NR MIMO Operation Enhancements

Abstract

Embodiments of an apparatus, system, and method for a user equipment device (UE) to establish a cellular connection with a base station are provided herein. The UE may receive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink configuration information from the base station. The MIMO configuration information may indicate multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) resources. The UE may receive downlink control information (DCI) from the base station, the DCI may specify multiple MIMO parameters. The UE may perform uplink MIMO communication with the base station based on the MIMO configuration and the multiple MIMO parameters.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to wireless devices, and more particularly to apparatuses, systems, and methods for obtaining on-demand system information.

[0002] Related technical description

[0003] The use of wireless communication systems is rapidly increasing. Wireless devices, particularly wireless user equipment (UE), have become widespread. Furthermore, there are a variety of applications (or apps) hosted on UEs that perform or rely on wireless communication, such as applications that provide messaging, email, browsing, video streaming, short videos, voice streaming, real-time gaming, or various other online services.

[0004] Increased reliability in these communication systems is desirable. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Embodiments of an apparatus, system, and method for a user equipment device (UE) to establish a cellular connection with a base station are disclosed herein. The UE may receive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink configuration information from the base station. The MIMO configuration information may indicate multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) resources. The UE may receive downlink control information (DCI) from the base station, which may specify multiple MIMO parameters. The UE may perform uplink MIMO communication with the base station based on the MIMO configuration and the multiple MIMO parameters.

[0006] In some embodiments, the non-transitory memory medium may include program instructions executable by the UE, which, when executed, cause the UE to perform at least some or all of the above operations. In some embodiments, the method performed by the UE may include the UE performing the above operations. In some embodiments, the method performed by the base station or network element may include the base station or network element performing the corresponding operations.

[0007] This summary is intended to provide a brief overview of some of the subject matter described in this document. Therefore, it should be understood that the above-described features are merely examples and should not be construed as narrowing the scope or spirit of the subject matter described herein in any way. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter described herein will become apparent from the following detailed description, accompanying drawings, and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] A better understanding of the embodiments disclosed herein may be obtained when the following detailed description is considered in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0009] Figure 1 illustrates an exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments;

[0010] Figure 2 shows a base station (BS) in communication with a user equipment (UE) device according to some embodiments;

[0011] Figure 3 An exemplary block diagram illustrating a UE according to some embodiments is shown;

[0012] Figure 4 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a BS according to some embodiments;

[0013] Figure 5 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of cellular communication circuitry according to some embodiments;

[0014] Figure 6 and Figure 7 illustrates an example of a 5G NR base station (gNB) according to some embodiments;

[0015] Figure 8 illustrates an exemplary wireless network in communication with a UE according to some embodiments;

[0016] Figure 9 shows an exemplary assignment of SRS resource identities across two SRS resource sets according to some embodiments;

[0017] Figure 10 shows an exemplary guard interval for SRS resources according to some embodiments; and

[0018] Figure 11 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method for MIMO configuration according to some embodiments.

[0019] While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. However, it should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereof are not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Acronyms

[0021] The following acronyms are used in this patent application:

[0022] UE: User Equipment

[0023] BS: Base Station

[0024] ENB: eNodeB (base station)

[0025] LTE: Long Term Evolution

[0026] UMTS: Universal Mobile Telecommunications System

[0027] RAT: Radio Access Technology

[0028] RAN: Radio Access Network

[0029] E-UTRAN: Evolved UMTS Terrestrial RAN

[0030] CN: Core Network

[0031] EPC: Evolved Packet Core

[0032] MME: Mobility Management Entity

[0033] HSS: Home Subscriber Server

[0034] SGW: Serving Gateway

[0035] PS: Packet Switching

[0036] CS: Circuit Switched

[0037] EPS: Evolved Packet Switching System

[0038] RRC: Radio Resource Control

[0039] IE: Information Element

[0040] QoS: Quality of Service

[0041] QoE: Quality of Experience

[0042] TFT: Traffic Flow Template

[0043] RSVP: Resource Reservation Protocol

[0044] API: Application Programming Interface

[0045] the term

[0046] The following is a glossary of terms used in this patent application:

[0047] Memory Medium—Any of various types of memory devices or storage devices. The term "memory medium" is intended to include installation media, such as CD-ROMs, floppy disks 104, or 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, such as hard drives or optical storage devices; registers, or other similar types of memory elements; and the like. Memory media may also include other types of memory or a combination thereof. Furthermore, a memory medium may be located in a first computer executing a program, or in a different second computer connected to the first computer via a network, such as the Internet. In the latter case, the second computer may provide the program instructions to the first computer for execution. The term "memory medium" may include two or more memory media that may reside in different locations, such as in different computers connected via a network.

[0048] Computer system—any of various types of computing or processing systems, including a personal computer system (PC), mainframe computer system, workstation, network appliance, Internet appliance, personal digital assistant (PDA), television system, grid computing system, or other device or combination of devices. 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.

[0049] User Equipment (UE) (or "UE device") - any of various types of computer systems or devices that are mobile or portable and that perform wireless communication. Examples of UE devices include mobile phones or smartphones (e.g., iPhones, TM , based on Android TM phones), tablet computers (e.g., iPad TM 、Samsung Galaxy TM ), portable gaming devices (e.g., Nintendo DS TM PlayStation Portable TM 、Gameboy Advance TM , iPhone TM), wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart glasses), laptops, PDAs, portable Internet devices, music players, data storage devices, other handheld devices, cars and / or motor vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) (e.g., drones), UAV controllers (UACs), etc. In general, the term "UE" or "UE device" can be broadly defined to cover any electronic device, computing device, and / or telecommunication device (or combination of these devices) that is easily transportable by a user and capable of wireless communication.

[0050] Processing Element—refers to any element or combination of elements capable of performing a function in a device such as user equipment or a cellular network device. A processing element may include, for example, a processor and associated memory, portions or circuits of individual processor cores, entire processor cores, processor arrays, circuits such as ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), programmable hardware elements such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and any combination thereof.

[0051] Figure 1 and Figure 2 —Communications system

[0052] Figure 1 1 shows a simplified exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments. Note that Figure 1 The system is only one example of a possible system, and features of the present disclosure may be implemented in any of a variety of systems as desired.

[0053] As shown, the exemplary wireless communication system includes a base station 102 that communicates with one or more user devices 106A, 106B, etc., through 106N via a transmission medium. Each of the user devices may be referred to herein as a "user equipment" (UE). Therefore, user device 106 is referred to as a UE or UE device.

[0054] Base station (BS) 102 may be a base transceiver station (BTS) or a cell site ("cellular base station") and may include hardware that enables wireless communications with UEs 106A through 106N.

[0055] The communication area (or coverage area) of a base station may be referred to as a "cell". The base station 102 and the UE 106 may be configured to communicate over a transmission medium using any of a variety of radio access technologies (RATs), also known as wireless communication technologies or telecommunication standards, such as GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), 5G New Radio (5G NR), 6G, HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), and the like. Note that if the base station 102 is implemented in the context of LTE, it may alternatively be referred to as an "eNodeB" or "eNB". Note that if the base station 102 is implemented in the context of 5G NR, it may alternatively be referred to as a 'gNodeB' or 'gNB'.

[0056] As shown, base station 102 may also be configured to communicate with network 100 (e.g., a core network of a cellular service provider, a telecommunications network such as a public switched telephone network (PSTN), and / or the Internet, among other possibilities). Thus, base station 102 may facilitate communications between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. In particular, cellular base station 102 may provide UE 106 with various telecommunications capabilities, such as voice, short message service (SMS), and / or data services.

[0057] Base station 102 and other similar base stations operating according to the same or different cellular communication standards may thus provide a network of cells that can provide continuous or nearly continuous overlapping service to UEs 106A-106N and similar devices over a geographic area via one or more cellular communication standards.

[0058] Thus, although base station 102 may function as Figure 1 106N, each UE 106 may also be capable of receiving signals from (and possibly within communication range of) one or more other cells (possibly provided by other base stations 102B-102N), which may be referred to as "neighboring cells." Such cells may also be capable of facilitating communications between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. Such cells may include "macro" cells, "micro" cells, "pico" cells, and / or cells of any other variety of granularities providing service area sizes. Other configurations are also possible.

[0059] In some embodiments, base station 102 may be a next-generation base station, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station, or "gNB." In some embodiments, a gNB may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to an NR core (NRC) network. Furthermore, a gNB cell may include one or more transition and reception points (TRPs). Furthermore, a UE capable of operating in accordance with 5G NR may connect to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0060] It is noted that the UE 106 is capable of communicating 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.), the 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). If desired, the 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 broadcast standards (e.g., Advanced Television Systems Committee - Mobile / Handheld (ATSC-M / H)), and / or any other wireless communication protocols. Other combinations of wireless communication standards (including more than two wireless communication standards) are also possible.

[0061] Figure 2 A user equipment 106 (e.g., one of devices 106A-106N) is shown in accordance with some embodiments in communication with base station 102. UE 106 may be a device with cellular communication capabilities, such as a mobile phone, handheld device, computer or tablet, or virtually any type of wireless device.

[0062] The UE 106 may include a processor configured to execute program instructions stored in a memory. The UE 106 may perform any of the method embodiments described herein by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively or in addition, the UE 106 may include a programmable hardware element, such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA) configured to perform any of the method embodiments described herein or any portion of any of the method embodiments described herein.

[0063] UE 106 may include one or more antennas for communicating using one or more wireless communication protocols or technologies. In some embodiments, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using, for example, CDMA2000 (1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD) or LTE using a single shared radio and / or GSM or LTE using a single shared radio. The shared radio may be coupled to a single antenna, or may be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., for a multiple-input, multiple-output, or "multiple-input, multiple-output" (MIMO) antenna system) for performing wireless communications. Typically, the radio may include any combination of a 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 may implement one or more receive chains and transmit chains using the aforementioned hardware. For example, UE 106 may share one or more portions of a receive chain and / or transmit chain between multiple wireless communication technologies such as those discussed above.

[0064] In some embodiments, UE 106 may include any number of antennas and may be configured to use the antennas to transmit and / or receive directional wireless signals (e.g., beams). Similarly, BS 102 may also include any number of antennas and may be configured to use the antennas to transmit and / or receive directional wireless signals (e.g., beams). To receive and / or transmit such directional signals, the antennas of UE 106 and / or BS 102 may be configured to apply different "weights" to different antennas. The process of applying these different weights may be referred to as "precoding."

[0065] In some embodiments, the UE 106 may include a separate transmit chain and / or receive chain (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol with which it is configured to communicate. As another possibility, the UE 106 may include one or more radio components shared between multiple wireless communication protocols, and one or more radio components used uniquely by a single wireless communication protocol. For example, the UE 106 may include a shared radio component for communicating using either LTE or 5GNR (or LTE or 1xRTT, or LTE or GSM) and a separate radio component for communicating using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are also possible.

[0066] Figure 3 —UE block diagram

[0067] Figure 3 1 shows an exemplary simplified block diagram of a communication device 106 according to some embodiments. Note that Figure 3The block diagram of the communication device is only an example of a possible communication device. According to an embodiment, the communication device 106 can be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (such as a laptop computer, a notebook or a portable computing device), a tablet computer and / or a combination of devices, in addition to other devices. As shown, the communication device 106 may include a group of components 300 configured to perform core functions. For example, the group of components can be implemented as a system on a chip (SOC), which may include parts for various purposes. Alternatively, the group of components 300 can be implemented as a separate component or group of components for various purposes. This group of components 300 can be coupled to various other circuits of the communication device 106 (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly).

[0068] For example, the communication device 106 may include various types of memory (e.g., including NAND flash memory 310), input / output interfaces such as a connector I / F 320 (e.g., for connecting to a computer system; a docking station; a charging station; input devices such as a microphone, a camera, a keyboard; output devices such as a speaker; etc.), a display 360 that may be integrated with the communication device 106 or external to the communication device 106, and cellular communication circuitry 330 such as for 5G NR, LTE, GSM, etc., and short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 (e.g., Bluetooth TM and WLAN circuitry). In some embodiments, the communication device 106 may include wired communication circuitry (not shown), such as, for example, a network interface card for Ethernet.

[0069] Cellular communication circuitry 330 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as antenna 335 and antenna 336, as shown. Short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 may also be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as antennas 337 and 338, as shown. Alternatively, short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to antenna 335 and antenna 336, in addition to or in lieu of being (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to antenna 337 and antenna 338. Short-range to medium-range wireless communication circuitry 329 and / or cellular communication circuitry 330 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.

[0070] In some embodiments, as further described below, the cellular communication circuitry 330 can include dedicated receive chains (including and / or (e.g., communicatively, directly or indirectly) coupled to a dedicated processor and / or radio) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). Furthermore, in some embodiments, the cellular communication circuitry 330 can include a single transmit chain that can switch between radios dedicated to specific RATs. For example, a first radio can be dedicated to a first RAT, such as LTE, and can communicate with a dedicated receive chain as well as a transmit chain shared with an additional radio, such as a second radio that can be dedicated to a second RAT (e.g., 5G NR) and can communicate with both the dedicated receive chain and the shared transmit chain.

[0071] The communication device 106 may also include and / or be configured for use with one or more user interface elements. User interface elements may include various elements such as a display 360 (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 speakers, one or more cameras, one or more buttons, and / or any of a variety of other elements capable of providing information to a user and / or receiving or interpreting user input.

[0072] The communication device 106 may also include one or more smart cards 345 having SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) functionality, such as one or more UICC cards (Universal Integrated Circuit Cards) 345 .

[0073] As shown, the SOC 300 may include a processor 302 that may execute program instructions for the communication device 106 and a display circuit 304 that may perform graphics processing and provide display signals to a display 360. The processor 302 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 340 (the MMU 340 may be configured to receive addresses from the processor 302 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 306, read-only memory (ROM) 350, NAND flash memory 310)) and / or to other circuits or devices (such as the display circuit 304, the short-range wireless communication circuit 229, the cellular communication circuit 330, the connector I / F 320, and / or the display 360). The MMU 340 may be configured to perform memory protection and page table translation or setup. In some embodiments, the MMU 340 may be included as part of the processor 302.

[0074] As described above, the communication device 106 can be configured to communicate using wireless and / or wired communication circuitry. The communication device 106 can be configured to transmit a request to attach to a first network node operating according to a first RAT and to transmit an indication that the wireless device is capable of maintaining substantially concurrent connections with the first network node and a second network node operating according to a second RAT. The wireless device can also be configured to transmit a request to attach to a second network node. The request can include an indication that the wireless device is capable of maintaining substantially concurrent connections with the first and second network nodes. In addition, the wireless device can be configured to receive an indication that dual connectivity (DC) has been established with the first and second network nodes.

[0075] As described herein, the communication device 106 may include hardware and software components for implementing features that use multiplexing to perform transmissions according to multiple radio access technologies in the same frequency carrier (e.g., and / or multiple frequency carriers) and various other technologies described herein. The processor 302 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), the processor 302 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or in addition), the processor 302 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein, in combination with one or more of the other components 300, 304, 306, 310, 320, 329, 330, 340, 345, 350, 360.

[0076] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 302 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processor 302 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 302. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 302.

[0077] Furthermore, as described herein, the cellular communication circuitry 330 and the short-range wireless communication circuitry 329 may each include one or more processing elements and / or processors. In other words, one or more processing elements / processors may be included in the cellular communication circuitry 330, and similarly, one or more processing elements / processors may be included in the short-range wireless communication circuitry 329. Thus, the cellular communication circuitry 330 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the cellular communication circuitry 330. 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 circuitry 330. Similarly, the short-range wireless communication circuitry 329 may include one or more ICs configured to perform the functions of the short-range wireless communication circuitry 329. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the short-range wireless communication circuitry 329.

[0078] Figure 4 —Block diagram of a base station

[0079] Figure 4 1 shows an exemplary block diagram of a base station 102 according to some embodiments. Note that Figure 4 The base station 102 is only one example of a possible base station. As shown, the base station 102 may include a processor 404 that may execute program instructions for the base station 102. The processor 404 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 440 or other circuit or device that may be configured to receive addresses from the processor 404 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 460 and read-only memory (ROM) 450).

[0080] The base station 102 may include at least one network port 470. The network port 470 may be configured to couple to a telephone network and provide access to the telephone network as described above. Figure 1 and Figure 2 Multiple devices of the telephone network described in, such as UE device 106.

[0081] The network port 470 (or an additional network port) may also or alternatively be configured to couple to a cellular network, such as a core network of a cellular service provider. The core network may provide mobility-related services and / or other services to multiple devices, such as the UE device 106. In some cases, the network port 470 may couple 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).

[0082] In some embodiments, base station 102 may be a next-generation base station, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station, or "gNB." In such embodiments, 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 reception points (TRPs). Furthermore, a UE capable of operating in accordance with 5G NR may connect to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0083] Base station 102 may include at least one antenna 434 and possibly multiple antennas. Radio 430 and at least one antenna 434 may be configured to operate as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with UE device 106. Antenna 434 may communicate with radio 430 via communication chain 432. Communication chain 432 may be a receive chain, a transmit chain, or both. Radio 430 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, and the like.

[0084] The base station 102 may be configured to perform wireless communications using multiple wireless communication standards. In some cases, the base station 102 may include multiple radios that enable the base station 102 to communicate according to multiple wireless communication technologies. For example, as one possibility, the base station 102 may include an LTE radio component for performing communications according to LTE and a 5G NR radio component for performing communications according to 5G NR. In this case, the base station 102 may be capable of operating as both an LTE base station and a 5G NR base station. As another possibility, the base station 102 may include a multimode radio component capable of performing communications according to any one of multiple wireless communication technologies (e.g., 5G NR and Wi-Fi, LTE and Wi-Fi, LTE and UMTS, LTE and CDMA2000, UMTS and GSM, etc.).

[0085] As further described later herein, BS 102 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting a specific implementation of the features described herein. The processor 404 of the base station 102 may be configured to implement or support a specific implementation of part 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, the processor 404 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 combination with one or more of the other components 430, 432, 434, 440, 450, 460, and 470, the processor 404 of the BS 102 may be configured to implement or support a specific implementation of part or all of the features described herein.

[0086] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 404 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processor 404 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 404. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 404.

[0087] Furthermore, as described herein, radio 430 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, radio 430 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of radio 430. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of radio 430.

[0088] Figure 5 —Block diagram of cellular communication circuit

[0089] Figure 5 An exemplary simplified block diagram of a cellular communication circuit according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 5 The block diagram of the cellular communication circuitry is merely one example of possible cellular communication circuitry; other circuitry, such as circuitry that includes or is coupled to sufficient antennas for different RATs to perform uplink activities using separate antennas, is also possible. Depending on the embodiment, the cellular communication circuitry 330 may be included in a communication device such as the communication device 106 described above. As described above, 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 devices, among other devices.

[0090] Cellular communication circuitry 330 may be (eg, communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as ( Figure 3 In some embodiments, the cellular communication circuitry 330 may include dedicated receive chains (which include and / or are (e.g., communicatively, directly or indirectly) coupled to dedicated processors and / or radio components) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). For example, Figure 5 As shown, the cellular communication circuitry 330 may include a modem 510 and a modem 520. The modem 510 may be configured for communication according to a first RAT (e.g., such as LTE or LTE-A), and the modem 520 may be configured for communication according to a second RAT (e.g., such as 5G NR).

[0091] As shown, the modem 510 may include one or more processors 512 and a memory 516 in communication with the processor 512. The modem 510 may communicate with a radio frequency (RF) front end 530. The RF front end 530 may include circuitry for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, the RF front end 530 may include receive circuitry (RX) 532 and transmit circuitry (TX) 534. In some embodiments, the receive circuitry 532 may communicate with a downlink (DL) front end 550, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via antenna 335a.

[0092] Similarly, the modem 520 may include one or more processors 522 and a memory 526 in communication with the processor 522. The modem 520 may communicate with an RF front end 540. The RF front end 540 may include circuitry for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, the RF front end 540 may include receive circuitry 542 and transmit circuitry 544. In some embodiments, the receive circuitry 542 may communicate with a DL front end 560, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via the antenna 335b.

[0093] In some embodiments, the switch 570 can couple the transmit circuitry 534 to the uplink (UL) front end 572. Furthermore, the switch 570 can couple the transmit circuitry 544 to the UL front end 572. The UL front end 572 can include circuitry for transmitting radio signals via the antenna 336. Thus, when the cellular communication circuitry 330 receives an instruction to transmit according to a first RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuitry 534 and the UL front end 572), the switch 570 can be switched to a first state that allows the modem 510 to transmit signals according to the first RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuitry 534 and the UL front end 572). Similarly, when the cellular communication circuitry 330 receives an instruction to transmit according to a second RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuitry 544 and the UL front end 572), the switch 570 can be switched to a second state that allows the modem 520 to transmit signals according to the second RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuitry 544 and the UL front end 572).

[0094] In some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 330 can be configured to transmit, via the first modem, a request to attach to a first network node operating according to a first RAT when the switch is in the first state, and to transmit, via the first modem, an indication that the wireless device is capable of maintaining substantially concurrent connections with the first network node and a second network node operating according to a second RAT when the switch is in the first state. The wireless device can also be configured to transmit, via the second radio component, a request to attach to the second network node when the switch is in the second state. The request can include an indication that the wireless device is capable of maintaining substantially concurrent connections with the first and second network nodes. Additionally, the wireless device can be configured to receive, via the first radio component, an indication that dual connectivity has been established with the first and second network nodes.

[0095] As described herein, the modem 510 may include hardware and software components for implementing features for performing transmissions using multiplexing according to multiple radio access technologies in the same frequency carrier, as well as various other technologies described herein. The processor 512 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), the processor 512 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or in addition), in combination with one or more of the other components 530, 532, 534, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336, the processor 512 may be configured to implement some or all of the feature portions described herein.

[0096] In some embodiments, the processors 512, 522, etc. may be configured to implement or support a specific implementation of part 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, the processors 512, 522, etc. may be configured as programmable hardware elements such as field programmable gate arrays or as application-specific integrated circuits or a combination thereof. In addition, as described herein, the processors 512, 522, etc. may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, the processors 512, 522, etc. may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the processors 512, 522, etc. In addition, each integrated circuit may include a circuit (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the processors 512, 522, etc.

[0097] As described herein, the modem 520 may include hardware and software components for implementing features for performing transmissions using multiplexing according to multiple radio access technologies in the same frequency carrier, as well as various other technologies described herein. The processor 522 may be configured to implement part or all of the feature parts described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), the processor 522 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or additionally), in combination with one or more of the other components 540, 542, 544, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336, the processor 522 may be configured to implement part or all of the feature parts described herein.

[0098] Figures 6 and 7 —5G NR Architecture

[0099] In some implementations, fifth generation (5G) wireless communications will initially be deployed in parallel with other wireless communication standards (e.g., LTE). Figure 6 6 shows a possible standalone (SA) implementation of a Next Generation Core (NGC) network 606 and a 5G NR base station (e.g., gNB 604), dual connectivity between LTE and 5G New Radio (5G NR or NR), such as according to Figure 7 The exemplary non-standalone (NSA) architecture shown has been specified as part of the initial deployment of NR. Figure 7As shown, the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network 600 can continue to communicate with the current LTE base station (e.g., eNB 602). In addition, the eNB 602 can communicate with the 5G NR base station (e.g., gNB 604), and data can be transferred between the EPC network 600 and the gNB 604. In some cases, the gNB 604 can also have at least a user plane reference point with the EPC network 600. Thus, the EPC network 600 can be used (or reused), and the gNB 604 can serve as additional capacity for the 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. Thus, LTE can be used to establish a connection to the network, and NR can be used for data services. It should be understood that many other non-standalone architecture variants are possible.

[0100] Figure 8 —Wireless communication system

[0101] Figure 8 An example simplified portion of a wireless communication system is shown. A UE 106 can communicate with a wireless network (e.g., a radio access network (RAN)), which can include one or more base stations (BSs) 102 and can provide connectivity to a core network (CN) 100, such as an evolved packet core (EPC). The base stations 102 can be eNodeBs and / or gNBs (e.g., 5G or NR base stations), or other types of base stations. The UE 106 can communicate wirelessly with the base stations 102. The base stations 102 can, in turn, be coupled to the core network 100. As shown, the CN 100 can include a mobility management entity (MME) 322, a home subscriber server (HSS) 324, and a serving gateway (SGW) 326. The CN 100 can also include various other devices familiar to those skilled in the art.

[0102] The operations described herein as being performed by a wireless network may be performed by Figure 8 The operations described herein as being performed by one or more of the network devices shown, such as base station 102 or CN 100, and / or one or more of MME 322, HSS 324, or SGW 326 in CN 100, as well as other possible devices. The operations performed by a radio access network (RAN) may be performed, for example, by base station 102, or by other components of the RAN that may be used to connect a UE and a CN.

[0103] NR MIMO Operation Enhancements

[0104] Multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) communications may be used in cellular communications, such as in LTE, NR, etc. (although MIMO communications may also be used in other types of wireless communications, such as wireless local area network (WLAN) communications).

[0105] A cellular base station (e.g., an eNB or gNB) and a UE may communicate signaling information (e.g., control information) regarding MIMO communications. For example, signaling information regarding uplink or downlink MIMO communications may be transmitted between the UE and the base station. While the embodiments described herein relate to uplink communications and related signaling, they may also be applied to downlink communications and related signaling with appropriate modifications. Additionally, various terms herein may be described with respect to NR, but they may also be applied to other communication standards, such as LTE or future cellular standards, with appropriate modifications.

[0106] In some embodiments, uplink MIMO communication can be configured as codebook-based or non-codebook-based, as needed. For codebook-based MIMO communication, the network (or base station) can configure a reference signal resource set (e.g., a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS)-ResourceSet) with the usage set to "codebook." In some embodiments, up to two SRS resources can be configured per SRS-ResourceSet.

[0107] In the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) configuration, the network (e.g., base station) may provide the UE with a configuration including:

[0108] codebookSubset ENUMERATED{fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent,partialAndNonCoherent,nonCoherent}; and

[0109] maxRank INTEGER (1-4).

[0110] The network may also specify additional configuration information in downlink control information (DCI). For example, in the DCI, the network (e.g., base station) may indicate:

[0111] SRI (SRS Resource Indicator): an SRS resource among SRS resources; and

[0112] Precoding information and number of layers, such as TPMI and rank information.

[0113] In some embodiments, uplink MIMO communication can be configured as non-codebook based. For example, the network (e.g., base station) can configure an SRS-ResourceSet with the usage set to "non-codebook." In this embodiment, up to four SRS resources can be configured per SRS-ResourceSet. Additionally, in the DCI, the network (e.g., base station) can indicate an SRI (SRS Resource Indicator), for example, selecting or specifying a subset of (up to) four SRS resources.

[0114] However, codebook-based uplink MIMO operation can also be enhanced in certain aspects, such as to support uplink full-power transmission. Therefore, codebook-based MIMO operation can be enhanced to up to four SRS resources (or more) configured for each SRS-ResourceSet. In addition, each SRS resource can be configured with a different number of ports as needed.

[0115] Various embodiments described herein may relate to: codebook-based uplink MIMO operation, non-codebook-based uplink MIMO operation, codebook + antenna switching uplink MIMO operation, four-port partially coherent UE and / or four-port fully coherent UE, among other possibilities.

[0116] Codebook-based uplink MIMO operation

[0117] In some embodiments, for codebook-based uplink MIMO operation, when the "SRS resource indication identifier" field is not configured in the uplink DCI, the UE may determine the transmission configuration in various ways. For example, the UE may not be expected to be configured with "precoding information and number of layers" in the same uplink DCI, and the UE may be expected to perform single-layer PUSCH transmission. For example, the UE may not receive rank information and may default to single-layer transmission. Alternatively, the UE may be configured with "precoding information and number of layers" and may use the indicated number of layers, but may default to using SRS resources corresponding to SRI=0 because the SRS resources may not have been indicated in the uplink DCI.

[0118] In some implementation schemes, the following formula may be used to indicate the SRS resource indicator:

[0119] or Bit,

[0120] Where Nsrs is the number of SRS resources configured in the SRS resource set, for example, configured by the higher layer parameter srs-ResourceSetToAddModList and associated with the higher layer parameter usage of the value 'codebook' or 'non-codebook'.

[0121] In some embodiments, for codebook-based uplink MIMO operation, when more than one SRS resource is configured in an SRS-ResourceSet with usage set to "codebook", it may be desirable for the UE to be configured with an "SRS Resource Indicator" (SRI) field in the uplink DCI. Therefore, in at least one embodiment, when multiple SRS resources are present in one or more SRS resource sets, the DCI may include an "SRS Resource Indicator" field that indicates which SRS resource(s) the UE should use for transmission (e.g., for sounding or during data transmission).

[0122] In some embodiments, for codebook-based uplink MIMO operation, when more than one SRS resource is configured in an SRS-ResourceSet with a usage setting of "codebook", if the UE is not configured with an "SRS resource indication identifier" field in any uplink DCI, it may be expected that the UE will only transmit SRS resources corresponding to SRI = 0. In other words, when the SRI is not specified by the base station (e.g., when there are more than one SRS resource available and during "codebook" configuration), the UE may determine that the assigned SRI is 0 (e.g., using SRI = 0 as a default value). Therefore, the UE may use the SRS resources corresponding to SRI 0 for transmission (e.g., for sounding or data transmission as needed).

[0123] In some embodiments, for uplink full power transmission with codebook-based uplink MIMO operation, when more than one SRS resource is configured in an SRS-ResourceSet with usage set to "codebook" and the SRS resources are configured with different numbers of ports, if the UE is not configured with the "SRS Resource Indicator" field in any uplink DCI:

[0124] The UE may assume that the SRI is the SRS resource with the lowest SRI among all SRS resources configured in the "codebook" with the highest number of ports; and

[0125] The UE may not be required to transmit other SRS resources.

[0126] For example, in some embodiments, if there are SRS resources assigned as SRI=0 with 2 ports, assigned as SRI=1 with 4 ports, and assigned as SRI=2 with 4 ports, the UE may select SRI=1 because it is the lowest SRI (1) with the highest number of ports (4).

[0127] Non-codebook based uplink MIMO operation

[0128] In some embodiments, for non-codebook based uplink MIMO operation, when the "SRS resource indicator" field is not configured in the uplink DCI, the UE may be expected to perform a single-layer PUSCH transmission based on SRI = 0. For example, similar to the above embodiment, when the SRI field is not present, the UE may default to using the SRS resource with the lowest assigned resource ID value (e.g., SRI = 0). Therefore, when no SRS resource is specified in the DCI, the UE may default to the lowest available SRI value for transmission. In addition, for non-codebook, the UE may default to using only a single layer, for example, when rank information is not provided.

[0129] In some embodiments, the UE may or may not be configured with "precoding information and number of layers" in the same uplink DCI, which may be used to determine which parameters to use.

[0130] In some embodiments, for non-codebook based uplink MIMO operation, when more than one SRS resource is configured in the SRS-ResourceSet with usage set to "non-codebook", it may be desirable for the UE to be configured with the "SRS Resource Indicator" field in the uplink DCI. Otherwise, when a single SRS resource is configured in the SRS-ResourceSet, the "SRS Resource Indicator" field may not be configured, and the UE may assume a single-layer PUSCH transmission with SRI=0.

[0131] In some embodiments, for non-codebook based uplink MIMO operation, when more than one SRS resource is configured with usage set to "non-codebook" in the SRS-ResourceSet, if the UE is not configured with the "SRS resource indication" field in any uplink DCI, it may be expected that the UE only transmits SRS resources corresponding to SRI=0.

[0132] Thus, in some embodiments, similar to the embodiments described above, the UE may use the SRI field provided by the base station (e.g., within the uplink DCI) to determine which SRS resource(s) to use for uplink transmission. When the SRI field is not configured, the UE may use a default value or algorithm to determine which SRI to use for transmission. In various embodiments, the default value may be SRI=0 or the lowest available SRI among the assigned SRS resource set, although other embodiments are also contemplated. In some embodiments, when the SRI is not indicated, the UE may transmit only on its assigned or determined SRS resources, although in other embodiments, the UE may be configured to transmit on additional SRS resources as needed.

[0133] Four-port partially coherent UE

[0134] When the UE is capable of four-port partial coherence (e.g., provided to the network in the UE capability information), the network (e.g., base station) may configure two-port operation, for example, by requesting the UE to detect 2-port SRS, and the UE may not determine which coherence should be used in two-port mode. Therefore, the UE may determine the coherence in a number of different ways: for example, based on the SRS resource assignment value for the four ports (e.g., the codebookSubset field), based on a separate field or parameter for the two ports (e.g., the codebookSubset2Port field) in the PUSCH-config (e.g., the codebookSubset2Port field), and / or based on a default assumption (e.g., which may be specified in the relevant standard), among other possibilities.

[0135] For example, in some embodiments, for a four-port partially coherent UE (e.g., where pusch-TransCoherence = "partialCoherent"), the network (e.g., base station) may configure the UE to operate in four-port partially coherent PUSCH operation (e.g., in full power transmission mode 2). In some embodiments, when both two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources are configured in the same SRS resource set, the coherence assumption of the two-port SRS resources may be based on:

[0136] 1: codebookSubset in PUSCH-Config - four-port SRS is always partialAndNonCoherent, codebookSubset = "partialAndNonCoherent" (two-port SRS is nonCoherent), and codebookSubset = "fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent" (two-port SRS is fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent);

[0137] 2: A separate field can be added to PUSCH-Config, for example, codebookSubset2PortENUMERATED{fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent,nonCoherent}; or

[0138] 3: Hard-coded in the specification, for example, two-port SRS is nonCoherent or two-port SRS is fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent.

[0139] Four-port fully coherent UE

[0140] When a UE is capable of four-port full coherence (e.g., provided to the network in UE capability information), the network (e.g., base station) may still configure the UE to operate in a partially coherent manner, e.g., as a downgrade operation. When the network (e.g., base station) also configures two-port operation, e.g., by requesting the UE to detect a two-port SRS, the UE may not be sure whether the network is requesting the UE to operate in a non-coherent manner or a fully coherent manner.

[0141] Thus, in some embodiments, for a four-port fully coherent UE (e.g., where pusch-TransCoherence = "fullCoherent"), the network (e.g., base station) may configure the UE to operate in four-port partially coherent PUSCH operation (e.g., in full power transmission mode 2).

[0142] When both two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources are configured in the same SRS resource set, the coherence assumption of the two-port SRS resources may be based on:

[0143] 1: Add a separate field to PUSCH-Config, for example, codebookSubset2Port ENUMERATED{fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent,nonCoherent}; or

[0144] 2: Hard-coded in the specification, for example, two-port SRS is nonCoherent or two-port SRS is fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent.

[0145] For the case when the network configures the UE to operate in full coherent mode, the UE may simply operate in full coherent mode when two-port operation is requested.

[0146] Codebook + antenna switching uplink MIMO

[0147] In some embodiments, for "antenna switching", up to two SRS resource sets can be configured with "antenna switching". In addition, in some embodiments, to reduce overhead, the network (e.g., base station) can configure the UE to operate in "codebook" mode and "antenna switching" mode.

[0148] In some embodiments, when the network (e.g., base station) configures the SRS-ResourceSet, the SRS-ResourceSet may have multiple uses, such as "codebook + antenna switching" (e.g., the same resource set may be used for both codebook and antenna switching transmissions). The network and the UE may resolve how to use these resources in various ways.

[0149] For example, in some embodiments, in the case of both "codebook" and "antenna switching" usage, the network may configure only one SRS-ResourceSet with the same usage. Having only one SRS resource set with the same usage may reduce the need for additional signaling.

[0150] Alternatively or additionally, in some embodiments, the network (e.g., a base station) may configure an SRS-ResourceSet for both "codebook" and "antenna switching" purposes, and more than one SRS-ResourceSet may be assigned the same purpose (e.g., for both codebook and resource set). Therefore, an SRS resource set indicator (SRSI) may be introduced into the uplink DCI to indicate the SRS resource set and / or then indicate the SRI within the SRS resource set. Therefore, the UE may be configured to determine the SRS resource set based on the SRSI field. The UE may determine the order of the resource sets in various ways. In one embodiment, SRSI=0 may correspond to the SRS resource set with the lowest SRS resource index (SRI), SRSI=1 may correspond to the SRS resource set with the second lowest SRI, and so on. Therefore, the UE may determine the SRS resources to be used for transmission based on the SRSI and / or SRI (e.g., which may correspond to the specified SRS resource set).

[0151] In some embodiments, the network (e.g., base station) may use the SRI field to indicate the SRS resource set / specific SRS resource instead of introducing the SRSI field. The UE may determine the appropriate SRS resource set in a variety of ways. For example, when the network (e.g., base station) configures an SRS-ResourceSet for both "codebook" and "antenna switching" purposes and the network (e.g., base station) configures more than one SRS-ResourceSet for the same purpose, the SRI in the uplink DCI may be mapped to the SRS resources in the SRS-ResourceSet in one or more of the following ways:

[0152] 1: in the order of SRS resource index; or

[0153] 2: First in the order of SRS resource set indexes, then in the order of SRS resource indexes for the same SRS resource set index.

[0154] Figure 9 This second example is shown. Specifically, Figure 9The first srs-ResourceSet (ID=0) is shown to be selected first, and within this set, the SRS-ResourceIds are set in order, so ResourceId=4 corresponds to SRI 0. After completing the first set (ID=0) corresponding to SRIs 0-3, the second set (ID=1) is used, which assigns SRIs 4-7 corresponding to ResourceIds 0-3. In the first example, SRI 0 will correspond to SRS resource ID 0, rather than Figure 9 SRS resource ID 4 is shown.

[0155] Therefore, among various possibilities, the UE may determine the SRI for multiple resource sets first by the SRS resource number or first by the SRS resource set ID and then by the priority of the SRS resource ID.

[0156] In some embodiments, when the network (e.g., base station) configures an SRS-ResourceSet for both "codebook" and "antenna switching" purposes, the UE may be configured with one or more SRS resources with more than one port. In some embodiments, the number of ports for different SRS resources may be the same. In such embodiments, since the number of ports remains the same for each SRS resource, additional signaling may not be necessary.

[0157] Alternatively, in some embodiments, when the network (e.g., base station) configures an SRS-ResourceSet for both "codebook" and "antenna switching" purposes, and if UL full-power transmission mode 2 is also configured, the UE may be configured with an SRS resource having more than one port, and the number of ports of different SRS resources may be different. Therefore, when the number of ports can vary, signaling between the UE and the base station and UE transmission behavior can be handled in a variety of ways.

[0158] In some embodiments, when the network configures SRS-ResourceSets for both "codebook" and "antenna switching" purposes, the maximum number of SRS resources per SRS resource set may be relaxed for uplink full power transmission.

[0159] In some embodiments, the maximum number of SRS-ResourceSets may be set to two. Thus, for each antenna switch, there may be four SRS resources for codebook-based UL full-power transmission. For example, for 2T4R (dual transmit, four receive antennas), the SRS resources of each SRS resource set may be relaxed to 4 (e.g., 2 switches, so a total of 8 SRS resources); for 2T6R, the SRS resources of each SRS resource set may be relaxed to 6 (e.g., 3 switches, so a total of 12 SRS resources); for 2T8R, the SRS resources of each SRS resource set may be relaxed to 8 (e.g., 4 switches, so a total of 16 SRS resources); and for 4T8R, the SRS resources of each SRS resource set may be relaxed to 4 (e.g., 2 switches, so a total of 8 SRS resources).

[0160] In some embodiments, when the network (e.g., base station) configures SRS-ResourceSet for both "codebook" and "antenna switching" purposes, for example, for uplink full-power transmission, the maximum number of SRS resources per SRS resource set may be relaxed. For example: for 1T2R, from 2 to 4; for 1T4R, from 4 to 8; for 1T6R, from 6 to 12; for 1T8R, from 8 to 16; for 2T4R, from 2 to 4; for 2T6R, from 3 to 6; for 2T8R, from 4 to 8; and for 4T8R, from 2 to 4.

[0161] Non-codebook + antenna switching uplink MIMO

[0162] In some implementations, similar to the above codebook example, when the network (eg, base station) configures the SRS-ResourceSet, the SRS-ResourceSet may have multiple uses at the same time, for example, "non-codebook + antenna switching".

[0163] In some embodiments, for SRS configurations, in case of non-codebook SRS soundings from the same antenna, no guard interval may be required between SRS resources (e.g., UE transmissions on SRS resources). However, for SRS soundings from different antennas, a minimum guard interval may be guaranteed between any two SRSs transmitted from different antennas for the SRS configuration. For example, Figure 10 The guard interval shown in .

[0164] In some embodiments, it can be assumed that each SRS resource set is transmitted from a group of antennas. Therefore, for 1T2R and 2T4R: two SRS resource sets can be configured; for 2T6R: three SRS resource sets can be configured; for 1T4R, 2T8R: four SRS resource sets can be configured; for 1T6R: six SRS resource sets can be configured; for 1T8R: eight SRS resource sets can be configured. Within each SRS resource set, up to four SRS resources can be configured for the UE to perform non-codebook based sounding from the selected antenna. In some embodiments, Figure 9 The resource set shown in is applicable to 4T8R.

[0165] Figure 11 MIMO signaling

[0166] Figure 11 Exemplary techniques for configuring MIMO communications are shown. Figure 11 Various aspects of the method may be implemented by a wireless device, such as UE 106, communicating with a network via one or more base stations (e.g., BS 102), as shown and described with respect to the figures, or more generally, in combination with any of the computer systems or devices shown in the figures, as well as other circuits, systems, devices, elements, or components shown in the figures, and other devices, as desired. For example, one or more processors (or processing elements) of a UE (e.g., processor 302, a baseband processor, a processor associated with communication circuitry, etc., among other possibilities) may cause the UE to perform some or all of the illustrated method elements. For example, one or more processors (or processing elements) of a base station (e.g., processor 404, a baseband processor, a processor associated with communication circuitry, etc.) may cause the UE to perform some or all of the illustrated method elements. It is noted that while at least some elements of the method are described using communication techniques and / or features associated with 3GPP specification documents, such description is not intended to limit the present disclosure, and various aspects of the method may be used in any suitable wireless communication system as desired. In various embodiments, some of the elements of the method shown may be performed simultaneously in an order different from the order shown, may be replaced by other method elements, or may be omitted. Additional method elements may also be performed as needed. As shown, the method may be operated as follows.

[0167] In 1102, according to some embodiments, a UE (e.g., UE 106) may establish communication with a network (e.g., via base station 102). For example, the UE may perform an attach procedure with the base station. In some embodiments, the UE may provide capability information to the base station. For example, the UE may indicate various MIMO capabilities, the number of available antennas, the number of available ports, coherence (e.g., non-coherent, partially coherent, fully coherent), etc.

[0168] In 1104, the UE may receive MIMO configuration information from the network, for example, based on the UE capability information. The MIMO configuration information may be received in a single message or multiple messages and / or at a single point in time or over a period of time, as desired. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the MIMO configuration information may be transmitted in radio resource control (RRC) signaling. The MIMO configuration may specify how the UE performs communications with the base station, for example, it may specify uplink and / or downlink MIMO configuration information for performing various uplink and / or downlink communications with the base station. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the MIMO configuration information may be provided as part of a PUSCH configuration (e.g., PUSCH-Config).

[0169] In some embodiments, a MIMO configuration may specify sounding reference signal (SRS) resources. For example, a MIMO configuration may specify one or more SRS resources within one or more SRS resource sets. For example, a MIMO configuration may specify two, four, or more SRS resources per SRS resource set.

[0170] In some embodiments, the MIMO configuration may specify whether MIMO communication (e.g., uplink MIMO communication) is configured as "codebook" or "non-codebook." In some embodiments, the MIMO configuration may specify parameters for antenna switching. Antenna switching may be enabled simultaneously with either codebook or non-codebook MIMO configuration. For example, the MIMO configuration may specify "codebook + antenna switching" or "non-codebook + antenna switching," as desired.

[0171] In some embodiments, the MIMO configuration may specify a port configuration (e.g., within a PUSCH configuration). For example, the port configuration may include the number of ports and the coherence (e.g., incoherent, partially coherent and incoherent, fully coherent and partially coherent and incoherent, fully coherent, etc.). In some embodiments, a first subset of ports may have a first configuration, and a second subset of ports may have a second configuration. For example, for a four-port configuration, the MIMO configuration may allow a first configuration (e.g., incoherent) for two ports and a second configuration (e.g., fully coherent and partially coherent and incoherent) for the other two ports, e.g., for use with SRS resources.

[0172] In 1106, the UE may receive downlink control information (DCI) that may specify MIMO parameters that may enhance or change a received MIMO configuration (e.g., an uplink MIMO configuration). In some embodiments, the DCI is an uplink DCI (e.g., an uplink DCI grant). The MIMO parameters (e.g., included in the DCI) may specify, for example, which SRS resources the UE should use during uplink transmission (e.g., selecting one or more SRS resources from a plurality of configured SRS resources specified by the MIMO configuration). For example, as described above, the MIMO parameters of the DCI may specify an SRI, an SRSI, and / or any number of fields to specify the desired SRS resources that the UE should use for transmission (e.g., from a set of available SRS resources that have been configured for the UE in the MIMO configuration). Additionally or alternatively, the DCI (e.g., the MIMO parameters specified by the DCI) may also include precoding information and / or a number of layers (e.g., a transmit precoding matrix indication TPMI and / or rank information). Other MIMO parameters are also contemplated (e.g., included in DCI or otherwise). Thus, a UE may receive MIMO parameters (e.g., in DCI or otherwise) that modify or enhance the MIMO configuration. These MIMO parameters may be configured in a more dynamic manner than the MIMO configuration, e.g., they may be more adaptable to channel conditions and may be modified by the base station as channel conditions change.

[0173] In 1108, the UE may perform MIMO communication (e.g., uplink MIMO communication) with the base station according to the MIMO configuration and / or MIMO parameters in the DCI. For example, the UE may perform uplink data communication according to the configuration (e.g., using the specified precoding information, layer information, rank information, SRS resources, etc.). The UE may transmit SRS in the specified SRS resources, which may allow the UE and the base station to feedback and adjust the uplink transmission configuration (e.g., uplink MIMO configuration), such as by adjusting future uplink DCI parameters / fields (e.g., uplink MIMO parameters, such as those described herein). However, the UE may be configured to perform communication with the base station without transmitting data (e.g., in addition to the SRS). MIMO communication may include various sounding processes using the assigned SRS resources. Therefore, MIMO communication may include SRS transmission without additional data transmission. Alternatively, the SRS may be transmitted simultaneously or concurrently with the data in the data transmission, as needed.

[0174] Exemplary embodiments

[0175] The following description provides exemplary embodiments corresponding to the various embodiments described herein, such as, for example, Figure 11 corresponding to the method.

[0176] Embodiment 1. A method for operating a user equipment (UE), comprising: establishing a cellular connection with a base station; receiving multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink configuration information from the base station, wherein the MIMO configuration information indicates multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; receiving downlink control information (DCI) from the base station, wherein the DCI specifies multiple MIMO parameters; and performing uplink MIMO communication with the base station based on the MIMO configuration and the multiple MIMO parameters.

[0177] Embodiment 2. The method of embodiment 1, wherein one or more of the plurality of MIMO parameters specify at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources for performing uplink MIMO communication, wherein performing uplink MIMO communication includes using at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources specified in the DCI.

[0178] Embodiment 3. A method according to embodiment 1, wherein there is no sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field in the DCI, wherein performing uplink MIMO communication includes performing a single-layer physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission based on the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI.

[0179] Embodiment 4. A method according to embodiment 1, wherein there is no sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field in the DCI, wherein in response to the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI, performing uplink MIMO communication is performed using the SRS resource indication identification field value 0.

[0180] Embodiment 5. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies codebook uplink MIMO operation.

[0181] Embodiment 6. The method of embodiment 5, wherein at least one of the plurality of parameters comprises an SRS resource indication identification field indicating at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources.

[0182] Embodiment 7. A method according to embodiment 5, wherein the multiple SRS resources include different numbers of ports, wherein there is no sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field in the DCI, wherein in response to the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI, performing uplink MIMO configuration is performed using the following SRS resources: an SRS resource having a lowest SRS resource indication identification field value among the SRS resources having the highest number of ports among the multiple SRS resources.

[0183] Embodiment 8. A method according to embodiment 1, wherein the MIMO configuration or DCI configures the UE to operate in four-port partially coherent operation, and configures two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources in the same SRS resource set, wherein the UE operates four ports in a partially coherent and non-coherent manner.

[0184] Embodiment 9. The method of embodiment 8, wherein the UE operates the two ports in a non-coherent manner based on a parameter value of "partialAndNonCoherent".

[0185] Embodiment 10. The method of embodiment 8, wherein the UE operates the two ports in a fully coherent and partially coherent and non-coherent manner based on a parameter value of "fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent".

[0186] Embodiment 11. The method of embodiment 8, wherein the UE operates two ports based on a parameter value corresponding to two-port operation within a field in a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration.

[0187] Embodiment 12. The method of embodiment 8, wherein the UE operates two ports based on pre-configured assumptions of the UE.

[0188] Embodiment 13. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the MIMO configuration or DCI configures the UE to operate in four-port fully coherent operation, and configures two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources in the same SRS resource set, wherein the UE operates four ports in a fully coherent manner.

[0189] Embodiment 14. The method of embodiment 13, wherein the UE operates two ports based on a parameter value corresponding to two-port operation within a field in a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration.

[0190] Embodiment 15. The method of embodiment 13, wherein the UE operates two ports based on pre-configured assumptions of the UE.

[0191] Embodiment 16. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies both codebook uplink MIMO operation and antenna switching uplink MIMO operation.

[0192] Embodiment 17. The method of embodiment 16, wherein multiple SRS resources are configured for multiple uses for codebook and antenna switching.

[0193] Embodiment 18. The method of Embodiment 16, wherein only a single set of SRS resources is configured for both codebook and antenna switching.

[0194] Embodiment 19. The method of embodiment 16, wherein multiple SRS resource sets are configured for both codebook and antenna switching.

[0195] Embodiment 20. The method according to embodiment 19, wherein the DCI specifies an SRS resource set indicator (SRSI), and the SRSI specifies the first SRS resource set.

[0196] Embodiment 21. The method according to embodiment 19, wherein the DCI specifies an SRS resource indicator, wherein the UE determines the SRS resource according to the SRS resource indicator by assigning SRI values ​​to the SRS resources in both the first SRS resource set and the second SRS resource set.

[0197] Embodiment 22. The method of embodiment 16, wherein the multiple SRS resources use the same number of ports.

[0198] Embodiment 23. The method of embodiment 16, wherein the multiple SRS resources use different numbers of ports.

[0199] Embodiment 24. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies both non-codebook uplink MIMO operation and antenna switching uplink MIMO operation.

[0200] Embodiment 25. The method of embodiment 24, wherein the plurality of SRS resources are configured for multiple uses for non-codebook and antenna switching.

[0201] Embodiment 26. The method of embodiment 24, wherein performing uplink MIMO communication utilizes a guard interval between SRS resources when sounding using different antennas.

[0202] Embodiment 27. The method of embodiment 24, wherein uplink MIMO communication is performed without using a guard interval between SRS resources when sounding is performed using the same antenna.

[0203] Embodiment 28. An apparatus comprising: one or more processors, wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause a UE to perform a method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 27.

[0204] Embodiment 29. A non-transitory computer-accessible memory medium storing program instructions, the program instructions being executable by one or more processors of a UE to perform the method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 27.

[0205] Embodiment 30. A user equipment (UE), comprising: multiple antennas; wireless communication circuitry coupled to the multiple antennas; and one or more processors coupled to the wireless communication circuitry, wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause the UE to perform a method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 27.

[0206] Embodiment 31. A method for operating a base station, comprising: establishing a cellular connection with a user equipment (UE); transmitting multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink configuration information to the UE, wherein the MIMO configuration information indicates multiple sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; transmitting downlink control information (DCI) to the UE, wherein the DCI specifies multiple MIMO parameters; and performing uplink MIMO communication with the UE based on the MIMO configuration and the multiple MIMO parameters.

[0207] Embodiment 32. A method according to embodiment 31, wherein one or more MIMO parameters of the plurality of MIMO parameters specify at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources for performing uplink MIMO communication, wherein performing uplink MIMO communication includes using at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources specified in the DCI.

[0208] Embodiment 33. A method according to embodiment 31, wherein there is no sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field in the DCI, wherein performing uplink MIMO communication includes receiving a single-layer physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission based on the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI.

[0209] Embodiment 34. A method according to embodiment 31, wherein a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field does not exist in the DCI, wherein in response to the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI, performing uplink MIMO communication is performed based on the SRS resource indication identification field value 0.

[0210] Embodiment 35. The method of embodiment 31, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies codebook uplink MIMO operation.

[0211] Embodiment 36. The method of embodiment 35, wherein at least one of the plurality of parameters comprises an SRS resource indication identification field indicating at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources.

[0212] Embodiment 37. A method according to embodiment 35, wherein the multiple SRS resources include different numbers of ports, wherein there is no sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field in the DCI, wherein in response to the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI, performing uplink MIMO configuration is performed based on the following SRS resources: the SRS resource having the lowest SRS resource indication identification field value among the SRS resources having the highest number of ports among the multiple SRS resources.

[0213] Embodiment 38. A method according to embodiment 31, wherein the MIMO configuration or DCI configures the UE to operate in four-port partially coherent operation, and configures two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources in the same SRS resource set, wherein the UE operates four ports in a partially coherent and non-coherent manner.

[0214] Embodiment 39. The method of embodiment 38, wherein the UE operates the two ports in a non-coherent manner based on a parameter value of "partialAndNonCoherent".

[0215] Embodiment 40. The method of embodiment 38, wherein the UE operates the two ports in a fully coherent and partially coherent and non-coherent manner based on a parameter value of "fullyAndPartialAndNonCoherent".

[0216] Embodiment 41. The method of embodiment 38, wherein the UE operates two ports based on a parameter value corresponding to two-port operation within a field in a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration.

[0217] Embodiment 42. The method of embodiment 38, wherein the UE operates two ports based on pre-configured assumptions of the UE.

[0218] Embodiment 43. A method according to embodiment 31, wherein the MIMO configuration or DCI configures the UE to operate in four-port fully coherent operation, and configures two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources in the same SRS resource set, wherein the UE operates four ports in a fully coherent manner.

[0219] Embodiment 44. The method of embodiment 43, wherein the UE operates two ports based on a parameter value corresponding to two-port operation within a field in a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration transmitted by the base station.

[0220] Embodiment 45. The method of embodiment 43, wherein the UE operates two ports based on pre-configured assumptions of the UE.

[0221] Embodiment 46. The method of embodiment 31, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies both codebook uplink MIMO operation and antenna switching uplink MIMO operation.

[0222] Embodiment 47. The method of embodiment 46, wherein multiple SRS resources are configured for multiple uses for codebook and antenna switching.

[0223] Embodiment 48. The method of Embodiment 46, wherein only a single set of SRS resources is configured for both codebook and antenna switching.

[0224] Embodiment 49. The method of embodiment 46, wherein multiple SRS resource sets are configured for both codebook and antenna switching.

[0225] Embodiment 50. The method of embodiment 49, wherein the DCI specifies an SRS resource set indicator (SRSI), the SRSI specifying the first SRS resource set.

[0226] Embodiment 51. The method of embodiment 49, wherein the DCI specifies an SRS resource indicator (SRI), wherein an SRI value is assigned to SRS resources in both the first SRS resource set and the second SRS resource set.

[0227] Embodiment 52. The method of embodiment 46, wherein multiple SRS resources use the same number of ports.

[0228] Embodiment 53. The method of embodiment 46, wherein the multiple SRS resources use different numbers of ports.

[0229] Embodiment 54. The method of embodiment 31, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies both non-codebook uplink MIMO operation and antenna switching uplink MIMO operation.

[0230] Embodiment 55. The method of embodiment 54, wherein the plurality of SRS resources are configured for multiple uses for non-codebook and antenna switching.

[0231] Embodiment 56. The method of embodiment 54, wherein performing uplink MIMO communication utilizes a guard interval between SRS resources when sounding using different antennas.

[0232] Embodiment 57. The method of embodiment 54, wherein uplink MIMO communication is performed without using a guard interval between SRS resources when sounding is performed using the same antenna.

[0233] Embodiment 58. An apparatus comprising: one or more processors, wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause a base station to perform a method according to any one of embodiments 31 to 57.

[0234] Embodiment 59. A non-transitory computer-accessible memory medium storing program instructions executable by one or more processors of a base station to perform the method according to any one of embodiments 31 to 57.

[0235] Embodiment 60. A base station comprising: multiple antennas; wireless communication circuitry coupled to the multiple antennas; and one or more processors coupled to the wireless communication circuitry, wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause the base station to perform a method according to any one of embodiments 31 to 57.

[0236] The embodiments of the present 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.

[0237] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may be configured such that it stores program instructions and / or data, wherein the program instructions, if executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform a method, such as any one of the method embodiments described herein, or any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or any subset of any method embodiments described herein, or any combination of such subsets.

[0238] In some embodiments, a device (e.g., a UE) may be configured to include a processor (or a group of processors) and a memory medium, wherein the memory medium stores program instructions, wherein the processor is configured to read 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 the 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 various forms.

[0239] In some embodiments, a device includes: an antenna; a radio component coupled to the antenna; and a processing element coupled to the radio component. The device can be configured to implement any of the above method embodiments.

[0240] In some embodiments, the memory medium may store program instructions that, when executed, cause the apparatus to implement any one of the above-described method embodiments.

[0241] In some embodiments, an apparatus includes at least one processor (eg, in communication with a memory) configured to implement any one of the method embodiments described above.

[0242] In some embodiments, a method includes any act or combination of acts as substantially described herein in the detailed description and claims.

[0243] In some embodiments, a method is performed as substantially described herein with reference to each or any combination of the figures contained herein, with reference to each or any combination of the paragraphs in the detailed description, with reference to each or any combination of the figures and / or detailed description, or with reference to each or any combination of the claims.

[0244] In some embodiments, a wireless device is configured to perform any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in the detailed description, drawings, and / or claims.

[0245] In some embodiments, a wireless device includes any component or combination of components as described herein in the detailed description and / or figures as included in a wireless device.

[0246] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable medium may store instructions that, when executed, cause performance of any act or combination of acts as substantially described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0247] In some embodiments, an integrated circuit is configured to perform any act or combination of acts as substantially described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0248] In some embodiments, a mobile station is configured to perform any act or combination of acts as substantially described herein in the detailed description and / or accompanying drawings.

[0249] In some embodiments, a mobile station includes any component or combination of components as described herein in the detailed description and / or figures as included in a mobile station.

[0250] In some embodiments, a mobile device is configured to perform any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0251] In some embodiments, a mobile device includes any component or combination of components as described herein in the detailed description and / or figures as included in a mobile device.

[0252] In some embodiments, a network node is configured to perform any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0253] In some embodiments, a network node includes any component or combination of components as included in a mobile device as described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0254] In some embodiments, a base station is configured to perform any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0255] In some embodiments, a base station includes any component or combination of components as included in a mobile device as described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0256] In some embodiments, a 5G NR network node or base station is configured to perform any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0257] In some embodiments, a 5G NR network node or base station includes any component or combination of components as included in a mobile device as described herein in the detailed description and / or figures.

[0258] It is understood that the use of personally identifiable information should be subject to privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized to meet or exceed industry or government requirements for maintaining 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 stated to users.

[0259] By interpreting each message / signal X received by a 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 of the methods for operating a UE described herein may become the basis for the corresponding method for operating a base station.

[0260] Although the above embodiments have been described in considerable detail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to encompass all such variations and modifications.

Claims

1. A device for wireless communication, the device comprising: One or more processors configured to cause a user equipment device (UE): receiving multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink configuration information from a base station, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information indicates a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; receiving downlink control information (DCI) from the base station, wherein the DCI specifies one or more MIMO parameters; performing uplink MIMO communication with the base station according to the MIMO uplink configuration information and the one or more MIMO parameters, wherein two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources are configured in the same SRS resource set, Wherein performing uplink MIMO communication includes transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission such that a first PUSCH transmission configured with four-port SRS resources is transmitted in partialAndNonCoherent and a second PUSCH transmission configured with two-port SRS resources is transmitted in NonCoherent.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein one or more of the plurality of MIMO parameters specify at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources for performing uplink MIMO communication, wherein performing uplink MIMO communication comprises using the at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources specified in the DCI.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field is not present in the DCI, and wherein performing uplink MIMO communication includes performing a single-layer physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission based on the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field is not present in the DCI, wherein in response to the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI, performing uplink MIMO communication is performed using an SRS resource indication identification field value of 0.

5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies codebook uplink MIMO operation, wherein at least one of the plurality of parameters comprises an SRS resource indication identification field indicating the at least subset of the plurality of SRS resources.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies codebook uplink MIMO operation, wherein the plurality of SRS resources include different numbers of ports, wherein a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource indication identification field is not present in the DCI, wherein in response to the absence of the SRS resource indication identification field in the DCI, performing uplink MIMO communication is performed using the following SRS resource: an SRS resource having a lowest SRS resource indication identification field value among an SRS resource having a highest number of ports in the plurality of SRS resources.

7. A method for operating a user equipment device (UE), the method comprising: By the UE: receiving multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink configuration information from a base station, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information indicates a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; receiving downlink control information (DCI) from the base station, wherein the DCI specifies a plurality of MIMO parameters; Perform uplink MIMO communication with the base station according to the MIMO uplink configuration information and the multiple MIMO parameters, wherein two-port SRS resources and four-port SRS resources are configured in the same SRS resource set, wherein the performing uplink MIMO communication includes transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission, so that a first PUSCH transmission configured with four-port SRS resources is transmitted in partialAndNonCoherent, and a second PUSCH transmission configured with two-port SRS resources is transmitted in NonCoherent. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the plurality of SRS resources are configured for multiple purposes for codebook and antenna switching.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein only a single SRS resource set is configured for both codebook and antenna switching.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein a plurality of SRS resource sets are configured for both codebook and antenna switching, wherein the DCI specifies an SRS resource set indication (SRSI), the SRSI specifying a first SRS resource set.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein the DCI specifies an SRS resource indicator, and wherein the UE determines the SRS resource according to the SRS resource indicator by assigning SRI values ​​to SRS resources in both the first SRS resource set and the second SRS resource set.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the plurality of SRS resources use different numbers of ports.

13. A method for operating a base station, the method comprising: transmitting multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink configuration information to a user equipment (UE), wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information indicates a plurality of sounding reference signal (SRS) resources; transmitting downlink control information (DCI) to the UE, wherein the DCI specifies one or more MIMO parameters; as well as Uplink MIMO communications are received from the UE based on the MIMO uplink configuration information and the one or more MIMO parameters, wherein the uplink MIMO communications include physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmissions, wherein a first PUSCH transmission configured with four-port SRS resources is in partialAndNonCoherent accordance, and a second PUSCH transmission configured with two-port SRS resources is in NonCoherent accordance.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the one or more MIMO parameters specify at least a subset of the plurality of SRS resources for performing uplink MIMO communications, wherein receiving uplink MIMO communications uses the at least the subset of the plurality of SRS resources specified in the DCI.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies both codebook uplink MIMO operation and antenna switching uplink MIMO operation, wherein the plurality of SRS resources are configured for multiple uses for codebook and antenna switching.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein a plurality of SRS resource sets are configured for both codebook and antenna switching, wherein the DCI specifies an SRS resource set indication (SRSI), the SRSI specifying a first SRS resource set.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the MIMO uplink configuration information specifies both non-codebook uplink MIMO operation and antenna switching uplink MIMO operation, wherein the plurality of SRS resources are configured for multiple uses for non-codebook and antenna switching.

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