Measurement identity coordination between primary and secondary nodes

Abstract

A method performed by a secondary node is provided. The method comprises coordinating (801) a number of measurement identifiers exchanged with a primary node. The coordination comprises at least one of the following: when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers exceeding a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, signaling (803) to the primary node a request for a new value for a maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure; and after receiving the new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node, and wherein the secondary node previously configured the measurement identifiers based on the previous value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, releasing (805) a number of the measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to communications, and more particularly to communications methods and related devices and nodes that support wireless communications. Background Art

[0002] In 3GPP, dual connectivity (DC) solutions have been specified for both long term evolution (LTE) and between LTE and new radio (NR). In DC, two nodes are involved, a master node (MN or MeNB) and a secondary node (SN or SeNB). Multi-connectivity (MC) refers to the case when more than two nodes are involved. In addition, it has been proposed in 3GPP to use DC in ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) situations in order to enhance robustness and avoid connection interruptions.

[0003] 3GPP dual connectivity will now be discussed.

[0004] like Figure 1 As depicted in , there are different ways to deploy 5G networks, with or without interworking with LTE (also known as E-UTRA) and Evolved Packet Core (EPC). In principle, NR and LTE can be deployed without any interworking (represented by NR Standalone (SA) operation), i.e., the gNodeB (gNB) in NR can be connected to the fifth generation (5G) core network (5GC) and the eNodeB (eNB) can be connected to the EPC, with no interconnection between the two ( Figure 1 On the other hand, the first supported version of NR (which may be referred to as EN-DC (E-UTRAN-NR Dual Connectivity) consists of Figure 1 Option 3 in is shown. In such a deployment, dual connectivity between NR and LTE is applied, with LTE as the primary node and NR as the secondary node. The RAN node (gNB) supporting NR may not have a control plane connection to the core network (EPC), but the RAN node relies on LTE as the primary node (MeNB). This may be referred to as "non-standalone NR". Note that in this case, the functionality of the NR cells is limited and can be used for connected mode user equipment (UE) as a booster and / or diversity branch, but RRC_IDLE UEs cannot reside on these NR cells.

[0005] With the introduction of 5GC, other options may also be available. As mentioned above, Figure 1 Option 2 supports standalone NR deployments, where the gNB is connected to the 5GC. Similarly, LTE can also use Figure 1Option 5 in (also called eLTE, E-UTRA / 5GC or LTE / 5GC, and the node can be called ng-eNB) is connected to 5GC. In these cases, both NR and LTE are considered part of NG-RAN (and both ng-eNB and gNB can be called NG-RAN nodes). Note that Figure 1 Option 4 and Option 7 are other variants of dual connectivity between LTE and NR, which will be standardized as part of NG-RAN connected to 5GC, represented by MR-DC (Multi-Radio Dual Connectivity). MR-DC includes:

[0006] EN-DC( Figure 1 Option 3): LTE is the primary node and NR is the secondary node (using EPCCN);

[0007] NE-DC( Figure 1 Option 4): NR is the primary node and LTE is the secondary node (using 5GCN);

[0008] NGEN-DC( Figure 1 Option 7): LTE is the primary node and NR is the secondary node (using 5GCN); and

[0009] NR-DC( Figure 1 A variant of Option 2 in : Dual connectivity where both the primary and secondary nodes are NR (using 5GCN).

[0010] Since the migration of these options may vary between operators, it is possible to have deployments with multiple options in parallel in the same network, e.g. Figure 1 In the same network, there may be NR base stations supporting options 2 and 4. Figure 1 eNB base stations of options 3, 5 and 7 in . In combination with the dual connectivity solution between LTE and NR, CA (carrier aggregation) in each cell group (e.g., master cell group (MCG) and secondary cell group (SCG)) and dual connectivity (e.g., NR-NRDC) between nodes on the same radio access technology (RAT) can also be supported. For LTE cells, the result of these different deployments is the coexistence of LTE cells associated with eNBs connected to EPC, 5GC, or both EPC / 5GC.

[0011] As described above, DC is standardized for LTE and E-UTRA-DC (EN-DC).

[0012] LTEDC and EN-DC are designed differently when it comes to which nodes control what. The two options include:

[0013] 1. Centralized solutions (e.g., LTE-DC), and

[0014] 2. Decentralized solutions (e.g., EN-DC).

[0015] Figure 2 Schematic control plane architectures for LTEDC and EN-DC are shown. The main difference here is that in EN-DC, the SN has a separate radio resource control (RRC) entity (NRRRC). This means that the SN can also control the UE; sometimes in situations where the MN is not known but the SN may need to coordinate with the MN. In LTE-DC, the RRC decisions come from the MN (MN to UE). Note, however, that the SN still decides on the configuration of the SN, as only the SN itself knows what kind of resources, capabilities, etc. the SN has.

[0016] For EN-DC, some changes compared to LTEDC include:

[0017] Introducing split bearers from SN (called SCG split bearers);

[0018] Introducing split bearer for RRC; and

[0019] • Introducing direct RRC from SN (also called SCGSRB).

[0020] Figure 3 and Figure 4 The user plane (UP) and control plane (CP) architecture of EN-DC are shown. Figure 3 , Figure 3 The network side protocol termination options for MCG, SCG, and split bearers in MR-DC (EN-DC) with EPC are shown. Figure 4 , Figure 4 The network architecture of the control plane in EN-DC is shown.

[0021] SN is sometimes referred to as SgNB (where gNB is an NR base station); and in the case where LTE is the primary node and NR is the secondary node, MN is sometimes referred to as MeNB. In another case where NR is the primary node and LTE is the secondary node, the corresponding terms include MgNB and SeNB.

[0022] Splitting the RRC messages can be used to create diversity, and the sender can decide to select one of the links for scheduling the RRC message, or it can duplicate the message on both links. In the downlink, path switching between the MCG or SCG branches or duplication on both is left to the network implementation. On the other hand, for the UL, the network configures the UE to use the MCG, SCG, or both branches. The terms "branch", "path", and "RLC bearer" are used interchangeably in this document. Summary of the invention

[0023] According to some embodiments, a method performed by a secondary node is provided. The method comprises coordinating a number of measurement identifiers exchanged with a primary node. The coordination comprises at least one of: signaling to the primary node a request for a new value of a maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node; and upon receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node, and wherein the secondary node previously configured the measurement identifiers based on the previous value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, releasing a number of the measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

[0024] In some embodiments, the method may further include receiving a confirmation of the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the master node. The method may further include, in response to the confirmation, changing the secondary cell group based on applying the new value to the secondary cell group configuration to meet the capabilities of the communication device.

[0025] In some embodiments, the secondary node may already have the previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, and the method may further include receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node. The method may further include, in response to the receiving, signaling a response to the primary node rejecting the new value.

[0026] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node. The method may further comprise, in response to the receiving, signaling to the primary node a response with the identifier of the measurement identifier not allocated by the secondary node.

[0027] In some embodiments, the method may further include receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the master node. The method may further include, in response to the receiving, signaling a response with the requested number of measurement identifiers to the master node. The method may further include releasing a plurality of configured measurement identifiers to satisfy the new value from the master node.

[0028] In some embodiments, the method may further include triggering a secondary node modification procedure after signaling the request.

[0029] In some embodiments, the method may further include, after signaling the request, triggering a dual connectivity procedure involving the change of the secondary cell group configuration.

[0030] According to other embodiments, a method performed by a secondary node is provided. The method includes coordinating the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the secondary node. The coordination includes receiving a request from the secondary node for a new value of a maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers that exceed a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node. The method may also include, in response to the request, performing at least one of the following: ignoring the request if no measurement identifiers are available; and signaling a response to the secondary node including the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, and releasing a number of the measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

[0031] In some embodiments, the method may further include signaling to the secondary node a confirmation of the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers. The method may further include, after signaling the confirmation, changing the primary cell group based on applying the new value to the configuration of the primary cell group to meet the capabilities of the communication device.

[0032] In some embodiments, the secondary node may already have the previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, and the method may further include signaling the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers to the secondary node. The method may further include receiving a response from the secondary node rejecting the new value.

[0033] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise signalling the new value of the maximum number of measurement identities to the secondary node.The method may further comprise receiving a response from the secondary node with an identity of the measurement identity not allocated by the secondary node.

[0034] In some embodiments, the method may further include signaling the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers to the secondary node. The method may further include receiving a response with the requested number of measurement identifiers from the secondary node. The method may further include releasing a plurality of configured measurement identifiers to satisfy the new value.

[0035] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise triggering a secondary node modification procedure after said signalling to said secondary node a new value of said maximum number of measurement identities.

[0036] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise triggering a dual connectivity procedure involving the change of secondary cell group configuration after signalling a new value of the maximum number of measurement identities to the secondary node.

[0037] Corresponding embodiments of the inventive concept of a secondary node, a primary node, a computer product, and a computer program are also provided.

[0038] In some methods, the maximum number of measurement identifiers supported by the user equipment (UE) may not be efficiently shared between the master node (MN) and the secondary node (SN). Under certain circumstances, such methods may result in performance degradation or erroneous network behavior. In addition, since the coordination between the MN and the SN may not be optimal, such methods may not result in not exceeding the UE capabilities. Therefore, RRC reestablishment and connectivity loss may occur for several seconds.

[0039] Potential advantages provided by various embodiments of the present disclosure may include that the number (e.g., maximum number) of measurement identifiers supported by the UE may be efficiently shared between the MN and the SN. As a result, performance degradation or incorrect network behavior under certain circumstances may be avoided. In addition, coordination between the MN and the SN may become optimal or improved. Therefore, the UE capabilities may not be exceeded, and thus the RRC reestablishment process in which connectivity is lost for several seconds may be avoided. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate certain non-limiting embodiments of the inventive concept. In the drawings:

[0041] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating LTE and NR interworking options;

[0042] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a control plane architecture for dual connectivity in LTE DC and EN-DC;

[0043] Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of a primary cell group, a secondary cell group, and a network side termination option for a split bearer in MR-DC (EN-DC) with EPC;

[0044] Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a network architecture of a control plane in an EN-DC;

[0045] Figure 5 is a block diagram illustrating a communication device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0046] Figure 6 is a block diagram illustrating a secondary node according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0047] Figure 7 is a block diagram illustrating a master node according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0048] Figure 8A-B is a flow chart illustrating an example of the operation of a secondary node according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0049] Figure 9A-9B is a flowchart illustrating an example of the operation of a master node according to some embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0050] Fig.10 is a block diagram of a wireless network according to some embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0051] Now, the inventive concept will be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which examples of embodiments of the inventive concept are shown. However, the inventive concept can be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided so that the disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the inventive concept to those skilled in the art. It should also be noted that these embodiments are not mutually exclusive. Components from one embodiment may be assumed to be present in / used in another embodiment by default.

[0052] The following description presents various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter. These embodiments are presented as teaching examples and should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the disclosed subject matter. For example, certain details of the described embodiments may be modified, omitted, or expanded without departing from the scope of the described subject matter.

[0053] The User Equipment (UE) requirements for the capability of measuring reporting criteria (in SA and NSA) will now be discussed.

[0054] As used herein, the term UE refers to a device capable of, configured to, arranged to, and / or operable to wirelessly communicate with a network node and / or other wireless device. Unless otherwise specified, the term UE may be used interchangeably with user equipment (UE) and / or communication device in this article. Wireless communication may involve the use of electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information through the air to transmit and / or receive wireless signals. In some embodiments, UE may be configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For example, UE may be designed to transmit information to the network according to a predetermined schedule when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to a request from a radio communication network. Examples of UE include, but are not limited to, smart phones, mobile phones, cellular phones, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, desktop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless cameras, game consoles or devices, music storage devices, playback devices, wearable terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, tablet computers, laptop computers, laptop embedded devices (LEEs), laptop mounted devices (LMEs), smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPEs), vehicle mounted wireless terminal devices, etc. The UE may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example, by implementing the 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, and in this case may be referred to as a D2D communication device. As another specific example, in an Internet of Things (IoT) scenario, a UE may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurement and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurement to another UE and / or a network node. In this case, the UE may be a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, which may be referred to as a machine type communication (MTC) device in the 3GPP context. As a specific example, the UE may be a UE that implements the 3GPP narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) standard. Specific examples of such machines or devices are sensors, metering devices such as power meters, industrial machinery, or household or personal appliances (e.g., refrigerators, televisions, etc.), personal wearable devices (e.g., watches, fitness trackers, etc.). In other scenarios, UE may represent a vehicle or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and / or reporting its operating status or other functions associated with its operation. The UE described above may represent an endpoint of a wireless connection, in which case the device may be referred to as a wireless terminal. In addition, the UE described above may be mobile, in which case the device may also be referred to as a mobile device or a mobile terminal.

[0055] As used herein, a node (e.g., a secondary node and / or a primary node) refers to a device that is capable of, configured to, arranged to, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a user equipment and / or with other network nodes or devices in a radio communication network to enable and / or provide wireless access to the user equipment and / or perform other functions (e.g., management) in the radio communication network. Examples of nodes include, but are not limited to, base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs), gNodeBs (including, for example, CU107 and DU105 of gNodeBs (gNBs)), etc.). Base stations can be classified based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, in other words, their transmission power levels), and then may also be referred to as femto base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. A base station may be a relay node or a relay donor node that controls a relay. A node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station, such as a centralized digital unit and / or a remote radio unit (RRU), sometimes referred to as a remote radio head (RRH). This A remote radio unit may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Portions of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as a node in a distributed antenna system (DAS). Further examples of nodes include multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment, such as an MSRBS, a network controller (such as a radio network controller (RNC) or a base station controller (BSC)), a base transceiver station (BTS), a transmission point, a transmission node, a multi-cell / multicast coordination entity (MCE), a core network node (e.g., MSC, MME), an O&M node, an OSS node, a SON node, a positioning node (e.g., E-SMLC), and / or an MDT. As another example, a node may be a virtual network node.

[0056] In the 3GPP RAN2#109e meeting, it was agreed to introduce new signaling in the inter-node RRC message to allow the MN and SN to coordinate on the maximum number of measurement identifiers so as not to exceed the UE's capabilities. This new signaling is used in all MR-DC options.

[0057] According to the 3GPP TS 38.133 v16.2.0 specification, the UE is required to support the maximum number of reporting criteria defined in the following sections of 3GPP TS 38.133 v16.2.0, as follows:

[0058] 9.1.4 Capabilities to support event triggering and reporting criteria

[0059] 9.1.4.1 Introduction

[0060] This clause contains requirements for UE capabilities to support event triggering and reporting criteria. The UE shall meet all other performance requirements defined in clauses 9 and 10, provided that the measurement configuration does not exceed the requirements specified in clause 9.1.4.2.

[0061] The UE may be requested to perform measurements under different measurement identifiers defined in TS 38.331 [2]. Each measurement identifier corresponds to event-based reporting, periodic reporting, or no reporting. In the case of event-based reporting, each measurement identifier is associated with an event triggering criterion. In the case of periodic reporting, the measurement identifier is associated with a periodic reporting criterion. In the case of no reporting, the measurement identifier is associated with a no reporting criterion.

[0062] The purpose of this clause is to place some limits on the number of different event triggers, periodicities, and non-reporting criteria that a UE may be requested to track in parallel.

[0063] 9.1.4.2 Requirements

[0064] In this clause, a reporting criterion corresponds to one event (in the case of event-based reporting), or one periodic reporting criterion (in the case of periodic reporting), or one no-reporting criterion (in the case of no-reporting). For event-based reporting, each instance of an event with the same or different event identifier in Table 9.1.4.2-1 is considered a separate reporting criterion.

[0065] According to Table 9.1.4.2-1, the UE shall be able to support up to E-UTRAPCell configured by PSCell and E-UTRAPCell per category in parallel. cat For measurement categories belonging to intra-frequency, inter-frequency, and inter-RAT measurements (i.e. not counting other categories that the UE should always support in parallel), the UE does not need to support more than the following total number of reporting criteria:

[0066] -For UE configured with EN-DC: E cat，EN-DC，NR +E cat，EN-DC，E-UTRA , where E cat，EN-DC，NR =10+9×n is the total number of NR reporting criteria applicable to UEs configured with EN-DC according to Table 9.1.4.2-1, and n is the number of configured NR serving frequencies, including PSCell and SCell carrier frequencies,

[0067] E cat，EN-DC，E-UTRA is the total number of E-UTRA reporting criteria configured by the E-UTRA PCell, excluding PSCell and SCell carrier frequencies, as specified in TS 36.133

[15] for UEs configured with EN-DC.

[0068] -For UEs configured with NE-DC: E cat，NE-DC，NR +E cat，NE-DC，E-UTRA , where E cat，NE-DC，NR =10+9×n is the total number of NR reporting criteria according to Table 9.1.4.2-1, and n is the number of configured NR serving frequencies, including PCell and SCell carrier frequencies,

[0069] E cat，NE-DC，E-UTRA =E cat，NE-DC，E-UTRA，inter-RAT +E cat，NE-DC，E-UTRA，intra-RAT , where E cat，NE-DC，E-UTRA，inter-RAT is the total number of inter-RAT E-UTRA reporting criteria configured by PCell according to Table 9.1.4.2-1, excluding E-UTRA PSCell and E-UTRA SCell carrier frequencies,

[0070] E cat，NE-DC，E-UTRA，intra-RAT is the total number of E-UTRA reporting criteria, including E-UTRA PSCell and E-UTRA SCell carrier frequencies, as specified in TS 36.133

[15] for UEs configured with NE-DC.

[0071] -For UEs configured with SA mode of operation: E cat，SA，NR +E cat，SA，E-UTRA , where E cat，SA，NR =10+9×n is the total number of NR reporting criteria according to Table 9.1.4.2-1, and n is the number of configured NR serving frequencies, including PCell and SCell carrier frequencies,

[0072] E cat，SA，E-UTRA Is the total number of inter-RAT E-UTRA reporting criteria according to Table 9.1.4.2-1.

[0073] -For UEs configured with NR-DC: E cat，NR-DC，NR +E cat，NR-DC，E-UTRA , where E cat，NR-DC，NR =10+9×n is the total number of NR reporting criteria according to Table 9.1.4.2-1, and n is the number of configured NR serving frequencies, including PCell, PSCell and SCell carrier frequencies,

[0074] E cat，NR-DC，E-UTRA Is the total number of inter-RAT E-UTRA reporting criteria according to Table 9.1.4.2-1.

[0075] Table 9.1.4.2-1: Requirements for reporting criteria by measurement category

[0076]

[0077] The section of 3GPP TS 36.133 v16.2.0 stipulates as follows:

[0078] 8.2 Capabilities to support event triggering and reporting criteria

[0079] 8.2.1 Introduction

[0080] This clause contains requirements for UE capabilities to support event triggering and reporting criteria. The UE shall meet the performance requirements defined in clause 9, provided that the measurement configuration does not exceed the requirements specified in clause 8.2.2.

[0081] The UE may be requested to perform measurements under different measurement identifiers defined in TS 36.331 [2]. Each measurement identifier corresponds to event-based reporting, periodic reporting, logged measurement reporting [2], or no reporting. In the case of event-based reporting, each measurement identifier is associated with an event. In the case of periodic reporting, the measurement identifier is associated with a periodic reporting criterion. In the case of logged measurement reporting, the measurement identifier is associated with a logged measurement reporting criterion. In the case of no reporting, the measurement identifier is associated with a no reporting criterion.

[0082] The purpose of this clause is to place some limits on the number of different events, periodicities, logged measurements, and non-reporting criteria that a UE may be requested to track in parallel.

[0083] 8.2.2 Requirements

[0084] In this clause, a reporting criterion corresponds to an event (in the case of event-based reporting), or a periodic reporting criterion (in the case of periodic reporting), or a recorded measurement reporting criterion (in the case of recorded measurement reporting), or a no reporting criterion (in the case of no reporting). For event-based reporting, each instance of an event with the same or different event identifier in Table 8.2.2-1 is considered a separate reporting criterion.

[0085] According to Table 8.2.2-1, the UE shall be able to support up to E per class in parallel. cat The UE does not need to support more than the following total number of reporting criteria for measurement categories belonging to measurements of the following items (i.e. not counting other categories that the UE should always support in parallel):

[0086] - If the UE is not configured with any SCell or PSCell carrier frequency, a total of 26 reporting criteria,

[0087] - If the UE is configured with one SCell carrier frequency, a total of 35 reporting criteria,

[0088] - If the UE is configured with two SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 44 reporting criteria,

[0089] - If the UE is configured with three SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 53 reporting criteria,

[0090] - If the UE is configured with four SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 62 reporting criteria,

[0091] - If the UE is configured with five SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 71 reporting criteria,

[0092] - If the UE is configured with six SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 80 reporting criteria,

[0093] - if the UE is configured with one PSCell carrier frequency, a total of 35 reporting criteria, and

[0094] - If the UE is configured with one PSCell carrier frequency and one SCell carrier frequency, a total of 44 reporting criteria.

[0095] Editor's note: If all UEs will have to support RS-SINR measurements, the above general reporting criteria will be updated; the general reporting criteria will be verified when deciding UE capabilities related to frame structure 3.

[0096] According to Table 8.2.2-1, UEs supporting an increased number of carriers to monitor more than 3 carriers shall be able to support up to 20 reporting criteria for the inter-frequency measurement category. In addition, according to Table 8.2.2-1, such UEs shall be able to support up to E per category in parallel. cat For measurement categories belonging to measurements on: E-UTRA intra-frequency cell, E-UTRA inter-frequency cell, and inter-RAT per supported RAT, the UE does not need to support more than the following total number of reporting criteria:

[0097] - If the UE is not configured with any SCell carrier frequency, a total of 39 reporting criteria,

[0098] - If the UE is configured with one SCell carrier frequency, a total of 48 reporting criteria,

[0099] - If the UE is configured with two SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 57 reporting criteria,

[0100] - If the UE is configured with one PSCell carrier frequency, a total of 48 reporting criteria,

[0101] - If the UE is configured with one PSCell carrier frequency and one SCell carrier frequency, a total of 57 reporting criteria,

[0102] - if the UE is configured with three SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 66 reporting criteria, and

[0103] - If the UE is configured with four SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 75 reporting criteria.

[0104] - If the UE is configured with five SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 84 reporting criteria

[0105] - If the UE is configured with six SCell carrier frequencies, a total of 93 reporting criteria

[0106] Editor's note: If all UEs will have to support RS-SINR measurements, the above general reporting criteria will be updated; the general reporting criteria will be verified when deciding UE capabilities related to frame structure 3.

[0107] According to Table 8.2.2-1, a UE capable of supporting EN-DC operation with NRPS Cell and a total of one or more NR carrier frequencies shall be able to support up to E per category in parallel. cat For measurement categories belonging to measurements of: E-UTRA intra-frequency cells, E-UTRA inter-frequency cells, inter-RAT per supported RAT, and NR cells on serving and non-serving carrier frequencies (i.e. not counting other categories that the UE shall always support in parallel), the UE shall not support more than the following number of reporting criteria (excluding the reporting criteria specified in TS 38.133

[50] applicable to UEs configured with EN-DC operation):

[0108] - If the UE is not configured with any SCell or PSCell carrier frequency or NR SCell or NRPSCell, then

[36] reporting criteria,

[0109] - If the UE is not configured with any SCell or NR SCell, but is configured with an NRPSCell carrier frequency, then

[36] reporting criteria.

[0110] According to Table 8.2.2-1, a UE capable of supporting and configured with NE-DC operation with PSCell and NR PCell and a total of one or more NR carrier frequencies shall be able to support up to E per category in parallel. catFor measurement categories belonging to measurements of: E-UTRA intra-frequency cells and E-UTRA inter-frequency cells, Inter-RAT per supported RAT, and NR cells on serving and non-serving carrier frequencies (i.e. not counting other categories that the UE shall always support in parallel), the UE shall not support more than the following number of reporting criteria (excluding the reporting criteria specified in TS 38.133

[50] applicable to UEs configured with NE-DC operation):

[0111] - If the UE is not configured with any SCell or NR SCell, [TBD] reporting criteria.

[0112] Editor's note: The above list will be updated for CA combinations agreed with NR PSCell.

[0113] Table 8.2.2-1: Requirements for reporting criteria by measurement category

[0114]

[0115]

[0116] The MN-SN coordination for measurement reporting criteria in MR-DC will now be discussed.

[0117] According to 3GPP TS 38.133 v16.2.0 and 3GPP TS 36.133 v16.2.0, coordination between MN and SN is required to ensure that the UE capability with respect to the maximum number of supported measurement identities is not exceeded. This is ensured by signaling in 3GPP TS 38.331 v16.2.0 within inter-node signaling in clause 11.2.2:

[0118] -CG-Config according to some embodiments of the present disclosure:

[0119] This message is used to transfer the SCG radio configuration as generated by the SgNB or SeNB. The CU can also use it to request the DU to perform certain actions, for example, requesting the DU to perform a new lower layer configuration.

[0120] Direction: secondary gNB or eNB to primary gNB or eNB, alternatively CU to DU.

[0121] CG-Config Message

[0122]

[0123]

[0124]

[0125]

[0126]

[0127]

[0128]

[0129] -CG-ConfigInfo according to some embodiments of the present disclosure:

[0130] The master eNB or gNB uses this message to request the SgNB or SeNB to perform certain actions, such as establishing, modifying or releasing an SCG. The message may include additional information, such as helping the SgNB or SeNB to set up the SCG configuration. It can also be used by the CU to request the DU to perform certain actions, such as establishing or modifying an MCG or SCG.

[0131] Direction: primary eNB or gNB to secondary gNB or eNB, alternatively CU to DU.

[0132] CG-Config Message

[0133]

[0134]

[0135]

[0136]

[0137]

[0138]

[0139]

[0140]

[0141]

[0142]

[0143]

[0144]

[0145] NOTE 3: The following table indicates whether RAT capabilities are included in ue-CapabilityInfo by source RAT.

[0146] Source RAT NR Capabilities E-UTRA Capabilities MR-DC Capabilities E-UTRA include Not included include

[0147] According to the current signaling in clause 11.2.2 of 3GPP TS 38.331 v16.2.0, the MN may restrict the SN to use a maximum number of measurement identifiers. However, although the MN may use such signaling in order to convey the maximum number of allowed measurement identifiers that the SCG is allowed to configure for inter-frequency and intra-frequency measurements, this is inflexible as it places a hard cap on the measurement identifiers to be configured by the SN (and indirectly by the MN, as the MN can then configure only the remaining measurement identifiers available).

[0148] Based on this, if the MN reaches its limit of measurement identifiers, it knows how many measurement identifiers the SN is allowed to configure (e.g., because the MN can use a new field to signal this limit). If the MN wants to change this limit for the SN, the MN can configure additional measurement identifiers, but the problem may be that the MN does not know the current number of measurement identifiers configured by the SN. In this case, the MN may refrain from adding more measurements, even though the UE's limit may not be reached (e.g., in the case where the SN has configured fewer measurement identifiers than the maximum allowed).

[0149] Similar problems may also occur on the SN side, because the SN does not necessarily know how many measurement identifiers the MN has configured. Therefore, when the SN reaches the maximum allowed, the SN may suppress adding some new measurement identifiers, even though the MN may have only configured a few measurement identifiers, and it is still possible that it will add more measurement identifiers without reaching the UE's capabilities.

[0150] Therefore, in the above method, the maximum number of measurement identifiers supported by the UE may not be efficiently shared between the MN and the SN. Therefore, under certain circumstances, such methods may lead to performance degradation or erroneous network behavior. In addition, since the coordination between the MN and the SN may not be optimal, such methods may not guarantee that the UE capabilities are not exceeded. Therefore, such methods may also lead to RRC reestablishment and connectivity loss for several seconds.

[0151] Note that the need to configure measurements may be different at the MN and SN depending on the coverage and load aspects in both nodes (and the cells of both nodes). In some cases, for example, when the UE is in a poor coverage area in the MN but in a good coverage area in the SN, the SN may not need to configure a large number of measurements, while the MN may need to configure a large number of measurements.

[0152] Figure 5 1 is a block diagram showing elements of a communication device 500 (also referred to as a UE) configured to support measurement identification according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. (For example, a UE 500 may be provided, as described below with respect to Fig.10As shown in the figure, UE 500 may include antenna 507 (eg, corresponding to Fig.10 antenna 4111), and transceiver circuit 501 (also referred to as a transceiver, for example, corresponding to Fig.10 The transceiver circuit 501 includes a transmitter and a receiver configured to provide communication with a base station (or base stations) of a radio access network (eg, corresponding to Fig.10 UE 500 may also include a processing circuit 503 (also referred to as a processor, e.g., corresponding to a processor) coupled to the transceiver circuit. Fig.10 Processing circuit 4120), and memory circuit 505 (also referred to as memory, e.g., corresponding to Fig.10 The memory circuit 505 may include a computer-readable program code that, when executed by the processing circuit 503, causes the processing circuit to perform operations according to the embodiments disclosed herein. According to other embodiments, the processing circuit 503 may be defined to include a memory so that a separate memory circuit is not required. The UE 500 may also include an interface (such as a user interface) coupled to the processing circuit 503, and / or the UE 500 may be incorporated in a vehicle.

[0153] As discussed herein, the operations of UE500 may be performed by processing circuitry 503 and / or transceiver circuitry 501. For example, processing circuitry 503 may control transceiver circuitry 501 to transmit communications to a radio access network node (also referred to as a base station) over a radio interface via transceiver circuitry 501, and / or to receive communications from a RAN node over a radio interface via transceiver circuitry 501. In addition, modules may be stored in memory circuitry 505, and these modules may provide instructions so that when processing circuitry 503 executes the instructions of the modules, processing circuitry 503 performs corresponding operations (e.g., operations discussed below with respect to example embodiments related to wireless devices). In some embodiments, UE500 may include a display for displaying images decoded from a received bitstream. For example, UE500 may include a television.

[0154] Figure 66 is a block diagram illustrating elements of a secondary node 600 configured to coordinate multiple measurement identifiers exchanged with a primary node according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The secondary node 600 may include a network interface circuit 607 (also referred to as a network interface) configured to communicate with other devices. The secondary node 600 may also include a processing circuit 603 (also referred to as a processor) coupled to a memory circuit 605, and the memory circuit 605 (also referred to as a memory) is coupled to the processing circuit. The memory circuit 605 may include a computer-readable program code that, when executed by the processing circuit 603, causes the processing circuit to perform operations according to the embodiments disclosed herein. According to other embodiments, the processing circuit 603 may be defined to include a memory so that a separate memory circuit is not required.

[0155] As discussed herein, the operations of the secondary node 600 may be performed by the processing circuit 603 and the network interface 607. For example, the processing circuit 603 may control the network interface 607 to receive and / or transmit signals to the primary node. In addition, modules may be stored in the memory circuit 605, and the modules may provide instructions such that when the processing circuit 603 executes the instructions of the modules, the processing circuit 603 performs corresponding operations (e.g., the operations discussed below with respect to example embodiments related to the secondary node).

[0156] Figure 7 is a block diagram illustrating elements of a master node 700 configured to coordinate multiple measurement identifiers exchanged with a secondary node according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The master node 700 may include a network interface circuit 707 (also referred to as a network interface) configured to communicate with other devices. The secondary node 700 may also include a processing circuit 703 (also referred to as a processor) coupled to a memory circuit 705, and the memory circuit 705 (also referred to as a memory) is coupled to the processing circuit. The memory circuit 705 may include a computer-readable program code that, when executed by the processing circuit 703, causes the processing circuit to perform operations according to the embodiments disclosed herein. According to other embodiments, the processing circuit 703 may be defined to include a memory so that a separate memory circuit is not required.

[0157] As discussed herein, the operations of the master node 700 may be performed by the processing circuit 703 and the network interface 707. For example, the processing circuit 703 may control the network interface 707 to receive and / or transmit signals to the slave node. In addition, modules may be stored in the memory circuit 705, and the modules may provide instructions such that when the processing circuit 703 executes the instructions of the modules, the processing circuit 703 performs corresponding operations (e.g., the operations discussed below with respect to the example embodiments related to the master node).

[0158] Various embodiments described herein may allow the SN to request a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the MN, or to signal (e.g., release) unused measurement identifiers. This may help the MN configure additional measurement identifiers if necessary, and not waste unused measurement identifiers.

[0159] Furthermore, in some embodiments, assuming that the SN has received the maximum number of measurement identifiers for the MN, the SN behavior is clarified with the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers. For example, incorrect network behavior may be avoided and the UE capabilities may not be exceeded.

[0160] Potential advantages that may be provided by the various embodiments described herein include that the maximum number of measurement identifiers supported by the UE may be efficiently shared between the MN and the SN. As a result, performance degradation or incorrect network behavior under certain circumstances may be avoided. Furthermore, coordination between the MN and the SN may be optimized or improved. Thus, the UE capabilities may not be exceeded, and thus an RRC reestablishment procedure where connectivity is lost for several seconds may be avoided.

[0161] The various embodiments disclosed herein may be applied to, but not limited to, the MR-DC options discussed herein, centralized unit (CU) split configurations, etc. Although the embodiments discussed herein are explained in the non-limiting context of NR, the present invention is not limited thereto and may be applied to dual connectivity scenarios involving two (or more) different radio access networks (RATs) without any loss of meaning. In addition, the terms "measurement identification" and "measurement reporting criteria" may be used interchangeably herein.

[0162] Various embodiments disclosed herein describe operations performed by the SN to signal to the MN a request for a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers required for the SN to configure more measurement identifiers if a maximum number of measurement identifiers to be used was previously configured.

[0163] In some embodiments, the request sent by the SN is represented by the exact number of measurement identifiers required (eg, requested_ID=needed_ID-configured_ID).

[0164] In some embodiments, the request sent by the SN is expressed by the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the SN wants to configure (eg, requested_ID=needed_ID). In this case, the MN calculates the additional required measurement identifiers by taking into account the measurement identifiers that the MN has signaled to the SN.

[0165] In some embodiments, the request sent by the SN is represented by an indication (eg, 1 bit) to inform the MN that more measurement identifiers than the number of previously configured measurement identifiers are required.

[0166] In some embodiments, if the requested number of measurement identifiers is lower than the number of measurement identifiers that have been configured, the SN sets the indication to "0".

[0167] In some embodiments, if the requested number of measurement identifiers is higher than the number of measurement identifiers already configured, the SN sets the indication to "1".

[0168] In another embodiment, assuming that the SN already has the maximum number of measurement identifiers configured by the MN, when receiving a new maximum number of measurement identifiers from the MN, the SN replies to the MN that the new configuration is rejected.

[0169] In some embodiments, upon receiving a new maximum number of measurement identifiers from the MN, the SN replies to the MN with available / unallocated measurement identifiers (eg, in case the maximum number of measurement identifiers has not been filled by the SN).

[0170] In some embodiments, upon receiving a new maximum number of measurement identifiers from the MN, the SN replies to the MN with the requested number of measurement identifiers. In this case, the SN may release the configured measurement identifiers necessary to meet the needs of the MN.

[0171] In some embodiments, upon sending a request for a new maximum number of measurement identifiers, or after releasing the number of measurement identifiers requested by the MN, the SN applies a new SCG configuration to satisfy the UE capabilities after the MN has acknowledged receipt of the new maximum number of measurement identifiers.

[0172] In some embodiments, each time the SN signals / requests a new maximum number of measurement identifiers to the MN, the SN triggers the SgNB / SeNB modification procedure.

[0173] In some embodiments, each time the SN signals / requests a new maximum number of measurement identities to the MN, the SN triggers a DC procedure involving SCG configuration changes.

[0174] In some embodiments, the SN sends a request or any other field related to the maximum number of measurement identities to the MN via an inter-node RRC message.

[0175] In some embodiments, the SN sends a request or any other field related to the maximum number of measurement identities to the MN via X2 / Xn signaling.

[0176] In some embodiments, once the MN reaches its limit on the maximum number of measurement identifiers, the MN sends an indication to the SN with a new maximum number of measurement identifiers. For example, the indication may indicate that more measurement identifiers are needed or that fewer measurement identifiers are needed.

[0177] In some embodiments, when a request for a new measurement identifier is received from the SN, if no spare measurement identifiers are available (eg, because the MN has already filled all available measurement identifiers), the MN ignores the request.

[0178] In some embodiments, when a request for a new measurement identifier is received from the SN, the MN notifies the SN of alternative measurement identifiers that the SN can use in addition to previously configured measurement identifiers (e.g., this means that the MN will only signal the SN of measurement identifiers that have not yet been used).

[0179] In some embodiments, upon receiving a request for new measurement identifiers from the SN, the MN replies to the SN with the requested number of measurement identifiers. In this case, the MN may release the configured measurement identifiers necessary to satisfy the needs of the SN.

[0180] In some embodiments, upon receiving a request for new measurement identifiers with an indication set to "0" from the SN, the SN replies to the MN with a maximum number of measurement identifiers that is lower relative to the number of measurement identifiers previously configured.

[0181] In some embodiments, upon receiving a request for new measurement identifiers with the indication set to "1" from the SN, the SN replies to the MN with a maximum number of measurement identifiers that is higher relative to the number of measurement identifiers previously configured.

[0182] In some embodiments, when sending a request for a new maximum number of measurement identifiers, or after releasing the number of measurement identifiers requested by the SN, after the SN has acknowledged receipt of the new maximum number of measurement identifiers, the MN applies a new MCG configuration to satisfy the UE capabilities.

[0183] In some embodiments, each time the MN signals / requests a new maximum number of measurement identifiers to the SN, the MN triggers the SgNB / SeNB modification procedure.

[0184] In some embodiments, each time the MN signals / requests a new maximum number of measurement identities to the SN, the MN triggers a DC procedure involving SCG configuration changes.

[0185] In some embodiments, the MN sends a request or any other field related to the maximum number of measurement identities to the SN via an inter-node RRC message.

[0186] In some embodiments, the MN sends a request or any other field related to the maximum number of measurement identities to the SN via X2 / Xn signaling.

[0187] Operational advantages that may be provided by one or more embodiments may include that the number (e.g., the maximum number) of measurement identifiers supported by the UE may be efficiently shared between the MN and the SN. As a result, performance degradation or erroneous network behavior under certain circumstances may be avoided. In addition, since the coordination between the MN and the SN may be optimized or improved, the UE capabilities may not be exceeded, and thus the RRC re-establishment process where connectivity is lost for several seconds may be avoided.

[0188] Reference will now be made to some embodiments according to the present disclosure. Figure 8A-B The flowchart of the auxiliary node 205a, 205b (using Figure 6 For example, a module can be stored in Figure 6 The modules are stored in the memory 605, and these modules can provide instructions, so that when the instructions of the modules are executed by the corresponding auxiliary node processing circuit 603, the processing circuit 603 performs the corresponding operations of the flowchart.

[0189] Initial reference Fig. 8A , in block 801, the processing circuit 603 coordinates the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the primary node. The coordination comprises at least one of: when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers exceeding the previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, signaling (block 803) to the primary node a request for a new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure; and after receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node, and wherein the secondary node previously configured the measurement identifiers based on the previous value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, releasing (block 805) a number of measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

[0190] In some embodiments, the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure includes one or more of the following items: the requested maximum number of allowed measurement identifiers for configuring inter-frequency measurements; and the requested maximum number of allowed measurement identifiers for configuring intra-frequency measurements on each serving frequency.

[0191] In some embodiments, the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers comprises at least one of: an exact number of measurement identifiers; a maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node wants to configure; and an indication of requesting more measurement identifiers than a previous number of configured measurement identifiers. The indication comprises an indicator of at least one of: the requested number of measurement identifiers is lower than a previous number and the requested number of measurement identifiers is higher than a previous number.

[0192] At block 807 , the processing circuit 603 receives confirmation of the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifications from the master node.

[0193] At block 809 , in response to the confirmation, the processing circuit 603 changes the secondary cell group based on applying the new value to the secondary cell group configuration to meet the capability of the communication device.

[0194] In some embodiments, the secondary node already has a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, and at block 811 , the processing circuit 603 receives a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node.

[0195] In response to the receipt, the processing circuit 603 signals a response to the master node rejecting the new value at block 813 .

[0196] Reference now Figure 8B At block 815, the processing circuit 603 receives a new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node. At block 817, in response to the receiving, the processing circuit 603 signals a response to the primary node with an identifier of the measurement identifier not allocated by the secondary node.

[0197] At block 819, the processing circuit 603 receives a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the master node. In response to the reception, at block 821, the processing circuit 603 signals a response with the requested number of measurement identifiers to the master node. At block 823, the processing circuit 603 releases a number of configured measurement identifiers to satisfy the new value from the master node.

[0198] At block 825 , after signaling the request, the processing circuit 603 triggers a secondary node modification procedure.

[0199] At block 827 , after signaling the request, the processing circuit 603 triggers a dual connectivity procedure involving a change in secondary cell group configuration.

[0200] In some embodiments, said signalling to the master node and / or releasing concerning the maximum number of measurement identities is done via an inter-node radio resource control message.

[0201] In some embodiments, said signalling to the master node and / or releasing of the maximum number of measurement identities is done via X2 and / or Xn signalling.

[0202] From Figure 8A-B Various operations of the flowchart of may be optional with respect to some embodiments of the auxiliary node and related methods. For example, with respect to the method of example embodiment 1 (described below), one of the operations of blocks 803 and 805 may be optional, and the operations of blocks 807-827 of FIG. 8 may be optional.

[0203] Reference will now be made to some embodiments according to the present disclosure. Figure 9A-9B The flowchart of the master node 207a, 207b (using Figure 7 For example, a module can be stored in Figure 7 The modules are stored in the memory 705, and these modules can provide instructions so that when the instructions of the modules are executed by the corresponding master node processing circuit 703, the processing circuit 703 performs the corresponding operations of the flowchart.

[0204] Initial reference Fig.9A In block 901, the processing circuit 703 coordinates the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the primary node. The coordination includes at least one of the following: when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers exceeding the previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, receiving a request from the secondary node for a new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure.

[0205] In response to the request, the processing circuit 703 performs at least one of the following: in box 903, if no measurement identifier is available, ignore the request; and in box 905, signal a response to the secondary node including a new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers and release multiple measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

[0206] In some embodiments, the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure includes one or more of the following items: the requested maximum number of allowed measurement identifiers for configuring inter-frequency measurements; and the requested maximum number of allowed measurement identifiers for configuring intra-frequency measurements on each serving frequency.

[0207] In some embodiments, the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers comprises at least one of: an exact number of measurement identifiers; a maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node wants to configure; and an indication of requesting more measurement identifiers than a previous number of configured measurement identifiers. The indication comprises an indicator of at least one of: the requested number of measurement identifiers is lower than a previous number and the requested number of measurement identifiers is higher than a previous number.

[0208] At block 907 , the processing circuit 703 signals confirmation of the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifications to the secondary node.

[0209] At block 909 , after signaling the confirmation, the processing circuit 703 changes the primary cell group based on applying new values ​​to the configuration of the primary cell group to meet the capabilities of the communication device.

[0210] In some embodiments, the secondary node already has a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, and at block 911 the processing circuit 703 signals the secondary node with a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers.

[0211] At block 913, the processing circuit 703 receives a response from the secondary node rejecting the new value.

[0212] Reference now Fig. 9B At block 915, the processing circuit 703 signals the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers to the secondary node. At block 917, the processing circuit 703 receives a response from the secondary node with an identifier of a measurement identifier not allocated by the secondary node.

[0213] At block 919, the processing circuit 703 signals the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers to the secondary node. At block 921, the processing circuit 703 receives a response with the requested number of measurement identifiers from the secondary node. At block 923, the processing circuit 703 releases a number of configured measurement identifiers to meet the new value.

[0214] After signaling the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifications to the secondary node, at block 925 the processing circuit 703 triggers a secondary node modification procedure.

[0215] At block 927 , after signaling the new value of the maximum number of measurement identities to the secondary node, the processing circuit 703 triggers a dual connectivity procedure involving a change of the secondary cell group configuration.

[0216] In some embodiments, said signalling to the secondary node and / or releasing concerning the maximum number of measurement identities is done via an inter-node radio resource control message.

[0217] In some embodiments, said signalling to the secondary node and / or releasing of the maximum number of measurement identities is done via X2 and / or Xn signalling.

[0218] From Figure 9A-9B Various operations of the flowchart of may be optional with respect to some embodiments of the auxiliary node and related methods. For example, with respect to the method of example embodiment 12 (described below), one of the operations of blocks 903 and 905 may be optional, and the operations of blocks 907-927 of FIG. 9 may be optional.

[0219] Additional explanation is provided below.

[0220] Generally, all terms used herein will be interpreted according to their common meaning in the relevant technical field, unless different meanings are explicitly given and / or implied from the context (using different meanings therein).Unless clearly stated otherwise, all references to one (a / an) / the element, equipment, assembly, parts, step, etc. will be openly interpreted as referring to at least one instance of the element, equipment, assembly, parts, step, etc.Unless a step is clearly described as after or before another step and / or when it is implied that a step must be after or before another step, the steps of any method disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the precise order disclosed.In any case where it is appropriate, any feature of any one of the embodiments disclosed herein may be applied to any other embodiment.Equally, any advantage of any one of the embodiments described may be applied to any other embodiment, and vice versa.From the following description, other purposes, features and advantages of the attached embodiments will be clear.

[0221] Some embodiments contemplated herein will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, other embodiments are also included within the scope of the subject matter disclosed herein, and the disclosed subject matter should not be interpreted as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein; on the contrary, these embodiments are provided as examples to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

[0222] Fig.10 A wireless network is illustrated in accordance with some embodiments.

[0223] Although the subject matter described herein may be implemented in any suitable type of system using any suitable components, the subject matter described herein is not limited to wireless networks such as Fig.10 The embodiments disclosed herein are described with reference to the example wireless network illustrated in FIG. Fig.10 The wireless network of FIG. 41 only depicts network 4106, network nodes 4160 and 4160b, and WDs 4110, 4110b, and 4110c (also referred to as mobile terminals). In practice, the wireless network may further include any additional elements suitable for supporting communication between wireless devices or between a wireless device and another communication device (such as a landline, a service provider, or any other network node or terminal device). In the illustrated components, network node 4160 and wireless device (WD) 4110 are depicted with additional details. The wireless network may provide communication and other types of services to one or more wireless devices to facilitate wireless devices to access and / or use services provided by or via the wireless network.

[0224] The wireless network may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular and / or radio network or other similar type of system. In some embodiments, the wireless network may be configured to operate according to a specific standard or other type of predefined rules or procedures. Thus, specific embodiments of the wireless network may implement communication standards such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G or 5G standards; Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) standards such as IEEE 802.11 standards; and / or any other suitable wireless communication standards such as Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave and / or ZigBee standards.

[0225] Network 4106 may include one or more backhaul networks, core networks, IP networks, public switched telephone networks (PSTN), packet data networks, optical networks, wide area networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), wireless local area networks (WLANs), wired networks, wireless networks, metropolitan area networks, and other networks that enable communications between devices.

[0226] The network node 4160 and WD4110 include various components described in more detail below. These components work together to provide network node and / or wireless device functionality, such as providing wireless connection in a wireless network. In different embodiments, the wireless network may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, base stations, controllers, wireless devices, relay stations and / or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and / or signals (whether via wired or wireless connections).

[0227] As used herein, a network node refers to a device that is capable of, configured to, arranged to, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a wireless device and / or with other network nodes or devices in a wireless network to implement and / or provide wireless access to the wireless device and / or perform other functions (e.g., management) in the wireless network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, node Bs, evolved node Bs (eNBs), and NRNodeBs (gNBs)). Base stations can be classified based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, in other words, their transmission power levels) and can then also be referred to as femto base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. A base station may be a relay node or a relay donor node that controls a relay. A network node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station, such as a centralized digital unit and / or a remote radio unit (RRU), which is sometimes referred to as a remote radio head (RRH). Such a remote radio unit may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna-integrated radio device. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS). Yet further examples of network nodes include multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment (such as an MSRBS), a network controller (such as a radio network controller (RNC) or a base station controller (BSC)), a base transceiver station (BTS), a transmission point, a transmission node, a multi-cell / multicast coordination entity (MCE), a core network node (e.g., MSC, MME), an O&M node, an OSS node, a SON node, a positioning node (e.g., E-SMLC), and / or an MDT. As another example, a network node may be a virtual network node, as described in more detail below. However, more generally, a network node may represent any suitable device (or group of devices) that is capable of, configured to, arranged to, and / or operable to enable and / or provide access to a wireless network for a wireless device or to provide a certain service to a wireless device that has accessed a wireless network.

[0228] exist Fig.10 In the embodiment, the network node 4160 includes a processing circuit 4170, a device readable medium 4180, an interface 4190, an auxiliary device 4184, a power supply 4186, a power supply circuit 4187, and an antenna 4162. Fig.10The network node 4160 illustrated in the example wireless network of can represent a device including the illustrated combination of hardware components, but other embodiments can include network nodes with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that the network node includes any suitable combination of hardware and / or software required to perform the tasks, features, functions, and methods disclosed herein. In addition, although the components of the network node 4160 are depicted as a single box nested within multiple boxes or located within a larger box, in reality, the network node may include multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component (for example, the device readable medium 4180 may include multiple separate hard drives and multiple RAM modules).

[0229] Similarly, the network node 4160 may be composed of multiple physically separated components (e.g., NodeB components and RNC components, or BTS components and BSC components, etc.), and the multiple physically separated components may each have their own corresponding components. In certain scenarios where the network node 4160 includes multiple individual components (e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of the individual components may be shared between several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeBs. In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and RNC pair may be considered a single individual network node in some instances. In some embodiments, the network node 4160 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such an embodiment, some components may be repeated (e.g., separate device readable media 4180 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., the same antenna 4162 may be shared by RATs). The network node 4160 may also include multiple sets of various illustrated components for different wireless technologies (such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, or Bluetooth wireless technologies) integrated into the network node 4160. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chips or chipsets and other components within network node 4160 .

[0230] The processing circuit 4170 is configured to perform any determination, calculation, or similar operation (e.g., certain obtaining operations) described herein as being provided by the network node. These operations performed by the processing circuit 4170 may include processing information obtained by the processing circuit 4170 by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or the converted information with information stored in the network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or the converted information, and making a determination as a result of the processing.

[0231] The processing circuitry 4170 may include a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, a central processing unit, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software, and / or encoded logic operable to provide network node 4160 functionality alone or in conjunction with other network node 4160 components (such as device readable medium 4180). For example, the processing circuitry 4170 may execute instructions stored in the device readable medium 4180 or in a memory within the processing circuitry 4170. Such functionality may include providing any of the various wireless features, functions, or benefits discussed herein. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 4170 may include a system on a chip (SOC).

[0232] In some embodiments, processing circuitry 4170 may include one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 4172 and baseband processing circuitry 4174. In some embodiments, radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 4172 and baseband processing circuitry 4174 may be on separate chips (or chipsets), boards, or units (such as a radio unit and a digital unit). In alternative embodiments, some or all of RF transceiver circuitry 4172 and baseband processing circuitry 4174 may be on the same chip or chipset, board, or unit.

[0233] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein as being provided by a network node, base station, eNB, or other such network device may be performed by a processing circuit 4170 executing instructions stored on a device-readable medium 4180 or a memory within the processing circuit 4170. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuit 4170 without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable medium (such as in a hardwired manner). In any of those embodiments, the processing circuit 4170 may be configured to perform the described functionality, whether or not executing instructions stored on a device-readable storage medium. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to only the processing circuit 4170 or other components of the network node 4160, but are enjoyed by the network node 4160 as a whole and / or by end users and wireless networks in general.

[0234] Device-readable medium 4180 may include any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory, including without limitation: permanent storage, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (e.g., hard disk), removable storage media (e.g., flash drive, compact disk (CD) or digital video disk (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable and / or computer-executable memory device that stores information, data and / or instructions that can be used by processing circuit 4170. Device-readable medium 4180 may store any suitable instructions, data or information, including computer programs, software, applications (including one or more of logic, rules, codes, tables, etc.) and / or other instructions that can be executed by processing circuit 4170 and utilized by network node 4160. Device-readable medium 4180 may be used to store any calculations performed by processing circuit 4170 and / or any data received via interface 4190. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 4170 and the device readable medium 4180 may be considered to be integrated.

[0235] Interface 4190 is used for wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data between network node 4160, network 4106 and / or WD4110. As shown, interface 4190 includes (one or more) ports / (one or more) terminals 4194 for sending data to network 4106 and receiving data from network 4106 by wired connection, for example. Interface 4190 also includes radio front-end circuit 4192, which can be coupled to antenna 4162 or is a part of antenna 4162 in some embodiments. Radio front-end circuit 4192 includes filter 4198 and amplifier 4196. Radio front-end circuit 4192 can be connected to antenna 4162 and processing circuit 4170. Radio front-end circuit can be configured to adjust the signal transmitted between antenna 4162 and processing circuit 4170. Radio front-end circuit 4192 can receive digital data to be sent to other network nodes or WD via wireless connection. The radio front end circuit 4192 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 4198 and / or amplifiers 4196. The radio signal may then be transmitted via antenna 4162. Similarly, when receiving data, antenna 4162 may collect the radio signal, which is then converted into digital data by the radio front end circuit 4192. The digital data may be passed to processing circuit 4170. In other embodiments, the interface may include different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0236] In some alternative embodiments, the network node 4160 may not include a separate radio front end circuit 4192, but rather the processing circuit 4170 may include the radio front end circuit and may be connected to the antenna 4162 without a separate radio front end circuit 4192. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuit 4172 may be considered part of the interface 4190. In still other embodiments, the interface 4190 may include one or more ports or terminals 4194, the radio front end circuit 4192, and the RF transceiver circuit 4172 as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the interface 4190 may communicate with a baseband processing circuit 4174 that is part of a digital unit (not shown).

[0237] Antenna 4162 may include one or more antennas or antenna arrays configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. Antenna 4162 may be coupled to radio front-end circuit 4192 and may be any type of antenna capable of wirelessly transmitting and receiving data and / or signals. In some embodiments, antenna 4162 may include one or more omnidirectional, sector or flat panel antennas operable to transmit / receive radio signals between, for example, 2 GHz and 66 GHz. Omnidirectional antennas may be used to transmit / receive radio signals in any direction, sector antennas may be used to transmit / receive radio signals from a device within a specific area, and flat panel antennas may be line of sight antennas for transmitting / receiving radio signals on a relatively straight line. In some instances, the use of more than one antenna may be referred to as MIMO. In some embodiments, antenna 4162 may be separated from network node 4160 and may be connected to network node 4160 via an interface or port.

[0238] Antenna 4162, interface 4190 and / or processing circuit 4170 can be configured to perform any receiving operation and / or certain obtaining operation described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data and / or signal can be received from a wireless device, another network node and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, antenna 4162, interface 4190 and / or processing circuit 4170 can be configured to perform any transmitting operation described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data and / or signal can be transmitted to a wireless device, another network node and / or any other network equipment.

[0239] The power circuit 4187 may include or be coupled to a power management circuit and is configured to supply power to the components of the network node 4160 for performing the functionality described herein. The power circuit 4187 may receive power from the power supply 4186. The power supply 4186 and / or the power circuit 4187 may be configured to provide power to the various components of the network node 4160 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at the voltage and current levels required by each respective component). The power supply 4186 may be included in the power circuit 4187 and / or the network node 4160 or outside the power circuit 4187 and / or the network node 4160. For example, the network node 4160 may be connected to an external power source (e.g., an electrical socket) via an input circuit or interface such as a cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to the power circuit 4187. As another example, the power supply 4186 may include a power source in the form of a battery or battery pack connected to the power circuit 4187 or integrated in the power circuit 4187. If the external power source fails, the battery can provide backup power. Other types of power sources, such as photovoltaic devices, may also be used.

[0240] Alternative embodiments of network node 4160 may include Fig.10 4160, which may be responsible for providing certain aspects of the functionality of the network node, including any of the functionality described herein and / or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node 4160 may include a user interface device to allow information to be entered into the network node 4160 and to allow information to be output from the network node 4160. This may allow a user to perform diagnostics, maintenance, repair, and other management functions on the network node 4160.

[0241] As used herein, a wireless device (WD) refers to a device capable of, configured to, arranged to and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with a network node and / or other wireless devices. Unless otherwise noted, the term WD may be used interchangeably with a user equipment (UE) in this article. Wireless communication may involve the use of electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information through the air to transmit and / or receive wireless signals. In some embodiments, a WD may be configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For example, a WD may be designed to transmit information to a network according to a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to a request from a network. Examples of WD include, but are not limited to, smart phones, mobile phones, cellular phones, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, desktop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless cameras, game consoles or devices, music storage devices, playback devices, wearable terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, tablet computers, laptops, laptop embedded devices (LEEs), laptop mounted devices (LMEs), smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPEs), vehicle mounted wireless terminal devices, etc. WDs can support device-to-device (D2D) communications, for example, by implementing 3GPP standards for sidelink communications, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), and vehicle-to-everything (V2X), and in this case can be referred to as D2D communication devices. As another specific example, in an Internet of Things (IoT) scenario, a WD can represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurement and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurement to another WD and / or a network node. The WD in this case may be a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, which may be referred to as an MTC device in the 3GPP context. As a specific example, the WD may be a UE that implements the 3GPP narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) standard. Specific examples of such machines or devices are sensors, metering devices (such as power meters), industrial machinery, or household or personal devices (e.g., refrigerators, televisions, etc.), personal wearable devices (e.g., watches, fitness trackers, etc.). In other scenarios, the WD may represent a vehicle or other device that can monitor and / or report its operating state or other functions associated with its operation. The WD as described above may represent an endpoint of a wireless connection, in which case the device may be referred to as a wireless terminal. In addition, the WD as described above may be mobile, in which case it may also be referred to as a mobile device or mobile terminal.

[0242] As shown, wireless device 4110 includes antenna 4111, interface 4114, processing circuit 4120, device readable medium 4130, user interface device 4132, auxiliary device 4134, power supply 4136 and power supply circuit 4137. WD4110 may include multiple sets of one or more components of the illustrated components for different wireless technologies (such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, WiMAX, or Bluetooth wireless technology, to name a few) supported by WD4110. These wireless technologies can be integrated into chips or chipsets that are the same or different from other components in WD4110.

[0243] Antenna 4111 may include one or more antennas or antenna arrays configured to send and / or receive wireless signals, and is connected to interface 4114. In some alternative embodiments, antenna 4111 may be separated from WD4110 and may be connected to WD4110 via an interface or port. Antenna 4111, interface 4114 and / or processing circuit 4120 may be configured to perform any receiving or transmitting operation described herein as being performed by WD. Any information, data and / or signal may be received from a network node and / or another WD. In some embodiments, radio front end circuit and / or antenna 4111 may be considered as an interface.

[0244] As shown, the interface 4114 includes a radio front-end circuit 4112 and an antenna 4111. The radio front-end circuit 4112 includes one or more filters 4118 and an amplifier 4116. The radio front-end circuit 4112 is connected to the antenna 4111 and the processing circuit 4120, and is configured to adjust the signal transmitted between the antenna 4111 and the processing circuit 4120. The radio front-end circuit 4112 may be coupled to the antenna 4111 or may be part of the antenna 4111. In some embodiments, the WD 4110 may not include a separate radio front-end circuit 4112; instead, the processing circuit 4120 may include a radio front-end circuit and may be connected to the antenna 4111. Similarly, in some embodiments, some or all of the RF transceiver circuit 4122 may be considered as part of the interface 4114. The radio front-end circuit 4112 may receive digital data to be sent to other network nodes or WDs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuit 4112 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having suitable channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 4118 and / or amplifiers 4116. The radio signal may then be transmitted via antenna 4111. Similarly, when receiving data, antenna 4111 may collect the radio signal, which may then be converted into digital data by radio front end circuit 4112. The digital data may be passed to processing circuit 4120. In other embodiments, the interface may include different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0245] The processing circuit 4120 may include a combination of one or more of the following: a microprocessor, a controller, a microcontroller, a central processing unit, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or a combination of hardware, software, and / or encoded logic operable to provide WD4110 functionality alone or in conjunction with other WD4110 components (such as device readable medium 4130). Such functionality may include providing any of the various wireless features or benefits discussed herein. For example, the processing circuit 4120 may execute instructions stored in the device readable medium 4130 or in a memory within the processing circuit 4120 to provide the functionality disclosed herein.

[0246] As shown, the processing circuit 4120 includes one or more of the RF transceiver circuit 4122, the baseband processing circuit 4124, and the application processing circuit 4126. In other embodiments, the processing circuit may include different components and / or different combinations of components. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 4120 of the WD4110 may include a SOC. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuit 4122, the baseband processing circuit 4124, and the application processing circuit 4126 may be on a separate chip or chipset. In an alternative embodiment, part or all of the baseband processing circuit 4124 and the application processing circuit 4126 may be combined into one chip or chipset, and the RF transceiver circuit 4122 may be on a separate chip or chipset. In some further alternative embodiments, part or all of the RF transceiver circuit 4122 and the baseband processing circuit 4124 may be on the same chip or chipset, and the application processing circuit 4126 may be on a separate chip or chipset. In yet other alternative embodiments, some or all of the RF transceiver circuit 4122, baseband processing circuit 4124, and application processing circuit 4126 may be combined in the same chip or chipset. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuit 4122 may be part of the interface 4114. The RF transceiver circuit 4122 may condition the RF signal for the processing circuit 4120.

[0247] In some embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein as being performed by the WD may be provided by a processing circuit 4120 executing instructions stored on a device-readable medium 4130, which may be a computer-readable storage medium in some embodiments. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuit 4120 without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium (such as in a hard-wired manner). In any of those specific embodiments, the processing circuit 4120 may be configured to perform the described functionality, regardless of whether instructions stored on a device-readable storage medium are executed. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to only the processing circuit 4120 or other components of the WD 4110, but are generally enjoyed by the WD 4110 as a whole and / or by end users and wireless networks.

[0248] The processing circuit 4120 may be configured to perform any determination, calculation, or similar operation (e.g., certain acquisition operations) described herein as being performed by the WD. Such operations as performed by the processing circuit 4120 may include processing information obtained by the processing circuit 4120 by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or the converted information with information stored by the WD 4110, and / or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or the converted information, and making determinations as a result of the processing.

[0249] The device readable medium 4130 may be operable to store computer programs, software, applications (including one or more of logic, rules, codes, tables, etc.), and / or other instructions that can be executed by the processing circuit 4120. The device readable medium 4130 may include a computer memory (e.g., a random access memory (RAM) or a read-only memory (ROM)), a mass storage medium (e.g., a hard disk), a removable storage medium (e.g., a compact disk (CD) or a digital video disk (DVD)) and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-temporary device readable and / or computer executable memory device that stores information, data and / or instructions that can be used by the processing circuit 4120. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 4120 and the device readable medium 4130 may be considered to be integrated. The user interface device 4132 may provide a component that allows a human user to interact with the WD4110. Such interaction may have many forms, such as visual, auditory, tactile, etc.

[0250] The user interface device 4132 may be operable to generate output to the user and allow the user to provide input to the WD4110. The type of interaction may vary depending on the type of user interface device 4132 installed in the WD4110. For example, if the WD4110 is a smart phone, the interaction may be via a touch screen; if the WD4110 is a smart meter, the interaction may be through a screen providing usage (e.g., the number of gallons used) or a speaker providing an audible alarm (e.g., if smoke is detected). The user interface device 4132 may include an input interface, a device and a circuit, and an output interface, a device and a circuit. The user interface device 4132 is configured to allow information to be input into the WD4110, and is connected to the processing circuit 4120 to allow the processing circuit 4120 to process the input information. The user interface device 4132 may include, for example, a microphone, a proximity or other sensor, a key / button, a touch display, one or more cameras, a USB port or other input circuit. The user interface device 4132 is also configured to allow information to be output from the WD4110, and allows the processing circuit 4120 to output information from the WD4110. User interface device 4132 may include, for example, a speaker, display, vibration circuit, USB port, headphone jack or other output circuit. Using one or more input and output interfaces, devices and circuits of user interface device 4132, WD4110 can communicate with end users and / or wireless networks and allow them to benefit from the functionality described herein.

[0251] Auxiliary device 4134 is operable to provide more specific functionality that may not generally be performed by a WD. This may include specialized sensors for taking measurements for various purposes, interfaces for additional types of communications (such as wired communications), etc. The contents and types of components of auxiliary device 4134 may vary depending on the embodiment and / or scenario.

[0252] Power supply 4136 may take the form of a battery or battery pack in some embodiments. Other types of power supplies may also be used, such as an external power supply (e.g., an electrical socket), a photovoltaic device, or a power battery. WD4110 may further include a power supply circuit 4137 for delivering power from power supply 4136 to various parts of WD4110, which require power from power supply 4136 to perform any functionality described or indicated herein. Power supply circuit 4137 may include a power management circuit in some embodiments. Power supply circuit 4137 may be additionally or alternatively operable to receive power from an external power supply; in this case WD4110 may be connected to an external power supply (such as an electrical socket) via an input circuit or interface (such as a power cable). Power supply circuit 4137 may also be operable to deliver power from an external power supply to power supply 4136 in some embodiments. This may be used, for example, for charging of power supply 4136. Power supply circuit 4137 may perform any formatting, conversion, or other modifications to the power from power supply 4136 to make the power suitable for the corresponding components of WD4110 to which the power is supplied.

[0253] Any suitable steps, methods, features, functions, or benefits disclosed herein may be performed by one or more functional units or modules of one or more virtual devices. Each virtual device may include a plurality of these functional units. These functional units may be implemented via processing circuits (which may include one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers) and other digital hardware (which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), dedicated digital logic, etc.). The processing circuit may be configured to execute program codes stored in a memory, which may include one or more types of memory, such as read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), cache memory, flash memory device, optical storage device, etc. The program code stored in the memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and / or data communication protocols and instructions for executing one or more of the technologies described herein. In some implementations, the processing circuit may be used to cause the corresponding functional units to perform corresponding functions according to one or more embodiments of the present invention.

[0254] The term unit may have the conventional meaning in the field of electronic equipment, electrical devices and / or electronic devices and may include, for example, electrical and / or electronic circuits, devices, modules, processors, memories, logical solid-state and / or discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for performing corresponding tasks, processes, calculations, output and / or display functions, etc., such as those described in this document.

[0255] abbreviation

[0256] At least some of the following abbreviations may be used in the present disclosure. If there is an inconsistency between an abbreviation, then how it is used above should take precedence. If listed multiple times below, the first listing should take precedence over any subsequent listing(s).

[0257] 3GPP 3rd Generation Partnership Project

[0258] 5G 5th Generation

[0259] CA Carrier Aggregation

[0260] CDMA Code Division Multiple Access

[0261] CP Control Plane

[0262] CSI Channel State Information

[0263] DC Dual Connectivity

[0264] DRX Discontinuous Reception

[0265] eNB E-UTRANNodeB or (EUTRAN) base station

[0266] E-UTRA Evolved UTRA

[0267] E-UTRAN Evolved UTRAN

[0268] FDD Frequency Division Duplex

[0269] gNB NR base station or NR base station

[0270] GSM Global System for Mobile Communications

[0271] IP Internet Protocol

[0272] LPP LTE Positioning Protocol

[0273] LTE Long Term Evolution

[0274] MAC Media Access Control

[0275] MCG Master Cell Group

[0276] MDT Minimized Drive Test

[0277] MeNB Master eNB

[0278] MgNB Master gNB

[0279] MME Mobility Management Entity

[0280] MN Master Node

[0281] MSC Mobile Switching Center

[0282] NR New Radio

[0283] OSS Operation Support System

[0284] OTDOA Observed Time Difference of Arrival

[0285] O&M Operation and Maintenance

[0286] PCell Primary Cell

[0287] PDCCH Physical Downlink Control Channel

[0288] PDCP Packet Data Convergence Protocol

[0289] PSCell Primary SCell

[0290] RAN Radio Access Network

[0291] RAT Radio Access Technology

[0292] RLC Radio Link Control

[0293] RNC Radio Network Controller

[0294] RRC Radio Resource Control

[0295] RS reference signal

[0296] RSRP Reference Symbol Received Power or Reference Signal Received Power

[0297] RSRQ Reference Signal Received Quality or Reference Symbol Received Quality

[0298] RSSI Received Signal Strength Indicator

[0299] RSTD Reference Signal Time Difference

[0300] SCell Secondary Cell

[0301] SCG Secondary Cell Group

[0302] SeNB Secondary eNB

[0303] SFN System Frame Number

[0304] SINR Signal to Interference and Noise Ratio

[0305] SN Secondary Node

[0306] SON Self-Optimizing Network

[0307] SRB Signalling Radio Bearer

[0308] SS Sync Signal

[0309] TDD Time Division Duplex

[0310] TDOA Time Difference of Arrival

[0311] UE User Equipment

[0312] UL Uplink

[0313] UMTS Universal Mobile Telecommunications System

[0314] UP User Plane

[0315] UTRA Universal Terrestrial Radio Access

[0316] UTRAN Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network

[0317] URLLC Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communications

[0318] WCDMA Wide CDMA

[0319] WLAN Wide Area Network

[0320] Further definitions and embodiments are discussed below.

[0321] In the above description of various embodiments of the inventive concept, it will be understood that the terms used herein are only used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the inventive concept. Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as those generally understood by those skilled in the art to which the inventive concept belongs. It will be further understood that terms (such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries) should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with their meaning in the context of this specification and related fields, and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless clearly defined as such herein.

[0322] When an element is referred to as being "connected to", "coupled to", "responsive to" (or variations thereof) another element, it may be directly connected to, coupled to, or responsive to the other element, or there may be an intermediate element. On the contrary, when an element is referred to as being "directly connected to", "directly coupled to", "directly responsive to" (or variations thereof) another element, there is no intermediate element. Throughout the text, similar numbers refer to similar elements. In addition, "coupling", "connection", "response" (or variations thereof) as used herein may include wireless coupling, connection, or response. As used herein, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms "a, an" and "the" are intended to also include plural forms. For the sake of brevity and / or clarity, well-known functions or configurations may not be described in detail. The term "and / or" (abbreviation " / ") includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0323] It will be appreciated that although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements / operations, these elements / operations should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element / operation from another element / operation. Therefore, without departing from the teaching of the inventive concept, the first element / operation in some embodiments may be referred to as the second element / operation in other embodiments. Throughout the specification, the same reference numerals or the same reference designators represent the same or similar elements.

[0324] As used herein, the terms "comprise, compring, comprises," "include, including, includes," "have, has, having," or variations thereof are open ended and include one or more recited features, integers, elements, steps, components, or functions, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, elements, steps, components, functions, or groups thereof. In addition, as used herein, the common abbreviation "eg," derived from the Latin phrase "exempligratia," may be used to introduce or specify one or more general examples of previously mentioned items, and is not intended to limit such items. The common abbreviation "ie," derived from the Latin phrase "idest," may be used to specify a specific item from a more general description.

[0325] Example embodiments are described herein with reference to block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations of computer-implemented methods, devices (systems and / or apparatuses), and / or computer program products. It will be appreciated that the blocks of the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations and the combination of blocks in the block diagrams and / or flowchart illustrations may be implemented by computer program instructions executed by one or more computer circuits. These computer program instructions may be provided to processor circuits of general-purpose computer circuits, special-purpose computer circuits, and / or other programmable data processing circuits to produce a machine, so that instructions executed via processors of computers and / or other programmable data processing devices transform and control transistors, values ​​stored in memory locations, and other hardware components within such circuits to implement the functions / actions specified in (one or more) block diagrams and / or flowchart boxes, and thereby create components (functionality) and / or structures for implementing the functions / actions specified in (one or more) block diagrams and / or flowchart boxes.

[0326] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a tangible computer-readable medium that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable medium produce an article of manufacture including instructions for implementing the functions / actions specified in (one or more) block diagrams and / or flowchart blocks. Therefore, embodiments of the inventive concept may be embodied in hardware and / or in software (including firmware, resident software, microcode, etc.) running on a processor such as a digital signal processor, which may be collectively referred to as "circuits", "modules" or variations thereof.

[0327] It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the function / action annotated in the frame may not be performed in the order annotated in the flow chart. For example, depending on the functionality / action involved, the two frames shown continuously may actually be performed substantially simultaneously, or the frame may sometimes be performed in the opposite order. In addition, the functionality of a given frame of a flow chart and / or block diagram may be separated into multiple frames, and / or the functionality of two or more frames of a flow chart and / or block diagram may be integrated at least in part. Finally, without departing from the scope of the inventive concept, other frames may be added / inserted between the frames shown, and / or frames / operations may be omitted. In addition, although some figures include arrows on the communication path to illustrate the main direction of communication, it will be appreciated that communication may be performed in the direction opposite to the arrows depicted.

[0328] Without substantially departing from the principles of the inventive concept, many changes and modifications may be made to the embodiments. It is intended that all such changes and modifications are included in the scope of the inventive concept herein. Therefore, the subject matter disclosed above will be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive, and the examples of the embodiments are intended to cover all such modifications, enhancements and other embodiments that fall within the spirit and scope of the inventive concept. Therefore, to the maximum extent permitted by law, the scope of the inventive concept should be determined by the most widely permissible interpretation of the present disclosure including the examples of the embodiments and their equivalents, and should not be limited or restricted by the previous detailed description.

Claims

1. A method performed by a secondary node in a telecommunications network, the method comprising: Coordinating (801) the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the master node, wherein the coordination includes the following items: signaling (803) to the primary node a request for a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node may configure, when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node; as well as After receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node, and wherein the secondary node previously configured the measurement identifiers based on a previous value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, releasing (805) a plurality of the measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that can be configured by the secondary node includes one or more of the following items: the requested maximum number of allowed measurement identities for configuring inter-frequency measurements; as well as The requested maximum number of allowed measurement identities for configuring intra-frequency measurements on each serving frequency.

3. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein: The new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers comprises at least one of the following: Measure the exact number of markers; a maximum number of the measurement identifiers that the secondary node wants to configure; as well as An indication of whether more or fewer measurement identifiers than the previous number of configured measurement identifiers is requested, wherein the indication comprises an indicator of at least one of: the requested number of measurement identifiers is lower than the previous number and the requested number of measurement identifiers is higher than the previous number.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, further comprising: receiving (807) from the master node a confirmation of the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers; as well as In response to the confirmation, the secondary cell group is changed (809) based on applying the new value to the secondary cell group configuration to meet the capabilities of the communication device.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein: The secondary node already has the previous number of measurement identities configured by the primary node, and further comprising: receiving (811) said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers from said master node; and In response to the receiving, a response rejecting the new value is signaled (813) to the master node.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, further comprising: receiving (815) from said master node said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers; as well as In response to the receiving, a response with the identification of the measurement identification not allocated by the secondary node is signaled (817) to the primary node.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, further comprising: receiving (819) from said master node said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers; In response to said receiving, signaling (821) to said master node said number of responses having the requested measurement identification; as well as A plurality of configured measurement identifiers are released (823) to satisfy the new values ​​from the master node.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, further comprising: After signaling the request, the secondary node modification procedure is triggered.

9. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: After signaling the request, a dual connectivity procedure involving the change of the secondary cell group configuration is triggered.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein: The signaling to the master node and / or the releasing concerning the maximum number of measurement identities is performed via an inter-node radio resource control message.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein: The signaling to the master node and / or the releasing concerning the maximum number of measurement identities is performed via X2 and / or Xn signaling.

12. A method performed by a master node in a telecommunications network, the method comprising: Coordinating (901) the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with a secondary node, wherein the coordination comprises: receiving from the secondary node a request for a new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node; and In response to the request, the following items are performed: If no measurement identification is available, ignoring (903) the request; and A response including said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers is signaled (905) to said secondary node, and a number of said measurement identifiers are released to comply with said new value.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that can be configured by the secondary node includes one or more of the following items: the requested maximum number of allowed measurement identities for configuring inter-frequency measurements; as well as The requested maximum number of allowed measurement identities for configuring intra-frequency measurements on each serving frequency.

14. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, wherein: The new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers comprises at least one of the following: Measure the exact number of markers; a maximum number of the measurement identifiers that the secondary node wants to configure; as well as An indication of whether more or fewer measurement identifiers than the previous number of configured measurement identifiers is requested, wherein the indication comprises an indicator of at least one of: the requested number of measurement identifiers is lower than the previous number and the requested number of measurement identifiers is higher than the previous number.

15. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, further comprising: signalling (907) confirmation of said new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers to said secondary node; as well as After signaling the confirmation, the primary cell group is changed (909) based on applying the new value to the configuration of the primary cell group to meet the capabilities of the communication device.

16. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, wherein: The secondary node already has the previous number of measurement identities configured by the primary node, and further comprising: signaling (911) said new value of said maximum number of measurement identities to said secondary node; and A response is received (913) from the secondary node rejecting the new value.

17. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, further comprising: signaling (915) said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers to said secondary node; as well as A response is received (917) from the secondary node with the identification of the measurement identification not allocated by the secondary node.

18. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, further comprising: signaling (919) said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers to said secondary node; receiving (921) from the secondary node said number of responses having the requested measurement identification; as well as A plurality of configured measurement identifiers are released (923) to satisfy the new value.

19. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, further comprising: After said signaling the new value of said maximum number of measurement identities to said secondary node, a secondary node modification procedure is triggered (925).

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising: After signaling the new value of the maximum number of measurement identities to the secondary node, a dual connectivity procedure involving the change of secondary cell group configuration is triggered (927).

21. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, wherein: The signaling to the secondary node and / or the releasing concerning the maximum number of measurement identities is performed via an inter-node radio resource control message.

22. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 13, wherein: The signaling to the secondary node and / or the releasing concerning the maximum number of measurement identities is performed via X2 and / or Xn signaling.

23. A secondary node (205a, 205b, 600) in a telecommunications network, the secondary node comprising: Processing circuit (603); A memory (605) coupled to the processing circuit, wherein the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit, cause the secondary node to: Coordinating the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the master node, wherein the coordination includes the following: signalling to the primary node a request for a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node may configure when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node; as well as After receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node, and wherein the secondary node previously configured the measurement identifiers based on a previous value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, releasing a plurality of the measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

24. The secondary node according to claim 23, wherein: The instructions are also executable to cause the secondary node to perform a method according to any one of claims 2-11.

25. A secondary node (205a, 205b, 600) in a telecommunication network, comprising means for performing the method according to any one of claims 1-11.

26. A master node (207a, 207b, 700) in a telecommunications network, the master node comprising: Processing circuit (703); A memory (705) coupled to the processing circuit, wherein the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit, cause the master node to: Coordinating the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the secondary node, wherein the coordination comprises: receiving a request from the secondary node for a new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node can configure when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node; and In response to the request, the following items are performed: If no measurement identification is available, ignoring the request; and A response including the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers is signaled to the secondary node, and a number of the measurement identifiers are released to comply with the new value.

27. The master node according to claim 26, wherein: The instructions are also executable to cause the master node to perform a method according to any one of claims 13-22.

28. A master node (207a, 207b, 700) in a telecommunication network, comprising means for performing the method according to any one of claims 12-22.

29. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program including program code to be executed by a secondary node (205a, 205b, 600) to: Coordinating (801) the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the master node, wherein the coordination includes the following items: signaling (803) to the primary node a request for a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node may configure when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond the previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node; and After receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node, and wherein the secondary node previously configured the measurement identifiers based on a previous value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, releasing (805) a plurality of the measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

30. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 29, wherein: The program code is further executable to cause the secondary node to perform the method according to any one of claims 2-11.

31. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program including program code to be executed by a master node (207a, 207b, 700) to: Coordinating (901) the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the secondary node, wherein the coordination comprises: receiving, when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, a request from the secondary node for a new value of a maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node may configure; as well as In response to the request, the following items are performed: If no measurement identification is available, ignoring (903) the request; and A response including said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers is signaled (905) to said secondary node, and a number of said measurement identifiers are released to comply with said new value.

32. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 31, wherein: The program code is further executable to cause the master node to perform a method according to any one of claims 13-22.

33. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory storage medium (605), the non-transitory storage medium (605) comprising program code to be executed by a processing circuit (603) of a secondary node (205a, 205b, 600), whereby execution of the program code causes the secondary node to: Coordinating (801) the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the master node, wherein the coordination includes the following items: signaling (803) to the primary node a request for a new value for the maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node may configure when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond the previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node; and After receiving the new value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers from the primary node, and wherein the secondary node previously configured the measurement identifiers based on a previous value of the maximum number of measurement identifiers, releasing (805) a plurality of the measurement identifiers to comply with the new value.

34. The computer program product of claim 33, wherein: The program code is further executable to cause the secondary node to perform the method according to any one of claims 2-11.

35. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory storage medium (705), the non-transitory storage medium (705) comprising program code to be executed by a processing circuit (703) of a master node (207a, 207b, 700), whereby execution of the program code causes the master node to: Coordinating (901) the number of measurement identifiers exchanged with the secondary node, wherein the coordination comprises: receiving, when the secondary node wants to allocate additional measurement identifiers beyond a previous number of measurement identifiers configured by the primary node, a request from the secondary node for a new value of a maximum number of measurement identifiers that the secondary node may configure; as well as In response to the request, the following items are performed: If no measurement identification is available, ignoring (903) the request; and A response including said new value of said maximum number of measurement identifiers is signaled (905) to said secondary node, and a number of said measurement identifiers are released to comply with said new value.

36. The computer program product of claim 35, wherein: The program code is further executable to cause the master node to perform a method according to any one of claims 13-22.

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