Method and apparatus for mitigating RF chain conflicts between radio access technologies

Abstract

A user equipment (UE) can connect to an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E‑UTRAN) New Radio (NR) Dual Connectivity (EN‑DC) network using both a Long Term Evolution (LTE) anchor link and a 5G NR non-anchor link. The UE shares RF chain components (e.g., antennas) between the LTE and NR links. The UE uses various techniques to control or modify NR Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) transmissions and / or LTE operations to avoid disruption of LTE operations due to NR SRS transmissions.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to and the benefit of Indian Patent Application No. 202041008030 filed in the Indian Patent Office on February 25, 2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if fully set forth below and for all applicable purposes. Technical Field

[0003] The techniques discussed below relate generally to wireless communication systems, and more particularly, to techniques for mitigating radio frequency (RF) chain conflicts between radio access technologies in antenna switching operations. Background Art

[0004] New Radio (NR) is a fifth generation (5G) wireless communication network defined in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) New Radio (NR) specification. A 5G communication network may be implemented as a non-standalone (NSA) network using both a fourth generation (4G) air interface (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE)) and an NR air interface. An exemplary NSA network may deploy an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access-New Radio (EN-DC), which may use an LTE anchor link for control functions (control plane) and an NR non-anchor link for user data (user plane). In some networks, an NSA network may support multiple radio access technologies (e.g., LTE and NR) using shared physical hardware (e.g., radio antennas that may be switched between different LTE and NR radio chains). Summary of the invention

[0005] An overview of one or more aspects of the present disclosure is presented below to provide a basic understanding of these aspects. This overview is not an extensive review of all expected features of the present disclosure, and is neither intended to identify the key or important elements of all aspects of the present disclosure, nor is it intended to describe the scope of any or all aspects of the present disclosure. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects of the present disclosure in a form as a preface to a more detailed description presented later.

[0006] One aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for wireless communication at a device. The device uses a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT to establish a first connection with a network and simultaneously establish a second connection with the network. The device configures a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas. The device modifies the communication of the second connection or the plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate the interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the plurality of antennas.

[0007] One aspect of the present disclosure provides a wireless communication device for wireless communication. The wireless communication device includes: a communication interface configured for wireless communication with a network, the communication interface including multiple antennas; a memory; and a processor operatively coupled to the communication interface and the memory. The processor and the memory are configured to use a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT to share multiple antennas to establish a first connection with the network and simultaneously establish a second connection with the network. The processor and the memory are configured to configure multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on the switching order of the multiple antennas. The processor and the memory are configured to modify the communication of the second connection or multiple SRS transmissions to alleviate the interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the multiple antennas.

[0008] One aspect of the present disclosure provides a user equipment (UE) for wireless communication. The UE includes a component for establishing a first connection with a network and simultaneously establishing a second connection with the network using a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT. The UE also includes a component for configuring a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas. The UE also includes a component for modifying the communication of the second connection or the plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate the interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the plurality of antennas.

[0009] One aspect of the present disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a code executable by a wireless communication device. The code includes instructions for establishing a first connection with a network and simultaneously establishing a second connection with the network using a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT. The code also includes instructions for configuring a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas. The code also includes instructions for modifying the communication of the second connection or the plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate the interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the plurality of antennas.

[0010] By reading the following detailed description, these and other aspects of the present invention will be more fully understood. After reading the following description of specific exemplary implementations in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, other aspects, features and implementations will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Although features may be discussed relative to some of the following implementations and the accompanying drawings, all examples may include one or more of the advantageous features discussed herein. In other words, although one or more embodiments may be discussed as having certain advantageous features, one or more of these features may also be used according to the various examples discussed herein. In a similar manner, although exemplary implementations may be discussed below as equipment, systems or methods, it should be understood that such examples may be implemented in various equipment, systems and methods. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0012] Figure 2 is an illustration of an example of a radio access network according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0013] Figure 3 is a diagram of an example of a wireless communication system that uses multiple antennas for wireless communication.

[0014] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the organization of wireless resources in an air interface utilizing orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0015] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating a Long Term Evolution (LTE) frame structure in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0016] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating a New Radio (NR) frame structure according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0017] Figure 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for a wireless communication device according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating exemplary radio frequency (RF) chain components and antennas for a wireless communication device according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Fig.9A and 9B is a diagram illustrating an example of an LTE RF chain outage due to NR transmissions in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Fig.10is a diagram illustrating another example of an LTE RF chain outage due to NR transmissions in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Fig.11 is a diagram illustrating a process of SRS transmission using antenna switching according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0022] Fig.12 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary LTE downlink subframe experiencing antenna blocking due to NR transmissions.

[0023] Fig.13 is a diagram illustrating another example LTE downlink subframe experiencing antenna blocking due to NR transmission.

[0024] Fig.14 is a flow chart illustrating an example process for mitigating LTE outages due to NR SRS transmissions according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0025] Fig.15 is a diagram illustrating a first process for mitigating disruption to LTE DL communications in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0026] Fig.16 is a flow chart illustrating a method for rescheduling LTE communications to mitigate interruptions between LTE communications and NR SRS transmissions according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0027] Fig.17 is a flow chart illustrating a method of blanking LTE transmissions to mitigate disruptions between LTE communications and NR SRS transmissions according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0028] Fig.18 is a diagram illustrating a blanking procedure for mitigating interruption of LTE UL communications according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0029] Fig.19 is a flow chart illustrating a method of omitting NR SRS transmission to alleviate interruption between LTE communication and NR SRS transmission according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0030] Fig. 20 is a diagram illustrating a process for omitting NR SRS transmission according to some aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The detailed description set forth below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configuration in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the various concepts. However, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some cases, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring these concepts.

[0032] Although various aspects and embodiments are described in this application by illustrating some examples, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that additional implementations and use cases may occur in many different arrangements and scenarios. The innovations herein may be implemented on many different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes, and packaging arrangements. For example, embodiments and / or uses may be implemented via integrated chip embodiments and / or other devices based on non-module components (e.g., end-user devices, vehicles, communication devices, computing devices, industrial equipment, retail / purchase devices, medical devices, AI-enabled devices, etc.). Although some examples may or may not be specifically for use cases or applications, a variety of applicability of the described innovations may occur. The range of implementations may range from chip-level or modular components to non-modular, non-chip-level implementations, and further to aggregated, distributed, or OEM devices or systems containing one or more aspects of the described innovations. In some practical settings, the devices in combination with the described aspects and features may also necessarily include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the claimed and described embodiments. For example, the transmission and reception of wireless signals must include multiple components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components including antennas, RF chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processors, interleavers, adders / summers, etc.) The innovations described herein are intended to be practiced in a wide variety of devices, chip-level components, systems, distributed arrangements, end-user devices, etc., of various sizes, shapes, and configurations.

[0033] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into various categories, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating bands have been identified with the frequency range names FR1 (410 MHz-7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz-52.6 GHz). It should be understood that although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, FR1 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "sub-6 GHz" band in various documents and articles. Similar naming issues sometimes arise with respect to FR2, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "millimeter wave" band in documents and articles, although different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz-300 GHz) identified as the "millimeter wave" band by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

[0034] The frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified the operating bands of these mid-band frequencies as frequency range name FR3 (7.125GHz-24.25GHz). The frequency bands falling within FR3 can inherit FR1 features and / or FR2 features, and therefore the features of FR1 and / or FR2 can be effectively extended to mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operations to more than 52.6GHz. For example, three higher operating frequency bands have been identified as frequency range names FR4-a or FR4-1 (52.6GHz-71 GHz), FR4 (52.6GHz-114.25GHz) and FR5 (114.25GHz-300GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band.

[0035] In view of the above, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that the term "sub-6 GHz" and the like (if used herein) can broadly refer to frequencies that can be less than 6 GHz, can be within FR1, or can include mid-band frequencies. In addition, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that the term "millimeter wave" and the like (if used herein) can broadly refer to frequencies that can include mid-band frequencies, can be within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1 and / or FR5, or can be within the EHF band.

[0036] The present disclosure implements a fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) non-standalone (NSA) network using an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network New Radio Dual Connectivity (EN-DC). In some aspects, a user device can use both a long term evolution (LTE) anchor link and a 5G NR link to connect to the EN-DC network. In some aspects of the present disclosure, a user equipment (UE) can share some radio frequency (RF) circuit components (e.g., antennas) between LTE and NR links. Various aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for controlling or modifying NR sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions and / or LTE communications (e.g., uplink / downlink operations) to avoid and / or mitigate LTE operation interruptions caused by NR SRS transmissions. In some aspects, an LTE link can use an FR1 band, and an NR link can use any one of FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1 and / or FR5 bands.

[0037] The various concepts presented throughout this disclosure may be implemented across a variety of telecommunication systems, network architectures and communication standards. Figure 1, various aspects of the present disclosure are described with reference to a wireless communication system 100 as a non-limiting illustrative example. The wireless communication system 100 includes three interacting domains: a core network 102, a radio access network (RAN) 104, and a user equipment (UE) 106. By means of the wireless communication system 100, the UE 106 may be enabled to communicate data with an external data network 110, such as (but not limited to) the Internet.

[0038] The RAN 104 may implement any suitable one or more wireless communication technologies to provide wireless access to the UE 106. As an example, the RAN 104 may operate in accordance with the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) New Radio (NR) specification (commonly referred to as 5G). As another example, the RAN 104 may operate in the case of a hybrid 5G NR and Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (eUTRAN) standard (commonly referred to as LTE). 3GPP refers to this hybrid RAN as the Next Generation RAN or NG-RAN. Of course, many other examples may be utilized within the scope of the present disclosure. In some examples, the RAN 104 may implement dual connectivity (e.g., EN-DC) using an LTE anchor link and one or more NR links. Of course, many other examples may be utilized within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0039] As shown, RAN 104 includes multiple base stations 108. Broadly, a base station is a network element in a radio access network that is responsible for radio transmission and reception to or from a UE in one or more cells. In different technologies, standards, or contexts, a base station may be referred to as a base transceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), an access point (AP), a node B (NB), an eNode B (eNB), a gNode B (gNB), a transmission and reception point (TRP), or some other appropriate terminology by a person skilled in the art. In some examples, a base station may include two or more TRPs that may be co-located or non-co-located. Each TRP may communicate on the same or different carrier frequencies in the same or different frequency bands. In one example, base station 108 may be an eNB supporting an LTE connection, and base station 109 may be a gNB supporting an NR connection.

[0040] The radio access network 104 is also illustrated as supporting wireless communications for multiple mobile devices. A mobile device may be referred to as a user equipment (UE) in the 3GPP standard, but those skilled in the art may also refer to such a device as a mobile station (MS), a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile user station, an access terminal (AT), a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a terminal, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other suitable terminology. A UE may be a device (e.g., a mobile device) that provides a user with access to network services.

[0041] In this document, a "mobile" device does not necessarily have the ability to move, and may be stationary. The term mobile device or mobile device refers broadly to a different array of devices and technologies. A UE may include multiple hardware structural components that are sized, shaped, and arranged to facilitate communication; these components may include antennas, antenna arrays, RF chains, amplifiers, one or more processors, etc. that are electrically coupled to each other. For example, some non-limiting examples of mobile devices include mobile devices, cellular (cell) phones, smart phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal computers (PCs), notebooks, netbooks, smartbooks, tablet computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and, for example, a wide range of embedded systems corresponding to the "Internet of Things" (IoT). A mobile device may additionally be a car or other transportation vehicle, a remote sensor or actuator, a robot or robotic device, a satellite radio, a global positioning system (GPS) device, an object tracking device, a drone, a multi-rotor aircraft, a quadcopter, a remote control device, a consumer and / or wearable device, such as glasses, a wearable camera, a virtual reality device, a smart watch, a health or fitness tracker, a digital audio player (e.g., an MP3 player), a camera, a game console, etc. The mobile device may also be a digital home or smart home device, such as home audio, video and / or multimedia equipment, appliances, vending machines, smart lighting, home security systems, smart meters, etc. The mobile device may additionally be a smart energy device, security device, solar panel or solar array, municipal infrastructure equipment (e.g., smart grid) that controls power, lighting, water, etc.; industrial automation and enterprise equipment; logistics controllers; agricultural equipment, etc. In addition, the mobile device may provide connected medical or telemedicine support, such as health care at a distance. Telemedicine devices may include telemedicine monitoring devices and telemedicine management devices, whose communications may be given priority treatment or priority access over other types of information, for example, in terms of priority access for the transmission of critical service data, and / or in terms of associated QoS for the transmission of critical service data.

[0042] Wireless communication between RAN 104 and UE 106 may be described as utilizing an air interface. Transmissions over the air interface from a base station (e.g., base station 107, 108, or 109) to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 106) may be referred to as downlink (DL) transmissions. According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the term downlink may refer to point-to-multipoint transmissions initiated at a scheduling entity (further described below; e.g., base station 108). Another way to describe this scheme may be to use the term broadcast channel multiplexing. Transmissions from a UE (e.g., UE 106) to a base station (e.g., base station 108) may be referred to as uplink (UL) transmissions. According to further aspects of the present disclosure, the term uplink may refer to point-to-point transmissions initiated at a scheduled entity (further described below; e.g., UE 106). In some aspects, UE 106 may use EN-DC to establish dual connectivity with RAN 104. For example, UE 106 may establish an LTE anchor link with eNB 107 and an NR link with gNB 109.

[0043] In some examples, access to the air interface may be scheduled, wherein a scheduling entity (e.g., a base station 108) allocates resources for communications between some or all devices and equipment within its service area or cell. Within the present disclosure, as further discussed below, a scheduling entity may be responsible for scheduling, allocating, reconfiguring, and releasing resources for one or more scheduled entities. That is, for scheduled communications, a UE 106, which may be a scheduled entity, may utilize resources allocated by the scheduling entity 108.

[0044] Base station 108 is not the only entity that can act as a scheduling entity. That is, in some examples, a UE can act as a scheduling entity to schedule resources for one or more scheduled entities (e.g., one or more other UEs).

[0045] like Figure 1 As shown, the scheduling entity 108 can broadcast downlink traffic 112 to one or more scheduled entities 106. Broadly speaking, the scheduling entity 108 is a node or device responsible for scheduling traffic in the wireless communication network, which includes downlink traffic 112 and, in some examples, uplink traffic 116 from one or more scheduled entities 106 to the scheduling entity 108. On the other hand, the scheduled entity 106 is a node or device that receives downlink control information 114, which includes but is not limited to scheduling information (e.g., grants), synchronization or timing information, or other control information from another entity in the wireless communication network (such as the scheduling entity 108).

[0046] Typically, the base stations 108 may include a backhaul interface for communicating with a backhaul portion 120 of the wireless communication system. The backhaul 120 may provide a link between the base stations 108 and the core network 102. Additionally, in some examples, the backhaul network may provide interconnections between the various base stations 108. Various types of backhaul interfaces may be employed, such as a direct physical connection, a virtual network, the like using any suitable transport network.

[0047] The core network 102 may be part of the wireless communication system 100 and may be independent of the radio access technology used in the RAN 104. In some examples, the core network 102 may be configured according to 5G standards (e.g., 5GC). In other examples, the core network 102 may be configured according to 4G Evolved Packet Core (EPC) or any other suitable standard or configuration.

[0048] Figure 2 is a diagram of an example of a radio access network (RAN) 200 according to some aspects of the present disclosure. In some examples, the RAN 200 can be used as described above and in Figure 1 The geographic area covered by the RAN 200 may be divided into cellular areas (cells) that may be uniquely identified by a user equipment (UE) based on an identity broadcast from an access point or base station. Figure 2 Macro cells 202, 204, and 206 and small cells 208 are illustrated, each of which may include one or more sectors (not shown). A sector is a sub-area of ​​a cell. All sectors within a cell are served by the same base station. A radio link within a sector may be identified by a single logical identifier belonging to the sector. In a cell divided into sectors, multiple sectors within a cell may be formed by antenna groups, each antenna being responsible for communicating with a UE in a portion of the cell. In some examples, the RAN 200 may use one or more cells to support EN-DC operation.

[0049] exist Figure 2, two base stations 210 and 212 are shown in cells 202 and 204; and a third base station 214 is shown controlling a remote radio head (RRH) 216 in cell 206. That is, the base station may have an integrated antenna or may be connected to an antenna or RRH by a feeder cable. In the example shown, cells 202, 204, and 126 may be referred to as macro cells because base stations 210, 212, and 214 support cells with large sizes. In addition, base station 218 is shown in a small cell 208 (e.g., a micro cell, a micro cell, a femto cell, a home base station, a home node B, a home eNode B, etc.), which may overlap with one or more macro cells. In this example, cell 208 may be referred to as a small cell because base station 218 supports a cell with a relatively small size. Cell size adjustment may be accomplished according to system design and component constraints. In some examples, the base station of RAN200 may be configured to support LTE and / or NR connections to facilitate EN-DC operation. For example, base stations 210, 212, 214, 218 may include gNBs and eNBs.

[0050] It should be understood that the radio access network 200 may include any number of wireless base stations and cells. In addition, relay nodes may be deployed to extend the size or coverage area of ​​a given cell. Base stations 210, 212, 214, 218 provide wireless access points to the core network for any number of mobile devices. In some examples, base stations 210, 212, 214, and / or 218 may be configured as described above and in conjunction with a base station. Figure 1 The base station / scheduling entity 108 shown in FIG.

[0051] Figure 2 Also included is a quadcopter or drone 220 that can be configured to act as a base station. That is, in some examples, the cell may not necessarily be stationary, and the geographic area of ​​the cell may move based on the location of a mobile base station (such as a quadcopter 220).

[0052] Within the RAN 200, a cell may include UEs that may communicate with one or more sectors of each cell. In addition, each base station 210, 212, 214, 218, and 220 may be configured to provide access to the core network 102 (see FIG. 1 ) for all UEs in the corresponding cell. Figure 1) access point. For example, UEs 222 and 224 may communicate with base station 210; UEs 226 and 228 may communicate with base station 212; UEs 230 and 232 may communicate with base station 214 via RRH 216; UE 234 may communicate with base station 218; and UE 236 may communicate with mobile base station 220. In some examples, UEs 222, 224, 226, 228, 230, 232, 234, 236, 238, 240, and / or 242 may communicate with the above-described and Figure 1 The UE / scheduled entity 106 shown in FIG. 1 is the same as that shown in FIG.

[0053] In some examples, a mobile network node (eg, quadcopter 220 ) may be configured to function as a UE. For example, quadcopter 220 may operate within cell 202 by communicating with base station 210 .

[0054] In another aspect of the RAN 200, sidelink signals can be used between UEs without having to rely on scheduling or control information from a base station. For example, two or more UEs (e.g., UEs 238, 240, and 242) can use peer-to-peer (P2P) or sidelink signals 237 to communicate with each other without relaying the communication through a base station. In some examples, UEs 238, 240, and 242 can each act as a scheduling entity or a sending sidelink device and / or a scheduled entity or a receiving sidelink device to schedule resources and transmit sidelink signals 237 between them without relying on scheduling or control information from a base station. In other examples, two or more UEs (e.g., UEs 226 and 228) within the coverage area of ​​a base station (e.g., base station 212) can also transmit sidelink signals 227 on a direct link (sidelink) without transmitting the communication through base station 212. In this example, base station 212 can allocate resources to UEs 226 and 228 for sidelink communication. In either case, such sidelink signaling 227 and 237 may be implemented in a P2P network, a device-to-device (D2D) network, a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) network, a vehicle-to-everything (V2X), a mesh network, or other suitable direct link network.

[0055] In the radio access network 200, the ability of a UE to communicate independently of its location while moving is called mobility. The various physical channels between the UE and the radio access network are typically managed by an access and mobility management function (AMF, not shown). Figure 1 The AMF may be established, maintained, and released under the control of the core network 102 in the core network, which may include a security context management function (SCMF) and a security anchor function (SEAF) that performs authentication. The SCMF may manage the security context for both the control plane and the user plane functions in whole or in part.

[0056] In various aspects of the present disclosure, the radio access network 200 can utilize DL-based mobility or UL-based mobility to implement mobility and switching (i.e., the transfer of a UE's connection from one radio channel to another). In a network configured for DL-based mobility, during a call with a scheduling entity, or at any other time, the UE can monitor various parameters of the signal from its serving cell and various parameters of neighboring cells. Depending on the quality of these parameters, the UE can maintain communication with one or more neighboring cells. During this time, if the UE moves from one cell to another, or if the signal quality from a neighboring cell exceeds the signal quality from the serving cell for a given amount of time, the UE can perform a handover or handover from the serving cell to the neighboring (target) cell. For example, a UE 224 (illustrated as a vehicle, but any suitable form of UE can be used) can move from a geographic area corresponding to its serving cell 202 to a geographic area corresponding to a neighboring cell 206. When the signal strength or quality from a neighboring cell 206 exceeds the signal strength or quality of its serving cell 202 for a given amount of time, the UE 224 can send a report message indicating the condition to its serving base station 210. In response, UE 224 may receive a handover command, and the UE may perform a handover to cell 206 .

[0057] In a network configured for UL-based mobility, the UL reference signal from each UE can be used by the network to select a serving cell for each UE. In some examples, base stations 210, 212, and 214 / 216 can broadcast a unified synchronization signal (e.g., a unified primary synchronization signal (PSS), a unified secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and a unified physical broadcast channel (PBCH)). UEs 222, 224, 226, 228, 230, and 232 can receive a unified synchronization signal, derive a carrier frequency and a time slot timing from the synchronization signal, and send an uplink pilot or reference signal in response to the derived timing. The uplink pilot signal sent by a UE (e.g., UE 224) can be received simultaneously by two or more cells (e.g., base stations 210 and 214 / 216) within the radio access network 200. Each cell may measure the strength of the pilot signal, and the radio access network (e.g., one or more of the base stations 210 and 214 / 216 and / or a central node within the core network) may determine the serving cell of the UE 224. As the UE 224 moves through the radio access network 200, the network may continue to monitor the uplink pilot signals sent by the UE 224. When the signal strength or quality of the pilot signal measured by the neighboring cell exceeds the signal strength or quality measured by the serving cell, the network 200 may handover the UE 224 from the serving cell to the neighboring cell with or without notifying the UE 224.

[0058] Although the synchronization signals transmitted by base stations 210, 212, and 214 / 216 may be uniform, the synchronization signals may not identify a specific cell, but may identify a region of multiple cells operating on the same frequency and / or having the same timing. The use of regions in a 5G network or other next generation communication network implements an uplink-based mobility framework and improves the efficiency of both the UE and the network because the number of mobility messages that need to be exchanged between the UE and the network can be reduced.

[0059] In various implementations, the air interface in the radio access network 200 can utilize licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or shared spectrum. Licensed spectrum provides exclusive use of a portion of the spectrum, which is usually due to the purchase of a license by a mobile network operator from a government regulatory agency. Unlicensed spectrum provides shared use of a portion of the spectrum without the need for a government-authorized license. Although it is usually still necessary to comply with some technical rules to access the unlicensed spectrum, generally, any operator or device can obtain access. Shared spectrum can fall between licensed and unlicensed spectrum, where technical rules or restrictions may be required to access the spectrum, but the spectrum can still be shared by multiple operators and / or multiple RATs. For example, the holder of a license for a portion of the licensed spectrum can provide licensed shared access (LSA) to share the spectrum with other parties, for example, using conditions determined by the appropriate license holder to obtain access.

[0060] The air interface in the radio access network 200 may utilize one or more duplex algorithms. Duplex refers to a point-to-point communication link in which two endpoints can communicate with each other in two directions. Full-duplex means that two endpoints can communicate with each other at the same time. Half-duplex means that only one endpoint can send information to the other at a time. Half-duplex simulation is often implemented for wireless links using time division duplex (TDD). In TDD, transmissions in different directions on a given channel are separated from each other using time division multiplexing. That is, at certain times, the channel is dedicated to transmission in one direction, and at other times, the channel is dedicated to transmission in the other direction, where the direction can change very quickly, for example, several times per time slot. In wireless links, full-duplex channels generally rely on physical isolation of transmitters and receivers and appropriate interference cancellation techniques. Full-duplex simulation is often implemented for wireless links by utilizing frequency division duplex (FDD) or space division duplex (SDD). In FDD, transmissions in different directions can operate on different carrier frequencies (e.g., within a paired spectrum). In SDD, transmissions in different directions on a given channel are separated from each other using spatial division multiplexing (SDM). In other examples, full-duplex communication can be implemented within an unpaired spectrum (e.g., within a single carrier bandwidth), where transmissions in different directions occur within different sub-bands of the carrier bandwidth. This type of full-duplex communication may be referred to herein as sub-band full-duplex (SBFD), also known as flexible duplex.

[0061] In addition, the air interface in the radio access network 200 can utilize one or more multiplexing and multiple access algorithms to enable simultaneous communication of various devices. For example, the 5G NR specification utilizes orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) with a cyclic prefix (CP) to provide multiple access to UL transmissions from UEs 222 and 224 to base station 210, and multiplexing of DL transmissions from base station 210 to one or more UEs 222 and 224. In addition, for UL transmissions, the 5G NR specification provides support for discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) with CP (also known as single carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA)). However, within the scope of the present disclosure, multiplexing and multiple access are not limited to the above schemes, but can be provided using time division multiple access (TDMA), code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), sparse code multiple access (SCMA), resource extension multiple access (RSMA), or other suitable multiple access schemes. In addition, multiplexing of DL transmissions from base station 210 to UEs 222 and 224 may be provided using time division multiplexing (TDM), code division multiplexing (CDM), frequency division multiplexing (FDM), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), sparse code multiplexing (SCM), or other suitable multiplexing schemes.

[0062] In some aspects of the present disclosure, the scheduling entity and / or the scheduled entity may be configured for beamforming and / or multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) techniques. Figure 3 An example of a wireless communication system 300 supporting MIMO is illustrated. In a MIMO system, a transmitter 302 includes multiple transmit antennas 304 (e.g., N transmit antennas), and a receiver 306 includes multiple receive antennas 308 (e.g., M receive antennas). Therefore, there are N×M signal paths 310 from the transmit antennas 304 to the receive antennas 308. Each of the transmitter 302 and the receiver 306 can be implemented, for example, in the scheduling entity 108, the scheduled entity 106, or any other suitable wireless communication device.

[0063] The use of this multi-antenna technology enables wireless communication systems to exploit the spatial domain to support spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and transmit diversity. Spatial multiplexing can be used to simultaneously send different data streams, also referred to as layers, on the same time-frequency resources. Data streams can be sent to a single UE to increase the data rate, or to multiple UEs to increase the total system capacity, the latter of which is called multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO). This is achieved by spatially precoding each data stream (i.e., multiplying the data stream by different weights and phase shifts) and then sending each spatially precoded stream on the downlink through multiple transmit antennas. The spatially precoded data streams arrive at the UE with different spatial signatures, which enables each of the UEs to recover one or more data streams destined for the UE. On the uplink, each UE sends a spatially precoded data stream, which enables the base station to identify the source of each spatially precoded data stream.

[0064] The number of data streams or layers corresponds to the rank of the transmission. Typically, the rank of the MIMO system 300 is limited by the number of transmit or receive antennas 304 or 308, whichever is lower. In addition, channel conditions at the UE and other considerations such as available resources at the base station may also affect the transmission rank. For example, the rank (and therefore, the number of data streams) allocated to a particular UE on the downlink can be determined based on a rank indicator (RI) sent from the UE to the base station. The RI can be determined based on the antenna configuration (e.g., the number of transmit antennas and receive antennas) and the signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR) measured on each receive antenna. The RI can indicate, for example, the number of layers that can be supported under current channel conditions. The base station can use the RI as well as resource information (e.g., available resources and the amount of data to be scheduled for the UE) to allocate a transmission rank to the UE.

[0065] In a time division duplex (TDD) system, UL and DL are reciprocal because each uses different time slots of the same frequency bandwidth. Therefore, in a TDD system, the base station can assign a rank for DL ​​MIMO transmission based on UL SINR measurements (e.g., based on a sounding reference signal (SRS) or other pilot signal sent from the UE). Based on the assigned rank, the base station can then send a CSI-RS with a separate C-RS sequence for each layer to provide multi-layer channel estimation. Based on the CSI-RS, the UE can measure the channel quality across layers and resource blocks, and feed back an RI and a channel quality indicator (CQI) that indicates to the base station the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for transmission to the UE for updating the rank and allocating REs for future downlink transmissions.

[0066] In the simplest case, Figure 3As shown, a rank 2 spatial multiplexing transmission on a 2×2 MIMO antenna configuration may transmit one data stream from each transmit antenna 304. Each data stream follows a different signal path 310 to each receive antenna 308. The receiver 306 may then use the signals received from each receive antenna 308 to reconstruct the data streams.

[0067] Beamforming is a signal processing technique that can be used at a transmitter 302 or a receiver 306 to shape or steer an antenna beam (e.g., a transmit beam or a receive beam) along a spatial path between the transmitter 302 and the receiver 306. Beamforming can be achieved by combining signals transmitted via antennas 304 or 308 (e.g., antenna elements of an antenna array module) such that some signals experience constructive interference and other signals experience destructive interference. In order to produce the desired constructive / destructive interference, the transmitter 302 or the receiver 306 may apply an amplitude and / or phase offset to the signal transmitted or received from each of the antennas 304 or 308 associated with the transmitter 302 or the receiver 306.

[0068] In 5G New Radio (NR) systems, especially for FR2 (mmWave) systems, beamformed signals can be used for most downlink channels, including the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) and the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH). In addition, broadcast control information, such as synchronization signal blocks (SSBs), slot format indicators (SFIs), and paging information, can be sent in a beam scanning manner so that all scheduled entities (UEs) in the coverage area of ​​the transmit and receive point (TRP) (e.g., gNB) can receive the broadcast control information. In addition, for UEs configured with beamforming antenna arrays, beamformed signals can also be used for uplink signals and channels, including the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), and the Sounding Reference Signal (SRS). In addition, beamformed signals can also be utilized in D2D systems using FR2, such as NR sidelink (SL) or V2X.

[0069] Reference Figure 4 Various aspects of the present disclosure are described using the OFDM waveforms schematically shown in FIG. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various aspects of the present disclosure may be applied to SC-FDMA waveforms in substantially the same manner as described herein below. That is, while some examples of the present disclosure may focus on OFDM links for clarity, it will be appreciated that the same principles may also be applied to SC-FDMA waveforms.

[0070] In some examples, a frame refers to a predetermined duration (e.g., 10 ms for wireless transmission, where each frame consists of 10 subframes of 1 ms each). Figure 4 , illustrates an expanded view of an exemplary DL subframe 402 showing an OFDM resource grid 404. However, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art, the PHY transmission structure for any particular application may differ from the examples described herein depending on any number of factors. Here, time is in the horizontal direction, in units of OFDM symbols; and frequency is in the vertical direction, in units of subcarriers or tones of a carrier.

[0071] Resource grid 404 can be used to schematically represent the time-frequency resources of a given antenna port. That is, in a MIMO implementation with multiple available antenna ports, a corresponding number of resource grids 404 can be used for communication. Resource grid 404 is divided into multiple resource elements (RE) 406. RE, which is 1 subcarrier × 1 symbol, is the smallest discrete part of the time-frequency grid and contains a single complex value representing data from a physical channel or signal. Each RE can represent one or more bits of information, depending on the modulation used in a specific implementation. In some examples, RE blocks can be referred to as physical resource blocks (PRBs) or more simply resource blocks (RBs) 408, which contain any suitable number of consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. In one example, an RB can include 12 subcarriers, the number of which is independent of the parameter set (numerology) used. In some examples, depending on the parameter set, an RB can include any suitable number of consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain. In the present disclosure, it is assumed that a single RB such as RB 408 corresponds entirely to a single direction of communication (transmission or reception for a given device).

[0072] Scheduling a scheduled entity (e.g., UE) for downlink, uplink, or sidelink transmission typically involves scheduling one or more resource elements 406 within one or more subbands or bandwidth parts (BWPs). Thus, a UE typically utilizes only a subset of a resource grid 404. In some examples, an RB may be the smallest unit of resources that can be allocated to a UE. Thus, the more RBs scheduled for a UE and the higher the modulation scheme selected for the air interface, the higher the data rate for the UE. The RBs may be scheduled by a base station (e.g., gNB, eNB, etc.) or may be self-scheduled by a UE implementing D2D sidelink communication.

[0073] In this illustration, RB 408 is shown as occupying less than the entire bandwidth of subframe 402, with some subcarriers illustrated above and below RB 408. In a given implementation, subframe 402 may have a bandwidth corresponding to any number of one or more RBs 408. Furthermore, in this illustration, RB 408 is shown as occupying less than the entire duration of subframe 402, although this is only one possible example.

[0074] Each subframe 402 (eg, a 1 ms subframe) may be composed of one or more adjacent time slots. Figure 4 In the example shown, as an illustrative example, a subframe 402 includes four time slots 410. In some examples, a time slot can be defined according to a specified number of OFDM symbols with a given cyclic prefix (CP) length. For example, a time slot can include 7 or 14 OFDM symbols with a nominal CP. Other examples may include micro-slots with a shorter duration (e.g., one to three OFDM symbols), sometimes referred to as shortened transmission time intervals (TTIs). In some cases, these micro-slots or shortened transmission time intervals (TTIs) can be sent while occupying resources scheduled for ongoing time slot transmissions of the same or different UEs. Any number of resource blocks can be used within a subframe or time slot.

[0075] The expanded view of one of the time slots 410 illustrates the time slot 410 including a control region 412 and a data region 414. In general, the control region 412 may carry a control channel (e.g., PDCCH), and the data region 414 may carry a data channel (e.g., PDSCH or PUSCH). Of course, a time slot may contain all DL, all UL, or at least one DL portion and at least one UL portion. Figure 4 The structure shown in is merely exemplary in nature, and different slot structures may be used and may include one or more of each of the control region and the data region.

[0076] Although in Figure 4 Although not shown in the figure, each RE 406 within the RB 408 can be scheduled to carry one or more physical channels, including control channels, shared channels, data channels, etc. Other REs 406 within the RB 408 can also carry pilot or reference signals. These pilot or reference signals can be provided to the receiving device to perform channel estimation of the corresponding channel, which can achieve coherent demodulation / detection of the control and / or data channels within the RB 408.

[0077] In some examples, time slot 410 may be used for broadcast, multicast, groupcast, or unicast communications. For example, broadcast, multicast, or groupcast communications may refer to point-to-multipoint transmissions by one device (e.g., a base station, UE, or other similar device) to other devices. Here, broadcast communications are delivered to all devices, while multicast communications are delivered to multiple intended receiving devices, and groupcast communications are delivered to a group of intended receiving devices. Unicast communications may refer to point-to-point transmissions by one device to a single other device.

[0078] In an example of cellular communication via a cellular carrier via a Uu interface, for DL ​​transmission, a scheduling entity (e.g., a base station) may allocate one or more REs 406 (e.g., within a control region 412) to one or more scheduled entities (e.g., UEs) to carry DL control information, the DL control information comprising one or more DL control channels, such as a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). The PDCCH carries downlink control information (DCI), which includes, but is not limited to, power control commands (e.g., one or more open-loop power control parameters and / or one or more closed-loop power control parameters), scheduling information, grants, and / or allocations of REs for DL ​​and UL transmissions. The PDCCH may also carry HARQ feedback transmissions, such as acknowledgments (ACKs) or negative acknowledgments (NACKs). HARQ is a technique well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, wherein the accuracy of the integrity of a packet transmission may be checked at the receiving side, for example, using any appropriate integrity check mechanism, such as a checksum or a cyclic redundancy check (CRC). If the integrity of the transmission is confirmed, an ACK may be sent, and if the integrity of the transmission is not confirmed, a NACK may be sent. In response to the NACK, the transmitting device may send a HARQ retransmission, which may implement chase combining, incremental redundancy, and the like.

[0079] The base station may also allocate one or more REs 406 (e.g., in the control region 412 or the data region 414) to carry other DL signals, such as a demodulation reference signal (DMRS); a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS); a channel state information (CSI) reference signal (CSI-RS); and a synchronization signal block (SSB). The SSBs may be broadcast at regular intervals based on a periodicity (e.g., 5, 10, 20, 40, 80, or 160 ms). The SSBs include a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and a physical broadcast control channel (PBCH). The UE may utilize the PSS and SSS to achieve radio frame, subframe, time slot, and symbol synchronization in the time domain, identify the center of the channel (system) bandwidth in the frequency domain, and identify the physical cell identity (PCI) of the cell.

[0080] The PBCH in the SSB may also include a master information block (MIB), which includes various system information and parameters for decoding a system information block (SIB). The SIB may be, for example, a SystemInformationType 1 (SIB1) that may include various additional system information. Examples of system information sent in the MIB may include, but are not limited to, subcarrier spacing, system frame number, configuration of a PDCCH control resource set (CORESET) (e.g., PDCCH CORESET0), and a search space for SIB1. Examples of additional system information sent in SIB1 may include, but are not limited to, random access search space, downlink configuration information, and uplink configuration information. The MIB and SIB1 together provide minimum system information (SI) for initial access.

[0081] In an UL transmission, a scheduled entity (e.g., a UE) may utilize one or more REs 406 to carry UL control information (UCI) to a scheduling entity, the UL control information including one or more UL control channels, such as a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH). The UCI may include various packet types and categories, including pilots, reference signals, and information configured to enable or assist in decoding uplink data transmissions. In some examples, the UCI may include a scheduling request (SR), i.e., a request for a scheduling entity to schedule an uplink transmission. Here, in response to the SR sent on the UCI, the scheduling entity may send downlink control information (DCI), which may schedule resources for uplink packet transmissions. The UCI may also include HARQ feedback, channel state feedback (CSF) (such as a CSI report), or any other suitable UCI.

[0082] In addition to control information, one or more REs 406 may be allocated for data traffic (e.g., within data region 414). Such data traffic may be carried on one or more traffic channels, such as, for DL ​​transmission, a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH); or for UL transmission, a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). In some examples, one or more REs 406 within data region 414 may be configured to carry other signals, such as one or more SIBs and DMRS.

[0083] In an example of sidelink communication via a sidelink carrier via a PC5 interface, a control region 412 of a time slot 410 may include a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) including sidelink control information (SCI) sent by an initiating (transmitting) sidelink device (e.g., a V2X or other sidelink device) to a group of one or more other receiving sidelink devices. A data region 414 of the time slot 410 may include a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) including sidelink data traffic sent by an initiating (transmitting) sidelink device within resources reserved by the transmitting sidelink device on the sidelink carrier via the SCI. Other information may also be sent via individual REs 406 within the time slot 410. For example, HARQ feedback information may be sent from a receiving sidelink device to a transmitting sidelink device in a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH) within the time slot 410. Additionally, one or more reference signals, such as a sidelink SSB and / or a sidelink CSI-RS, may be sent within time slot 410 .

[0084] Described above and in Figure 1 and Figure 2 The channels or carriers illustrated in the figure are not necessarily all channels or carriers that may be utilized between the scheduling entity 108 and the scheduled entity 106, and those skilled in the art will recognize that other channels or carriers may be utilized in addition to the channels or carriers illustrated, such as other traffic, control, and feedback channels.

[0085] These physical channels are typically multiplexed and mapped to transport channels for processing at the medium access control (MAC) layer. Transport channels carry blocks of information called transport blocks (TBs). The transport block size (TBS) may be a controlled parameter based on the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and the number of resource blocks (RBs) in a given transmission, where the TBS may correspond to the number of bits of information.

[0086] refer to Figure 5, the exemplary LTE frame 500 may include ten subframes. Each subframe 502 includes two time slots (e.g., time slots 1 and 2), and each time slot 504 may include 7 OFDM symbols, depending on the cyclic prefix (CP) length. The scheduled entity 106 (e.g., UE) may use one or more LTE subframes to receive or measure various downlink (DL) LTE control and reference signals from the network (e.g., eNB). Some examples of control / reference signals are cell-specific reference signals (CRS), UE-specific reference signals (UE-RS), primary synchronization signals (PSS), secondary synchronization signals (SSS), physical broadcast channels (PBCH), etc. The scheduled entity 106 may also use one or more LTE subframes to send various uplink (UL) LTE control and reference signals to the network.

[0087] refer to Figure 6 , an exemplary NR frame 600 may include 10 subframes (e.g., 1ms subframes). Each subframe (e.g., subframe 602) includes multiple adjacent time slots, and each time slot (e.g., time slot 604) includes multiple OFDM symbols. In some examples, a time slot may include 7 or 14 OFDM symbols with a nominal CP. Additional examples may include mini-slots with shorter durations (e.g., 1, 2, 4, or 7 OFDM symbols). In some cases, these mini-slots may be sent occupying resources scheduled for ongoing time slot transmissions for the same or different UEs. The NR time slot may include a control region 606 and a data region 608. Typically, the control region may carry a control channel (e.g., a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH)), and the data region may carry a data channel (e.g., a PDSCH or a PUSCH). Of course, a time slot may contain all downlinks (DL), all uplinks (UL), or at least one DL portion and at least one UL portion.

[0088] The transmitting device (eg, UE or scheduled entity 106) may use the UL NR time slot (eg, time slot 604) to transmit UL control information (UCI), such as uplink control 118 (see Figure 1). The UCI may be initiated from a higher layer via one or more UL control channels (such as PUCCH, physical random access channel (PRACH), etc.) to a scheduling entity. In addition, the UL transmission may carry a UL physical signal that does not typically carry information originating from a higher layer, such as a reference signal, for example, a demodulation reference signal (DM-RS), a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS), a sounding reference signal (SRS), etc. In some examples, the UL control information 118 may include a scheduling request (SR) (e.g., a request for a scheduling entity to schedule an uplink transmission). Here, in response to the SR sent on the control channel 118, the scheduling entity may send downlink control information (DCI) 114, which may schedule resources for uplink packet transmission. In addition to the control information, the scheduled entity may send or receive user data or service data in the data portion of the time slot (e.g., data portion 608). Such services may be carried on one or more service channels, such as, for DL ​​transmissions, a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH); or for UL transmissions, a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH).

[0089] Figure 7 714 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for a wireless device 700 using a processing system 714. For example, the device 700 may be Figure 1 , 2 , 3 and / or 14, or any one or more of the user equipment (UE) shown in FIG.

[0090] The scheduling entity 700 may be implemented with a processing system 714 including one or more processors 704. Examples of processor 704 include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functions described throughout this disclosure. In various examples, the scheduling entity 700 may be configured to perform any one or more of the functions described herein. That is, the processor 704 as utilized in the apparatus 700 may be used to implement the following and in Figure 13-16 Any one or more of the processes and procedures illustrated in .

[0091] In this example, the processing system 714 may be implemented with a bus architecture, which is generally represented by bus 702. The bus 702 may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges, depending on the specific application and overall design constraints of the processing system 714. The bus 702 communicatively couples together various circuits including one or more processors (generally represented by processor 704), memory 705, and computer readable media (generally represented by computer readable media 706). The bus 702 may also link various other circuits known in the art (such as timing sources, peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits), and therefore will not be described further. The bus interface 708 provides an interface between the bus 702 and the transceiver 710. The transceiver 710 provides a communication interface or component for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium via multiple antennas 711.

[0092] The transceiver 710 may include multiple RF chains (e.g., LTE RF chains and NR RF chains) for signal transmission and reception using the antenna 711. The transceiver 710 may include one or more digital-to-analog converters (in Figure 7 A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) may convert digital data received from processing system 714 and convert the data into an analog signal to be transmitted using transceiver 710 and antenna 711. Processing system 714 may use one or more switches ( Figure 7 The RF chain and the antenna are connected by a switch (not shown), which may be included in the transceiver 710 or as a separate unit. Depending on the nature of the device, a user interface 712 (e.g., a keypad, display, speaker, microphone, joystick) may also be provided. Of course, such a user interface 712 is optional and may be omitted in some examples (such as a base station).

[0093] The processor 704 is responsible for managing the bus 702 and general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium 706. This software, when executed by the processor 704, causes the processing system 714 to perform the various functions described below for any particular device. The computer-readable medium 706 and memory 705 can also be used to store data that is manipulated by the processor 704 when executing the software.

[0094] One or more processors 704 in the processing system can execute software. Whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language or other, software should be broadly interpreted as representing instructions, instruction sets, codes, code segments, program codes, programs, subroutines, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, processes, functions, etc. The software can reside on a computer-readable medium 706. The computer-readable medium 706 can be a non-transitory computer-readable medium. As an example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes a magnetic storage device (e.g., a hard disk, a floppy disk, a magnetic strip), an optical disk (e.g., a compact disk (CD) or a digital versatile disk (DVD)), a smart card, a flash memory device (e.g., a card, a stick or a key drive), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasable PROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), a register, a removable disk, and any other suitable medium for storing software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. The computer readable medium 706 may reside in the processing system 714, external to the processing system 714, or distributed across multiple entities including the processing system 714. The computer readable medium 706 may be embodied in a computer program product. For example, a computer program product may include a computer readable medium in packaging materials. Those skilled in the art will recognize how to best implement the described functionality presented throughout this disclosure, depending on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the entire system.

[0095] In some aspects of the present disclosure, the processor 704 may include circuits configured for various functions, including, for example, mitigating interruptions between wireless connections of different RATs in an EN-DC network. For example, the circuits may be configured to implement the following regarding Figure 13-16 In some aspects, the processor 704 may include a communication circuit 740 and an RF chain conflict mitigation circuit 742.

[0096] The communication circuit 740 may be configured to perform various functions related to wireless communication, including, for example, communicating with a network (eg, RAN 200) using dual connectivity, as described in relation to Figure 13-16 In some examples, the communication circuit 740 may include one or more hardware components that provide a physical structure that performs processes related to wireless communication (e.g., signal reception and / or signal transmission) and signal processing (e.g., processing received signals and / or processing signals for transmission). In addition, the communication circuit 740 may be configured to send and process uplink traffic and uplink control messages (e.g., similar to Figure 1The communication circuit 740 may also be configured to execute communication instructions 752 stored on the computer-readable medium 706 to implement one or more functions described herein.

[0097] RF chain conflict mitigation circuit 742 may be configured to perform various functions, including, for example, mitigating Figure 13-16 In some examples, the RF chain conflict mitigation circuit 742 may include one or more hardware components that provide execution as described above. Figure 13-16 Physical structure of the described RF chain conflict mitigation related processes. The RF chain conflict mitigation circuit 742 may also be configured to execute RF chain conflict mitigation instructions 754 stored on the computer readable medium 706 to implement one or more functions described herein.

[0098] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating exemplary RF chain components of an apparatus according to some aspects of the present disclosure. The apparatus may be Figure 1 , 2 , 7 and / or 14. Any of the wireless communication devices, scheduled entities, or UEs shown in FIG. 14. In one aspect, an EN-DC capable device (e.g., a UE) may share certain front-end radio frequency (RF) components, such as antennas and switches, between LTE and NR connections or links to reduce costs and / or meet a desired form factor of the device. Figure 8 , four exemplary antennas 800 (illustrated as ANT0, ANT1, ANT2, and ANT3) of the device are shown for illustration. The device can use switches (e.g., cross switches 802 and 804) to selectively connect antenna 800 to LTE RF chain B3 (illustrated as B3 Tx, B3Rx0, B3 Rx1, B3 Rx2, and B3 Rx3) and NR RF chain n41 (illustrated as n41 Rx and n41 Tx). By controlling the cross switch, the scheduled entity can connect the LTE or NR RF chain to any antenna or disconnect from any antenna. In other examples, the scheduled entity can have other configurations of RF chains, antennas, and cross switches.

[0099] Due to the sharing of RF chain components and antennas, potential conflicts may occur between LTE and NR operations. In one example, the device may need to use antenna switching between different antennas to send SRS. When the device switches the connection between the NR Tx RF chain (e.g., n41 Tx) and the antenna (e.g., ANT0, ANT1, ANT2, and ANT3), the antenna switching operation may interrupt or interrupt the connection between the antenna and one or more LTE RF chains or Rx paths. This interruption may cause functional and / or performance issues on the LTE side, such as failure to detect LTE cells, errors in signal and channel measurements (e.g., estimation of reference signal received power (RSRP)), switching failures, errors in decoding of PBCH, etc.

[0100] Fig.9A and Fig. 9B An example of an LTE RF chain interruption due to antenna switching for NR SRS transmission according to some aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. An apparatus (e.g., a scheduled entity UE) can use antenna switch 902 to share the same antennas (e.g., ANT0, ANT1, ANT2, ANT3, and ANT4) between an LTE RF chain (e.g., LTE Tx / Rx0, LTE Rx1, LTE Rx2, LTE Rx3) and an NR RF chain (e.g., NR Tx, NR Rx0, NR Rx1, NR Rx2, NR Rx3). Fig.9A In the default configuration (Configuration 1) shown, the device may configure antenna switch 902 to connect the antennas to the corresponding NR / LTE RF chains. In this configuration, ANT0 may be shared by LTE Tx and LTE Rx0, ANT1 may be shared by NR Rx3 and LTE Rx1, ANT2 may be shared by NR Rx2 and LTE Rx2, ANT3 may be shared by NR Rx1 and LTE Rx3, and ANT4 may be shared by NR Rx0 and NR Tx. In one aspect, antenna switch 902 may be similar to that described with respect to Figure 8 Crossbar switches 802 and 804 are depicted.

[0101] When the device uses multiple transmissions with antenna switching to send NR SRS, the switching may disrupt the connection between the antenna and one or more LTE RF chains. Fig. 9BIn another configuration (Configuration 2) shown, when the device switches the connection 904 of ANT3 from NR Rx1 / LTE Rx3 to NR Tx for SRS transmission using ANT3, the connection between ANT3 and LTE Rx3 is interrupted or disconnected. In this case, the antenna switching operation for NR SRS transmission can affect or interrupt LTE DL operation (e.g., LTE Rx3 is disconnected). In some cases, one or more LTE Rx chains may be affected by antenna switching. When the corresponding LTE and NR operations are not synchronized in time to avoid conflicts, the impact or interruption on LTE DL operation can occur at any LTE codeword. In some examples, depending on the NR SRS configuration, antenna switching can partially or completely affect PSS, SSS, CRS and / or PBCH operations in one or more LTE codewords.

[0102] In another aspect of the present disclosure, when the apparatus transmits NR SRS using multiple transmissions with antenna switching, the switching may interrupt LTE Tx operation. Fig.10 In one example shown, the device may share an antenna (e.g., ANT3) for LTE Tx and NR Rx1. The device may use an antenna switch 1002 to switch the antenna connection 1004 from the LTE Tx chain 1006 (e.g., LTE Tx) to the NR Tx chain 1008 for NR SRS transmission. In this case, the NR SRS transmission may interrupt the existing or ongoing LTE transmission on the antenna (e.g., ANT3). To alleviate the interruption on LTE Tx, the device may blank the LTE Tx communication during the interruption caused by the antenna switching. In one blanking example, the device may clear the data input to the digital-to-analog converter (e.g., DAC 713) that feeds the Tx signal to the LTE RF chain for the duration of the NR SRS transmission.

[0103] Fig.11 1 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary switching order of antennas. An apparatus (e.g., UE 1102) receives an SRS configuration 1104 from a network 1106 (e.g., a base station, gNB, or eNB in ​​RAN 200). In some aspects, the SRS configuration may include various parameters defining SRS resources (e.g., RBs) within one or more time slots for transmitting SRS according to the switching order of the antennas. The apparatus may receive the SRS configuration from the network 1106 via radio resource control (RRC) and / or downlink control information (DCI) signaling. The SRS configuration may enable the apparatus to sequentially transmit multiple SRS transmissions while switching transmit antennas in multiple antennas.

[0104] In one example, the device may have the same Figure 8-10 The device may switch transmit antennas between multiple antennas when transmitting SRS in sequence. For example, at 1108, the device switches the transmit antenna and uses ANT0 to transmit the first SRS. At 1110, the device switches the transmit antenna and uses ANT1 to transmit the second SRS. At 1112, the device switches the transmit antenna and uses ANT2 to transmit the third SRS. At 1114, the device switches the transmit antenna and uses ANT3 to transmit the fourth SRS. The first SRS, the second SRS, the third SRS, and the fourth SRS are transmitted in sequence using a different antenna for each SRS. The device switches the transmit antenna after each SRS transmission; therefore, a different antenna is used for each SRS transmission. In some aspects of the present disclosure, the communication circuit 740 may provide a component for determining that the switching of the transmit antenna may interrupt the ability of the device to use multiple antennas for scheduled downlink or uplink operations of a second RAT (e.g., LTE). In this case, the device can modify LTE communications and / or NR SRS transmissions to alleviate interruptions in LTE communications due to the switching order of multiple antennas.

[0105] Fig.12 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of LTE DL interruption due to NR SRS transmission. In this example, a device (e.g., a scheduled entity or UE) may receive an LTE DL frame 1200 from a network. Frame 1200 may include various LTE signals and channels at different symbols, such as CRS 0, CRS 4, CRS 7, CRS11, SSS, PSS, and PBCH. In one example, during reception of PSS1202 in LTE frame 1200, the device may use antenna switching to transmit NR SRS1204 during a duration overlapping with PSS1202. In this case, antenna switching may interrupt antennas (e.g., Fig.9A , Fig. 9B and Fig.10 The connection between ANT3 in FIG. 1 and the LTE RF chain for receiving PSS 1202. Therefore, the reception or detection of PSS 1202 may be affected, interrupted or blocked by the NR SRS transmission due to antenna switching.

[0106] Fig.131 is a diagram illustrating another example of LTE DL interruption due to NR SRS transmission. In this example, a device (e.g., a scheduled entity or UE) may receive an LTE DL frame 1300 from a network. The frame 1300 may include various LTE signals and channels at different symbols, such as CRS 0, CRS 4, CRS 7, CRS11, SSS, PSS, and PBCH. In one example, during reception or detection of one or more LTE reference signals 1302 (e.g., CRS 0 and CRS 7), the device may use antenna switching to send NR SRS 1304 during a duration that overlaps with the LTE signal 1302. In this case, the antenna switching may affect, interrupt, or block the antenna (e.g., Fig.9A , Fig. 9B and Fig.10 The device may be configured to provide an Rx connection between an ANT3 in the LTE RF chain and an LTE RF chain for receiving LTE reference signals (e.g., CRS 0 and CRS 7). When the device cannot receive or detect LTE reference signals (e.g., CRS 0 and CRS 7), the device may not be able to accurately estimate or measure channel or signal quality (e.g., RSRP) that may affect cell selection, reselection, and switching.

[0107] Fig.14 1 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary process 1400 for mitigating LTE communication disruptions due to NR SRS transmissions using antenna switching according to some aspects of the present disclosure. As described below, some or all of the illustrated features may be omitted in certain implementations within the scope of the present disclosure, and some of the illustrated features may not be necessary for implementation of all embodiments. In some examples, process 1400 may be performed by Figure 7 In some examples, process 1400 may be performed by any suitable apparatus (eg, a scheduled entity or a UE) or component for performing the functions or algorithms described below.

[0108] At block 1402, a device may establish a first connection with a network and simultaneously establish a second connection with the network using a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT. The device may simultaneously maintain the first connection and the second connection with the network. In one aspect, the network may be Figure 2The described RAN 200 or any network supporting dual connectivity communication (e.g., EN-DC). The dual connectivity may include a first connection of the first RAT and a second connection of the second RAT. In an example, the first RAT may be NR and the second RAT may be LTE. In one aspect, the communication circuit 740 and the transceiver 710 may provide components for establishing a first connection and a second connection sharing multiple antennas 711.

[0109] At block 1404, the device may configure a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of a first connection (e.g., an NR connection) based on a switching order of a plurality of antennas that may interrupt a second connection (e.g., an LTE connection). In one example, Fig.15 An LTE subframe 1500 is illustrated in which a device (e.g., UE) may be scheduled to search, receive, and / or measure certain LTE DL signals (e.g., PSS, SSS, PBCH, CRS, etc.) during a time interval 1502 that may overlap with one or more NR SRS transmissions 1504. In another example, the device may be scheduled to transmit an LTE UL signal (e.g., PUSCH or PUCCH) during the time interval 1502. However, switching the transmit antenna used to transmit the SRS transmission may disconnect the antenna from the LTE RF chain configured for the scheduled LTE DL / UL operation.

[0110] At block 1406, the apparatus may modify communications (downlink and / or uplink transmissions) or multiple SRS transmissions of a second connection (e.g., an LTE connection) to mitigate interruptions in communications of the second connection due to a switching order of multiple antennas. Mitigating interruptions may avoid temporal overlaps between multiple SRS transmissions of a first connection (e.g., an NR connection) and communications of a second connection (e.g., an LTE connection). In one aspect, the RF chain conflict mitigation circuit 742 may provide a component for modifying communications and / or multiple SRS transmissions of a second connection to mitigate interruptions between communications of the second connection and SRS transmissions of the first connection.

[0111] Fig.16 1604, the device may reschedule the communication of the second connection to occur outside of a time interval associated with the plurality of NR SRS transmissions. For example, the device may reschedule the search, reception, and / or measurement of certain LTE DL signals to a different time interval 1506 (see FIG. 1605 ) that does not overlap with the NR SRS transmission 1504. Fig.15 ) to modify the communication of the second connection.

[0112] Fig.17 is a flow chart illustrating another method of mitigating interruptions between communications of a second connection and SRS transmissions of a first connection according to some aspects. At block 1702, the apparatus may determine that communications on a second connection (e.g., an LTE connection) may be interrupted due to a switching order of multiple antennas used to send NR SRS on the first connection. At block 1704, the apparatus may blank uplink transmissions of the second connection in time intervals overlapping with multiple SRS transmissions of the first connection. For example, in Fig.18 , the apparatus may modify communication of an LTE frame 1800 by blanking an LTE UL transmission 1802 during a time interval overlapping with an NR SRS transmission 1804. Blanking the LTE UL transmission may mitigate disruptions to the LTE RF chain due to antenna switching.

[0113] Fig.19 1902 is a flow chart illustrating another method of mitigating interruption between communication of a second connection and SRS transmission of a first connection according to some aspects. At block 1902, the device may determine that communication on a second connection (e.g., an LTE connection) may be interrupted due to a switching order of multiple antennas used to send NR SRS on the first connection. At block 1904, the device may modify multiple SRS transmissions, for example, by omitting multiple SRS transmissions in a predetermined time interval to avoid interrupting communication of the second connection (LTE connection) in the predetermined time interval.

[0114] exist Fig. 20 In the exemplary LTE frame 2000 shown, the device may expect to receive, detect or measure certain LTE DL signals in a time interval 2002 that may overlap with an NR SRS transmission 2004. In one example, the device may send an LTE UL signal during the time interval 2002. In some cases, it may not be expected or possible to reschedule, modify or interrupt LTE operations in the time interval 2002. For example, the device may be scheduled to search, detect, measure and / or receive some high priority LTE signals. An example of a high priority LTE signal may be signaling for enhanced 911 (E911) services. One such high priority signal for E911 services is a positioning reference signal (PRS) that can be used by a scheduled entity to determine its physical location. Therefore, for example, during a switching scenario, it is not desirable to interrupt LTE operations. In this case, the interruption of LTE operations may result in a handover failure and / or a loss of network connection. Therefore, the device may omit NR SRS transmission 2004 and not perform associated antenna switching to avoid interrupting LTE UL.

[0115] In some aspects of the present disclosure, an apparatus (eg, a scheduled entity or a UE) may use the above Figure 14-20 Any combination of the methods and processes described herein can be used to mitigate the disruption of LTE communications caused by NR SRS transmission. In one example, the apparatus can use in the first subframe / time slot Fig.14 A first implementation of the method and using in a second subframe / time slot which may be before or after the first subframe / time slot Fig.14 A second implementation of the method.

[0116] In one configuration, the apparatus 700 for wireless communication includes components for performing the various dual connectivity disruption mitigation functions, processes, methods, and procedures described in the present disclosure. In one aspect, the components may be Figure 7 The processor 704 shown in FIG. 7 is configured to perform the functions recited by the above-mentioned components. On the other hand, the above-mentioned components may be a circuit or any device configured to perform the functions recited by the above-mentioned components.

[0117] Of course, in the above examples, the circuits included in the processor 704 are provided only as examples, and other components for performing the described functions may be included in various aspects of the present disclosure, including but not limited to instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium 706, or Figure 1 , 2 , 3 and / or 11, and utilizing, for example, the present disclosure regarding Figure 14-20 The process and / or algorithm described.

[0118] In a first aspect, a method for wireless communication at a device is disclosed. The method includes: using multiple antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT to establish a first connection with a network and simultaneously establish a second connection with the network; configuring multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the multiple antennas; and modifying the communication of the second connection or the multiple SRS transmissions to mitigate the interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the multiple antennas.

[0119] In a second aspect, alone or in combination with the first aspect, the communication of the second connection includes receiving at least one of a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical broadcast channel (PBCH).

[0120] In a third aspect, alone or in combination with any one of the first to second aspects, modifying the communication of the second connection includes rescheduling the communication of the second connection to occur outside of a time interval associated with the plurality of SRS transmissions.

[0121] In a fourth aspect, alone or in combination with any one of the first to third aspects, modifying the communication of the second connection includes: blanking the uplink transmission of the second connection in a time interval overlapping with multiple SRS transmissions of the first connection.

[0122] In a fifth aspect, alone or in combination with any one of the first to fourth aspects, the method further comprises: sending the plurality of SRS transmissions in sequence while switching transmit antennas based on the switching order of the plurality of antennas.

[0123] In a sixth aspect, alone or in combination with the fifth aspect, the method further comprises: determining that the switching of the transmit antenna interrupts the ability of the device to use at least one of the plurality of antennas to communicate the second connection.

[0124] In a seventh aspect, alone or in combination with any one of aspects 5 to 6, sending the multiple SRS transmissions comprises: disconnecting a first antenna of the multiple antennas from a radio frequency (RF) chain of a second RAT during a time interval corresponding to the communication of the first connection; and connecting the first antenna to the RF chain of the first RAT during the time interval.

[0125] In an eighth aspect, alone or in combination with any one of the first to fourth aspects, modifying the plurality of SRS transmissions comprises: omitting the plurality of SRS transmissions in a predetermined time interval to avoid interrupting communication of the second connection in the predetermined time interval.

[0126] In a ninth aspect, alone or in combination with any one of the first to eighth aspects, the communication of the second connection comprises receiving a positioning reference signal (PRS) from the network.

[0127] In a tenth aspect, alone or in combination with any one of the first to ninth aspects, the communication of the second connection includes a switching operation of the second connection.

[0128] In the eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with any one of the first to tenth aspects, wherein the first connection comprises a long term evolution (LTE) connection between the device and the network, the second connection comprises a new radio (NR) connection between the device and the network, and wherein the LTE connection and the NR connection are configured to provide an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network new radio dual connectivity (EN-DC) between the device and the network.

[0129] In a twelfth aspect, a wireless communication device is disclosed. The wireless communication device includes: a communication interface configured for wireless communication with a network, the communication interface including multiple antennas; a memory; and a processor operatively coupled to the communication interface and the memory. The processor and the memory are configured to: establish a first connection with the network and simultaneously establish a second connection with the network using multiple antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT; configure multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the multiple antennas; and modify the communication of the second connection or multiple SRS transmissions to alleviate the interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the multiple antennas.

[0130] In a thirteenth aspect, the wireless communication device of the twelfth aspect is configured to perform any of the methods of the first to eleventh aspects.

[0131] In a fourteenth aspect, a user equipment (UE) for wireless communication is disclosed. The UE includes: a component for establishing a first connection with a network using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT shared by multiple antennas; a component for configuring multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the multiple antennas; and a component for modifying the communication of the second connection or the multiple SRS transmissions to alleviate the interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the multiple antennas.

[0132] In the fifteenth aspect, the UE of the fourteenth aspect is configured to perform any method of the first aspect to the eleventh aspect.

[0133] In a sixteenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium storing a code executable by a wireless communication device is disclosed. The code includes instructions for the following operations: using a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT to establish a first connection with a network and simultaneously establish a second connection with the network; configuring a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas; and modifying a communication of the second connection or a plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate an interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the plurality of antennas.

[0134] In a seventeenth aspect, the code of the sixteenth aspect comprises instructions for performing any of the methods of the first to eleventh aspects.

[0135] Several aspects of wireless communication networks have been presented with reference to exemplary implementations. As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, various aspects described throughout this disclosure may be extended to other telecommunication systems, network architectures, and communication standards.

[0136] As an example, various aspects may be implemented within other systems defined by 3GPP, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), Evolved Packet System (EPS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), and / or Global System for Mobile (GSM). Various aspects may also be extended to systems defined by 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2), such as CDMA2000 and / or Evolution Data Optimized (EV-DO). Other examples may be implemented within systems employing IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Ultra Wideband (UWB), Bluetooth, and / or other suitable systems. The actual telecommunication standard, network architecture, and / or communication standard employed will depend on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the system.

[0137] Within the present disclosure, the word "exemplary" is used to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration". Any implementation or aspect described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily construed as being preferred or advantageous over other aspects of the present disclosure. Likewise, the term "aspect" does not require that all aspects of the present disclosure include the discussed features, advantages, or modes of operation. The term "coupled" is used herein to refer to a direct or indirect coupling between two objects. For example, if object A physically contacts object B, and object B contacts object C, objects A and C can still be considered to be coupled to each other - even if they are not directly physically in contact with each other. For example, a first object can be coupled to a second object even if the first object never makes direct physical contact with the second object. The terms "circuit" and "circuitry" are used broadly and are intended to include both hardware implementations of electrical devices and conductors and software implementations of information and instructions that, when connected and configured, enable the functions described in the present disclosure to be performed, without limitation to the type of electronic circuits, which, when executed by a processor, enable the functions described in the present disclosure to be performed.

[0138] Figure 1-20 One or more of the components, steps, features and / or functions shown in the drawings may be rearranged and / or combined into a single component, step, feature or function, or may be embodied in several components, steps or functions. Additional elements, components, steps and / or functions may also be added without departing from the novel features disclosed herein. Figure 1-20The apparatus, devices and / or components shown in the can be configured to perform one or more of the methods, features or steps described herein. The novel algorithms described herein can also be effectively implemented in software and / or embedded in hardware.

[0139] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the disclosed methods is an illustration of an exemplary process. Based on design preferences, it should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the methods can be rearranged. The accompanying method claims present elements of the various steps in a sample order, and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented unless specifically stated therein.

[0140] The previous description is provided to enable a person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the various aspects shown herein, but to conform to the full scope consistent with the language of the claims, wherein, unless otherwise specified, reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one", but to mean "one or more". Unless otherwise specifically stated, the term "some" refers to one or more. A phrase that refers to "at least one" in a list of items refers to any combination of these items, including a single member. As an example, "at least one of the following: a, b, or c" is intended to cover: a; b; c; a and b; a and c; b and c; and a, b, and c. All structural and functional equivalents of elements throughout the various aspects described in this disclosure that are known or will be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be contributed to the public, whether or not such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication at a device, comprising: establishing the first connection with a network and concurrently establishing the second connection with the network using a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT; configuring a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas; as well as Modifying the communication of the second connection or the plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate an interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the plurality of antennas, wherein modifying the communication of the second connection comprises: In a time interval overlapping with the plurality of SRS transmissions of the first connection, uplink transmission of the second connection is blanked.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The communication of the second connection includes receiving at least one of a primary synchronization signal PSS, a secondary synchronization signal SSS, a cell-specific reference signal CRS, or a physical broadcast channel PBCH.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The modifying the communication of the second connection comprises: The communications of the second connection are rescheduled to occur outside of a time interval associated with the plurality of SRS transmissions.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: The plurality of SRS transmissions are transmitted in sequence while switching transmit antennas based on the switching order of the plurality of antennas.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: Determining that the switching of the transmit antenna disrupts an ability of the device to use at least one of the plurality of antennas for the communications of the second connection.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein: The sending the plurality of SRS transmissions comprises: disconnecting a first antenna of the plurality of antennas from a radio frequency (RF) chain of the second RAT during a time interval corresponding to communications of the first connection; and The first antenna is connected to an RF chain of the first RAT during the time interval.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The modifying the plurality of SRS transmissions comprises: The plurality of SRS transmissions are omitted in a predetermined time interval to avoid interrupting the communication of the second connection in the predetermined time interval.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The communicating of the second connection comprises receiving a Positioning Reference Signal (PRS) from the network.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The communicating of the second connection includes a handover operation of the second connection.

10. The method according to claim 1, in, The first connection comprises a Long Term Evolution (LTE) connection between the device and the network, and the second connection comprises a New Radio (NR) connection between the device and the network, and The LTE connection and the NR connection are configured to provide an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network New Radio Dual Connectivity EN-DC between the device and the network.

11. A wireless communication device, comprising: A communication interface configured to communicate wirelessly with a network, the communication interface comprising a plurality of antennas; Memory; as well as a processor operably coupled to the communication interface and the memory, Wherein, the processor and the memory are configured as follows: establishing the first connection with the network and concurrently establishing the second connection with the network using a plurality of antennas shared by the first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and the second connection using a second RAT; configuring a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas; and modifying the communication of the second connection or the plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate an interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the plurality of antennas, wherein the processor and the memory are configured to modify the communication of the second connection by: In a time interval overlapping with the plurality of SRS transmissions of the first connection, uplink transmission of the second connection is blanked.

12. The wireless communication device according to claim 11, wherein: The communication of the second connection includes receiving at least one of a primary synchronization signal PSS, a secondary synchronization signal SSS, a cell-specific reference signal CRS, or a physical broadcast channel PBCH.

13. The wireless communication device according to claim 11, wherein: The processor and the memory are configured to modify the communication of the second connection by: The communications of the second connection are rescheduled to occur outside of a time interval associated with the plurality of SRS transmissions.

14. The wireless communication device according to claim 11, wherein: The processor and the memory are further configured to: The plurality of SRS transmissions are transmitted in sequence while switching transmit antennas based on the switching order of the plurality of antennas.

15. The wireless communication device according to claim 14, wherein: The processor and the memory are further configured to: Determining that the switching of the transmit antenna disrupts an ability of the wireless communication device to use at least one of the plurality of antennas for the communications of the second connection.

16. The wireless communication device according to claim 14, wherein: The processor and the memory are further configured to send the plurality of SRS transmissions by: disconnecting a first antenna of the plurality of antennas from a radio frequency (RF) chain of the second RAT during a time interval corresponding to communications of the first connection; as well as The first antenna is connected to an RF chain of the first RAT during the time interval.

17. The wireless communication device according to claim 11, wherein: The processor and the memory are further configured to modify the plurality of SRS transmissions by: The plurality of SRS transmissions are omitted in a predetermined time interval to avoid interrupting the communication of the second connection in the predetermined time interval.

18. The wireless communication device according to claim 17, wherein: The communicating of the second connection comprises receiving a Positioning Reference Signal (PRS) from the network.

19. The wireless communication device according to claim 17, wherein: The communicating of the second connection includes a handover operation of the second connection.

20. The wireless communication device according to claim 11, in, The first connection comprises a Long Term Evolution (LTE) connection between the wireless communication device and the network, and the second connection comprises a New Radio (NR) connection between the wireless communication device and the network, and The LTE connection and the NR connection are configured to provide an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network New Radio Dual Connectivity EN-DC between the wireless communication device and the network.

21. A user equipment UE for wireless communication, comprising: means for establishing said first connection with a network using a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology, RAT, and a second connection using a second RAT and simultaneously establishing said second connection with said network; means for configuring a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas; as well as means for modifying the communication of the second connection or the plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate an interruption of the communication of the second connection due to the switching order of the plurality of antennas, wherein modifying the communication of the second connection comprises: In a time interval overlapping with the plurality of SRS transmissions of the first connection, uplink transmission of the second connection is blanked.

22. A computer-readable storage medium storing code executable by a wireless communication device, the code comprising instructions for: establishing the first connection with a network and concurrently establishing the second connection with the network using a plurality of antennas shared by a first connection using a first radio access technology (RAT) and a second connection using a second RAT; configuring a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions of the first connection based on a switching order of the plurality of antennas; as well as Modifying the communication of the second connection or the plurality of SRS transmissions to mitigate an interruption of the communication of the second connection caused by the switching order of the plurality of antennas, wherein modifying the communication of the second connection comprises: In a time interval overlapping with the plurality of SRS transmissions of the first connection, uplink transmission of the second connection is blanked.

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