Determine the activation order in activating multiple secondary cells (SCELLs)

Abstract

Systems, methods, apparatus and computer program products for determining the activation order in the activation of multiple secondary cells (SCells). For example, when a user equipment (UE) receives a command to activate multiple SCells, the order of SCell activation can be determined. When the SCells to be activated include known SCells and unknown SCells, the UE can first activate the known SCells and then activate the unknown SCells. If all the SCells to be activated in a given frequency band are unknown SCells, the UE can operate so that the remaining unknown SCells in the same frequency band are assumed to be known. The UE can then activate these SCells in the same manner and according to the same delay limit as the known SCell activation. If the SCells to be activated are in different frequency bands, the UE can first activate the SCells in the frequency band with the largest number of unknown SCells.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Some example embodiments may generally relate to mobile or wireless telecommunication systems, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) or fifth generation (5G) radio access technology or new radio (NR) access technology, or other communication systems. For example, certain embodiments may relate to systems and / or methods for determining an activation order in activating multiple secondary cells (SCells). Background Art

[0002] Examples of mobile or wireless telecommunication systems may include the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), Long Term Evolution (LTE) Evolved UTRAN (E-UTRAN), Advanced LTE (LTE-A), MulteFire, LTE-A Pro and / or fifth generation (5G) radio access technology or New Radio (NR) access technology. 5G is primarily based on New Radio (NR), but 5G networks may also be built on E-UTRA radio. It is estimated that NR may provide bit rates on the order of 10-20 Gbit / s or higher and may support at least enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) and ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC) as well as massive machine-type communications (mMTC). NR is expected to deliver ultra-wideband and ultra-robust, low-latency connectivity and large-scale networking to support the Internet of Things (IoT). As IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) communications become more prevalent, there will be an increasing demand for networks that meet the requirements of low power consumption, low data rates and long battery life. It is important to note that in 5G, a node that can provide radio access functionality to user equipment (i.e. similar to a Node B in UTRAN or an eNB in LTE) can be named gNB when established on NR radio, and can be named NG-eNB when established on E-UTRA radio. Summary of the Invention

[0003] According to a first embodiment, a method may include receiving, by a user equipment, a command for activating multiple secondary cells. The method may include determining an order for activating the multiple secondary cells based on at least one of: whether the multiple secondary cells include an unknown cell, whether the multiple secondary cells include a known cell, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in a frequency band. The method may include performing activation of the multiple secondary cells based on the determined order.

[0004] In a variation, the method may include determining a delay limit for activating a secondary cell among the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order. In one variation, the plurality of secondary cells may include known secondary cells and unknown secondary cells, and determining the order may include activating the known secondary cell before activating the unknown secondary cell. In one variation, the determining may include activating the known secondary cell before activating any unknown secondary cell in the same frequency band.

[0005] In a variation, the plurality of secondary cells may include a first number of unknown secondary cells in a first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in a second frequency band, and the determining may include, if the first number is greater than the second number, determining to activate the secondary cells in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cells in the second frequency band. In one variation, the method may include, based on the secondary cell in the frequency band being activated first, determining one or more other unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band as known. In another variation, the method may include, based on determining that the one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after the one secondary cell is activated, determining a delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells.

[0006] According to a second embodiment, a method may include receiving, by a user equipment, a command to activate multiple secondary cells. The multiple secondary cells may include a set of unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band. The method may include activating a first secondary cell in the set of unknown secondary cells. The method may include, based on the activation of the first secondary cell, determining that one or more second secondary cells in the set of unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band are known.

[0007] In a variation, the method may include, after the first secondary cell is activated, determining a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known. In a variation, the method may include activating the one or more second secondary cells.

[0008] According to a third embodiment, an apparatus may include at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code may be configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least receive a command to activate multiple secondary cells. The apparatus may be configured to determine an order for activating the multiple secondary cells based on at least one of the following: whether the multiple secondary cells include an unknown cell, whether the multiple secondary cells include a known cell, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in a frequency band. The apparatus may be configured to activate the multiple secondary cells based on the determined order.

[0009] In a variation, the apparatus may be configured to determine a delay limit for activating a secondary cell among the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order. In one variation, the plurality of secondary cells may include known secondary cells and unknown secondary cells, and when determining the order, the apparatus may be configured to determine that the known secondary cells are activated before the unknown secondary cells. In another variation, when determining activation, the apparatus may be configured to determine that the known secondary cells are activated before any unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band.

[0010] In a variation, the plurality of secondary cells may include a first number of unknown secondary cells in a first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in a second frequency band, and when determining the order, the apparatus may be configured to: if the first number is greater than the second number, determine to activate the secondary cells in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cells in the second frequency band. In one variation, the apparatus may be configured to: determine one or more other unknown secondary cells in the frequency band as known based on the secondary cell in the frequency band being activated first. In another variation, the apparatus may be configured to: determine a delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells based on determining that the one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after a secondary cell is activated.

[0011] According to a fourth embodiment, an apparatus may include at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code may be configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least receive a command to activate multiple secondary cells. The multiple secondary cells may include a set of unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band. The apparatus may be configured to: activate a first secondary cell in the set of unknown secondary cells; and, based on the activation of the first secondary cell, determine that one or more second secondary cells in the set of unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band are known.

[0012] In a variation, the apparatus may be caused to determine a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known after the first secondary cell is activated. In a variation, the apparatus may be caused to activate the one or more second secondary cells.

[0013] A fifth embodiment may be directed to an apparatus that may include circuitry configured to cause the apparatus to perform a method according to the first or second embodiment or any of the variations discussed above.

[0014] A sixth embodiment may be directed to an apparatus that may include components for performing the method according to the first embodiment or the second embodiment or any of the variations discussed above. Examples of components may include one or more processors, memories, and / or computer program code for causing operations to be performed.

[0015] A seventh embodiment may be directed to a computer-readable medium including program instructions stored thereon for causing an apparatus to at least perform the method according to the first embodiment or the second embodiment or any of the variations discussed above.

[0016] An eighth embodiment may be directed to a computer program product encoding instructions for causing an apparatus to at least perform the method according to the first embodiment or the second embodiment or any of the variations discussed above. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] For a proper understanding of the exemplary embodiments, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0018] Figure 1 illustrates an example of determining an activation order in activating multiple SCells according to some embodiments;

[0019] Figure 2 An example of activating a known SCell before an unknown SCell according to some embodiments is illustrated;

[0020] Figure 3 An example of activating multiple unknown SCells in a frequency band according to some embodiments is illustrated;

[0021] Figure 4 illustrates an example of activating multiple unknown SCells in multiple frequency bands according to some embodiments;

[0022] Figure 5 illustrates an example flow chart of a method according to some embodiments;

[0023] Figure 6 illustrates an example flow chart of a method according to some embodiments;

[0024] Figure 7a illustrates an example block diagram of an apparatus according to one embodiment; and

[0025] Figure 7b An example block diagram of an apparatus according to another embodiment is illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] It will be readily understood that the components of certain example embodiments, as generally described and illustrated in the figures herein, may be arranged and designed in a variety of different configurations. Therefore, the following detailed description of some example embodiments of systems, methods, apparatuses, and computer program products for determining an activation order in activating multiple secondary cells (SCells) is not intended to limit the scope of certain embodiments, but rather represents selected example embodiments.

[0027] The features, structures or characteristics of the example embodiments described throughout this specification may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more example embodiments. For example, the use of the phrases "certain embodiments," "some embodiments," or other similar language throughout this specification refers to the fact that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the phrases "in certain embodiments," "in some embodiments," "in other embodiments," or other similar language appearing throughout this specification do not necessarily all refer to the same set of embodiments, and the described features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more example embodiments. Furthermore, the phrase "set" refers to a set that includes one or more referenced set members. Thus, the phrases "set," "one or more," and "at least one," or equivalent phrases, may be used interchangeably. Furthermore, unless expressly stated otherwise, "or" is intended to mean "and / or."

[0028] Furthermore, if desired, the different functions or operations discussed below may be performed in a different order and / or concurrently with one another. Furthermore, if desired, one or more of the functions or operations described may be optional or may be combined. Thus, the following description should be considered merely to illustrate the principles and teachings of certain example embodiments, and not to limit them.

[0029] In NR, activation or deactivation mechanisms for cells may be defined to achieve reasonable UE battery consumption when carrier aggregation (CA) is configured. When an SCell is deactivated, the UE does not have to receive the corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), may not transmit in the corresponding uplink, and / or does not have to perform channel quality indicator (CQI) or channel state information (CSI) measurements on the SCell. In addition, radio resource management (RRM) measurement parameters may be relaxed compared to an activated SCell. In contrast, when an SCell is active or activated, the UE detects PDSCH and PDCCH (if the UE is configured to monitor PDCCH from that SCell) and is expected to be able to perform CSI measurements and report the measurements. In addition, the RRM measurement parameters and requirements may be related to those of the activated SCell (e.g., the same as those of a non-deactivated serving cell). The transition between the activated and deactivated states may be based on a media access control (MAC) control element. For example, the SCell activation / deactivation MAC control element (CE) may be used to indicate whether the SCell with SCellIndex i is activated or deactivated.

[0030] When the SCell activation MAC CE indicates the activation of a single SCell, such as in NR, a single SCell activation delay limit for the deactivated SCell can be defined. When an SCell activation command is received in time slot n, the UE is able to send a valid CSI report and apply the actions related to the activation command so that the SCell is activated no later than time slot n. is activated. HARQ represents the timing between downlink (DL) data transmission and acknowledgment for the Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) process, T CSI_Reporting Denotes the delay (in milliseconds (ms)) including the uncertainty in obtaining the first available downlink CSI reference resource, the time for UE to process CSI reports and the uncertainty in obtaining the first available CSI reporting resource. The delay T for the UE to be able to activate the deactivated SCell activation_time It may depend on the current SCell conditions. For example, the conditions may include whether the SCell is known or unknown, whether the SCell belongs to frequency range 1 (FR1) or frequency range 2 (FR2), whether there is already a serving cell in the same FR2 band, whether periodic or semi-persistent CSI reference signal (CSI-RS) is used for CSI reporting, etc. When the SCell activation MAC CE indicates the activation of multiple SCells, the SCell activation delay may take into account the status of multiple to-be-activated SCells in a single MAC command.

[0031] The SCell activation and deactivation delay limits define the time period during which the UE can activate a deactivated SCell and the time period during which the UE can deactivate an activated SCell, respectively. Activating an unknown SCell may take longer than activating a known SCell. Certain conditions can be defined to determine when a SCell is assumed to be known or unknown (e.g., for FR1). For example, a SCell in FR1 is known if it meets the following conditions: (1) the UE has sent a valid measurement report for the SCell to be activated for a time period equal to T for FR1 before receiving the SCell activation command and the measured synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) remain detectable according to certain cell identification conditions; (2) the SSBs measured for a time period equal to T also remain detectable during the SCell activation delay according to the cell identification conditions. Otherwise, the SCell in FR1 is unknown. T can be configured as max(5*measCycleSCell,5*DRX cycle). The parameter measCycleSCell refers to the period used by the UE for measurement when the SCell is in the deactivated state. The DRX cycle refers to the period of discontinuous reception. The conditions for known and unknown SCells in FR2 may be similar to those for FR1.

[0032] The actual activation delay may depend on whether the SCell is known or unknown when the UE receives the activation command, and the conditions of other cells in the same band (e.g., in FR2). For example, when the first unknown SCell in an FR2 band is activated due to receive (RX) scanning, cell detection, etc., an additional period of time (15*T SMTC_MAX +8*T rs ), where T SMTC_MAX and T rs is defined as follows.

[0033] In one example, certain aspects may involve T SMTC_MAX For example, in FR1, when the in-band SCell is activated, T SMTC_MAX is the longer Synchronization Signal (SS) / Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) Block Measurement Timing Configuration (SMTC) periodicity between the activated SCell and the active serving cell, provided that the cell-specific reference signals from the active serving cell and the activated or released SCell are available in the same time slot; in case of inter-band SCell activation, T SMTC_MAX is the SMTC periodicity of the activated SCell. In addition, in FR2, T SMTC_MAX is the longer SMTC periodicity between the activated SCell and the active serving cell, provided that FR2 intra-band CA is supported. SMTC_MAX The minimum value of T is 10ms. If the UE has been provided with the SMTC configuration for the SCell in the SCell Add message, T rs is the SMTC periodicity of the activated SCell, otherwise Trs is the SMTC configured in the measObjectNR measurement object with the same SSB frequency and subcarrier spacing. If the UE is not provided with an SMTC configuration or measurement object on this frequency, the SSB transmission periodicity of 5ms is assumed, then T rs The requirements are applied, T rs =5ms.

[0034] When multiple SCells are activated within a single MAC command, the activation delay for one SCell may be extended when additional SCells are activated using a single MAC command. In this case, the SCell activation delay for each SCell may be derived based on whether the other SCells to be activated are known or unknown in FR1 or FR2, respectively.

[0035] When a MAC command indicates the activation of multiple SCells, activating an unknown SCell may take longer than activating a known SCell because more processing may be required (e.g., automatic gain control (AGC) establishment and cell search). It may be necessary to define the activation order between the SCells to be activated; otherwise, many UE constraints and expected behaviors may remain open, and unnecessary relaxation of UE constraints may be allowed, resulting in inefficient use of CA in the field. There may be several issues related to this that need to be addressed.

[0036] For example, the first issue relates to when the UE receives an activation command that activates a mix of known and unknown SCells. When the UE receives a MAC command that includes activation of multiple SCells, it can activate any deactivated SCell without any defined order. If the decision on whether to activate known or unknown SCells first is left to the UE implementation, this could result in unnecessary delays in UE SCell activation if the UE activates an unknown SCell before activating a known SCell.

[0037] The second issue may be related to when the UE receives the activation command indicating that only unknown SCells are to be activated. In FR1, when multiple unknown SCells are activated, the cell detection time for any of these unknown SCells is scaled by N1, which is the number of multiple unknown SCells to be activated indicated in a single MAC command. N1 does not necessarily count SCells in the same band, or SCells in other bands adjacent to known SCells or active serving cells in the same band. However, the activation delay for each SCell does not take into account the change in state of one of the multiple SCells during the activation from a deactivated SCell to an activated SCell. In other words, once an SCell is activated in a band, other SCells adjacent to this SCell in the same band are still assumed to be unknown and follow the activation delay defined for the unknown SCell. In some embodiments, other SCells are able to reuse this timing and no additional cell detection is required in this case.

[0038] In FR2, the first SCell to be activated in an FR2 band is unknown, and a longer activation delay can be expected. When multiple SCells are being activated, if there is at least one active serving cell or known SCell activated in the FR2 band, the activation period can be the same as the single SCell activation delay limit for a known FR2 SCell. When multiple unknown SCells are being activated in the same FR2 band, once the first unknown SCell is activated, the other unknown SCells can become known, and shorter activation delays can be expected.

[0039] Since the known / unknown state of one SCell may depend on the state of other SCells, it is beneficial to activate the SCells to be activated in a certain order in a single MAC command to help ensure that the SCells can be effectively activated and used with the shortest activation delay time. The activation delay limit in NR only defines the maximum time period that the network can expect for each SCell, and does not define how the UE handles the individual SCells configured in the MAC command. However, this has a significant impact on when the first SCell out of multiple activated SCells can be used for scheduling. This may affect network efficiency and user experience. As can be understood from the above, it is necessary to solve how the UE activates the SCell when multiple SCells are activated, for example in the MAC CE command for each cell group.

[0040] Some embodiments described herein may provide for determining an activation order in the activation of multiple SCells. For example, when a UE receives a MAC command, for example, to activate multiple SCells, certain embodiments may define the order in which the SCells are activated. In one embodiment, when the SCells to be activated indicated in the MAC command include both known SCells and unknown SCells, the UE may first activate the (multiple) known SCells and then activate the unknown SCells. In certain embodiments, if all the SCells to be activated in a given band are unknown SCells, or if the SCells to be activated in a given band include more than one unknown SCell, the UE may operate so that once the initial unknown SCell in the band has been activated, the remaining (multiple) unknown SCells in the same band may be determined to be known. In this case, the UE may then activate the remaining (multiple) unknown SCells in the same manner as the known SCell activation and according to the same delay limit for the known SCells, provided that these unknown SCells are in the band.

[0041] In certain embodiments, if the UE receives a configuration (e.g., a MAC CE) to activate multiple SCells, and the SCells to be activated are in different frequency bands, the UE may first activate those SCells in the frequency band where the largest number of unknown SCells exists. Once a SCell is activated in a single MAC command, the UE may then update the known or unknown state for that SCell. In this way, when the UE receives a MAC command that includes the activation of multiple SCells, certain embodiments described above may provide a reduction in the overall SCell activation delay on the UE side. This may improve the operation of the UE related to the activation or deactivation of multiple SCells.

[0042] Figure 1 An example flow chart 100 for determining an activation order in multiple SCell activations according to some embodiments is illustrated. For example, Figure 1 An example flow chart of a method performed by a UE is illustrated. As illustrated at 102, the UE may receive an SCell activation command. The activation command may be associated with activating multiple SCells. Additionally or alternatively, the activation command may be included in, for example, a MAC CE, radio resource control (RRC) signaling, physical layer signaling, or the like. As illustrated at 104, the UE may determine whether the SCell to be activated includes (multiple) known SCells. For example, the UE may determine whether the SCell to be activated includes at least one known SCell, or whether the SCell to be activated includes only unknown SCells. If the UE determines that the SCell to be activated includes (multiple) known SCells (104-yes), the UE may activate (multiple) known SCells at 106. After activating the (multiple) known SCells, if there are any (multiple) unknown SCells to be activated, the UE may activate (multiple) unknown SCells at 108.

[0043] If the UE determines that the SCells to be activated do not include (multiple) known SCells (104-No), the UE may determine at 110 whether the SCells to be activated are all in the same frequency band. For example, the frequency band may include an FR1 band or an FR2 band. If the UE determines that the SCells to be activated are in the same frequency band (110-Yes), the UE may activate an unknown SCell in the frequency band at 112. For example, the UE may activate one of the unknown SCells in the frequency band. If one or more conditions are met, the UE may then activate (multiple) other SCells at 114 by determining that the other SCells are known. For example, the one or more conditions may include: if the frequency band is an FR2 band, if the frequency band is an FR1 band, and the other SCells are adjacent to the first SCell to be activated (e.g., the SCells are intra-band adjacent CA).

[0044] If the UE determines that the SCells to be activated are not in the same frequency band (110-No), the UE may determine the number of unknown SCells in each frequency band at 116. For example, the UE may count the number of unknown SCells in the FR1 band and may count the number of SCells in another FR1 or FR2 band. After determining the number of unknown SCells in each frequency band, the UE may activate the unknown SCells in the frequency band with the most unknown SCells, as illustrated at 118. When a SCell is activated according to Figure 1When the flowchart in is activated, the UE may return to 104 and restart the flowchart to determine the activation order based on the updated known or unknown status of the SCell to be activated.

[0045] In this way, certain embodiments may provide a UE that can determine the activation order when multiple SCells to be activated are indicated in an activation command.

[0046] As mentioned above, providing Figure 1 As an example, other examples are possible according to some embodiments.

[0047] Figure 2 An example signaling diagram 200 is shown for activating a known SCell before activating an unknown SCell according to some embodiments. Figure 2 You can see the diagram above about Figure 1 Example 200 may include a primary serving cell (PCell), a first SCell ( Figure 2 SCell1 in ), the second SCell ( Figure 2 SCell1 may be known to the UE, while SCell2 may be unknown to the UE.

[0048] like Figure 2 As shown in the example of , at 202, for example, with Figure 1 In a similar manner as at 102 of FIG. 1 , the PCell may send and the UE may receive a SCell activation MAC CE as an activation command. The MAC CE may include activation commands for SCell1 and SCell2. In this example, it is known that SCell1 is activated first. As illustrated at 204, the UE may send and SCell1 may receive a CSI report associated with the activation of SCell1 (e.g., in a manner similar to that of FIG. 1 ). Figure 1 After activating SCell1 in a manner similar to that at 106 of FIG. 1 ). The unknown SCell2 is activated after SCell1 is activated. As illustrated at 206, the UE may send and SCell2 may receive a CSI report associated with the activated SCell2 (e.g., in a manner similar to that at 106 of FIG. 1 ). Figure 1 After activating SCell2 in a similar manner to step 108 ).

[0049] In one embodiment, the UE may HARQ +T activation_time_multiple_scells +T CSI_Reporting ) when sending CSI report. HARQ T may represent the timing between DL data transmission and acknowledgment for a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process,activation_time_multiple_scells It can represent the activation time of an SCell when multiple cells are activated in one activation command, T CSI_Reporting T may represent the delay (in milliseconds (ms)), including the uncertainty in obtaining the first available downlink CSI reference resource, the time for UE to process CSI reports, and the uncertainty in obtaining the first available CSI reporting resource. activation_time_multiple_scells The activation delay limit (eg, the time from 202 to 204) for activating SCell1 may be defined based on the state of each SCell indicated in the MAC CE. As illustrated at 208, the activation delay limit (eg, the time from 202 to 204) for activating SCell1 may be defined by T HARQ +T activation_time_SCell1 +T CSI_Reporting Indicates that T activation_time_SCell1 represents the time to activate SCell1 and is equal to T FirstSSB_MAX +5 milliseconds (ms). T FirstSSB_MAX Can be expressed as time slot The time at which the first complete synchronization signal block (SSB) burst ends is then indicated by the SMTC. As illustrated at 210, the activation delay limit for activating SCell2 (eg, the time from 202 to 206) may be determined by T HARQ +T activation_time_SCell2 +T CSI_Reporting Indicates that T activation_time_SCell2 Can be equal to T FirstSSB_MAX_multiple_scells +T SMTC_MAX_multiple_scells +T rs +5ms. T SMTC_MAX_multiple_scells It can represent the longest SMTC periodicity between the activated SCell and the active serving cell in the same frequency band, and T rs It can represent the SMTC periodicity of the activated SCell. In this example, N1 is equal to 0.

[0050] As mentioned above, according to the timing T FirstSSB_MAX +5ms to activate known SCell 1, as cell detection may not be required, and SCell 2 can be activated subsequently. With a clear activation order, shorter activation delays can be expected for known SCells, which can provide the network with more accurate information about the activation status of the corresponding SCell. This can allow the network to start scheduling earlier than otherwise possible.

[0051] As indicated above, provide Figure 2 As an example, other examples are possible according to some embodiments.

[0052] Figure 3 An example signaling diagram for activating multiple unknown SCells in a frequency band according to some embodiments is shown. Figure 3You can see the diagram above about Figure 1 Example 300 may include a PCell, a first SCell ( Figure 3 SCell1 in ), the second SCell ( Figure 3 SCell1 and SCell2 may be unknown to the UE and SCell2 may also be unknown to the UE. In addition, SCell1 and SCell2 may be in the same FR2 frequency band, and in example 300, there may be no other active serving cells or known SCells in the frequency band.

[0053] like Figure 3 An example of is illustrated at 302, for example with Figure 1 In a similar manner as at 102 of FIG. 1 , the PCell may send and the UE may receive a SCell activation MAC CE as an activation command. The MAC CE may include activation commands for SCell1 and SCell2. In this example, one of the unknown SCells (SCell1) is activated first. As illustrated at 304, the UE may send and SCell1 may receive a CSI report associated with the activation of SCell1 (e.g., the activation may be in the same format as the CSI report). Figure 1 112 of FIG. 1 ). As illustrated at 306, after activating SCell1, the UE may determine that SCell2 is a known SCell, even though SCell2 is unknown to the UE at the time of receiving the MAC CE. SCell2 is activated after the activation of SCell1. As illustrated at 308, the UE may send and SCell2 may receive a CSI report associated with the activation of SCell2 (e.g., the activation may be performed in the same manner as the activation of SCell2). Figure 1 114 in a similar manner).

[0054] As described above with respect to operations 302 to 308, the UE may first activate any of the unknown SCells (e.g., the UE may select the first unknown SCell to be activated arbitrarily or based on one or more criteria). In example 300, SCell 1 is determined to be the first unknown SCell to be activated in the band. Therefore, as illustrated at 310, SCell 1 may follow the 6ms+T for unknown SCells. FirstSSB_MAX +15*T SMTC_MAX +8*T rs +T L1-RSRP,measure +T L1-RSRP,report +T HARQ +max(T uncertainty_MAC +T FineTiming +2ms,T uncertainty_SP) of a single SCell activation delay limit (the time limit between 302 and 304), where T L1-RSRP，measure It can represent the time of layer 1 (L1) reference signal received power (RSRP) measurement, T L1-RSRP,report It can represent the delay of obtaining CSI reporting resources, T uncertainty_MAC It can be expressed as the time to consider the uncertainty about MAC, T FineTiming can represent the time used to perform fine timing, and T uncertainty_SP The time to consider the uncertainty about the semi-persistent (SP) CSI-RS resource set used for CSI reporting can be represented. After SCell1 is activated, SCell2 is considered to be known. As shown at 312, the time limit between 302 and 308 can be determined by T HARQ +T activation_time_SCell2 +T CSI_reporting ,whereT activation_time_SCell2 =3ms+max(T uncertainty_MAC_multiple_scells +T FineTiming +2ms,T uncertainty_SP_multiple_scells ) indicates that when multiple SCells are activated in one activation command, T uncertainty_MAC_multiple_scells It can represent the time for MAC uncertainty when activating multiple SCells in one activation command, T uncertainty_SP_multiple_scells It can represent the time to consider the uncertainty about the semi-persistent CSI-RS resource set used for CSI reporting when activating multiple cells in one activation command. In this way, assuming there is one known SCell (SCell1) in the same frequency band, the activation delay for SCell2 can be determined.

[0055] As mentioned above, providing Figure 3 As an example, other examples are possible according to some embodiments.

[0056] In some embodiments, the SCell to be activated may include multiple SCells in the same FR1 frequency band (e.g., where the SCells are adjacent to each other). In some embodiments, the UE may receive a MAC command indicating the activation of SCell1 and SCell2, where both SCell1 and SCell2 are unknown SCells in the same FR1 frequency band. Additionally or alternatively, there may be no active serving cell or known SCell in the frequency band. In some embodiments, the UE may first activate any one of the unknown SCells (e.g., SCell1). The activation delay of SCell1 may be based on a single activation delay for the unknown SCell. If SCell2 is adjacent to SCell1 in the same frequency band, or if SCell2 satisfies the condition that N1 is not scaled (as described below with respect to Figure 4), then SCell2 can be determined to be a known SCell. Therefore, the activation delay can be based on multiple SCell activation delays for known FR1 SCells. By determining that SCell2 is known, the UE can use multiple SCell activation delays for known FR1 SCells, which can result in a shorter activation delay compared to the activation delay for unknown SCells.

[0057] Figure 4 An example signaling diagram 400 for activating multiple unknown SCells in multiple frequency bands is illustrated according to some embodiments. Figure 4 You can see the diagram above about Figure 1 Example 400 may include a PCell, a first SCell ( Figure 4 SCell1 in ), the second SCell ( Figure 4 SCell2 in the SCell), the third SCell ( Figure 4 SCell1, SCell2 and SCell3 may be unknown to the UE. In addition, SCell1 and SCell2 may be in the same frequency band ( Figure 4 1) in the frequency band (e.g., in the first FR2 band), while SCell3 may be in a different frequency band ( Figure 4 In example 400, there may be no other active serving cells or known SCells in both frequency bands.

[0058] As shown in 402, for example, Figure 1 In a manner similar to that described at 102 of FIG. 1 , the PCell may send and the UE may receive a SCell activation MAC CE as an activation command. For example, the MAC CE may be associated with activating SCell1, SCell2, and SCell3. As illustrated at 404, the UE may determine the number of unknown SCells in each band and, for example, in the same manner as Figure 1 In a manner similar to that described at 116 of , the activation order may be determined based on the determined number. For example, in example 400, the UE may determine that there are two unknown SCells (SCell1 and SCell2) in the first frequency band and one unknown SCell (SCell3) in the second frequency band. In some embodiments, for example, Figure 1In a manner similar to that described at 118 of , the UE may determine to first activate the unknown SCell in the frequency band with the highest unknown SCell count. For example, the UE may first activate the first unknown SCell1 in frequency band 1, as illustrated at 406. In other embodiments, the selection of the frequency band in which to activate the SCell first may be performed in a different manner (e.g., based on which frequency band has a number of SCells greater than a threshold number, etc.). In association with the activation of SCell1, the UE may send and SCell1 may receive a CSI report, as illustrated at 408. It should be understood that after activation of the SCell, the UE may send other uplink signals to the SCell and / or receive downlink signals from the SCell.

[0059] As illustrated at 410, after activating the first unknown SCell in the band (e.g., after activating SCell 1 in band 1), SCell 2 may be determined to be a known SCell. As illustrated at 412, the UE may then activate SCell 2 based on the determination that it is a known SCell. By determining that SCell 2 is known, the UE may use a shorter activation delay than for unknown SCells, which may reduce the latency associated with activating certain SCells unknown to the UE identified in the MAC CE. As illustrated at 414, the UE may send, and SCell 2 may receive, a CSI report associated with the activation of SCell 2.

[0060] After activation of one or more unknown SCells in the band with the highest SCell count, the UE may activate SCells in one or more other bands. For example, the UE may perform activation in bands in descending order of the counts of unknown SCells based on an instruction set from the PCell, etc., and perform activation in bands in a random order for bands with the same counts. As illustrated at 416, the UE may activate a first SCell (SCell3) in another band (Band 2) after activation of a cell in Band 1. At 418, the UE may send and SCell3 may receive a CSI report associated with the activation of SCell3. Additionally or alternatively, after activation of the SCell, the UE may send (one or more) other uplink signals to the SCell, and / or may receive downlink signals from the SCell.

[0061] As mentioned above, providing Figure 4 As an example, other examples are possible according to some embodiments.

[0062] Figure 5 An example flow chart of a method 500 according to some embodiments is illustrated. For example, Figure 5The UE (e.g., Figure 7b Chinese illustration and about Figure 7b Example operation of the described apparatus 20). Figure 5 Some of the operations illustrated in FIG. Figure 1 、 Figure 2 and Figure 4 shown in and about Figure 1 、 Figure 2 and Figure 4 Some of the operations described.

[0063] In an embodiment, the method may include, at 502, for example, Figure 1 In a manner similar to that of step 102, receiving a command (e.g., MAC CE, radio resource control (RRC) signaling, or physical layer signaling) to activate multiple secondary cells. The method may include, at 504, for example, Figure 1 In a manner similar to that of steps 104, 106, 110, and / or 116 of the present invention, determining the order of activating the plurality of secondary cells based on at least one of the following: whether the plurality of secondary cells include unknown cells, whether the plurality of secondary cells include known cells, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in the frequency band. The method may include, at 506, for example, Figure 1 In a similar manner to steps 108, 112, 114, and / or 118, activation of the plurality of secondary cells is performed based on the determined order. This can reduce activation delays of the plurality of secondary cells.

[0064] Figure 5 The method illustrated in the example of may include one or more additional aspects described below or elsewhere herein. In some embodiments, the method may include determining a delay limit for activating a secondary cell among the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order. In some embodiments, the plurality of secondary cells may include known secondary cells and unknown secondary cells. Based on this, in some embodiments, the determination at 502 may include determining to activate the known secondary cell before activating the unknown secondary cell. In some embodiments, determining to activate may include determining to activate the known secondary cell before activating any unknown secondary cell in the same frequency band.

[0065] In some embodiments, the multiple secondary cells may include a first number (e.g., m) of unknown secondary cells in a first frequency band and a second number (e.g., n) of unknown secondary cells in a second frequency band. In some embodiments, based on this, the determination at 502 may include: if the first number is greater than the second number (e.g., m>n), determining to activate the secondary cell in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cells in the second frequency band. In some embodiments, the method may include, based on the secondary cell in the frequency band being activated first, determining one or more other unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band as known. In some embodiments, the method may include: based on determining that one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after a secondary cell is activated, determining a delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells. This may reduce the delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells and may improve resource efficiency.

[0066] As mentioned above, providing Figure 5 As an example, other examples are also possible according to some embodiments.

[0067] Figure 6 An example flow chart of a method 600 according to some embodiments is shown. For example, Figure 6 The UE (e.g., Figure 7b Chinese illustration and about Figure 7b Example operation of the described apparatus 20). Figure 6 Some of the operations illustrated in FIG. 4 may be similar to Figure 1 and Figure 3 As shown in and about Figure 1 and Figure 3 Some of the operations described.

[0068] In one embodiment, the method may include, at 602, for example, Figure 1 The method may include, at 604, for example, receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells in a manner similar to that of 102 of FIG. The multiple secondary cells may include a set of unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band. Figure 1 In a manner similar to that of step 112 of the method, the first secondary cell in the set of unknown secondary cells is activated. The method may include, at step 606, for example, Figure 1 114 or Figure 3 In a similar manner to step 306 , based on the first secondary cell being activated, it is determined that one or more second secondary cells in the set of unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band are known.

[0069] Figure 6The method illustrated in the embodiment may include one or more additional aspects described below or elsewhere herein. In some embodiments, the method may include determining a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known after the first secondary cell is activated. This may reduce the delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells and may improve resource efficiency. In some embodiments, the method may include, for example, determining a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known after the first secondary cell is activated. Figure 1 In a similar manner to step 114 , one or more second secondary cells are activated.

[0070] As mentioned above, providing Figure 6 As an example, other examples are possible according to some embodiments.

[0071] Figure 7a An example of an apparatus 10 according to an embodiment is illustrated. In one embodiment, the apparatus 10 may be a node, host, or server in a communication network or a node, host, or server serving such a network. For example, the apparatus 10 may be a network node, a satellite, a base station, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), a 5G Node B or access point, a next generation Node B (NG-NB or gNB), and / or a WLAN access point associated with a radio access network such as an LTE network, 5G, or NR. In some example embodiments, the apparatus 10 may be an eNB in LTE or a gNB in 5G. Additionally or alternatively, the apparatus 10 may be a PCell node, an SCell node, or a combined PCell / SCell node (PSCell) node.

[0072] It should be understood that in some example embodiments, the apparatus 10 may include an edge cloud server as a distributed computing system, where the server and the radio node may be independent devices that communicate with each other via a radio path or via a wired connection, or they may be located in the same entity that communicates via a wired connection. For example, in certain example embodiments where the apparatus 10 represents a gNB, it may be configured in a central unit (CU) and distributed unit (DU) architecture that partitions the gNB functionality. In such an architecture, the CU may be a logical node that includes gNB functionality, such as transmission of user data, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning and / or session management. The CU may control the operation of the DU on the fronthaul interface. The DU may be a logical node that contains a subset of the gNB functionality, depending on the functional split option. It should be noted that one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the apparatus 10 may include Figure 7a Components or features not shown.

[0073] like Figure 7aAs shown in the example of FIG, the apparatus 10 may include a processor 12 for processing information and executing instructions or operations. The processor 12 may be any type of general-purpose or special-purpose processor. In fact, as examples, the processor 12 may include one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Although Figure 7a A single processor 12 is shown in FIG. 1 , but multiple processors may be utilized according to other embodiments. For example, it should be understood that in some embodiments, apparatus 10 may include two or more processors, which may form a multi-processor system that can support multi-processing (e.g., in which case processor 12 may represent a multi-processor). In some embodiments, the multi-processor system may be tightly coupled or loosely coupled (e.g., to form a computer cluster).

[0074] Processor 12 may perform functions associated with the operation of device 10, which may include, for example, precoding of antenna gain / phase parameters, encoding and decoding of individual bits forming communication messages, formatting of information, and overall control of device 10, including processes related to communication or management of communication resources.

[0075] The device 10 may also include or be coupled to a memory 14 (internal or external) for storing information and instructions executable by the processor 12, which may be coupled to the processor 12. The memory 14 may be one or more memories and of any type suitable for the local application environment and may be implemented using any suitable volatile or non-volatile data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and / or removable memory. For example, the memory 14 may include any combination of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), static memory such as a magnetic disk or optical disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), or any other type of non-transitory machine or computer-readable medium. The instructions stored in the memory 14 may include program instructions or computer program code that, when executed by the processor 12, enable the device 10 to perform the tasks described herein.

[0076] In one embodiment, device 10 may also include or be coupled to a (internal or external) drive or port configured to accept and read an external computer-readable storage medium, such as an optical disc, a USB drive, a flash drive, or any other storage medium. For example, the external computer-readable storage medium may store a computer program or software executed by processor 12 and / or device 10.

[0077] In some embodiments, the apparatus 10 may further include or be coupled to one or more antennas 15 for transmitting and receiving signals and / or data to and from the apparatus 10. The apparatus 10 may further include or be coupled to a transceiver 18 configured to transmit and receive information. The transceiver 18 may include, for example, a plurality of radio interfaces that may be coupled to the antenna(s) 15. The radio interfaces may correspond to a variety of radio access technologies, including one or more of GSM, NB-IoT, LTE, 5G, WLAN, Bluetooth, BT-LE, NFC, radio frequency identifier (RFID), ultra-wideband (UWB), MulteFire, and the like. The radio interfaces may include components such as filters, converters (e.g., digital-to-analog converters, etc.), mappers, fast Fourier transform (FFT) modules, and the like to generate symbols for transmission via one or more downlinks and to receive symbols (e.g., via an uplink).

[0078] Thus, the transceiver 18 can be configured to modulate information onto a carrier waveform for transmission by the antenna(s) 15 and demodulate information received via the antenna(s) 15 for further processing by other elements of the apparatus 10. In other embodiments, the transceiver 18 can be capable of directly transmitting and receiving signals or data. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the apparatus 10 can include input and / or output devices (I / O devices).

[0079] In one embodiment, memory 14 may store software modules that provide functionality when executed by processor 12. The modules may include, for example, an operating system that provides operating system functionality for device 10. Memory may also store one or more functional modules, such as applications or programs, to provide additional functionality to device 10. The components of device 10 may be implemented in hardware, or as any suitable combination of hardware and software.

[0080] According to some embodiments, processor 12 and memory 14 may be included in or may form part of processing circuitry or control circuitry. In addition, in some embodiments, transceiver 18 may be included in or may form part of transceiver circuitry.

[0081] As used herein, the term "circuitry" may refer to a pure hardware circuitry implementation (e.g., analog and / or digital circuitry), a combination of hardware circuitry and software, a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry and software / firmware, any portion of a hardware processor(s) (including a digital signal processor(s)) with software that works together to enable a device (e.g., device 10) to perform various functions, and / or hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s) that operate using software, but the software may not be present when not needed for operation. As another example, as used herein, the term "circuitry" may also cover an implementation of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors), or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuitry may also cover, for example, a baseband integrated circuit in a server, a cellular network node or device, or other computing or network device.

[0082] As introduced above, in some embodiments, the device 10 can be a network node or a RAN node, such as a base station, an access point, a node B, an eNB, a gNB, a PCell node, a PSCell node, an SCell node, a WLAN access point, etc.

[0083] According to some embodiments, the apparatus 10 may be controlled by the memory 14 and the processor 12 to perform functions associated with any of the embodiments described herein, such as Figures 1-4 As shown in or relative to Figure 5-6 Describes some of the operations.

[0084] Figure 7b An example of an apparatus 20 according to another embodiment is illustrated. In one embodiment, the apparatus 20 may be a node or element in a communication network or associated with such a network, such as a UE, mobile equipment (ME), mobile station, mobile device, fixed device, IoT device, or other device. As described herein, a UE may alternatively be referred to as, for example, a mobile station, mobile device, mobile unit, mobile device, user equipment, subscriber station, wireless terminal, tablet, smart phone, IoT device, sensor or NB-IoT device, watch or other wearable device, head-mounted display (HMD), vehicle, drone, medical device and its applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial device and its applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in industrial and / or automated process chain environments), consumer electronic devices, devices operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, etc. As an example, the apparatus 20 may be implemented in, for example, a wireless handheld device, a wireless plug-in accessory, etc.

[0085] In some example embodiments, the apparatus 20 may include one or more processors, one or more computer-readable storage media (e.g., memory, storage, etc.), one or more radio access components (e.g., modems, transceivers, etc.), and / or a user interface. In some embodiments, the apparatus 20 may be configured to operate using one or more radio access technologies, such as GSM, LTE, LTE-A, NR, 5G, WLAN, WiFi, NB-IoT, Bluetooth, NFC, MulteFire, and / or any other radio access technology. It should be noted that persons of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the apparatus 20 may include Figure 7b Components or features not shown.

[0086] like Figure 7b As shown in the example of , the device 20 may include or be coupled to a processor 22 for processing information and executing instructions or operations. The processor 22 may be any type of general-purpose or special-purpose processor. In fact, as examples, the processor 22 may include one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Although Figure 7b A single processor 22 is shown in FIG. 1 , but multiple processors may be utilized according to other embodiments. For example, it should be understood that in some embodiments, apparatus 20 may include two or more processors, which may form a multi-processor system that can support multi-processing (e.g., in which case processor 22 may represent a multi-processor). In some embodiments, the multi-processor system may be tightly coupled or loosely coupled (e.g., to form a computer cluster).

[0087] Processor 22 may perform functions associated with the operation of device 20, including, as some examples, precoding of antenna gain / phase parameters, encoding and decoding of individual bits forming communication messages, formatting of information, and overall control of device 20, including processes related to communication resource management.

[0088] The device 20 may also include or be coupled to a memory 24 (internal or external) for storing information and instructions that can be executed by the processor 22, which may be coupled to the processor 22. The memory 24 may be one or more memories and of any type suitable for the local application environment and may be implemented using any suitable volatile or non-volatile data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and / or removable memory. For example, the memory 24 may include any combination of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), static memory such as a magnetic disk or optical disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), or any other type of non-transitory machine or computer-readable medium. The instructions stored in the memory 24 may include program instructions or computer program code that, when executed by the processor 22, enable the device 20 to perform the tasks described herein.

[0089] In one embodiment, device 20 may also include or be coupled to a (internal or external) drive or port configured to accept and read an external computer-readable storage medium, such as an optical disc, a USB drive, a flash drive, or any other storage medium. For example, the external computer-readable storage medium may store a computer program or software executed by processor 22 and / or device 20.

[0090] In some embodiments, the apparatus 20 may further include or be coupled to one or more antennas 25 for receiving downlink signals from the apparatus 20 and transmitting them via an uplink. The apparatus 20 may further include a transceiver 28 configured to send and receive information. The transceiver 28 may further include a radio interface (e.g., a modem) coupled to the antenna 25. The radio interface may correspond to a variety of radio access technologies, including GSM, LTE, LTE-A, 5G, NR, WLAN, NB-IoT, Bluetooth, BT-LE, NFC, RFID, UWB, etc. The radio interface may include other components, such as filters, converters (e.g., digital-to-analog converters, etc.), symbol demappers, signal shaping components, inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) modules, etc., to process symbols carried by the downlink or uplink, such as OFDMA symbols.

[0091] For example, the transceiver 28 may be configured to modulate information onto a carrier waveform for transmission by the antenna(s) 25 and to demodulate information received via the antenna(s) 25 for further processing by other elements of the apparatus 20. In other embodiments, the transceiver 28 may be capable of directly transmitting and receiving signals or data. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the apparatus 20 may include input and / or output devices (I / O devices). In certain embodiments, the apparatus 20 may also include a user interface, such as a graphical user interface or a touch screen.

[0092] In one embodiment, the memory 24 stores software modules that provide functionality when executed by the processor 22. The modules may include, for example, an operating system that provides operating system functionality for the device 20. The memory may also store one or more functional modules, such as applications or programs, to provide additional functionality for the device 20. The components of the device 20 may be implemented in hardware, or as any suitable combination of hardware and software. According to an example embodiment, the device 20 may optionally be configured to communicate with the device 10 via a wireless or wired communication link 70 according to any radio access technology, such as NR.

[0093] According to some embodiments, the processor 22 and the memory 24 may be included in a processing circuit system or a control circuit system or may form part of a processing circuit system or a control circuit system. In addition, in some embodiments, the transceiver 28 may be included in a transceiver circuit system or may form part of a transceiver circuit system. As discussed above, according to some embodiments, the apparatus 20 may be, for example, a UE, a mobile device, a mobile station, a ME, an IoT device and / or an NB-IoT device. According to certain embodiments, the apparatus 20 may be controlled by the memory 24 and the processor 22 to perform functions associated with any of the embodiments described herein, such as Figures 1-6 As shown in or relative to Figures 1-6 For example, in one embodiment, the device 20 may be controlled by the memory 24 and the processor 22 to perform Figure 5 and Figure 6 method.

[0094] In some embodiments, an apparatus (e.g., apparatus 10 and / or apparatus 20) may include components for performing the methods discussed herein or any of the variations, such as with reference to Figure 5 or Figure 6 Examples of components may include one or more processors, memory, and / or computer program code for causing operations to be performed.

[0095] Thus, certain example embodiments provide several technical improvements, enhancements, and / or advantages over prior art procedures. For example, one benefit of some example embodiments is reduced latency for activating unknown SCells and / or reduced latency for activating multiple SCells. Consequently, use of some example embodiments can result in improved resource efficiency, scheduling, and / or improved functionality of communication networks and their nodes, and thus constitute an improvement in at least the technical area of SCell activation, among others.

[0096] In some example embodiments, the functionality of any method, process, signaling diagram, algorithm, or flow chart described herein may be implemented by software and / or computer program code, or portions of code, stored in a memory or other computer-readable or tangible medium and executed by a processor.

[0097] In some example embodiments, the apparatus may include or be associated with at least one software application, module, unit, or entity configured to perform (one or more) arithmetic operations, or configured as a program or portion thereof (including added or updated software routines) executed by at least one operating processor. A program, also referred to as a program product or computer program, including software routines, applets, and macros, may be stored in any apparatus-readable data storage medium and may include program instructions for performing specific tasks.

[0098] A computer program product may include one or more computer executable components that, when the program is run, are configured to perform some example embodiments. The one or more computer executable components may be at least one software code or portion of a code. Modifications and configurations for implementing the functionality of the example embodiments may be performed as (one or more) routines, which may be implemented as (one or more) software routines that are added or updated. In one example, (one or more) software routines may be downloaded to a device.

[0099] By way of example, software or computer program code or portions of code may be in source code form, object code form or some intermediate form, and may be stored on some carrier, distribution medium or computer-readable medium, which may be any entity or device capable of carrying the program. For example, such carriers may include recording media, computer memory, read-only memory, optoelectronic and / or electrical carrier signals, telecommunication signals and / or software distribution packages. Depending on the required processing power, the computer program may be executed in a single electronic digital computer, or it may be distributed among multiple computers. The computer-readable medium or computer-readable storage medium may be a non-transitory medium.

[0100] In other example embodiments, the functionality may be performed by hardware or circuitry included in a device (e.g., device 10 or device 20), for example, by using an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable gate array (PGA), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or any other combination of hardware and software. In yet another example embodiment, the functionality may be implemented as a signal, such as an intangible means that may be carried by an electromagnetic signal downloaded from the Internet or other network.

[0101] According to example embodiments, an apparatus such as a node, a device or a corresponding component may be configured as a circuit system, a computer or a microprocessor, such as a single-chip computer element, or as a chipset, which may include at least a memory for providing storage capacity used for (one or more) arithmetic operations and / or an operation processor for performing (one or more) arithmetic operations.

[0102] The example embodiments described herein are equally applicable to both singular and plural implementations, regardless of whether singular or plural language is used in conjunction with describing certain embodiments. For example, an embodiment describing the operation of a single network node is equally applicable to an embodiment including multiple instances of the network node, and vice versa.

[0103] Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the example embodiments discussed above may be practiced using a different order of operations and / or hardware elements in a configuration different from that disclosed. Therefore, while some embodiments have been described based on these example embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that certain modifications, variations, and alternative constructions will be apparent while remaining within the spirit and scope of the example embodiments.

[0104] Partial Glossary

[0105] CSI Channel State Information

[0106] CSI-RS Channel State Information Reference Signal

[0107] FR1 Frequency Range 1

[0108] FR2 Frequency Range 2

[0109] NG-RAN Next Generation Radio Access Network

[0110] NW Network

[0111] OFDM Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing

[0112] QCL Quasi-Hosting

[0113] RRC Radio Resource Control Protocol

[0114] RRM Radio Resource Management

[0115] RSRP Reference Signal Received Power

[0116] RSRQ Reference Signal Received Quality

[0117] SINR Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio

[0118] SSB Synchronous Signal Block

[0119] UE User Equipment

Claims

1. A method for communication, comprising: The user equipment receives a command to activate multiple secondary cells; An order for activating the plurality of secondary cells is determined based on at least one of the following: whether the multiple secondary cells include unknown cells, Whether the multiple secondary cells include known cells, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in the frequency band; and performing activation of the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order; The multiple secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in the first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in the second frequency band, and the determining includes: If the first number is greater than the second number, determining to activate the secondary cell in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cell in the second frequency band; The delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells is determined based on determining that the one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after one secondary cell is activated.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: A delay limit for activating a secondary cell among the plurality of secondary cells is determined based on the determined order.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of secondary cells include known secondary cells and unknown secondary cells, and determining the order comprises: It is determined to activate the known secondary cell before activating the unknown secondary cell.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the determining comprises: It is determined to activate the known secondary cell before activating any unknown secondary cell in the same frequency band.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: Based on the secondary cell in the frequency band being activated first, one or more other unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band are determined to be known.

6. A method for communication, comprising: Receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells by the user equipment; If the user equipment determines that the multiple secondary cells include an unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band, activating a first secondary cell in the unknown secondary cell set, and determining, based on the activation of the first secondary cell, that one or more second secondary cells in the unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band are known; determining a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known after the first secondary cell is activated; and If the user equipment determines that the multiple secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in the first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in the second frequency band, determine whether the first number is greater than the second number, and if it is determined that the first number is greater than the second number, determine to activate the secondary cell in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cell in the second frequency band.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising: The one or more second secondary cells are activated.

8. An apparatus for communication, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code, wherein 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: receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells; An order for activating the plurality of secondary cells is determined based on at least one of the following: whether the multiple secondary cells include unknown cells, Whether the multiple secondary cells include known cells, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in the frequency band; and performing activation of the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order; wherein the plurality of secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in a first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in a second frequency band, and wherein, in determining the order, the apparatus is further caused to at least: If the first number is greater than the second number, determining to activate the secondary cell in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cell in the second frequency band; The delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells is determined based on determining that the one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after one secondary cell is activated.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to at least: A delay limit for activating a secondary cell among the plurality of secondary cells is determined based on the determined order.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the plurality of secondary cells include known secondary cells and unknown secondary cells, and wherein when determining the order, the apparatus is further caused to at least: It is determined to activate the known secondary cell before activating the unknown secondary cell.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus, upon determining activation, to at least: It is determined to activate the known secondary cell before activating any unknown secondary cell in the same frequency band.

12. The apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to at least: Based on the secondary cell in the frequency band being activated first, one or more other unknown secondary cells in the same frequency band are determined to be known.

13. An apparatus for communication, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code, wherein 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: receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells; If the apparatus determines that the plurality of secondary cells include an unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band, activating a first secondary cell in the unknown secondary cell set; and determining, based on the first secondary cell being activated, that one or more second secondary cells in the unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band are known; determining a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known after the first secondary cell is activated; and If the device determines that the multiple secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in the first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in the second frequency band, determine whether the first number is greater than the second number, and if it is determined that the first number is greater than the second number, determine to activate the secondary cells in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cells in the second frequency band.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to at least: The one or more second secondary cells are activated.

15. An apparatus for communication, comprising: means for receiving a command to activate a plurality of secondary cells; means for determining an order for activating the plurality of secondary cells based on at least one of: whether the multiple secondary cells include unknown cells, Whether the multiple secondary cells include known cells, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in the frequency band; as well as means for performing activation of the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order; wherein the plurality of secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in a first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in a second frequency band, and wherein when determining the order, the apparatus is further configured to: If the first number is greater than the second number, determining to activate the secondary cell in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cell in the second frequency band; The apparatus is further configured to determine a delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells based on determining that the one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after one secondary cell is activated.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least: receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells; An order for activating the plurality of secondary cells is determined based on at least one of the following: whether the multiple secondary cells include unknown cells, Whether the multiple secondary cells include known cells, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in the frequency band; and performing activation of the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order; The plurality of secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in a first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in a second frequency band, and when determining the order, the program instructions are configured to cause the apparatus to at least perform the following operations: If the first number is greater than the second number, determining to activate the secondary cell in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cell in the second frequency band; in, A delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells is determined based on determining that the one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after one secondary cell is activated.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least: receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells; If the apparatus determines that the plurality of secondary cells include an unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band, activating a first secondary cell in the unknown secondary cell set; and determining, based on the first secondary cell being activated, that one or more second secondary cells in the unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band are known; determining a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known after the first secondary cell is activated; and If the device determines that the multiple secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in the first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in the second frequency band, determine whether the first number is greater than the second number, and if it is determined that the first number is greater than the second number, determine to activate the secondary cells in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cells in the second frequency band.

18. An apparatus for communication, comprising: A circuit system configured to: receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells; An order for activating the plurality of secondary cells is determined based on at least one of the following: whether the multiple secondary cells include unknown cells, Whether the multiple secondary cells include known cells, or the number of unknown secondary cells to be activated in the frequency band; and performing activation of the plurality of secondary cells based on the determined order; wherein the plurality of secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in a first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in a second frequency band, and wherein, when determining the order, the circuitry is further configured to: If the first number is greater than the second number, determining to activate the secondary cell in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cell in the second frequency band; The delay limit for activating the one or more other unknown secondary cells is determined based on determining that the one or more other unknown secondary cells are known after one secondary cell is activated.

19. An apparatus for communication, comprising: A circuit system configured to: receiving a command to activate multiple secondary cells; If the apparatus determines that the plurality of secondary cells include an unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band, activating a first secondary cell in the unknown secondary cell set; and determining, based on the first secondary cell being activated, that one or more second secondary cells in the unknown secondary cell set in the same frequency band are known; determining a delay limit for activating the one or more second secondary cells based on determining that the one or more second secondary cells are known after the first secondary cell is activated; and If the device determines that the multiple secondary cells include a first number of unknown secondary cells in the first frequency band and a second number of unknown secondary cells in the second frequency band, determine whether the first number is greater than the second number, and if it is determined that the first number is greater than the second number, determine to activate the secondary cells in the first frequency band before activating any secondary cells in the second frequency band.

Images