Reconfigurable smart surface reference signal

Abstract

Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for wireless communication. In one example, a method includes transmitting a reconfigurable smart surface reference signal (RIS-RS) configured for a user equipment to a reconfigurable smart surface (RIS), where the RIS-RS is not associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH); and receiving, from the user equipment, a channel state information (CSI) report including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

Description

[0001] Cross-reference to related applications and priority claim

[0002] This application claims the benefit of and priority to Patent Cooperation Treaty Application No. PCT / CN2022 / 095138, filed on May 26, 2022, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all applicable purposes. Background Art Technical Field

[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to wireless communications and, more particularly, to techniques for utilizing reconfigurable smart surfaces.

[0004] Related technologies

[0005] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcasts or other similar types of services. These wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available wireless communication system resources.

[0006] Although wireless communication systems have made tremendous technical progress over the years, challenges still exist. For example, complex and dynamic environments can still attenuate or block signals between wireless transmitters and wireless receivers. Therefore, there is a continuous desire to improve the technical performance of wireless communication systems, including, for example: improving the speed and data carrying capacity of communications, improving the efficiency of using shared communication media, reducing the power used by transmitters and receivers when performing communications, improving the reliability of wireless communications, avoiding redundant transmission and / or reception and related processing, improving the coverage area of ​​wireless communications, increasing the number and types of devices that can access wireless communication systems, increasing the ability of different types of devices to communicate with each other, increasing the number and types of wireless communication media available for use, etc. Therefore, there is a need to further improve wireless communication systems to overcome the above-mentioned technical challenges and other challenges. Summary of the invention

[0007] One aspect provides a method for wireless communication by a network entity. The method includes sending a RIS reference signal (RIS-RS) configured for a user equipment (UE) to a reconfigurable smart surface (RIS), the RIS-RS not being associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH). The method includes receiving a channel state information (CSI) report from the UE including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

[0008] Another aspect provides a method for wireless communication by a user equipment. The method includes receiving a RIS-RS sent by a network entity from a reconfigurable smart surface, the RIS-RS not associated with a PBCH. The method includes sending a CSI report including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS to the network entity.

[0009] Other aspects provide: an apparatus operable to, configured to, or otherwise adapted to perform the aforementioned method and / or methods described elsewhere herein; a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor of the apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform the aforementioned method and / or methods described elsewhere herein; a computer program product embodied on a computer-readable storage medium, the computer-readable storage medium comprising code for performing the aforementioned method and / or methods described elsewhere herein; and an apparatus comprising components for performing the aforementioned method and / or methods described elsewhere herein. By way of example, an apparatus may include a processing system, a device having a processing system, or a processing system cooperating through one or more networks.

[0010] For purposes of illustration, the following description and drawings set forth certain features. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The accompanying drawings depict certain features of the aspects described herein and should not be considered to limit the scope of the disclosure.

[0012] Figure 1 An example wireless communication network is depicted.

[0013] Figure 2 An example disaggregated base station architecture is depicted.

[0014] Figure 3 Aspects of an example base station and example user equipment are depicted.

[0015] Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4D Various example aspects of data structures for a wireless communication network are described.

[0016] Figure 5 An example of a beam scanning procedure between a network entity and user equipment is depicted.

[0017] Figure 6 An example of a beam scanning procedure between network entities, a reconfigurable smart surface, and user equipment is depicted.

[0018] Figure 7 Another example of a beam scanning procedure between network entities, a reconfigurable smart surface, and user equipment is depicted.

[0019] Fig. 8A An example of a beam scanning procedure between network entities, reflective smart surfaces, and user equipment using a novel reconfigurable smart surface reference signal is depicted.

[0020] Figure 8B An example scenario is depicted where a beam failure occurs between the RIS and the user equipment.

[0021] Fig.9A An example of a data structure for a conventional synchronization signal block is depicted.

[0022] Fig. 9B An example of a data structure for a reconfigurable smart surface reference signal is depicted.

[0023] Fig. 10A An example of concurrent scheduling of SS B sets and reconfigurable smart surface reference signals is depicted.

[0024] Fig. 10B An example of sharing a scope of resources for defining a set of reconfigurable smart surface reference signals and other reference signals is depicted.

[0025] Fig.11 A process flow for performing beam management in a communication network between network entities, reconfigurable smart surfaces, and user equipment is depicted.

[0026] Fig.12 Methods for wireless communications by a network entity are described.

[0027] Fig.13 A method for wireless communications by user equipment is described.

[0028] Fig.14 Aspects of an example communications device are depicted.

[0029] Fig.15 Aspects of another example communications device are depicted. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] Aspects of the present disclosure provide apparatus, methods, processing systems, and computer-readable media for utilizing reconfigurable smart surface reference signals for beam management.

[0031] Advanced wireless communication systems use many different techniques to improve system performance. Beam management is one such technique, which generally includes, for example, determining the best transmit and receive beams between network entities and user equipment. Beam management can include many related techniques, including beam scanning, beam measurement, beam determination, beam reporting, and beam failure recovery.

[0032] In general, beam management is performed using various types of reference signals, such as synchronization signal blocks, channel state information reference signals, etc. In the context of beam management, various reference signals may be referred to as "beams".

[0033] Beam scanning generally involves sending multiple reference beams in different directions (e.g., in bursts) at regular intervals. For example, different synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) carrying primary synchronization signals, secondary synchronization signals, and physical broadcast channels may be sent. A user equipment that receives one or more of the SSBs as a reference beam may then measure the reference beam, determine one or more best reference beams, and report the best reference beam back to the network entity so that subsequent communications may be performed using the best beam. Further refinement may be performed using other reference signals such as a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS). In some aspects, the CSI-RS may be viewed as a relatively narrow beam, and the SSB may be viewed as a relatively wide beam.

[0034] Because network entities such as base stations are limited in number and have both static and dynamic environmental factors to contend with while attempting to provide broad coverage to user equipment, it is desirable to introduce new elements into communication systems that can improve wireless communication performance (e.g., in terms of power, space, cost, etc.) more effectively than simply multiplying the number of base stations in a given area - especially in challenging areas for wireless communication such as dense urban environments. Reconfigurable smart surfaces (RIS) are one such new element that can improve wireless communication performance.

[0035] A RIS is a device that can change the properties of an incident electromagnetic wave, such as phase, polarization, amplitude, or other properties of the wave. A RIS can be a reflective device, a refracting (or transmissive) device, or both. For example, a RIS can be a 2-D antenna array that includes many individual scattering elements. A scattering element is a configurable metasurface that can control the phase shift of each scattering element. Thus, a RIS can be used to manipulate (e.g., beamform) radio waves incident on a "smart" surface, thereby helping to improve the penetration and coverage of wireless communication systems, such as described below with respect to Figure 1 Advantageously, because RIS can be physically smaller, easier to place, more power efficient, less complex, and less costly than base stations, RIS can be deployed in large numbers to improve communication system performance.

[0036] However, a problem arises when RIS is utilized in a communication system that also utilizes advanced techniques such as beamforming, in that the reference signal reflected and / or refracted by the RIS is no longer quasi-co-located with, for example, the network entity that transmitted the reference signal. Generally speaking, two transmit antenna ports are said to be quasi-co-located if the characteristics of the channel over which the symbols on one antenna port are transmitted can be inferred from the channel over which the symbols on the other antenna port are transmitted. In other words, because the symbols are transmitted from very similar locations and are received at very similar locations, it can be assumed that the channel conditions between the two locations are very similar. The quasi-co-location assumption is beneficial to devices that receive reference symbols because the device is able to make assumptions about the channel conditions for one symbol based on the measured channel conditions for another symbol if a quasi-co-location relationship exists between the symbols. Such channel conditions include, for example, Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread.

[0037] However, when, for example, a first symbol from a first antenna port is sent directly from a network entity to a user equipment and a second symbol is sent indirectly from the network entity to the user equipment via a RIS, the channel conditions of the two symbols cannot be inferred from each other, and the quasi co-location assumption is abolished. Without the quasi co-location assumption, many types of reference signals that rely on the quasi co-location assumption no longer function correctly for devices, such as user equipment, that receive the reference signals directly and indirectly (such as with the aid of a RIS).

[0038] Therefore, when RIS is adopted in a wireless communication system, conventional reference signals (eg, reference signals defined in standards such as 3GPP) pose technical problems for performing beam scanning. Specifically, the following Table 1 presents various aspects of conventional reference signals.

[0039]

[0040] Table 1: Reference signals

[0041] In Table 1, "operating as a QCL source" means that a specific reference signal can be indicated in a transmit configuration indicator (TCI); RLM stands for radio link monitoring; QCL stands for quasi co-location; "√" means that a specific feature is applicable to RIS beam scanning; and "×" means that a specific feature is not applicable to RIS beam scanning. Therefore, Table 1 indicates that no current reference signal is easily compatible with the RIS beam scanning technique.

[0042] Thus, various aspects described herein provide a specialized (e.g., dedicated) reference signal, i.e., a reconfigurable smart surface reference signal (RIS-RS). In general, when a base station is using a RIS to reflect and / or refract signals to a user equipment, the RIS-RS can be used to measure channel conditions between the RIS and, for example, a user equipment involved in beam management and, for example, a network entity (such as a base station). Beneficially, the user equipment in this example does not expect or require the network entity to configure QCL information (e.g., in TCI) for the RIS-RS. And unlike a synchronization signal block (SSB), the RIS-RS is not associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) (e.g., the RIS-RS can be independent of the PBCH), which beneficially avoids sharing SSB indexes between the network entity and the RIS, and this also reduces signaling overhead in the air interface. It should be noted that, in general, conventional SBSs include, for example, Fig.9A In the example depicted in FIG. 1 , the primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and PBCH signals are transmitted in consecutive symbol groups in the same time slot, and in addition, the legacy SSS and PSS are conventionally transmitted within the frequency range constrained by the PBCH resources. In this way, the legacy S SB can be associated with the PBCH. In contrast, the RIS-RS that is not associated with the PBCH does not have any of these resource allocation restrictions (e.g., the RIS-RS can be transmitted without other resources such as the PSS, SSS, and PBCH, as shown in FIG. 1 ). Fig. 9B ), and the RIS-RS may be transmitted using a wider range of frequencies.

[0043] Thus, RIS-RS enables RIS to be incorporated into a wireless communication system, and more specifically enables RIS to improve the ability of the wireless communication system to perform beamforming, which in turn improves the overall functionality of the wireless communication system, such as by improving coverage, improving channel conditions, reducing interference, increasing data throughput and speed, improving access, reducing latency, improving spectrum efficiency, and reducing power consumption.

[0044] Introduction to wireless communication networks

[0045] The techniques and methods described herein can be used in various wireless communication networks. Although various aspects may be described herein using terms commonly associated with 3G, 4G and / or 5G wireless technologies, various aspects of the present disclosure may also be applicable to other communication systems and standards not explicitly mentioned herein.

[0046] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication network 100 is depicted in which various aspects described herein may be implemented.

[0047] In general, the wireless communication network 100 includes various network entities (alternatively, network elements or network nodes). A network entity is typically a communication device and / or a communication function performed by a communication device (e.g., user equipment (UE), base station (BS), component of a BS, server, etc.). For example, various functions of a network and various devices associated with and interacting with the network may be considered network entities. In addition, the wireless communication network 100 includes: ground aspects, such as ground-based network entities (e.g., BS 102); and non-ground aspects, such as satellites 140 and aircraft 145, which may include airborne network entities (e.g., one or more BSs) capable of communicating with other network elements (e.g., ground BSs) and user equipment.

[0048] In the depicted example, the wireless communication network 100 includes a BS 102, a UE 104, and one or more core networks (such as an evolved packet core (EPC) 160 and a 5G core (5GC) network 190) that interoperate to provide communication services over various communication links (including wired and wireless links).

[0049] Figure 1 Various example UEs 104 are depicted, which may more generally include: a cellular phone, a smart phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player, a camera, a game console, a tablet computer, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, an Always-On (AON) device, an edge processing device, or other similar devices. UE 104 may also be more generally referred to as a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a station, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a remote device, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, and others.

[0050] BS 102 wirelessly communicates with (e.g., transmits signals to or receives signals from) UE 104 via communication link 120. Communication link 120 between BS 102 and UE 104 may include uplink (UL) (also referred to as a reverse link) transmissions from UE 104 to BS 102 and / or downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmissions from BS 102 to UE 104. In various aspects, communication link 120 may use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity.

[0051] BS 102 may generally include: NodeB, enhanced NodeB (eNB), next generation enhanced NodeB (ng-eNB), next generation NodeB (gNB or gNodeB), access point, base transceiver, radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, transmission and reception point, and / or other. Each of BS 102 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110, which may sometimes be referred to as a cell, and may overlap in some cases (e.g., a small cell 102' may have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of a macro cell). For example, a BS may provide communication coverage for a macro cell (covering a relatively large geographic area), a pico cell (covering a relatively small geographic area, such as a stadium), a femto cell (relatively small geographic area (e.g., a home)), and / or other types of cells.

[0052] Although BS 102 is depicted as a single communication device in various aspects, BS 102 can be implemented in various configurations. For example, one or more components of the base station may be decomposed, including a central unit (CU), one or more distributed units (DU), one or more radio units (RU), a near real-time (near RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC), or a non-real-time (non-RT) RIC, to name a few examples. In another example, various aspects of the base station may be virtualized. More generally, a base station (e.g., BS 102) may include components located at a single physical location or components located at various physical locations. In an example in which the base station includes components located at various physical locations, the various components may each perform a function so that the various components together implement functionality similar to that of a base station located at a single physical location. In some aspects, a base station including components located at various physical locations may be referred to as a decomposed radio access network architecture (such as an open RAN (O-RAN) or virtualized RAN (VRAN) architecture). Figure 2 An example decomposed base station architecture is depicted and described.

[0053] Different BSs 102 within the wireless communication network 100 may also be configured to support different radio access technologies (such as 3G, 4G, and / or 5G). For example, a BS 102 configured for 4G LTE (collectively referred to as the Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) may interface with the EPC 160 via a first backhaul link 132 (e.g., an S1 interface). A BS 102 configured for 5G (e.g., 5G NR or Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) may interface with the 5GC 190 via a second backhaul link 184. The BSs 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via the EPC 160 or the 5GC 190) over a third backhaul link 134 (e.g., an X2 interface), which may be wired or wireless.

[0054] The wireless communication network 100 may subdivide the electromagnetic spectrum into various categories, frequency bands, channels, or other characteristics. In some aspects, the subdivision is provided based on wavelength and frequency, where frequency may also be referred to as a carrier, subcarrier, channel, tone, or subband. For example, 3GPP currently defines frequency range 1 (FR1) as including 410 MHz-7125 MHz, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as "below 6 GHz." Similarly, 3GPP currently defines frequency range 2 (FR2) as including 24,250 MHz-52,600 MHz, which is sometimes (interchangeably) referred to as "millimeter wave" ("mmW" or "mmWave"). A base station (e.g., a mmWave base station such as BS180) configured to communicate using mmWave / near mmWave radio bands may utilize beamforming (e.g., 182) with a UE (e.g., 104) to improve path loss and range.

[0055] The communication link 120 between the BS 102 and, for example, the UE 104 may be through one or more carriers, which may have different bandwidths (e.g., 5 MHz, 10 MHz, 15 MHz, 20 MHz, 100 MHz, 400 MHz, and / or other MHz) and may be aggregated in various aspects. The carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL ​​compared to UL).

[0056] Communications using higher frequency bands may have higher path loss and shorter range than communications at lower frequencies. Figure 1180) may utilize beamforming 182 with UE 104 to improve path loss and range. For example, BS 180 and UE 104 may each include multiple antennas (such as antenna elements, antenna panels, and / or antenna arrays) to facilitate beamforming. In some cases, BS 180 may send beamformed signals to UE 104 in one or more transmit directions 182'. UE 104 may receive beamformed signals from BS 180 in one or more receive directions 182". UE 104 may also send beamformed signals to BS 180 in one or more transmit directions 182". BS 180 may also receive beamformed signals from UE 104 in one or more receive directions 182'. BS 180 and UE 104 may then perform beam training to determine the best receive and transmit directions for each of BS 180 and UE 104. It is noteworthy that the transmit direction and receive direction of BS 180 may be the same or different. Similarly, the transmit direction and receive direction of UE 104 may be the same or different.

[0057] Wireless communication network 100 also includes Wi-Fi AP 150 that communicates with Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 via communication link 154 in, for example, the 2.4 GHz and / or 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum.

[0058] Certain UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), and / or a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH).

[0059] The EPC 160 may include various functional components, including: a mobility management entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a serving gateway 166, a multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS) gateway 168, a broadcast multicast service center (BM-SC) 170, and / or a packet data network (PDN) gateway 172, such as in the depicted example. The MME 162 may communicate with a home subscriber server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. In general, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management.

[0060] In general, user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are delivered through the Serving Gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN Gateway 172. The PDN Gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The PDN Gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to IP services 176, which may include, for example, the Internet, an intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), a packet switched (PS) streaming media service, and / or other IP services.

[0061] BM-SC 170 may provide functionality for MBMS user service configuration and delivery. BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS delivery, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services within a public land mobile network (PLMN), and / or may be used to schedule MBMS delivery. MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to distribute MBMS services to BSs 102 belonging to a multicast broadcast single frequency network (MBSFN) area broadcasting a specific service, and / or may be responsible for session management (start / stop) and for collecting eMBMS related charging information.

[0062] 5GC 190 may include various functional components, including: access and mobility management function (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, session management function (SMF) 194, and user plane function (UPF) 195. AMF 192 may communicate with unified data management (UDM) 196.

[0063] AMF 192 is a control node that handles signaling between UE 104 and 5GC 190. AMF 192 provides, for example, Quality of Service (QoS) flow and session management.

[0064] Internet Protocol (IP) packets are delivered through UPF 195, which is connected to IP Services 197 and provides UE IP address allocation and other functions for 5GC 190. IP Services 197 may include, for example, the Internet, Intranet, IMS, PS streaming services, and / or other IP services.

[0065] In various aspects, a network entity or network node may be implemented as a converged base station, a decomposed base station, a component of a base station, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a relay node, a sidelink node, to name a few examples.

[0066] Figure 2An example disaggregated base station 200 architecture is depicted. The disaggregated base station 200 architecture may include one or more central units (CUs) 210 that may communicate directly with a core network 220 via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 220 through one or more disaggregated base station units, such as a near real-time (near-RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 225 via an E2 link, or a non-real-time (non-RT) RIC 215 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 205, or both. The CU 210 may communicate with one or more distributed units (DUs) 230 via respective midhaul links, such as an F1 interface. The DU 230 may communicate with one or more radio units (RUs) 240 via respective fronthaul links. The RU 240 may communicate with respective UEs 104 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, a UE 104 may be served simultaneously by multiple RUs 240.

[0067] Each of the units (e.g., CU 210, DU 230, RU 240, and near-RT RIC 225, non-RT RIC 215, and SMO framework 205) may include or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or send signals, data, or information (collectively referred to as signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units or an associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the communication interface of the unit may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via a transmission medium. For example, a unit may include a wired interface configured to receive or send signals to one or more of the other units via a wired transmission medium. Additionally or alternatively, a unit may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, a transmitter, or a transceiver (such as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) configured to receive or send signals, or both, to one or more of the other units on a wireless transmission medium.

[0068] In some aspects, CU 210 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by CU 210. CU 210 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (e.g., central unit-user plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (e.g., central unit-control plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some specific implementations, CU 210 may be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP unit may communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP unit via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, CU 210 may be implemented to communicate with DU 230 for network control and signaling.

[0069] DU 230 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 240. In some aspects, DU 230 may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and one or more high physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, etc.) based at least in part on functional splits such as those defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). In some aspects, DU 230 may also host one or more low PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented using an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by DU 230 or with control functions hosted by CU 210.

[0070] The lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 240. In some deployments, the RU 240 controlled by the DU 230 may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functions or low PHY layer functions (such as performing fast Fourier transform (FFT), inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.), or both, based at least in part on functional splitting (such as lower layer functional splitting). In such an architecture, the RU 240 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UEs 104. In some specific implementations, real-time and non-real-time aspects of control plane and user plane communications with the RU 240 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 230. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the DU 230 and CU 210 to be implemented in a cloud-based RAN architecture such as a vRAN architecture.

[0071] The SMO framework 205 may be configured to support RAN deployment and configuration of non-virtualized network elements and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 205 may be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which may be managed via an operation and maintenance interface (such as an O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 205 may be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as an open cloud (O-Cloud) 290) to perform network element lifecycle management (such as instantiating virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as an O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements may include, but are not limited to, CU 210, DU 230, RU240, and near-RT RIC 225. In some specific implementations, the SMO framework 205 may communicate with hardware aspects of the 4G RAN such as an open eNB (O-eNB) 211 via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some specific implementations, the SMO framework 205 may communicate directly with one or more RUs 240 via the O1 interface. The SMO framework 205 may also include a non-RT RIC 215 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 205 .

[0072] The non-RT RIC 215 may be configured to include logic functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updating, or policy-based guidance of applications / features in the near-RT RIC 225. The non-RT RIC 215 may be coupled to or in communication with the near-RT RIC 225 (such as via an A1 interface). The near-RT RIC 225 may be configured to include logic functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources via data collection and actions through an interface (such as via an E2 interface) that connects one or more CUs 210, one or more DUs 230, or both, and the O-eNB with the near-RT RIC 225.

[0073] In some implementations, in order to generate an AI / ML model to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 225, the non-RT RIC 215 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server. This information may be utilized by the near-RT RIC 225 and may be received from a non-network data source or from a network function at the SMO framework 205 or the non-RT RIC 215. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 215 or the near-RT RIC 225 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 215 may monitor long-term trends and patterns of performance and employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions through the SMO framework 205 (such as via reconfiguration of O1) or via the creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

[0074] Figure 3 Aspects of an example BS 102 and UE 104 are depicted.

[0075] In general, BS 102 includes various processors (e.g., 320, 330, 338, and 340), antennas 334a-334t (collectively 334), transceivers 332a-332t (collectively 332) including modulators and demodulators, and other aspects that enable wireless transmission of data (e.g., data source 312) and wireless reception of data (e.g., data sink 339). For example, BS 102 can transmit and receive data between BS 102 and UE 104. BS 102 includes a controller / processor 340 that can be configured to implement various functions described herein related to wireless communications.

[0076] In general, the UE 104 includes various processors (e.g., 358, 364, 366, and 380), antennas 352a-352r (collectively 352), transceivers 354a-354r (collectively 354) including modulators and demodulators, and other aspects that enable wireless transmission of data (e.g., retrieved from a data source 362) and wireless reception of data (e.g., provided to a data sink 360). The UE 104 includes a controller / processor 380 that can be configured to implement various functions described herein related to wireless communications.

[0077] Regarding example downlink transmissions, BS 102 includes a transmit processor 320 that can receive data from a data source 312 and control information from a controller / processor 340. The control information can be for a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH), a physical HARQ indicator channel (PHICH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a group common PDCCH (GC PDCCH), and / or others. In some examples, the data can be for a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH).

[0078] The transmit processor 320 may process (e.g., encode and symbol map) data and control information to obtain data symbols and control symbols, respectively. The transmit processor 320 may also generate reference symbols, such as for a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), a PBCH demodulation reference signal (DMRS), and a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS).

[0079] The transmit (TX) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) processor 330 may perform spatial processing (e.g., pre-coding) on ​​data symbols, control symbols, and / or reference symbols, where applicable, and may provide an output symbol stream to a modulator (MOD) in transceivers 332a to 332t. Each modulator in transceivers 332a-332t may process a corresponding output symbol stream to obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator may further process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and up-convert) the output sample stream to obtain a downlink signal. The downlink signals from the modulators in transceivers 332a-332t may be transmitted via antennas 334a-334t, respectively.

[0080] To receive downlink transmissions, UE 104 includes antennas 352a-352r that can receive downlink signals from BS 102 and can provide received signals to demodulators (DEMODs) in transceivers 354a-354r, respectively. Each demodulator in transceivers 354a-354r can condition (e.g., filter, amplify, downconvert, and digitize) a corresponding received signal to obtain input samples. Each demodulator can further process the input samples to obtain received symbols.

[0081] A MIMO detector 356 may obtain received symbols from all demodulators in transceivers 354a-354r, perform MIMO detection on the received symbols if applicable, and provide detected symbols. A receive processor 358 may process (e.g., demodulate, deinterleave, and decode) the detected symbols, provide decoded data for the UE 104 to a data sink 360, and provide decoded control information to a controller / processor 380.

[0082] With respect to example uplink transmissions, the UE 104 also includes a transmit processor 364 that may receive and process data from a data source 362 (e.g., for a PUSCH) and control information from a controller / processor 380 (e.g., for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH)). The transmit processor 364 may also generate reference symbols for reference signals (e.g., a sounding reference signal (SRS)). The symbols from the transmit processor 364 may be pre-decoded by a TX MIMO processor 366, if applicable, further processed by a modulator in the transceivers 354a-354r (e.g., for SC-FDM), and transmitted to the BS 102.

[0083] At BS 102, uplink signals from UE 104 may be received by antennas 334 a-334 t, processed by demodulators in transceivers 332 a-332 t, detected by MIMO detector 336 if applicable, and further processed by receive processor 338 to obtain decoded data and control information transmitted by UE 104. Receive processor 338 may provide decoded data to data sink 339 and decoded control information to controller / processor 340.

[0084] Memories 342 and 382 may store data and program codes for BS 102 and UE 104, respectively.

[0085] Scheduler 344 may schedule UEs for data transmission on the downlink and / or uplink.

[0086] In various aspects, BS 102 may be described as sending and receiving various types of data associated with the methods described herein. In these contexts, "sending" may refer to various mechanisms for outputting data, such as outputting data from a data source 312, a scheduler 344, a memory 342, a transmit processor 320, a controller / processor 340, a TX MIMO processor 330, a transceiver 332a-332t, an antenna 334a-334t, and / or other aspects described herein. Similarly, "receiving" may refer to various mechanisms for obtaining data, such as obtaining data from an antenna 334a-334t, a transceiver 332a-332t, a RX MIMO detector 336, a controller / processor 340, a receive processor 338, a scheduler 344, a memory 342, and / or other aspects described herein.

[0087] In various aspects, the UE 104 may also be described as sending and receiving various types of data associated with the methods described herein. In these contexts, "sending" may refer to various mechanisms for outputting data, such as outputting data from a data source 362, a memory 382, ​​a transmit processor 364, a controller / processor 380, a TX MIMO processor 366, a transceiver 354a-354t, an antenna 352a-352t, and / or other aspects described herein. Similarly, "receiving" may refer to various mechanisms for obtaining data, such as obtaining data from an antenna 352a-352t, a transceiver 354a-354t, a RX MIMO detector 356, a controller / processor 380, a receive processor 358, a memory 382, ​​and / or other aspects described herein.

[0088] In some aspects, the processor may be configured to perform various operations (such as those associated with the methods described herein) and send (output) data to or receive (obtain) data from another interface configured to send or receive data, respectively.

[0089] Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4D Describes a method for use in a wireless communication network such as Figure 1 Various aspects of the data structure of the wireless communication network 100).

[0090] Specifically, Figure 4A is a diagram 400 illustrating an example of a first subframe within a 5G (e.g., 5G NR) frame structure, Figure 4B is a diagram 430 illustrating an example of a DL channel within a 5G subframe, Figure 4C is a diagram 450 illustrating an example of a second subframe within a 5G frame structure, and Figure 4D FIG480 is a diagram illustrating an example of UL channels within a 5G subframe.

[0091] Wireless communication systems may utilize orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) with a cyclic prefix (CP) on both the uplink and downlink. Such systems may also support half-duplex operation using time division duplex (TDD). OFDM and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) can be used to maximize the system bandwidth (e.g., Figure 4B and Figure 4D The modulation symbols may be transmitted in the frequency domain using OFDM and / or in the time domain using SC-FDM.

[0092] The wireless communication frame structure may be frequency division duplex (FDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers, subframes within the set of subcarriers are dedicated to either DL or UL. The wireless communication frame structure may also be time division duplex (TDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers, subframes within the set of subcarriers are dedicated to both DL and UL.

[0093] exist Figure 4A and Figure 4CIn the wireless communication frame structure, TDD is used, where D is DL, U is UL, and X is used flexibly between DL / UL. The UE can be configured with a time slot format (dynamically configured by DL control information (DCI) or semi-statically / statically configured by radio resource control (RRC) signaling) through a received time slot format indicator (SFI). In the depicted example, a 10ms frame is divided into 10 equally sized 1ms subframes. Each subframe may include one or more time slots. In some examples, each time slot may include 7 or 14 symbols, depending on the time slot format. A subframe may also include a mini time slot, which typically has fewer symbols than a whole time slot. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0094] In certain aspects, the number of time slots within a subframe is based on the time slot configuration and the parameter set. For example, for time slot configuration 0, different parameter sets (μ) 0 to 5 allow for 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 time slots per subframe, respectively. For time slot configuration 1, different parameter sets 0 to 2 allow for 2, 4, and 8 time slots per subframe, respectively. Thus, for time slot configuration 0 and parameter set μ , there are 14 symbols / time slot and 2μ time slots / subframe. The subcarrier spacing and symbol length / duration are functions of the parameter set. The subcarrier spacing may be equal to 2μ×15kHz, where μ is a parameter set 0 to 5. Thus, parameter set μ=0 has a subcarrier spacing of 15kHz, while parameter set μ=5 has a subcarrier spacing of 480kHz. The symbol length / duration is inversely related to the subcarrier spacing. Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4D An example is provided for slot configuration 0 with 14 symbols per slot and parameter set μ=2 with 4 slots per subframe. The slot duration is 0.25 ms, the subcarrier spacing is 60 kHz, and the symbol duration is approximately 16.67 μs.

[0095] like Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4D As depicted in , a resource grid can be used to represent a frame structure. Each time slot includes a resource block (RB) (also called a physical RB (PRB)) extending, for example, 12 consecutive subcarriers. The resource grid is divided into a plurality of resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0096] like Figure 4A As illustrated, some REs carry Figure 1 and Figure 3The RS may include a demodulation RS (DMRS) and / or a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) for channel estimation at the UE. The RS may also include a beam measurement RS (BRS), a beam refinement RS (BRRS), and / or a phase tracking RS (PT-RS).

[0097] Figure 4B Examples of various DL channels within a subframe of a frame are illustrated.The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) carries DCI within one or more Control Channel Elements (CCEs), each CCE comprising, for example, nine RE Groups (REGs), each REG comprising, for example, four consecutive REs in an OFDM symbol.

[0098] The primary synchronization signal (PSS) may be in symbol 2 of a particular subframe of a frame. The PSS is transmitted by a UE (e.g., Figure 1 and Figure 3 104) is used to determine subframe / symbol timing and physical layer identification.

[0099] The Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS) may be within symbol 4 of a particular subframe of a frame. The SSS is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing.

[0100] Based on the physical layer identifier and the physical layer cell identifier group number, the UE can determine the physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the aforementioned DMRS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying the master information block (MIB) can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form a synchronization signal (SS) / PBCH block. The MIB provides the number of RBs in the system bandwidth and the system frame number (SFN). The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information (such as system information blocks (SIBs)) that is not sent via the PBCH, and / or paging messages.

[0101] As in Figure 4C As illustrated in , some REs carry DMRS for channel estimation at the base station (indicated as R for a specific configuration, but other DMRS configurations are possible). The UE may send DMRS for PUCCH and DMRS for PUSCH. The PUSCH DMRS may be sent, for example, in the first one or two symbols of the PUSCH. The PUCCH DMRS may be sent in different configurations depending on whether a short PUCCH or a long PUCCH is sent and depending on the specific PUCCH format used. UE 104 may send a sounding reference signal (SRS). The SRS may be sent, for example, in the last symbol of a subframe. The SRS may have a comb structure, and the UE may send the SRS on one of the teeth of the comb. The SRS may be used by the base station for channel quality estimation to achieve frequency-dependent scheduling of the UL.

[0102] Figure 4D Examples of various UL channels within a subframe of a frame are illustrated. The PUCCH may be located at a position as indicated in one configuration. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, channel quality indicators (CQI), precoding matrix indicators (PMI), rank indicators (RI), and HARQ ACK / NACK feedback. The PUSCH carries data and may additionally be used to carry buffer status reports (BSRs), power headroom reports (PHRs), and / or UCI.

[0103] Aspects related to reference signals for reconfigurable smart surfaces

[0104] Figure 5 A network entity 502 is depicted (eg, as described above with respect to Figures 1 to 3 The base station described above) and (such as the above Figure 1 and Figure 3 An example 500 of a beam scanning procedure between user equipment 504 described).

[0105] In particular, the network entity 502 transmits a set of beams, such as SSB (eg, 510 ), in different directions so that the user equipment 504 can measure the various beams and determine the best beam or beams for communication between the network entity 502 and the user equipment 504 .

[0106] The network entity 502 may also use a channel state information reference signal (e.g., CSI-RS 514) to further refine the communication channel between itself and the user equipment 504, for example after beam selection. The channel state information reference signal may have a QCL relationship with a synchronization signal block (SSB). Figure 5 As depicted in , CSI-RS 514 has a QCL relationship with (or is "quasi-co-located" with) beam 510. For example, user equipment 504 may be able to infer certain channel characteristics about CSI-RS 514 based on receiving SSB beam 510, including Doppler shift, average delay, and spatial characteristics. In some aspects, these inferable characteristics may be associated with so-called "Type C" and "Type D" QCL relationships as defined in 3GPP. The QCL relationships may assist user equipment 504 in obtaining measurements useful for performing beam management, such as received signal and received power (RSRP).

[0107] exist Figure 5 , RIS 508 is depicted on building 506, but in this example, RIS 508 is not active. For example, in this example, network entity 502 has not yet scheduled RIS 508 to facilitate communications from network entity 502 to user equipment 504.

[0108] Figure 6 A network entity 602 is depicted (eg, as described above with respect to Figures 1 to 3 described above), RIS 608, and (such as described above with respect to Figure 1 and Figure 3 An example 600 of a beam scanning procedure between user equipment 604 is described.

[0109] In this example, CSI-RS 614 quasi-co-located with beam 610A (eg, SSB beam) is received by user equipment 604, as in Figure 5 However, CSI-RS 618 is received by user equipment 604 by means of reflections from RIS 608 located on building 606 (e.g., as part of a beam management procedure between RIS 608 and user equipment 604). Notably, CSI-RS 618 lacks a QCL relationship with beam 610B due to the reflections. This lack of a QCL relationship may disrupt conventional beam management procedures, such as beam scanning.

[0110] Figure 7 A network entity 702 is depicted (eg, as described above with respect to Figures 1 to 3 described above), RIS 708 and (such as those described above with respect to Figure 1 and Figure 3 An example 700 of a beam scanning procedure between user equipment 704 is described.

[0111] To overcome Figure 6 To address the problem depicted in , where the reference signal reflected from the RIS lacks a QCL relationship with the original transmitter, a defined reference signal (such as an SSB) can be divided between the network entity 702 and the RIS 708, thereby achieving a QCL relationship between the reflected reference signal and the RIS. However, a challenge with using conventional reference signals to perform beam scanning in this manner is that the number of defined reference signals is typically limited (e.g., the number of reference signal indices is typically limited). For example, the number of defined SSBs that can be used in beam management may be limited. In general, beam scanning is more efficient for more defined beams because the beams can be tighter and therefore provide more energy to the receiver (such as the user equipment 704) when selecting the best beam. Referring back to Table 1 above, it is noteworthy that the only conventional reference signal that does not require a QCL source, the CSI-SSB, has the least number of indexed SSBs of all available options.

[0112] Therefore, a compromise must be made when splitting a limited number of defined reference signals (e.g., SSBs) between the network entity 702 and the RIS 708. Using narrower beams (e.g., 710 and 716) increases the chance of a failed beam scanning procedure and / or a beam failure after beam selection because the limited number of beams from the network entity 702 and the RIS 708 have reduced directional coverage (as indicated by the various arrows that bypass the user equipment 704). Alternatively, wider beams (not depicted) can increase directional coverage, but at the expense of reduced range and reduced signal quality at the user equipment 704. Therefore, in either case, splitting a limited number of defined reference signals (e.g., SSBs) between the network entity 702 and the RIS 708 can cause technical problems that reduce the performance of wireless communications.

[0113] It should be noted that although Figure 7 A simple example is depicted where a single network entity 702 and a single RIS 708 share a defined reference signal (eg, SBS), but actual wireless network deployments may have multiple RISs for each network entity and thus the problem of fragmenting the limited number of defined reference signals is further exacerbated.

[0114] Fig. 8A Depicted is a novel reconfigurable smart surface reference signal (RIS-RS) in a network entity 802 (e.g., as described above with respect to Figures 1 to 3 described above), RIS 808 and (such as described above with respect to Figure 1 and Figure 3 An example 800 of a beam scanning procedure between user equipment 804 is described.

[0115] In particular, the network entity 802 transmits a plurality of RIS-RS 812A to 812C to the RIS 808, which reflects the RIS-RS 812A to 812C in a plurality of directions, such as by applying different configurations to the RIS-RS 812A to 812C across the surface of the RIS 808. In general, the network entity 802 may transmit a RIS-RS set including a plurality of individual RIS-RSs based on the number of beams / directions to be reflected by the RIS 808 in order to perform beam scanning with the user equipment 804. In the depicted example, three RIS-RSs (812A to 812C) are depicted, but a different number may be used in different examples. For example, five RIS-RSs may be transmitted by the network entity 802 and reflected from the RIS 808 in five different directions, thereby forming five different reference beams. Furthermore, in some cases, the network entity 802 may transmit more than one RIS-RS for each reference beam reflected by the RIS 808.

[0116] In this example, each of the RIS-RS 812A to 812C may be considered as a reference beam for performing beam management between the user equipment 804 and the RIS 808. The reflected RIS-RS 812A to 812C is received by the user equipment 804 and used to select the best receive beam (e.g., from the receive beam 820) as part of a downlink beam scanning procedure utilizing the RIS 808. Because the RIS-RS 812A to 812C are explicitly defined for performing beam management between the RIS 808 and the user equipment 818, the RIS-RS 812A to 812C do not need to have a QCL relationship with, for example, any antenna port of the network entity 802. Therefore, unlike conventional reference signals reflected by the RIS 808 (such as SSBs transmitted by the network entity 802), the RIS-RS 812A to 812C may be used for beam management between the user equipment 804 and the RIS 808 without tradeoffs, such as not partitioning the reference signal index between devices or not using suboptimal beam widths.

[0117] In the case where the user equipment 804 has an RRC connection with the network entity 802, the user equipment 804 can further report measurements of the RIS-RS 812-A to 812-C of the user equipment 804 (e.g., L1 beam measurements, such as received signal received power (RSRP), received signal strength indicator (RSSI), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), etc.) back to the network entity 802 for beam management.

[0118] Thus, RIS-RS provides a technical solution to the above-mentioned problems with conventional reference signals used for beam management procedures (including beam / channel measurements between user equipment 804 and RIS 808). For example, the SSB used by network entity 802 does not need to be dedicated to performing communication with user equipment 804 (such as with respect to Figure 5 ) beam scanning procedure, avoiding the use of (as described in the example of Figure 6 The QCL requirements of existing reference signals described above and can be performed (e.g. with Figure 7 more accurate beam scanning procedure compared to the example).

[0119] In general, RIS-RS may be dynamically configured on a device (e.g., user equipment 804) by the network (e.g., by the network entity 802) or pre-configured with a corresponding resource set on the device. Beneficially, whether dynamically or statically pre-configured, the network will not need to configure the relevant QCL information in the TCI for RIS-RS. However, unlike CSI-RS for radio resource management (RRM), the resource index for RIS-RS may still be indicated in the QCL message including TCI information that provides the QCL source to other reference signals. The following are examples of TCI information that may be configured by the network:

[0120]

[0121] In the previous example of TCI information, RIS-RS can be configured, for example, using the existing NZP-CSI-RS-ResourceID or with a new RIS-RS-Index (italicized in the above example). Therefore, implementing RIS-RS within the existing standard can be achieved in various ways.

[0122] Furthermore, RIS-RS can generally be configured by the communication network to be periodic, semi-periodic or aperiodic.

[0123] Figure 8B An example scenario 850 is depicted in which a beam failure occurs between the RIS 808 and the user equipment 804 .

[0124] For example, the user equipment 804 may move outside of the valid area for the originally determined beam used for data transmission 822 from the network entity 802 to the user equipment by means of the RIS 808. This movement may also result in a misalignment of the selected receive beam 814 of the user equipment 804 relative to the reflected data transmission 822 of the RIS 808. In such a scenario, the user equipment may initiate a random access channel (RACH) procedure directly with the network entity 802 in order to perform beam recovery.

[0125] Similarly, if the beam determination procedure fails, such as the network entity 802 and the user equipment 804 cannot determine an appropriate beam pair between the user equipment 804 and the RIS 808 (e.g., the UE 804 fails to perform radio link management), the user equipment 804 can request RIS-RS transmission from the network entity 802 via the RACH via a direct link between the user equipment 804 and the network entity 802.

[0126] Fig.9AAn example of a data structure 900 for a conventional SSB is depicted, which includes time and frequency resources for a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), and a secondary synchronization signal (SSS). Such an SSB may be associated with the various SSB beams described above. Fig.9A As shown in , conventional SSB is associated with PBCH by sending PSS, SSS, and PBCH signals in consecutive symbol groups in the same time slot.

[0127] Fig. 9B An example of a data structure 950 for a RIS-RS 952 is depicted. Unlike conventional SSB reference signals, the RIS-RS need not be associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), so the resource set for the RIS-RS can be more compact in terms of allocated time and frequency resources, which reduces signaling overhead on the air interface as described above. For example, a RIS-RS that is not associated with the PBCH may not be transmitted in a continuous symbol group in the same time slot as the PBCH (nor does the transmitted PSS and / or SSS). In addition, as above, the RIS-RS may use a frequency that is wider than, for example, the PBCH or a different range than, for example, the PBCH because the RIS-RS is not constrained by the associated PBCH. For example, a RIS-RS that is not associated with the PBCH may be transmitted outside the frequency range used for the PBCH. In some aspects, a given RIS-RS resource set (e.g., 952) may be considered a lightweight SSB.

[0128] In one example, RIS-RS 952 may include a sequence, such as a gold sequence, an m-sequence, or other type of sequence. For example, RIS-RS 952 may include a 127-bit gold sequence with 336 possible values. Other implementations are possible.

[0129] Additionally, RIS-RS 952 may be configured with defined gaps (eg, 956A and 956B) with other data (eg, 954) configured in adjacent time and frequency resources.

[0130] Fig. 10A An example of concurrent scheduling of SSB sets and RIS-RS sets is depicted 1000. In particular, SSB sets or SSB "bursts" (e.g., SSB1 to SSBM), such as 1002, may be scheduled according to an SSB period 1006. Similarly, RIS-RS sets or RIS-RS bursts (e.g., RIS-RS1 to RIS-RSN), such as 1004, may be scheduled according to a RIS-RS period 1008.

[0131] It should be noted that Fig. 10AThis is just one example, and many other configurations are possible. For example, different RISs may be configured with different RIS-RS sets, and those different RIS-RS sets may have different periodicities, including periodic, semi-periodic, and aperiodic. In addition, in some aspects, RIS-RS within the same RIS-RS set (e.g., 1004) may use the same sequence as a payload, while RIS-RS in different sets may have different sequences as payloads.

[0132] Fig. 10B An example of sharing a resource range for defining a set of RIS-RS (and other reference signals) is depicted. In this example, NZP-CSI-RS resource set 1052 defines CSI-RS resources 1054A through 1054C. Similarly, RIS-CSI-RS resource set 1056 defines RIS-RS resources 1058A through 1058C by sharing an existing NZP-CSI-RS resource ID range (e.g., for a resource set such as Fig. 10A 1004 in ). Therefore, Fig. 10B Another approach for integrating new reference signals such as RIS-RS into the existing standard framework is depicted.

[0133] Example Operations in a Communication Network Using RIS-RS

[0134] Fig.11 Depicted is a process flow 1100 for performing beam management in a communication network between a network entity 1102, a RIS 1103, and a user equipment (UE) 1104. As discussed herein, a RIS 1103 is a device that changes the properties of an incident electromagnetic wave, and the device may be reflective or refractive or both.

[0135] In some aspects, the network entity 1102 may be related to Figure 1 and Figure 3 Depict and describe BS102 or about Figure 2 An example of a decomposed base station is depicted and described. Similarly, UE 1104 may be related to Figure 1 and Figure 3 An example of a UE 104 is depicted and described. However, in other aspects, the UE 104 may be another type of wireless communication device and the BS 102 may be another type of network entity or network node such as described herein.

[0136] Flow 1100 begins at 1106, where network entity 1102 schedules RIS 1103 to provide assistance to UE 1104, such as by reflecting a signal from network entity 1102 to UE 1104 (eg, as Figure 6 and Fig. 8A).

[0137] Flow 1100 then proceeds to 1108, where network entity 1102 optionally configures RIS-RS on UE 1104. As described above, in other examples, UE 1104 may already be configured with RIS-RS.

[0138] Process 1100 then proceeds to 1110, where the network entity 1102 optionally configures a beam (e.g., referred to as a direct beam) for the UE 1104 to directly receive (e.g., such as Figure 6 A reference signal (e.g., SSB and / or CSI-RS) for beam 610A in FIG.

[0139] The process 1100 then proceeds to 1112, where the network entity 1102 transmits the reference signal to the RIS 1103, which then reflects the reference signal (e.g., via modulation of the metasurface) to the UE 1104 at 1114. When these beams arrive at the UE 1104 via the RIS 1103, these beams are referred to as indirect beams, such as Fig. 8A Beam 816 in.

[0140] Flow 1100 then proceeds to step 1116, where UE 1104 transmits a channel state information report (e.g., including channel measurements related to the channel between UE 1104 and RIS 1103) to network entity 1102. In some aspects, these measurements may include L1 measurements, such as RSRP measurements.

[0141] The process 1100 then proceeds to step 1118 where the UE 1104 optionally updates the receiving beam based on, for example, the channel state measurement transmitted to the network entity 1102.

[0142] Process 1100 then proceeds to step 1120, where UE 1104 transmits a beam information message to network entity 1102. For example, the beam information message may indicate one or more preferred beams (e.g., Fig. 8A beam 816 in it).

[0143] Example Operations of Network Entities

[0144] Fig.12 A method for transmitting data to a network entity such as Figure 1 and Figure 3 BS102) or as regards Figure 2 A method 1200 of performing wireless communications with a decomposed base station is discussed.

[0145] Method 1200 begins at 1205, where a RIS-RS configured for a user equipment is sent to the RIS, where the RIS-RS is not associated with the PBCH. In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described transmitting circuit may be performed by the transmitting circuit.

[0146] Method 1200 then proceeds to step 1210, where a CSI report including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS is received from the user equipment. In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described receiving circuitry may be performed by or in conjunction with the receiving circuitry. In some aspects, one of the one or more measurements comprises a layer 1 RSRP measurement.

[0147] In some aspects, the method 1200 also includes sending a configuration for the RIS-RS to the user equipment, wherein the configuration for the RIS-RS includes a set of resources configured for measuring a channel between the RIS and the user equipment, such as described above with respect to Fig.11 In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described transmitting circuit may be performed by the transmitting circuit.

[0148] In some aspects, the configuration periodically schedules RIS-RS, such as with respect to Fig. 10A In some aspects, the configuration schedules the RIS-RS semi-periodically. In some aspects, the configuration schedules the RIS-RS aperiodically.

[0149] In some aspects, the configuration includes one or more sequences. In some aspects, at least one of the one or more sequences is a gold sequence or an m-sequence.

[0150] In some aspects, the configuration indication (e.g., as to Fig. 10A The RIS-RS may include one or more RIS-RS sets described herein, and the RIS-RS may be included in one of the one or more RIS-RS sets.

[0151] In some aspects, the configuration indicates a plurality of RIS-RS sets, wherein each respective RIS-RS set in the plurality of RIS-RS sets is configured with a respective sequence for each RIS-RS included in the respective RIS-RS set, and wherein RIS-RSs in different RIS-RS sets in the plurality of RIS-RS sets have sequences that are different from each other, such as with respect to Fig. 10A described.

[0152] In some aspects, the configuration indicates one or more time and frequency locations associated with the RIS-RS, and the one or more time and frequency locations define one or more gap resources between the RIS-RS and other time and frequency locations associated with data transmission, such as with respect to Fig. 9B described.

[0153] In some aspects, the method 1200 further includes transmitting the CSI-RS to the user equipment, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the CSI-RS, such as with respect to Figure 6 and Fig. 8A In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described transmitting circuit may be performed by the transmitting circuit.

[0154] In some aspects, the method 1200 further includes transmitting the SSB to the user equipment, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the SSB, such as with respect to Figure 6 and Fig. 8A In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described transmitting circuit may be performed by the transmitting circuit.

[0155] In some aspects, the method 1200 also includes sending QCL information including an index associated with the RIS-RS to the user equipment. In some aspects, the index is indicated by NZP-CSI-RS-ResourceID, such as Fig. 10B In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described transmitting circuit may be performed by the transmitting circuit.

[0156] In some aspects, the method 1200 further includes receiving, from the user equipment, a first beam report including one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are sent from the network entity to the user equipment. In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described receiving circuit may be or may be executed by the receiving circuit.

[0157] In some aspects, the method 1200 further includes receiving, from the user equipment, a second beam report including one or more measurements associated with the one or more indirect beams. In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described receiving circuitry may be performed by or in conjunction with the receiving circuitry.In some aspects, one or more indirect beams are not sent by a network entity to a user equipment.

[0158] In some aspects, the method 1200 further includes receiving, from the user equipment, a beam report including one or more measurements associated with the one or more direct beams and one or more measurements associated with the one or more indirect beams. In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described receiving circuitry may be performed by or in conjunction with the receiving circuitry.In some aspects, one or more direct beams are transmitted from a network entity to a user equipment, and wherein the network entity does not transmit one or more indirect beams to the user equipment.

[0159] In some aspects, the method 1200 further includes performing timing refinement based on one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS. In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described execution circuit may be executed by the execution circuit.

[0160] In some aspects, the method 1200 further includes receiving a request from the user equipment to send the RIS-RS via the RACH, wherein sending the RIS-RS to the user equipment is performed via the RACH. In some aspects, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.14 The described receiving circuit may be or may be executed by the receiving circuit.

[0161] In one aspect, method 1200 or any aspect related thereto may be performed by an apparatus such as Fig.14 The method 1200 is performed by a communication device 1400 that includes various components operable, configured, or adapted to perform the method 1200. The communication device 1400 is described in more detail below.

[0162] It should be noted that Fig.12 This is merely one example of a method, and other methods including fewer, additional, or alternative steps are also possible consistent with the present disclosure.

[0163] Example Operation of User Equipment

[0164] Fig.13 The method for use by a UE such as Figure 1 and Figure 3 Method 1300 for performing wireless communications with UE 104).

[0165] Method 1300 begins at 1305, where a RIS-RS is received from a reconfigurable smart surface, such as a Fig.9A RIS-RS 812 in. In some aspects, RIS-RS is not associated with PBCH, such as Fig. 9B In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.15 The described circuit for receiving may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0166] Method 1300 then proceeds to step 1310, where a CSI report including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS is sent to a network entity, such as Fig.11 In some aspects, one of the one or more measurements comprises a layer 1 RSRP measurement. In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as in reference to step 1116 of Fig.15 The described circuit for transmitting may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0167] In some aspects, the method 1300 also includes receiving a configuration for the RIS-RS from a network entity. In some aspects, the configuration for the RIS-RS includes a set of resources configured for measuring a channel between the RIS and the user equipment. In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.15 The described circuit for receiving may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0168] In some aspects, the configuration schedules the RIS-RS periodically. In some aspects, the configuration schedules the RIS-RS semi-periodically. In some aspects, the configuration schedules the RIS-RS aperiodically.

[0169] In some aspects, the configuration includes a gold sequence.

[0170] In some aspects, the configuration indicates one or more RIS-RS sets (eg, Fig. 10A In some aspects, each respective one of the one or more RIS-RS sets is configured with a respective sequence for each RIS-RS in the associated RIS-RS of the respective RIS-RS set, the respective RIS-RS set being different from each other one of the one or more RIS-RS sets.

[0171] In some aspects, the configuration indicates one or more time and frequency locations associated with the RIS-RS, and the one or more time and frequency locations define one or more gap resources between the RIS-RS and any other time and frequency locations associated with data transmission, such as with respect to Fig. 9B described.

[0172] In some aspects, the method 1300 further comprises receiving a CSI-RS from a network entity, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the CSI-RS. In some aspects, the method 1300 further comprises receiving an SSB from a network entity, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the SSB.

[0173] In some aspects, the method 1300 also includes receiving, from the network entity, QCL information including an index associated with the RIS-RS. In some aspects, the index includes an NZP-CSI-RS-ResourceID, such as Fig. 10B In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.15 The described circuit for receiving may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0174] In some aspects, the method 1300 also includes sending a first beam report including one or more measurements associated with the one or more direct beams to a network entity, such as regarding Fig.11 In some aspects, one or more direct beams are sent from the network entity to the user equipment. In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as in reference to step 1120. Fig.15 The described circuit for transmitting may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0175] In some aspects, the method 1300 further includes sending a second beam report including one or more measurements associated with the one or more indirect beams to the network entity. In some aspects, the one or more indirect beams are not sent by the network entity to the user equipment. In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.15 The described circuit for transmitting may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0176] In some aspects, the method 1300 further includes sending a beam report to a network entity including one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams and one or more measurements associated with one or more indirect beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are received from the network entity, and wherein the one or more indirect beams are received from the RIS. In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.15 The described circuit for transmitting may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0177] In some aspects, the method 1300 further includes sending a request to the network entity to send the RIS-RS via the RACH. In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.15 The described circuits for sending may be or may be performed by the circuits.In some aspects, receiving the RIS-RS from the network entity is performed over a RACH.

[0178] In some aspects, method 1300 also includes selecting a new receive beam based on one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS, such as Fig.11 In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as step 1118 in reference Fig.15 The described circuit for selecting may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0179] In some aspects, method 1300 also includes determining beam failure based on RIS-RS, such as regarding Figure 8B In some cases, the operation of this step is referred to as reference Fig.15 The described circuit for determining may be or may be performed by the circuit.

[0180] In one aspect, method 1300 or any aspect related thereto may be performed by an apparatus such as Fig.15 The method 1300 is performed by a communication device 1500 that includes various components operable, configured, or adapted to perform the method 1300. The communication device 1500 is described in more detail below.

[0181] It should be noted that Fig.13 This is merely one example of a method, and other methods including fewer, additional, or alternative steps are possible consistent with the present disclosure.

[0182] Example Communication Device

[0183] Fig.14 Various aspects of an example communication device 1400 are depicted. In some aspects, the communication device 1400 is a network entity such as Figure 1 and Figure 3 BS102 or such Figure 2 The decomposed base station in question.

[0184] The communication device 1400 includes a processing system 1405 coupled to a transceiver 1465 (e.g., a transmitter and / or a receiver) and / or a network interface 1475. The transceiver 1465 is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communication device 1400 via an antenna 1470, such as various signals as described herein. The network interface 1475 is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communication device 1400 via a communication link (such as various signals as described herein). Figure 2 The processing system 1405 may be configured to perform processing functions for the communication device 1400, including processing signals received by the communication device 1400 and / or to be sent by the communication device 1400.

[0185] The processing system 1405 includes one or more processors 1410. In various aspects, such as with respect to Figure 3As described, the one or more processors 1410 may represent one or more of the receive processor 338, the transmit processor 320, the TX MIMO processor 330, and / or the controller / processor 340. The one or more processors 1410 are coupled to the computer-readable medium / memory 1435 via the bus 1460. In some aspects, the computer-readable medium / memory 1435 is configured to store instructions (e.g., computer-executable code) that, when executed by the one or more processors 1410, cause the one or more processors 1410 to perform operations related to the processing of the computer-readable medium / memory 1435. Fig.12 The method 1200 described herein or any aspect related thereto. It should be noted that reference to a processor of the communication device 1400 that performs a function may include one or more processors 1410 of the communication device 1400 that perform the function.

[0186] In the depicted example, computer readable medium / memory 1435 stores code (e.g., executable instructions) such as code for sending 1440, code for receiving 1445, code for transmitting 1450, and code for executing 1455. The processing of code for sending 1440, code for receiving 1445, code for transmitting 1450, and code for executing 1455 may cause communication device 1400 to perform operations related to the communication device 1400. Fig.12 The method 1200 described herein or any aspect related thereto.

[0187] The one or more processors 1410 include circuits configured to implement (e.g., execute) code stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1435, including circuits such as circuits for sending 1415, circuits for receiving 1420, circuits for transmitting 1425, and circuits for executing 1430. The processing of the circuits for sending 1415, the circuits for receiving 1420, the circuits for transmitting 1425, and the circuits for executing 1430 may cause the communication device 1400 to perform the operations described above. Fig.12 The described method 1200 or any aspect related thereto.

[0188] The various components of the communication device 1400 may provide for performing the following operations: Fig.12 The described method 1200 or any aspect related thereto may include means for sending, transmitting, or outputting for sending. Figure 3 The transceiver 332 and / or antenna 334 of the BS 102 and / or Fig.14 The transceiver 1465 and antenna 1470 of the communication device 1400 in FIG. 1464 may include Figure 3 The transceiver 332 and / or antenna 334 of the BS 102 and / or Fig.14The transceiver 1465 and antenna 1470 of the communication device 1400.

[0189] Fig.15 Aspects of an example communications device 1500 are depicted. In some aspects, communications device 1500 is a user equipment (UE), such as described above with respect to Figure 1 and Figure 3 UE 104 is described.

[0190] The communication device 1500 includes a processing system 1505 coupled to a transceiver 1565 (e.g., a transmitter and / or a receiver). The transceiver 1565 is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communication device 1500, such as the various signals described herein, via an antenna 1570. The processing system 1505 may be configured to perform processing functions for the communication device 1500, including processing signals received by the communication device 1500 and / or to be transmitted by the communication device.

[0191] The processing system 1505 includes one or more processors 1510. In various aspects, the one or more processors 1510 may represent one or more of the receive processor 358, the transmit processor 364, the TX MIMO processor 366, and / or the controller / processor 380, as described with respect to FIG. Figure 3 The one or more processors 1510 are coupled to the computer readable medium / memory 1535 via the bus 1560. In some aspects, the computer readable medium / memory 1535 is configured to store instructions (e.g., computer executable code) that, when executed by the one or more processors 1510, cause the one or more processors 1510 to perform operations related to Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto. It should be noted that reference to a processor performing a function of the communication device 1500 may include one or more processors 1510 performing that function of the communication device 1500 .

[0192] In the depicted example, computer readable medium / memory 1535 stores code (e.g., executable instructions) such as code for receiving 1540, code for sending 1545, code for selecting 1550, and code for determining 1555. Processing of code for receiving 1540, code for sending 1545, code for selecting 1550, and code for determining 1555 may cause communication device 1500 to perform operations related to Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto.

[0193] The one or more processors 1510 include circuits configured to implement (e.g., execute) code stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1535, including circuits such as circuits for receiving 1515, circuits for transmitting 1520, circuits for selecting 1525, and circuits for determining 1530. The processing of the circuits for receiving 1515, the circuits for transmitting 1520, the circuits for selecting 1525, and the circuits for determining 1530 may cause the communication device 1500 to perform operations related to the communication device 1500. Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto.

[0194] The various components of the communication device 1500 may provide for performing Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect thereof may include a component for sending, transmitting, or outputting for sending. Figure 3 The transceiver 354 and / or antenna 352 of the UE 104 illustrated in FIG. Fig.15 The transceiver 1565 and antenna 1570 of the communication device 1500 in FIG. 1 may include Figure 3 The transceiver 354 and / or antenna 352 of the UE 104 illustrated in FIG. Fig.15 The transceiver 1565 and antenna 1570 of the communication device 1500.

[0195] Sample Clauses

[0196] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0197] Clause 1: A method of wireless communication by a network entity, comprising: sending a RIS-RS configured for a user equipment to a RIS, wherein the RIS-RS is not associated with a PBCH; and receiving a CSI report from the user equipment including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

[0198] Clause 2: The method of clause 1, further comprising: sending a configuration for the RIS-RS to the user equipment, wherein the configuration for the RIS-RS comprises a set of resources configured for measuring a channel between the RIS and the user equipment.

[0199] Clause 3: The method of clause 2, wherein the configuration periodically schedules the RIS-RS.

[0200] Clause 4: The method of clause 2, wherein the configuration schedules the RIS-RS semi-periodically.

[0201] Clause 5: The method of clause 2, wherein the configuration schedules the RIS-RS aperiodically.

[0202] Clause 6: The method of clause 2, wherein the configuration comprises one or more sequences.

[0203] Clause 7: The method of clause 6, wherein at least one of the one or more sequences is a gold sequence or an m-sequence.

[0204] Clause 8: The method of clause 2, wherein: the configuration indicates one or more RIS-RS sets, and the RIS-RS is included in one of the one or more RIS-RS sets.

[0205] Clause 9: The method of clause 2, wherein the configuration indicates a plurality of RIS-RS sets, wherein each respective RIS-RS set in the plurality of RIS-RS sets is configured with a respective sequence for each RIS-RS included in the respective RIS-RS set, and wherein RIS-RSs in different ones of the plurality of RIS-RS sets have sequences that are different from each other.

[0206] Clause 10: A method according to clause 2, wherein: the configuration indicates one or more time and frequency locations associated with the RIS-RS, and the one or more time and frequency locations define one or more gap resources between the RIS-RS and other time and frequency locations associated with data transmission.

[0207] Clause 11: The method of any of clauses 1 to 10, further comprising: sending a CSI-RS to the user equipment, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi co-located with the CSI-RS.

[0208] Clause 12: The method of clause 11, further comprising: transmitting a SSB to the user equipment, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the SSB.

[0209] Clause 13: The method of any of clauses 1 to 12, further comprising: sending QCL information including an index associated with the RIS-RS to the user equipment.

[0210] Clause 14: A method as set forth in clause 13, wherein the index is indicated by NZP-CSI-RS-ResourceID.

[0211] Clause 15: A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 14, wherein one of the one or more measurements comprises a layer 1 RSRP measurement.

[0212] Clause 16: The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 15 further includes: receiving a first beam report from the user equipment comprising one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are sent from the network entity to the user equipment; and receiving a second beam report from the user equipment comprising one or more measurements associated with one or more indirect beams.

[0213] Clause 17: The method according to any one of clauses 1 to 16 further includes: receiving a beam report from the user equipment comprising one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams and one or more measurements associated with one or more indirect beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are sent from the network entity to the user equipment, and wherein the one or more indirect beams are not sent by the network entity to the user equipment.

[0214] Clause 18: A method as described in any of clauses 1 to 17, further comprising: performing timing refinement based on the one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

[0215] Clause 19: The method of any of clauses 1 to 18, further comprising: receiving a request from the user equipment to send the RIS-RS via a RACH, wherein sending the RIS-RS to the user equipment is performed via the RACH.

[0216] Clause 20: A method of wireless communication by a user equipment, comprising: receiving a RIS-RS sent by a network entity from a reconfigurable smart surface, wherein the RIS-RS is not associated with a PBCH; and sending a CSI report including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS to the network entity.

[0217] Clause 21: The method of clause 20, further comprising: receiving a configuration for the RIS-RS from the network entity, wherein the configuration for the RIS-RS comprises a set of resources configured for measuring a channel between the RIS and the user equipment.

[0218] Clause 22: The method of clause 21, wherein the configuration periodically schedules the RIS-RS.

[0219] Clause 23: The method of clause 21, wherein the configuration schedules the RIS-RS semi-periodically.

[0220] Clause 24: The method of clause 21, wherein the configuration schedules the RIS-RS aperiodically.

[0221] Clause 25: The method of clause 21, wherein the configuration comprises a gold sequence.

[0222] Clause 26: The method of clause 21, wherein: the configuration indicates one or more RIS-RS sets, and the RIS-RS is associated with one of the one or more RIS-RS sets.

[0223] Clause 27: A method according to clause 26, wherein each respective one of the one or more RIS-RS sets is configured with a respective sequence for each of its associated RIS-RSs, the respective RIS-RS set being different from each other one of the one or more RIS-RS sets.

[0224] Clause 28: A method according to clause 21, wherein: the configuration indicates one or more time and frequency locations associated with the RIS-RS, and the one or more time and frequency locations define one or more gap resources between the RIS-RS and any other time and frequency locations associated with data transmission.

[0225] Clause 29: The method of any of clauses 20 to 28, further comprising: receiving a CSI-RS from the network entity, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the CSI-RS.

[0226] Clause 30: The method of clause 29, further comprising: receiving a SSB from the network entity, wherein the RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the SSB.

[0227] Aspect 31: A method according to any of clauses 20 to 30, further comprising: receiving, from the network entity, QCL information comprising an index associated with the RIS-RS.

[0228] Clause 32: The method of clause 31, wherein the index comprises NZP-CSI-RS-ResourceID.

[0229] Clause 33: A method as described in any of clauses 20 to 32, wherein one of the one or more measurements comprises a layer 1 RSRP measurement.

[0230] Clause 34: The method according to any one of clauses 20 to 33 further includes: sending a first beam report to the network entity including one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are sent from the network entity to the user equipment; and sending a second beam report to the network entity including one or more measurements associated with one or more indirect beams.

[0231] Clause 35: The method according to any one of clauses 20 to 34 further comprises: sending a beam report to the network entity comprising one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams and one or more measurements associated with one or more indirect beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are received from the network entity, and wherein the one or more indirect beams are received from the RIS.

[0232] Clause 36: A method as described in any of clauses 20 to 35, further comprising: sending a request to the network entity to send the RIS-RS via a RACH, wherein receiving the RIS-RS from the network entity is performed via the RACH.

[0233] Clause 37: A method as described in any of clauses 20 to 36, further comprising: selecting a new receive beam based on the one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

[0234] Clause 38: A method as described in any of clauses 20 to 37, further comprising: determining beam failure based on the RIS-RS.

[0235] Clause 39: A processing system comprising: a memory including computer executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the computer executable instructions and cause the processing system to perform a method according to any one of clauses 1 to 38.

[0236] Clause 40: A processing system comprising means for performing the method according to any one of clauses 1 to 38.

[0237] Clause 41: A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer executable instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of a processing system, cause the processing system to perform the method of any of clauses 1 to 38.

[0238] Clause 42: A computer program product embodied on a computer readable storage medium, the computer readable storage medium comprising code for performing the method according to any one of clauses 1 to 38.

[0239] Additional considerations

[0240] The foregoing description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. The examples discussed herein do not limit the scope, applicability or aspects set forth in the claims. Various modifications to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the functions and arrangements of the elements discussed may be changed. Each example may ignore, replace or add each procedure or component as appropriate. For example, the described method may be performed in a different order than the described order, and various actions may be added, omitted or combined. In addition, the features described for some examples may be combined in some other examples. For example, any number of aspects set forth herein may be used to implement a device or practice method. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such devices or methods practiced using other structures, functionality, or structures and functionality that are supplementary or alternative to the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of the claims.

[0241] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the present disclosure may be implemented or executed using a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any commercially available processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, a system on a chip (SoC), or any other such configuration.

[0242] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items refers to any combination of those items (including single members). As an example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc, as well as any combination with multiple identical elements (e.g., aa, aaa, aab, aac, abb, acc, bb, bbb, bbc, cC, and cCc, or any other ordering of a, b, and c).

[0243] As used herein, the term "determining" encompasses a wide variety of actions. For example, "determining" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, searching (e.g., searching in a table, a database, or another data structure), ascertaining, and the like. Also, "determining" may include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), and the like. Additionally, "determining" may include resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, and the like.

[0244] The method disclosed herein includes one or more actions for implementing the method. The method actions can be interchangeable with each other without departing from the scope of the claims. In other words, unless a specific order of actions is specified, the order and / or use of specific actions can be modified without departing from the scope of the claims. In addition, the various operations of the method described above can be performed by any appropriate component that can perform the corresponding function. The component may include various hardware and / or software components and / or modules, including but not limited to circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) or processors.

[0245] The following claims are not intended to be limited to the various aspects shown herein, but should be granted the full scope consistent with the language of the claims. Within the claims, unless otherwise specified, reference to an element in the singular form is not intended to mean "one and only one", but "one or more". Unless otherwise specified, the term "some" refers to one or more. No claim element is interpreted according to the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112 (f) unless the element is explicitly stated using the phrase "member for...". All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described throughout the present disclosure that are known or will later be known to a person of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly stated in the claims, anything disclosed herein is not intended to be disclosed to the public.

Claims

1. A network entity configured for wireless communication, comprising: a memory including computer executable instructions; as well as one or more processors configured to execute the computer executable instructions and cause the network entity to: transmitting a reconfigurable smart surface reference signal (RIS-RS) configured for user equipment to a reconfigurable smart surface (RIS), wherein the RIS-RS is not associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH); and A channel state information (CSI) report is received from the user equipment including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

2. The network entity of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the network entity to: sending a configuration for the RIS-RS to the user equipment, The configuration for the RIS-RS includes a resource set configured for measuring a channel between the RIS and the user equipment.

3. The network entity of claim 2, wherein the configuration for the RIS-RS comprises one or more sequences. The network entity according to claim 3 , wherein at least one of the one or more sequences is a gold sequence or an m-sequence.

5. The network entity according to claim 2, wherein: The configuration for the RIS-RS indicates a plurality of RIS-RS sets, Each respective RIS-RS set of the plurality of RIS-RS sets is configured with a respective sequence for each RIS-RS included in the respective RIS-RS set, and RIS-RSs in different RIS-RS sets of the plurality of RIS-RS sets are configured with sequences different from each other.

6. The network entity according to claim 2, wherein: The configuration indicates one or more time and frequency locations associated with the RIS-RS, and The one or more time and frequency locations define one or more gap resources between the RIS-RS and other time and frequency locations associated with data transmission.

7. The network entity of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the network entity to: A channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) is transmitted to the user equipment, wherein the CSI-RS is not quasi-co-located with the CSI-RS.

8. The network entity of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the network entity to: sending a synchronization signal block (SSB) to the user equipment, The RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the SS B.

9. The network entity of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the network entity to: Quasi co-location (QCL) information including an index associated with the RIS-RS is sent to the user equipment.

10. The network entity of claim 9, wherein the index is indicated by NZP-CSI-RS-ResourceID.

11. The network entity of claim 1 , wherein one of the one or more measurements comprises a layer 1 received signal received power (RSRP) measurement.

12. The network entity of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the network entity to: receiving, from the user equipment, a first beam report comprising one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are sent from the network entity to the user equipment; and A second beam report including one or more measurements associated with one or more indirect beams is received from the user equipment, wherein the one or more indirect beams are not sent by the network entity to the user equipment.

13. The network entity of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the network entity to: receiving, from the user equipment, a beam report comprising one or more measurements associated with one or more direct beams and one or more measurements associated with one or more indirect beams, wherein the one or more direct beams are sent from the network entity to the user equipment, and Wherein the one or more indirect beams are not sent by the network entity to the user equipment.

14. The network entity of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and further cause the network entity to perform timing refinement based on the one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

15. The network entity of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the network entity to: receiving a request from the user equipment to transmit the RIS-RS via a random access channel (RACH), The sending of the RIS-RS to the user equipment is performed via the RACH in response to the request.

16. A user equipment configured for wireless communication, comprising: a memory including computer executable instructions; as well as one or more processors configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the user equipment to: receiving a reconfigurable smart surface reference signal (RIS-RS) sent by a network entity from a reconfigurable smart surface (RIS), wherein the RIS-RS is not associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH); as well as A channel state information (CSI) report including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS is sent to the network entity.

17. The user equipment of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the user equipment to: receiving a configuration for the RIS-RS from the network entity, The configuration for the RIS-RS includes a resource set configured for measuring a channel between the RIS and the user equipment.

18. The user equipment of claim 17, wherein the configuration schedules the RIS-RS periodically.

19. The user equipment of claim 17, wherein the configuration schedules the RIS-RS semi-periodically.

20. The user equipment of claim 17, wherein the configuration schedules the RIS-RS aperiodically.

21. The user equipment of claim 17, wherein the configuration comprises a gold sequence.

22. The user equipment of claim 17, wherein: The configuration indicates one or more RIS-RS sets, and The RIS-RS is associated with one of the one or more RIS-RS sets.

23. The user equipment of claim 22, wherein: Each respective RIS-RS set of the one or more RIS-RS sets is configured with a respective sequence for each RIS-RS included in the respective RIS-RS set, and The RIS-RSs in different RIS-RS sets among the one or more RIS-RS sets are configured with sequences different from each other.

24. The user equipment of claim 17, wherein: The configuration indicates one or more time and frequency locations associated with the RIS-RS, and The one or more time and frequency locations define one or more gap resources between the RIS-RS and any other time and frequency locations associated with data transmission.

25. The user equipment of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the user equipment to: A channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) is received from the network entity, wherein the CSI-RS is not quasi-co-located with the CSI-RS.

26. The user equipment of claim 25, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer executable instructions and further cause the user equipment to: receiving a synchronization signal block (SSB) from the network entity, The RIS-RS is not quasi-co-located with the SS B.

27. The user equipment of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and further cause the user equipment to select a new receive beam based on the one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

28. The user equipment of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and further cause the user equipment to determine beam failure based on the RIS-RS.

29. A method for wireless communication by a network entity, comprising: transmitting a reconfigurable smart surface reference signal (RIS-RS) configured for user equipment to a reconfigurable smart surface (RIS), wherein the RIS-RS is not associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH); and A channel state information (CSI) report is received from the user equipment including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS.

30. A method for wireless communication by a user equipment, comprising: receiving a reconfigurable smart surface reference signal (RIS-RS) sent by a network entity from a reconfigurable smart surface (RIS), wherein the RIS-RS is not associated with a physical broadcast channel (PBCH); as well as A channel state information (CSI) report including one or more measurements associated with the RIS-RS is sent to the network entity.

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