Mitigation of listen-before-talk conflicts in unlicensed spectrum

Abstract

Devices, systems, and methods for mitigating listen-before-talk collisions in unlicensed spectrum are disclosed. A wireless device can receive, from a base station (BS), one or more synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) as part of a measurement procedure with listen-before-talk (LBT). The wireless device can determine one or more LBT failures associated with one or more receive beams of the wireless device. Further, in response to determining the one or more LBT failures associated with the one or more receive beams of the wireless device, the wireless device can extend a measurement period for the one or more receive beams of the wireless device. The wireless device can then receive one or more additional SSBs on the one or more receive beams of the wireless device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to wireless communication, and more particularly to devices, systems, and methods for mitigating listen-before-speak conflicts in unlicensed spectrum. Background Technology

[0002] The use of wireless communication systems is growing rapidly. In recent years, wireless devices such as smartphones and tablets have become increasingly sophisticated. In addition to supporting phone calls, many mobile devices now offer access to the internet, email, text messaging, and navigation using the Global Positioning System (GPS), and can operate complex applications that utilize these capabilities. Furthermore, many different wireless communication technologies and standards exist. Some examples of wireless communication standards include GSM, UMTS (e.g., associated with WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, LTE-A (LTE-Advanced), HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), IEEE 802.11 (WLAN or Wi-Fi), and BLUETOOTH. TM wait.

[0003] The increasing number of features and functions introduced into wireless communication devices has also created a continuous demand for improvements in wireless communication and devices. In addition to the aforementioned communication standards, wireless communication technologies are under development to increase coverage and better serve the intended uses of wireless communication.

[0004] The next telecommunications standard proposed to surpass the current International Mobile Telecommunications Advanced (IMT-Advanced) standard is called 5G mobile network or 5G radio system, or simply 5G (for 5G New Radio, it is also called 5G-NR, or simply NR). Compared to the current LTE standard, 5G-NR offers higher capacity for higher density mobile broadband users, while supporting ultra-reliable and massive machine-type communication between devices, as well as lower latency and lower battery consumption. Furthermore, the 5G-NR standard allows for less restrictive UE scheduling compared to the current LTE standard. Therefore, efforts are underway to leverage the potentially higher throughput at higher frequencies in the ongoing development of 5G-NR.

[0005] Furthermore, wireless communication technologies have evolved from solely voice communication to also include the transmission of data such as the internet and multimedia content. Additionally, interference, collisions, and conflicts between transmissions of one or more Radio Access Technologies (RATs) are increasingly likely (e.g., in unlicensed spectrum). For example, conflicts can occur between transmissions (e.g., between 5G / cellular transmissions and / or wireless local area network (WLAN) transmissions). Interference, collisions, and conflicts can degrade the wireless ecosystem and negatively impact users of, for example, one or more RATs. Therefore, there is a need to improve the areas supporting such development and design. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The implementation plan relates to wireless communications, and more specifically to devices, systems, and methods for mitigating listen-before-speak conflicts in unlicensed spectrum.

[0007] For example, a wireless device may receive one or more synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) as part of a measurement procedure with listen-before-speak (LBT), for example, in unlicensed spectrum corresponding to the 52.6 GHz to 71 GHz frequency range. The wireless device may determine one or more LBT failures corresponding to one or more receive beams of the wireless device. In response to determining the one or more LBT failures, the wireless device may extend the measurement period of the one or more receive beams of the wireless device. The wireless device may receive one or more additional SSBs on one or more receive beams of the wireless device.

[0008] In some implementations, the wireless device can identify a first LBT fault among one or more LBT faults corresponding to a first receive beam in the one or more receive beams, thereby extending the measurement period of the first receive beam or all receive beams in the one or more receive beams. Furthermore, the wireless device can determine, for example, that measurement extension is not necessary based on the number of the one or more LBT faults being less than a threshold. Additionally, the extended measurement period can be based at least in part on an upper bound factor corresponding to the ratio of the one or more LBT faults to the maximum number of receive beams in the one or more receive beams and / or a lower bound factor corresponding to the ratio of the one or more LBT faults to a threshold, wherein the threshold is less than or equal to the maximum number of receive beams in the one or more receive beams. Furthermore, if the extended measurement period exceeds a maximum extension value and the total number of the one or more LBT faults is less than the maximum number of receive beams in the one or more receive beams, the wireless device can be further configured to discard previously received physical layer samples on the one or more receive beams and restart the measurement procedure with LBTs.

[0009] In some implementations, if the total number of the one or more LBT failures is less than a percentage of the maximum number of the one or more receive beams, the wireless device may be further configured to determine the measurement result based on the received SSB.

[0010] The techniques described herein can be implemented in and / or used with a variety of different types of devices, including but not limited to any one of the following computing devices: unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned controllers (UACs), base stations, access points, cellular phones, tablet computers, wearable computing devices, portable media players, automobiles and / or motor vehicles, and various other computing devices.

[0011] The present invention is intended to provide a brief overview of some of the subjects described in this document. Therefore, it should be understood that the above features are merely illustrative and should not be construed as narrowing the scope or substance of the subjects described herein in any way. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subjects described herein will become apparent from the following detailed description, drawings, and claims. Attached Figure Description

[0012] A better understanding of the subject matter can be obtained by considering the following detailed description of the various embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0013] Figure 1A An exemplary wireless communication system according to some implementation schemes is shown.

[0014] Figure 1B Examples of base stations (BS) and access points communicating with user equipment (UE) devices according to some implementation schemes are shown.

[0015] Figure 2 An exemplary simplified block diagram of a WLAN access point (AP) according to some implementation schemes is shown.

[0016] Figure 3A An exemplary block diagram of a BS according to some implementation schemes is shown.

[0017] Figure 3B An exemplary block diagram of a server according to some implementation schemes is shown.

[0018] Figure 4 An exemplary block diagram of a UE according to some implementation schemes is shown.

[0019] Figure 5 An example block diagram of a cellular communication circuit according to some implementation schemes is shown.

[0020] Figure 6AAn example of the connection between the EPC network, the LTE base station (eNB), and the 5G NR base station (gNB) is shown.

[0021] Figure 6B An example of the protocol stack used for eNB and gNB is shown.

[0022] Figure 7A Examples of 5G network architectures according to some implementation schemes are shown, which combine 3GPP (e.g., cellular) and non-3GPP (e.g., non-cellular) access to 5G CN.

[0023] Figure 7B Examples of 5G network architectures according to some implementation schemes are shown, which combine dual 3GPP (e.g., LTE and 5G NR) access to 5G CN as well as non-3GPP access.

[0024] Figure 8 An example of a baseband processor architecture for a UE according to some implementation schemes is shown.

[0025] Figure 9 An exemplary LBT procedure is shown, according to some implementations, involving SSB burst transmission and experiencing LBT failure due to the unavailability of SSB.

[0026] Figure 10 A block diagram is shown as an example of a method for extending the beam measurement period in response to determining an LBT fault, according to some implementation schemes.

[0027] Figure 11 An example of beam extension beam measurement period for beams experiencing LBT failure is shown according to some implementation schemes.

[0028] Figure 12 An example of extending the beam measurement period for all received beams according to some implementation schemes is shown, regardless of which received beams have experienced LBT failures.

[0029] Figure 13 An example is shown of a wireless device according to some implementations that does not extend the beam measurement period in response to determining that the number of LBT faults does not exceed a threshold.

[0030] Figure 14 A block diagram is shown as an example of a method for extending the beam measurement period in response to determining an LBT fault, and optionally including a threshold measurement, according to some implementation schemes.

[0031] While the features described herein may be subject to various modifications and alternatives, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings and described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the drawings and their detailed description are not intended to limit this document to the specific forms disclosed, but rather are intended to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the substance and scope of the subject matter as defined by the appended claims. Detailed Implementation

[0032] acronym

[0033] Various acronyms are used throughout this disclosure. The definitions of the most prominent acronyms that may appear throughout this disclosure are as follows:

[0034] ·3GPP: Third Generation Partnership Project

[0035] TS: Technical Specification

[0036] RAN: Radio Access Network

[0037] • RAT: Radio Access Technology

[0038] UE: User Equipment

[0039] RF: Radio Frequency

[0040] ·BS: Base Station

[0041] DL: Downlink

[0042] ·UL: Uplink

[0043] LTE: Long Term Evolution

[0044] NR: New Radio

[0045] ·5GS: 5G system

[0046] ·5GMM: 5GS Mobility Management

[0047] ·5GC: 5G Core Network

[0048] ·IE: Information Elements

[0049] • ITS: Intelligent Transportation System

[0050] • LBT: Listen First, Then Speak

[0051] •SSB: Synchronization Signal Block

[0052] • RRM: Radio Resource Management

[0053] • RLM: Radio Link Management

[0054] ·BM: Broadcast Multicast

[0055] •COT: Channel Occupancy Time

[0056] •QCL: Quasi-co-located

[0057] •SMTC: SSB-based RRM measurement timing configuration

[0058] DBTW: Detected a burst transmission window

[0059] PHY: Physical layer

[0060] • CSSF: Carrier-Specific Scaling Factor

[0061] the term

[0062] The following is a glossary of terms used in this disclosure:

[0063] Memory media – any of various types of nontransitory memory devices or storage devices. The term "memory media" is intended to include mounting media such as CD-ROMs, floppy disks, or magnetic tape devices; computer system memory or random access memory such as DRAM, DDR RAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM, etc.; non-volatile memory such as flash memory, magnetic media, e.g., hard disk drives or optical storage devices; registers or other similar types of memory elements, etc. Memory media may also include other types of nontransitory memory or combinations thereof. Furthermore, memory media may reside in a first computer system executing a program, or may reside in a different second computer system connected to the first computer system via a network such as the Internet. In the latter case, the second computer system may provide program instructions to the first computer for execution. The term "memory media" may include two or more memory media that may reside in different locations on different computer systems connected via a network, for example. Memory media may store program instructions (e.g., representing a computer program) that can be executed by one or more processors.

[0064] Carrier media—memory media as described above, and physical transmission media such as buses, networks, and / or other physical transmission media for transmitting signals such as electrical signals, electromagnetic signals, or digital signals.

[0065] Programmable hardware elements—including a variety of hardware devices comprising multiple programmable functional blocks connected via programmable interconnects. Examples include FPGAs (Field-Programmable Gate Arrays), PLDs (Programmable Logic Devices), FPOAs (Field-Programmable Object Arrays), and CPLDs (Complex PLDs). Programmable functional blocks can vary from fine-grained (combinatorial logic units or lookup tables) to coarse-grained (arithmetic logic units or processor cores). Programmable hardware elements may also be referred to as “configurable logic units.”

[0066] Computer system (or computer) — any of the various types of computing or processing systems, including personal computer systems (PCs), mainframe computer systems, workstations, network appliances, internet-connected appliances, personal digital assistants (PDAs), television systems, grid computing systems, or other devices or combinations thereof. In general, the term "computer system" can be broadly defined to encompass any device (or combination of devices) having at least one processor that executes instructions from a memory medium.

[0067] User equipment (UE) (or “UE device”) — any of various types of computer system devices that are mobile or portable and perform wireless communications. Examples of UE devices include mobile phones or smartphones (e.g., iPhone). TM Based on Android TM Telephones), portable gaming devices (e.g., Nintendo DS) TM PlayStation Portable TM Gameboy Advance TM iPhone TM This includes laptops, wearable devices (e.g., smartwatches, smart glasses), PDAs, portable internet devices, music players, data storage devices, other handheld devices, automobiles and / or motor vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) (e.g., drones), UAV controllers (UACs), etc. Generally speaking, the term "UE" or "UE device" can be broadly defined to encompass any electronic, computing, and / or telecommunications equipment (or combination of equipment) that is easily transported by (or with) a user and is capable of wireless communication.

[0068] Base station—The term “base station” has the full range of its common meaning and includes at least a wireless communication station that is installed in a fixed location and is used for communication as part of a wireless telephone system or radio system.

[0069] A processing element (or processor) is a component or combination of components capable of performing the functions of a device such as user equipment or cellular network equipment. A processing element may include, for example: a processor and associated memory, portions or circuitry of individual processor cores, an entire processor core, a processor array, circuitry such as an ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit), programmable hardware components such as a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), and any combination thereof.

[0070] A channel is a medium used to transmit information from a transmitter to a receiver. It should be noted that because the characteristics of the term "channel" can vary depending on different wireless protocols, the term "channel" as used herein can be considered to be used in a standard manner consistent with the type of device to which the term is referenced. In some standards, the channel width can be variable (e.g., depending on device capabilities, frequency band conditions, etc.). For example, LTE can support scalable channel bandwidths from 1.4 MHz to 20 MHz. In contrast, WLAN channels can be 22 MHz wide, while Bluetooth channels can be 1 MHz wide. Other protocols and standards may include different definitions of channels. Furthermore, some standards may define and use multiple types of channels, such as different channels for uplink or downlink and / or different channels for different purposes such as data, control information, etc.

[0071] Frequency band—The term “frequency band” has the full range of its general meaning and includes at least a segment of spectrum (e.g., radio frequency spectrum) in which a channel is used or reserved for the same purpose.

[0072] Wi-Fi—The term “Wi-Fi” encompasses the full range of its common meaning and includes at least wireless communication networks, or RATs, which are provided by and through wireless LAN (WLAN) access points to provide connectivity to the Internet. Most modern Wi-Fi networks (or WLAN networks) are based on the IEEE 802.11 standard and are marketed under the name “Wi-Fi.” Wi-Fi (WLAN) networks are distinct from cellular networks.

[0073] Automatic—refers to actions or operations performed by a computer system (e.g., software executed by the computer system) or device (e.g., circuits, programmable hardware elements, ASICs, etc.) without requiring direct user input to specify or perform the actions or operations. Therefore, the term "automatic" contrasts with actions performed or specified manually by the user, where the user provides input to directly perform the action. An automatic process can be initiated by user-provided input, but the subsequent actions performed "automatically" are not specified by the user; that is, they are not performed "manually," where the user specifies each action to be performed. For example, a user filling out a form by selecting each field and providing input specifying information (e.g., by typing information, selecting a checkbox, radio selection, etc.) is considered manually filling out the form, even though the computer system must update the form in response to the user's actions. The form can be automatically filled out by a computer system (e.g., software executed on the computer system) which analyzes the fields of the form and fills it out without any user input specifying answers for the fields. As indicated above, the user can invoke the automatic filling of the form but does not participate in the actual filling of the form (e.g., the user does not manually specify answers for the fields, but they are completed automatically). This manual provides various examples of operations that are automatically performed in response to actions taken by the user.

[0074] Approximately—means a value close to the correct or precise value. For example, approximately can refer to a value within 1% to 10% of the precise (or expected) value. However, it should be noted that the actual threshold (or tolerance) can vary depending on the application. For example, in some implementations, “approximately” may mean within 0.1% of some specified or expected value, while in various other implementations, the threshold may be, for example, 2%, 3%, 5%, etc., depending on the expectations or requirements of the specific application.

[0075] Concurrency refers to the parallel execution or implementation of tasks, processes, or programs in a manner that at least partially overlaps. For example, concurrency can be achieved using “strong” or strict parallelism, where tasks are executed in parallel (at least partially) on corresponding computing elements; or using “weak parallelism,” where tasks are executed in an interleaved manner (e.g., by time multiplexing of execution threads).

[0076] Various components can be described as being "configured" to perform one or more tasks. In such contexts, "configured" is a broad expression generally meaning "having" a "structure" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Thus, a component can be configured to perform a task even when it is not currently performing one (e.g., a set of electrical conductors can be configured to electrically connect one module to another, even when the two modules are not connected). In some contexts, "configured" can also be a broad expression generally meaning a structure that "has" a "circuit" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Thus, a component can be configured to perform a task even when it is not currently switched on. Typically, the circuit forming the structure corresponding to "configured" can include hardware circuitry.

[0077] For ease of description, various components may be described as performing one or more tasks. Such descriptions should be interpreted as including the phrase "configured to". Statements describing a component as configured to perform one or more tasks are explicitly intended not to invoke the interpretation of 35 USC §112(f) for that component.

[0078] Figure 1A and Figure 1B Communication system

[0079] Figure 1A A simplified exemplary wireless communication system according to some implementation schemes is shown. It should be noted that... Figure 1A The system described herein is merely one example of a possible system, and the features of this disclosure can be implemented in any of a variety of systems as needed.

[0080] As shown in the figure, the exemplary wireless communication system includes a base station 102A, which communicates with one or more user equipments 106A, 106B to 106N via a transmission medium. Each user equipment may be referred to herein as a "user equipment" (UE). Therefore, user equipment 106 is referred to as a UE or UE device.

[0081] Base station (BS) 102A may be a transceiver base station (BTS) or a cell site (“cellular base station”), and may include hardware that enables wireless communication with UE 106A to UE 106N.

[0082] 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 of a variety of Radio Access Technologies (RATs), also known as wireless communication technologies or telecommunications standards, such as GSM, UMTS (associated with air interfaces such as WCDMA or TD-SCDMA), LTE, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), 5G New Radio (5G NR), HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), etc. Note that if base station 102A is implemented in an LTE environment, its alternative location can be referred to as an "eNodeB" or "eNB". Note that if base station 102A is implemented in a 5G NR environment, its alternative location can be referred to as a "gNodeB" or "gNB".

[0083] As shown in the figure, base station 102A can also be configured to communicate with network 100 (e.g., in various possibilities, the core network of a cellular service provider, telecommunications networks such as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), and / or the Internet). Therefore, base station 102A can facilitate communication between user equipments and / or between user equipments and network 100. Specifically, cellular base station 102A can provide UE 106 with various communication capabilities such as voice, SMS, and / or data services.

[0084] 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 therefore be provided as a network of cells that can provide continuous or nearly continuous overlapping services to UE 106A-N and similar devices over a geographical area via one or more cellular communication standards.

[0085] Therefore, although base station 102A can act as the "serving cell" for UEs 106A-N as shown in Figure 1, each UE 106 may also be able to receive signals (and possibly within its communication range) from one or more other cells (which may be provided by base stations 102B-N and / or any other base station), which may be referred to as "neighboring cells". Such cells may also facilitate communication between user equipments and / or between user equipments and network 100. Such cells may include "macro" cells, "micro" cells, "pecimen" cells, and / or any other cells of various other granularities providing service area size. For example, base stations 102A to 102B shown in Figure 1 may be macro cells, while base station 102N may be a pico cell. Other configurations are also possible.

[0086] In some implementations, base station 102A may be a next-generation base station, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station or a “gNB”. In some implementations, the gNB may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to a new radio communication core (NRC) network. Furthermore, a gNB cell may include one or more transport and receive points (TRPs). Additionally, a UE capable of operating according to 5G NR may connect to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0087] It should be noted that UE 106 can communicate using multiple wireless communication standards. For example, in addition to at least one cellular communication protocol (e.g., GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, 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 be configured to communicate using wireless networking (e.g., Wi-Fi) and / or peer-to-peer wireless communication protocols (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi peer-to-peer, etc.). If desired, UE 106 can also or alternatively be configured to communicate using one or more Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS, such as GPS or GLONASS), one or more mobile television broadcasting standards (e.g., ATSC-M / H or DVB-H), and / or any other wireless communication protocol. Other combinations of wireless communication standards (including more than two wireless communication standards) are also possible.

[0088] Figure 1B User equipment 106 (e.g., one of devices 106A to 106N) communicating with base station 102 and access point 112 according to some embodiments is shown. UE 106 can be a device with cellular and non-cellular communication capabilities (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc.), such as a mobile phone, handheld device, computer or tablet, or virtually any type of wireless device.

[0089] UE 106 may include a processor configured to execute program instructions stored in memory. UE 106 may execute any of the method embodiments of the present invention by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively or additionally, UE 106 may include programmable hardware elements, such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) configured to execute any of the method embodiments of the present invention or any portion thereof.

[0090] 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), LTE / Advanced LTE, or 5G NR and / or GSM, LTE, Advanced LTE, or 5G NR using a single shared radio component. The shared radio may be coupled to a single antenna or to multiple antennas (e.g., for MIMO) for performing wireless communication. Typically, the radio component may include any combination of baseband processor, analog radio frequency (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 use the aforementioned hardware to implement one or more receive chains and transmit chains. For example, UE 106 may share one or more portions of the receive chain and / or transmit chain among various wireless communication technologies such as those discussed above.

[0091] In some implementations, UE 106 may include separate transmit and / or receive chains (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol configured to communicate therewith. As another possibility, UE 106 may include one or more radio components shared among multiple wireless communication protocols, as well as one or more radio components uniquely used by a single wireless communication protocol. For example, UE 106 may include shared radio components for communication using either LTE or 5G NR (or LTE or 1xRTT, or LTE or GSM), and separate radio components for communication using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are also possible.

[0092] Figure 2 Access point diagram

[0093] Figure 2 An exemplary block diagram of access point (AP) 112 is shown. Note that... Figure 2 The block diagram of the AP is only one example of a possible system. As shown, AP 112 may include a processor 204 capable of executing program instructions for AP 112. Processor 204 may also be (directly or indirectly) coupled to memory management unit (MMU) 240 or other circuitry or devices, which may be configured to receive addresses from processor 204 and translate these addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 260 and read-only memory (ROM) 250).

[0094] AP 112 may include at least one network port 270. Network port 270 may be configured to couple to a wired network and provide access to the Internet to multiple devices such as UE 106. For example, network port 270 (or additional network ports) may be configured to couple to a local network, such as a home network or a corporate network. For example, port 270 may be an Ethernet port. The local network may provide connectivity to additional networks such as the Internet.

[0095] AP 112 may include at least one antenna 234, which may be configured to function as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with UE 106 via wireless communication circuitry 230. Antenna 234 communicates with wireless communication circuitry 230 via communication link 232. Communication link 232 may include one or more receive links, one or more transmit links, or both. Wireless communication circuitry 230 may be configured to communicate via Wi-Fi or WLAN (e.g., 802.11). For example, in the case of a small cell where the AP coexists with a base station, or in other situations where it may be desirable for AP 112 to communicate via various different wireless communication technologies, wireless communication circuitry 230 may also or alternatively be configured to communicate via various other wireless communication technologies, including, but not limited to, 5G NR, LTE, LTE-A Advanced, GSM, WCDMA, CDMA2000, etc.

[0096] In some implementations, as further described below, AP 112 can be configured to perform overhead reduction methods for multi-carrier beam selection and power control as further described herein.

[0097] Figure 3A Block diagram of a base station

[0098] Figure 3A An exemplary block diagram of a base station 102 according to some embodiments is shown. It should be noted that... Figure 3A The base station shown is merely one example of a possible base station. As illustrated, base station 102 may include one or more processors 304 capable of executing program instructions for base station 102. Processor 304 may also be coupled to memory management unit (MMU) 340 (which may be configured to receive addresses from processor 304 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 360 and read-only memory (ROM) 350)) or other circuitry or devices.

[0099] Base station 102 may include at least one network port 370. Network port 370 may be configured to be coupled to a telephone network and provide access rights as described above in Figure 1 and... Figure 2 The telephone network as described herein includes multiple devices (such as UE device 106).

[0100] Network port 370 (or an additional network port) may also be configured, or alternatively configured, to be coupled 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 multiple devices, such as UE device 106. In some cases, network port 370 may be coupled to a telephone network via the core network, and / or the core network may provide a telephone network (e.g., in other UE devices served by the cellular service provider).

[0101] In some implementations, base station 102 may be a next-generation base station, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station, or “gNB”. In such implementations, base station 102 may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to an NR core (NRC) network. Furthermore, base station 102 may be considered a 5G NR cell and may include one or more transition and receive points (TRPs). Additionally, UEs capable of operating according to 5G NR may connect to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0102] Base station 102 may include at least one antenna 334 and possibly multiple antennas. At least one antenna 334 may be configured to function as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with UE device 106 via radio component 330. Antenna 334 communicates with radio component 330 via communication link 332. Communication link 332 may be a receive link, a transmit link, or both. Radio component 330 may 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.

[0103] Base station 102 can be configured to perform wireless communication using multiple wireless communication standards. In some cases, base station 102 may include multiple radios that enable base station 102 to communicate according to multiple wireless communication technologies. For example, as one possibility, base station 102 may 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 possibility, base station 102 may include a multimode radio component capable of performing communication according to any 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.).

[0104] As further described herein, base station 102 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting embodiments of the features described herein. Processor 304 of base station 102 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the methods described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively, processor 304 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or as an ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) or a combination thereof. Alternatively (or in addition), in conjunction with one or more of other components 330, 332, 334, 340, 350, 360, 370, processor 304 of BS 102 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the features described herein.

[0105] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 304 may comprise one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in processor 304. Therefore, processor 304 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 304. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 304.

[0106] Additionally, as described herein, the radio component 330 may comprise one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in the radio component 330. Therefore, the radio component 330 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the radio component 330. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the radio component 330.

[0107] Figure 3B Server block diagram

[0108] Figure 3B An exemplary block diagram of server 104 according to some implementation schemes is shown. It should be noted that... Figure 3B The server described is merely one example of a possible server. As shown, server 104 may include processor 344 capable of executing program instructions specific to server 104. Processor 344 may also be coupled to memory management unit (MMU) 374, which may be configured to receive addresses from processor 344 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 364 and read-only memory (ROM) 354) or to other circuitry or devices.

[0109] Server 104 can be configured to provide network access functionality to multiple devices, such as base station 102, UE device 106, and / or UTM 108, for example, as further described herein.

[0110] In some implementations, server 104 may be part of a radio access network, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) access network. In some implementations, server 104 may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to an NR core (NRC) network.

[0111] As further described herein, server 104 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting the implementation of the features described herein. Processor 344 of server 104 may be configured, for example, to implement or support some or all of the methods described herein by executing program instructions stored on a storage medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium). Alternatively, processor 344 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as a FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or configured as an ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) or a combination thereof. Alternatively (or in addition), in conjunction with one or more of other components 354, 364, and / or 374, processor 344 of server 104 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the features described herein.

[0112] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 344 may comprise one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in processor 344. Therefore, processor 344 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 344. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 344.

[0113] Figure 4 : UE block diagram

[0114] Figure 4 An exemplary simplified block diagram of a communication device 106 according to some embodiments is shown. It should be noted that... Figure 4The block diagram of the communication device is merely one example of possible communication devices. According to the implementation, the 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, notebook, or portable computing device), a tablet computer, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a UAV controller (UAC), and / or a combination of devices, as well as other devices. As shown, the communication device 106 may include a set of components 400 configured to perform core functions. For example, this set of components may be implemented as a system-on-a-chip (SOC), which may include portions for various purposes. Alternatively, the set of components 400 may be implemented as individual components or groups of components for various purposes. This set of components 400 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to various other circuits of the communication device 106.

[0115] For example, communication device 106 may include various types of memory (e.g., including NAND flash memory 410), input / output interfaces such as connector I / F 420 (e.g., for connection to a computer system; docking station; charging station; input devices such as microphone, camera, keyboard; output devices such as speaker; etc.), a display 460 that may be integrated with or external to communication device 106, and cellular communication circuitry 430 such as for 5G NR, LTE, GSM, etc., and short- to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 429 (e.g., Bluetooth). TM (and WLAN circuitry). In some embodiments, the communication device 106 may include wired communication circuitry (not shown), such as, for example, a network interface card for Ethernet.

[0116] Cellular communication circuitry 430 may be coupled (e.g., communicatively grounded; directly or indirectly) to one or more antennas, such as antennas 435 and 436 shown. Short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuitry 429 may also be coupled (e.g., communicatively grounded; directly or indirectly) to one or more antennas, such as antennas 437 and 438 shown. Alternatively, short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuitry 429 may be coupled (e.g., communicatively grounded; directly or indirectly) to antennas 437 and 438, or as an alternative, to antennas 435 and 436. Short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuitry 429 and / or cellular communication circuitry 430 may 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.

[0117] In some embodiments, as further described below, the cellular communication circuit 430 may include dedicated receive chains for multiple RATs (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communication ground; 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). Furthermore, in some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 430 may include a single transmit chain that can be switched between radio components dedicated to a particular RAT. For example, a first radio component may be dedicated to a first RAT, such as LTE, and can communicate with a dedicated receive chain and a transmit chain shared with additional radio components, such as a second radio component that may be dedicated to a second RAT (e.g., 5G NR) and can communicate with a dedicated receive chain and a shared transmit chain.

[0118] The communication device 106 may also include one or more user interface elements and / or be configured to be used with one or more user interface elements. User interface elements may include any of a variety of components such as a display 460 (which may be a touch screen display), a keyboard (which may be a separate keyboard or may be implemented as part of the touch screen display), a mouse, a microphone and / or a speaker, one or more cameras, one or more buttons, and / or any of a variety of other components capable of providing information to the user and / or receiving or interpreting user input.

[0119] The communication device 106 may also include one or more smart cards 445 with SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) functionality, such as one or more UICC cards (one or more general-purpose integrated circuit cards) 445. It should be noted that the term "SIM" or "SIM entity" is intended to include any of various types of SIM implementations or SIM functions, such as one or more UICC cards 445, one or more eUICCs, one or more eSIMs, removable or embedded, etc. In some embodiments, the UE 106 may include at least two SIMs. Each SIM may execute one or more SIM applications and / or otherwise implement SIM functionality. Thus, each SIM may be a single smart card that can be embedded, for example, soldered to a circuit board in the UE 106, or each SIM may be implemented as a removable smart card. Therefore, a SIM may be one or more removable smart cards (such as UICC cards, sometimes referred to as "SIM cards"), and / or SIM 410 may be one or more embedded cards (such as embedded UICCs (eUICCs), sometimes referred to as "eSIMs" or "eSIM cards"). In some implementations (such as when the SIM includes an eUICC), one or more SIMs within the SIM can implement embedded SIM (eSIM) functionality; in such implementations, a single SIM within the SIM can execute multiple SIM applications. Each SIM may include components such as a processor and / or memory; instructions for performing SIM / eSIM functionality may be stored in memory and executed by the processor. In some implementations, UE 106 may include, as needed, a combination of removable smart cards and fixed / non-removable smart cards (such as one or more eUICC cards implementing eSIM functionality). For example, UE 106 may include two embedded SIMs, two removable SIMs, or a combination of one embedded SIM and one removable SIM. Various other SIM configurations are also envisioned.

[0120] As described above, in some implementations, UE 106 may include two or more SIMs. Including two or more SIMs in UE 106 allows UE 106 to support two different phone numbers and allows UE 106 to communicate on two or more corresponding networks. For example, the first SIM may support a first RAT such as LTE, and the second SIM may support a second RAT such as 5G NR. Other implementations and RATs are also possible. In some implementations, when UE 106 includes two SIMs, UE 106 may support Dual SIM Dual Standby (DSDA) functionality. DSDA functionality allows UE 106 to connect to two networks simultaneously (and use two different RATs), or allows maintaining two connections simultaneously on the same or different networks supported by two different SIMs using the same or different RATs. DSDA functionality also allows UE 106 to receive voice calls or data traffic simultaneously on either phone number. In some implementations, voice calls may be packet-switched communications. In other words, voice calls can be received using LTE-based Voice (VoLTE) technology and / or NR-based Voice (VoNR) technology. In some implementations, UE 106 may support Dual SIM Dual Standby (DSDS) functionality. DSDS functionality allows either of the two SIMs in UE 106 to remain in standby while awaiting a voice call and / or data connection. In DSDS, when a call / data connection is established on one SIM, the other SIM is no longer active. In some implementations, DSDx functionality (DSDA or DSDS functionality) can be implemented using a single SIM (e.g., eUICC) that performs multiple SIM applications for different carriers and / or RATs.

[0121] As shown in the figure, the SOC 400 may include a processor 402 and a display circuit 404. The processor executes program instructions for the communication device 106, and the display circuit performs graphics processing and provides display signals to the display 460. The processor 402 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 440 (which may be configured to receive addresses from the processor 402 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 406, read-only memory (ROM) 450, NAND flash memory 410)) and / or coupled to other circuitry or devices (such as the display circuit 404, short-to-medium range wireless communication circuitry 429, cellular communication circuitry 430, connector I / F 420, and / or display 460). The MMU 440 may be configured to perform memory protection and page table translation or setup. In some embodiments, the MMU 440 may be included as part of the processor 402.

[0122] As described above, communication device 106 can be configured to communicate using wireless and / or wired communication circuits. Communication device 106 can be configured to perform beam fault recovery methods based on a unified TCI framework, for example, in 5G NR systems and higher, as further described herein.

[0123] As described herein, communication device 106 may include hardware and software components for implementing the features described above to transmit a scheduling profile for power saving to a network. For example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium), processor 402 of communication device 106 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein. Alternatively (or in addition), processor 402 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 in addition), in conjunction with one or more of other components 400, 404, 406, 410, 420, 429, 430, 440, 445, 450, 460, processor 402 of communication device 106 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein.

[0124] Furthermore, as described in this invention, processor 402 may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, processor 402 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 402. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 402.

[0125] Furthermore, as described herein, the cellular communication circuit 430 and the short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuit 429 may each include one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in the cellular communication circuit 430, and similarly, one or more processing elements may be included in the short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuit 429. Therefore, the cellular communication circuit 430 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the cellular communication circuit 430. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the cellular communication circuit 430. Similarly, the short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuit 429 may include one or more ICs configured to perform the functions of the short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuit 429. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the short-to-medium-range wireless communication circuit 429.

[0126] Figure 5 Block diagram of cellular communication circuit

[0127] Figure 5 An exemplary simplified block diagram of a cellular communication circuit according to some embodiments is shown. It should be noted that... Figure 5 The block diagram of the cellular communication circuit is merely one example of a possible cellular communication circuit. According to the implementation, the cellular communication circuit 530 (which may be the cellular communication circuit 430) may be included in a communication device such as the communication device 106 described above. As mentioned above, among other devices, the 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, notebook, or portable computing device), a tablet computer, and / or a combination of these devices.

[0128] Cellular communication circuit 530 may (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) be coupled to one or more antennas, such as ( Figure 4 Antennas 435a-435b and 436 are shown in the diagram. In some embodiments, the cellular communication circuitry 530 may include dedicated receive chains for multiple RATs (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communication ground; 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... Figure 5 As shown, the cellular communication circuit 530 may include a modem 510 and a modem 520. The modem 510 may be configured for communication according to a first RAT, such as LTE or LTE-A, and the modem 520 may be configured for communication according to a second RAT, such as 5G NR.

[0129] As shown, modem 510 may include one or more processors 512 and memory 516 communicating with processors 512. Modem 510 may communicate with 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 receiver circuitry (RX) 532 and transmitter circuitry (TX) 534. In some embodiments, receiver circuitry 532 may communicate with downlink (DL) front end 550, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via antenna 335a.

[0130] Similarly, modem 520 may include one or more processors 522 and memory 526 communicating with processor 522. Modem 520 may communicate with RF front end 540. RF front end 540 may include circuitry for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, RF front end 540 may include receiving circuitry 542 and transmitting circuitry 544. In some embodiments, receiving circuitry 542 may communicate with DL front end 560, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via antenna 335b.

[0131] In some implementations, switch 570 may couple transmitting circuitry 534 to uplink (UL) front-end 572. Additionally, switch 570 may couple transmitting circuitry 544 to UL front-end 572. UL front-end 572 may include circuitry for transmitting radio signals via antenna 336. Therefore, when cellular communication circuitry 530 receives an instruction to transmit according to a first RAT (e.g., supported by modem 510), switch 570 may be switched to a first state allowing modem 510 to transmit signals according to the first RAT (e.g., via a transmission chain including transmitting circuitry 534 and UL front-end 572). Similarly, when cellular communication circuitry 530 receives an instruction to transmit according to a second RAT (e.g., supported by modem 520), switch 570 may be switched to a second state allowing modem 520 to transmit signals according to the second RAT (e.g., via a transmission chain including transmitting circuitry 544 and UL front-end 572).

[0132] In some implementations, the cellular communication circuit 530 can be configured to perform a beam fault recovery method based on the unified TCI framework, for example in 5G NR systems and higher, as further described herein.

[0133] As described herein, modem 510 may include hardware and software components for implementing the features described above or for UL data used in time-division multiplexing NSA NR operation, as well as various other techniques described herein. For example, processor 512 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium). Alternatively (or otherwise), processor 512 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as a FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or as an ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit). Alternatively (or otherwise), processor 512 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein by combining with one or more of other components 530, 532, 534, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336.

[0134] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 512 may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, processor 512 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 512. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 512.

[0135] As described herein, modem 520 may include hardware and software components designed to implement the aforementioned features for transmitting power-saving scheduling profiles to the network, as well as various other technologies described herein. For example, processor 522 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium). Alternatively (or otherwise), processor 522 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as a FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or as an ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit). Alternatively (or additionally), processor 522 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein by combining one or more of other components 540, 542, 544, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336.

[0136] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 522 may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, processor 522 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 522. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 522.

[0137] Figure 6A and Figure 6B 5G NR architecture using LTE

[0138] In some specific implementations, fifth-generation (5G) wireless communication will initially be deployed concurrently with current wireless communication standards (e.g., LTE). For example, dual connectivity between LTE and the new 5G radio (5G NR or NR) has been designated as part of the initial deployment of NR. Therefore, as... Figures 6A to 6B As shown, the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network 600 can continue to communicate with the current LTE base station (e.g., eNB 602). Furthermore, eNB 602 can communicate with the 5G NR base station (e.g., gNB 604) and can transfer data between the core network 600 and gNB 604. Therefore, the EPC network 600 can be used (or reused), and gNB 604 can serve as additional capacity for user equipment, for example, to provide increased downlink throughput for the UE. In other words, LTE can be used for control plane signaling, and NR can be used for user plane signaling. Therefore, LTE can be used to establish connections to the network, and NR can be used for data services.

[0139] Figure 6BThe proposed protocol stack for eNB 602 and gNB 604 is illustrated. As shown, eNB 602 may include a Media Access Control (MAC) layer 632 that interfacing with Radio Link Control (RLC) layers 622a-622b. RLC layer 622a may also interfacing with Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer 612a, and RLC layer 622b may interfacing with PDCP layer 612b. Similar to the dual connectivity specified in Advanced LTE Release 12, PDCP layer 612a may interfacing with EPC network 600 via Primary Cell Group (MCG) bearer, while PDCP layer 612b may interfacing with EPC network 600 via decoupling bearer.

[0140] Additionally, as shown in the figure, gNB 604 may include a MAC layer 634 that interfacing with RLC layers 624a-624b. RLC layer 624a may interfacing with the PDCP layer 612b of eNB 602 via the X2 interface for information exchange and / or coordination (e.g., UE scheduling) between eNB 602 and gNB 604. Furthermore, RLC layer 624b may interfacing with PDCP layer 614. Similar to the dual connectivity specified in Advanced LTE Release 12, PDCP layer 614 may interfacing with EPC network 600 via a secondary cell group (SCG) bearer. Therefore, eNB 602 can be considered the primary node (MeNB), and gNB 604 can be considered the secondary node (SgNB). In some cases, it may be required that the UE maintain connectivity with both the MeNB and the SgNB. In such cases, the MeNB can be used to maintain the Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection with the EPC, while the SgNB can be used for capacity (e.g., additional downlink and / or uplink throughput).

[0141] Figure 7A , Figure 7B and Figure 8 5G Core Network Architecture—Interoperability with Wi-Fi

[0142] In some implementations, access to the 5G core network (CN) can be made via (or through) cellular connections / interfaces (e.g., via 3GPP communication architectures / protocols) and non-cellular connections / interfaces (e.g., non-3GPP access architectures / protocols such as Wi-Fi connections). Figure 7AAn example of a 5G network architecture according to some implementation schemes is shown, which combines 3GPP (e.g., cellular) and non-3GPP (e.g., non-cellular) access to the 5G CN. As shown, a user equipment device (e.g., UE 106) can access the 5G CN via both a radio access network (RAN, e.g., gNB or base station 604) and an access point such as AP 112. AP 112 may include a connection to the Internet 700 and a connection to a non-3GPP Interoperability Function (N3IWF) 702 network entity. N3IWF may include a connection to the core access and mobility management function (AMF) 704 of the 5G CN. AMF 704 may include an instance of 5G mobility management (5G MM) functions associated with UE 106. Additionally, the RAN (e.g., gNB 604) may also have a connection to AMF 704. Therefore, the 5G CN can support unified authentication on both connections and allow UE 106 to register access simultaneously via gNB 604 and AP 112. As shown, AMF 704 may include one or more functional entities associated with the 5G CN (e.g., Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF) 720, Short Message Service Function (SMSF) 722, Application Function (AF) 724, Unified Data Management (UDM) 726, Policy Control Function (PCF) 728, and / or Authentication Server Function (AUSF) 730). It should be noted that these functional entities may also be supported by the 5G CN's Session Management Functions (SMF) 706a and SMF 706b. AMF 706 may connect to (or communicate with) SMF 706a. In some implementations, such functional entities may reside on, and / or be performed by, or supported by, one or more servers 104 located within the RAN and / or core network. Furthermore, gNB 604 may communicate with (or connect to) the User Plane Function (UPF) 708a, which may also communicate with SMF 706a. Similarly, the N3IWF 702 can communicate with the UPF 708b, which in turn can communicate with the SMF 706b. Both UPFs can communicate with data networks (e.g., DN 710a and 710b) and / or the Internet 700 and the IMS core network 710.

[0143] Figure 7BAn example of a 5G network architecture according to some implementation schemes is shown, which combines dual 3GPP (e.g., LTE and 5G NR) access to the 5G CN as well as non-3GPP access. As shown, a user equipment device (e.g., UE 106) can access the 5G CN via both a radio access network (RAN, such as gNB or base station 604 or eNB or base station 602) and an access point such as AP 112. AP 112 may include a connection to the Internet 700 and a connection to the N3IWF 702 network entity. The N3IWF may include a connection to the AMF 704 of the 5G CN. AMF 704 may include an instance of 5G MM functionality associated with UE 106. Additionally, the RAN (e.g., gNB 604) may also have a connection to AMF 704. Therefore, the 5G CN can support unified authentication on both connections and allow UE 106 to register access simultaneously via gNB 604 and AP 112. Additionally, the 5G CN can support dual registration of the UE on both a legacy network (e.g., LTE via base station 602) and a 5G network (e.g., via base station 604). As shown, base station 602 can have connections to both Mobility Management Entity (MME) 742 and Service Gateway (SGW) 744. MME 742 can have connections to both SGW 744 and AMF 704. Furthermore, SGW 744 can have connections to both SMF 706a and UPF 708a. As shown, AMF 704 can include one or more functional entities associated with the 5G CN (e.g., NSSF 720, SMSF 722, AF 724, UDM 726, PCF 728, and / or AUSF 730). Note that UDM 726 can also include Home Subscriber Server (HSS) functionality, and PCF can also include Policy and Charging Rules (PCRF) functionality. It should also be noted that these functional entities can also be supported by the 5G CN's SMF 706a and SMF 706b. The AMF 706 can connect to (or communicate with) the SMF 706a. In some implementations, such functional entities may reside on, and / or be performed by, or supported by, one or more servers 104 located within the RAN and / or core network. Furthermore, the gNB 604 can communicate with (or connect to) the UPF 708a, which can also communicate with the SMF 706a. Similarly, the N3IWF 702 can communicate with the UPF 708b, which can also communicate with the SMF 706b. Both UPFs can communicate with data networks (e.g., DN 710a and 710b) and / or the Internet 700 and the IMS core network 710.

[0144] It should be noted that, in various implementation schemes, one or more of the aforementioned network entities may be configured to perform methods for implementing mechanisms to extend the measurement period, for example, as further described herein.

[0145] Figure 8 An example of a baseband processor architecture for a UE (e.g., UE 106) according to some implementation schemes is shown. As described above, Figure 8 The baseband processor architecture 800 described herein can be implemented on one or more radio components (e.g., radio components 329 and / or 330) or modems (e.g., modems 510 and / or 520) as described above. As shown, the non-access stratum 810 may include a 5G NAS 820 and a traditional NAS 850. The traditional NAS 850 may include a communication connection with a traditional access stratum (AS) 870. The 5G NAS 820 may include communication connections with a 5G AS 840 and a non-3GPP AS 830, as well as a Wi-Fi AS 832. The 5G NAS 820 may include functional entities associated with both access strata. Therefore, the 5G NAS 820 may include multiple 5G MM entities 826 and 828 and 5G session management (SM) entities 822 and 824. The traditional AS 850 may include functional entities such as Short Message Service (SMS) entity 852, Evolved Packet System (EPS) Session Management (ESM) entity 854, Session Management (SM) entity 856, EPS Mobility Management (EMM) entity 858, and Mobility Management (MM) / GPRS Mobility Management (GMM) entity 860. Furthermore, the traditional AS 870 may include functional entities such as LTE AS 872, UMTS AS 874, and / or GSM / GPRS 876.

[0146] Therefore, the baseband processor architecture 800 allows for a common 5G-NAS for both 5G cellular and non-cellular (e.g., non-3GPP access) networks. It's important to note that, as shown in the figure, the 5G MM can maintain separate connection management and registration management state machines for each connection. Furthermore, a device (e.g., UE 106) can register to a single PLMN (e.g., a 5G CN) using both 5G cellular and non-cellular access. Additionally, a device can be in a connected state in one access and an idle state in another, or vice versa. Finally, there may be common 5G-MM procedures (e.g., registration, deregistration, identification, authentication, etc.) for both accesses.

[0147] It should be noted that, in various implementations, one or more of the aforementioned functional entities of the 5G NAS and / or 5G AS can be configured to perform methods for reducing overhead for multi-carrier beam selection and power control, for example, as further described herein.

[0148] Measurement beam scanning of UEs with LBT for spectrum above 52.6 GHz

[0149] In some existing implementations, the Talk-Before (LBT) mechanism can be used to access shared media (e.g., unlicensed frequency bands commonly used for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and other short- to mid-range communications (e.g., non-3GGP access)) to avoid collisions or conflicts (transmissions from two or more wireless devices attempting to access the shared media) and improve media utilization efficiency. However, the LBT mechanism is not collision-free. In other words, the LBT mechanism cannot guarantee collision-free transmission.

[0150] For example, in the case of unicast transmission, the transmitter can easily detect transmission collisions based on the receiver's acknowledgment / negative acknowledgment (ACK / NACK) feedback. However, in the case of multicast transmission, the transmitter may not easily detect collisions based on the receiver's ACK / NACK, at least in part due to the heavy traffic associated with ACK / NACK from multiple receivers and the transmitter's inability to distinguish (or isolate) transmission collisions from channel quality issues based on received ACK / NACK. In other words, since receivers in multicast transmission may be located at different locations with different channel qualities, the transmitter cannot determine the cause of the NACK (e.g., transmission collision versus poor channel quality). Furthermore, in the case of broadcast transmission, feedback from the receiver is known to be infeasible, therefore, the transmitter is unaware of the collision. Additionally, in some implementations, the transmitter may reserve periodic slots for communication within a reserved time period. In such implementations, if a collision occurs, the collision may persist for at least a portion of the reserved time period (and, in the worst case, the duration of the reserved time period) if the transmitter does not detect (or cannot detect) the collision.

[0151] In the current implementation of 3GPP 5G NR, research on extending current NR operation to 71 GHz is related to UE measurements involving physical layer procedures. For example, some studies have addressed timing associated with beam-based operation for new subcarrier spacings (e.g., 480 kHz and / or 960 kHz) in enhanced and shared spectrum operations. Additionally, other studies have addressed channel access mechanisms using beam-based operation that comply with regulatory requirements associated with unlicensed spectrum between 52.6 GHz and 71 GHz. Furthermore, some studies have attempted to specify receiver-assisted LBT and non-LBT procedures regarding omnidirectional listen-before-speak (LBT), directional LBT, energy detection threshold enhancement, and channel access (without specifying additional sensing mechanisms). Moreover, in addition to defining uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) operation within the frequency band and excluding uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) spectrum for intelligent transportation systems within the said frequency range, some core specifications concerning the new frequency band in the 52.6 GHz to 71 GHz frequency range have been discussed. In addition, the core requirements of base stations, UE radio frequency (RF), radio resource management (RRM), radio link monitoring (RLM), and broadcast multicast (BM) for frequency bands (and combinations thereof) in the 52.6 GHz to 71 GHz frequency range have been studied.

[0152] Furthermore, when a UE performs cell-specific measurements during LBT procedures in an NR environment, the UE may be susceptible to or experience LBT failures. These LBT failures may involve the UE performing beam measurements in the higher, unlicensed spectrum within the 52.6 GHz to 71 GHz frequency range.

[0153] Therefore, some conclusions can be drawn from the above research. For example, at least when the conditions for SSB transmission based on contention-exempt short control signaling are not met, synchronization signal block (SSB) transmission with LBT can be supported. Furthermore, channel access for SSB with LBT may not differ from the normal channel occupancy time (COT) for multi-beam systems. Future research may determine whether any differences need to be introduced compared to multi-beam COT LBT.

[0154] Regarding SSB transmission in LBT, potential problems may arise when the UE performs measurements during beam scanning procedures. For example, an LBT failure may occur when the UE performs measurements corresponding to an SSB burst on an already occupied channel. In other words, a competing device, such as a Wi-Fi device, may have already been attached and is utilizing the channel associated with that SSB burst.

[0155] For example, such as Figure 9As shown, the UE can receive an SSB burst (e.g., SSB burst #1) comprising multiple SSBs, such as SSB#i, SSB#i+Q, and SSB#i+2Q, where i is the actual SSB index and Q is the SSB quasi-co-location (QCL) distance within the SSB bursts with the same actual SSB index. In other words, i, i+Q, and i+2Q may correspond to QCL SSB locations. Furthermore, SSB bursts may have associated periods between bursts (e.g., SSB-based RRM measurement timing configuration (SMTC) or discovery burst transmission window (DBTW) periods) 908.

[0156] In the event that SSB#i is unavailable due to an LBT failure in SSB burst #1 (902), the UE can be configured to extend the measurement period or window to continue its LBT measurements in accordance with the conventions of the LBT beam management procedure. In doing so, the UE can receive SSB burst #2 (904) (and even SSB burst #3 (906)) during the extended measurement period. However, the UE may also need to determine which receive beam to use during the extended measurement period and may include a new SSB burst #2. In addition and / or alternatively, the UE may need to determine how many SSB bursts are required for the extended measurement period corresponding to the UE's receive beam scanning mode. Therefore, the implementation described below attempts to address these requirements.

[0157] Methods for extending beam measurement period in response to LBT fault detection

[0158] The implementation described herein provides a mechanism for mitigating Listen-After-Talk (LBT) conflicts in unlicensed spectrum. A wireless device can receive one or more Synchronization Signal Blocks (SSBs) from a base station (BS) as part of an LBT procedure. The wireless device can identify one or more LBT faults associated with one or more receive beams of the wireless device. Furthermore, in response to identifying the one or more LBT faults associated with the one or more receive beams of the wireless device, the wireless device can extend the measurement period of the one or more receive beams of the wireless device. The wireless device can then receive one or more additional SSBs on the one or more receive beams of the wireless device.

[0159] For example, in some implementations, the UE may need to extend the measurement period for one received beam. On the other hand, according to some implementations, the UE may need to extend the measurement period for all received beams in the scanning mode. As an example, the wireless device may specifically extend the beam measurement period for beams experiencing LBT failures, for example, such as... Figure 11 As shown. As another example, a wireless device can extend the beam measurement period for all received beams in response to determining an LBT failure or an unavailable SSB, for example, as... Figure 12 As shown. As another example, a wireless device can abandon extending the beam measurement period in response to determining that the number of LBT failures has not exceeded a threshold, for example, as... Figure 13 As shown.

[0160] Figure 10 -Exemplary methods for extending beam measurement period

[0161] Figure 10 A block diagram is shown of an exemplary method for extending the beam measurement period in response to determining an LBT fault, according to some implementation schemes. Figure 10 The method shown can be used in conjunction with any system or device shown in the figure, as well as other devices. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown may be executed concurrently in a different order than that shown, or may be omitted. Additional method elements may also be executed as needed. As shown in the figure, the method operates as follows.

[0162] In 1002, a UE (such as UE 106) can receive synchronization signal block (SSB) bursts from a base station (such as base station 102) while simultaneously performing a listen-before-tell (LBT) procedure. For example, to perform measurements necessary to assess available and / or compatible channels and / or cells, the UE can perform measurements on the SSBs received from one or more cells. In doing so, the UE can determine, for example, whether it can utilize the associated channel and / or cell based on the time and frequency resources determined by measuring the SSBs. In other words, the UE can determine whether its transmission and reception protocols are compatible with the associated cells of the base station. Furthermore, when the UE determines that its transmission and reception protocols are compatible with the base station, the UE can potentially attach to the base station's cell, for example, when that cell is available.

[0163] In step 1004, the UE can determine and / or experience an LBT failure associated with an unavailable SSB in a received SSB burst. For example, the UE can perform measurements corresponding to an SSB burst on an occupied channel. Therefore, the SSB in the SSB burst may be unavailable to the UE, indicating that the channel is occupied. In other words, a competing device (e.g., a Wi-Fi device or other UE) may have been attached and is utilizing the channel associated with that SSB burst and a specific SSB index. In addition and / or alternatively, the UE can determine which Rx beams may require extended measurement periods due to LBT failures. As an example, the UE can (optionally) extend the measurement period only for Rx beams that received unavailable SSBs in the SSB burst. In addition and / or alternatively, the UE can determine that the measurement period for all Rx beams should be extended, regardless of which Rx beams experienced an LBT failure.

[0164] In 1006, the UE can perform the measurement period extension in response to determining which Rx beams have their measurement periods extended (as described above in 1004). For example, the UE can extend the measurement period only for beams that have experienced LBT failures (as described above regarding...). Figure 11 (as described above). In addition and / or alternatively, the UE can extend the measurement period for all available Rx beams. In other words, the UE can restart from the first Rx beam and continue its Rx beam scanning procedure.

[0165] In 1008, the UE can receive additional SSB bursts (as previously determined at 1004) on a specific Rx beam and / or all Rx beams within its Rx beams, and the UE can perform additional measurements during the measurement extension period. Furthermore, if and / or when the UE encounters an additional LBT fault and / or an unavailable SSB during the measurement extension period, the UE can be further configured to repeat this method until it successfully measures the appropriate SSB burst associated with its Rx beam and / or does not exceed a fault threshold.

[0166] Figure 11 -Extension of beam measurement period corresponding to LBT failure

[0167] Figure 11 The specific beam extension beam measurement period for experiencing LBT failure is illustrated according to some implementation schemes.

[0168] For example, in some implementations, the UE can use the same receive beam across all quasi-co-located (QCL) SSB locations (e.g., with the same actual SSB index) within an SSB burst. Furthermore, the UE receive beam scan factor for mobility-based measurements can be defined as X (e.g., X ≥ 8). In this example, if m SSB bursts (or SSB-based RRM measurement timing configuration (SMTC)) are unavailable during the UE measurement period due to LBT failures, the measurement period extension can be defined as m SSB bursts. In other words, according to some implementations, the extended measurement period can correspond to m unavailable SSB bursts. Furthermore, within the extended SSB bursts of this measurement period, the UE can perform measurements by using the same receive beam as in the previously unavailable SSB bursts of this measurement period. In other words, if a UE encounters an SSB burst with an unavailable SSB during its measurement period... Figure 11 If the specific received beams shown (e.g., UE Rx beams #2 and #8) correspond to unavailable SSBs (e.g., SSBs #i and #8 (1104) in SSB burst #2 (1102)), then the UE can extend the measurement period of Rx beams #2 and #8 to perform additional measurements on new SSB bursts #9 (1106) and #10 (1108) respectively.

[0169] Furthermore, in this example, the total measurement period, including the measurement extension of the UE, can be defined as T. base +m*T SSB突发周期 *F scaling T base For the baseline measurement cycle without LBT failure (e.g., N SSB burst cycles / SMTC cycle), m is the SSB burst unavailable due to LBT failure, and F is the baseline measurement cycle without LBT failure. scaling To measure the resource sharing factor (e.g., carrier-specific scaling factor (CSSF)), and T SSB突发周期 It can be an SSB burst cycle, an SMTC cycle, or a discover burst transmission window (DBTW) cycle.

[0170] In some implementations, the UE may experience or identify additional LBT faults during extended measurement periods. For example, after extending the measurement periods for Rx beams #2 and #8 to perform additional measurements for new SSB bursts #9 (1106) and #10 (1108) respectively, if the UE encounters an LBT fault in SSB bursts 1106 and 1108 during extended measurement periods, it may be necessary to further extend the already extended measurement periods. In other words, if a particular beam continues to experience LBT faults or has an unavailable SSB, the UE can be configured to extend the measurement periods multiple times for that particular Rx beam.

[0171] Furthermore, if the number of SSB bursts or SMTCs used for extension has exceeded the maximum extension value or threshold (e.g., maximum extension value Y), and the number of available SSB bursts or SMTCs still cannot reach the total number of Rx beams N, the UE can be configured to restart the measurement from scratch according to some implementation schemes. In doing so, the UE may discard (e.g., drop) all previously received samples from the physical layer (PHY).

[0172] Additionally, according to some implementations, if the number of available measurement SSB bursts in the extended total measurement period is greater than a certain percentage (e.g., k%*N, where k can be a defined or configured percentage value), the UE can use the available measurement SSBs to determine the measurement result. Alternatively, if the total number of LBT failures is less than k% of the maximum number of received beams N, the UE can be configured to determine the measurement result based on the SSBs of successful (e.g., non-failed) receptions.

[0173] However, if the number of available measurement SSB bursts in the extended total measurement period is less than k%*N, or if the total number of LBT failures is greater than k% of the maximum number of received beams N, the UE can restart the measurement from scratch as previously described and eventually discard the previously received physical layer (PHY) samples.

[0174] Figure 12 -Extension of beam measurement period for all received beams

[0175] Figure 12 The diagram illustrates how, according to some implementations, the beam measurement period for all received beams is extended in response to determining an LBT failure or an unavailable SSB.

[0176] Similar to the above text about Figure 11 The extended measurement period allows the UE to use the same receive beam across all quasi-co-located (QCL) SSB locations (e.g., those with the same actual SSB index) within an SSB burst. Furthermore, the UE receive beam scanning factor for mobility-based measurements can be defined as X (e.g., X ≥ 8). In some implementations, if m SSB bursts (or SMTCs) are unavailable or determined to be unavailable during the UE measurement period due to LBT failures, the measurement period extension can be defined as m * X or... Burst. More specifically, in some implementations, the upper limit factor or value may correspond to the maximum number of beam scans of the UE. In this example, during an extended SSB burst in this measurement period, the UE can perform measurements using Rx beam scans of all possible Rx beams. In other words, unlike extending the measurement period only for Rx beams corresponding to LBT failures or unavailable SSBs, the UE can be configured to extend the measurement period for all received beams of the UE, regardless of whether all Rx beams have experienced an LBT failure.

[0177] According to such Figure 12 In some of the embodiments shown, if an unavailable SSB corresponding to a specific received beam (e.g., SSBs #i and #8 in SSB burst #2 (1202) (1204)) is encountered during the UE's measurement period, the UE can extend the measurement period for all Rx beams to perform additional measurements on the new SSB burst. For example, after determining an LBT fault associated with Rx beams #2 and #8, the UE can extend the measurement period for all its Rx beams and start again with Rx beams #1 and #2, and the UE can perform additional measurements on SSB burst #9 (1206) and SSB burst #10 (1208) respectively in the extended measurement window.

[0178] Furthermore, in this example, the total measurement period, including the measurement extension of the UE, can be defined as T. base +m*X*T SSB突发周期 *F scaling or Where T baseFor the baseline measurement period without LBT failure (e.g., N SSB burst periods or SMTC periods), m is the SSB burst unavailable due to LBT failure, and F is the baseline measurement period without LBT failure. scaling To measure the resource sharing factor (e.g., carrier-specific scaling factor), and T SSB突发周期 It can be an SSB burst cycle, an SMTC cycle, or a DBTW cycle.

[0179] In some implementations, the UE may experience or identify additional LBT faults or unavailable SSBs during extended measurement periods. For example, after extending the measurement periods for all Rx beams #1 through #8 to perform additional measurements for a new SSB burst (due to one or more LBC faults), if the UE encounters an LBT fault in an SSB burst during an extended measurement period, it may be necessary to further extend the already extended measurement periods. In other words, if any beam encounters an additional LBT fault or an unavailable SSB during an extended measurement period, the UE can be configured to extend the measurement periods for all Rx beams multiple times.

[0180] Furthermore, if the number of SSB bursts or SMTCs used for extension has exceeded the maximum extension value or threshold (e.g., maximum extension value Y), and the number of available SSB bursts or SMTCs still cannot reach the total number of Rx beams N, the UE can be configured to restart the measurement from scratch according to some implementation schemes. In doing so, the UE may discard (e.g., drop) all previously received samples from the physical layer (PHY).

[0181] Additionally, according to some implementations, if the number of available measurement SSB bursts in the extended total measurement period is greater than a certain percentage (e.g., k%*N, where k can be a defined or configured percentage value), the UE can use the available measurement SSBs to determine the measurement result. Alternatively, if the total number of LBT failures is less than k% of the maximum number of received beams N, the UE can be configured to determine the measurement result based on the SSBs of successful (e.g., non-failed) receptions.

[0182] However, if the number of available measurement SSB bursts in the extended total measurement period is less than k%*N, or if the total number of LBT failures is greater than k% of the maximum number of received beams N, the UE can restart the measurement from scratch as previously described and eventually discard the previously received physical layer (PHY) samples.

[0183] Figure 13 - Because it does not exceed the threshold, the beam measurement period is not prolonged.

[0184] Figure 13illustrates the ability of a wireless device, according to some embodiments, to optionally not extend a beam measurement period in response to determining that the number of LBT failures does not exceed a threshold.

[0185] As described with respect to Figure 11 and Figure 12 similarly, a wireless device (e.g., a user equipment (UE)) may use the same receive beam at all quasi - co - located (QCL) SSB positions (e.g., having the same actual SSB index) within an SSB burst. Additionally, a UE receive beam scan factor for mobility - based measurements may be defined as X (e.g., X≥8). In some embodiments, if m SSB bursts or SMTCs are unavailable in a UE measurement period due to LBT failures (e.g., unavailable SSBs) and m < X1 (where X1≤X), then measurement period extension may not be necessary. In other words, if a UE experiences a certain number of LBT failures but is still within an acceptable measurement limit (e.g., does not exceed a threshold (m < X1)), the UE may still be able to successfully complete its LBT beam scan measurements and initiate an appropriate attachment procedure to the corresponding cell.

[0186] For example, according to some embodiments as shown in Figure 13 a UE may experience multiple LBT failures associated with Rx beam #2 and Rx beam #8 due to unavailable SSB#i in SSB burst #2 and SSB burst #8, respectively. However, since the X1 threshold is 8 and the number of unavailable SSB bursts, m, is 2 in this example, the UE may optionally not extend the measurement period. Thus, since the number of unavailable SSB bursts, m, is less than the threshold, the UE can continue the LBT process without extending the measurement window and does not continue its measurements using UE Rx beam #1 and SSB burst #9 and UE Rx beam #2 and SSB burst #10, as outlined in Figure 13 at 1302.

[0187] Alternatively, in some embodiments, if m SSB bursts or SMTCs are unavailable in a UE measurement period due to LBT failures (e.g., unavailable SSBs) and m≥X1 (where X1≤X), measurement period extension may be necessary and is characterized by a burst period. More specifically, in some embodiments, a lower - bound factor or value may correspond to a predefined beam scan factor of the UE. Additionally, the predefined beam scan factor of the UE may be less than or equal to the maximum beam scan number of the UE. Further, if the UE does extend the measurement period and receives an extended SSB burst, the UE may perform measurements by using all possible receive beams (Rx beams). Additionally, the total extended measurement period may be defined as where, as described above, T baseFor the baseline measurement period without LBT failure (e.g., N SSB burst periods or SMTC periods), m is the SSB burst unavailable due to LBT failure, and F is the baseline measurement period without LBT failure. scaling To measure the resource sharing factor (e.g., carrier-specific scaling factor (CSSF)), and T SSB突发周期 It can be an SSB burst cycle, an SMTC cycle, or a DBTW cycle.

[0188] Furthermore, in some implementations, when the UE extends the measurement period, the UE may encounter additional LBT failures or unavailable SSBs within the extended window. In this case, the UE can be further configured to apply the same procedure again for another period extension, where the number of SSB bursts or SMTCs will be based on... The conclusion is as follows.

[0189] Furthermore, if the number of SSB bursts or SMTCs used for extension has exceeded the maximum extension value or threshold (e.g., maximum extension value Y), and the number of available SSB bursts or SMTCs still cannot reach the total number of Rx beams N, the UE can be configured to restart the measurement from scratch according to some implementation schemes. In doing so, the UE may discard (e.g., drop) all previously received samples from the physical layer (PHY).

[0190] Additionally, according to some implementations, if the number of available measurement SSB bursts in the extended total measurement period is greater than a certain percentage (e.g., k%*N, where k can be a defined or configured percentage value), the UE can use the available measurement SSBs to determine the measurement result. Alternatively, if the total number of LBT failures is less than k% of the maximum number of received beams N, the UE can be configured to determine the measurement result based on the SSBs of successful (e.g., non-failed) receptions.

[0191] However, if the number of available measurement SSB bursts in the extended total measurement period is less than k%*N, or if the total number of LBT failures is greater than k% of the maximum number of received beams N, the UE can restart the measurement from scratch as previously described and eventually discard the previously received physical layer (PHY) samples.

[0192] Figure 14 - A method to extend the wavelength measurement period in response to LBT fault detection (using optional threshold measurement)

[0193] Figure 14 A block diagram is shown as an example of a method for extending the beam measurement period in response to determining an LBT fault, and optionally including a threshold measurement, according to some implementation schemes. Figure 14The method shown can be used in conjunction with any of the systems or devices shown in the above figures, as well as other devices. In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown may be executed concurrently in a different order than that shown, or may be omitted. Additional method elements may also be executed as needed. As shown, the method operates as follows.

[0194] At 1402, the UE (such as UE 106) can receive synchronization signal block (SSB) bursts from a base station (such as base station 102) while performing a listen-before-tell (LBT) procedure. For example, to perform measurements necessary to assess available and / or compatible channels and / or cells, the UE can perform measurements on the SSBs received from one or more cells. In doing so, the UE can determine, for example, whether it can utilize the associated channel and / or cell based on the time and frequency resources determined by measuring the SSBs. In other words, the UE can determine whether its transmission and reception protocols are compatible with the associated cell of the base station. Furthermore, when the UE determines that its transmission and reception protocols are compatible with the base station, the UE can potentially attach to the base station's cell, for example, when that cell is available.

[0195] At 1404, the UE can determine and / or experience an LBT failure associated with an unavailable SSB in the received SSB burst. For example, the UE can perform a measurement corresponding to an SSB burst on an occupied channel. Therefore, the SSB in the SSB burst may be unavailable to the UE, indicating that the channel is occupied. In other words, a competing device (e.g., a Wi-Fi device or other UE) may have been attached and is utilizing the channel associated with that SSB burst and the specific SSB index.

[0196] At 1406, the UE can (optionally) choose to compare a threshold (e.g., an upper limit for LBT failures) with the number of unavailable SSBs (e.g., LBT failures). For example, if and / or when the number of encountered LBT failures does not exceed the threshold, the UE can be configured to continue LBT operation normally even after encountering multiple LBT failures. Alternatively, if and / or when the number of LBT failures exceeds the threshold, the UE can be configured to apply the threshold and extend the measurement period of its received beam (Rx beam). Therefore, the UE can apply or not apply such a threshold, thus allowing for configurations up to 1408a and / or 1408b.

[0197] For example, the UE can be configured not to utilize a threshold and proceed to step 1408a to determine which Rx beams may require extended measurement periods due to LBT failures. As an example, the UE can (optionally) extend the measurement period only for Rx beams that receive an unavailable SSB in an SSB burst. In addition and / or alternatively, the UE can be configured to extend the measurement period for all Rx beams, regardless of which Rx beams experienced an LBT failure.

[0198] At 1410a, when the UE is configured not to utilize a threshold in its measurement period extension procedure, it can perform the measurement period extension in response to determining the Rx beam for which the measurement period should be extended. For example, the UE can extend the measurement period only for beams that have experienced LBT failures (as mentioned above regarding...). Figure 11 (as described above). In addition and / or alternatively, the UE can extend the measurement period for all available Rx beams. In other words, the UE can restart from the first Rx beam and continue its Rx beam scanning procedure. Thus, the UE can then proceed to 1412.

[0199] Alternatively, when the UE is configured to compare one or more LBT faults with a fault threshold, the UE can proceed from 1406 to 1408b, where the UE can determine whether an LBT fault threshold has been exceeded. For example, as mentioned above... Figure 13 The UE can compare the number of LBT faults with a threshold, and if and / or when the number of LBT faults m is less than the fault threshold X1 (where X1 ≤ X), it can determine that the measurement period should not be extended, where X can be defined as the UE Rx beam scan period (typically in...). Figures 11 to 13 The discussion shows X = 8). Therefore, in this example where the number of LBT failures does not exceed the threshold X1, the UE can then proceed to step 1014 to complete the LBT procedure for remaining resource reservation and / or successful connection to the cell. Alternatively, if the number of LBT failures exceeds the failure threshold X1 (where X1 ≤ X), the UE can proceed to step 1410b.

[0200] In some implementations, the UE can be configured to apply a fault threshold and determine when that threshold exceeds the determined number of LBT faults. Therefore, the UE can extend the measurement period / window for all receive (Rx) beams at 1410b. In other words, when the UE determines that the fault threshold has been exceeded, the UE can extend the measurement period for all Rx beams of the UE, rather than only for certain Rx beams corresponding to certain LBT faults. Therefore, after extending the measurement window in response to detecting a number of LBT faults exceeding the threshold, the UE can proceed to 1412.

[0201] At 1412, the UE can receive additional SSB bursts (as previously determined at 1408a) on specific and / or all Rx beams within its Rx beams, and the UE can perform additional measurements during the measurement extension period. Furthermore, if and / or when the UE encounters an additional LBT fault and / or an unavailable SSB during the measurement extension period, the UE can be further configured to repeat this method until it successfully measures the appropriate SSB burst associated with its Rx beam and / or does not exceed a fault threshold.

[0202] At 1414, the UE can complete its LBT procedure for reserving remaining resources and / or attempting to attach to an available cell.

[0203] As is widely recognized, the use of personally identifiable information should comply with privacy policies and practices that are generally accepted to meet or exceed industry or governmental requirements for protecting user privacy. Specifically, personally identifiable information data should be managed and processed to minimize the risk of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of authorized use should be clearly explained to users.

[0204] Embodiments of this disclosure may be implemented in any of a variety of forms. For example, some embodiments may be implemented as computer-implemented methods, computer-readable storage media, or computer systems. Other embodiments may be implemented using one or more custom-designed hardware devices such as ASICs. Other embodiments may be implemented using one or more programmable hardware elements such as FPGAs.

[0205] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may be configured to store program instructions and / or data, wherein if the program instructions are executed by a computer system, the computer system performs a method, such as any method embodiment of the method embodiments described herein, or any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or any subset or combination of any such subset of any method embodiments described herein.

[0206] In some implementations, the device (e.g., UE 106) may be configured to include a processor (or a set of processors) and a memory medium, wherein the memory medium stores program instructions, and the processor is configured to read from and execute the program instructions from the memory medium, wherein the program instructions are executable to implement any of the various method implementations described herein (or any combination of method implementations described herein, or any subset of any method implementations described herein, or any combination of such subsets). The device may be implemented in any of a variety of forms.

[0207] By interpreting each message / signal X received by the user equipment (UE) in the downlink as a message / signal X transmitted by the base station, and interpreting each message / signal Y transmitted by the UE in the uplink as a message / signal Y received by the base station, any method described herein for operating the UE can serve as the basis for a corresponding method for operating the base station.

[0208] Although the above embodiments have been described in considerable detail, many variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the disclosure is fully understood. This disclosure is intended to render the following claims as encompassing all such variations and modifications.

Claims

1. An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising: At least one processor, the at least one processor being configured to equip the user with a UE: Receive one or more synchronization signal blocks SSB on one or more receiving beams as part of a measurement procedure with Listen-Before-Speak (LBT); Determine that one or more SSB-based Radio Resource Management (RRM) timing configuration windows (SMTC) are unavailable during the UE measurement cycle; In response to determining that the one or more SMTCs are unavailable in the UE measurement period, the measurement period is determined based on the following: baseline measurement period, carrier-specific scaling factor value, SMTC period value, UE receive Rx beam scanning factor, and the value based on the unavailability of the one or more SMTCs in the UE measurement period; as well as Use the determined measurement cycle to perform the measurement.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the measurement is performed in a spectrum above 52.6 GHz.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the subcarrier spacing of the one or more SSBs is one of 480 kHz or 960 kHz.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more SMTCs are unavailable during the UE measurement cycle due to one or more LBT failures.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the baseline measurement period is a certain number of SMTC periods.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, The measurement period is based on a lower limit factor corresponding to the ratio of one or more LBT faults to a threshold, and the threshold is less than or equal to the maximum number of the one or more receive beams.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, If the measurement period exceeds the maximum extension value and the total number of other received beams of the one or more received beams is less than the maximum number of received beams of the one or more received beams, wherein the other received beams are not associated with one or more LBT faults, then the at least one processor is further configured to: Discard physical layer samples received on one or more of the receiving beams; and Restart the measurement procedure with LBT.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, If the measurement period exceeds the maximum extension value and the total number of other received beams of the one or more received beams is greater than the percentage of the maximum number of received beams of the one or more received beams, wherein the other received beams are not associated with one or more LBT faults, then the at least one processor is further configured to: The measurement results are determined based on the SSBs received on the other receiving beams.

9. A user equipment (UE), comprising: At least one antenna; At least one radio component, wherein the at least one radio component is configured to perform cellular communication using at least one radio access technology (RAT); One or more processors, said one or more processors being coupled to said at least one radio component, wherein said one or more processors and said at least one radio component are configured to perform voice and / or data communication; The one or more processors are configured such that the UE: Receive one or more synchronization signal blocks SSB on one or more receiving beams as part of a measurement procedure with Listen-Before-Speak (LBT); Determine that one or more SSB-based Radio Resource Management (RRM) timing configuration windows (SMTC) are unavailable during the UE measurement cycle; In response to determining that the one or more SMTCs are unavailable in the UE measurement period, the measurement period is determined based on the following: baseline measurement period, carrier-specific scaling factor value, SMTC period value, UE receive Rx beam scanning factor, and the value based on the unavailability of the one or more SMTCs in the UE measurement period; Use the determined measurement cycle to perform the measurement.

10. The UE of claim 9, wherein the measurement is performed in a spectrum above 52.6 GHz.

11. The UE of claim 10, wherein the subcarrier spacing of the one or more SSBs is one of 480 kHz or 960 kHz.

12. The UE of claim 9, wherein the one or more SMTCs are unavailable during the UE measurement cycle due to one or more LBT failures.

13. The UE according to claim 9, The baseline measurement period is a certain number of SMTC periods.

14. The UE according to claim 9, The measurement period is based on a lower limit factor corresponding to the ratio of one or more LBT faults to a threshold, and the threshold is less than or equal to the maximum number of the one or more receive beams.

15. The UE according to claim 9, If the measurement period exceeds the maximum extension value and the total number of other received beams of the one or more received beams is less than the maximum number of received beams of the one or more received beams, wherein the other received beams are not associated with one or more LBT faults, then the one or more processors are further configured to: Discard physical layer samples received on one or more of the receiving beams; and Restart the measurement procedure with LBT.

16. The UE according to claim 9, If the measurement period exceeds the maximum extension value and the total number of other received beams of the one or more received beams is greater than the percentage of the maximum number of received beams of the one or more received beams, wherein the other received beams are not associated with one or more LBT faults, then the one or more processors are further configured to: The measurement results are determined based on the SSBs received on the other receiving beams.

17. A method for wireless communication, the method comprising: The user equipment (UE) receives one or more synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) on one or more receive beams as part of a measurement procedure with listen-before-speak (LBT). The UE determines that one or more SSB-based Radio Resource Management (RRM) Timing Configuration Window (SMTC) is unavailable during the UE measurement period; The UE determines the measurement period based on the following in response to determining that one or more SMTCs are unavailable in the UE measurement period: baseline measurement period, carrier-specific scaling factor value, SMTC period value, UE receive Rx beam scanning factor, and the value based on the unavailability of one or more SMTCs in the UE measurement period; as well as The UE performs the measurement using the determined measurement period.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the measurement is performed in a spectrum above 52.6 GHz.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the subcarrier spacing of the one or more SSBs is one of 480 kHz or 960 kHz.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the one or more SMTCs are unavailable during the UE measurement cycle due to one or more LBT failures.

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