Measurement enhancement for base stations (BS) in radio resource control (RRC) connections

Abstract

The techniques discussed herein facilitate a base station (BS) to enhance measurements performed by an RRC connected mode user equipment (UE) for carrier aggregation (CA) and / or dual connectivity (DC) configuration. An exemplary embodiment includes a BS device, the BS device including a processor, the processor configured to perform operations including the following: receiving a UE assistance information message including a measurement request; sending a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig IE; receiving a MeasurementReport message from the UE indicating one or more measurements of one or more frequency groups, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a serving frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and a non-serving frequency group for the UE, wherein the non-serving frequency group is associated with the neighboring cell; and sending a second RRCReconfiguration message, the second RRCReconfiguration message configuring the UE with at least one of the one or more frequency groups.

Description

Background Art

[0001] Mobile communications in the next generation wireless communication system 5G or New Radio (NR) networks will provide ubiquitous connectivity and access to information and the ability to share data around the world. 5G networks and network slices will be unified, service-based frameworks that will target common and sometimes conflicting performance standards and provide services to extremely diverse application domains ranging from enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) to massive machine type communications (mMTC), ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC) and other communications. In general, NR will evolve based on the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) Advanced technology and additional enhanced radio access technologies (RATs) to achieve seamless and faster wireless connectivity solutions. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0002] Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating the architecture of a system including a core network (CN) (e.g., a fifth generation (5G) CN (5GC)) according to various aspects.

[0003] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating example components of an apparatus that may be employed in accordance with various aspects discussed herein.

[0004] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an example interface of baseband circuitry that may be employed in accordance with various aspects discussed herein.

[0005] Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating a system that facilitates enhancing measurements of a radio resource control (RRC) connected mode UE that can facilitate DC / CA configuration in accordance with various aspects discussed herein.

[0006] Figure 5 is a state diagram illustrating three radio resource control (RRC) states in which a UE may operate in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein.

[0007] Figure 6 is a diagram showing a measurement model for a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connected mode UE based on K beams from a gNB (or other BS) in combination with various aspects discussed herein.

[0008] Figure 7 is a table illustrating measurement configurations and associated descriptions for measurement reporting in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein.

[0009] Figure 8 A flow chart is shown of an example method that can be employed by a UE and a NW to configure and send measurement reports in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein.

[0010] Fig. 9 A MeasConfig information element (IE) is shown that specifies measurements to be performed by a UE in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein.

[0011] Fig.10 The MeasResults IE and MeasResultNR IE are shown in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein, covering measurement results for intra-frequency, inter-frequency, and inter-RAT mobility.

[0012] Fig.11 A flow chart is shown of a first exemplary method that facilitates enhancing measurement reporting for connected mode UEs incorporating various aspects discussed herein, which may facilitate DC / CA configuration.

[0013] Fig.12 A flow chart is shown of a second exemplary method that facilitates enhancing measurement reporting for connected mode UEs in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein, which may facilitate DC / CA configuration.

[0014] Fig.13 An example of a ReportConfigNR and EventTriggerConfig IE incorporating various aspects discussed herein is shown, which has been updated to indicate CA / DC purpose.

[0015] Fig.14 An example of a MeasObjectNR IE incorporating various aspects discussed herein is shown, which has been updated to indicate CA / DC purpose.

[0016] Fig.15 An example of a MeasObjectEUTRA IE incorporating various aspects discussed herein is shown, which has been updated to indicate CA / DC purpose.

[0017] Fig.16 A flow chart is shown of a third exemplary method for facilitating enhancement of measurement reporting for connected mode UEs incorporating various aspects discussed herein, which enhancement may facilitate DC / CA configuration.

[0018] Fig.17 A flow chart is shown of a fourth exemplary method for facilitating enhancement of measurement reporting for connected mode UEs incorporating various aspects discussed herein, which may facilitate DC / CA configuration.

[0019] Fig.18 A flow chart is shown of an example method or process that can be employed at a UE in accordance with various aspects discussed herein that facilitates one or more enhancements for measurements in connected mode discussed herein.

[0020] Fig.19 A flow chart is shown of an example method or process that can be employed at a BS in accordance with various aspects discussed herein that facilitates one or more enhancements discussed herein for measurements performed by a UE in connected mode. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein throughout the text, similar figure numerals are used to refer to similar elements, and the structures and devices shown therein need not be drawn to scale. As used herein, the terms "component", "system", "interface", etc. are intended to refer to entities, hardware, software (e.g., in execution) and / or firmware related to computers. For example, a component may be a processor (e.g., a microprocessor, a controller or other processing device), a process running on a processor, a controller, an object, an executable file, a program, a storage device, a computer, a tablet computer, and / or a user equipment with a processing device (e.g., a mobile phone or other devices configured to communicate via a 3GPP RAN, etc.). By way of example, an application program and a server running on a server may also be a component. One or more components may reside in a process, and a component may be located on a computer and / or distributed between two or more computers. A group of elements or a group of other components may be described herein, wherein the term "group" may be interpreted as "one or more", unless the context otherwise indicates (e.g., "empty group", "a group of two or more Xs", etc.).

[0022] In addition, the components can execute from various computer-readable storage media having various data structures stored thereon, such as using modules, for example. The components can communicate via local and / or remote processes, such as according to signals having one or more data packets (e.g., data from one component interacts with another component in a local system, a distributed system, and / or throughout a network, such as the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, or a similar network with other systems via signals).

[0023] As another example, a component may be a device having a specific function provided by a mechanical component operated by electrical or electronic circuitry, wherein the electrical or electronic circuitry may be operated by a software application or firmware application executed by one or more processors. The one or more processors may be internal or external to the device and may execute at least a portion of the software or firmware application. As another example, a component may be a device that provides a specific function by an electronic component without the need for a mechanical component; the electronic component may include one or more processors therein to execute at least a portion of the software and / or firmware that imparts the function to the electronic component.

[0024] The use of the word "exemplary" is intended to present concepts in a specific way. As used in this application, the term "or" is intended to mean an inclusive "or" rather than an exclusive "or". That is, unless otherwise specified or clear from the context, "X employs A or B" is intended to mean any natural inclusive arrangement. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both A and B, then "X employs A or B" is satisfied in any of the foregoing cases. In addition, the articles "one" and "an" used in this application and the appended claims should generally be interpreted as meaning "one or more" unless otherwise specified or clear from the context to point to a singular form. In addition, to the extent that the terms "including", "comprising", "having", "having", "with" or variations thereof are used in the detailed description and claims, such terms are intended to be included in a manner similar to the term "comprising". In addition, in the case of discussing one or more numbered items (e.g., "first X", "second X", etc.), generally, one or more numbered items may be different or they may be the same, but in some cases, the context may indicate that they are different or that they are the same.

[0025] As used herein, the term "circuit" may refer to, may be a part of, or may include an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), electronic circuit, processor (shared, dedicated, or group), and / or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) that executes one or more software or firmware programs, combinational logic circuits, and / or other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality. In some aspects, a circuit may be implemented in one or more software or firmware modules, or the functionality associated with the circuit may be implemented by one or more software or firmware modules. In some aspects, a circuit may include a logic component that may operate at least partially in hardware.

[0026]

[0013] Various aspects discussed herein may be directed to facilitating wireless communications, and the nature of these communications may vary.

[0027] 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 the authorized use should be clearly stated to users.

[0028] Aspects described herein may be implemented into a system using any suitably configured hardware and / or software. Figure 1The architecture of a system 100 including a core network (CN) 120 (e.g., a fifth generation (5G) CN (5GC)) according to various aspects is shown. The system 100 is shown to include: a UE 101, which may be the same or similar to one or more other UEs discussed herein; a third generation partnership project (3GPP) radio access network (wireless AN or RAN) or other (e.g., non-3GPP) AN, (R) AN 210, which may include one or more RAN nodes (e.g., evolved Node B (eNB)), next generation Node B (gNB and / or other nodes) or other nodes or access points; and a data network (DN) 203, which may be, for example, an operator service, Internet access, or a third party service; and a fifth generation core network (5GC) 120. 5GC 120 may include one or more of the following functions and network components: authentication server function (AUSF) 122, access and mobility management function (AMF) 121, session management function (SMF) 124, network exposure function (NEF) 123, policy control function (PCF) 126, network repository function (NRF) 125, unified data management (UDM) 127, application function (AF) 128, user plane (UP) function (UPF) 102, and network slice selection function (NSSF) 129, for example. Figure 1 As shown, they may be connected via various interfaces and / or reference points.

[0029] Figure 2 Exemplary components of a device 200 according to some aspects are shown. In some aspects, the device 200 may include an application circuit 202, a baseband circuit 204, a radio frequency (RF) circuit 206, a front-end module (FEM) circuit 208, one or more antennas 210, and a power management circuit (PMC) 212 (coupled together at least as shown). The components of the illustrated device 200 may be included in a UE or a RAN node. In some aspects, the device 200 may include fewer elements (e.g., the RAN node cannot utilize the application circuit 202, but includes a processor / controller to process IP data received from a CN such as a 5GC 120 or an evolved packet core (EPC)). In some aspects, the device 200 may include additional elements, such as, for example, a memory / storage device, a display, a camera, a sensor (including one or more temperature sensors, such as a single temperature sensor, multiple temperature sensors at different locations in the device 200, etc.) or an input / output (I / O) interface. In other aspects, the components described below may be included in more than one device (e.g., the circuitry may be separately included in more than one device for a Cloud-RAN (C-RAN) implementation).

[0030] The application circuit 202 may include one or more application processors. For example, the application circuit 202 may include circuits such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor may include any combination of general-purpose processors and special-purpose processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processor may be coupled to or may include a memory / storage device and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory / storage device to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the device 200. In some aspects, the processor of the application circuit 202 may process IP data packets received from the EPC.

[0031] The baseband circuit 204 may include circuits such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The baseband circuit 204 may include one or more baseband processors or control logic components to process baseband signals received from the receive signal path of the RF circuit 206 and generate baseband signals for the transmit signal path of the RF circuit 206. The baseband processing circuit 204 may interact with the application circuit 202 to generate and process baseband signals and control the operation of the RF circuit 206. For example, in some aspects, the baseband circuit 204 may include a third generation (3G) baseband processor 204A, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor 204B, a fifth generation (5G) baseband processor 204C, or other baseband processors 204D for other existing generations, generations under development, or generations to be developed in the future (e.g., second generation (2G), sixth generation (6G), etc.). The baseband circuitry 204 (e.g., one or more baseband processors 204A-204D) may handle various radio control functions that may communicate with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry 206. In other aspects, some or all of the functions of the baseband processors 204A-204D may be included in a module stored in the memory 204G and may be executed via the central processing unit (CPU) 204E. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation / demodulation, encoding / decoding, radio frequency shifting, etc. In some aspects, the modulation / demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry 204 may include fast Fourier transform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping / demapping functions. In some aspects, the encoding / decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry 204 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, or low-density parity check (LDPC) encoder / decoder functions. The aspects of the modulation / demodulation and encoder / decoder functions are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functions in other aspects.

[0032] In some aspects, the baseband circuitry 204 may include one or more audio digital signal processors (DSPs) 204F. The audio DSPs 204F may include elements for compression / decompression and echo cancellation, and in other aspects may include other suitable processing elements. In some aspects, the components of the baseband circuitry may be appropriately combined in a single chip, in a single chipset, or disposed on the same circuit board. In some aspects, some or all of the components of the baseband circuitry 204 and the application circuitry 202 may be implemented together, such as on a system on a chip (SOC).

[0033] In some aspects, the baseband circuitry 204 may provide communications compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some aspects, the baseband circuitry 204 may support communications with an NG-RAN, an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN), or other wireless metropolitan area network (WMAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN), etc. Aspects in which the baseband circuitry 204 is configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

[0034] RF circuit 206 can communicate with a wireless network through a non-solid medium using modulated electromagnetic radiation. In various aspects, RF circuit 206 may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc. to facilitate communication with the wireless network. RF circuit 206 may include a receive signal path, which may include circuits that down-convert RF signals received from FEM circuit 208 and provide baseband signals to baseband circuit 204. RF circuit 206 may also include a transmit signal path, which may include circuits that up-convert baseband signals provided by baseband circuit 204 and provide RF output signals to FEM circuit 208 for transmission.

[0035] In some aspects, the receive signal path of the RF circuit 206 may include a mixer circuit 206a, an amplifier circuit 206b, and a filter circuit 206c. In some aspects, the transmit signal path of the RF circuit 206 may include a filter circuit 206c and the mixer circuit 206a. The RF circuit 206 may also include a synthesizer circuit 206d for synthesizing the frequencies used by the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some aspects, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert the RF signal received from the FEM circuit 208 based on the synthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuit 206d. The amplifier circuit 206b may be configured to amplify the down-converted signal, and the filter circuit 206c may be a low pass filter (LPF) or a band pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signal to generate an output baseband signal. The output baseband signal may be provided to the baseband circuit 204 for further processing. In some aspects, the output baseband signal can be a zero frequency baseband signal, although this is not required.In some aspects, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path can include a passive mixer, although the scope of the various aspects is not limited in this respect.

[0036] In some aspects, mixer circuit 206a of the transmit signal path may be configured to upconvert an input baseband signal based on a synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuit 206d to generate an RF output signal for FEM circuit 208. The baseband signal may be provided by baseband circuit 204 and may be filtered by filter circuit 206c.

[0037] In some aspects, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for orthogonal down-conversion and up-conversion, respectively. In some aspects, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for image suppression (e.g., Hartley image suppression). In some aspects, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmit signal path may be arranged for direct down-conversion and direct up-conversion, respectively. In some aspects, the mixer circuit 206a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 206a of the transmit signal path may be configured for superheterodyne operation.

[0038] In some aspects, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal can be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the various aspects is not limited in this respect. In some alternative aspects, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal can be digital baseband signals. In these alternative aspects, the RF circuit 206 can include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuits, and the baseband circuit 204 can include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RF circuit 206.

[0039] In some dual-mode aspects, separate radio IC circuits may be provided to process signals for each spectrum, although the scope of the various aspects is not limited in this respect.

[0040] In some aspects, the synthesizer circuit 206d can be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N / N+1 synthesizer, although the scope of the various aspects is not limited in this respect as other types of frequency synthesizers can be suitable. For example, the synthesizer circuit 206d can be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer including a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider.

[0041] The synthesizer circuit 206d can be configured to synthesize an output frequency based on the frequency input and the divider control input for use by the mixer circuit 206a of the RF circuit 206. In some aspects, the synthesizer circuit 206d can be a fractional-N / N+1 synthesizer.

[0042] In some aspects, the frequency input may be provided by a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), but this is not required. The divider control input may be provided by the baseband circuit 204 or the application processor 202 according to the desired output frequency. In some aspects, the divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a lookup table based on the channel indicated by the application processor 202.

[0043] The synthesizer circuit 206d of the RF circuit 206 may include a frequency divider, a delay locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer, and a phase accumulator. In some aspects, the frequency divider may be a dual-mode frequency divider (DMD), and the phase accumulator may be a digital phase accumulator (DPA). In some aspects, the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by N or N+1 (e.g., based on a carry output) to provide a fractional frequency division ratio. In some exemplary aspects, the DLL may include a cascaded, tunable, delay element, a phase detector, a charge pump, and a set of D-type flip-flops. In these aspects, the delay element may be configured to divide the VCO cycle into Nd equal phase groups, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

[0044] In some aspects, the synthesizer circuit 206d can be configured to generate a carrier frequency as an output frequency, while in other aspects, the output frequency can be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency) and used with a quadrature generator and divider circuit to generate multiple signals with multiple different phases relative to each other at the carrier frequency. In some aspects, the output frequency can be an LO frequency (fLO). In some aspects, the RF circuit 206 can include an IQ / polarity converter.

[0045] The FEM circuitry 208 may include a receive signal path that may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from the one or more antennas 210, amplify the received signals, and provide an amplified version of the received signals to the RF circuitry 206 for further processing. The FEM circuitry 208 may also include a transmit signal path that may include circuitry configured to amplify transmit signals provided by the RF circuitry 206 for transmission via one or more of the one or more antennas 210. In various aspects, amplification by either the transmit or receive signal path may be accomplished only in the RF circuitry 206, only in the FEM 208, or in both the RF circuitry 206 and the FEM 208.

[0046] In some aspects, the FEM circuitry 208 may include a TX / RX switch to switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuitry may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include an LNA to amplify a received RF signal and provide the amplified received RF signal as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry 206). The transmit signal path of the FEM circuitry 208 may include a power amplifier (PA) to amplify an input RF signal (e.g., provided by the RF circuitry 206), and one or more filters to generate an RF signal for subsequent transmission (e.g., via one or more of the one or more antennas 210).

[0047] In some aspects, the PMC 212 can manage the power provided to the baseband circuit 204. Specifically, the PMC 212 can control power selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-DC conversion. When the device 200 is capable of being powered by a battery, for example, when the device is included in a UE, the PMC 212 can generally be included. The PMC 212 can improve power conversion efficiency while providing a desired implementation size and heat dissipation characteristics.

[0048] Although Figure 2PMC 212 is shown coupled only to baseband circuitry 204. However, in other aspects, PMC 212 may additionally or alternatively be coupled to other components (such as, but not limited to, application circuitry 202, RF circuitry 206, or FEM 208) and perform similar power management operations.

[0049] In some aspects, the PMC 212 may control or otherwise participate in various power saving mechanisms of the device 200. For example, if the device 200 is in the RRC_Connected state, in which it is still connected to the RAN node as expected to receive traffic soon, then after a period of inactivity, it may enter a state known as discontinuous reception mode (DRX). During this state, the device 200 may be powered off for short time intervals, thereby saving power.

[0050] If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, the device 200 may transition to the RRC_Idle state, in which it is disconnected from the network and does not perform operations such as channel quality feedback, handover, etc. The device 200 enters a very low power state, and it performs paging, in which it wakes up periodically again to listen to the network, and then powers down again. The device 200 may not receive data in this state; in order to receive data, the device may transition back to the RRC_Connected state.

[0051] An additional power saving mode can keep a device from using the network for longer than the paging interval (which can range from a few seconds to several hours). During this time, the device is completely unable to connect to the network and can be completely powered down. Any data sent during this time will be significantly delayed, and it is assumed that the delay is acceptable.

[0052] The processor of the application circuit 202 and the processor of the baseband circuit 204 can be used to execute elements of one or more instances of the protocol stack. For example, the processor of the baseband circuit 204 can be used alone or in combination to perform the functions of Layer 3, Layer 2, or Layer 1, and the processor of the application circuit 204 can utilize the data received from these layers (e.g., packet data) and further perform the functions of Layer 4 (e.g., Transport Communication Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP) layers). As mentioned herein, Layer 3 may include a radio resource control (RRC) layer, which will be described in further detail below. As mentioned herein, Layer 2 may include a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, which will be described in further detail below. As mentioned herein, Layer 1 may include a physical (PHY) layer of a UE / RAN node, which will be described in further detail below.

[0053] Figure 3An exemplary interface of a baseband circuit according to some aspects is shown. As discussed above, Figure 2 The baseband circuit 204 may include processors 204A-204E and a memory 204G used by the processors. Each of the processors 204A-204E may include a memory interface 304A-304E, respectively, to send / receive data to / from the memory 204G.

[0054] The baseband circuit 204 may also include: one or more interfaces to communicatively couple to other circuits / devices, such as a memory interface 312 (e.g., an interface for sending / receiving data to / from a memory external to the baseband circuit 204); an application circuit interface 314 (e.g., an interface for sending / receiving data to / from a memory external to the baseband circuit 204); Figure 2 RF circuit interface 316 (for example, for sending / receiving data to / from the application circuit 202); Figure 2 an interface for sending / receiving data to / from a RF circuit 206); a wireless hardware connection interface 318 (e.g., for sending / receiving data to / from a near field communication (NFC) component, Parts (e.g. Low Energy), Wi- components and other communication components to send / receive data); and a power management interface 320 (eg, an interface for sending / receiving power or control signals to / from PMC 212).

[0055] As discussed in greater detail herein, various aspects that may be employed, for example, at a UE may facilitate power management associated with a wireless modem. Various aspects may employ the power management techniques discussed herein, wherein based on monitored power consumption levels and temperature levels, one or more power management stages discussed herein may be employed to mitigate overheating. The power management stages discussed herein may reduce power consumption and associated overheating caused by 5G (fifth generation) NR (new radio) operations, LTE (long term evolution) operations, or both.

[0056] See also Figure 4, which shows a block diagram of a system 400 that can be employed at a UE (user equipment), a base station (BS, such as a next-generation NodeB (gNodeB or gNB), an evolved NodeB (eNB) or other BS (base station) / TRP (transmit / receive point)), or another component of a 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) network (e.g., a 5GC (fifth generation core network) component or function, such as a UPF (user plane function)) according to various aspects discussed herein, the system facilitates enhanced measurements of radio resource control (RRC) connected mode UEs, which enhancement can facilitate DC / CA configuration. The system 400 may include a processor 410, a communication circuit 420, and a memory 430. The processor 410 (e.g., which may include one or more of 202 and / or 204A-204F, etc.) may include processing circuits and associated interfaces (e.g., a communication interface for communicating with the communication circuit 420 (e.g., the RF circuit interface 316), a memory interface for communicating with the memory 430 (e.g., the memory interface 312), etc.). The communication circuit 420 may include, for example, circuits for wired and / or wireless connections (e.g., 206 and / or 208), which may include a transmitter circuit (e.g., associated with one or more transmission chains) and / or a receiver circuit (e.g., associated with one or more reception chains), wherein the transmitter circuit and the receiver circuit may employ common and / or different circuit elements, or a combination thereof. The memory 430 may include one or more memory devices (e.g., memory 204G, local memory (e.g., including CPU registers of the processor discussed herein), etc.), which may have any of a variety of storage media (e.g., volatile and / or non-volatile according to any of a variety of technologies / constructions, etc.), and may store instructions and / or data associated with one or more of the processor 410 or the transceiver circuit 420.

[0057] Specific types of aspects of system 400 (eg, UE aspects, etc.) may be indicated via subscripts (eg, system 400 UE Including processor 410 UE , communication circuit 420 UE and memory 430 UE In some aspects, such as a BS aspect (eg, system 400 BS ) and network components (eg, UPF (User Plane Function), etc.) aspects (eg, system 400 UPF ), processor 410 BS (etc.), communication circuits (eg, 420 BS etc.) and memory (e.g., 430 BSIn some aspects, signaling or messaging between different aspects of system 400 (e.g., 4001 and 4002) may be generated by processor 4101, transmitted by communication circuit 4201 over a suitable interface or reference point (e.g., 3GPP air interface N3, N4, etc.), received by communication circuit 4202, and processed by processor 4102. Depending on the type of interface, additional components (e.g., antennas, network ports, etc. associated with systems 4001 and 4002) may participate in the communication.

[0058] In various aspects, one or more of information (e.g., system information, resources associated with signaling, etc.), features, parameters, etc., may be received from a gNB or other access point (e.g., via a processor 410) via signaling (e.g., associated with one or more layers, such as L1 signaling or higher layer signaling (e.g., MAC, RRC, etc.) BS Generate, by the communication circuit 420 BS Transmission, by communication circuit 420 UE received and processed by processor 410 UE The type of signaling employed and / or the exact details of the operations performed at the UE and / or BS in the process (e.g., signaling structure, processing of PDU / SDU, etc.) may vary depending on the type of information, features, parameters, etc. However, for convenience, such operations may be referred to herein as configuring information / features / parameters / etc. for the UE, generating or processing configuration signaling, or via similar terminology.

[0059] See also Figure 5 , which shows a state diagram of three radio resource control (RRC) states in which a UE may operate in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein. In the idle state, the UE is disconnected from the core network (CN). In the idle state, the UE performs cell reselection and may receive paging messages from the CN via the cell in which the UE resides. To enter the connected state, the UE performs an RRC connection procedure 510, in which the UE uses a random access channel (RACH) procedure to connect to the CN and the radio access network (RAN). In the connected state, the UE connects to the CN and registers with the CN. A control and user plane connection is established between the RAN and the CN for the UE. The RAN knows which cell the UE belongs to, and all parameters necessary for unicast communication between the UE and the RAN are known to both the UE and the RAN. The UE context including the UE's access stratum (AS) context (e.g., the UE's cell radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI) and the cell identity of the primary cell) and the RRC configuration for the UE (e.g., radio bearers and security information) are stored in the RAN and the UE.

[0060] The UE may move from the connected state back to the idle state by performing an RRC release procedure 520. When the UE returns to the idle state, the UE context is deleted from the UE and the RAN. As indicated at 530, 560, the UE may also default to the idle state from the connected state or the inactive state when no cell can be found for camping.

[0061] The inactive state is introduced in 5G to provide an intermediate state between the idle and connected states, which will speed up the reconnection process by eliminating some signaling for transitioning from the idle state to the connected state. The inactive state is beneficial for UEs that do not communicate with the RAN frequently, and it enables energy saving compared to these UEs remaining in the connected state. To enter the inactive state, the UE performs an RRC release procedure with a suspend configuration 540, where the UE context is stored by both the UE and the serving gNB. While in the inactive state, the UE still has a non-access stratum (NAS) connection with the CN (i.e., it is still in a connection management (CM)-connected state, rather than an idle state in which the UE has no CM-connection).

[0062] In the inactive state, the UE can move within the RAN Notification Area (RNA) without notifying the RAN, perform cell reselection, and receive paging messages from the RAN. However, the UE does not have dedicated AS resources for performing unicast communication and therefore cannot perform any dedicated data transmission or reception. Because the UE cannot perform dedicated data reception when in the inactive state, when downlink data is to be sent to the UE, the RAN pages the UE to trigger the UE to enter the connected state. When the UE has uplink data to send, the UE first enters the connected state before sending the uplink data.

[0063] To enter the connected state from the inactive state, the UE performs an RRC recovery procedure 550, in which the AS context and RRC configuration are restored to the UE and the (new) serving cell. Compared to the transition from the idle state to the connected state, this speeds up the transition to the connected state by allowing the previous connection to be restored without having to perform a large amount of signaling.

[0064] See also Figure 6 , which shows a diagram of a measurement model for a radio resource control (RRC) connected mode UE based on K beams from a gNB (or other BS) in combination with various aspects discussed herein.

[0065] See also Figure 7 , which shows a table of measurement configurations and associated descriptions for measurement reporting in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein.

[0066] See also Figure 8 , which illustrates an example of a method that can be used by UE 400 in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein.UE and NW 400 BS Flowchart of an exemplary method 800 for configuring and sending measurement reports. At 810, the method 800 may include the NW (e.g., via a BS such as a gNB) sending one or more of an RRCReconfiguration or RRCResume message to the UE that may include a measurement configuration (e.g., via a measConfig information element (IE)). At 820, the RRCReconfiguration / RRCResume procedure may be completed, and the UE may perform measurements based on the measurement configuration. At 830, the UE may send a measurement report to the NW indicating the results of the measurements performed.

[0067] However, existing measurement techniques target mobility and are not optimized for dual connectivity (DC) and / or carrier aggregation (CA) configurations.

[0068] The NW may configure the RRC_CONNECTED UE to perform measurements and report the measurements according to the measurement configuration indicated via the MeasConfig information element (IE). The measurement configuration may be provided by means of dedicated signaling (eg, RRCReconfiguration or RRCResume).

[0069] A connected UE may generate and send a measurement report (MR) having one or more of the following characteristics: (1) the MR may include a measurement identifier of the associated measurement configuration that triggers the report; (2) the cell and beam measurement quantities to be included in the measurement report are configured by the network; (3) the number of non-service cells to be reported may be limited by configuration made by the network; (4) cells belonging to a blacklist (when it is configured by the network) are not used for event evaluation and reporting, and when a whitelist is configured by the network, only cells belonging to the whitelist are used for event evaluation and reporting; and (5) and the beam measurements to be included in the measurement report are configured by the network (e.g., only a beam identifier, measurement results and a beam identifier, or no beam report).

[0070] Whether the measurement is non-gap assisted or gap assisted depends on the capabilities of the UE, the active bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE, and the current operating frequency. In the non-gap assisted scenario, the UE is able to perform such measurements without measurement gaps. In the gap assisted scenario, the UE cannot be assumed to be able to perform such measurements without measurement gaps.

[0071] For event-triggered or periodic measurement reporting, the UE may include reportAddNeighMeas in the measurement report.For reportAddNeighMeas, the UE includes the measurement results of the best neighbor cell on the serving frequency.

[0072] Because existing measurements target mobility rather than configuration of dual connectivity (DC) and / or carrier aggregation (CA), they do not provide measurements on neighboring cells on non-serving frequencies.

[0073] See also Fig. 9 , which shows a MeasConfig IE that specifies measurements to be performed by the UE in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein. Fig.10 , which shows the MeasResults IE and MeasResultNR IE in conjunction with various aspects discussed herein, which cover measurement results for intra-frequency, inter-frequency, and inter-RAT mobility.

[0074] Existing measurement techniques are not suitable for DC / CA configuration. In some NW strategies, NW DC / CA configuration relies on measurement configuration.

[0075] Typically, for connected UEs, the NW will perform primary cell (PCell) change, secondary cell (SCell) addition, and secondary cell group (SCG) addition based on UE measurement reports on non-serving cells. In other words, if the NW does not configure neighbor cell measurements, the NW will not perform such RRCReconfiguration.

[0076] Currently, in the LTE networks of some NW vendors, when the UE initially accesses the NW, the NW only configures the inter-RAT (Radio Access Technology) NR measurement configuration. If the UE does not report an NR measurement report for a period of time, the NW will delete the measurement configuration. The main motivation for the NW to delete the measurement configuration is that NR measurements may involve measurement gaps, which will cause ongoing transmission interruptions.

[0077] Therefore, the first problem with the prior art is that the lack of measurement configuration will prevent the NW from enabling the DC / CA configuration, regardless of whether the DC / CA configuration is more suitable for the latest UE situations, such as in the following situations: (1) the UE triggers a new service; (2) the UE enters the LTE+NR overlapping coverage; and / or (3) the amount of data transmitted becomes larger.

[0078] In addition, although the existing MR report can carry the MR of the service frequency, it cannot carry the potential frequency used for CA / DC.

[0079] In existing systems, only the connected UE is allowed to report the best neighbor cell on the serving frequency to the NW together with the measurement report. The motivation for introducing these measurement results is for mobility handover. For example, during the handover preparation phase, the source node can provide all measurement results to the target node, and the target node can select a cell as the target PCell.

[0080] Therefore, the second problem with the existing system is that for the measurement report triggered by the A3 event (the offset of the neighboring cell exceeds the PCell / PSCell) and / or the A5 event (the PCell / PSCell becomes worse than the absolute threshold 1 and the neighboring cell / SCell becomes better than another absolute threshold 2), the NW can decide the target PCell based on the measurement report, but cannot decide the SCG / SCell for CA / DC configuration based on the measurement report, because the measurement result can only reflect the best neighboring cell on the current serving frequency, and will not reflect the best cell on the potential CA / DC secondary component carrier.

[0081] See also Fig.11 , which shows a flow chart of a first exemplary method 1100 that facilitates enhancing measurement reporting for connected mode UEs in combination with various aspects discussed herein, the enhancement facilitating DC / CA configuration. The method 1100 provides a first exemplary technique that can address the first problem, wherein the lack of measurement configuration will prevent the NW in the existing system from enabling DC / CA configuration even when DC / CA configuration is more suitable for the UE.

[0082] Various embodiments discussed herein may use exemplary method 1100 and / or related techniques to facilitate measurement of potential frequencies for DC / CA configurations compared to existing systems. In conjunction with method 1100 , an RRC connection may be established (or may have been established) for a UE, as shown at 1110 .

[0083] The method 1100 may be used in a scenario where a connected UE prefers a CA / DC configuration but does not have a measurement configuration associated with a neighboring cell.

[0084] At 1120, the UE (eg, including 400 UE ) can generate a UE assistance information message including a measurement request and send it to a BS of the NW (eg, including 400 BS ). Depending on the implementation, the request may include or indicate one or more of the following types of information: (1) a 1-bit indication of a measurement request; (2) an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) (e.g., EUTRA, NR, etc.) to be measured; (3) one or more frequencies / bands to be measured; and / or (4) one or more frequencies / bands to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0085] At 1130 , in response to the measurement request, the BS may generate and transmit an RRCReconfiguration message including a MeasConfig configuring the requested measurement.

[0086] The UE may perform the configured measurements, and at 1140, the UE may generate and send a measurement report to the BS, the measurement report indicating the configured measurements on the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands.

[0087] At 1150 , the BS may generate and send an RRCReconfiguration message including a DC / CA configuration including at least one of the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands configured at 1130 and indicated in the measurement report of 1140 to the UE.

[0088] See also Fig.12 , which illustrates a flow chart of a second exemplary method 1200 that facilitates enhancing measurement reporting for connected mode UEs in combination with various aspects discussed herein, the enhancement facilitating DC / CA configuration. The method 1200 provides a second exemplary technique that can address the first problem, wherein the lack of measurement configuration will prevent the NW in the existing system from enabling DC / CA configuration even when DC / CA configuration is more suitable for the UE.

[0089] In conjunction with method 1200, an RRC connection may be established (or already established) for the UE (eg, using 400 UE etc.), as shown at 1210.

[0090] At 1220, the BS (eg, using 400 BS etc.) may generate and send an RRCReconfiguration message including a MeasConfig, where the MeasConfig configuration includes a potential CA / DC frequency (e.g., Fig.12 One or more measurements of measurements of F1 and F2 in IE, etc.), where the measurement configuration can be used for CA / DC purposes and the CA / DC purpose can be indicated. The purpose can be indicated in one of the configurations of the measurement report or the measurement object. In an implementation scheme where the DC / CA purpose configuration is indicated in the report configuration, the purpose can be indicated in the ReportConfigNR IE, or a new event Ax can be introduced for CA / DC purposes. See Fig.13 , which shows an example of a ReportConfigNR and EventTriggerConfig IE (portions of the latter have been omitted) that incorporate various aspects discussed herein and has been updated to indicate CA / DC purposes. Fig.14 , which shows an example of a MeasObjectNR IE that has been updated to indicate CA / DC purposes incorporating various aspects discussed herein. Fig.15 , which shows an example of a MeasObjectEUTRA IE that has been updated to indicate CA / DC purpose incorporating various aspects discussed herein.

[0091] See again Fig.12 , the UE may perform the configured measurements at 1230, including performing the configured measurements on potential frequencies for CA / DC.

[0092] At 1240, the UE may generate and send a measurement report to the BS, the measurement report indicating the configured measurements on the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands.

[0093] At 1250, the BS may generate and send an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE, the RRCReconfiguration message including an NR secondary cell group (SCG) configuration including at least one frequency / band among the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands configured at 1220 and indicated in the measurement report of 1240.

[0094] See also Fig.16 , which shows a flow chart of a third exemplary method 1600 that facilitates enhancement of measurement reporting for connected mode UEs in combination with various aspects discussed herein, the enhancement facilitating DC / CA configuration. Method 1600 provides a first exemplary technique capable of solving the second problem, wherein for a measurement report triggered by an A3 / A5 event, although the NW in an existing system can determine a target PCell based on the measurement report, it cannot determine an SCG / SCell for CA / DC configuration based on the measurement report, because the measurement result can only reflect the best neighboring cell on the current serving frequency, and will not reflect the best cell on a potential CA / DC secondary component carrier, because the existing system only allows reporting of the best non-serving cell on the serving frequency of a neighboring cell.

[0095] In conjunction with method 1600, an RRC connection may be established (or already established) for the UE (eg, using 400 UE etc.), as shown at 1610.

[0096] At 1620, the BS (eg, using 400 BS etc.) may generate and send an RRCReconfiguration message including a MeasConfig, the MeasConfig configuring one or more measurements including a first set of frequencies associated with the triggered measurement report (e.g., Fig.16 F2 in ) and one or more candidate CA / DC frequencies (e.g., Fig.16In various implementations, the first set of frequencies and one or more candidate CA / DC frequencies may belong to a frequency band combination supported by the UE. In some scenarios, the first set of frequencies may correspond to adjacent frequencies, while in other scenarios, they may include serving frequencies.

[0097] The measurement configuration may indicate one or more frequencies (e.g., candidate CA / DC frequencies, etc.) to be carried as additional measurement reports. In some embodiments, the NW (e.g., via the BS) may configure the frequencies (e.g., candidate CA / DC frequencies) to be carried as additional measurement reports, for example, in a measurement object of the first set of frequencies (e.g., F2). In some embodiments, the NW may configure a measurement object similar to an existing measurement object for measurements on candidate CA / DC frequencies (e.g., F3, F4, or F5).

[0098] At 1630, the UE may perform configured measurements, including configured measurements on configured candidate frequencies for CA / DC.

[0099] At 1640, the UE may generate and send a measurement report to the BS, the measurement report indicating the configured measurements of the first group of frequencies and one or more frequencies / bands in the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands. In various embodiments, the NW may configure (e.g., at 1620) criteria for the UE to determine which frequencies from the potential / candidate CA / DC group may be provided as additional reports. For example, the NW may configure a radio link quality threshold (e.g., reference signal (RS) received power (RSRP) / RS received quality (RSRQ) / signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR) etc.), and if the quality of one frequency group (e.g., F3) is greater than the threshold and the quality of another frequency group (e.g., F4) is lower than the threshold, the UE may include the frequency group (e.g., F3) having a quality greater than the threshold and the associated results in the additional report, while ignoring the frequency group (e.g., F4) below the threshold.

[0100] At 1650, the BS may generate and send an RRCReconfiguration message including an NR SCG configuration and / or SCell configuration to the UE, wherein the NR SCG configuration and / or SCell configuration includes at least one frequency / band among the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands configured at 1620 and indicated in the measurement report of 1640.

[0101] See also Fig.17, which shows a flowchart of a fourth exemplary method 1600 that facilitates enhancing measurement reporting for connected mode UEs in combination with various aspects discussed herein, the enhancement facilitating DC / CA configuration. Method 1700 provides a second exemplary technique capable of addressing the second problem, wherein for a measurement report triggered by an A3 / A5 event, although the NW in an existing system can determine the target PCell based on the measurement report, it cannot determine the SCG / SCell for CA / DC configuration based on the measurement report because the measurement result can only reflect the best neighboring cell on the current serving frequency and will not reflect the best cell on a potential CA / DC secondary component carrier because the existing system only allows reporting of the best non-serving cell on the serving frequency of a neighboring cell. Method 1700 may be similar to method 1600, but the detailed dedicated configuration provided at 1620 may be omitted. Instead, the NW may provide

[0102] In conjunction with method 1700, an RRC connection may be established (or already established) for the UE (eg, using 400 UE etc.), as shown at 1710.

[0103] At 1720, the BS (eg, using 400 BS etc.) may generate and send an RRCReconfiguration message including a MeasConfig, the MeasConfig configuring a first frequency group associated with the triggered measurement report (eg, Fig.17 F2 in ), and allows one or more candidate CA / DC frequencies (e.g., Fig.17 In various embodiments, the NW (e.g., via the BS) may provide a threshold (e.g., for radio link quality) to the UE to determine which potential / candidate CA / DC frequencies may be included as additional reports.

[0104] At 1730, the UE may perform configured measurements, including configured measurements of one or more candidate frequencies for CA / DC. In some embodiments, the candidate frequencies for CA / DC may be determined by the UE based on system information blocks (e.g., SIB4 and SIB5, etc.) generated by the BS. In some embodiments, the candidate frequencies for CA / DC may be determined based on any UE knowledge and may vary based on UE specific implementation.

[0105] At 1740, the UE may generate and send a measurement report to the BS indicating the configured measurements of the first set of frequencies (e.g., F2) and one or more frequencies / bands in the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands. In various embodiments, the NW may configure (e.g., at 1620) criteria for the UE to determine which frequencies from the potential / candidate CA / DC group may be provided as additional reports. For example, the NW may configure a radio link quality threshold (e.g., reference signal (RS) received power (RSRP) / RS received quality (RSRQ) / signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR)), etc.), and the UE may include any frequency groups (e.g., F3 and F4, etc.) with a quality greater than the threshold and the associated results in the additional report, while ignoring frequency groups below the threshold.

[0106] At 1750, the BS may generate and send an RRCReconfiguration message including an NR SCG configuration and / or SCell configuration to the UE, wherein the NR SCG configuration and / or SCell configuration includes at least one frequency / band among the potential CA / DC frequencies / bands indicated in the measurement report of 1740.

[0107] See also Fig.18 , which illustrates a flow chart of an exemplary method or process 1800 that can be employed at a UE according to various aspects discussed herein, which facilitates one or more enhancements for measurements in connected mode discussed herein. In other aspects, a machine-readable medium may store instructions associated with the method 1800 that, when executed, may cause a UE (e.g., using the system 400) to perform a measurement in a connected mode. UE ) performs the actions of method 1800. Although method 1800 is provided as one specific exemplary aspect of the techniques discussed herein, it should be understood that other specific exemplary aspects may employ additional and / or alternative techniques.

[0108] At 1810, the UE may optionally send a UE assistance information message including a measurement request. In some embodiments, the measurement request may include one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, the RAT for measurement, one or more potential CA / DC frequency groups for measurement, and / or one or more potential CA / DC frequency groups for measurement in the absence of gaps.

[0109] At 1820, the UE may receive a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measurement configuration for one or more frequency groups configured for measurement. The one or more frequency groups may include at least one serving frequency or a neighboring cell on a serving frequency. The one or more frequency groups may include at least one CA / DC candidate. In various embodiments, the first RRCReconfiguration message may indicate that the measurement configuration is for CA / DC purposes.

[0110] At 1830, the UE may perform measurements on one or more frequency groups configured via the first RRCReconfiguration message, which in some embodiments may include at least one CA / DC candidate. In some embodiments, although the one or more configured frequency groups do not include a CA / DC candidate, the UE may also perform measurements on at least one CA / DC candidate determined via the SIB or by other information at the UE. The measurements may be performed so as not to interrupt ongoing transmissions (e.g., without measurement gaps, during discontinuous reception (DRX) inactive time, etc.).

[0111] At 1840, the UE may send a measurement report message indicating at least some of the frequency groups measured at 1830 and associated measurements of the reported frequency groups. In some embodiments, the measurement report may include a serving frequency or a neighboring cell on the serving frequency and at least one CA / DC candidate. In some embodiments, the UE may report measurements of CA / DC candidates having at least a threshold radio link quality (e.g., where the threshold may be configured in the first RRCReconfiguration message at 1820, etc.). In some embodiments, the UE may report all measured CA / DC candidates.

[0112] At 1850, the UE may receive a second RRCReconfiguration message that configures the UE with at least one of the CA / DC candidates (eg, for SCell configuration, SCG configuration, or some other CA / DC configuration).

[0113] Additionally or alternatively, the method 1800 may include the following: UE One or more other actions described in various aspects.

[0114] See also Fig.19, which illustrates a flow chart of an exemplary method or process 1900 that can be employed at a BS according to various aspects discussed herein, which facilitates one or more enhancements discussed herein for measurements performed by a UE in a connected mode. In other aspects, a machine-readable medium may store instructions associated with the method 1900 that, when executed, may cause a BS (e.g., employing the system 400) to perform a measurement of a UE in a connected mode. BS ) performs the actions of method 1900. Although method 1900 is provided as one specific exemplary aspect of the techniques discussed herein, it should be understood that other specific exemplary aspects may employ additional and / or alternative techniques.

[0115] At 1910, optionally, the BS may receive a UE assistance information message including a measurement request. In some embodiments, the measurement request may include one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, the RAT for measurement, one or more potential CA / DC frequency groups for measurement, and / or one or more potential CA / DC frequency groups for measurement in the absence of gaps.

[0116] At 1920, the BS may send a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measurement configuration for one or more frequency groups configured for measurement. The one or more frequency groups may include at least one serving frequency or a neighboring cell on a serving frequency. The one or more frequency groups may include at least one CA / DC candidate. In various embodiments, the first RRCReconfiguration message may indicate that the measurement configuration is for CA / DC purposes.

[0117] At 1930, the BS may receive a measurement report message indicating at least some frequency groups measured by the UE based on the first RRCReconfiguration message and associated measurements of the reported frequency groups. In some embodiments, the measurement report may include a serving frequency or a neighboring cell on the serving frequency and at least one CA / DC candidate. In some embodiments, the UE may report measurements of CA / DC candidates having at least a threshold radio link quality (e.g., where the threshold may be configured in the first RRCReconfiguration message at 1920, etc.). In some embodiments, the UE may report all measured CA / DC candidates.

[0118] At 1940, the BS may send a second RRCReconfiguration message that configures the UE with at least one of the CA / DC candidates (eg, for SCell configuration, SCG configuration, or some other CA / DC configuration).

[0119] Additionally or alternatively, the method 1900 may include the following: BS One or more other actions described in various aspects.

[0120] Additional Embodiments

[0121] Embodiments of the present invention may include subject matter, such as a method, components for performing actions or blocks of the method, and at least one machine-readable medium including executable instructions that, when executed by a machine (e.g., a processor with memory, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), etc.), cause the machine to perform actions of a method or apparatus or system for concurrent communication using multiple communication technologies according to the described aspects and examples.

[0122] Embodiment 1 is a baseband processor, which is configured to perform operations including the following items: optionally, generating a UE auxiliary information message for transmission, wherein the UE auxiliary information message includes a measurement request; receiving a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig information element (IE); performing one or more measurements on each of one or more frequency groups based at least on the measConfig IE, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a non-service frequency group associated with a neighboring cell; generating a MeasurementReport message for transmission, wherein the MeasurementReport message indicates the one or more measurements on at least one of the one or more frequency groups, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a service frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and the non-service frequency group associated with the neighboring cell; and receiving a second RRCReconfiguration message, which configures the UE using the at least one frequency group of the one or more frequency groups.

[0123] Embodiment 2 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 1, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is received in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0124] Embodiment 3 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 1 to 2, wherein the measurement request includes one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0125] Embodiment 4 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 1 to 3, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0126] Embodiment 5 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 1 to 4, wherein the operation further comprises: based at least on the measConfig IE, immediately after receiving the first RRCReconfiguration message or in response to a determination by the UE of a configuration for one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), starting to perform the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups.

[0127] Embodiment 6 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 1 to 5, wherein the operation includes performing the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups in the absence of a measurement gap or during a discontinuous reception (DRX) inactive time.

[0128] Embodiment 7 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 1 to 6, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0129] Embodiment 8 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 1 to 7, wherein at least one of the one or more frequency groups includes the non-service frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-service frequency group exceeds a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0130] Embodiment 9 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 1 to 8, wherein the operations further include determining the non-serving frequency group from a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements.

[0131] Embodiment 10 is a machine-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a user equipment (UE) to: optionally, send a UE assistance information message comprising a measurement request; receive a first RRCReconfiguration message comprising a measConfig information element (IE); perform one or more measurements on each of one or more frequency groups based at least on the measConfig IE, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a non-serving frequency group associated with a neighboring cell; send a MeasurementReport message, wherein the MeasurementReport message indicates the one or more measurements on at least one of the one or more frequency groups, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a serving frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell; and receive a second RRCReconfiguration message, which configures the UE using the at least one of the one or more frequency groups.

[0132] Embodiment 11 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 10, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is received in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0133] Embodiment 12 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 10 to 11, wherein the measurement request includes one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0134] Embodiment 13 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 10 to 12, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0135] Embodiment 14 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 10 to 13, wherein the instruction, when executed, further causes the UE to: based at least on the measConfig IE, immediately after receiving the first RRCReconfiguration message or in response to a determination by the UE of a configuration for one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), start performing the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups.

[0136] Embodiment 15 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 10 to 14, wherein the instruction, when executed, causes the UE to perform the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups in the absence of a measurement gap or during a discontinuous reception (DRX) inactive time.

[0137] Embodiment 16 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 10 to 15, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0138] Embodiment 17 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 10 to 16, wherein at least one of the one or more frequency groups includes the non-service frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-service frequency group exceeds a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0139] Embodiment 18 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 10 to 17, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the UE to determine the non-serving frequency group from a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements.

[0140] Embodiment 19 is a user equipment (UE) device, which includes a processor configured to perform operations including the following items: optionally, sending a UE assistance information message including a measurement request; receiving a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig information element (IE); performing one or more measurements on each of one or more frequencies based at least on the RRC measConfig IE, wherein the one or more frequencies include at least one non-serving frequency associated with a neighboring cell; sending a MeasurementReport message, the MeasurementReport message indicating the one or more measurements for at least one of the one or more frequencies; and receiving a second RRCReconfiguration message, which configures the UE using the at least one of the one or more frequencies.

[0141] Embodiment 20 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 19, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is received in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0142] Embodiment 21 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 19 to 20, wherein the measurement request includes one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0143] Embodiment 22 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 19 to 21, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0144] Embodiment 23 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 19 to 22, wherein the operation further comprises: starting to perform the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups immediately after receiving the first RRCReconfiguration message or in response to a determination by the UE of a configuration for one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), based at least on the measConfig IE.

[0145] Embodiment 24 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 19 to 23, wherein the operation includes performing the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups in the absence of a measurement gap or during a discontinuous reception (DRX) inactive time.

[0146] Embodiment 25 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 19 to 24, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0147] Embodiment 26 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 19 to 25, wherein at least one of the one or more frequency groups includes the non-service frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-service frequency group exceeds a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0148] Embodiment 27 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 19 to 26, wherein the operations further include determining the non-serving frequency group from a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements.

[0149] Embodiment 28 is a baseband processor configured to perform operations including the following items: receiving a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig information element (IE); performing one or more measurements on each of one or more frequency groups based at least on the measConfig IE, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a non-service frequency group associated with a neighboring cell; generating a MeasurementReport message for transmission, wherein the MeasurementReport message indicates the one or more measurements on at least one of the one or more frequency groups, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a service frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and the non-service frequency group associated with the neighboring cell; and receiving a second RRCReconfiguration message, which configures the UE using the at least one frequency group of the one or more frequency groups.

[0150] Embodiment 29 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 28, wherein the operation further includes generating a UE assistance information message for transmission, wherein the UE assistance information message includes a measurement request, and wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is received in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0151] Embodiment 30 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 28 to 29, wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0152] Embodiment 31 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 28 to 30, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0153] Embodiment 32 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 28 to 31, wherein the operation further comprises: based at least on the measConfig IE, immediately after receiving the first RRCReconfiguration message or in response to a determination by the UE of a configuration for one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), starting to perform the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups.

[0154] Embodiment 33 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 28 to 32, wherein the operation includes performing the one or more measurements on each of the one or more frequency groups in the absence of a measurement gap or during a discontinuous reception (DRX) inactive time.

[0155] Embodiment 34 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 28 to 33, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0156] Embodiment 35 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 28 to 34, wherein at least one of the one or more frequency groups includes the non-service frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-service frequency group exceeds a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0157] Embodiment 36 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 28 to 35, wherein the operations further include determining the non-serving frequency group from a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements.

[0158] Embodiment 37 includes an apparatus comprising means for performing any of the operations of embodiments 1-36.

[0159] Embodiment 38 includes a machine-readable medium storing instructions for execution by a processor to perform any of the operations of embodiments 1 to 36.

[0160] Embodiment 39 includes an apparatus comprising: a memory interface; and a processing circuit configured to: perform any one of the operations of embodiments 1 to 36.

[0161] Embodiment 40 includes a user equipment (UE), which is configured to perform any one of the operations of embodiments 1 to 36.

[0162] Embodiment 41 is a baseband processor configured to perform operations including the following items: receiving a UE auxiliary information message including a measurement request; generating a first RRCReconfiguration message for transmission, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message includes a measConfig information element (IE); receiving a MeasurementReport message indicating one or more measurements of one or more frequency groups from a user equipment (UE), wherein the one or more frequency groups include a serving frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and a non-serving frequency group for the UE, wherein the non-serving frequency group is associated with the neighboring cell; and generating a second RRCReconfiguration message for transmission, wherein the second RRCReconfiguration message configures the UE using at least one of the one or more frequency groups.

[0163] Embodiment 42 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 41, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is generated in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0164] Embodiment 43 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 41 to 42, wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0165] Embodiment 44 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 41 to 43, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0166] Embodiment 45 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 41 to 44, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0167] Embodiment 46 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 41 to 45, wherein the one or more frequency groups include the non-serving frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-serving frequency group exceed a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0168] Embodiment 47 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 41 to 46, wherein the operations further include generating a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements indicating the non-serving frequency group.

[0169] Embodiment 48 is a machine-readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed, cause a base station (BS) to: receive a UE assistance information message comprising a measurement request; send a first RRCReconfiguration message comprising a measConfig information element (IE); receive a MeasurementReport message from a user equipment (UE) indicating one or more measurements of one or more frequency groups, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a serving frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and a non-serving frequency group for the UE, wherein the non-serving frequency group is associated with the neighboring cell; and send a second RRCReconfiguration message, which configures the UE using at least one of the one or more frequency groups.

[0170] Embodiment 49 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 48, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is generated in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0171] Embodiment 50 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 48 to 49, wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0172] Embodiment 51 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 48 to 50, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0173] Embodiment 52 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 48 to 51, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0174] Embodiment 53 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 48 to 52, wherein the one or more frequency groups include the non-serving frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-serving frequency group exceed a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0175] Embodiment 54 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 48 to 53, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the UE to generate a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements indicating the non-serving frequency group.

[0176] Embodiment 55 is a base station (BS) device, which includes a processor configured to perform operations including the following items: receiving a UE auxiliary information message including a measurement request; sending a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig information element (IE); receiving a MeasurementReport message indicating one or more measurements of one or more frequency groups from a user equipment (UE), wherein the one or more frequency groups include a serving frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and a non-serving frequency group for the UE, wherein the non-serving frequency group is associated with the neighboring cell; and sending a second RRCReconfiguration message, which configures the UE using at least one of the one or more frequency groups.

[0177] Embodiment 56 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 55, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is generated in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0178] Embodiment 57 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 55 to 56, wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0179] Embodiment 58 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 55 to 57, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0180] Embodiment 59 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 55 to 58, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0181] Embodiment 60 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 55 to 59, wherein the one or more frequency groups include the non-serving frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-serving frequency group exceed a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0182] Embodiment 61 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 55 to 60, wherein the operations further include generating a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements indicating the non-serving frequency group.

[0183] Embodiment 62 is a base station (BS) device, which includes a processor configured to perform operations including the following items: sending a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig information element (IE); receiving a MeasurementReport message indicating one or more measurements of one or more frequency groups from a user equipment (UE), wherein the one or more frequency groups include a serving frequency group for a serving cell or one of the neighboring cells and a non-serving frequency group for the UE, wherein the non-serving frequency group is associated with the neighboring cell; and sending a second RRCReconfiguration message, which configures the UE using at least one of the one or more frequency groups.

[0184] Embodiment 63 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiment 62, wherein the operation further includes receiving a UE assistance information message for transmission, wherein the UE assistance information message includes a measurement request, and wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message is generated in response to the UE assistance information message.

[0185] Embodiment 64 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 62 to 63, wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) to be measured, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group in the one or more frequency groups to be measured in the absence of a measurement gap.

[0186] Embodiment 65 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 62 to 64, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message indicates a purpose of one or more of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), wherein the purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

[0187] Embodiment 66 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 62 to 65, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

[0188] Embodiment 67 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 62 to 66, wherein the one or more frequency groups include the non-serving frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-serving frequency group exceed a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

[0189] Embodiment 68 includes the subject matter of any variation of any one of Embodiments 62 to 67, wherein the operations further include generating a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements indicating the non-serving frequency group.

[0190] Embodiment 69 includes an apparatus comprising means for performing any of the operations of embodiments 41 to 68.

[0191] Embodiment 70 includes a machine-readable medium storing instructions for execution by a processor to perform any of the operations of embodiments 41 to 68.

[0192] Embodiment 71 includes an apparatus comprising: a memory interface; and a processing circuit configured to: perform any one of the operations of embodiments 41 to 68.

[0193] Embodiment 72 includes a base station (BS) configured to perform any one of the operations of embodiments 41 to 68.

[0194] The above description of exemplary aspects of the disclosed subject matter, including what is described in the Abstract, is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosed aspects to the precise forms disclosed. Although specific aspects and embodiments are described herein for illustrative purposes, various modifications may be considered within the scope of such aspects and embodiments as those skilled in the relevant art may recognize.

[0195] In this regard, although the subject matter disclosed herein has been described in conjunction with various aspects and corresponding drawings, it should be understood that other similar aspects may be used or modifications and additions may be made to the described aspects to perform the same, similar, alternative or substitute functions of the disclosed subject matter without departing from the described aspects. Therefore, the disclosed subject matter should not be limited to any single aspect described herein, but should be interpreted in accordance with the breadth and scope of the claims appended hereto.

[0196] In particular, with respect to the various functions performed by the above-described components or structures (assemblies, devices, circuits, systems, etc.), unless otherwise specified, the terms used to describe such components (including references to "members") are intended to correspond to any component or structure that performs the specified functions of the components (e.g., functionally equivalent), even if not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structures that perform the functions in the exemplary implementations shown herein. In addition, while particular features have been disclosed with respect to only one of a plurality of implementations, for any given or particular application, such features may be combined with one or more other features of other implementations, which may be desirable and advantageous.

Claims

1. A base station (BS) device, the BS device comprising a processor, the processor being configured to perform operations, the operations comprising: receiving, from a user equipment (UE), a UE assistance information message including a measurement request; sending, in response to the measurement request, a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig information element (IE) to the UE, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message explicitly indicates a measurement purpose of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), and wherein the measConfig IE configures one or more measurements on a non-serving frequency group associated with a neighboring cell; receiving, from the UE, a MeasurementReport message indicating the one or more measurements; as well as A second RRCReconfiguration message is sent based on the MeasurementReport message, where the second RRCReconfiguration message configures the UE using the neighboring cell.

2. The BS device of claim 1 , wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) for measurement, the non-serving frequency group, or a first frequency group in the non-serving frequency group for measurement in the absence of a measurement gap. 3 . The BS apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the measurement purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration. 4 . The BS device according to claim 1 , wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with a serving frequency group.

5. The BS device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when the one or more measurements for the non-serving frequency group exceeds a threshold configured for the one or more measurements, the non-serving frequency group is configured in the MeasurementReport message.

6. The BS device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the operation further comprises generating a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements indicating the non-serving frequency group.

7. A machine-readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed, cause a base station (BS): receiving, from a user equipment (UE), a UE assistance information message including a measurement request; sending, in response to the measurement request, a first RRCReconfiguration message including a measConfig information element (IE) to the UE, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message explicitly indicates a measurement purpose of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC), and wherein the measConfig IE configures one or more measurements on a non-serving frequency group associated with a neighboring cell; receiving, from the UE, a MeasurementReport message indicating the one or more measurements; and A second RRCReconfiguration message is sent based on the MeasurementReport message, where the second RRCReconfiguration message configures the UE using the neighboring cell.

8. The machine-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) for measurement, the non-serving frequency group, or a first frequency group in the non-serving frequency group for measurement in the absence of a measurement gap.

9. The machine-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the measurement purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

10. The machine-readable medium of any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with a serving frequency group.

11. The machine-readable medium of any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the non-serving frequency group is configured in the MeasurementReport message when the one or more measurements for the non-serving frequency group exceed a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

12. The machine-readable medium of any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the BS to generate a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements indicating the non-serving frequency group.

13. A baseband processor, the baseband processor being configured to perform operations, the operations comprising: decoding a UE assistance information message received from a user equipment (UE), the UE assistance information message comprising a measurement request; generating a first RRCReconfiguration message for transmission in response to the UE assistance information message, wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message includes a measConfig information element (IE), wherein the first RRCReconfiguration message explicitly indicates a measurement purpose of carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC); decoding a MeasurementReport message received from the UE and based on the first RRCReconfiguration message, wherein the MeasurementReport message indicates one or more measurements of one or more frequency groups, wherein the one or more frequency groups include a serving frequency group for a serving cell or a neighboring cell and a non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell; and A second RRCReconfiguration message for transmission is generated based on the MeasurementReport message, wherein the second RRCReconfiguration message configures the UE using at least one frequency group of the one or more frequency groups.

14. The baseband processor of claim 13, wherein the measurement request comprises one or more of: a single bit indicating the measurement request, an indication of a radio access technology (RAT) for measurement, the one or more frequency groups, or a first frequency group for measurement in the one or more frequency groups in the absence of a measurement gap.

15. The baseband processor of claim 13, wherein the measConfig IE configures the UE to measure the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell, wherein the measurement purpose is indicated via one or more of a measurement report configuration or a measurement object configuration.

16. The baseband processor according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein the measConfig IE indicates the non-serving frequency group associated with the neighboring cell via a measurement object associated with the serving frequency group.

17. The baseband processor of any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein the one or more frequency groups include the non-serving frequency group when the one or more measurements for the non-serving frequency group exceed a threshold configured for the one or more measurements.

18. The baseband processor of any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein the operations further comprise generating a system information block (SIB) associated with neighbor cell measurements indicating the non-serving frequency group.

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