Efficient Beam Management in Wireless Networks

Abstract

According to an example embodiment, an example method may include estimating, by a receiver device in a wireless network, a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on an estimated received power of each active beam to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; receiving, by the receiver device, verification information associated with the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; and verifying, by the receiver device, the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the verification information.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 935,610, filed on November 14, 2019, entitled “Efficient Beam Management For Wireless Networks,” the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] This specification relates to wireless communications. Background Art

[0004] A communication system may be a facility that enables communication between two or more nodes or devices, such as fixed or mobile communication devices. Signals may be carried on wired or wireless carriers.

[0005] An example of a cellular communication system is an architecture standardized by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). The latest development in this field is generally referred to as the Long Term Evolution (LTE) of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) radio access technology. E UTRA (Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access) is the air interface of the 3GPP's mobile network Long Term Evolution (LTE) upgrade path. In LTE, a base station or access point (AP) called an enhanced node AP (eNB) provides wireless access within a coverage area or cell. In LTE, a mobile device or mobile station is called a user equipment (UE). LTE has included many improvements or developments. Various aspects of LTE are also constantly improving.

[0006] 5G New Radio (NR) development is part of the ongoing mobile broadband evolution process to meet 5G requirements, similar to the earlier evolution of 3G and 4G wireless networks. In addition to mobile broadband, 5G targets emerging use cases. One goal of 5G is to significantly improve wireless performance, which can include higher levels of data rates, latency, reliability, and security. 5G NR can also be extended to efficiently connect massive Internet of Things (IoT) and can provide new mission-critical services. For example, ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) equipment may require high reliability and very low latency. Summary of the invention

[0007] According to an example embodiment, a method may include estimating, by a receiver device in a wireless network, a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on an estimated received power of each active beam to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; receiving, by the receiver device, verification information associated with the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; and verifying, by the receiver device, the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the verification information.

[0008] According to another example embodiment, a method may include transmitting, by a network node in a wireless network, a signal via each active beam in a set of multiple receiver devices of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the set of multiple receiver devices of active beams; and transmitting, by the network node, verification information to at least one receiver device in a group of receiver devices to be scheduled, the verification information allowing the at least one receiver device to verify the estimated set of estimated active beams for the receiver device.

[0009] Other example embodiments are provided or described for each of the example methods, including: a component for performing any of the example methods; a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, including instructions stored thereon, which instructions, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause a computing system to perform any of the example methods; and an apparatus, including at least one processor and at least one memory, the at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform any of the example methods.

[0010] The details of one or more examples of embodiments are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Figure 1 is a block diagram of a wireless network according to an example embodiment.

[0012] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating a process of estimating an active beam set according to an illustrative example embodiment.

[0013] Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating operation according to an example embodiment.

[0014] Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a receiver according to an example embodiment.

[0015] Figure 5is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a network node according to an example embodiment.

[0016] Figure 6 is a block diagram of a wireless station or network node (e.g., an AP, BS, RAN node, gNB, UE or user equipment, receiver device, or other network node) according to an example embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] Figure 1 is a block diagram of a wireless network 130 according to an example embodiment. Figure 1 In the wireless network 130, user equipment 131, 132, 133 and 135 (which may also be referred to as mobile stations (MS) or user equipment (UE)) can be connected to (and communicate with) a base station (BS) 134, which may also be referred to as an access point (AP), an enhanced node B (eNB), a BS, a next generation node B (gNB), a next generation enhanced node B (ng-eNB) or a network node. The terms user equipment or user equipment (UE) can be used interchangeably. The BS may also include or may be referred to as a RAN (radio access network) node, and may include a portion of a BS or a portion of a RAN node, such as (for example, such as a centralized unit (CU) and / or a distributed unit (DU) in the case of a split BS). At least part of the functionality of the BS (e.g., an access point (AP), a base station (BS) or an (e) node B (eNB), a BS, a RAN node) may also be performed by any node, server or host that may be operably coupled to a transceiver (such as a remote radio head). BS (or AP) 134 provides wireless coverage within cell 136, including to user equipment (or UE) 131, 132, 133, and 135. Although only four user equipment (or UE) are shown as connected or attached to BS 134, any number of user equipment may be provided. BS 134 is also connected to core network 150 via S1 interface or NG interface 151. This is just one simple example of a wireless network, and other wireless networks may be used.

[0018] A base station (e.g., such as BS 134) is an example of a radio access network (RAN) node within a wireless network. A BS (or RAN node) may be or may include (or may alternatively be referred to as) an access point (AP), a gNB, an eNB or a portion thereof (such as a centralized unit (CU) and / or a distributed unit (DU) in the case of a split BS or split gNB), or other network node.

[0019] According to an illustrative example, a BS node (e.g., BS, eNB, gNB, CU / DU, etc.) or a radio access network (RAN) may be part of a mobile telecommunication system. The RAN (radio access network) may include one or more BSs or RAN nodes that implement a radio access technology, for example, to allow one or more UEs to access a network or a core network. Thus, for example, a RAN (RAN node, such as a BS or gNB) may reside between one or more user equipments or UEs and a core network. According to an example embodiment, each RAN node (e.g., BS, eNB, gNB, CU / DU, etc.) or BS may provide one or more wireless communication services for one or more UEs or user equipments, for example, to allow a UE to wirelessly access a network via a RAN node. Each RAN node or BS may perform or provide wireless communication services, for example, such as to allow a UE or user equipment to establish a wireless connection to a RAN node, and to send data to and / or receive data from one or more of the UEs. For example, after establishing a connection to a UE, a RAN node (e.g., BS, eNB, gNB, CU / DU, etc.) may forward data received from a network or core network to the UE, and / or forward data received from the UE to the network or core network. A RAN node (e.g., BS, eNB, gNB, CU / DU, etc.) may perform a variety of other wireless functions or services, such as, for example, broadcasting control information (e.g., such as system information) to the UE, paging the UE when there is data to be delivered to the UE, assisting the UE in switching between cells, scheduling resources for uplink data transmission from (multiple) UEs and downlink data transmission to (multiple) UEs, sending control information for configuring one or more UEs, and so on. These are several examples of one or more functions that a RAN node or BS may perform. A base station may also be a DU (distributed unit) part of an IAB (integrated access and backhaul) node (also known as a relay node). The DU facilitates the access link connection (s) of the IAB node.

[0020] User equipment (user terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile terminal, handheld wireless device, etc.) may refer to a portable computing device including a wireless mobile communication device operating with or without a subscriber identity module (SIM), including but not limited to the following types of devices: mobile station (MS), mobile phone, cell phone, smart phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld device, device using a wireless modem (alarm or measurement device, etc.), laptop computer and / or touch screen computer, tablet computer, tablet phone, game console, notebook computer, vehicle, sensor and multimedia device, or any other wireless device. It should be understood that a user device may also be (or may include) an almost exclusive uplink-only device, an example of an uplink-only device is a camera or video camera that loads images or video clips to a network. A user device may also be the MT (mobile terminal) portion of an IAB (integrated access and backhaul) node (also known as a relay node). The MT facilitates the backhaul connection of the IAB node.

[0021] In LTE (as an illustrative example), the core network 150 may be referred to as an evolved packet core (EPC), which may include a mobility management entity (MME) that may handle or assist in mobility / handover of user equipment between BSs, one or more gateways that may forward data and control signals between the BS and a packet data network or the Internet, and other control functions or blocks. Other types of wireless networks, such as 5G (which may be referred to as new radio (NR)), may also include a core network.

[0022] In addition, as illustrative examples, various example embodiments or techniques described herein may be applied to various types of user equipment or data service types, or may be applied to user equipment on which multiple applications may be running, which may be different data service types. New radio (5G) developments may support a variety of different applications or a variety of different data service types, such as: machine type communication (MTC), enhanced machine type communication (eMTC), Internet of Things (IoT) and / or narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) user equipment, enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), and ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC). Many of these new 5G (NR) related applications may require higher performance than previous wireless networks.

[0023] IoT can refer to the growing group of objects that can have Internet or network connectivity, allowing them to send and receive information to and from other network devices. For example, many sensor-type applications or devices can monitor physical conditions or states and can send reports to servers or other network devices, such as when events occur. For example, machine-type communications (MTC, or machine-to-machine communications) can be characterized by fully automated data generation, exchange, processing, and actuation between intelligent machines, with or without human intervention. Enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) can support higher data rates than are currently available in LTE.

[0024] Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) is a new data service type or new usage scenario that the new radio (5G) system can support. This enables emerging new applications and services such as industrial automation, autonomous driving, vehicle safety, e-health services, etc. As an illustrative example, 3GPP aims to provide connectivity with reliability corresponding to a block error rate (BLER) of 10-5 and a U-plane (user / data plane) delay of up to 1ms. Therefore, for example, a URLLC user equipment / UE may require a significantly lower block error rate (BLER) and low latency (with or without simultaneous high reliability requirements) than other types of user equipment / UE. Therefore, for example, a URLLC UE (or a URLLC application on a UE) may require a shorter latency compared to an eMBB UE (or an eMBB application running on a UE).

[0025] Various example embodiments may be applied to a variety of wireless technologies or wireless networks, such as LTE, LTE-A, 5G (New Radio (NR)), cmWave and / or mmWave band networks, IoT, MTC, eMTC, eMBB, URLLC, etc., or any other wireless network or wireless technology. These example networks, technologies, or data service types are provided as illustrative examples only.

[0026] A network node (e.g., a BS or gNB, a UE or user equipment or receiver device, a relay station or relay node, or other network node) may use beamforming, where a set of antenna weights may be applied to generate a specific antenna beam width and shape for transmission or reception (e.g., in order to obtain beamforming gain), rather than using an omnidirectional antenna. An antenna (or antenna array) may include multiple antenna elements, where a specific beam (e.g., including a beam direction and / or beam width) may be generated or obtained by applying a set of antenna weights (e.g., each antenna weight includes an amplitude and a phase) to the antenna array, where a different weight is applied to each antenna element. For example, the direction of a beam from a phased antenna array may be changed by adjusting the phase of a signal applied to each element in the antenna array. Thus, for example, a transmit beam may be generated for transmitting a signal, and a receive beam may be generated for receiving a signal.

[0027] As used herein, a receiver device may be (or may include) any device (e.g., a wireless device) that may receive or be capable of receiving a wireless signal. A receiver device may also be capable of transmitting a signal and thus, for example, may include one or more wireless transmitters / receivers (transceivers). For example, a receiver device may include a user device, user equipment (UE), or other wireless device. Thus, in some examples described herein, the term UE (user equipment) may include a user device, a receiver device, or other wireless device. Likewise, the term BS may be used in multiple examples and may include a gNB, an eNB, or any other network node.

[0028] To facilitate beamforming, the UE (or user equipment or receiver device) may be configured to send measurement reports to the BS (or other network node). For example, the BS may configure the UE to measure one or more quantities of one or more resources or beams (e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), determine channel state information (CSI), or determine or measure other information or quantities). Thus, the measurement report configuration may indicate one or more quantities to be measured for one or more specific resources or beams. For example, the UE may be configured to measure and report one or more quantities, such as CSI and / or RSRP for a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) beam and / or a synchronization signal block (SSB) beam. As an illustrative example, the UE may measure one or more signal parameters (e.g., link quality) of a reference signal received from the BS, and may send a channel state information (CSI) report to the BS. An example CSI report may include, for example, one or more of the following: RSRP (reference signal received power); a rank indicator (RI), which is the number of transmission layers suitable for downlink (DL) transmission; a precoder matrix indicator (PMI), which may indicate what a device (e.g., UE) estimates as a suitable precoder matrix based on a selected rank; and a channel quality indication (or channel quality indicator) (CQI), which may express or indicate a BS-UE channel or link quality measured by a UE. The CQI may indicate what a UE estimates as a suitable channel coding rate and modulation scheme based on a selected precoder matrix.

[0029] However, in some cases, there may be significant measurement and reporting overhead for the UE, e.g., based on the large number of beams / resources to measure and / or report. Furthermore, in certain wireless networks such as 5G / New Radio (NR), or at least in certain situations, the wireless channel conditions may change rapidly, which may cause the best or preferred beams (e.g., CSI-RS beams and / or SSB beams) to be used for transmission or reception to also change rapidly. Therefore, it may be useful for the UE to perform frequent beam measurements and report to the BS / gNB in ​​order to provide good (or at least acceptable) beamforming gain based on the selection of appropriate beams for transmission and / or reception.

[0030] As an illustrative example, cell-free massive MIMO for a frequency division duplex (FDD) system with a fixed GoB (beam grid) may involve multi-site and multi-cell cooperation areas, resulting in a large number of beams per cooperation area. Such a cooperation area may thus include, for example, 144 beams with two polarizations, which lead to an exemplary 288 antenna ports (APs) or beams to be measured and / or reported, potentially serving up to 90 or 100 UEs (or more UEs). However, since there are so many beams (e.g., 288) and, for example, dozens of UEs (e.g., potentially up to 100 or more UEs) in the cooperation area, performing beam management and reporting for such a large number of beams and / or a large number of UEs may incur significant processing and / or signaling overhead for both the UEs and / or gNB / BSs (or transmission / reception points) within the wireless network or cooperation area. Furthermore, limiting UE beam measurements and reporting to only one or a few beams may limit beamforming gain performance, since the optimal or best beam may change frequently and may be outside such a small set of beams to be measured and reported. Additionally, in some cases, the BS or gNB(s) may send a signal with a set of bits indicating which beams should be measured and / or reported back to the gNB or BS. However, according to one example, with such a large number of beams (e.g., 288), the BS or gNB may explicitly signal or send a string of bits, e.g., 288 bits, to each UE to indicate which beams should be measured by the UE or which beams are active. However, the BS sending an explicit indication of the beams to be measured by the UE may require very large signaling overhead.

[0031] Thus, for example, one or more example embodiments are provided that may allow for more efficient beam management, such as for use in or within wireless networks where there may be a relatively large number of beams and / or a large number of UEs (or user devices or receiver devices).

[0032] According to an example embodiment, a BS (or gNB or other network node) may select an active beam set, wherein signals such as beam-specific sequences (e.g., beam-specific sequences of reference signals) may (or will) be transmitted via each active beam in the complete beam set, and signals (e.g., beam-specific sequences (e.g., beam-specific sequences of reference signals)) are generally not transmitted via inactive (or deactivated) beams. Thus, in an example embodiment, beam-specific sequences of reference signals may be transmitted only for each active beam in the complete beam set (e.g., 288). For example, the network node may select a multi-user (or multi-UE, or multi-receiver device) beam set based on previously received beam measurement reports, e.g., including at least one active beam for each (or one or more) UEs (or receiver devices) in a set of UEs to be scheduled (e.g., for each UE to be scheduled for the next scheduling period to transmit or receive data). For example, each UE may report to the BS or network node a set of candidate (or relevant or best) beams for the UE, e.g., one or more candidate CSI-RS beams for which RSRP is measured or estimated to be greater than a first power threshold. After receiving a measurement report (e.g., identifying a set of candidate beams) from each of the plurality of UEs, the BS may select a multi-user (or multi-UE) set of active beams (e.g., which may be a subset of a complete or entire set of beams, e.g., which may thereby reduce beam / reference signal interference and overhead). For example, the multi-UE set of active beams may include, for example, at least one candidate beam for each UE in the group of UEs to be scheduled during a scheduling period (e.g., where the scheduling period may include a plurality of symbols, a transmission time interval (TTI), a plurality of TTIs, or other scheduling resources).

[0033] The BS (or network node) may transmit a signal, e.g., a beam-specific sequence or other signal, via each active beam in a multi-UE (or multi-receiver device) set of active beams to allow one or more UEs to estimate a set of one or more active beams for a UE within a multi-user (multi-UE or multi-receiver device) set of active beams. For example, the UE may detect an active beam based on a detected beam whose received power (e.g., RSRP) is determined or estimated to be greater than a power threshold (e.g., based on a detected signal or a detected reference signal sequence for a specific beam transmitted via an associated active beam). In addition, the UE may identify the beam or determine a beam identity for each active beam, e.g., based on a beam-specific resource set for each active beam (e.g., time-frequency resources via which signals for the beam are received and measured), or based on a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal for the active beam (or associated with the active beam or transmitted via the active beam). Thus, in an example embodiment, for example, a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal may be associated with an active beam and may be used by the UE to determine a beam identity for each active beam (e.g., where the received power of the active beam may be greater than a threshold). For example, a signal transmitted by the BS via each active beam may be a signal such as a beam-specific sequence, which may be, for example, a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal (e.g., a beam-specific sequence of a CSI-RS reference signal).

[0034] For example, the beam-specific sequence of reference signals can be or can include a beam-specific sequence of at least one of the following reference signals associated with an active beam: a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) among multiple orthogonal channel state information reference signals; a coded reference signal (e.g., coded CSI-RS) among multiple non-orthogonal coded reference signals, wherein each coded reference signal (e.g., each coded non-orthogonal CSI-RS signal) can have a code associated with or identifying the beam and can be shorter than a standard orthogonal CSI-RS signal; a synchronization signal block (SSB); a demodulation reference signal (DMRS); a tracking reference signal (TRS); or a position reference signal (PRS).

[0035] In addition, instead of the BS transmitting an explicit indication or a list of active beams for measurement (e.g., a list indicating active CSI-RS beams or active SSB beams), which would generate a large signaling overhead (e.g., 288 bits to indicate which of the 288 beams is active), one or more example embodiments may use or rely on the UE to perform blind decoding, where the UE may blindly (e.g., not knowing which beams will be active without prior or receiving explicit indication) estimate a set of one or more active beams for the UE, for example, based on an estimated received power of each active beam (e.g., where the received power or RSRP or other link quality of the active beams may be above a threshold). In addition, in an example embodiment, each UE may identify each active beam (or determine the beam identity of each active beam) based on a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal transmitted via each active beam or using other signals. The UE may alternatively determine or identify the active beam based on beam-specific time-frequency resources, for example, where the UE may measure the beam received power by measuring the RSRP of signals received via beam-specific time-frequency resources (resources assigned to or associated with each active beam).

[0036] In addition, since the UE's estimation of the active beam set (e.g., determining or estimating the active beam set based on the received power of each beam, and / or determining the beam identity of the active beam based on the beam-specific sequence) may sometimes be prone to (multiple) errors, the BS or network node may also transmit verification information to at least one UE in the set of UEs to be scheduled, which verification information may allow the UE to verify the estimated set of active beams of the UE. As an illustrative example, the verification information transmitted or provided to the UE may include, for example, redundant bits that allow the UE to verify (confirm its correctness) and / or correct its estimated set of active beams. For example, the verification information may include a cyclic redundancy check (CRC), a hash value, or other information that may be useful to the UE in verifying (at least partially) its estimated set of active beams.

[0037] Thus, according to an example embodiment, a method may include transmitting, by a BS / gNB, a signal, e.g., a beam-specific sequence, via each active beam in a multi-user (or multi-UE) set of active beams to allow one or more UEs to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the UE within the multi-UE set of active beams; and transmitting, by the BS, verification information to at least one UE in a set of UEs to be scheduled, the verification information allowing the at least one UE to verify the estimated set of active beams of the UE (or receiver device). For example, a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal may be transmitted by the BS for each active beam, which may allow the one or more UEs to estimate the set of one or more active beams for the UE within the multi-UE set of active beams based on an estimated received power of each active beam, and which may also allow the UE to determine a beam identity for each active beam based on the beam-specific sequence of the reference signal for each active beam.

[0038] In addition, the BS may determine an active beam bit string for at least one UE, the bit string identifying an estimated set of one or more active beams for the UE in a plurality of beams. In addition, for example, to avoid increasing signaling overhead, the BS typically does not transmit its active beam bit string to the UE, but relies on each UE to determine or estimate its own active beam bit string based on the UE's blind or semi-blind estimate of the active beam set for the UE in the UE's candidate beam set. In addition, the BS transmission verification information may include the BS transmitting redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string to allow the UE (or receiver device) to verify and / or correct the UE's estimated set of one or more active beams of the UE. For example, although the BS may not transmit the active beam bit string to the UE, the BS may transmit a CRC or hash value calculated on the active beam bit string (and / or other verification information). The UE may estimate its estimated set of active beams and determine its own active beam bit string, and calculate a hash value or CRC on the active beam bit string determined by the UE. To perform verification and / or correction of the estimated set of active beams, the UE may then compare its calculated CRC or calculated hash value with the received CRC or hash value (verification information received from the BS, e.g., included or appended to downlink control information sent to the UE) to confirm that the UE's estimated set of active beams is correct (and / or correct its estimated set of active beams). In this way, the UE may estimate the set of active beams using blind estimation (e.g., the BS does not provide the UE with a list or explicit indication of active beams in advance or the UE is not aware of it) (e.g., measuring power and detecting beam-specific sequences for each active beam without receiving an explicit indication of active beams), or using semi-blind decoding (e.g., where the UE may also consider the verification information to verify and / or correct its estimated set of active beams). Thus, the example techniques described herein may allow the UE to estimate and verify the UE's estimated set of active beams (e.g., using blind estimation and / or semi-blind estimation), for example, without incurring significant signaling overhead associated with receiving an explicit indication or list of which beams are to be active. For example, this can allow the UE to frequently (e.g., each scheduling period or each TTI) update its estimated set of active beams without the BS sending explicit information indicating the updated active beam list for the scheduling period (because the UE can estimate the active beam set using blind or semi-blind estimation), and thereby reduce or at least avoid increasing signaling overhead.

[0039] Alternatively, instead of providing verification information as a separate CRC or hash value (e.g., separate from or in addition to the downlink control information), the downlink control information transmitted by the BS may be encoded with redundant bits or verification information, e.g., using a systematic block code or other encoding technique. The UE may then receive and decode the received encoded downlink control information to obtain the verification information or redundant bits (e.g., CRC or hash value), which the UE may then use to verify and / or correct its estimated set of active beams.

[0040] In addition, according to an example embodiment, the verification information may also (or alternatively) include, for example, information indicating the number of active beams for each cell or within the collaborative area; information indicating the percentage or proportion of active beams in the cell or collaborative area in a complete set of beams or multiple beams; information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or in the collaborative area or cell has not changed during or since the last time period; information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or in the collaborative area or cell has completely changed during or since the last time period; or information indicating that a specific number or a specific percentage of active beams in a complete set of beams or multiple beams has changed or has not changed during or since the last time period.

[0041] From the perspective of a BS (or network node), a method may include receiving, by the BS, a measurement report from each of a plurality of UEs within a wireless network, the measurement report identifying a set of candidate beams for the UE in a complete set of beams, wherein each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams for the UE has an estimated power higher than a first power threshold; determining, by the BS, a set of candidate beams for each UE based on the measurement report received from each UE; determining a group of UEs to be scheduled for transmission during a scheduling period; determining, by the BS, a multi-UE set of active beams based on the candidate beam set of each UE in the group of UEs to be scheduled, such that at least one active beam in the candidate beams of the UE will be provided for each UE in the group of UEs to be scheduled; transmitting, by the network node, a beam-specific sequence of reference signals via each active beam in the multi-UE set of active beams to allow one or more UEs to estimate a set of one or more active beams for a receiver device within a multi-receiver device set of active beams; and transmitting, by the BS, verification information to at least one UE in the group of UEs to be scheduled, the verification information allowing the at least one UE to verify the estimated set of estimated active beams for the UE.

[0042] Likewise, from the perspective of a UE, a method may include sending, by the UE, a measurement report identifying a set of candidate beams for the UE in a complete set of beams, wherein each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams has a measured power greater than a first power threshold; estimating, by the UE, a received power of a beam-specific sequence received via each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams, wherein each beam-specific sequence is associated with or identifies a candidate beam; estimating, by the UE, a set of one or more active beams for the UE within the set of candidate beams of the UE based on the estimated received power of the beam-specific sequence of each candidate beam to obtain an estimated set of active beams for the UE, wherein each active beam in the estimated set of active beams has an associated beam-specific sequence having an estimated received power (e.g., a measured or estimated RSRP) greater than a second power threshold, and wherein each active beam in the estimated set of one or more active beams is identified based on the beam-specific sequence associated with the active beam. Further illustrative details and examples will now be provided.

[0043] Thus, one or more example embodiments may enable or allow fast and / or efficient beam management in a large cooperation area, which may include, for example, 144 beams each with two polarizations (e.g., providing 288 antenna ports or beams), by performing blind or semi-blind estimation of an activated beam set. The presence of an active beam may be determined or estimated based on a beam-specific sequence, such as, for example, a beam-specific sequence of a coded reference signal (e.g., a coded CSI-RS signal) transmitted via the associated beam. Such blind (estimate active or activated beams without BS transmitting information explicitly indicating activated beams) estimation of active beams by the UE, or semi-blind activation (e.g., which can use verification information to verify and / or correct the estimated set of active beams) can avoid or at least reduce the associated control signaling overhead, and can reduce the associated activation delay, which makes it possible to adapt (or change) the active beam set more frequently and / or quickly, such as every scheduling period, every TTI, or every several or more TTIs, every physical resource block (PRB), or every group or multiple PRBs, where each PRB can include multiple (e.g., 12) subcarriers for one symbol. In addition, the estimated set of active beams can be verified (e.g., determined to be correct) and / or corrected based on the verification information, such as using a CRC or hash value, which is added to a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) downlink control information (DCI) message transmitted by the BS. The BS / gNB may determine (e.g., based on measurement reports from UEs indicating candidate beams, and based on a set of UEs that are scheduled or to be scheduled for uplink data transmission and / or downlink data reception during the scheduling period) which beams are to be active (or activated), and may then deactivate the remaining beams in the complete beam set.

[0044] Figure 2 212 is a diagram illustrating a process of estimating an active beam set according to an illustrative example embodiment. As an illustrative example, three example cells (cell 1, cell 2, cell 3) are shown, which form a fixed beam grid, where some beams are active (e.g., shadow beams) and some are inactive (or deactivated). In an example embodiment, the BS / gNB semi-statically (in seconds, e.g., every second or so) transmits orthogonal CSI RSs for all beams (e.g., all 288 beams) of the cooperation area so that all UEs can estimate their candidate beam sets, i.e., beams received or potentially received, whose power is above a certain threshold relative to the strongest beam. At 212, UE 132 can measure the RSRP of the 288 beams and determine its candidate (or best) beam, e.g., a beam with a received power greater than a first threshold. Figure 2 1 , a candidate beam set 214 for UE 132 is shown. The UE then sends its CSI measurement report to the gNB, for example, to indicate the RSRP of its candidate beams (or best beams), where the candidate beams may, for example, include beams for which the measured RSRP is above a first threshold. The BS / gNB determines the multi-UE beam set to be activated for the next time period and which beams to be deactivated among the 288 beams. For example, the BS / gNB may typically activate at least one candidate beam for each UE to be scheduled during the next scheduling period. However, various other factors may be used to determine which beams to activate, such as possible beam interference and other factors.

[0045] One issue that may arise is the potentially large signaling and measurement overhead of frequently transmitting beams, measuring beams, and sending measurement reports (e.g., every scheduled period for all 288 beams) for all UEs. Another alternative may involve activating only a smaller subset of the beams, and / or slowly changing or slowly adapting the beams, both of which may result in poor beamforming performance for the UE. Furthermore, the BS explicitly signaling or indicating which of the 288 beams are active in each period (e.g., via transmitting 288 bits of control information to indicate which beams are active and which beams are inactive) may also result in very large signaling overhead. One or more example embodiments described herein, in which explicit signaling identifying active beams is not required (and / or transmitted), and each UE can blindly or semi-blindly estimate the set of active beams and then verify and / or correct its estimated set of active beams using verification information provided by the BS / gNB, can provide improved beamforming performance while avoiding the large signaling overhead required to explicitly signal to the UE which (e.g., 288) beams are active in each time period (e.g., each scheduling period).

[0046] Thus, according to an example embodiment, at different time instants ti (typically every TTI or every 5ms), the gNB may activate different beam sets (e.g., shadow beams) out of all possible beams (e.g., the set of active beams per TTI or per scheduling period may be based on which UEs are to be scheduled for that scheduling period or TTI, and the candidate beams reported by those UEs, e.g., so that each scheduled UE provides at least one (or more) candidate beams). At 214, as an illustrative example, the UE has determined its set of candidate beams (for that time period or time interval), e.g., 10 or 20 candidate beams out of a total of 288 beams.

[0047] In a second step (e.g., each scheduling period or each TTI), the BS / gNB may transmit a multi-UE set of active beams using a beam-specific sequence (e.g., a beam-specific sequence of reference signals transmitted for each active beam). For example, an example beam-specific sequence may include a coded non-orthogonal CSI-RS signal, where a different beam-specific coded CSI-RS code / signal may be provided or transmitted via each active beam. Other types of beam-specific sequences may also be used. At 215, the UE may measure or estimate the received power (e.g., RSRP) of each beam in its set of candidate beams, where the active beam has a measured or estimated RSRP or received power greater than a second threshold. In addition, the UE may identify the active beam (or determine the beam identity of the active beam) based on the beam-specific sequence transmitted for each active beam. Therefore, at 215, each UE estimates the CSI (e.g., which may include estimated received power or RSRP) of all its candidate / related beams in the first step, and then identifies the activated (or active) beam as the beam with a received power (e.g., RSRP) above a certain power threshold. For example, the power threshold may be selected such that it is above the noise and interference level of the CSI estimation process. The identification of the beams may be performed based on a coded reference signal, e.g., a beam-specific sequence, such as a non-orthogonal coded CSI-RS signal, which is transmitted by the BS / gNB for each active beam. For example, the coded CSI-RS signal is non-orthogonal and therefore may be shorter (less signaling overhead) than a standard orthogonal and longer CSI-RS signal. The UE then measures the RSRP of each coded CSI-RS signal (or other beam-specific sequence) in its candidate beams. In some cases, the gNB does not transmit some of the UE's candidate beams (deactivated beams). In an exemplary embodiment, the RSRP of the deactivated coded CSI signal may generally be (or may be expected to be) below the threshold, while in the illustrative example, the RSRP of the active beams may generally be expected to be above the threshold. However, in at least some cases, there may be noise and other performance issues that may impair or limit the UE's estimate of its estimated set of active beams. Thus, the verification information may be provided or transmitted by the gNB / BS and may then be used by the UE to verify and / or correct the UE estimated set of active beams.

[0048] Based on the estimated set of active beams of the UE (215), the UE may determine or estimate an active beam bit string 216, for example, where the bits of the active beam bit string 216 indicate which of the candidate beams of the UE are estimated to be active. As an illustrative example, Figure 2As shown, at 216, the active beam bit string 216 includes a 1 for each candidate beam estimated to be active and a 0 for each candidate beam estimated to be inactive or deactivated. For example, a 1 indicating an active beam in the active beam bit string 216 may correspond to a shadow beam at 215 whose RSRP or received power is greater than a power threshold (TH). It should be noted that the BS knows which UE candidate beams are active (on which the BS transmitted a beam-specific sequence), and the BS knows which beams are inactive (where no beam-specific sequence was transmitted on such inactive or deactivated beams). Therefore, the BS may also generate its own copy of the active beam bit string at 217 (e.g., at 217, the BS's copy of the active beam bit string will be correct, rather than an estimate, because the BS knows which beams are active). Note that the active beam bit string may be generated by the BS / gNB (based on which beams are active) and may be estimated by each UE (e.g., using a blind or semi-blind estimate by the UE based on the received power (e.g., RSRP) of the active beams being greater than a threshold, and the beam identity of the active beam determined by the UE based on a beam-specific sequence). However, to avoid increasing signaling overhead, the BS typically does not transmit the active beam bit string, but may rely on each UE to generate its own estimated active beam bit string based on the UE performing a blind estimate of its set of active beams, and identifying the active beams based on a beam-specific sequence transmitted for each active beam. The BS / gNB may generate verification information, e.g., redundant bits, such as a CRC or hash value calculated over the active beam bit string 217, and the BS / gNB may then provide or transmit the verification information to the UE. At 218, the UE may receive the verification information and may use the verification information (e.g., CRC, hash value, or other verification information) to verify and / or correct its estimated set of active beams (or correct the UE's estimated active beam bit string 216). In addition, as noted, the gNB / BS knows which beams are active beams during the time period or interval, e.g., for which beams (out of the full set of 288 beams or other number of beams) the beam-specific sequence was transmitted. Thus, the BS / gNB can correctly determine the multi-UE set of active beams, and thereby determine the active beam bit string for each UE, e.g., to indicate which beams in each UE's candidate beam list are active. As noted, according to an example embodiment, each UE previously reported its candidate beam list to the BS / gNB based on RSRP beam measurements. Thus, the BS knows the candidate beam list for each UE. The BS / gNB can then generate verification information, e.g., generate a CRC over (or based on) the UE-specific active beam bit stream (indicating the active beams in the UE's candidate beam set), and then append the verification information or redundant bits (e.g., CRC or hash value) to the downlink control information (DCI) transmitted to the UE.Therefore, the gNB may add or append verification information, for example, as redundant bits r1 to rx, as part of the PDCCH DCI message. The redundant bits may include or provide a CRC (or CRC check), a hash value, or other verification information.

[0049] The UE may then receive the DCI along with additional redundant bits or other verification information. The UE may then use these redundant bits r1 to rx to verify its beam activation inference and / or even correct some missed detections. The UE may calculate a CRC over its estimated active beam bit string of estimated active beams and compare the calculated CRS with the received CRC (a match between the calculated CRC and the received CRC verifies that the UE's estimated active beam bit string is correct, or correctly indicates the active beam in the UE's candidate beam set). This is to allow the UE to determine which (a subset) of its candidate beams will be activated (e.g., to indicate the active beam in which a beam-specific sequence (such as an encoded CSI-RS signal) will be transmitted). In this way, by deactivating some beams and only a subset of beams are active, this will reduce beam transmission and reduce possible beam interference, and will reduce the number of beams that the UE will measure and report (for example, in some cases, based on the UE's blind or semi-blind estimation of the active beams, and based on the UE using verification information or redundant bits to verify and / or correct the UE's estimated set of active beams, the UE may only measure and report the RSRP of the active beams among its candidate beams).

[0050] Therefore, if Figure 2As shown, two example solutions for the BS / gNB to provide verification information to the UE are shown: Solution 1: The BS / gNB adds verification information (e.g., CRC or hash value or other verification information) to the DCI (downlink control information) provided within the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). Solution 2: The BS / gNB can encode the verification information or redundant bits with the DCI (or provide the verification information or redundant bits in the DCI encoding), so that no additional verification bits or redundant bits (218) are required (thereby reducing the signaling overhead). Therefore, for example, in solution 2, in order to avoid such additional overhead of redundant bits / verification information, for example in the presence of a large number of active UEs, a more efficient solution can be provided, which may include virtually adding a bit string of active beams to the PDCCH DCI message. Virtually means that the bit stream is not transmitted, but is estimated on the UE side and concatenated with other parts of the PDCCH DCI message. This virtually extended PDCCH DCI message will now be re-encoded by the gNB (assuming that the bit stream is part of the PDCCH DCI message) and then transmitted to the UE. The benefits in this case are: i) there is no additional overhead at all, and ii) a typical PDCCH DCI message is much longer than the bit string of the activated beam, which leads to better coding efficiency. For example, it may allow to correct one or two undetected beams in this way.

[0051] Note that the above solution 2 may use a systematic code (as an example code, or other code), the systematic code including a bit string as part of the code, wherein the gNB will encode the DCI bits and verification information / redundancy bits using the systematic code or other code, and then the UE will decode the encoded DCI information to extract the DCI bits and verification information / redundancy bits.

[0052] As noted, in addition (or alternatively), other types of verification information may be provided or transmitted by the BS / gNB to the UE, e.g., to at least help verify the UE's estimate of the active beams. Thus, for example, a DCI message may be provided to allow the UE to make better inferences about their candidate activated beams, such as a high-level indication of the average number of activated beams. For example, such a control message may broadcast that there is actually i) only one beam per cooperation area, ii) one beam per cell, iii) α×N active beams, e.g., α={3 / 4, 2 / 4, 1 / 4, 1 / 8}, where N is the total number of beams in the cooperation area.

[0053] To enable error correction, a soft decoding method may be selected after a first estimation on the UE side based on the estimated received power of each beam, i.e., the RSRP power of each beam, i.e., its strength against noise and interference floors.

[0054] As another possible solution, if the CRC check on the estimated beam fails at the UE side (e.g., where the CRC (redundancy bits) received from the BS does not match the CRC calculated by the UE), the UE may, for example, report the CSI or RSRP of all its candidate beams, even though some of these beams may only estimate noise (because some of these UE candidate beams may be inactive or deactivated by the BS). The BS / gNB may then skip the corresponding useless CSI measurement reports for the inactive or deactivated beams based on its knowledge of the activated beams (the multi-UE set of active beams selected by the BS). To indicate such a full candidate CSI (measurement) report, the UE may set a corresponding flag in an uplink control channel (UCI) message, e.g., a flag indicated by the UE as 0 to indicate that only the CSI / RSRP of the UE active beams within the UE candidate beam set are reported, and a flag as 1 to indicate that the RSRP or CSI of all UE candidate beams are reported.

[0055] According to an example embodiment, a basis for blind detection or blind or semi-blind estimation of an active beam set in a UE candidate beam proposal set may use or rely on a beam-specific sequence transmitted by a BS for each active beam, and wherein the UE may determine a beam identity for each active beam based on the beam-specific sequence for each active beam. For example, the beam-specific sequence may use a non-orthogonal coded CSI-RS (which may be referred to as a coded CSI-RS signal), which may be shorter than an orthogonal or standard CSI-RS signal and thereby reduce signaling overhead.

[0056] Other types of verification information may be provided by the BS / gNB, such as a DCI message indicating that the gNB is using the same beam set instead of a different activated beam set. This can be extended to a short bitmap in case of different beam sets on different frequency subbands. Furthermore, instead of a one-bit message, it may include more information such as “completely unchanged”, “a few beams changed”, “completely different beam set” or the number of beams changed, which helps the UE to perform the blind estimation process more efficiently. Typically, these DCI messages may be UE-specific, or multicast messages for a specific group of UEs, or broadcast messages across the coordination area. This may be helpful, for example, if the beams for a certain subset of UEs remain unchanged, while another group is affected by the beam set adaptation.

[0057] Figure 3310 , BS 134 transmits CSI-RS signals for a complete set of beams (or all beams) (e.g., all 288 beams). At 312 , UE 132 may estimate the received power or RSRP of each beam and then determine or estimate a set of candidate beams, e.g., where the measured or estimated RSRP of each candidate beam is above (or greater than) a first threshold. At 314 , the UE may report the received power or RSRP of each beam in its set of candidate beams.

[0058] At 316, BS 134 may receive measurement reports from UEs indicating their candidate beams, and may determine a multi-UE set of active beams, for example, based on the UEs to be scheduled within the scheduling period and the candidate beams of these UEs to be scheduled, for example, the multi-UE set of active beams may include at least one candidate beam for each UE to be scheduled (for a specific time or moment). For each UE (e.g., each UE to be scheduled), BS 134 may determine an active beam bit string, and determine UE-specific verification information based on the UE-specific active beam bit string. For example, a CRC or hash value may be calculated by the BS. For example, verification information (e.g., a CRC or hash value or other verification information) may be added or appended to DCI information transmitted to each UE to be scheduled via PDCCH. Alternatively, the verification information may be encoded with DCI to avoid adding additional redundant bits / verification information while still providing UE-specific verification information to each UE. Therefore, because each UE has a different or UE-specific set of candidate beams, the active beam bit string can be UE-specific (can be different for each UE), and therefore, the verification information or redundant bits (separate or encoded with DCI) transmitted or provided to each UE can be UE-specific.

[0059] At 318, the BS transmits the DCI via the PDCCH and may include, for example, an encoded DCI including verification information encoded with the DCI, or may include verification information provided as additional or separate bits appended to the DCI. For example, the DCI information and verification information may be transmitted for each of a plurality of UEs to be scheduled. At 320, the BS 134 transmits a multi-UE set of active beams, wherein a beam-specific sequence (e.g., an encoded non-orthogonal CSI-RS signal, each active beam having a beam-specific code) may be transmitted via each active beam, and no signal is transmitted via an inactive (or deactivated) beam.

[0060] At 322, the UE estimates a set of active beams within (or belonging to) its set of candidate beams, e.g., where the active beams may include beams for which the measured or estimated RSRP is greater than a second threshold. The beam identities of the active beams may be determined by the UE 132 based on a beam-specific sequence transmitted for each active beam. The UE 132 may use the verification information to verify and / or correct its estimated set of active beams.

[0061] At 324 , UE 132 may measure the RSRP or received power of each active beam in its validated estimated set of active beams and then send CSI / RSRP measurement reports for these active beams to BS 132 .

[0062] Some example benefits / advantages:

[0063] Additional control channel overhead for the BS / gNB to explicitly indicate active beams can be avoided, at least in some cases, despite very fast and flexible beam activation and deactivation in a large cooperation area.

[0064] Example embodiments may provide a flexible approach that may allow a large number of beams to be active, for example, while avoiding, at least in some cases, signaling overhead for explicitly indicating which beams are active beams.

[0065] At least in some cases, the active beam set can be frequently changed or adapted based on changing channel conditions, for example, each scheduling period or TTI (or other period) without increasing signaling overhead, based on the UE's blind or semi-blind estimation of the active beams.

[0066] Compared to current NR solutions, one or more of the example embodiments may provide improved flexibility for beam activation and deactivation, for example in the case of a large number of beams, with no or limited control message overhead. As an illustrative example, adaptation is possible without involving any RRC messages, which are expensive and time consuming and include large delays in the range of seconds or more, so that a properly timely update of the served set of UEs is not possible.

[0067]

[0066] In at least some cases, one or more example embodiments may avoid the need to broadcast or multicast an indication of the activated beam sets as a DCI or other control information in a CORESET (Control Resource Set) to all scheduled UEs.

[0068] At least in some cases, one or more example embodiments may allow fast adaptation of the active beam set with low PDCCH (downlink control channel) overhead, allowing the BS or network to maintain full scheduling and user grouping flexibility. Note that, for example, the benefits of fine-grained beam deactivation to the served set of UEs include lower CSI reporting overhead, higher CSI estimation quality due to lower CSIRS crosstalk, and higher JT CoMP (Joint Transmission Coordinated Multi-Point) precoding performance due to better CSI accuracy, and lower precoding complexity due to fewer beams. This may also allow more efficient beam activation and / or deactivation. Some illustrative examples are now described.

[0069] Example 1. Figure 4 4 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a receiver device (e.g., a user equipment, UE, or other node or device) according to an example embodiment. Operation 410 includes estimating, by a receiver device in a wireless network, a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on an estimated received power of each active beam to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device. Operation 420 includes receiving, by the receiver device, verification information associated with the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device. And, operation 430 includes verifying, by the receiver device, the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the verification information.

[0070] Example 2. The method according to Example 1 also includes: the receiver device determines the beam identification of each active beam based on at least one of the following: a set of one or more time-frequency resources associated with each active beam, wherein the estimated received power of a first active beam in the set of one or more active beams includes an estimated received power of a signal received via a first set of one or more time-frequency resources, and the first set of one or more time-frequency resources is associated with the first active beam; or a beam-specific sequence for each active beam in the set of one or more active beams.

[0071] Example 3. A method according to Example 1, wherein the estimation includes: a receiver device in a wireless network estimates a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on an estimated received power of each active beam and a beam-specific sequence of each active beam in the set of one or more active beams to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

[0072] Example 4. A method according to Example 1, wherein the estimated active beam set includes: estimating, by the receiver device, the received power for each of a plurality of beams; and determining, by the receiver device, one or more active beams among the plurality of beams, wherein each active beam has an estimated received power greater than a threshold and has a beam identifier determined by the receiver device based on a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal received for each active beam.

[0073] Example 5. A method according to any one of Examples 3 to 4, wherein the estimating a set of one or more active beams includes: estimating, by the receiver device, a received power for each of a plurality of beams; detecting, by the user device, one or more active beams among the plurality of beams, wherein each active beam has an estimated received power greater than a threshold; and identifying, by the user device, a beam identifier for each active beam in the set of one or more active beams based on a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal received for each active beam.

[0074] Example 6. A method according to any one of Examples 3 to 5, wherein the estimating a set of one or more active beams includes: determining, by the receiver device, an active beam bit string based on the estimated received power for each of the multiple beams, the active beam bit string identifying the estimated set of one or more active beams from the multiple beams; wherein the verification includes verifying, based on the verification information and the active beam bit string, that the active beam bit string identifies a correct set of active beams from the multiple beams.

[0075] Example 7. A method according to Example 6, wherein receiving verification information by the receiver device includes: receiving redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string; wherein the verification includes verifying by the receiver device an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the redundant bits and the active beam bit string.

[0076] Example 8. A method according to any one of Examples 6 to 7, wherein the verification information received by the receiver device includes: receiving a cyclic redundancy check associated with the active beam bit string; wherein the verification includes: calculating a cyclic redundancy check calculated using the active beam bit string; and comparing the calculated cyclic redundancy check with the received cyclic redundancy check to verify that the calculated cyclic redundancy check is the same as the received cyclic redundancy check.

[0077] Example 9. A method according to any one of Examples 6 to 8, wherein receiving verification information by the receiver device includes receiving a hash value associated with the active beam bit string; wherein the verification includes: calculating a hash value based on the active beam bit string; and comparing the calculated hash value with the received hash value to verify that the calculated hash value is the same as the received hash value.

[0078] Example 10. The method according to any one of Examples 7 to 9 further includes: the receiver device correcting the estimated set of one or more active beams based on the redundant bits and the active beam bit string.

[0079] Example 11. A method according to any one of Examples 6 to 10, wherein the receiving verification information includes: receiving, by the receiver device, encoded information, in which downlink control information has been encoded using redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string; and wherein the verification includes: decoding the encoded information to obtain the verification information; and verifying, by the user device, the estimated set of active beams for the receiver device based on the obtained verification information and the active beam bit string.

[0080] Example 12. A method according to any one of Examples 1 to 11, wherein the verification information includes at least one of the following: information indicating the number of active beams for each cell or within a collaborative area; information indicating the percentage or proportion of active beams in a complete beam set or the multiple beams in a cell or a collaborative area; information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or in a collaborative area or cell has not changed during or since a previous time period; information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or in a collaborative area or cell has completely changed during or since a previous time period; or information indicating that a specific number or a specific percentage of active beams in a complete beam set or the multiple beams have changed or not changed during or since a previous time period.

[0081] Example 13. The method according to any one of Examples 3 to 12 further includes: the receiver device sending a measurement report to a base station or a network node to report at least one of the following: channel state information, or the estimated received power of each active beam in a verified estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

[0082] Example 14. A method according to any one of Examples 1 to 13, wherein the beam-specific sequence of each active beam includes a beam-specific sequence of at least one of the following items associated with the active beam: a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) among multiple orthogonal channel state information reference signals; a coded reference signal among multiple non-orthogonal coded reference signals; a synchronization signal block (SSB); a demodulation reference signal (DMRS); a tracking reference signal (TRS); or a position reference signal (PRS).

[0083] Example 15. The method according to any one of Examples 1 to 14 further includes: sending a measurement report by the receiver device, wherein the measurement report identifies a set of candidate beams for the receiver device from a complete beam set, wherein each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams has a measured power greater than a first power threshold; and estimating by the receiver device the received power of a beam-specific sequence received via each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams, wherein each beam-specific sequence is associated with or identifies a candidate beam; and wherein estimating a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device includes estimating by the receiver device a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the candidate beam set of the receiver device based on the estimated received power of the beam-specific sequence of each candidate beam, so as to obtain an estimated set of active beams of the receiver device, wherein each active beam in the estimated set of active beams has an associated beam-specific sequence whose estimated received power is greater than a second power threshold, and wherein each active beam in the estimated set of one or more active beams is identified based on the beam-specific sequence associated with the active beam.

[0084] Example 16. A method according to any one of Examples 1 to 15, wherein the receiver device includes a user device or user equipment (UE).

[0085] Example 17. An apparatus comprising components for performing the method according to any one of Examples 1 to 15.

[0086] Example 18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon, which instructions, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause a computing system to perform a method according to any one of Examples 1 to 15.

[0087] Example 19. A device comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the device to at least perform a method according to any one of Examples 1 to 15.

[0088] Example 20. Figure 5 5 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a network node according to an example embodiment. Operation 510 includes transmitting, by a network node in a wireless network, a signal (e.g., such as a beam-specific sequence or other signal) via each active beam in a multiple receiver device set of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the multiple receiver device set of active beams. Operation 520 includes transmitting, by the network node, verification information to at least one receiver device in a group of receiver devices to be scheduled, the verification information allowing the at least one receiver device to verify the estimated set of estimated active beams for the receiver device.

[0089] Example 21. A method according to Example 20, wherein the transmission signal includes: transmitting a beam-specific sequence by a network node in a wireless network via each active beam in a set of multiple receiver devices of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the set of multiple receiver devices of active beams.

[0090] Example 22. A method according to Example 21, wherein transmitting a beam-specific sequence includes: transmitting a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal by a network node in a wireless network via each active beam in a set of multiple receiver devices of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the set of multiple receiver devices of the active beam based on an estimated received power of each active beam, and determining a beam identification of each active beam based on the beam-specific sequence of the reference signal of each active beam.

[0091] Example 23. The method according to any one of Examples 20 to 22 further includes: determining an active beam bit string for the at least one receiver device, wherein the active beam bit string identifies an estimated set of one or more active beams for the user equipment from a plurality of beams.

[0092] Example 24. A method according to Example 23, wherein transmitting verification information by the network node includes: transmitting redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string to allow the at least one receiver device to verify and / or correct the estimated set of one or more active beams for the at least one receiver device.

[0093] Example 25. A method according to any one of Examples 23 to 24, wherein the transmission of verification information by the network node includes: transmitting a cyclic redundancy check associated with the active beam bit string to allow the at least one receiver device to verify and / or correct the estimated set of one or more active beams for the at least one receiver device.

[0094] Example 26. A method according to any one of Examples 23 to 25, wherein transmitting verification information by the network node includes transmitting a hash value associated with or based on the active beam bit string.

[0095] Example 27. A method according to any one of Examples 23 to 26, wherein the transmission verification information includes: transmitting encoded information by the network node, in which downlink control information has been encoded using redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string.

[0096] Example 28. A method according to any one of Examples 20 to 27, wherein the verification information includes at least one of the following: information indicating the number of active beams per cell or within a collaborative area; information indicating the percentage or proportion of active beams in a complete beam set or the multiple beams in a cell or a collaborative area; information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or in a collaborative area or cell has not changed during or since a previous time period; information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or in a collaborative area or cell has completely changed during or since a previous time period; or information indicating that a specific number or a specific percentage of active beams in a complete beam set or the multiple beams have changed or not changed during or since a previous time period.

[0097] Example 29. The method according to any one of Examples 20 to 28 further includes: receiving a measurement report by a network node from the at least one receiver device to report channel state information and / or an estimated received power of each active beam in a verified estimated set of one or more active beams for the user equipment.

[0098] Example 30. A method according to any one of Examples 20 to 29, wherein the beam-specific sequence of each active beam includes a beam-specific sequence of at least one of the following signals associated with the active beam: a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) among multiple orthogonal channel state information reference signals; a coded reference signal among multiple non-orthogonal coded reference signals; a synchronization signal block (SSB); a demodulation reference signal (DMRS); a tracking reference signal (TRS); or a position reference signal (PRS).

[0099] Example 31. The method according to any one of Examples 21 to 30 further includes: receiving a measurement report by the network node from each of a plurality of receiver devices within a wireless network, the measurement report identifying a set of candidate beams for the receiver device in a complete beam set, wherein each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams for the receiver device has an estimated power higher than a first power threshold; determining the set of candidate beams for each of the plurality of receiver devices based on the measurement report received from each of the plurality of receiver devices; determining a group of receiver devices to be scheduled for transmission during a scheduling period; determining a multi-receiver device set of active beams by the network node based on the set of candidate beams for each of the plurality of receiver devices to be scheduled, so that at least one active beam of the candidate beams of the receiver device will be provided for each of the receiver devices in the group of receiver devices to be scheduled; wherein the transmission beam-specific sequence includes a beam-specific sequence of reference signals transmitted by the network node via each active beam in the set of multi-receiver devices of the active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the set of multi-receiver devices of the active beams.

[0100] Example 32. An apparatus comprising components for performing a method according to any one of Examples 20 to 31.

[0101] Example 33. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause a computing system to perform a method according to any one of Examples 20 to 31.

[0102] Example 34. A device comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the device to at least perform a method according to any one of Examples 20 to 31.

[0103] Figure 6 1 is a block diagram of a wireless station or network node (e.g., AP, BS, gNB or user equipment / UE, or other network node) 1000 according to an example embodiment. The wireless station 1000 may include, for example, one or more (e.g., Figure 6 The wireless station also includes two RF (radio frequency) or wireless transceivers 1002A, 1002B shown, each of which includes a transmitter for transmitting signals and a receiver for receiving signals. The wireless station also includes a processor or control unit / entity (controller) 1004 for executing instructions or software and controlling the transmission and reception of signals, and a memory 1006 for storing data and / or instructions.

[0104] The processor 1004 may also make decisions or determinations, generate frames, packets or messages for transmission, decode received frames or messages for further processing, and perform other tasks or functions described herein. For example, the processor 1004, which may be a baseband processor, may generate messages, packets, frames or other signals for transmission via the wireless transceiver 1002 (1002A or 1002B). The processor 1004 may control the transmission of signals or messages through a wireless network, and may control the reception of signals or messages, etc., via a wireless network (e.g., after being down-converted by the wireless transceiver 1002). The processor 1004 may be programmable and may be capable of executing software or other instructions stored in a memory or on other computer media to perform the various tasks and functions described above, such as one or more of the tasks or methods described above. The processor 1004 may be (or may include) for example hardware, programmable logic, a programmable processor that executes software or firmware, and / or any combination of these. For example, using other terms, the processor 1004 and the transceiver 1002 may be considered together as a wireless transmitter / receiver system.

[0105] In addition, refer to Figure 6 , the controller (or processor) 1008 can execute software and instructions and can provide overall control for the station 1000 and can Figure 6 Other systems not shown provide controls, such as controlling input / output devices (e.g., display, keypad), and / or may execute software for one or more applications that may be provided on wireless station 1000, such as an email program, audio / video applications, a word processor, voice over IP applications, or other applications or software.

[0106] Additionally, a storage medium may be provided that includes stored instructions that, when executed by a controller or processor, may cause the processor 1004 or other controller or processor to perform one or more of the functions or tasks described above.

[0107] According to another example embodiment, (multiple) RF or wireless transceiver 1002A / 1002B can receive signals or data and / or transmit or send signals or data. The processor 1004 (and possibly the transceiver 1002A / 1002B) can control the RF or wireless transceiver 1002A or 1002B to receive, send, broadcast or transmit signals or data.

[0108] However, the embodiments are not limited to the systems given as examples, but those skilled in the art may apply the solutions to other communication systems. Another suitable communication system example is a 5G system. It is assumed that the network architecture in 5G will be very similar to Advanced LTE. 5G may use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antennas, more base stations or nodes than LTE (the so-called small cell concept), including macro sites that operate in cooperation with small base stations, and may also adopt various radio technologies to achieve better coverage and enhanced data rates.

[0109] It should be understood that future networks are likely to utilize network function virtualization (NFV), which is a network architecture concept that proposes virtualizing network node functions into "building blocks" or entities that can be operationally connected or linked together to provide services. A virtualized network function (VNF) may include one or more virtual machines that use standard or general-purpose types of servers rather than customized hardware to run computer program code. Cloud computing or data storage may also be used. In radio communications, this may mean that node operations may be performed at least in part in a server, host, or node that is operably coupled to a remote radio head. Node operations may also be distributed among multiple servers, nodes, or hosts. It should also be understood that the distribution of work between core network operations and base station operations may be different from LTE or even non-existent.

[0110] Embodiments of the various techniques described herein may be implemented in digital electronic circuit systems, or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or in a combination thereof. Embodiments may be implemented as computer program products, i.e., computer programs tangibly implemented in information carriers, for example, in machine-readable storage devices or in propagation signals, for use by data processing devices (e.g., programmable processors, one computer or multiple computers) to perform or control the operation of data processing devices. Embodiments may also be provided on computer-readable media or computer-readable storage media that may be non-transient media. Embodiments of various techniques may also include embodiments provided via transient signals or media, and / or downloadable programs and / or software embodiments via the Internet or (multiple) other networks (wired networks and / or wireless networks). In addition, embodiments may be provided via machine type communications (MTC) or via the Internet of Things (IOT).

[0111] A computer program may be in source code form, object code form or some intermediate form and may be stored in some carrier, distribution medium or computer readable medium, which may be any entity or device capable of carrying the program. For example, such carriers include recording media, computer memories, read-only memories, optoelectronic and / or electrical carrier signals, telecommunication signals and software distribution packages. Depending on the processing power required, a computer program may be executed in a single electronic digital computer or distributed among multiple computers.

[0112] In addition, embodiments of the various techniques described herein may use a cyber-physical system (CPS) (a system of collaborative computing elements that control physical entities). CPS can implement and utilize a large number of interconnected ICT devices (sensors, actuators, processors, microcontrollers, etc.) embedded in different locations in physical objects. Mobile cyber-physical systems (where the physical system in question has inherent mobility) are a subcategory of cyber-physical systems. Examples of mobile physical systems include mobile robots and electronic devices transported by humans or animals. The popularity of smartphones has increased interest in the field of mobile cyber-physical systems. Therefore, various embodiments of the techniques described herein may be provided via one or more of these technologies.

[0113] Computer programs such as the above-mentioned (multiple) computer programs can be written in any form of programming language, including compiled or interpreted languages, and can be deployed in any form, including as a stand-alone program or as a module, component, subroutine or other unit or part thereof suitable for a computing environment. The computer program can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiple computers, which are located at one site or distributed at multiple sites and interconnected by a communication network.

[0114] The method steps may be performed by one or more programmable processors executing a computer program or computer program portion to perform functions by operating on input data and generating output. The method steps may also be performed by, and the apparatus may be implemented as, special purpose logic circuitry, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit).

[0115] Processors suitable for executing computer programs include, for example, general and special purpose microprocessors, and any one or more processors of any kind of digital computer, chip or chipset. Typically, the processor will receive instructions and data from a read-only memory or a random access memory or both. Elements of a computer may include at least one processor for executing instructions and one or more memory devices for storing instructions and data. Typically, a computer may also include or be operatively coupled to receive data from or transfer data to or both of one or more mass storage devices (e.g., magnetic, magneto-optical or optical disks) for storing data. Information carriers suitable for embodying computer program instructions and data include all forms of non-volatile memory, including, for example, semiconductor memory devices, such as EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices; magnetic disks, such as internal hard disks or removable disks; magneto-optical disks; and CD ROM and DVD-ROM disks. The processor and memory may be supplemented by or incorporated in a dedicated logic circuit system.

[0116] To provide interaction with a user, embodiments may be implemented on a computer having a display device (e.g., a cathode ray tube (CRT) or liquid crystal display (LCD) monitor) for displaying information to the user and a user interface (such as a keyboard and a pointing device, e.g., a mouse or trackball) through which the user can provide input to the computer. Other types of devices may also be used to provide interaction with the user; for example, feedback provided to the user may be any form of sensory feedback, such as visual feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback; and input from the user may be received in any form, including sound, voice, or tactile input.

[0117] Embodiments may be implemented in a computing system that includes a back-end component, such as a data server; or includes a middleware component, such as an application server; or includes a front-end component, such as a client computer with a graphical user interface or a web browser through which a user can interact with the embodiments; or includes any combination of such back-end components, middleware components, or front-end components. The components may be interconnected by any form or media of digital data communication, such as a communication network. Examples of communication networks include local area networks (LANs) and wide area networks (WANs), such as the Internet.

[0118] Although certain features of the described embodiments have been described as described herein, many modifications, substitutions, changes and equivalents will now occur to those skilled in the art. It should therefore be understood that the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications and changes that fall within the true spirit of the various embodiments.

Claims

1. A device for communication, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code; The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: estimating, by a receiver device in a wireless network, a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the estimated received power of each active beam to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; receiving, by the receiver device, verification information associated with the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; as well as validating, by the receiver device, the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the validation information; wherein the processor, the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to estimate a set of one or more active beams comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: determining, by the receiver device, an active beam bit string based on the estimated received power for each of a plurality of beams, the active beam bit string identifying an estimated set of one or more active beams from the plurality of beams; wherein being configured to cause the apparatus to verify comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: verify, based on the verification information and the active beam bit string, that the active beam bit string identifies a correct set of active beams from the plurality of beams; as well as wherein the processor, the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to receive verification information by the receiver device comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: receiving redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string; Wherein being configured to cause the apparatus to verify further comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: verify, by the receiver device, the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the redundant bits and the active beam bit string.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are further configured to cause the apparatus to: The beam identification of each active beam is determined by the receiver device based on at least one of: a set of one or more time-frequency resources associated with each active beam, wherein the estimated received power of a first active beam in the set of one or more active beams comprises an estimated received power of a signal received via a first set of one or more time-frequency resources, the first set of one or more time-frequency resources being associated with the first active beam; or A beam-specific sequence for each active beam in the set of one or more active beams.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to estimate comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: A receiver device in a wireless network estimates a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on an estimated received power of each active beam and a beam-specific sequence of each active beam in the set of one or more active beams to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to estimate the set of active beams comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: estimating, by the receiver device, received power for each of a plurality of beams; One or more active beams of the plurality of beams are determined by the receiver device, wherein each active beam has an estimated received power greater than a threshold and has a beam identity determined by the receiver device based on a beam-specific sequence of reference signals received for each active beam.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to estimate a set of one or more active beams comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: estimating, by the receiver device, received power for each of a plurality of beams; detecting, by the receiver device, one or more active beams of the plurality of beams, wherein each active beam has an estimated received power greater than a threshold; as well as A beam identity of each active beam in the set of one or more active beams is identified by the receiver device based on a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal received for each active beam.

6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to cause the apparatus to receive verification information by the receiver device comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: receiving a cyclic redundancy check associated with the active beam bit string; wherein being configured to cause the device to authenticate comprises being configured to cause the device to: calculating a cyclic redundancy check calculated over the active beam bit string; as well as The calculated cyclic redundancy check is compared to the received cyclic redundancy check to verify that the calculated cyclic redundancy check is the same as the received cyclic redundancy check.

7. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code being configured to cause the apparatus to receive verification information by the receiver device comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to receive a hash value associated with the active beam bit string; wherein being configured to cause the device to authenticate comprises being configured to cause the device to: Calculating a hash value based on the active beam bit string; as well as The calculated hash value is compared to the received hash value to verify that the calculated hash value is the same as the received hash value.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising the processor, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to further cause the apparatus to: The estimated set of one or more active beams is corrected by the receiver device based on the redundant bits and the active beam bit string.

9. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to cause the apparatus to receive verification information, including being configured to cause the apparatus to: receiving, by the receiver device, encoded information in which downlink control information has been encoded using redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string; as well as wherein being configured to cause the device to authenticate comprises being configured to cause the device to: decoding the encoded information to obtain the verification information; The estimated set of active beams for the receiver device is verified by the receiver device based on the obtained verification information and the active beam bit string.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the verification information comprises at least one of the following: Information indicating the number of active beams per cell or within a cooperation area; information indicating a percentage or proportion of active beams within a cell or a cooperation area of ​​a complete set of beams or of the plurality of beams; information indicating that a set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has not changed during or since a last time period; Information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has changed completely during or since a last time period; or Information indicating whether a complete set of beams or a specific number or a specific percentage of active beams in the plurality of beams have changed or have not changed during or since a last time period.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to further cause the apparatus to: A measurement report is sent by the receiver device to a base station or a network node to report at least one of: channel state information, or the estimated received power of each active beam in a verified estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

12. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the beam-specific sequence for each active beam comprises a beam-specific sequence of at least one of the following associated with the active beam: a channel state information reference signal CSI-RS from among a plurality of orthogonal channel state information reference signals; or a coded reference signal from among a plurality of non-orthogonal coded reference signals; Synchronization signal block SSB; Demodulation reference signal DMRS; Tracking Reference Signal TRS; or Position reference signal PRS.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to further cause the apparatus to: sending, by the receiver device, a measurement report, the measurement report identifying a set of candidate beams for the receiver device from a complete set of beams, wherein each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams has a measured power greater than a first power threshold; as well as estimating, by the receiver device, a received power of a beam-specific sequence received via each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams, wherein each beam-specific sequence is associated with or identifies a candidate beam; as well as Wherein being configured to cause the apparatus to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device includes being configured to cause the apparatus to: estimate, by the receiver device, a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the set of candidate beams for the receiver device based on the estimated received power of the beam-specific sequence for each candidate beam, so as to obtain an estimated set of active beams for the receiver device, wherein each active beam in the estimated set of active beams has an associated beam-specific sequence whose estimated received power is greater than a second power threshold, and wherein each active beam in the estimated set of one or more active beams is identified based on the beam-specific sequence associated with the active beam.

14. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the receiver device comprises a user equipment or UE.

15. An apparatus for communication, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code; The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: transmitting, by a network node in a wireless network, a signal via each active beam in a multiple receiver device set of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the multiple receiver device set of active beams; transmitting, by the network node, verification information to at least one receiver device of a group of receiver devices to be scheduled, the verification information allowing the at least one receiver device to verify the estimated set of estimated active beams for the receiver device; determining, for the at least one receiver device, an active beam bit string identifying an estimated set of the one or more active beams for the receiver device from a plurality of beams; as well as Redundancy bits associated with the active beam bit string are transmitted to allow the at least one receiver device to verify and / or correct the estimated set of one or more active beams for the at least one receiver device.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to cause the apparatus to transmit a signal comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: A beam-specific sequence is transmitted by a network node in a wireless network via each active beam in a multiple receiver device set of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the multiple receiver device set of active beams.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to cause the apparatus to transmit a beam-specific sequence comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: A network node in a wireless network transmits a beam-specific sequence of reference signals via each active beam in a set of multiple receiver devices of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver devices within the set of multiple receiver devices of the active beams based on an estimated received power of each active beam, and to determine a beam identity of each active beam based on the beam-specific sequence of the reference signal of each active beam.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to cause the network node to transmit verification information, including being configured to cause the apparatus to: A cyclic redundancy check associated with the active beams bit string is transmitted to allow the at least one receiver device to verify and / or correct the estimated set of one or more active beams for the at least one receiver device.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to cause the apparatus to transmit, by the network node, verification information, comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: A hash value associated with or based on the active beam bit string is transmitted.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to cause the apparatus to transmit, by the network node, verification information comprises being configured to cause the apparatus to: Encoded information is transmitted by the network node in which downlink control information has been encoded using redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string.

21. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the verification information comprises at least one of the following: Information indicating the number of active beams per cell or within a cooperation area; information indicating a percentage or proportion of active beams within a cell or a cooperation area of ​​a complete set of beams or of the plurality of beams; information indicating that a set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has not changed during or since a last time period; Information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has changed completely during or since a last time period; or Information indicating whether a complete set of beams or a specific number or a specific percentage of active beams in the plurality of beams have changed or have not changed during or since a last time period.

22. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the processor, the at least one memory, and the computer program code are configured to further cause the apparatus to: A measurement report is received by the network node from the at least one receiver device to report channel state information and / or a verified estimated received power for each of the active beams in an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

23. The apparatus of any one of claims 16 to 22, wherein the beam-specific sequence for each active beam comprises a beam-specific sequence of at least one of the following signals associated with the active beam: A channel state information reference signal CSI-RS among a plurality of orthogonal channel state information reference signals; or a coded reference signal from among a plurality of non-orthogonal coded reference signals; Synchronization signal block SSB; Demodulation reference signal DMRS; Tracking Reference Signal TRS; or Position reference signal PRS.

24. A method of communication, comprising: estimating, by a receiver device in a wireless network, a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the estimated received power of each active beam to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; receiving, by the receiver device, verification information associated with the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device; as well as validating, by the receiver device, the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the validation information; Wherein estimating a set of one or more active beams comprises: determining, by the receiver device, an active beam bit string based on the estimated received power for each of a plurality of beams, the active beam bit string identifying an estimated set of one or more active beams from the plurality of beams; wherein the verifying comprises verifying, based on the verification information and the active beam bit string, that the active beam bit string identifies a correct set of active beams from the plurality of beams; and The receiving of verification information by the receiver device comprises: receiving redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string; Wherein the verifying further comprises verifying, by the receiver device, the estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on the redundant bits and the active beam bit string.

25. The method according to claim 24, further comprising: The beam identification of each active beam is determined by the receiver device based on at least one of: a set of one or more time-frequency resources associated with each active beam, wherein the estimated received power of a first active beam in the set of one or more active beams comprises an estimated received power of a signal received via a first set of one or more time-frequency resources associated with the first active beam; or A beam-specific sequence for each active beam in the set of one or more active beams.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the estimating comprises: A receiver device in a wireless network estimates a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device based on an estimated received power of each active beam and a beam-specific sequence of each active beam in the set of one or more active beams to obtain an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein estimating the active beam set comprises: estimating, by the receiver device, received power for each of a plurality of beams; One or more active beams of the plurality of beams are determined by the receiver device, wherein each active beam has an estimated received power greater than a threshold and has a beam identity determined by the receiver device based on a beam-specific sequence of reference signals received for each active beam.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein estimating the set of one or more active beams comprises: estimating, by the receiver device, received power for each of a plurality of beams; detecting, by the receiver device, one or more active beams of the plurality of beams, wherein each active beam has an estimated received power greater than a threshold; A beam identity of each active beam in the set of one or more active beams is identified by the receiver device based on a beam-specific sequence of a reference signal received for each active beam.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein receiving, by the receiver device, verification information comprises: receiving a cyclic redundancy check associated with the active beam bit string; The verification includes: calculating a cyclic redundancy check calculated over the active beam bit string; as well as The calculated cyclic redundancy check is compared to the received cyclic redundancy check to verify that the calculated cyclic redundancy check is the same as the received cyclic redundancy check.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein receiving, by the receiver device, verification information comprises receiving a hash value associated with the active beam bit string; The verification includes: Calculating a hash value based on the active beam bit string; as well as The calculated hash value is compared to the received hash value to verify that the calculated hash value is the same as the received hash value.

31. The method of claim 24, further comprising: The estimated set of one or more active beams is corrected by the receiver device based on the redundant bits and the active beam bit string.

32. The method of claim 26, wherein receiving verification information comprises: receiving, by the receiver device, encoded information in which downlink control information has been encoded using redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string; as well as The verification includes: decoding the encoded information to obtain the verification information; The estimated set of active beams for the receiver device is verified by the receiver device based on the obtained verification information and the active beam bit string.

33. The method of claim 24, wherein the verification information comprises at least one of the following: Information indicating the number of active beams per cell or within a cooperation area; information indicating a percentage or proportion of active beams within a cell or a cooperation area of ​​a complete set of beams or of the plurality of beams; information indicating that a set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has not changed during or since a last time period; Information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has changed completely during or since a last time period; or Information indicating whether a complete set of beams or a specific number or a specific percentage of active beams in the plurality of beams have changed or have not changed during or since a last time period.

34. The method of claim 24, further comprising: A measurement report is sent by the receiver device to a base station or a network node to report at least one of: channel state information, or the estimated received power of each active beam in a verified estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

35. The method of claim 26, wherein the beam-specific sequence for each active beam comprises a beam-specific sequence of at least one of the following associated with the active beam: a channel state information reference signal CSI-RS from among a plurality of orthogonal channel state information reference signals; or a coded reference signal from among a plurality of non-orthogonal coded reference signals; Synchronization signal block SSB; Demodulation reference signal DMRS; Tracking Reference Signal TRS; or Position reference signal PRS.

36. The method of claim 24, further comprising: sending, by the receiver device, a measurement report, the measurement report identifying a set of candidate beams for the receiver device from a complete set of beams, wherein each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams has a measured power greater than a first power threshold; as well as estimating, by the receiver device, a received power of a beam-specific sequence received via each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams, wherein each beam-specific sequence is associated with or identifies a candidate beam; as well as Wherein estimating a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device includes estimating, by the receiver device, a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the set of candidate beams for the receiver device based on the estimated received power of the beam-specific sequence for each candidate beam to obtain an estimated set of active beams for the receiver device, wherein each active beam in the estimated set of active beams has an associated beam-specific sequence having an estimated received power greater than a second power threshold, and wherein each active beam in the estimated set of one or more active beams is identified based on the beam-specific sequence associated with the active beam.

37. The method according to any one of claims 24 to 36, wherein the receiver device comprises a user equipment or UE.

38. An apparatus for communication comprising means for performing the method according to any one of claims 24 to 37.

39. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the instructions being configured to cause a computing system to perform the method of any one of claims 24 to 37 when executed by at least one processor.

40. An apparatus for communication, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code; The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform a method according to any one of claims 24 to 37.

41. A method of communication, comprising: transmitting, by a network node in a wireless network, a signal via each active beam in a multiple receiver device set of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the multiple receiver device set of active beams; transmitting, by the network node, verification information to at least one receiver device of a group of receiver devices to be scheduled, the verification information allowing the at least one receiver device to verify the estimated set of estimated active beams for the receiver device; determining, for the at least one receiver device, an active beam bit string identifying an estimated set of the one or more active beams for the receiver device from a plurality of beams; The verification information transmitted by the network node includes: Redundancy bits associated with the active beam bit string are transmitted to allow the at least one receiver device to verify and / or correct the estimated set of one or more active beams for the at least one receiver device.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein the transmission signal comprises: A beam-specific sequence is transmitted by a network node in a wireless network via each active beam in a multiple receiver device set of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the multiple receiver device set of active beams.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein transmitting a beam-specific sequence comprises: A network node in a wireless network transmits a beam-specific sequence of reference signals via each active beam in a set of multiple receiver devices of active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver devices within the set of multiple receiver devices of the active beams based on an estimated received power of each active beam, and to determine a beam identity of each active beam based on the beam-specific sequence of the reference signal of each active beam.

44. The method of claim 41 , wherein transmitting, by the network node, verification information comprises: A cyclic redundancy check associated with the active beams bit string is transmitted to allow the at least one receiver device to verify and / or correct the estimated set of one or more active beams for the at least one receiver device.

45. The method of claim 41, wherein transmitting, by the network node, verification information comprises transmitting a hash value associated with or based on the active beam bit string.

46. ​​The method of claim 41, wherein the transmitting verification information comprises: Encoded information is transmitted by the network node in which downlink control information has been encoded using redundant bits associated with the active beam bit string.

47. The method of claim 41, wherein the verification information comprises at least one of the following: Information indicating the number of active beams per cell or within a cooperation area; information indicating a percentage or proportion of active beams within a cell or a cooperation area of ​​a complete set of beams or of the plurality of beams; information indicating that a set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has not changed during or since a last time period; Information indicating that the set of one or more active beams for one or more receiver devices or within a cooperation area or cell has changed completely during or since a last time period; or Information indicating whether a complete set of beams or a specific number or a specific percentage of active beams in the plurality of beams have changed or have not changed during or since a last time period.

48. The method of claim 41, further comprising: A measurement report is received by the network node from the at least one receiver device to report channel state information and / or a verified estimated received power for each of the active beams in an estimated set of one or more active beams for the receiver device.

49. The method of claim 42, wherein the beam-specific sequence for each active beam comprises a beam-specific sequence of at least one of the following signals associated with the active beam: A channel state information reference signal CSI-RS among a plurality of orthogonal channel state information reference signals; or a coded reference signal from among a plurality of non-orthogonal coded reference signals; Synchronization signal block SSB; Demodulation reference signal DMRS; Tracking Reference Signal TRS; or Position reference signal PRS.

50. The method according to any one of claims 42 to 49, further comprising: receiving, by the network node, a measurement report from each of a plurality of receiver devices within a wireless network, the measurement report identifying a set of candidate beams for the receiver device from a complete set of beams, wherein each candidate beam in the set of candidate beams for the receiver device has an estimated power above a first power threshold; determining, by the network node, the set of candidate beams for each of the plurality of receiver devices based on measurement reports received from each of the plurality of receiver devices; determining a set of receiver devices to be scheduled for transmission during a scheduling period; determining, by the network node, a multiple receiver device set of active beams based on the set of candidate beams for each receiver device in the set of receiver devices to be scheduled, such that at least one active beam of the candidate beams for a receiver device will be provided for each receiver device in the set of receiver devices to be scheduled; Wherein the transmission beam-specific sequence includes a beam-specific sequence of reference signals transmitted by the network node via each active beam in the set of multiple receiver devices of the active beams to allow one or more receiver devices to estimate a set of one or more active beams for the receiver device within the set of multiple receiver devices of the active beams.

51. An apparatus for communication comprising means for performing the method according to any one of claims 41 to 50.

52. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the instructions being configured to cause a computing system to perform a method according to any one of claims 41 to 50 when executed by at least one processor.

53. An apparatus for communication, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory, the at least one memory comprising computer program code; The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform a method according to any one of claims 41 to 50.

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