Method and apparatus for beam scanning for CSI-RS mobility measurement

Abstract

The user equipment receives a first CSI-RS signal through a first cell and receives a second CSI-RS signal through a second cell. The corresponding QCL information can be used to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and a second Rx beam for measuring the second CSI-RS signal. In this case, if the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, the user equipment can i) alternate between measuring the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam and measuring the second CSI-RS signal through the second Rx beam, or ii) measure only the first CSI-RS signal or the second CSI-RS signal. Other embodiments are described and claimed in this invention.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to wireless technology and, more particularly, to beam scanning for CSI-RS mobility measurements. Background Art

[0002] In Release 16 of the 5G standard, mobility can be based on channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS). However, it is not clear how to measure CSI-RS in frequency range 2 (FR2), e.g., adjacent cell beam information of CSI-RS beam signals.

[0003] CSI-RS beams and their information can be represented using quasi co-location (QCL) between reference signals. However, user equipment (UE) behavior needs to be defined to address different scenarios and conditions with respect to the serving cell, adjacent cells, and CSI-RS beams received through these cells. UE behavior for beam scanning should address how to measure CSI-RS for both the serving cell and adjacent cells under various conditions. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In some embodiments, a method is described that includes receiving a first CSI-RS signal through a first cell and a second CSI-RS signal through a second cell. If corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and a second Rx beam for measuring the second CSI-RS signal, then if the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, the method includes

[0005] a) alternating between measuring the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam and measuring the second CSI-RS signal through the second Rx beam, b) measuring only the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam, or c) measuring only the second CSI-RS signal through the second Rx beam. If some instances of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, the method includes a) measuring the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and measuring the first CSI-RS signal when overlapping, or b) measuring the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and alternating between measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal when overlapping.

[0006] In some embodiments, a user equipment device including at least one antenna and one radio component is described. The at least one radio component is used to perform cellular communication using a radio access technology for establishing a wireless link with a base station. The user equipment device further includes at least one or more processors configured to perform operations including receiving a first CSI-RS signal through a first cell and receiving a second CSI-RS signal through a second cell. If the corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and a second Rx beam for measuring the second CSI-RS signal, then if the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, the method includes a) alternating between measuring the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam and measuring the second CSI-RS signal through the second Rx beam, b) measuring the first CSI-RS signal only through the first Rx beam, or c) measuring the second CSI-RS signal only through the second Rx beam. If some instances of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, the method includes a) measuring the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and measuring the first CSI-RS signal when overlapping, or b) measuring the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and alternating between measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal when overlapping. Other methods and apparatuses are also described. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] The present invention is illustrated by way of example and is not limited to the figures of the various drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate like elements.

[0008] Figure 1 An exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments is shown.

[0009] Figure 2 A base station (BS) communicating with a user equipment (UE) device according to some embodiments is shown.

[0010] Figure 3 An exemplary block diagram of a UE according to some embodiments is shown.

[0011] Figure 4 An exemplary block diagram of a BS according to some embodiments is shown.

[0012] Figure 5 An exemplary block diagram of a cellular communication circuit according to some embodiments is shown.

[0013] Figure 6 A UE communicating with a serving cell and an adjacent cell according to some embodiments is shown.

[0014] Figure 7 and Figure 8 illustrates an example of CSI-RS communication from a cell tower according to some embodiments.

[0015] Figure 9 illustrates a UE communicating with a serving cell and neighboring cells according to some embodiments, where an RX beam for receiving CSI-RS is to be determined.

[0016] Figure 10 、 Figure 11 and Figure 12 illustrates an example of CSI-RS communication from a cell tower according to some embodiments.

[0017] Figure 13 illustrates a UE communicating with a serving cell and neighboring cells according to some embodiments, where an RX beam for receiving CSI-RS is to be determined.

[0018] Figure 14 illustrates an example of CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 communication from a cell tower according to some embodiments.

[0019] Figure 15 、 Figure 16 、 Figure 17 and Figure 18 illustrates a scanning and measurement algorithm for CSI-RS signals according to some embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Describes methods and apparatuses for a device that measures reference signals and manages Rx beams for communication between a user equipment device and a base station. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough explanation of embodiments of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that embodiments of the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known components, structures, and techniques have not been shown in detail so as not to obscure the understanding of this description.

[0021] References in this specification to "some embodiments" or "an embodiment" mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. The appearances of the phrase "in some embodiments" in various places in this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

[0022] In the following description and claims, the terms "coupled" and "connected" and their derivatives may be used. It should be understood that these terms are not intended to be synonymous with each other. "Coupled" is used to indicate that two or more elements, which may or may not be in direct physical or electrical contact with each other, cooperate or interact with each other. "Connected" is used to indicate the establishment of communication between two or more elements that are coupled to each other.

[0023] The processes depicted in the following figures are executed by processing logic that includes hardware (e.g., circuitry, dedicated logic, etc.), software (such as running on a general-purpose computer system or a dedicated machine), or a combination of both. Although the processes are described below in some order of operations, it should be understood that some of the operations may be performed in a different order. Additionally, some operations may also be performed in parallel rather than sequentially.

[0024] The terms "server", "client", and "device" are intended to generally refer to data processing systems, rather than specifically referring to a particular form factor of a server, client, and / or device.

[0025] A method and apparatus for a device that measures reference signals for a downlink of a user equipment device and a base station are described. In some embodiments, the device is a user equipment device having a wireless link with the base station. In some embodiments, the wireless link is a fifth-generation (5G) link. The device further selects component carriers (CCs) from the wireless link, groups them, and determines a virtual CC from a set of selected CCs. The device may additionally perform physical downlink resource mapping based on an aggregation resource matching pattern of the CC group.

[0026] Figure 1 A simplified exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments is shown. It should be noted that Figure 1 the system is only one example of possible systems, and the features of the present disclosure may be implemented in any of various systems as needed.

[0027] As shown, the exemplary wireless communication system includes a base station 102A that communicates with one or more user devices 106A, 106B, etc. up to 106N via a transmission medium. Each of the user devices may be referred to herein as a "user equipment" (UE). Thus, the user device 106 is referred to as a UE or a UE device.

[0028] The base station (BS) 102A may be a transceiver base station (BTS) or a cell site ("cellular base station") and may include hardware enabling wireless communication with the UEs 106A to 106N.

[0029] The communication area (or coverage area) of a base station can be referred to as a "cell". Base station 102A and UE 106 can be configured to communicate via a transmission medium using any one of various radio access technologies (RATs), which are also referred to as wireless communication technologies or telecommunication standards, such as GSM, UMTS (e.g., associated with the WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interface), LTE, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), 5G New Radio (5G NR), HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRP, eHRPD, etc.). It should be noted that if base station 102A is implemented in an LTE environment, it can alternatively be referred to as an "eNodeB" or "eNB". Note that if base station 102A is implemented in a 5G NR environment, it can alternatively be referred to as a "gNodeB" or "gNB".

[0030] As shown in the figure, base station 102A can also be equipped to communicate with network 100 (e.g., the core network of a cellular service provider, a telecommunication network such as a public switched telephone network (PSTN) and / or the Internet, and various possible networks). Thus, base station 102A can facilitate communication between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. In particular, cellular base station 102A can provide UE 106 with various communication capabilities such as voice, SMS, and / or data services.

[0031] Base station 102A and other similar base stations (such as base stations 102B...102N) operating according to the same or different cellular communication standards can thus be arranged as a cell network, which can provide continuous or nearly continuous overlapping services to UE 106A-N and similar devices in a geographical area via one or more cellular communication standards.

[0032] Thus, although base station 102A can act as the "serving cell" of UE 106A-N as shown Figure 1 in the figure, each UE 106 can also be capable of receiving signals from one or more other cells (and possibly within its communication range) that can be referred to as "adjacent cells" (which can be provided by base stations 102B-N and / or any other base stations). Such cells may also be capable of facilitating communication between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. Such cells can include "macro" cells, "micro" cells, "pico" cells, and / or any various other granularities of cells that provide service area sizes. For example, base stations 102A-B shown Figure 1 in can be macro cells, while base station 102N can be a micro cell. Other configurations are also possible.

[0033] In some embodiments, base station 102A can be a next-generation base station, e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station, or a "gNB". In some embodiments, the gNB can be connected to a legacy Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network and / or connected to a NR Core (NRC) network. Additionally, a gNB cell can include one or more Transmission and Reception Points (TRPs). Further, a UE capable of operating according to 5G NR can be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0034] Note that UE 106 is capable of communicating using multiple wireless communication standards. For example, UE 106 can be configured to use wireless networking (e.g., Wi-Fi) and / or peer-to-peer wireless communication protocols (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi peer, etc.) in addition to at least one cellular communication protocol (e.g., GSM, UMTS (e.g., associated with WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, LTE-A, 5G NR, HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), etc.). UE 106 can also or alternatively be configured to communicate using one or more Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS, e.g., GPS or GLONASS), one or more mobile television broadcast standards (e.g., ATSC-M / H or DVB-H), and / or any other wireless communication protocol as needed. Other combinations of wireless communication standards (including more than two wireless communication standards) are also possible.

[0035] Figure 2 Shown is a user equipment 106 (e.g., one of devices 106A to 106N) communicating with base station 102 according to some embodiments. UE 106 can be a device with cellular communication capabilities, such as a mobile phone, a handheld device, a computer, or a tablet computer or indeed any type of wireless device.

[0036] UE 106 can include a processor configured to execute program instructions stored in a memory. UE 106 can perform any of the method embodiments described herein by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively or additionally, UE 106 can include programmable hardware elements such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) configured to perform any one or any part of the method embodiments described herein.

[0037] UE 106 may include one or more antennas for communicating using one or more wireless communication protocols or technologies. In some embodiments, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using, for example, CDMA2000 (1xRTT / 1xEV-DO / HRPD / eHRPD) or LTE using a single shared radio component or GSM or LTE using a single shared radio component. The shared radio may be coupled to a single antenna or may be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., for MIMO) for performing wireless communication. An antenna array (e.g., for MIMO) may be used to implement beamforming at the UE end to increase the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and reduce channel interference for individual data streams. Rx beams may be generated by the antenna array, each of which has a predefined spatial position and / or orientation relative to the user equipment device. An appropriate Rx beam may be selected that is optimally aligned to receive a transmit beam from a base station or an adjacent cell to provide improved communication quality. The user equipment may use a conventional or adaptive beamformer to generate multiple Rx beams. The beams may be generated by applying a spatial filter (e.g., phase shift and amplitude weights) or other equivalent beamforming algorithms to each antenna in the antenna array.

[0038] In general, the radio component may include any combination of a baseband processor, analog RF signal processing circuitry (e.g., including filters, mixers, oscillators, amplifiers, etc.), or digital processing circuitry (e.g., for digital modulation and other digital processing). Similarly, the radio component may implement one or more receive chains and transmit chains using the foregoing hardware. For example, UE 106 may share one or more portions of a receive chain and / or a transmit chain among multiple wireless communication technologies such as those discussed above.

[0039] In some embodiments, UE 106 may include separate transmit chains and / or receive chains (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol that the UE is configured to communicate through. As a further possibility, UE 106 may include one or more radio components shared among multiple wireless communication protocols and one or more radio components dedicated to a single wireless communication protocol. For example, UE 106 may include a shared radio component for communicating using either LTE or 5G NR (or LTE or 1xRTT or LTE or GSM) and separate radio components for communicating using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are possible.

[0040] Figure 3 An exemplary simplified block diagram of communication device 106 is shown according to some embodiments. Note that Figure 3The block diagram of the communication device is merely an example of a possible communication device. According to an embodiment, the communication device 106 can be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop computer, notebook computer, or portable computing device), a tablet computer, and / or a combination of devices, and other devices. As shown, the communication device 106 can include a set of components 300 configured to perform core functions. For example, the set of components can be implemented as a system on a chip (SOC), which can include portions for various purposes. Alternatively, the set of components 300 can be implemented as separate components or groups of components for various purposes. This set of components 300 can be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to various other circuits of the communication device 106.

[0041] For example, the communication device 106 can include various types of memory (e.g., including NAND flash memory 310), input / output interfaces such as connector I / F 320 (e.g., for connecting to a computer system; docking station; charging station; input devices such as a microphone, camera, keyboard; output devices such as a speaker; etc.), a display 360 (which can be integrated with or external to the communication device 106), and cellular communication circuitry 330 such as for 5G NR, LTE, GSM, etc., and short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 (e.g., Bluetooth TM and WLAN circuitry). In some embodiments, the communication device 106 can include wired communication circuitry (not shown), such as, for example, a network interface card for Ethernet.

[0042] The cellular communication circuitry 330 can be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as the antennas 335 and 336 shown. The short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 can also be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as the antennas 337 and 338 shown. Alternatively, the short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329, in addition to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) being coupled to the antennas 337 and 338 or as an alternative thereto, can be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to the antennas 335 and 336. The short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 and / or the cellular communication circuitry 330 can include multiple receive chains and / or multiple transmit chains for receiving and / or transmitting multiple spatial streams, such as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) configuration.

[0043] In some embodiments, as further described below, the cellular communication circuitry 330 may include dedicated receive chains for multiple radio access technologies (RATs) (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) dedicated processors and / or radio components) (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). Additionally, in some embodiments, the cellular communication circuitry 330 may include a single transmit chain that can switch between radio components dedicated to a particular RAT. For example, a first radio component may be dedicated to a first RAT (e.g., LTE) and may communicate with a dedicated receive chain as well as a transmit chain shared with an additional radio component (e.g., a second radio component that may be dedicated to a second RAT (e.g., 5G NR)), and may communicate with the dedicated receive chain and the shared transmit chain.

[0044] The communication device 106 may also include one or more user interface elements and / or be configured to work with one or more user interface elements. The user interface elements may include any of a variety of elements, such as a display 360 (which may be a touchscreen display), a keyboard (which may be a discrete keyboard or may be implemented as part of a touchscreen display), a mouse, a microphone and / or speaker, one or more cameras, one or more buttons, and / or any of a variety of other elements capable of providing information to the user and / or receiving or interpreting user input.

[0045] The communication device 106 may also include one or more smart cards 345 that include SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) functionality, such as one or more UICC (Universal Integrated Circuit Card) cards 345.

[0046] As shown, the SOC 300 may include a processor 302 that may execute program instructions for the communication device 106 and the display circuitry 304, which may perform graphics processing and provide a display signal to the display 360. The processor 302 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 340 that may be configured to receive addresses from the processor 302 and translate those addresses to locations in memory (e.g., memory 306, read-only memory (ROM) 350, NAND flash memory 310), and / or to other circuits or devices, such as the display circuitry 304, short-range wireless communication circuitry 229, cellular communication circuitry 330, connector I / F 320, and / or the display 360. The MMU 340 may be configured to perform memory protection and page table translation or setup. In some embodiments, the MMU 340 may be included as part of the processor 302.

[0047] As described above, the communication device 106 may be configured to communicate using wireless and / or wired communication circuits. The communication device 106 may also be configured to determine physical downlink shared channel scheduling resources for a user equipment device and a base station. In addition, the communication device 106 may be configured to select and group CCs from a wireless link and determine a virtual CC from the selected CC group. The wireless device may also be configured to perform physical downlink resource mapping based on an aggregation resource matching pattern of the CC group.

[0048] As described herein, the communication device 106 may include hardware components and software components for implementing the above features to measure reference signals (e.g., CSI-RS signals), manage Rx beams, and determine physical downlink shared channel scheduling resources of the communication device 106 and the base station. The processor 302 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium), some or all of the features described herein. Alternatively (or additionally), the processor 302 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Alternatively (or additionally), a combination of the processor 302 of the communication device 106 with one or more of the other components 300, 304, 306, 310, 320, 329, 330, 340, 345, 350, 360 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein.

[0049] In addition, as described in the present invention, the processor 302 may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, the processor 302 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the processor 302. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform one or more functions of the processor 302.

[0050] In addition, as described herein, both the cellular communication circuit 330 and the short-range wireless communication circuit 329 may include one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in the cellular communication circuit 330, and similarly, one or more processing elements may be included in the short-range wireless communication circuit 329. Therefore, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the cellular communication circuit 330. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the cellular communication circuit 230. Similarly, the short-range wireless communication circuit 329 may include one or more ICs configured to perform the functions of the short-range wireless communication circuit 32. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the short-range wireless communication circuit 329.

[0051] Figure 4 FIG. shows an exemplary block diagram of a base station 102 according to some embodiments. Note that Figure 4 the base station is only one example of a possible base station. As shown, the base station 102 may include a processor 404 that can execute program instructions for the base station 102. The processor 404 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 440, which may be configured to receive addresses from the processor 404 and translate those addresses to locations in a memory (e.g., memory 460 and read-only memory (ROM) 450) or to other circuits or devices.

[0052] The base station 102 may include at least one network port 470. The network port 470 may be configured to couple to a telephone network and provide access to the telephone network to a plurality of devices (such as UE device 106) as described above in Figure 1 and Figure 2 .

[0053] The network port 470 (or an additional network port) may also be configured or alternatively configured to couple to a cellular network, such as the core network of a cellular service provider. The core network may provide mobility-related services and / or other services to a plurality of devices such as UE device 106. In some cases, the network port 470 may be coupled to the telephone network via the core network, and / or the core network may provide the telephone network (e.g., between other UE devices served by a cellular service provider).

[0054] In some embodiments, the base station 102 may be a next-generation base station, e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station, or a "gNB". In such embodiments, the base station 102 may be connected to a traditional evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or connected to an NR core (NRC) network. Additionally, the base station 102 may be considered a 5G NR cell and may include one or more transmission and reception points (TRPs). Additionally, a UE capable of operating according to 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0055] The base station 102 may include at least one antenna 434 and possibly multiple antennas. The at least one antenna 434 may be configured to act as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with the UE device 106 via radio components 430.

[0056] Antenna 434 communicates with radio component 430 via communication link 432. Communication link 432 can be a receive link, a transmit link, or both. Radio component 430 can be configured to communicate via various wireless communication standards, including but not limited to 5G NR, LTE, LTE-A, GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, Wi-Fi, etc.

[0057] Base station 102 can be configured to perform wireless communication using multiple wireless communication standards. In some cases, base station 102 can include multiple radios that can enable base station 102 to communicate according to multiple wireless communication technologies. For example, as one possible scenario, base station 102 can include an LTE radio component for performing communication according to LTE and a 5G NR radio component for performing communication according to 5G NR. In this case, base station 102 may be able to operate as both an LTE base station and a 5G NR base station. As another possible scenario, base station 102 can include a multi-mode radio component that can perform communication according to any one of multiple wireless communication technologies (e.g., 5G NR and Wi-Fi, LTE and Wi-Fi, LTE and UMTS, LTE and CDMA2000, UMTS and GSM, etc.).

[0058] As further described subsequently herein, BS 102 can include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting the specific implementation of the features described herein. Processor 404 of base station 102 can be configured to implement part or all of the methods described herein or support their implementation, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively, processor 404 can be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or a combination thereof. Alternatively (or in addition), a combination of processor 404 of BS 102 and one or more of the other components 430, 432, 434, 440, 450, 460, 470 can be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein or support their implementation.

[0059] In addition, as described herein, processor 404 can be composed of one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements can be included in processor 404. Thus, processor 404 can include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 404. In addition, each integrated circuit can include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform one or more of the functions of processor 404.

[0060] Additionally, as described herein, radio component 430 may consist of one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in radio component 430. Accordingly, radio component 430 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of radio component 430. Further, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of radio component 430.

[0061] Figure 5 An exemplary simplified block diagram of a cellular communication circuit is shown according to some embodiments. Note that Figure 5 The block diagram of the cellular communication circuit is merely an example of a possible cellular communication circuit. According to an embodiment, cellular communication circuit 330 may be included in a communication device such as communication device 106 described above. As shown above, communication device 106 may be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop computer, notebook computer, or portable computing device), a tablet computer, and / or a combination of devices, and other devices.

[0062] Cellular communication circuit 330 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as antennas 335a-b and 336 as shown in ( Figure 3 ) In some embodiments, cellular communication circuit 330 may include dedicated receive chains for multiple RATs (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) dedicated processors and / or radio components) (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). For example, as shown in Figure 5 Cellular communication circuit 330 may include modem 510 and modem 520. Modem 510 may be configured for communication according to a first RAT (e.g., such as LTE or LTE-A), and modem 520 may be configured for communication according to a second RAT (e.g., such as 5G NR).

[0063] As shown, modem 510 may include one or more processors 512 and a memory 516 communicative with processors 512. Modem 510 may communicate with a radio frequency (RF) front end 530. RF front end 530 may include circuitry for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, RF front end 530 may include a receive circuit (RX) 532 and a transmit circuit (TX) 534. In some embodiments, receive circuit 532 may communicate with a downlink (DL) front end 550, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via antenna 335a.

[0064] Similarly, the modem 520 may include one or more processors 522 and a memory 526 that communicates with the processors 522. The modem 520 may communicate with an RF front end 540. The RF front end 540 may include circuitry for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, the RF front end 540 may include a receive circuit 542 and a transmit circuit 544. In some embodiments, the receive circuit 542 may communicate with a DL front end 560, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via an antenna 335b.

[0065] In some embodiments, a switch 570 may couple the transmit circuit 534 to an uplink (UL) front end 572. Additionally, the switch 570 may couple the transmit circuit 544 to the UL front end 572. The UL front end 572 may include circuitry for transmitting radio signals via an antenna 336.

[0066] Thus, when the cellular communication circuit 330 receives an instruction for transmission according to a first RAT (e.g., as supported by the modem 510), the switch 570 may be switched to a first state that allows the modem 510 to transmit signals according to the first RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuit 534 and the UL front end 572). Similarly, when the cellular communication circuit 330 receives an instruction for transmission according to a second RAT (e.g., as supported by the modem 520), the switch 570 may be switched to a second state that allows the modem 520 to transmit signals according to the second RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuit 544 and the UL front end 572).

[0067] As described herein, the modem 510 may include hardware and software components for implementing the above features or for measuring one or more reference signals (e.g., CSI-RS signals) and determining physical downlink shared channel scheduling resources for a user equipment device and a base station, as well as the various techniques described herein. The processor 512 may be configured to implement, for example, some or all of the features described herein by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or additionally), the processor 512 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or additionally), a combination of the processor 512 and one or more of the other components 530, 532, 534, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein.

[0068] In addition, as described herein, the processor 512 may include one or more processing elements. Accordingly, the processor 512 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the processor 512. Further, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the processor 512.

[0069] As described herein, the modem 520 may include hardware and software components for implementing the above features to measure reference signals (e.g., CSI-RS signals), manage Rx beams, and determine physical downlink shared channel scheduling resources for a user equipment device and a base station, as well as various other techniques described herein. The processor 522 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or additionally), the processor 522 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or additionally), a combination of the processor 522 and one or more of the other components 540, 542, 544, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein.

[0070] In addition, as described herein, the processor 522 may include one or more processing elements. Accordingly, the processor 522 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the processor 522. Further, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the processor 522.

[0071] Figure 6 A UE device 602 communicating with a serving cell and neighboring cells is shown according to some embodiments. The UE 602 may include any or all of the features described with respect to the UE 106. The UE 602 may generate a plurality of local receive (Rx) beams 608. These Rx beams may be formed at different locations around the UE to pick up wireless communication signals (e.g., electromagnetic signals) from the serving cell 604 and neighboring cells 606. The wireless signals may include channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS). These are downlink signals for estimating the channel and reporting channel quality information back to the gNB. The CSI-RS signals may be periodic, semi-persistent, or aperiodic. The CSI-RS may be a CSI-RS layer 3 mobility signal used during mobility and beam management.

[0072] The serving cell 604 transmits CSI-RS1 (the first CSI-RS signal) to the UE. CSI-RS1 may be quasi-co-located (QCL) with a synchronization signal block (SSB1) transmitted from the serving cell or another CSI-RS signal. This QCL information can be used to determine which of the Rx beams 608 should be used to receive CSI-RS1.

[0073] Similarly, the neighboring cell 606 may transmit CSI-RS2 to the UE. CSI-RS2 may also be quasi-co-located with an SSB2 transmitted from the neighboring cell or another CSI-RS signal. This QCL information can be used to determine which of the Rx beams should be used to receive CSI-RS2.

[0074] However, in some cases, the QCL information may not be available. The UE may need to determine which of the Rx beams 608 to use for performing CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 measurements. Additionally, when there is an overlap between CSI-RS signals (e.g., if the CSI-RS signals are at the same time instance and need to be picked up by different Rx beams), the UE may need to prioritize one CSI-RS over the other. The UE should have the ability to adapt in different scenarios to fully measure the CSI-RS signals from the serving cell and the neighboring cell.

[0075] Figure 6 A first scenario is shown in which CSI-RS1 (the first CSI-RS signal) and CSI-RS2 (the second CSI-RS signal) are transmitted with corresponding QCL information. The corresponding QCL information may include quasi-co-location (QCL) between: a) a first synchronization signal block and the first CSI-RS signal from the first cell, b) another CSI-RS signal and the first CSI-RS signal from the first cell, c) a second synchronization signal block and the second CSI-RS signal from the second cell, and / or d) another CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal from the second cell. The first Rx beam may be determined based on the QCL information associated with CSI-RS1, and the second Rx beam may be determined based on the QCL information associated with CSI-RS2.

[0076] For example, based on the QCL between CSI-RS1 and SSB1, the UE may determine that Rx1 is suitable for receiving CSI-RS1. In other words, the signal strength of CSI-RS1 received through this beam may be higher compared to receiving through other beams. This applies to determining the Rx beam for CSI-RS2 transmitted from the neighboring cell 606. Signals from different antenna ports of the same cell are said to be quasi-co-located if the characteristics of the channel through which symbols are transmitted on one antenna port can be derived from the channel through which symbols are transmitted on other antenna ports.

[0077] In Figure 6 , the Rx beam selected by the UE to receive CSI-RS1 may be different from the Rx beam selected to receive CSI-RS2, because one Rx beam may be more suitable for receiving CSI-RS1 while another Rx beam may be suitable for receiving CSI-RS2. If the CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 signals overlap in the time domain (e.g., as shown in Figure 7 ), the UE cannot simultaneously measure those CSI-RS signals by using different Rx beams, because the UE is limited to one active Rx beam at a given time. In these situations, two sub-scenarios can be understood.

[0078] Figure 7 Figure 9 shows a first sub-scenario in which CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 completely overlap in the time domain with the same time offset and the same periodicity. In other words, the signals arrive and appear at the UE periodically at the same time. In this sub-scenario, the UE can choose to receive and measure the signals in the following way.

[0079] In a first option for solving this first sub-scenario, the UE can determine a sharing factor X (e.g., 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%) or be provided with this sharing factor by the network to allocate measurement resources. For example, if the sharing factor is 40% for CSI-RS1, then in four out of ten cycles, the UE can receive and measure CSI-RS1 through Rx1, and in six out of ten cycles, the UE can receive and measure CSI-RS2 through Rx2.

[0080] Under the second and third options of the first sub-scenario, the UE can always prioritize receiving and measuring CSI-RS1 or CSI-RS2. For example, the UE can only receive and measure CSI-RS1 (e.g., through Rx1). Alternatively, the UE can only receive and measure CSI-RS2 (e.g., through Rx7).

[0081] Figure 8 Figure 19 shows a second sub-scenario in which CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 partially overlap in the time domain (e.g., they may have the same time offset and different periodicities). In this example, CSI-RS1 has a period T and CSI-RS2 has a periodicity of T / 2. Therefore, some of the CSI-RS2 occasions (the periods of signal transmission) do not overlap with CSI-RS1. Considering that some of these occasions of CSI-RS2 are separate, the UE can choose to receive and measure the signals in the following way.

[0082] In the first option of the second sub-scenario, when CSI-RS2 does not overlap with CSI-RS1, the UE performs CSI-RS2 measurement through the Rx beam determined based on the QCL information (in this example, Rx7). When the signals overlap, the UE performs CSI-RS1 measurement through the Rx beam determined based on the CSI-RS1 QCL information (in this example, Rx1).

[0083] In the second option of the second sub-scenario, when the signals do not overlap, the UE performs CSI-RS2 measurement (through Rx7). The UE can use the sharing factor X to allocate measurement resources for CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 at the overlapping moment. In other words, with this option, when the signals overlap, CSI-RS2 measurement will be performed, but when the signals do not overlap, the measurement can alternate between receiving and measuring CSI-RS1 (using Rx1) and CSI-RS2 (using Rx7).

[0084] It should be understood that although this example and other examples are shown with Rx1 for receiving CSI-RS1 and Rx7 for receiving CSI-RS2, any beam in the beam can be selected based on the QCL information associated with the corresponding CSI-RS signal or based on beam scanning measurement for picking up the corresponding CSI-RS. In some cases, CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 can use the same Rx beam, in which case, the two signals can be received and measured through the same Rx beam. It should be further understood that although the Rx beams are shown as Rx0 to Rx7 in the shown example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the number, position, directivity, and direction of the beams can vary depending on the application (e.g., the capacity of the UE's antenna array).

[0085] Figure 9 A second scenario is shown where the CSI-RS of the serving cell (e.g., CSI-RS1) has available QCL information, but the CSI-RS of the neighboring cell (e.g., CSI-RS2) does not have available QCL information. The lack of QCL information associated with the CSI-RS signal may be caused by different factors, such as but not limited to a) the network does not indicate the QCL information to the UE or it is physically blocked, b) the previous measurement based on the QCL information times out and is no longer relevant or useful for QCL, and / or c) the source reference signal in the QCL chain is not available.

[0086] In this example, the Rx beam (first Rx beam) for receiving CSI-RS1 is known or determined by QCL information. However, CSI-RS2 from an adjacent cell does not have available QCL information. In this case, the UE may perform beam scanning to find an Rx beam (second Rx beam) suitable for receiving CSI-RS2 through it. For beam scanning, the UE may activate different beams with predefined positions and orientations around the UE and measure the CSI-RS signal strength through each beam to determine which beam receives the CSI-RS with the maximum signal strength.

[0087] In this second scenario, CSI-RS1 may overlap with CSI-RS2 at some or all of the time instances in the time domain, e.g., depending on the periodicity and time offset of each signal. The UE may decide at which time instances it can perform CSI-RS1 measurements and at which time instances it can scan the Rx beam for CSI-RS2.

[0088] If all the time instances of CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 completely overlap in the second scenario, as Figure 10 shown, the UE may prioritize the Rx beam scanning for CSI-RS2 measurement. At the time instances when the Rx beam of CSI-RS1 and the index of the beam scanning for CSI-RS2 are the same, the UE receives and measures CSI-RS1. For example, when beam scanning is performed on Rx0, Rx1, Rx2, etc., CSI-RS2 is measured through each beam. When the beam scanning is indexed by Rx1, both CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 are measured through Rx1.

[0089] If some of the time instances of CSI-RS1 do not overlap with Figure 11 the CSI-RS2 shown (but other time instances overlap), then CSI-RS1 may have a shorter period than CSI-RS2 (e.g., CSI-RS1 has a period T and CSI-RS2 has a period 2T). The UE may perform beam scanning for all the time instances of CSI-RS2. In such cases, the UE may perform CSI-RS1 measurements at the time instances where the beam scanning index falls on the Rx beam associated with CSI-RS1 (e.g., Rx1 in this example). The UE may also perform CSI-RS1 using the known Rx beam (Rx1) of CSI-RS1 at the time instances of CSI-RS1 that do not overlap with CSI-RS2.

[0090] If as Figure 12As shown, some occasions of CSI-RS2 do not overlap with CSI-RS1 (but other occasions do), then the UE can perform Rx beam scanning for CSI-RS2 measurement only at the non-overlapping occasions of CSI-RS2. The UE can perform beam scanning for CSI-RS2, but skip the Rx beam (Rx1 in this example) selected to receive CSI-RS1 in the scanning sequence, which improves efficiency and reduces redundancy. At the overlapping occasions, the UE can use the Rx beam associated with CSI-RS1 to receive and measure both CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2.

[0091] In Figure 13 In the third scenario shown, both the CSI-RS of the serving cell and the CSI-RS of the neighboring cell lack QCL information to determine which Rx beam should be used to receive the CSI-RS signal respectively. If neither CSI-RS1 from cell 1 nor CSI-RS2 from cell 2 has available QCL information, the UE can perform beam scanning for both CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2. For each time period, a single Rx beam can be used to measure both CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2. In this case, the UE can use a finer beam (narrower) compared to the SSB usually used for the CSI-RS L3 signal.

[0092] For example, as Figure 14 shown, by measuring each signal on each Rx beam, beam scanning can be used to measure both CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2. CSI-RS1 and CSI-RS2 do not necessarily have to completely overlap, although shown as such in this example.

[0093] Figure 15 A process of measuring algorithm 1500 for CSI-RS signals according to some embodiments is shown (e.g., in response to Figure 6 the first scenario shown). At operation 1501, the process includes receiving a first CSI-RS signal from a first cell and receiving a second CSI-RS signal from a second cell. The first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal can be periodic, e.g., transmitted periodically over time.

[0094] At operation 1502, if the corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and a second Rx beam for measuring the second CSI-RS signal, the process can proceed to operation 1503 or operation 1507. It should be noted that although the process is shown to sequentially execute through operation 1503 to proceed to 1507, this is not necessary. The process proceeds depending on the situation of the described CSI-RS signals.

[0095] At operation 1503, if the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, the process can proceed to any of three options. At option 1504, the process includes sharing resources by alternating between measuring the first CSI-RS signal with a first Rx beam and measuring the second CSI-RS signal with a second Rx beam. At option 1505, the process includes measuring the first CSI-RS signal only with the first Rx beam. At option 1506, the process includes measuring the second CSI-RS signal only with the second Rx beam.

[0096] At operation 1507, if some instances of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal (but other instances do), the process can proceed to any of two options. At option 1508, the process includes measuring the second CSI-RS signal when there is no overlap and measuring the first CSI-RS signal when there is overlap. At option 1509, the process includes measuring the second CSI-RS signal when there is no overlap and alternating between measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal when there is overlap. It should be understood that the options can be selected based on the application and / or network behavior or network conditions.

[0097] Figure 16 A process for describing a measurement and scanning algorithm 1600 of CSI-RS signals (e.g., in response to Figure 9 the second scenario shown) is illustrated according to some embodiments. The first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal are received by a UE. At operation 1602, if the corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine a second Rx beam, the process proceeds to operation 1603, 1606, or 1609 depending on the situation. Operations 1603, 1606, and 1609 do not need to be performed in the order shown.

[0098] At operation 1603, if the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, the process can proceed to operation 1604. Complete overlap may occur when the two signals have the same period and the same time offset. Thus, the CSI-RS signals are received simultaneously at the UE, and the UE must resolve how to measure the two signals.

[0099] At operation 1604, the process includes beam scanning over a plurality of Rx beams including a first Rx beam to measure a second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams. At operation 1605, the process includes measuring a first CSI-RS signal (along with the second CSI-RS signal) when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam. The second Rx beam may be determined based on the scan measurements of the second CSI-RS signal over the plurality of Rx beams (e.g., based on which Rx beam receives the CSI-RS signal with the highest intensity). Operations 1604 and 1605 are also described in other parts with respect to Figure 10 as well.

[0100] At operation 1606, if some of the occasions of the first CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the second CSI-RS signal (and other occasions do overlap), the process may proceed to operation 1607. At 1607, the process includes beam scanning over a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam (e.g., Rx1, Rx2, Rx3, etc. as shown in Figures 6 to 14 ) to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams. At block 1608, the process includes a) measuring the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam at the non-overlapping occasions of the first CSI-RS signal, and / or b) measuring the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam. Operations 1607 and 1608 are discussed in other parts with respect to Figure 11 as well. As discussed, the second Rx beam may be determined based on the scan measurements of the second CSI-RS signal over the plurality of Rx beams.

[0101] At operation 1609, if some of the occasions of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal (but other occasions do overlap), the process may proceed to operation 1610. At operation 1610, the process includes measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam at the overlapping occasions. At operation 1611, the process includes beam scanning over a plurality of Rx beams that do not include the first Rx beam at the non-overlapping occasions of the second CSI-RS signal to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams. In other words, the first Rx beam is skipped during the scan because the second CSI-RS signal is measured through the first Rx beam at operation 1610. Operations 1610 and 1611 are further described with respect to Figure 12 as well. The second Rx beam may be determined based on the scan measurements of the second CSI-RS signal over the plurality of Rx beams.

[0102] Accordingly, based on the above, even though the second CSI-RS signal lacks the corresponding QCL information, the UE can manage the beams and measurements to determine which Rx beam to use to receive the second CSI-RS signal while also measuring the first CSI-RS signal.

[0103] Figure 17 A process 1700 for describing measurement and scanning algorithms of CSI-RS signals according to some embodiments is shown (e.g., in response to Figure 13 the third scenario shown). At operation 1702, if the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam, the process may proceed to operation 1604. At operation 1703, the process includes beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam. At 1704, each of the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal is measured on each of the plurality of Rx beams. The first Rx beam and the second Rx beam may be determined based on the measurements of the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams. In other words, the Rx beam that produces the highest signal strength of the first CSI-RS may be designated as the first Rx beam to be used to receive the first CSI-RS signal. Similarly, the Rx beam that produces the highest signal strength of the second CSI-RS signal may be designated as the second Rx beam for receiving the second CSI-RS signal. Operations 1604 and 1605 are discussed in other sections, e.g., with respect to Figure 13 and Figure 14 .

[0104] It should be understood that the UE can implement different combinations of the strategies discussed for different situations of the CSI-RS signal. Figure 18 A combination of strategies according to some embodiments is shown. At operation 1501, the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal are received, as discussed in other sections. At operation 1502, if both CSI-RS signals have available QCL information, the process proceeds to operation 1500, which is described in other sections. At operation 1602, if the first CSI-RS signal has available QCL information while the second CSI-RS signal does not, the process proceeds to operation 1600, which is described in other sections. At operation 1702, if both the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal lack the corresponding QCL information, the process proceeds to operation 1700, which is described in other sections. In this way, the UE can implement comprehensive and adaptive CSI-RS measurement and scanning strategies for serving cells and neighboring cells in the different situations described.

[0105] Portions of the content described above may be implemented by a logic circuit (such as an application-specific logic circuit) or by a microcontroller or other form of processing core that executes program code instructions. Thus, program code such as machine-executable instructions may be used to perform the processes taught by the above discussion, and the machine-executable instructions cause the machine to execute these instructions to perform certain functions. In such an environment, the "machine" may be a machine that converts intermediate form (or "abstract") instructions into processor-specific instructions (e.g., an abstract execution environment such as a "virtual machine" (e.g., Java virtual machine), interpreter, common language runtime, high-level language virtual machine, etc.), and / or an electronic circuit (such as a general-purpose processor and / or a special-purpose processor) designed to execute instructions and disposed on a semiconductor chip (e.g., a "logic circuit" implemented by transistors). The processes taught by the above discussion may also be performed by an electronic circuit (as an alternative to or in combination with the machine), which is designed to perform the process (or a part thereof) without executing program code.

[0106] The present invention also relates to an apparatus for performing the operations described herein. The apparatus may be specifically constructed for the required purpose, or it may comprise a general-purpose computer selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in a computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, such as but not limited to any type of disk (including floppy disks, optical disks, CD-ROMs, and magneto-optical disks), read-only memory (ROM), RAM, EPROM, EEPROM, magnetic or optical cards, or any type of medium suitable for storing electronic instructions, and each is coupled to a computer system bus.

[0107] Machine-readable media include any mechanism that stores or transmits information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, machine-readable media include read-only memory ("ROM"); random access memory ("RAM"); magnetic disk storage media; optical storage media; flash memory devices; etc.

[0108] An article of manufacture may be used to store program code. The article of manufacture storing the program code may be implemented as but not limited to one or more memories (e.g., one or more flash memories, random access memories (static, dynamic, or otherwise)), optical disks, CD-ROMs, DVD ROMs, EPROMs, EEPROMs, magnetic or optical cards, or other types of machine-readable media suitable for storing electronic instructions. The program code may also be downloaded from a remote computer (e.g., a server) to a requesting computer (e.g., a client) via a data signal embodied in a propagation medium (e.g., via a communication link (e.g., a network connection)).

[0109] The foregoing detailed description has been presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the tools used by those skilled in the data processing arts, and they are also the means by which the essence of their work can be most effectively communicated to others skilled in those arts. An algorithm is here, and generally, a self-consistent sequence of operations leading to a desired result. These operations are those requiring physical manipulation of physical quantities. Usually, but not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It has proven convenient at times, principally for reasons of generality, to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, and the like.

[0110] However, it should be remembered that all of these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unless specifically stated otherwise clearly from the above discussion, it should be understood that throughout the specification, discussions using terms such as "select", "determine", "receive", "form", "group", "aggregate", "generate", "remove", etc. refer to the actions and processes of a computer system or similar electronic computing device that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the registers and memories of the computer system into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the memories or registers of the computer system or other such information storage, transmission, or display devices.

[0111] The processes and displays presented herein are not inherently related to any particular computer or other apparatus. Various general purpose systems may be used with programs in accordance with the teachings herein, or it may prove convenient to construct more specialized apparatus for performing the described operations. The required structure for various such systems will be apparent from the following description. In addition, the present invention has not been described with reference to any particular programming language. It should be understood that a variety of programming languages may be used to implement the teachings of the present invention as described herein.

[0112] It is well known that the use of personally identifiable information should follow privacy policies and practices that are generally considered to meet or exceed industry or government requirements for maintaining user privacy. Specifically, personally identifiable information data should be managed and processed so as to minimize the risk of inadvertent or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of authorized use should be clearly indicated to the user.

[0113] The foregoing discussion has only described some exemplary embodiments of the present invention. From such discussion, the drawings, and the claims, those skilled in the art will readily recognize that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for beam scanning for CSI-RS mobility measurement, the method being executed by one or more processors of a user equipment, comprising: Receive a first CSI-RS signal via a first cell and receive a second CSI-RS signal via a second cell, where the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal are periodic; If corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and a second Rx beam for measuring the second CSI-RS signal, then If the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, then a) alternate between measuring the first CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam and measuring the second CSI-RS signal via the second Rx beam, b) measure the first CSI-RS signal only via the first Rx beam, or c) measure the second CSI-RS signal only via the second Rx beam; And If some occasions of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, then a) measure the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and measure the first CSI-RS signal when overlapping, or b) measure the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and alternate between measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal when overlapping.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: If the corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine the second Rx beam, then If the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams, and when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam, measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal; And Determine the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: If the corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine the second Rx beam, then If some occasions of the first CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the second CSI-RS signal, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams, and a) measure the first CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam at non-overlapping occasions of the first CSI-RS signal, and b) measure the first CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam; And Determine the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: If the corresponding QCL information is available for determining a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available for determining the second Rx beam, then if some occasions of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, at the overlapping occasions, measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam, and at the non-overlapping occasions of the second CSI-RS signal, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams excluding the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams; and determine the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: If the corresponding QCL information is not available for determining the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam to measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams; and determine the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first cell is the serving cell of the user equipment, and the second cell is an adjacent cell of the user equipment.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the corresponding QCL information includes quasi co-location between: a) a first synchronization signal block from the first cell and the first CSI-RS signal, b) another CSI-RS signal from the first cell and the first CSI-RS signal, c) a second synchronization signal block from the second cell and the second CSI-RS signal, or d) another CSI-RS signal from the second cell and the second CSI-RS signal.

8. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations including the following: Receiving a first CSI-RS signal via a first cell and a second CSI-RS signal via a second cell, the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal being periodic; If corresponding QCL information is available to determine a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and a second Rx beam for measuring the second CSI-RS signal, then If the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, then a) alternate between measuring the first CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam and measuring the second CSI-RS signal via the second Rx beam, b) measure only the first CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam, or c) measure only the second CSI-RS signal via the second Rx beam; and If some occasions of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, then a) measure the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and measure the first CSI-RS signal when overlapping, or b) measure the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and alternate between measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal when overlapping.

9. The non-transitory machine-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is available for determining a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available for determining the second Rx beam, then if the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams, and when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam, measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal; and determine the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

10. The non-transitory machine-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is available for determining a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available for determining the second Rx beam, then if some occasions of the first CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the second CSI-RS signal, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams, and a) at the non-overlapping occasions of the first CSI-RS signal, measure the first CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam, and b) when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam, measure the first CSI-RS signal via the first Rx beam; and Determine the second Rx beam based on measurements of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

11. The non-transitory machine-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is available for determining a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available for determining the second Rx beam, then If some occasions of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, then at the overlapping occasions, measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam, and at the non-overlapping occasions of the second CSI-RS signal, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams excluding the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams; and Determine the second Rx beam based on measurements of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

12. The non-transitory machine-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is not available for determining the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam, then perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam to measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams; and Determine the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam based on measurements of the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

13. The non-transitory machine-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the first cell is a serving cell of a user equipment, and the second cell is an adjacent cell of the user equipment.

14. The non-transitory machine-readable medium according to claim 8, wherein the corresponding QCL information includes quasi co-location between: a) a first synchronization signal block from the first cell and the first CSI-RS signal, b) another CSI-RS signal from the first cell and the first CSI-RS signal, c) a second synchronization signal block from the second cell and the second CSI-RS signal, or d) another CSI-RS signal from the second cell and the second CSI-RS signal.

15. A user equipment device, comprising: At least one antenna; At least one radio component, wherein the at least one radio component is configured to perform cellular communication using a radio access technology for establishing a wireless link with a serving cell; and One or more processors configured to perform operations including the following: Receive a first CSI-RS signal through the serving cell and receive a second CSI-RS signal through an adjacent cell, the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal being periodic; If corresponding QCL information is available for determining a first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and a second Rx beam for measuring the second CSI-RS signal, then If the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, then a) alternate between measuring the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam and measuring the second CSI-RS signal through the second Rx beam, b) measure only the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam, or c) measure only the second CSI-RS signal through the second Rx beam; and If some of the occasions of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, then a) measure the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and measure the first CSI-RS signal when overlapping, or b) measure the second CSI-RS signal when not overlapping and alternate between measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal when overlapping.

16. The user equipment device according to claim 15, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is available to determine the first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine the second Rx beam, then If the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal completely overlap, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams, and when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam, measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal; And Determine the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

17. The user equipment device according to claim 15, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is available to determine the first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine the second Rx beam, then If some of the occasions of the first CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the second CSI-RS signal, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams, and a) measure the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam at the non-overlapping occasions of the first CSI-RS signal, and b) measure the first CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam when the beam scanning is indexed on the first Rx beam; And Determine the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

18. The user equipment device according to claim 15, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is available to determine the first Rx beam for measuring the first CSI-RS signal and the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine the second Rx beam, then If some of the occasions of the second CSI-RS signal do not overlap with the first CSI-RS signal, measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal through the first Rx beam at the overlapping occasions, and at the non-overlapping occasions of the second CSI-RS signal, perform beam scanning on a plurality of Rx beams not including the first Rx beam to measure the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams; and Determine the second Rx beam based on the measurement of the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

19. The user equipment device according to claim 15, wherein the operation further comprises: If the corresponding QCL information is not available to determine the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam, beam scanning is performed on a plurality of Rx beams including the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam to measure the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal on each of the plurality of Rx beams; And determine the first Rx beam and the second Rx beam based on the measurements of the first CSI-RS signal and the second CSI-RS signal on the plurality of Rx beams.

20. The user equipment device according to claim 15, wherein the corresponding QCL information includes quasi co-location between: a) a first synchronization signal block from the serving cell and the first CSI-RS signal; b) another CSI-RS signal from the serving cell and the first CSI-RS signal; c) a second synchronization signal block from the neighboring cell and the second CSI-RS signal; or d) another CSI-RS signal from the neighboring cell and the second CSI-RS signal.

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