is unavailable.

[0151] Operation - DRX

[0152] Figure 8 and 9Some exemplary embodiments of discontinuous reception / transmission that can be used for bandwidth adaptation are schematically illustrated.

[0153] Figure 8 This illustrates a typical DRX approach similar to DRX in LTE, although slightly modified for bandwidth adaptation purposes. In practice, base station 5 configures mobile device 3 with a bandwidth-adaptive dependent DRX setting, or "bandwidth-adaptive" DRX configuration, which may include different DRX configurations (different DRX periods and / or on / off time periods) for different bandwidths used by mobile device 3.

[0154] As can be seen, when mobile device 3 operates in its smaller RF bandwidth area (e.g., during initial access), it applies a first DRX setting, in which a corresponding DRX "off" period is applied for a relatively short time (during which mobile device 3 is configured to turn off its transceiver 31), followed by a relatively longer "on" period (during which mobile device 3 is configured to turn on its transceiver 31). Therefore, mobile device 3 can be configured to monitor its associated beam only during the DRX "on" window (within a given DRX cycle), which may result in a further reduction in the overall power consumption of the mobile device.

[0155] However, when mobile device 3 operates in a larger RF bandwidth (its wideband data pipeline is enabled), it is configured to employ different DRX settings. Specifically, in this example, a bandwidth-adaptive specific DRX period can be provided, such that (compared to the "off" and / or "on" periods of the DRX period applied during small RF operation) a relevant DRX "off" period is applied for a relatively long time, and a DRX "on" period is applied for a relatively short time. Therefore, even when operating on a relatively large bandwidth, mobile device 3 is able to maintain its power consumption at an optimal level due to the application of a relatively short DRX "on" window (within a given DRX period).

[0156] In other words, the DRX settings applied to mobile device 3 depend on the current RF bandwidth allocation of mobile device 3 (wideband data pipeline enabled or disabled). Therefore, advantageously, when base station 5 configures appropriate DRX settings for mobile device 3, it takes into account any frequency domain information / RF bandwidth that mobile device 3 can use. Thus, a first DRX setting can be provided for default / initial / narrowband RF operation, and a second (different) DRX setting can be provided to mobile device 3 (either in advance or when wideband data pipeline is enabled) for wideband RF operation.

[0157] Despite Figure 8The first and second DRX cycles have the same duration; however, it should be understood that in some cases, they can have different durations if appropriate. It should also be understood that more than two DRX settings can be provided, for example, different DRX settings for different bandwidths (ranges), each DRX setting being adjusted to allow optimal power consumption at mobile device 3 for the specific bandwidth being used (e.g., falling within the bandwidth range associated with the DRX setting). Since base station 5 also knows which bandwidth is currently allocated to mobile device 3 at any given time, base station 5 is able to apply the correct DRX setting to mobile device 3 (and time its transmissions to mobile device 3 based on the currently applicable DRX setting to coincide with the associated "on" time period).

[0158] Figure 9 Show Figure 8 A modified example of the illustrated example. In this example, mobile device 3 is configured to monitor multiple beams one by one based on an associated beam scanning time period, wherein the associated beam scanning time period has a time window in which mobile device 3 is configured to monitor a specific beam (and mobile device 3 is configured not to monitor other beams). Figure 9 As can be seen from the three patterns above, each beam can have different beam monitoring windows within its (repeated) associated beam scanning time period. In fact, this is consistent with the above reference... Figure 7 The described embodiments correspond to different beams having different associated beam monitoring timings 75.

[0159] However, in this example, mobile device 3 is also configured to use an appropriate DRX configuration (e.g., as referenced above). Figure 8 The bandwidth adaptive DRX configuration described above. Advantageously, in this example, the actual or effective DRX "on" time period can be derived as a combination of the beam scanning time period and the configured DRX mode. Specifically, the mobile device 3 can be configured to monitor its assigned beam only during the "on" time period of its currently applicable DRX cycle, within the corresponding associated beam monitoring opportunity 75 (or window). Therefore, in Figure 9 In the example shown, if mobile device 3 is only monitoring beams #1 and #3, the beam monitoring activity generated after the application of the DRX cycle is shown by the pattern at the bottom.

[0160] Another benefit associated with this modification is that the mobile device 3 can achieve a further reduction in its overall power consumption while still being able to adapt its bandwidth and use the appropriate broadband data pipeline when necessary.

[0161] Modified and Alternative Examples

[0162] Exemplary embodiments in detail have been described above. As those skilled in the art will understand, various modifications and substitutions can be made to the above embodiments while still benefiting from the invention embodied herein. By way of illustration, only a few such alternatives and modifications will now be described.

[0163] It should be understood that beam configurations can differ for different cells, depending on the coverage / throughput requirements of the specific cell. For example, a large number of very narrow beams can be used for a large cell radius, while fewer and relatively wide beams can be used to facilitate fast cell acquisition and reduce the overhead of transmitting beam-specific reference signals. In some cases, the beam configuration can consist of a single beam, thereby defining the coverage area of ​​the entire cell (similar to a traditional cell).

[0164] It should also be understood that the beam configuration of a given cell can be changed semi-statically, for example, for adaptive purposes of self-organizing networks (SON) such as capacity and coverage optimization (CCOpt). In this case, reconfiguration of a particular beam configuration may include changing the beamwidth of one or more beams and / or changing the number of beams (e.g., turning beams on or off).

[0165] In the exemplary embodiments described above, bandwidth adaptation is performed based on changes in the data transmission needs of the mobile device. However, it should be understood that bandwidth adaptation can also be performed based on many other factors, including but not limited to: system load; signal quality, modulation scheme, applications / services in use (user-enabled and / or background applications / services); user subscription; UE capabilities, UE power priority; UE battery saving priority / battery level; UE mobility (stationary / moving / walking / high-speed); user location (home / office / public area / commuting); network / base station / cell in use; roaming / non-roaming user; and / or time of day, etc.

[0166] It should be understood that the specific bandwidth adaptation method employed and / or the way control resource sets are provided may vary from cell to cell, base station to UE. It should also be understood that bandwidth adaptation may be selectively provided, for example, for a subset of UEs being served by the base station and / or a subset of the beams used by the base station.

[0167] In the exemplary embodiments described above, the base station is described as transmitting multiple directional beams. It should be understood that data can be transmitted substantially in parallel via the multiple beams. However, in some cases, such as when using hybrid (partially analog and partially digital) beamforming, it may not be possible to transmit all beams at once. It should be understood that in such cases, a technique known as "beam sweeping" (i.e., transmitting one beam at a time) can be used.

[0168] In the exemplary embodiments described above, the base station uses 3GPP wireless communication (radio access) technology to communicate with the mobile device. However, any other wireless communication technology (i.e., WLAN, Wi-Fi, WiMAX, Bluetooth, etc.) can be used between the base station and the mobile device according to the above embodiments. The exemplary embodiments described above are also applicable to "non-mobile" or generally stationary user equipment.

[0169] In the above description, for ease of understanding, mobile devices and base stations are described as having multiple discrete functional components or modules. Although these modules may be provided in this manner for a specific application, such as modifying an existing system to implement the invention, in other applications (e.g., in systems designed from the outset with the inventive features in mind), these modules may be integrated into the overall operating system or code, and thus may not be identified as discrete entities.

[0170] In the exemplary embodiments described above, multiple software modules are illustrated. As those skilled in the art will understand, software modules may be provided in compiled or uncompiled form and may be provided as signals to a base station or mobile device via a computer network or on a recording medium. Furthermore, one or more dedicated hardware circuits may be used to perform some or all of the functions performed by the software. However, the use of software modules is preferred because it facilitates updates to the base station or mobile device to update its functionality.

[0171] Each controller may include any suitable form of processing circuitry, including (but not limited to), for example: one or more hardware-implemented computer processors; microprocessors; central processing units (CPUs); arithmetic logic units (ALUs); input / output (I / O) circuitry; internal memory / cache (program and / or data); processing registers; communication buses (e.g., control, data, and / or address buses); direct memory access (DMA) functionality; and / or hardware or software-implemented counters, pointers, and / or timers, etc.

[0172] The first control resource set may be specific to a communication device (e.g., a UE-specific search space, i.e., USS). Optionally, the first control resource set may be shared among multiple communication devices (e.g., a common search space, i.e., CSS). The second control resource set may be specific to a communication device (e.g., a UE-specific search space, i.e., USS).

[0173] The first bandwidth may be less than the second bandwidth. A first set of control resources may be provided across one or more time-domain resources (e.g., time slots), and a second set of control resources may be provided across one or more time-domain resources (e.g., time slots), and the range of the first set in the time domain may be different from (e.g., greater than) the range of the second set in the time domain.

[0174] The first bandwidth may correspond to at least one of the following: a frequency band defined by the number of resource blocks (e.g., 4, 6, 8, or 24 resource blocks); a frequency band defined by the frequency (1.4 MHz, 5 MHz, or 10 MHz); or a frequency band defined by the bandwidth of the synchronization signal transmitted by the base station.

[0175] Monitoring of control data transmitted using a first set of control resources and monitoring of control data transmitted using a second set of control resources may at least include monitoring of control data (e.g., downlink control information, or DCI) used to specify whether a communication device is being scheduled for communication in the current transmission opportunity.

[0176] The method may further include: receiving control data transmitted using at least one of a first control resource set and a second control resource set while monitoring control data; and communicating (e.g., transmitting and / or receiving) user data based on the received control data (e.g., via a physical downlink shared channel, i.e., PDSCH) using a bandwidth substantially equal to the first or second bandwidth of the transmitted control data.

[0177] The first control resource set may include an aggregation of multiple smaller control resource sets in the time domain. The second control resource set may include an aggregation of multiple control resource sets in the frequency domain (and optionally the time domain).

[0178] The method may also include identifying the first control resource set prior to monitoring control data sent using the first control resource set.

[0179] The identification of the first control resource set can be based on information associated with the communication device (e.g., using the formula “UEID mod N”, where “N” represents the total number of control resource sets in the system bandwidth of the base station, and “UEID” represents information associated with the communication device).

[0180] The identification of the first set of control resources can be based on at least one physical random access channel (PRACH) resource associated with the communication device.

[0181] The identification of the first control resource set can be based on a pseudo-random function or a hash function.

[0182] The method may also include identifying the second control resource based on the first control resource set prior to monitoring control data sent using the second control resource set.

[0183] The first and second surveillance opportunities can occur at different times in the time domain.

[0184] The first bandwidth may be smaller than the second bandwidth, and the first DRX configuration may represent a DRX mode with a long on time period compared to the second DRX configuration (and / or the first DRX configuration may represent a DRX mode with a short off time period compared to the second DRX configuration).

[0185] The communication device can be configured not to monitor control data during the DRX mode activation period, in monitoring opportunities associated with at least one other beam.

[0186] The method may also include communicating (e.g., sending and / or receiving) user data based on the transmitted control data (e.g., sending and / or receiving) using a bandwidth substantially equal to the first or second bandwidth of the transmitted control data (i.e., via the physical downlink shared channel, PDSCH).

[0187] Base stations may include base stations for next-generation (NextGen or 5G) radio access networks.

[0188] Various other modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art and will not be described in further detail here.

[0189] All or part of the embodiments disclosed above may be described in, but are not limited to, the following supplementary description.

[0190] (Supplementary Note 1)

[0191] A method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving an associated communication area, the method comprising:

[0192] Use the first bandwidth for communication;

[0193] Monitor control data transmitted by the base station using the first set of control resources transmitted in the first bandwidth;

[0194] Switching to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0195] Monitor control data transmitted by the base station using the second set of control resources transmitted in the second bandwidth.

[0196] (Supplementary Note 2)

[0197] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 1, the first control resource set is specific to the communication device (e.g., UE-specific search space, i.e., USS).

[0198] (Supplementary Note 3)

[0199] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 1, the first set of control resources is shared among multiple communication devices (e.g., a common search space, i.e., CSS).

[0200] (Supplementary Note 4)

[0201] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 3, the second control resource set is specific to the communication device (e.g., UE-specific search space, i.e., USS).

[0202] (Supplementary Note 5)

[0203] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, the method wherein the first bandwidth is less than the second bandwidth.

[0204] (Supplementary Note 6)

[0205] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 5, the method provides the first control resource set across one or more time-domain resources (e.g., time slots) and provides the second control resource set across one or more time-domain resources (e.g., time slots), wherein the range of the first set in the time domain is different from (e.g., greater than) the range of the second set in the time domain.

[0206] (Supplementary Note 7)

[0207] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 6, the first bandwidth corresponds to at least one of the following: a frequency band defined according to the number of resource blocks (e.g., 4, 6, 8, or 24 resource blocks); a frequency band defined according to the frequency (1.4 MHz, 5 MHz, or 10 MHz); or a frequency band defined according to the bandwidth of the synchronization signal transmitted by the base station.

[0208] (Supplementary Note 8)

[0209] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 7, the monitoring of control data transmitted using the first control resource set and the monitoring of control data transmitted using the second control resource set at least one includes: monitoring of control data (e.g., downlink control information, i.e., DCI) used to indicate whether the communication device is being scheduled for communication in the current transmission opportunity.

[0210] (Supplementary Note 9)

[0211] The method according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 8 further includes: receiving control data transmitted using at least one of the first control resource set and the second control resource set while monitoring the control data; and communicating (e.g., transmitting and / or receiving) user data based on the received control data (e.g., via a physical downlink shared channel, i.e., PDSCH) using a bandwidth substantially equal to the first or second bandwidth of the control data being transmitted.

[0212] (Supplementary Note 10)

[0213] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 9, the method wherein the first control resource set comprises an aggregation of a plurality of smaller control resource sets in the time domain.

[0214] (Supplementary Note 11)

[0215] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 10, the method wherein the second control resource set includes an aggregation of multiple control resource sets in the frequency domain (and optionally the time domain).

[0216] (Supplementary Note 12)

[0217] According to any one of Supplementary Descriptions 1 to 11, the communication area is formed by a plurality of directional beams, each directional beam covering a corresponding portion of the communication area.

[0218] (Supplementary Note 13)

[0219] The method according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 12 further includes identifying the first control resource set before monitoring control data transmitted using the first control resource set.

[0220] (Supplementary Note 14)

[0221] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 13, the identification of the first control resource set is based on information associated with the communication device (e.g., using the formula "UEID mod N", where "N" represents the total number of control resource sets in the system bandwidth of the base station, and "UEID" represents information associated with the communication device).

[0222] (Supplementary Note 15)

[0223] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 13, the identification of the first control resource set is based on at least one physical random access channel resource, i.e., PRACH resource, associated with the communication device.

[0224] (Supplementary Note 16)

[0225] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 13, the identification of the first control resource set is based on a pseudo-random function or a hash function.

[0226] (Supplementary Note 17)

[0227] The method according to any one of Supplementary Notes 13 to 16 further includes identifying the second control resource based on the first control resource set before monitoring control data transmitted using the second control resource set.

[0228] (Supplementary Note 18)

[0229] A method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a correlated communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising:

[0230] During the first surveillance opportunity, monitor the control data transmitted by the base station using the first beam;

[0231] During the second surveillance opportunity, control data transmitted by the base station using a second beam is monitored;

[0232] Receive control data transmitted using at least one of the following: a first beam in the first surveillance opportunity; and a second beam in the second surveillance opportunity; and

[0233] The service beam is identified based on the reception of the control data.

[0234] (Supplementary Note 19)

[0235] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 18, the first monitoring opportunity and the second monitoring opportunity occur at different time periods in the time domain.

[0236] (Supplementary Note 20)

[0237] A method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a correlated communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising:

[0238] Receive first control data transmitted by the base station using a first beam;

[0239] Receive second control data transmitted by the base station using a second beam;

[0240] The second control data is a copy of the first control data.

[0241] (Supplementary Note 21)

[0242] A method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving an associated communication area, the method comprising:

[0243] Communication is performed using a first bandwidth according to the first discontinuous reception configuration, i.e., the first DRX configuration.

[0244] Switching to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0245] The second bandwidth is used for communication according to the second DRX configuration;

[0246] The first DRX configuration represents a different DRX mode than the second DRX configuration.

[0247] (Supplementary Note 22)

[0248] According to the method described in Supplementary Explanation 21, the first bandwidth is smaller than the second bandwidth, and the first DRX configuration represents a DRX mode with a long on time period relative to the second DRX configuration (and / or the first DRX configuration represents a DRX mode with a short off time period relative to the second DRX configuration).

[0249] (Supplementary Note 23)

[0250] A method performed by a communication device in a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a correlated communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, wherein each beam has associated monitoring opportunities in which the base station can transmit control data, the method comprising:

[0251] Communication is performed based on a discontinuous reception mode, namely DRX mode, which has an on-time period and an off-time period; and

[0252] Based on the DRX mode, control data transmitted by the base station using the at least one beam is monitored during monitoring opportunities associated with at least one beam;

[0253] The communication device monitors control data during the DRX mode activation period in a monitoring opportunity associated with the at least one beam, but does not monitor control data during the DRX mode deactivation period in the monitoring opportunity.

[0254] (Supplementary Note 24)

[0255] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 23, during the period when the DRX mode is enabled, the communication device does not monitor control data during monitoring opportunities associated with at least one other beam.

[0256] (Supplementary Note 25)

[0257] A method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area in the communication system, the method comprising:

[0258] Use the first bandwidth to communicate with the communication device;

[0259] The first set of control resources transmitted in the first bandwidth is used to send control data to the communication device;

[0260] Switching to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0261] The second set of control resources transmitted in the second bandwidth is used to send control data to the communication device.

[0262] (Supplementary Note 26)

[0263] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 25, the first control resource set is provided by a first set of one or more time-domain resources (e.g., time slots), and the second control resource set is provided by a second set of one or more time-domain resources (e.g., time slots), wherein the range of the first set in the time domain is different from (e.g., greater than) the range of the second set in the time domain.

[0264] (Supplementary Note 27)

[0265] The method described according to Supplementary Note 25 or 26 further includes communicating (e.g., sending and / or receiving) user data based on the transmitted control data (e.g., via the Physical Downlink Shared Channel, i.e., PDSCH) using a bandwidth substantially equal to that of the first or second bandwidth used to transmit the control data.

[0266] (Supplementary Note 28)

[0267] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 25 to 27, the method wherein the first control resource set comprises an aggregation of a plurality of smaller control resource sets in the time domain.

[0268] (Supplementary Note 29)

[0269] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 25 to 28, the method wherein the second control resource set includes an aggregation of multiple control resource sets in the frequency domain (and optionally the time domain).

[0270] (Supplementary Note 30)

[0271] The method according to any one of Supplementary Notes 25 to 29 further includes identifying the first control resource set before sending the control data using the first control resource set.

[0272] (Supplementary Note 31)

[0273] According to any one of Supplementary Notes 25 to 30, the base station includes a base station of a NextGen radio access network.

[0274] (Supplementary Note 32)

[0275] A method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising:

[0276] After the control data is transmitted using the first beam, monitor the feedback from the communication device related to the control data transmitted using the first beam;

[0277] After the control data is transmitted using the second beam, monitor the feedback from the communication device related to the control data transmitted using the second beam;

[0278] Receive feedback from the communication device relating to at least one of the following: control data transmitted using the first beam; and control data transmitted using the second beam; and

[0279] The service beam is identified based on the received feedback.

[0280] (Supplementary Explanation 33)

[0281] According to the method described in Supplementary Explanation 32, the transmission of control data using the first beam and the transmission of control data using the second beam occur at different time periods in the time domain.

[0282] (Supplementary Note 34)

[0283] A method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a corresponding communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, the method comprising:

[0284] Sending first control data to at least one communication device using a first beam; and

[0285] The second beam is used to transmit second control data to the at least one communication device;

[0286] The second control data is a copy of the first control data.

[0287] (Supplementary Note 35)

[0288] A method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a relevant communication area in the communication system, the method comprising:

[0289] According to the first discontinuous reception configuration, i.e. the first DRX configuration, a first bandwidth is used to communicate with the communication device;

[0290] Switching to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0291] The second bandwidth is used to communicate with the communication device according to the second DRX configuration;

[0292] The first DRX configuration represents a different DRX mode than the second DRX configuration.

[0293] (Supplementary Explanation 36)

[0294] According to the method described in Supplementary Note 35, the first bandwidth is smaller than the second bandwidth, and the first DRX configuration represents a DRX mode with a long on time period relative to the second DRX configuration (and / or the first DRX configuration represents a DRX mode with a short off time period relative to the second DRX configuration).

[0295] (Supplementary Note 37)

[0296] A method performed by a base station in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a related communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, wherein each beam has associated monitoring opportunities in which the base station can transmit control data, the method comprising:

[0297] Communicating with the communication device based on a discontinuous reception mode, namely DRX mode, which has an on period and an off period; and

[0298] Based on the DRX mode, control data is transmitted to the communication device using the at least one beam during a transmission opportunity associated with at least one beam, such that:

[0299] Control data is transmitted during the DRX mode activation period in the transmission opportunities associated with the at least one beam, but no control data is transmitted during the monitoring opportunities during the DRX mode deactivation period.

[0300] (Supplementary Note 38)

[0301] A communication device for a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, wherein the communication device includes:

[0302] Controllers and transceivers;

[0303] The transceiver is operable to communicate with the base station using a first bandwidth; and

[0304] The controller is capable of operating to:

[0305] Monitor control data transmitted by the base station using the first set of control resources transmitted in the first bandwidth;

[0306] The transceiver is switched to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0307] Monitor control data transmitted by the base station using the second set of control resources transmitted in the second bandwidth.

[0308] (Supplementary Note 39)

[0309] A communication device for a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, wherein the communication device includes:

[0310] Controllers and transceivers;

[0311] The controller is capable of operating to:

[0312] During the first surveillance opportunity, monitor the control data transmitted by the base station using the first beam;

[0313] During the second surveillance opportunity, control data transmitted by the base station using a second beam is monitored;

[0314] The transceiver is operable to receive control data transmitted using at least one of the following: a first beam in the first surveillance opportunity; and a second beam in the second surveillance opportunity; and

[0315] The controller is operable to identify the serving beam based on the reception of the control data.

[0316] (Supplementary Note 40)

[0317] A communication device for a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, wherein the communication device includes:

[0318] A controller and a transceiver, wherein the transceiver is operable to:

[0319] Receive first control data transmitted by the base station using a first beam; and

[0320] Receive second control data transmitted by the base station using a second beam;

[0321] The second control data is a copy of the first control data.

[0322] (Supplementary Note 41)

[0323] A communication device for a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a communication area, wherein the communication device includes:

[0324] Controllers and transceivers;

[0325] The transceiver is operable to communicate using a first bandwidth according to a first discontinuous reception configuration, i.e., a first DRX configuration;

[0326] The controller is operable to switch the transceiver to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0327] The transceiver is operable to use the second bandwidth for communication according to the second DRX configuration;

[0328] The first DRX configuration represents a different DRX mode than the second DRX configuration.

[0329] (Supplementary Note 42)

[0330] A communication apparatus for a communication system, the communication system including a base station serving a correlated communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams, wherein each beam has associated monitoring opportunities in which the base station can transmit control data, the communication apparatus comprising:

[0331] Controllers and transceivers;

[0332] The controller is capable of operating to:

[0333] Control the transceiver to communicate according to a discontinuous reception mode, i.e., DRX mode, which has an on period and an off period; and

[0334] Based on the DRX mode, control data transmitted by the base station using the at least one beam is monitored during monitoring opportunities associated with at least one beam; and

[0335] The controller is operable to monitor control data during a monitoring opportunity associated with the at least one beam during the DRX mode's on period, but is also operable to not monitor control data during the monitoring opportunity during the DRX mode's off period.

[0336] (Supplementary Note 43)

[0337] A base station for use in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area in the communication system, wherein the base station comprises:

[0338] Controllers and transceivers;

[0339] The transceiver is capable of operating to:

[0340] Use the first bandwidth to communicate with the communication device; and

[0341] The first set of control resources transmitted in the first bandwidth is used to send control data to the communication device;

[0342] The controller is operable to switch the transceiver to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0343] The transceiver is operable to send control data to the communication device using the second set of control resources transmitted in the second bandwidth.

[0344] (Supplementary Note 44)

[0345] A base station for use in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams in the communication system, wherein the base station comprises:

[0346] Controllers and transceivers;

[0347] The controller is capable of operating to:

[0348] After the control data is transmitted using the first beam, monitor the feedback from the communication device related to the control data transmitted using the first beam;

[0349] After the control data is transmitted using the second beam, monitor the feedback from the communication device related to the control data transmitted using the second beam;

[0350] The transceiver is operable to receive feedback from the communication device relating to at least one of the following: control data transmitted using the first beam; and control data transmitted using the second beam; and

[0351] The controller is operable to identify the serving beam based on the received feedback.

[0352] (Supplementary Note 45)

[0353] A base station for use in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area formed by a plurality of directional beams in the communication system, wherein the base station comprises:

[0354] Controllers and transceivers;

[0355] The transceiver is capable of operating to:

[0356] Sending first control data to at least one communication device using a first beam; and

[0357] The second beam is used to transmit second control data to the at least one communication device;

[0358] The second control data is a copy of the first control data.

[0359] (Supplementary Explanation 46)

[0360] A base station for use in a communication system, wherein the base station serves a communication area in the communication system, wherein the base station comprises:

[0361] Controllers and transceivers;

[0362] The transceiver is operable to communicate with a communication device using a first bandwidth according to a first discontinuous reception configuration, i.e., a first DRX configuration;

[0363] The controller is operable to switch the transceiver to use a second bandwidth for the communication, wherein the second bandwidth is different from the first bandwidth; and

[0364] The transceiver is operable to use the second bandwidth to communicate with the communication device according to the second DRX configuration;

[0365] The first DRX configuration represents a different DRX mode than the second DRX configuration.

[0366] (Supplementary Note 47)

[0367] A system comprising a communication device according to any one of Supplementary Descriptions 38 to 42 and a base station according to any one of Supplementary Descriptions 43 to 46.

[0368] (Supplementary Note 48)

[0369] A computer-implementable instruction product includes computer-implementable instructions for enabling a programmable communication device to be configured as a communication device according to any one of Supplementary Descriptions 38 to 42.

[0370] (Supplementary Note 49)

[0371] A computer-implementable instruction product includes computer-implementable instructions for enabling a programmable communication device to be configured as a base station according to any one of Supplementary Descriptions 43 to 46.

[0372] This application is based on and claims the benefit of priority to UK patent application 1704762.2 filed on 24 March 2017, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Claims

1. A user equipment, comprising: Memory, which stores instructions; as well as At least one processor is configured to process the instructions to: Configure multiple bandwidth portions for receiving control information, each of the multiple bandwidth portions being included in the system bandwidth and different from each other; For each of the plurality of bandwidth portions, a common search space, i.e., at least one corresponding control resource set used by the CSS, is configured, wherein the number of frequency resources of the at least one corresponding control resource set used by the CSS is determined for the corresponding bandwidth of each of the plurality of bandwidth portions. as well as Using at least one corresponding set of control resources corresponding to one of the plurality of bandwidth portions, control information transmitted on that one of the plurality of bandwidth portions is monitored.

2. The user equipment according to claim 1, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to process the instructions to: Switching between the plurality of bandwidth portions for monitoring, and At least one set of control resources for monitoring is selected based on the switching of the bandwidth portion.

3. The user equipment according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to process the instructions to switch the bandwidth portion based on at least one of the following: Downlink control information, or DCI; The expiration of inactive timers used for the corresponding bandwidth portion; Media Access Control - Control Element, also known as MAC-CE; as well as Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

4. The user equipment according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The at least one control resource set includes a control resource set for initial access, and the at least one processor is further configured to process the instructions to: Information for the control resource set used for initial access is received via the main information block (MIB) or system information.

5. The user equipment according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to process the instructions to: Receive information about the location of the at least one corresponding control resource set, and The control information is monitored using information about the location of at least one corresponding control resource set.

6. The user equipment according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The duration of the at least one corresponding control resource set is at least one of 1 symbol, 2 symbols, and 3 symbols.

7. The user equipment according to claim 3, wherein, The at least one processor is further configured to process the instructions to switch to the bandwidth portion for initial access based on the expiration of the inactive timer for the corresponding bandwidth portion.

8. A method for a user equipment, comprising: Configure multiple bandwidth portions for receiving control information, each of the multiple bandwidth portions being included in the system bandwidth and different from each other; For each of the plurality of bandwidth portions, a common search space, i.e., at least one corresponding control resource set used by the CSS, is configured, wherein the number of frequency resources of the at least one corresponding control resource set used by the CSS is determined for the corresponding bandwidth of each of the plurality of bandwidth portions. as well as Using at least one corresponding set of control resources corresponding to one of the plurality of bandwidth portions, control information transmitted on that one of the plurality of bandwidth portions is monitored.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising: Switching between the plurality of bandwidth portions for monitoring, and At least one set of control resources for monitoring is selected based on the switching of the bandwidth portion.

10. The method of claim 8 or 9, further comprising switching the bandwidth portion based on at least one of the following: Downlink control information, or DCI; The expiration of inactive timers used for the corresponding bandwidth portion; Media Access Control - Control Element, namely MAC-CE; and Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

11. The method according to claim 8 or 9, wherein, The at least one control resource set includes a control resource set for initial access, and the method further includes: Information for the control resource set used for initial access is received via the main information block (MIB) or system information.

12. The method according to claim 8 or 9, further comprising: Receive information about the location of the at least one corresponding control resource set, and The control information is monitored using information about the location of at least one corresponding control resource set.

13. The method according to claim 8 or 9, wherein, The duration of the at least one corresponding control resource set is at least one of 1 symbol, 2 symbols, and 3 symbols.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising: The system switches to the bandwidth portion used for initial access based on the expiration of the inactive timer for the corresponding bandwidth portion.

15. A base station, comprising: Memory, which is used to store instructions; as well as At least one processor is configured to process the instructions to: Information is sent for configuring the transmission of control information for the user equipment, wherein each of the multiple bandwidth portions is included in the system bandwidth and is different from one another; Send information for configuring at least one corresponding control resource set used by the common search space (CSS) for each of the plurality of bandwidth portions for the user equipment, wherein the number of frequency resources of the at least one corresponding control resource set used by the CSS is determined for the corresponding bandwidth of each of the plurality of bandwidth portions; as well as Control information is transmitted on one of the multiple bandwidth portions. The control information is monitored by the user equipment using at least one corresponding set of control resources corresponding to one of the plurality of bandwidth portions.

16. A method for a base station, comprising: Information is sent for configuring the transmission of control information for the user equipment, wherein each of the multiple bandwidth portions is included in the system bandwidth and is different from one another; Sending information for configuring at least one corresponding control resource set used by the common search space (CSS) for each of the plurality of bandwidth portions for the user equipment, wherein the number of frequency resources of the at least one corresponding control resource set used by the CSS is determined for the corresponding bandwidth of each of the plurality of bandwidth portions; and Control information is transmitted on one of the multiple bandwidth portions. The control information is monitored by the user equipment using at least one corresponding set of control resources corresponding to one of the plurality of bandwidth portions.

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