System and method for multi-link serving cell

Abstract

Aspects of the present disclosure relate to a multi-link and / or multi-carrier serving cell for implementing a flexible multi-connectivity framework between terrestrial network carriers and non-terrestrial network carriers. In the multi-link serving cell, uplink and downlink carriers in pairwise or non-pairwise spectrums may be decoupled from each other, and / or may be shared between different link types. A plurality of downlink carriers may be configured within a single cell (i.e., within a single multicarrier cell), and each uplink carrier may be associated with or linked to the plurality of downlink carriers.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates generally to wireless network operations and, in particular embodiments, to systems and methods for multi-link serving cells. Background Art

[0002] It can be considered that the term "non-terrestrial network" refers to a network or network segment that uses airborne or spaceborne vehicles for transmission. Spaceborne vehicles include satellites, including low earth orbiting (LEO) satellites, medium earth orbiting (MEO) satellites, geostationary earth orbiting (GEO) satellites, and highly elliptical orbiting (HEO) satellites.

[0003] Airborne aircraft include high altitude platforms (HAP), HAP includes unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), UAS include: lighter than air (LTA) UAS; heavier than air (HTA) UAS. These UAS usually operate quasi-steadily at an altitude between 8km and 50km.

[0004] The terrestrial network (TN) includes traditional cellular networks, such as new radio (NR), long term evolution (LTE), etc. The airborne transmission reception point ("TRP" is usually at about 100m altitude) can be deployed on an airborne UAV / drone type aircraft and can generally be regarded as part of the TN or NTN, depending on whether the airborne TRP is directly connected to the core network or connected to the core network through the NTN.

[0005] It can be seen that many use case scenarios require multiple connections between the TN and the NTN. One exemplary use case scenario is hosting a large event in an underserved area using a temporary on-demand facility. Other use case scenarios may occur in urban and suburban environments. Another use case scenario involves serving passengers on public transportation vehicles (e.g., high-speed / ordinary trains, buses, ships). It should be clear that these passengers can benefit from NTN broadband connectivity combined with TN cellular access.

[0006] Carrier aggregation (CA) can increase the throughput of a mobile terminal by configuring the mobile terminal to simultaneously connect to multiple serving cells or component carriers (CCs) of a serving node (e.g., gNodeB). CA can enable a mobile terminal to send and receive data simultaneously on multiple frequencies (e.g., cells or component carriers).

[0007] In a multi-carrier (terrestrial and non-terrestrial) network, the service coverage of the terrestrial cellular network can be extended to improve the user experience / quality of service. It should be noted that the ground nodes can provide the main service, while the non-ground nodes (e.g., nodes as part of the HAPS / satellite system) can provide global seamless coverage, and the flying TRP (e.g., drones) can achieve on-demand regional service enhancement. The joint operation of TN and NTN can be achieved to provide a three-dimensional wireless communication system experience to mobile terminals served by multi-carrier TN and NTN systems. Summary of the invention

[0008] According to aspects of the present application, multiple different carrier types (e.g., TN carriers and NTN carriers) or link types (e.g., TN links and NTN links) may be used in a single multi-carrier and / or multi-link serving cell. In some embodiments of the present invention, there may be a one-to-one or one-to-many association between carrier types and link types (e.g., a TN carrier type may be associated with a TN link type, and an NTN carrier type may be associated with an NTN link type).

[0009] It is known that wireless device operation in an environment including multiple different carrier types (e.g., TN carriers and NTN carriers) is achieved through a multi-cell approach. The multi-cell approach may use carrier aggregation and / or dual-connectivity operation. However, it can be seen that latency issues are associated with carrier aggregation and / or dual-connectivity operation in the multi-cell approach.

[0010] In the multi-cell approach, after a wireless device accesses a cell, the carrier aggregation framework creates a need to add / release or activate component carriers, which incurs latency and overhead.

[0011] By sending RMSI / SIB1 information in one carrier of a multi-carrier cell to indicate an initial UL bandwidth part (BWP) and an initial DL BWP of another carrier of the multi-carrier cell, fast and efficient access to resources of the multi-carrier cell can be achieved.

[0012] Conveniently, the wireless device can dynamically switch between uplink carriers used to transmit the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The wireless device can also multiplex the PUSCH and the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) to prevent the transmissions from happening to overlap in the time domain.

[0013] Aspects of the present disclosure may enable different types of carriers (eg, a TN carrier and an NTN carrier) to share the same carrier bandwidth.

[0014] Furthermore, a single multi-carrier cell approach can achieve efficient utilization of spectrum resources and dynamic allocation of large bandwidths from different carriers. Conveniently, mobility within a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell can rely on layer 1 or layer 2 beam management and signaling, rather than layer 3 switching.

[0015] When a multi-carrier cell includes a time division duplexed (TDD) and a frequency division duplexed (FDD) carrier, the uplink delay of the TDD carrier can be alleviated due to the time division multiplexing between the uplink time slot and the downlink time slot in the TDD carrier, because the uplink time slot in the FDD carrier can be used instead.

[0016] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for communicating with a serving cell performed at a device in a radio resource control connection state, the serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The method comprises: using resources in a bandwidth portion of a first downlink carrier of the first carrier type, receiving a scheduling allocation for receiving a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or a scheduling authorization for physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission from the serving cell in a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the PDSCH using resources in a bandwidth portion of a downlink carrier of the second carrier type, the PUSCH using resources in a bandwidth portion of an uplink carrier of the second carrier type, wherein the PDCCH comprises a field comprising an indication of the second carrier type.

[0017] Various aspects of the present application relate to a field in the downlink control information in the control resource set in the shared downlink carrier / bandwidth portion. This field can be as small as a single bit and can provide an indication of the scheduling type (TN or NTN) to inform the mobile terminal. Based on this indication, the mobile terminal can infer several parameters related to the type of PUSCH / PDSCH scheduled (whether TN or NTN) and apply these parameters to the reception or transmission of PDSCH / PUSCH.

[0018] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for communicating with a serving cell is provided, the serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The device comprises a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor uses resources in a bandwidth portion of a first downlink carrier of the first carrier type to receive a scheduling allocation for receiving a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or a scheduling authorization for physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission from the serving cell in a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the PDSCH using resources in a bandwidth portion of a downlink carrier of the second carrier type, and the PUSCH using resources in a bandwidth portion of an uplink carrier of the second carrier type. The PDCCH comprises a field comprising an indication of the second carrier type.

[0019] A computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a serving cell including at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type to cause the processor to receive a scheduling assignment for receiving a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or a scheduling grant for a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission from the serving cell in a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) using resources in a bandwidth portion of a first downlink carrier of the first carrier type, the PDSCH using resources in a bandwidth portion of a downlink carrier of the second carrier type, and the PUSCH using resources in a bandwidth portion of an uplink carrier of the second carrier type. The PDCCH includes a field including an indication of the second carrier type.

[0020] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for communicating with a multi-carrier service cell performed at a device in a radio resource control connected state, the multi-carrier service cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The method comprises receiving configuration information of a plurality of bandwidth parts, the configuration information specifying a plurality of uplink bandwidth parts of the first carrier type, a plurality of uplink bandwidth parts of the second carrier type, a plurality of downlink bandwidth parts of the first carrier type, and a plurality of downlink bandwidth parts of the second carrier type. The method further comprises receiving a switching instruction, and in response to receiving the switching instruction, switching operation from one bandwidth part of the plurality of bandwidth parts to another bandwidth part of the plurality of bandwidth parts.

[0021] After the wireless device accesses the multi-carrier cell, there is no need to add / release or activate component carriers. Compared with the carrier aggregation framework in the multi-cell method, the single multi-carrier cell method can reduce latency and reduce overhead.

[0022] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for communicating with a serving cell, the serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The device comprises a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor receives configuration information of a plurality of bandwidth parts, the configuration information specifies a plurality of uplink bandwidth parts of the first carrier type, a plurality of uplink bandwidth parts of the second carrier type, a plurality of downlink bandwidth parts of the first carrier type, and a plurality of downlink bandwidth parts of the second carrier type. By executing these instructions, the processor also receives a switching instruction and switches the operation from one bandwidth part of the plurality of bandwidth parts to another bandwidth part of the plurality of bandwidth parts.

[0023] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a service cell including at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type, so that the processor receives configuration information for a plurality of bandwidth parts, the configuration information specifies a plurality of uplink bandwidth parts of the first carrier type, a plurality of uplink bandwidth parts of the second carrier type, a plurality of downlink bandwidth parts of the first carrier type, and a plurality of downlink bandwidth parts of the second carrier type. Execution of the instructions also causes the processor to receive a switching instruction and switch operation from one bandwidth part of the plurality of bandwidth parts to another bandwidth part of the plurality of bandwidth parts.

[0024] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for communicating with a multi-carrier service cell performed at a device in a radio resource control connected state, the multi-carrier service cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The method comprises: detecting a failure of a bandwidth portion in a carrier of the first carrier type, selecting a reference signal from a reference signal pool configured in a carrier of the second carrier type, reporting the selected reference signal to a network entity, and communicating with the network entity on the bandwidth portion in the carrier of the second carrier type using a directional beam, the directional beam being associated with the selected reference signal.

[0025] Various aspects of the present application can realize fast beam failure recovery in a multi-carrier cell based on the unlikely occurrence of beam failures simultaneously in all BWPs / carriers used by wireless devices in the multi-carrier cell. In the case where the multi-carrier carrier includes an association between a TN carrier and an NTN carrier, in response to a beam link failure occurring in the NTN carrier, efficient and low-latency beam failure recovery can be performed through the TN carrier, and in response to a beam link failure occurring in the TN carrier, efficient and low-latency beam failure recovery can be performed through the NTN carrier.

[0026] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for communicating with a serving cell is provided, the serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The device comprises a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing the instructions, the processor detects a failure of a bandwidth portion in a carrier of the first carrier type, selects a reference signal from a reference signal pool configured in a carrier of the second carrier type, reports the selected reference signal to a network entity, and communicates with the network entity on the bandwidth portion in the carrier of the second carrier type using a directional beam, the directional beam being associated with the selected reference signal.

[0027] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a service cell including at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type, so that the processor detects a failure of a bandwidth portion in a carrier of the first carrier type, selects a reference signal from a reference signal pool configured in a carrier of the second carrier type, reports the selected reference signal to a network entity, and communicates with the network entity on the bandwidth portion of the carrier of the second carrier type using a directional beam, the directional beam being associated with the selected reference signal.

[0028] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for accessing a service cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state is provided. The method includes receiving system information in a broadcast signaling message from a service cell, the system information including an indication that the service cell is a multi-carrier service cell, the multi-carrier service cell including: at least one carrier of a first carrier type; at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The system information also includes a first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold associated with the first carrier type, a second carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold associated with the second carrier type, a first carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the first carrier type, and a second carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the second carrier type. The method also includes: detecting a reference signal of a synchronization signal block in a downlink carrier of the first carrier type, comparing the received power of the reference signal with the first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold, and in response to the comparison result being that the reference signal received power exceeds the first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold, performing an initial access process on the uplink carrier.

[0029] The single multi-carrier cell approach can achieve energy saving and more efficient resource usage on the network side, because the network side can decide to send system information on the TN carrier or the NTN carrier instead of sending system information on both carriers.

[0030] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for communicating with a serving cell is provided, the serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The device comprises a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor receives system information in a broadcast signaling message from the serving cell, the system information comprising an indication that the serving cell is a multi-carrier serving cell, the multi-carrier serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The system information also comprises a first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold associated with the first carrier type, a second carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold associated with the second carrier type, a first carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the first carrier type, and a second carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the second carrier type. By executing these instructions, the processor also detects a reference signal of a synchronization signal block in a downlink carrier of the first carrier type, compares the received power of the reference signal with the first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold, and in response to the comparison result being that the reference signal received power exceeds the first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold, performs an initial access process on the uplink carrier.

[0031] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a service cell including at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type, so that the processor receives system information in a broadcast signaling message from the service cell, the system information including an indication that the service cell is a multi-carrier service cell, the multi-carrier service cell including at least one carrier of the first carrier type and at least one carrier of the second carrier type. The system information also includes a first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold associated with the first carrier type, a second carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold associated with the second carrier type, a first carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the first carrier type, and a second carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the second carrier type. The instructions also cause the processor to detect a reference signal of a synchronization signal block in a downlink carrier of the first carrier type, compare the received power of the reference signal with the first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold, and in response to the comparison result being a determination that the reference signal received power exceeds the first carrier type-specific reference signal received power threshold, perform an initial access procedure on the uplink carrier.

[0032] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for establishing a connection with a serving cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state. The method includes receiving system information in a broadcast signaling message from the serving cell, the system information including an indication that the serving cell is a multi-carrier serving cell, the multi-carrier serving cell including: at least one carrier of a first carrier type; at least one carrier of a second carrier type, at least one carrier of the second carrier type sharing resources with at least one carrier of the first carrier type. The system information also includes a reference signal received power threshold and a random access channel configuration. The method also includes: detecting a reference signal of a synchronization signal block in a downlink carrier, comparing the received power of the reference signal with the reference signal received power threshold, and in response to the result of the comparison being that the reference signal received power exceeds the reference signal received power threshold, performing an initial access process on an uplink carrier in at least one carrier of the first carrier type.

[0033] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for establishing a connection with a service cell is provided. The device includes a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor receives system information in a broadcast signaling message from the service cell, the system information including an indication that the service cell is a multi-carrier service cell, the multi-carrier service cell including at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type, and at least one carrier of the second carrier type shares resources with at least one carrier of the first carrier type. The system information also includes a reference signal reception power threshold and a random access channel configuration. By executing these instructions, the processor is also enabled to detect a reference signal of a synchronization signal block in a downlink carrier, compare the received power of the reference signal with the reference signal reception power threshold, and in response to the result of the comparison being that the reference signal reception power exceeds the reference signal reception power threshold, perform an initial access process on an uplink carrier in at least one carrier of the first carrier type.

[0034] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for establishing a connection with a service cell so that the processor receives system information in a broadcast signaling message from the service cell, the system information including an indication that the service cell is a multi-carrier service cell, the multi-carrier service cell including at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type, and the at least one carrier of the second carrier type shares resources with at least one carrier of the first carrier type. The system information includes a reference signal received power threshold and a random access channel configuration. Execution of the instructions also causes the processor to detect a reference signal of a synchronization signal block in a downlink carrier, compare the received power of the reference signal with the reference signal received power threshold, and in response to the comparison result being a determination that the reference signal received power exceeds the reference signal received power threshold, perform an initial access process on an uplink carrier in at least one carrier of the first carrier type.

[0035] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for accessing a service cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state is provided. The method includes receiving system information from a service cell, the system information including an indication that the service cell is a multi-carrier service cell, the multi-carrier service cell including: at least one carrier of a first carrier type; at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The system information also includes a carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the first carrier type and a carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the second carrier type. The method also includes: monitoring a common search space for a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the PDCCH being addressed by a paging radio network temporary identifier carrying paging information in a control resource set associated with a carrier of the first carrier type; receiving a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) scheduled by the PDCCH, the PDSCH carrying a paging message addressed to the device; in response to receiving the PDSCH, performing an initial access process on an uplink carrier of the first carrier type or on an uplink carrier of the second carrier type according to a random access channel configuration associated with the same carrier type.

[0036] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for communicating with a serving cell, the serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The device comprises a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor receives system information from the serving cell, the system information comprising an indication that the serving cell is a multi-carrier serving cell, the multi-carrier serving cell comprising at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The system information also comprises a carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the first carrier type and a carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the second carrier type. By executing these instructions, the processor is also caused to: monitor a common search space for a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), where the PDCCH is addressed by a paging wireless network temporary identifier carrying paging information in a control resource set associated with a carrier of the first carrier type; receive a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) scheduled by the PDCCH, where the PDSCH carries a paging message addressed to the device; and in response to receiving the PDSCH, perform an initial access process on an uplink carrier of the first carrier type or on an uplink carrier of the second carrier type according to a random access channel configuration associated with the same carrier type.

[0037] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for accessing a service cell so that the processor receives system information from the service cell, the system information including an indication that the service cell is a multi-carrier service cell, the multi-carrier service cell including at least one carrier of a first carrier type and at least one carrier of a second carrier type. The system information also includes a carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the first carrier type and a carrier type-specific random access channel configuration associated with the second carrier type. The processor executes the instructions, and the processor is also caused to: monitor a common search space for a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the PDCCH being addressed by a paging radio network temporary identifier carrying paging information in a control resource set associated with a carrier of the first carrier type; receive a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) scheduled by the PDCCH, the PDSCH carrying a paging message addressed to the device; in response to receiving the PDSCH, perform an initial access procedure on an uplink carrier of the first carrier type or on an uplink carrier of the second carrier type according to the random access channel configuration associated with the same carrier type.

[0038] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for performing scheduled communication in a multi-link serving cell is provided for execution at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) connected state. The method comprises: receiving downlink control information (DCI) carrying resource indication, wherein the scheduled communication will be performed on resources; receiving a scheduling type indication, wherein the scheduling type indication is used to indicate whether the scheduled communication will be performed on a link of a first link type or a link of a second link type.

[0039] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for performing scheduled communication in a multi-link serving cell is provided. The device includes a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor receives downlink control information (DCI) carrying resource indications, where the scheduled communication will be performed on these resources; receives a scheduling type indication, and the scheduling type indication is used to indicate whether the scheduled communication will be performed on a link of a first link type or a link of a second link type.

[0040] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, and the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for performing scheduled communications in a multi-link service cell so that the processor: receives downlink control information (DCI) carrying resource indications, wherein the scheduled communications will be performed on these resources; receives a scheduling type indication, wherein the scheduling type indication is used to indicate whether the scheduled communications will be performed on a link of a first link type or a link of a second link type.

[0041] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating with a shared service cell is provided. The method includes: receiving an indication that resources within a service cell are shared between a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; receiving a configuration of a first reference signal of the link of the first link type and a second reference signal of the link of the second link type through signaling; receiving a signal; decoding a physical channel associated with the link of the first link type according to the signal and based on detecting the first reference signal; eliminating the physical channel associated with the link of the first type according to the signal; decoding a physical channel associated with the link of the second type according to the signal and based on detecting the second reference signal.

[0042] Various aspects of the present application enable links of different types (e.g., TN / NTN) to share the same carrier bandwidth. This supports more efficient use of spectrum resources because the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) and / or PUSCH from TN and NTN may overlap in time / frequency / code resources in the shared carrier, and assuming that the PDSCH can be received at the user equipment (UE) with a high SNR difference, the mobile terminal can still attempt to use a joint reception technique to decode the two data sets. In this case, the network can indicate a power offset or gap to the UE to help the UE tune or adjust its automatic gain control (AGC) and adjust the received signal strength so that the signal SNR is suitable for correct decoding, so as to fully receive / decode two superimposed or overlapping signals or channels with a specific SNR / power gap difference without causing signal clipping or non-linear degradation due to power amplifier limitations.

[0043] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for communicating with a shared service cell is provided. The device includes a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor: receives an indication that resources within the service cell are shared between a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; receives a configuration of a first reference signal of a link of the first link type and a second reference signal of a link of the second link type through signaling; receives a signal; decodes a physical channel associated with a link of the first link type according to the signal and based on the detection of the first reference signal; eliminates a physical channel associated with a link of the first type according to the signal; and decodes a physical channel associated with a link of the second type according to the signal and based on the detection of the second reference signal.

[0044] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a shared service cell so that the processor: receives an indication that resources within the service cell are shared between a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; receives a configuration of a first reference signal for the link of the first link type and a second reference signal for the link of the second link type through signaling; receives a signal; decodes a physical channel associated with the link of the first link type according to the signal and based on detection of the first reference signal; eliminates the physical channel associated with the link of the first type according to the signal; and decodes the physical channel associated with the link of the second type according to the signal and based on detection of the second reference signal.

[0045] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for execution at a device is provided. The method includes: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter related to a link of a first link type; determining a resource subset in a resource set in a shared resource based on the parameter, the resource subset being reserved for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with the first link type and being declared as unavailable for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with a second link type; and receiving a downlink signal associated with a link of the second link type through a resource set that does not include the resource subset.

[0046] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device is provided. The device includes a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor receives a control signal indicating a parameter related to a link of a first link type; based on the parameter, determines a resource subset in a resource set in a shared resource, the resource subset is reserved for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with the first link type, and is declared as unavailable for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with a second link type; receives a downlink signal associated with a link of the second link type through a resource set that does not include the resource subset.

[0047] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device so that the processor: receives a control signal indicating parameters related to a link of a first link type; based on the parameters, determines a resource subset in a resource set in a shared resource, the resource subset is reserved for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with the first link type and is declared as unavailable for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with a second link type; receives a downlink signal associated with a link of the second link type via a resource set that does not include the resource subset.

[0048] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for execution at a device is provided. The method includes: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter related to a link of a first link type; determining a resource subset in a resource set in a shared resource based on the parameter, the resource subset being reserved for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with the first link type and being declared as unavailable for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with a second link type; and sending an uplink signal associated with the second link type through a resource set that does not include the resource subset.

[0049] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device is provided. The device includes a memory storing instructions and a processor, and by executing these instructions, the processor: receives a control signal indicating a parameter related to a link of a first link type; based on the parameter, determines a resource subset in a resource set in a shared resource, the resource subset is reserved for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with the first link type, and is declared as unavailable for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with a second link type; sends an uplink signal associated with the second link type through a resource set that does not include the resource subset.

[0050] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device so that the processor: receives a control signal indicating parameters related to a link of a first link type; based on the parameters, determines a resource subset in a resource set in a shared resource, the resource subset is reserved for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with the first link type and is declared as unavailable for carrying a physical signal or channel associated with a second link type; and sends an uplink signal associated with the second link type via a resource set that does not include the resource subset.

[0051] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for accessing a service cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state is provided. The method includes receiving system information in a broadcast signaling message from a service cell, the system information including: an indication that the service cell is a service cell for dynamic shared spectrum access through a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; a first link type-specific random access channel configuration and a first link type-specific reference signal receiving power threshold associated with the first type of link; a second link type-specific random access channel configuration and a second link type-specific reference signal receiving power threshold associated with the second type of link. The method also includes: detecting a reference signal of a synchronization signal block associated with a first type of link or a second type of link in a shared downlink carrier, the reference signal having a receiving power; comparing the receiving power of the reference signal with a corresponding link type-specific threshold; and performing an initial access process using the corresponding link type-specific random access channel configuration in response to the comparison result.

[0052] It can be seen that by implementing link type specific random access to a serving cell that dynamically accesses a shared spectrum through a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type, cell management can be simplified and access delay can be reduced.

[0053] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for accessing a service cell is provided. The device includes a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor receives system information in a broadcast signaling message from the service cell, the system information including: an indication that the service cell is a service cell that performs dynamic shared spectrum access through a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; a first link type-specific random access channel configuration and a first link type-specific reference signal receiving power threshold associated with the first type of link; a second link type-specific random access channel configuration and a second link type-specific reference signal receiving power threshold associated with the second type of link. By executing these instructions, the processor is also enabled to: detect a reference signal of a synchronization signal block associated with a first type of link or a second type of link in a shared downlink carrier, the reference signal having a receiving power; compare the receiving power of the reference signal with the corresponding link type-specific threshold; and in response to the result of the comparison, perform an initial access process using the corresponding link type-specific random access channel configuration.

[0054] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for accessing a service cell, so that the processor receives system information in a broadcast signaling message from the service cell, the system information including: an indication that the service cell is a service cell that performs dynamic shared spectrum access through a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; a first link type-specific random access channel configuration and a first link type-specific reference signal receiving power threshold associated with the first type of link; a second link type-specific random access channel configuration and a second link type-specific reference signal receiving power threshold associated with the second type of link. Execution of these instructions also causes the processor to: detect a reference signal of a synchronization signal block associated with a first type of link or a second type of link in a shared downlink carrier, the reference signal having a receiving power; compare the receiving power of the reference signal with a corresponding link type-specific threshold; and perform an initial access process using the corresponding link type-specific random access channel configuration in response to the comparison result.

[0055] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for communicating with a serving cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state is provided. The method comprises: using common signaling to receive an indication that the cell is a shared cell, the shared cell being a serving cell that provides dynamic shared spectrum access through a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; in response to a trigger, camping in the shared cell; initiating random access to the shared cell.

[0056] According to one aspect of the present invention, a device for communicating with a serving cell is provided. The device includes a memory storing instructions and a processor. By executing these instructions, the processor: receives an indication that the cell is a shared cell using common signaling, and the shared cell is a serving cell that provides dynamic shared spectrum access through a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; resides in the shared cell; and initiates random access to the shared cell.

[0057] According to one aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium storing instructions is provided, wherein the instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a service cell so that the processor: receives an indication that the cell is a shared cell using common signaling, the shared cell being a service cell that provides dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; resides in the shared cell; and initiates random access to the shared cell. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0058] For a more complete understanding of the present embodiments and their advantages, reference is now made, by way of example, to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0059] Figure 1 The schematic diagram shows a communication system in which an embodiment of the present invention may appear, and the communication system includes a plurality of exemplary electronic devices and a plurality of exemplary transmission reception points and various networks;

[0060] Figure 2 The block diagram shows Figure 1 A communication system comprising a plurality of exemplary electronic devices, exemplary terrestrial transmission and reception points, exemplary non-terrestrial transmission and reception points, and various networks;

[0061] Figure 3 As a block diagram, it shows the various aspects of the present application. Figure 2 Elements of an exemplary electronic device of Figure 2 Elements of an exemplary ground transmission receiving point and Figure 2 Elements of an exemplary non-terrestrial transmission reception point;

[0062] Figure 4 As a block diagram are shown various modules that may be included in an exemplary electronic device, an exemplary terrestrial transmission reception point, and an exemplary non-terrestrial transmission reception point according to aspects of the present application;

[0063] Figure 5 As a block diagram, a sensing management function according to aspects of the present application is shown;

[0064] Figure 6 Exemplary steps in a method for accessing a serving cell according to various aspects of the present application are shown;

[0065] Figure 7 Exemplary steps in a method for determining configuration details for initial access on an NTN carrier according to various aspects of the present application are shown;

[0066] Figure 8 Exemplary steps in a method for determining configuration details for initial access on an NTN carrier performed according to various aspects of the present application are shown;

[0067] Fig. 9 Exemplary steps in a method of determining configuration details for initial access on a shared carrier performed at a UE 110 according to various aspects of the present application are shown;

[0068] Fig.10 shows configuration information of a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell according to various aspects of the present application;

[0069] Fig.11 Features of carrier aggregation and dual connectivity are shown;

[0070] Fig.12 shows the representation of uplink carriers and downlink carriers in different cells;

[0071] Fig.13 shows representations of UL and DL carriers in a single multi-carrier serving cell according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0072] Fig.14 A representation of the difference between cell-level mobility and beam-level mobility in multi-carrier TN and NTN systems is shown;

[0073] Fig.15 An option for linking or associating different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell according to aspects of the present application is shown, wherein each uplink component carrier is associated with one default downlink component carrier and (at least) one non-overlapping supplementary downlink component carrier;

[0074] Fig.16 An option for linking or associating different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell according to aspects of the present application is shown, wherein two downlink component carriers partially or completely overlap;

[0075] Fig.17 An option for linking or associating different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell according to aspects of the present application is shown, wherein two downlink component carriers are aggregated into a single downlink virtual carrier and each uplink component carrier is associated with a single downlink virtual carrier;

[0076] Fig.18 An option for linking or associating different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell according to aspects of the present application is shown, wherein two downlink virtual carriers are aggregated into a single downlink virtual carrier and two uplink component carriers are aggregated into a single uplink virtual carrier;

[0077] Fig.19 An option for linking or associating different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell according to aspects of the present application is shown, wherein two downlink carriers completely overlap and the uplink carriers overlap;

[0078] Fig. 20 An option for linking or associating different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell according to aspects of the present application is shown, wherein two downlink carriers partially or completely overlap, and an uplink carrier partially or completely overlaps;

[0079] Fig.21 A representation of a network consisting of different wireless devices such as fixed transmission reception points, drones, and satellites is shown;

[0080] Fig.22A It shows that the determination according to various aspects of the present application Fig.15 Steps in the method for the initial bandwidth portion of the options shown;

[0081] Fig. 22B It shows that the determination according to various aspects of the present application Fig.16 Steps in the method for the initial bandwidth portion of the options shown;

[0082] Fig. 22C It shows that the determination according to various aspects of the present application Fig.18 Steps in the method for the initial bandwidth portion of the options shown;

[0083] Fig.23 A representation of beam failure detection over a bandwidth portion in a terrestrial network carrier is shown;

[0084] Fig.24 A representation of beam failure detection over a bandwidth portion in a non-terrestrial network carrier is shown;

[0085] Fig.25A The operation of a terrestrial network and a non-terrestrial network in different frequency resources of a shared carrier according to aspects of the present application is shown;

[0086] Fig.25B The operation of a terrestrial network and a non-terrestrial network in the same frequency resources of a shared carrier according to aspects of the present application is shown;

[0087] Fig.26 Exemplary steps in a method for receiving a signal in a shared carrier according to various aspects of the present application are shown;

[0088] Fig. 27 Exemplary steps in a method of transmitting a signal in a shared carrier according to various aspects of the present application are shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0089] For purposes of explanation, specific exemplary embodiments are explained in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0090] The following is a list of abbreviations that may be used in this article, along with a reference to the term to which each abbreviation refers.

[0091] NR: New Radio

[0092] L1-RSRP: Layer 1 reference signal received power

[0093] L1-SINR: Layer 1 signal to interference and noise ratio

[0094] BFD: Beam Failure Detection

[0095] BFI: Beam Failure Example

[0096] BFR: Beam Failure Restoration

[0097] BLER: Block Error Rate

[0098] BPL: Beam Pair Link

[0099] TRP: Transmission Reception Point

[0100] T-TRP: Ground TRP

[0101] NT-TRP: Non-Terrestrial TRP

[0102] FDD: Frequency Division Duplex

[0103] TDD: Time Division Duplex

[0104] MCG: Master Cell Group

[0105] UAV: Unmanned Aerial Vehicle / Drone

[0106] RNTI: Radio Network Temporary Identifier

[0107] C-RNTI: Cell RNTI

[0108] HARQ: Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request

[0109] TB: Transport Block

[0110] BWP: Bandwidth Part

[0111] The embodiments set forth herein represent information sufficient to practice the claimed subject matter and illustrate methods of practicing such subject matter. After reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art will understand the concepts of the claimed subject matter and will recognize that the application of these concepts is not specifically described herein. It should be understood that these concepts and applications are within the scope of the present invention and the appended claims.

[0112] In addition, it is understood that any module, component, or device for executing instructions disclosed herein may include or otherwise access one or more non-transitory computer / processor readable storage media to store information, such as computer / processor readable instructions, data structures, program modules, and / or other data. A non-exhaustive list of examples of non-transitory computer / processor readable storage media includes magnetic cassettes, magnetic tapes, disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital video discs or digital versatile discs (i.e., DVDs), Blu-ray Discs, and the like. TMOptical disks, or other optical storage, volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology, random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other storage technology. Any of these non-transitory computer / processor storage media can be part of the device or can be connected to or connected to the device. Computer / processor readable / executable instructions for implementing the applications or modules described herein can be stored or otherwise saved by such non-transitory computer / processor readable storage media.

[0113] refer to Figure 1 , a simplified schematic diagram of a communication system is provided as an illustrative example and not a limitation. The communication system 100 includes a radio access network 120. The radio access network 120 may be a next generation (e.g., sixth generation, "6G" or higher) radio access network, or a traditional (e.g., 5G, 4G, 3G or 2G) radio access network. In the radio access network 120, one or more communication electronic devices (electric devices, ED) 110a, 110b, 110c, 110d, 110e, 110f, 110g, 110h, 110i, 110j (generally referred to as 110) may be interconnected with each other or connected to one or more network nodes (170a, 170b, generally referred to as 170). The core network 130 may be part of the communication system and may be dependent on or independent of the radio access technology used in the communication system 100. The communication system 100 also includes a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160.

[0114] Figure 2An exemplary communication system 100 is shown. Typically, the communication system 100 enables multiple wireless or wired elements to transmit data and other content. The purpose of the communication system 100 may be to provide content such as voice, data, video and / or text by broadcast, multicast and unicast, etc. The communication system 100 may operate by sharing resources (e.g., carrier spectrum bandwidth) between its constituent elements. The communication system 100 may include a terrestrial communication system and / or a non-terrestrial communication system. The communication system 100 may provide a wide range of communication services and applications (e.g., earth monitoring, remote sensing, passive perception and positioning, navigation and tracking, autonomous delivery and mobility, etc.). The communication system 100 may provide a high degree of availability and robustness through the joint operation of a terrestrial communication system and a non-terrestrial communication system. For example, integrating a non-terrestrial communication system (or its components) into a terrestrial communication system may realize a heterogeneous network including multiple layers. Compared with traditional communication networks, heterogeneous networks may achieve better overall performance through efficient multi-link joint operation, more flexible function sharing, and faster physical layer link switching between terrestrial networks and non-terrestrial networks.

[0115] Terrestrial communication systems and non-terrestrial communication systems can be considered as subsystems of the communication system. Figure 2 In the example shown, the communication system 100 includes electronic devices (EDs) 110a, 110b, 110c, 110d (generally referred to as EDs 110), radio access networks (RANs) 120a, 120b, non-terrestrial communication networks 120c, core networks 130, public switched telephone networks (PSTNs) 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160. The RANs 120a, 120b include corresponding base stations (BSs) 170a, 170b, which may generally be referred to as terrestrial transmit and receive points (T-TRPs) 170a, 170b. The non-terrestrial communication network 120c includes an access node 172, which may generally be referred to as a non-terrestrial transmit and receive point (NT-TRP) 172.

[0116] Alternatively or additionally, any ED 110 may be used to access, connect or communicate with any T-TRP 170a, 170b and NT-TRP 172, the Internet 150, the core network 130, the PSTN 140, other networks 160, or any combination thereof. In some examples, ED 110a may perform uplink (UL) and / or downlink (DL) transmissions with T-TRP 170a via a ground air interface 190a. In some examples, ED 110a, 110b, 110c, and 110d may also communicate directly with each other via one or more sidelink air interfaces 190b. In some examples, ED 110d may transmit uplink and / or downlink transmissions with NT-TRP 172 via a non-ground air interface 190c.

[0117] The air interfaces 190a and 190b may use similar communication technologies, such as any suitable wireless access technology. For example, the communication system 100 may implement one or more channel access methods in the air interfaces 190a and 190b, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), space division multiple access (SDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) or single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA). The air interfaces 190a and 190b may use other higher dimensional signal spaces, which may involve a combination of orthogonal and / or non-orthogonal dimensions.

[0118] The non-terrestrial air interface 190c can enable communication between ED 110d and one or more NT-TRPs 172 via a wireless link (or simply a link). For some examples, the link is a dedicated connection for unicast transmission, a connection for broadcast transmission, or a connection between a group of EDs 110 and one or more NT-TRPs 175 for multicast transmission.

[0119] The RANs 120a and 120b communicate with the core network 130 to provide various services, such as voice, data, and other services, to the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c. The RANs 120a and 120b and / or the core network 130 may communicate directly or indirectly with one or more other RANs (not shown), which may (or may not) be directly served by the core network 130 and may (or may not) use the same radio access technology as the RANs 120a, 120b, or both. The core network 130 may also serve as a gateway access between (i) the RANs 120a and 120b, or the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c, or both and (ii) other networks, such as the PSTN 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160. In addition, some or all of the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c may include functionality to communicate with different wireless networks over different radio links using different radio technologies and / or protocols. Instead of (or in addition to) wireless communication, the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c may also communicate with a service provider or switch (not shown) and with the Internet 150 through a wired communication channel. The PSTN 140 may include a circuit-switched telephone network for providing plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 150 may include a computer network and / or subnet (intranet) and include protocols such as the Internet Protocol (IP), the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), and the User Datagram Protocol (UDP). The EDs 110a, 110b, 110c may be multi-mode devices capable of operating according to multiple wireless access technologies and may include multiple transceivers required to support these technologies.

[0120] Figure 3Another example of ED 110 and base stations 170a, 170b and / or 170c is shown. ED 110 is used to connect people, objects, machines, etc. ED 110 can be widely used in various scenarios, such as cellular communication, device-to-device (D2D), vehicle to everything (V2X), peer-to-peer (P2P), machine-to-machine (M2M), machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IOT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wear, smart transportation, smart city, drone, robot, remote sensing, passive perception, positioning, navigation and tracking, autonomous delivery and mobility, etc.

[0121] Each ED 110 represents any suitable end-user device for wireless operation, and may include (or may be referred to as): user equipment (UE), wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), mobile station, fixed or mobile user unit, cellular phone, station (STA), machine type communication (MTC) device, personal digital assistant (PDA), smartphone, laptop, computer, tablet, wireless sensor, consumer electronic device, smartbook, vehicle, car, truck, bus, train or IoT device, industrial equipment or devices in the above devices (such as communication modules, modems or chips), etc. The next generation ED 110 may be referred to using other terms. Base stations 170a and 170b are both T-TRPs and are referred to as T-TRP 170 hereinafter. Also as Figure 3 As shown, the NT-TRP is hereinafter referred to as NT-TRP 172. Each ED 110 connected to T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 may be dynamically or semi-statically turned on (i.e., established, activated, or enabled), turned off (i.e., released, deactivated, or disabled), and / or configured in response to one or more of: connection availability and connection necessity.

[0122] ED 110 includes a transmitter 201 and a receiver 203 coupled to one or more antennas 204. Only one antenna 204 is shown. Alternatively, one, some or all of the antennas 204 can be panels. For example, transmitter 201 and receiver 203 can be integrated into a transceiver. The transceiver is used to modulate data or other content so that it can be sent by at least one antenna 204 or by a network interface controller (NIC). The transceiver can also be used to demodulate data or other content received by at least one antenna 204. Each transceiver includes any suitable structure for generating signals for wireless or wired transmission and / or for processing signals received by wireless or wired means. Each antenna 204 includes any suitable structure for sending and / or receiving wireless or wired signals.

[0123] ED 110 includes at least one memory 208. Memory 208 stores instructions and data used, generated, or collected by ED 110. For example, memory 208 may store software instructions or modules executed by one or more processing units (e.g., processor 210) to implement some or all of the functions and / or embodiments described herein. Each memory 208 includes one or more any suitable volatile and / or non-volatile storage and retrieval devices. Any suitable type of memory may be used, such as random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), hard disk, optical disk, subscriber identity module (SIM) card, memory stick, secure digital (SD) memory card, processor cache, etc.

[0124] ED 110 may also include one or more input / output devices (not shown) or interfaces (e.g. Figure 1 The input / output device can interact with users or other devices in the network. Each input / output device includes any suitable structure for providing information to a user or receiving information from a user, such as a speaker, microphone, keypad, keyboard, display or touch screen, including network interface communication, for example, through operation.

[0125] ED 110 includes a processor 210 for performing operations including those related to preparing transmissions for uplink transmissions to NT-TRP 172 and / or T-TRP 170, those related to processing downlink transmissions received from NT-TRP 172 and / or T-TRP 170, and those related to processing sidelink transmissions to and from another ED 110. Processing operations related to preparing transmissions for uplink transmissions may include operations such as encoding, modulation, transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. Processing operations related to processing downlink transmissions may include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulation, and decoding received symbols. According to an embodiment, receiver 203 may receive downlink transmissions (possibly using receive beamforming), and processor 210 may extract signaling from the downlink transmissions (e.g., by detecting and / or decoding the signaling). An example of signaling may be a reference signal sent by NT-TRP 172 and / or T-TRP 170. In some embodiments, the processor 210 implements transmit beamforming and / or receive beamforming based on an indication of a beam direction (e.g., beam angle information (BAI)) received from the T-TRP 170. In some embodiments, the processor 210 may perform operations related to network access (e.g., initial access) and / or downlink synchronization, such as operations related to detecting a synchronization sequence, decoding, and obtaining system information. In some embodiments, the processor 210 may perform channel estimation using a reference signal received from the NT-TRP 172 and / or from the T-TRP 170.

[0126] Although not shown, the processor 210 may form a part of the transmitter 201 and / or a part of the receiver 203. Although not shown, the memory 208 may form a part of the processor 210.

[0127] The processor 210, the processing components of the transmitter 201, and the processing components of the receiver 203 may each be implemented by the same or different one or more processors, which are used to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., memory 208). Alternatively, some or all of the processor 210, the processing components of the transmitter 201, and the processing components of the receiver 203 may each be implemented using dedicated circuits, such as a programmed field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a graphical processing unit (GPU), or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

[0128] The T-TRP 170 may be known by other names in some implementations, such as a base station, a base transceiver station (BTS), a wireless base station, a network node, a network device, a network-side device, a transmitting / receiving node, a Node B, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), a home eNodeB, a next generation NodeB (gNB), a transmission point (TP), a site controller, an access point (AP) or a wireless router, a relay station, a remote radio head, a ground node, a ground network device, a ground base station, a base band unit (BBU), a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), a remote radio head (RRH), a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a positioning node, etc. The T-TRP 170 may be a macro BS, a micro BS, a relay node, a host node, etc., or a combination thereof. T-TRP 170 may refer to the above-mentioned device or refer to a means in the above-mentioned device (eg, a communication module, a modem, or a chip).

[0129] In some embodiments, portions of the T-TRP 170 may be distributed. For example, some modules of the T-TRP 170 may be located away from the device housing the antenna 256 for the T-TRP 170, and may be coupled to the device housing the antenna 256 via a communication link (not shown) sometimes referred to as a fronthaul (e.g., a common public radio interface (CPRI)). Therefore, in some embodiments, the term T-TRP 170 may also refer to a module on the network side that performs processing operations such as determining the location of the ED 110, resource allocation (scheduling), message generation, and encoding / decoding, and is not necessarily part of the device housing the antenna 256 of the T-TRP 170. These modules may also be coupled to other T-TRPs. In some embodiments, the T-TRP 170 may actually be multiple T-TRPs that operate together, for example, by using coordinated multipoint transmission, to serve the ED 110.

[0130] like Figure 3As shown, the T-TRP 170 includes at least one transmitter 252 and at least one receiver 254 coupled to one or more antennas 256. Only one antenna 256 is shown. Alternatively, one, some or all of the antennas 256 may be panels. The transmitter 252 and the receiver 254 may be integrated into a transceiver. The T-TRP 170 also includes a processor 260 for performing operations including those related to: preparing transmissions for downlink transmissions to the ED 110; processing uplink transmissions received from the ED 110; preparing transmissions for backhaul transmissions to the NT-TRP 172; processing transmissions received from the NT-TRP 172 via the backhaul. Processing operations associated with preparing transmissions for downlink or backhaul transmissions may include operations such as coding, modulation, precoding (e.g., multiple input multiple output (MIMO) precoding), transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. Processing operations associated with processing transmissions received in the uplink or received through the backhaul may include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulating received symbols, and decoding received symbols. The processor 260 may also perform operations related to network access (e.g., initial access) and / or downlink synchronization, such as generating the content of a synchronization signal block (SSB), generating system information, etc. In some embodiments, the processor 260 also generates an indication of a beam direction, such as a BAI, which may be scheduled by the scheduler 253 for transmission. The processor 260 performs other network-side processing operations described herein, such as determining the location of the ED 110, determining where to deploy the NT-TRP 172, etc. In some embodiments, the processor 260 may generate signaling, for example, to configure one or more parameters of the ED 110 and / or one or more parameters of the NT-TRP 172. Any signaling generated by the processor 260 is sent by the transmitter 252. It should be noted that the "signaling" used herein may be alternatively referred to as control signaling. Dynamic signaling can be transmitted in a control channel (e.g., a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH)), and static or semi-static high-layer signaling can be included in a packet transmitted in a data channel (e.g., a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)).

[0131] The scheduler 253 may be coupled to the processor 260. The scheduler 253 may be included within the T-TRP 170, or may operate separately from the T-TRP 170. The scheduler 253 may schedule uplink transmissions, downlink transmissions, and / or backhaul transmissions, including issuing scheduling grants and / or configuring scheduling-free (“configured grants”) resources. The T-TRP 170 also includes a memory 258 for storing information and data. The memory 258 stores instructions and data used, generated, or collected by the T-TRP 170. For example, the memory 258 may store software instructions or modules executed by the processor 260 to implement some or all of the functionality and / or embodiments described herein.

[0132] Although not shown, the processor 260 may form a part of the transmitter 252 and / or a part of the receiver 254. In addition, although not shown, the processor 260 may implement the scheduler 253. Although not shown, the memory 258 may form a part of the processor 260.

[0133] The processor 260, the scheduler 253, the processing components of the transmitter 252, and the processing components of the receiver 254 may each be implemented by one of the same or different one or more processors, which are used to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 258). Alternatively, some or all of the processor 260, the scheduler 253, the processing components of the transmitter 252, and the processing components of the receiver 254 may be implemented using a dedicated circuit such as an FPGA, a GPU, or an ASIC.

[0134] It should be noted that the NT-TRP 172 is shown as a drone only as an example, and the NT-TRP 172 can be implemented in any suitable non-ground form. In addition, the NT-TRP 172 may use other names in some implementations, such as non-ground nodes, non-ground network devices, or non-ground base stations. The NT-TRP 172 includes a transmitter 272 and a receiver 274 coupled to one or more antennas 280. Only one antenna 280 is shown. Alternatively, one, part, or all of the antennas may be panels. The transmitter 272 and the receiver 274 may be integrated into a transceiver. The NT-TRP 172 also includes a processor 276 for performing operations including those related to: preparing transmissions for downlink transmissions to the ED 110; processing uplink transmissions received from the ED 110; preparing transmissions for backhaul transmissions to the T-TRP 170; processing transmissions received from the T-TRP 170 via the backhaul. Processing operations related to preparing transmissions for downlink transmission or backhaul transmission may include operations such as encoding, modulation, precoding (e.g., MIMO precoding), transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. Processing operations related to processing transmissions received in the uplink or received via the backhaul may include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulating received signals, and decoding received symbols. In some embodiments, the processor 276 implements transmit beamforming and / or receive beamforming based on beam direction information (e.g., BAI) received from the T-TRP 170. In some embodiments, the processor 276 may generate signaling, for example, to configure one or more parameters of the ED110. In some embodiments, the NT-TRP 172 implements physical layer processing, but does not implement higher-level functions such as functions of the medium access control (MAC) or radio link control (RLC) layer. Since this is just an example, more generally, the NT-TRP 172 may implement higher-level functions in addition to physical layer processing.

[0135] The NT-TRP 172 also includes a memory 278 for storing information and data. Although not shown, the processor 276 may form a part of the transmitter 272 and / or a part of the receiver 274. Although not shown, the memory 278 may form a part of the processor 276.

[0136] Processor 276, the processing components of transmitter 272, and the processing components of receiver 274 can each be implemented by the same or different one or more processors, which are used to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., memory 278). Alternatively, some or all of processor 276, the processing components of transmitter 272, and the processing components of receiver 274 can be implemented using a dedicated circuit such as a programmed FPGA, GPU, or ASIC. In some embodiments, NT-TRP 172 can actually be multiple NT-TRPs, which operate together, for example, through coordinated multi-point transmission to serve ED 110.

[0137] The T-TRP 170, NT-TRP 172, and / or ED 110 may include other components, but these components are omitted for clarity.

[0138] according to Figure 4 One or more steps of the methods of each embodiment provided herein may be executed by a corresponding unit or module. Figure 4 Units or modules in a device are shown, such as units or modules in ED 110, T-TRP 170, or NT-TRP 172. For example, a signal can be sent by a sending unit or by a sending module. A signal can be received by a receiving unit or by a receiving module. A signal can be processed by a processing unit or a processing module. Other steps can be performed by an artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning (ML) module. The corresponding units or modules can be implemented using hardware, one or more components or devices that execute software, or a combination thereof. For example, one or more of the units or modules can be integrated circuits, such as programmed FPGAs, GPUs, or ASICs. It should be understood that if the above modules are implemented using software for execution by a processor or the like, these modules can be retrieved by the processor in whole or in part as needed, retrieved individually or collectively for processing, retrieved in one or more instances as needed, and these modules themselves can include instructions for further deployment and instantiation.

[0139] Additional details regarding ED 110, T-TRP 170, and NT-TRP 172 are known to those skilled in the art. Therefore, for the sake of clarity, these details are omitted here.

[0140] The air interface typically includes multiple components and associated parameters that together specify how to send and / or receive transmissions on a wireless communication link between two or more communication devices. For example, the air interface may include one or more components that define one or more waveforms, one or more frame structures, one or more multiple access schemes, one or more protocols, one or more coding schemes, and / or one or more modulation schemes for transmitting information (e.g., data) on a wireless communication link. The wireless communication link can support a link between a wireless access network and a user equipment (e.g., a "Uu" link), and / or the wireless communication link can support a link between devices, such as a link between two user equipment (e.g., a "sidelink"), and / or the wireless communication link can support a link between a non-terrestrial (NT) communication network and a user equipment (UE). The following are some examples of the above components.

[0141] The waveform component can specify the shape and form of the signal being transmitted. Waveform options can include orthogonal multiple access waveforms and non-orthogonal multiple access waveforms. Non-limiting examples of such waveform options include orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), filtered OFDM (f-OFDM), time window OFDM, filter bank multicarrier (FBMC), universal filter multicarrier (UFMC), generalized frequency division multiplexing (GFDM), wavelet packet modulation (WPM), faster than Nyquist (FTN) waveforms, and low peak-to-average power ratio waveforms (low PAPR WF).

[0142] The frame structure component may specify the configuration of a frame or a frame group. The frame structure component may indicate one or more parameters of the time, frequency, pilot signature, code, or other parameters of the frame or frame group. More details of the frame structure will be discussed below.

[0143] The multiple access scheme component may specify multiple access technology options, including technologies that define how communication devices share a common physical channel, such as: TDMA; FDMA; CDMA; SDMA; SC-FDMA; low density signature multicarrier CDMA (LDS-MC-CDMA); non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA); pattern division multiple access (PDMA); lattice partition multiple access (LPMA); resource spread multiple access (RSMA); sparse code multiple access (SCMA). In addition, the multiple access technology options may include: scheduled access versus unscheduled access, also known as unlicensed access; non-orthogonal multiple access versus orthogonal multiple access, for example, through dedicated channel resources (e.g., not shared between multiple communication devices); contention-based shared channel resources versus non-contention-based shared channel resources; and cognitive radio-based access.

[0144] A hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) protocol component may specify how transmission and / or retransmission is performed. Non-limiting examples of transmission and / or retransmission mechanism options include those that specify a scheduled data pipe size, a signaling mechanism for transmission and / or retransmission, and a retransmission mechanism.

[0145] The coding and modulation components may specify how the transmitted information may be encoded / decoded and modulated / demodulated for transmission / reception. Coding may refer to methods of error detection and forward error correction. Non-limiting examples of coding options include turbo trellis codes, turbo product codes, fountain codes, low-density parity-check codes, and polar codes. Modulation may simply refer to a constellation (including, for example, modulation techniques and orders), or more specifically to various types of advanced modulation methods, such as hierarchical modulation and low PAPR modulation.

[0146] In some embodiments, the air interface may be a "one size fits all" concept. For example, once the air interface is defined, the components within the air interface may not be changed or adapted. In some implementations, only limited air interface parameters or modes can be configured, such as cyclic prefix (CP) length or MIMO mode. In some embodiments, the air interface design may provide a unified or flexible framework to support frequencies below the known 6 GHz band and frequencies above the 6 GHz band (e.g., millimeter wave band) for authorized and unauthorized access. For example, the flexibility of the configurable air interface provided by scalable system parameters and symbol duration can support optimization of transmission parameters for different spectrum bands and different services / devices. For another example, a unified air interface can be self-contained in the frequency domain, and the frequency domain self-contained design can support more flexible RAN slicing by sharing channel resources between different services in frequency and time.

[0147] The frame structure is a feature of the wireless communication physical layer that defines the structure of time domain signal transmission, for example, to support the timing reference and timing adjustment of the basic time domain transmission unit. Wireless communication between communication devices can be carried out on the time and frequency resources controlled by the frame structure. The frame structure can sometimes be called the radio frame structure.

[0148] Depending on the configuration of the frame structure and / or the frames in the frame structure, frequency division duplex (FDD) and / or time division duplex (TDD) and / or full duplex (FD) communication is possible. FDD communication means that transmissions in different directions (e.g., uplink and downlink) occur on different frequency bands. TDD communication means that transmissions in different directions (e.g., uplink and downlink) occur in different durations. FD communication means that transmission and reception occur on the same time-frequency resources, that is, the device can send and receive on the same frequency resources at the same time.

[0149] An example of a frame structure is a frame structure specified for use in a known long-term evolution (LTE) cellular system, having the following specifications: each frame has a duration of 10 ms; each frame has 10 subframes, each subframe has a duration of 1 ms; each subframe includes two time slots, each time slot has a duration of 0.5 ms; each time slot is used to transmit 7 OFDM symbols (assuming normal CP); each OFDM symbol has a symbol duration and a specific bandwidth (or a partial bandwidth or bandwidth partition) related to the number of subcarriers and the subcarrier spacing; the frame structure is based on OFDM waveform parameters such as subcarrier spacing and CP length (wherein the CP has a fixed length or a finite length option); the switching interval between uplink and downlink in TDD is specified as an integer time of the OFDM symbol duration.

[0150] Another example of a frame structure is a frame structure specified for a known new radio (NR) cellular system, with the following specifications: multiple subcarrier spacings are supported, each subcarrier spacing corresponds to a corresponding system parameter; the frame structure depends on the system parameters, but in any case, the frame length is set to 10ms, each frame consists of 10 subframes, and the duration of each subframe is 1ms; a time slot is defined as 14 OFDM symbols; and the time slot length depends on the system parameters. For example, the NR frame structure with normal CP 15kHz subcarrier spacing ("system parameter 1") and the NR frame structure with normal CP 30kHz subcarrier spacing ("system parameter 2") are different. For 15kHz subcarrier spacing, the time slot length is 1ms, and for 30kHz subcarrier spacing, the time slot length is 0.5ms. The NR frame structure may have greater flexibility than the LTE frame structure.

[0151] Another example of a frame structure is, for example, a network for 6G networks or higher. In a flexible frame structure, a symbol block can be defined as a duration having the shortest duration that can be scheduled in the flexible frame structure. A symbol block can be a transmission unit having an optional redundant portion (e.g., a CP portion) and an information (e.g., data) portion. An OFDM symbol is an example of a symbol block. Alternatively, a symbol block can be referred to as a symbol. Embodiments of a flexible frame structure include different parameters that may be configurable, such as a frame length, a subframe length, a symbol block length, and the like. In some embodiments of the flexible frame structure, a non-exhaustive list of possible configurable parameters includes: frame length; subframe duration; time slot configuration; subcarrier spacing (SCS); flexible transmission duration of a basic transmission unit; flexible switching gap.

[0152] The frame length does not need to be limited to 10ms, and the frame length can be configurable and change over time. In some embodiments, each frame includes one or more downlink synchronization channels and / or one or more downlink broadcast channels, and each synchronization channel and / or broadcast channel can be sent in different directions through different beamforming. Among them, the frame length can be more than one possible value and is configured based on the application scenario. For example, an autonomous driving vehicle may require relatively fast initial access, in which case the frame length corresponding to the autonomous driving vehicle application can be set to 5ms. For another example, a smart meter on a house may not require fast initial access, in which case the frame length corresponding to the smart meter application can be set to 20ms.

[0153] Subframes may or may not be defined in the flexible frame structure, depending on the implementation. For example, a frame may be defined to include time slots but not subframes. In frames in which subframes are defined, for example, for time domain alignment, the duration of the subframes may be configurable. For example, the subframe length may be configured to be 0.1ms or 0.2ms or 0.5ms or 1ms or 2ms or 5ms, etc. In some embodiments, if subframes are not required in a particular scenario, the subframe length may be defined to be the same as the frame length or may not be defined.

[0154] The time slot may or may not be defined in the flexible frame structure, depending on the implementation. In a frame where the time slot is defined, the definition of the time slot (for example, in terms of duration and / or number of symbol blocks) may be configurable. In one embodiment, the time slot configuration is common to all UEs 110 or a group of UEs 110. For this case, the time slot configuration information may be sent to the UE 110 in a broadcast channel or one or more common control channels. In other embodiments, the time slot configuration may be UE-specific, in which case the time slot configuration information may be transmitted in a UE-specific control channel. In some embodiments, the time slot configuration signaling may be sent together with the frame configuration signaling and / or subframe configuration signaling. In other embodiments, the time slot configuration may be transmitted independently of the frame configuration signaling and / or subframe configuration signaling. Typically, the time slot configuration may be system-common, base station-common, UE group-common, or UE-specific.

[0155] The SCS value range is 15KHz to 480KHz. The SCS can vary with the spectrum frequency and / or the maximum UE speed to minimize the effects of Doppler shift and phase noise. In some examples, there may be separate transmit and receive frames, and the SCS of the symbols in the receive frame structure may be independent of the SCS configuration of the symbols in the transmit frame structure. The SCS in the receive frame may be different from the SCS in the transmit frame. In some examples, the SCS of each transmit frame may be half the SCS of each receive frame. If the SCS between the receive frame and the transmit frame is different, for example, if an inverse discrete Fourier transform (IDFT) is used instead of a fast Fourier transform (FFT) to achieve a more flexible symbol duration, the difference does not have to be scaled by a factor of 2. Additional examples of frame structures can be used with different SCSs.

[0156] The basic transmission unit may be a symbol block (alternatively referred to as a symbol), typically including a redundant portion (referred to as a CP) and an information (e.g., data) portion. In some embodiments, the CP may be omitted from the symbol block. The CP length may be flexible and configurable. The CP length may be fixed within a frame or may be flexible within a frame, and the CP length may change with changes in frames, or with changes in frame groups, or with changes in subframes, or with changes in time slots, or dynamically with changes in scheduling. The information (e.g., data) portion may be flexible and configurable. Another possible parameter associated with a symbol block that may be defined is the ratio of the CP duration to the information (e.g., data) duration. In some embodiments, the symbol block length may be adjusted based on: channel conditions (e.g., multipath delay, Doppler); and / or delay requirements; and / or available duration. As another example, the symbol block length may be adjusted to accommodate the available duration in a frame.

[0157] The frame may include a downlink portion for downlink transmission from the base station 170 and an uplink portion for uplink transmission from the UE 110. There may be a gap between each uplink portion and the downlink portion, which is called a switching gap. The switching gap length (duration) may be configurable. The switching gap duration may be fixed within a frame or may be flexible within a frame, and the switching gap duration may change with a change in a frame, or with a change in a frame group, or with a change in a subframe, or with a change in a time slot, or dynamically with a change in scheduling.

[0158] Equipment such as base station 170 can provide coverage on the cell. Wireless communication with the device can be carried out on one or more carrier frequencies. A carrier frequency can be called a carrier. A carrier can be alternatively called a component carrier (CC). A carrier can be characterized by its bandwidth and reference frequency, such as the center frequency, the lowest frequency, or the highest frequency of the carrier. A carrier can be on a licensed spectrum or on an unlicensed spectrum. Wireless communication with the device can also or alternatively be carried out on one or more bandwidth parts (BWP). For example, a carrier can have one or more BWPs. More generally, wireless communication with the device can be carried out on a spectrum. The spectrum can include one or more carriers and / or one or more BWPs.

[0159] The cell may include one or more downlink resources, and optionally, one or more uplink resources. The cell may include one or more uplink resources, and optionally, one or more downlink resources. The cell may include one or more downlink resources and one or more uplink resources at the same time. For example, the cell may include only one downlink carrier / BWP, or only one uplink carrier / BWP, or multiple downlink carriers / BWP, or multiple uplink carriers / BWP, or one downlink carrier / BWP and one uplink carrier / BWP, or one downlink carrier / BWP and multiple uplink carriers / BWP, or multiple downlink carriers / BWP and one uplink carrier / BWP, or multiple downlink carriers / BWP and multiple uplink carriers / BWP. In some embodiments, the cell may alternatively or additionally include one or more sidelink resources, including sidelink transmission resources and reception resources.

[0160] A BWP is a set of contiguous or non-contiguous frequency subcarriers on a carrier, or a set of contiguous or non-contiguous frequency subcarriers on multiple carriers, or a set of non-contiguous or contiguous frequency subcarriers, and may have one or more carriers.

[0161] In some embodiments, a carrier may have one or more BWPs, for example, a carrier may have a bandwidth of 20 MHz and consist of one BWP, or a carrier may have a bandwidth of 80 MHz and consist of two adjacent BWPs, and so on. In other embodiments, a BWP may have one or more carriers, for example, the bandwidth of a BWP may be 40 MHz and consist of two adjacent continuous carriers, wherein the bandwidth of each carrier is 20 MHz. In some embodiments, a BWP may include non-continuous spectrum resources consisting of a plurality of non-continuous multi-carriers, wherein the first carrier in the non-continuous multi-carrier may be in the mmW frequency band, the second carrier may be in the low frequency band (e.g., the 2 GHz frequency band), the third carrier (if present) may be in the THz band, and the fourth carrier (if present) may be in the visible light band. The resources belonging to a BWP in a carrier may be continuous or non-continuous. In some embodiments, a BWP has non-continuous spectrum resources on a carrier.

[0162] Wireless communication can be performed over an occupied bandwidth. The occupied bandwidth can be defined as the width of the frequency band such that below a lower frequency limit and above an upper frequency limit, the average power transmitted is equal to a specified percentage β / 2 of the total average transmit power, for example, β / 2 is taken as 0.5%.

[0163] The carrier, BWP or occupied bandwidth may be: dynamically signaled by a network device (e.g., base station 170), for example, in physical layer control signaling (e.g., a known downlink control channel (DCI)); or semi-statically signaled by a network device (e.g., base station 170), for example, in radio resource control (RRC) signaling or in signaling in a medium access control (MAC) layer; or predefined based on an application scenario; or determined by UE 110 as a function of other parameters known to UE 110; or may be fixed by a standard.

[0164] UE location information is commonly used in cellular communication networks to improve various performance indicators of the network. For example, these performance indicators may include capacity, agility and efficiency. Improvements can be achieved when elements of the network utilize the UE's location, behavior, mobility patterns, etc. in the context of a priori information describing the wireless environment in which the UE operates.

[0165] Sensing systems can be used to help collect UE attitude information, including the position of the UE in a global coordinate system, the speed and direction of movement of the UE in a global coordinate system, orientation information, and information about the wireless environment. "Position" is also referred to as "positioning," and the two terms are used interchangeably herein. Examples of well-known sensing systems include radio detection and ranging (RADAR) and light detection and ranging (LIDAR). Although the sensing system can be separated from the communication system, it may be advantageous to collect information using a multi-carrier system, which reduces the hardware (and cost) in the system and the time, frequency, or space resources required to perform both functions. However, using communication system hardware to perform sensing of UE attitude and environmental information is a very challenging and open problem. The difficulty of this problem is related to factors such as the limited resolution of the communication system, the dynamics of the environment, and the large number of objects whose electromagnetic properties and positions need to be estimated.

[0166] Therefore, integrated sensing and communication (also called integrated communication and sensing) is a desirable feature in existing and future communication systems.

[0167] Any or all of the ED 110 and BS 170 may be sensing nodes in the system 100. A sensing node is a network entity that performs sensing by sending and receiving sensing signals. Some sensing nodes are communication devices that perform both communication and sensing. However, some sensing nodes may not perform communication but are dedicated to sensing. The sensing agent 174 is an example of a sensing node dedicated to sensing. Unlike the ED 110 and BS 170, the sensing agent 174 does not send or receive communication signals. However, the sensing agent 174 can transmit configuration information, sensing information, signaling information, or other information within the communication system 100. The sensing agent 174 can communicate with the core network 130 to communicate information with the rest of the devices of the communication system 100. For example, the sensing agent 174 can determine the location of the ED 110a and send the information to the base station 170a through the core network 130. Although Figure 2 Only one sensing agent 174 is shown in FIG. 1 , but any number of sensing agents may be implemented in the communication system 100. In some embodiments, one or more sensing agents may be implemented at one or more of the RANs 120.

[0168] The sensing node can combine sensing-based technology with reference signal-based technology to enhance UE posture determination. This type of sensing node may also be referred to as a sensing management function (SMF). In some networks, SMF may also be referred to as a location management function (LMF). SMF may be implemented as a physically independent entity located at the core network 130 and connected to multiple BSs 170. In other aspects of the present application, SMF may be implemented as a logical entity co-located within BS 170 by logic executed by processor 260.

[0169] like Figure 5As shown, when implemented as physically independent entities, SMF 176 includes at least one processor 290, at least one transmitter 282, at least one receiver 284, one or more antennas 286 and at least one memory 288. A transceiver (not shown) can be used instead of transmitter 282 and receiver 284. Scheduler 283 can be coupled to processor 290. Scheduler 283 can be included in SMF 176 or operate separately from SMF 176. Processor 290 implements various processing operations of SMF 176, such as signal encoding, data processing, power control, input / output processing or any other function. Processor 290 can also be used to implement some or all of the functions and / or embodiments described in detail above. Each processor 290 includes any suitable processing or computing device for performing one or more operations. For example, each processor 290 may include a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor, a field programmable gate array or an application-specific integrated circuit.

[0170] Reference signal-based attitude determination techniques belong to the "active" attitude estimation paradigm. In the active attitude estimation paradigm, the interrogator of attitude information (e.g., UE 110) participates in the process of determining the interrogator's attitude. The interrogator can send or receive (or send and receive) signals specific to the attitude determination process. Positioning techniques based on global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) such as the known global positioning system (GPS) are other examples of the active attitude estimation paradigm.

[0171] In contrast, sensing technologies such as radar-based ones can be considered to belong to the “passive” attitude determination paradigm. In the passive attitude determination paradigm, the target is oblivious to the attitude determination process.

[0172] By integrating sensing and communication in one system, the system does not need to operate according to only a single paradigm. Thus, the combination of sensing-based techniques and reference signal-based techniques can produce enhanced attitude determination.

[0173] For example, enhanced posture determination can include obtaining UE channel subspace information, which is particularly useful for UE channel reconstruction at the sensing node, especially for beam-based operations and communications. The UE channel subspace is a subset of the entire algebraic space defined in the spatial domain, in which the entire channel from TP to UE is located. Therefore, the UE channel subspace defines the TP to UE channel with very high accuracy. The contribution of signals transmitted on other subspaces to the UE channel is negligible. Understanding the UE channel subspace helps reduce the work required for channel measurement at the UE and channel reconstruction on the network side. Therefore, compared with traditional methods, the combination of sensing-based techniques and reference signal-based techniques can achieve UE channel reconstruction with less overhead. Subspace information can also facilitate subspace-based sensing to reduce sensing complexity and improve sensing accuracy.

[0174] In some embodiments of integrated sensing and communication, the same radio access technology (RAT) is used for sensing and communication. This avoids the need to reuse two different RATs under one carrier spectrum, or the need to use two different carrier spectrums for two different RATs.

[0175] In an embodiment of integrating sensing and communication under one RAT, the first set of channels may be used to transmit sensing signals and the second set of channels may be used to transmit communication signals. In some embodiments, each channel in the first set of channels and each channel in the second set of channels is a logical channel, a transport channel or a physical channel.

[0176] At the physical layer, communication and sensing can be performed through separate physical channels. For example, a first physical downlink shared channel PDSCH-C can be defined for data communication, while a second physical downlink shared channel PDSCH-S can be defined for sensing. Similarly, separate physical uplink shared channels (PUSCH), PUSCH-C and PUSCH-S, can be defined for uplink communication and sensing.

[0177] In another example, the same PDSCH and PUSCH can also be used for communication and sensing, where separate logical layer channels and / or transport layer channels are defined for communication and sensing. It should also be noted that one or more control channels and one or more data channels used for sensing can have the same or different channel structures (formats) and occupy the same or different frequency bands or bandwidth portions.

[0178] In another example, a common physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and a common physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) can be used to carry control information for sensing and communication. Alternatively, separate physical layer control channels can be used to carry separate control information for communication and sensing. For example, PUCCH-S and PUCCH-C can be used for uplink control of sensing and communication, respectively, and PDCCH-S and PDCCH-C can be used for downlink control of sensing and communication, respectively.

[0179] At each of the physical, transport, and logical layers, different combinations of shared and dedicated channels for sensing and communication may be used.

[0180] Terrestrial communication systems may also be referred to as land-based or ground-based communication systems, but terrestrial communication systems may also or alternatively be implemented on or in the water. Non-terrestrial communication systems can bridge the coverage gap in underserved areas by using non-terrestrial nodes to extend the coverage of cellular networks, which will be key to establishing seamless global coverage and providing mobile broadband services to unserved / underserved areas. In the current scenario, it is difficult to implement terrestrial access point / base station infrastructure in oceans, mountains, forests or other remote areas.

[0181] The terrestrial communication system may be a wireless communication system using 5G technology and / or higher generation wireless technology (e.g., 6G or higher). In some examples, the terrestrial communication system may also accommodate some traditional wireless technologies (e.g., 3G or 4G wireless technologies). A non-terrestrial communication system may be a communication system using a satellite constellation, like a traditional geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite, which broadcasts public / popular content to a local server. A non-terrestrial communication system may be a communication system using a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite, which is known to establish a better balance between a large coverage area and propagation path loss / delay. A non-terrestrial communication system may be a communication system using a stable satellite in very low earth orbit (VLEO) technology, thereby significantly reducing the cost of sending satellites to lower orbits. A non-terrestrial communication system may be a communication system using a high altitude platform (HAP), which is known to provide a low path loss air interface for users with limited power budgets. Non-terrestrial communication systems may be communication systems that use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) (or unmanned aerial vehicle systems, "UAS") to achieve dense deployment, as their coverage can be limited to a local area, such as airborne, balloons, quadcopters, drones, etc. In some examples, GEO satellites, LEO satellites, UAVs, HAPs, and VLEOs can be horizontal or two-dimensional. In some examples, UAVs, HAPs, and VLEOs can be coupled to integrate satellite communications into cellular networks. Emerging 3D vertical networks consist of many mobile (except geostationary satellites) and high-altitude access points, such as UAVs, HAPs, and VLEOs.

[0182] MIMO technology supports signal transmission and reception using an antenna array consisting of multiple antennas to meet the requirements of high transmission rates. ED 110 and T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP can use MIMO to communicate through wireless resource blocks. MIMO uses multiple antennas at the transmitter to transmit wireless resource blocks on parallel wireless signals. It can be seen that multiple antennas can be used at the receiver. MIMO can beamform parallel wireless signals to achieve reliable multipath transmission of wireless resource blocks. MIMO can bind parallel wireless signals that transmit different data to increase the data rate of wireless resource blocks.

[0183] In recent years, MIMO (massive MIMO) wireless communication systems (having T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 configured with a large number of antennas) have received extensive attention from academia and industry. In a massive MIMO system, T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 are usually configured with more than 10 antenna elements (see Figure 3 Antenna 256 and antenna 280 in the T-TRP 170). T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 can generally be used to serve dozens (for example, 40) ED 110. The large number of antenna units of T-TRP 170 and NT-TRP 172 can greatly improve the spatial freedom of wireless communication, greatly improve the transmission rate, spectrum efficiency and power efficiency, and greatly reduce interference between cells. The increase in the number of antennas supports each antenna unit to be made in a smaller size and at a lower cost. Using the spatial freedom provided by the large-scale antenna units, the T-TRP 170 and NT-TRP 172 of each cell can communicate with multiple EDs 110 in the cell simultaneously on the same time-frequency resources, thereby greatly improving the spectrum efficiency. The large number of antenna units of T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 also enables each user to have better spatial directivity during uplink and downlink transmissions, so that the transmission power of T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 and ED 110 is reduced, and the power efficiency is correspondingly improved. When the number of antennas of T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 is large enough, the random channels between each ED 110 and T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 can be nearly orthogonal, thereby reducing the impact of interference and noise between cells and users. The above advantages make massive MIMO have broad application prospects.

[0184] A MIMO system may include a receiver connected to a receive (Rx) antenna, a transmitter connected to a transmit (Tx) antenna, and a signal processor connected to the transmitter and the receiver. Each of the Rx antenna and the Tx antenna may include multiple antennas. For example, the Rx antenna may have a uniform linear array (ULA) antenna, in which multiple antennas are arranged in rows at even intervals. When a radio frequency (RF) signal is transmitted through the Tx antenna, the Rx antenna may receive a reflected and returned signal from a forward target.

[0185] In some embodiments of a MIMO system, a non-exhaustive list of possible elements or possible configurable parameters includes: a panel; a beam.

[0186] A panel is a unit of an antenna group or antenna array or antenna subarray that can independently control a Tx beam or an Rx beam.

[0187] The beam can be formed by amplitude and / or phase weighting of the data sent or received by at least one antenna port. The beam can be formed by other methods, such as adjusting the relevant parameters of the antenna unit. The beam may include a Tx beam and / or an Rx beam. The transmit beam represents the signal strength distribution formed in different directions in space after the signal is sent through the antenna. The receive beam represents the signal strength distribution of the wireless signal received from the antenna in different directions in space. The beam information may include a beam identifier, one or more antenna port identifiers, a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) resource identifier, an SSB resource identifier, a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource identifier, or other reference signal resource identifiers.

[0188] User equipment (UE) in multi-carrier TN and NTN systems can be used for dual connectivity (DC), where the UE can be connected to two service nodes at the same time. These two service nodes can be called "master node" (MN) and "secondary node" (SN).

[0189] In a first example case, both serving nodes may use the same radio access technology (e.g., LTE or NR).

[0190] In the second exemplary case, the two serving nodes may use different radio access technologies (RAT). The second exemplary case considers LTE-NR DC or multi-RAT DC (multi-RAT DC, MRDC). In the second exemplary case, DC and CA may be used in conjunction with each other, in which case a given UE may be connected to two serving nodes and may be configured with multiple cells in each radio access technology. A given UE may be connected to a master cell group (MCG) and a secondary cell group (SCG).

[0191] The current scheme of beam management procedures in cellular systems is based on beam scanning for initial access, physical layer beam reference signal received power (RSRP) measurement (e.g., L1-RSRP) and signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio (SINR) measurement (e.g., L1-SINR), beam failure detection and beam failure recovery. All these procedures are called "intra-cell mobility" and therefore do not exceed the coverage area corresponding to the cell.

[0192] The beam failure detection (BFD) process in cellular systems is based on monitoring the quality of the link of the serving cell at the UE. The UE can be used to detect and measure the BFD reference signal (BFD-RS). Based on detecting and measuring the BFD-RS, the UE can compare the quality of the BFD-RS with the assumed PDCCH block error rate (BLER). If the measured quality of the BFD-RS is less than the assumed PDCCH BLER, a beam failure instance (BFI) is considered to have occurred. When several consecutive BFIs occur, a "beam failure" is considered to have been detected.

[0193] The beam failure recovery (BFR) procedure in a cellular system may include a search for a new serving beam initiated by a given UE in response to detecting a beam failure on a serving beam. A given UE may be configured with "candidate beams". A given UE may attempt to detect and measure the candidate beams. The given UE searches for the "best" beam among the candidate beams. If the quality of the best beam is greater than a predefined threshold, the UE may initiate a random access procedure to complete the BFR procedure.

[0194] Various aspects of the present application relate to shared / multi-carrier integrated cells in integrated terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks, which, in addition to terrestrial TRP 172 and non-terrestrial TRP 172, also include terrestrial service nodes (gNB) and non-terrestrial service nodes (gNB).

[0195] Various aspects of the present application are directed to integrating terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks into a single wireless communication system / network. Other aspects of the present application are directed to solving problems associated with the integration of TNs and NTNs.

[0196] It is not known whether DC / CA provides a suitable framework for multi-carrier TN / NTN solutions. Different carriers in DC / CA correspond to different cells. Different cell correspondences may introduce defects, such as unnecessary handovers, carrier activation delays, carrier deactivation delays, etc.

[0197] In addition, the CA mechanism can only benefit UEs in the RRC connected state (i.e., UEs that have completed the RRC connection with the network). That is, the CA mechanism may not benefit UEs in the idle state and UEs in the inactive state (e.g., UEs that have not yet performed initial access).

[0198] In the context of multi-carrier terrestrial and non-terrestrial systems, aggregating the throughput of multiple carriers may be more useful for DL ​​than for UL. The greater the distance between the satellite and the terrestrial UE, the larger the propagation delay. Therefore, the goals of the UL are generally related to optimizing coverage, saving UE power consumption, and reducing UE complexity. It can be shown that it would be beneficial to support flexibility between UL carrier aggregation (CA) and supplementary UL operations. It may be beneficial to decouple a given UL carrier from the related DL carriers and support flexible linking between a given UL carrier and the related DL carriers.

[0199] Various aspects of the beam management process in 5G NR can be considered inherently time consuming. Typically, beam management functions such as BFD and BFR are limited to the serving cell. The serving cell can be a terrestrial serving cell or a non-terrestrial serving cell. Even if the beam management function is limited to the serving cell, the time required for the UE to find an available candidate beam can be considerable. In time-sensitive scenarios, this significant time may result in data sessions being dropped.

[0200] The current beam management process in 5G NR can be considered to be of limited scope and therefore of limited efficiency. Since the beam management process is limited to the serving cell, the candidate beams are also limited to the serving cell. It follows that a given UE will not consider beams from neighboring TRPs, or even beams from non-terrestrial TRPs. If no suitable candidate beam is found and the serving cell is a terrestrial serving cell, the given UE may default to randomly selecting a beam from the terrestrial beams available in the serving cell. If no suitable candidate beam is found and the serving cell is a non-terrestrial serving cell, the given UE may default to randomly selecting a beam from the non-terrestrial beams available in the serving cell.

[0201] The beam management process in 5G NR can be considered passive in nature. When the last serving beam pair link between the UE and the serving cell fails, it can be considered too late for the UE to recover. Therefore, the UE must spend time looking for a suitable candidate beam. In addition, since the last of the beam pair links between the UE and the former serving cell fails, the former serving cell cannot assist the UE in the beam management process.

[0202] In NR, the synchronization signal block (SSB) / PBCH block is cell-specific, i.e., the SSB carries the physical layer cell ID (PCID) of the cell. The SSBs are organized in burst sets. The burst sets are sent periodically. Different SSBs are beamformed, i.e., they are sent in different spatial directions, spanning the coverage area of ​​the cell. Each SSB occupies 240 subcarriers in the frequency domain and 4 symbols in the time domain. Each SSB includes the primary synchronization signal (PSS) and the secondary synchronization signal (SSS) and the physical broadcast channel (PBCH). The PSS and SSS together carry the physical cell identity (PCID), and the PBCH carries the master information block (MIB) and some other payload bits. Within the frequency range of a given carrier, multiple SSBs located at different frequency positions can be sent. Multiple SSBs do not need to carry the same PCID. However, the cell-defining SSB (CD-SSB) has a unique position within the carrier. This unique position intersects the SSB synchronization grid defined for the cell frequency band. The CD-SSB carries the unique PCID of the cell. The CD-SSB has associated remaining minimum system information (RMSI). That is, the CD-SSB indicates the time-frequency position of the control resource set (CORESET#0). The UE is expected to monitor the control resource set to detect and decode the PDCCH / PDSCH carrying the RMSI. Those SSBs that are known to be non-CD-SSBs indicate the frequency position of the CD-SSB on the same carrier.

[0203] A given UE may be configured with multiple RSs for BFD on different carriers.

[0204] When the measurement quality q0 of a beam in a given BWP measured by the corresponding BFD RS drops below a predefined threshold Q out,LR When the measured quality q0 drops to Q out,LR Hereinafter, the UE continues to monitor / measure the quality q0 of the current beam. The UE may also start to monitor / measure the quality q1 of the new candidate beam.

[0205] In response to satisfying a predefined condition, the UE may switch from the current beam to the new beam. The switching may be accomplished through the associated physical random access channel (PRACH) resource configuration.

[0206] When a UE detects a beam failure on a given BWP of a given carrier of a multi-carrier cell, the UE may consider the candidate beam list belonging to the corresponding BWP and select a beam with an RS whose L1-RSRP measurement value is greater than a predefined threshold Q in,LP , which can also be called "rsrp-ThresholdSSB".

[0207] After the UE finds a suitable RS, the UE performs a contention-free / contention-based random access channel (RACH) to indicate the selected RS to the NW, and waits for a RACH response on the search space indicated by recoverySearchSpaceId.

[0208] The BFR is considered successful if a RACH response is received before the duration defined as ra-ResponseWindow expires.

[0209] Aspects of the present application relate to a multi-carrier service cell, which is used to implement a flexible multi-connection framework between TN carriers and NTN carriers. In the multi-carrier service cell, UL carriers and DL carriers in a paired frequency division duplex (FDD) spectrum or an unpaired time division duplex (TDD) spectrum can be decoupled from each other. Multiple DL carriers can be configured within a single cell (e.g., within a single multi-carrier cell), and each UL carrier can be associated with multiple DL carriers or linked to multiple downlink carriers.

[0210] A multi-carrier serving cell may be associated with multiple contiguous / non-contiguous DL carriers. The multiple carriers may be intra-band contiguous carriers. The multiple carriers may be intra-band non-contiguous carriers. The multiple carriers may be cross-band carriers. The multiple carriers may be a mix of intra-band contiguous / non-contiguous carriers and inter-band carriers.

[0211] The multi-carrier serving cell may be implemented using a single shared carrier between the TN and the NTN.

[0212] Conveniently, a given UE in an idle or inactive state may be connected to the multi-carrier serving cell via a TN carrier, via an NTN carrier or via a shared TN / NTN carrier.

[0213] Once the UE is connected to a multi-carrier serving cell, the UE can access all carrier types without performing small cell addition procedures, release procedures, activation procedures, (mobility) measurement procedures, etc. In addition, the layer 1 / 2 beam level mobility procedure can be used to control the UE mobility within the multi-carrier serving cell. The layer 1 / 2 beam level mobility procedure includes a signaling procedure and a measurement procedure. The layer 1 / 2 beam level mobility procedure is in contrast to the layer 3 signaling procedure and measurement filtering procedure known for layer 3 handover.

[0214] For a multi-carrier serving cell, each UL carrier may be associated or linked to more than one physical DL carrier. That is, a UL TN carrier may be linked to a DL TN carrier and a DL NTN carrier. The linking between the carrier frequency of the downlink resources of the shared DL carrier or multiple DL carriers of the multi-carrier serving cell and the carrier frequency of the uplink resources of the shared UL carrier or multiple UL carriers of the multi-carrier serving cell may be indicated in system information, which is sent on the downlink resources of each DL carrier or one of the DL carriers of the multi-carrier serving cell.

[0215] The component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier serving cell may be TDD (unpaired carrier) or FDD (paired carrier).It may be considered that there are different options as to how the different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier serving cell are linked or associated.

[0216] Option 1-1 (see Fig.15 ): Each UL component carrier (CC) is associated with one default DL CC and (at least) one non-overlapping supplementary DL CC.

[0217] Option 1-2 (Shared DL carrier, see Fig.16 ): Two DL CCs partially or completely overlap. In this option, it is possible that the DL carriers completely overlap, while the UL carriers do not overlap at all.

[0218] Option 2-1 (see Fig.17 ): Two DL CCs are aggregated into a single DL virtual carrier (VC), and each UL CC is associated with a single DL VC. For example, a TN UL carrier and an NTN UL carrier can share the same DL virtual carrier.

[0219] Option 2-2 (see Fig.18 ): Two DL CCs are aggregated into a single DL VC, and two UL CCs are aggregated into a single UL VC.

[0220] In the following, the network may include many different wireless devices, such as UEs, fixed TRPs or mobile TRPs, or UEs on drones, HAPS and / or satellites.

[0221] It should be noted that the UE may be configured to perform measurements during a measurement interval. In each measurement interval within a BWP corresponding to a DL carrier, the UE may detect and measure a reference signal corresponding to a beam pair link, and may be configured to detect a maximum of one BFI in each measurement interval and each beam pair link.

[0222] Various aspects of the present application relate to initial access procedures and random access procedures for UEs in an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state as these UEs attempt to establish a connection in a multi-carrier serving cell. Figure 6 Exemplary steps in a method of accessing a serving cell are shown.

[0223] A given UE in an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state may be notified that the serving cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN serving cell upon receiving (step 602) a broadcast signaling message using common signaling. The broadcast signaling message may include the MIB as part of a synchronization signal block (SSB) / PBCH block. The broadcast signaling message may include system information block 1 (SIB1) as part of the RMSI. The received (step 602) broadcast signaling message may include "system information". The system information may include an indication that the serving cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN serving cell including at least one TN carrier and at least one NTN carrier.

[0224] Before initiating an initial access procedure to a multi-carrier serving cell in response to receiving a DL paging message, a given UE may decide to camp on the multi-carrier serving cell. Alternatively, if the given UE has UL data to send, before initiating an initial access procedure to the multi-carrier serving cell, the given UE may decide to camp on the multi-carrier serving cell.

[0225] A given UE may be in an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state and camp on a multi-carrier cell while completing the cell selection / reselection process. The given UE may then monitor system information and (in most cases) paging information from the multi-carrier serving cell. It should be noted that service may be limited and the public land mobile network may not be aware of the presence of a given UE within the multi-carrier serving cell.

[0226] Each CC of a multi-carrier service cell may have several SSBs, which are allocated in different frequency positions or bandwidth parts, and one or more of these SSBs are cell-defining SSBs (CD-SSBs). For a multi-carrier service cell, a CD-SSB may be sent only on a TN carrier, only on an NTN carrier, or on both a TN carrier and an NTN carrier. The frequency position of a CD-SSB within a multi-carrier service cell may be cross-carrier indicated. That is, a non-cell-defining SSB in one carrier (e.g., a TN carrier) may indicate the position of a CD-SSB in another carrier (e.g., an NTN carrier).

[0227] The multi-carrier TN / NTN cell system information (step 602) received via the MIB or SIB1 (e.g., in the RMSI) may provide a separate RACH configuration for each different carrier or carrier type to a given UE. For example, a first RACH configuration may be provided for a TN type carrier, and a second RACH configuration may be provided for an NTN type carrier. The multi-carrier TN / NTN cell system information may also provide an indication that the multi-carrier serving cell is operating in UL carrier aggregation mode or supplementary UL mode.

[0228] In some embodiments, the UE may indicate to the network that, for a given frequency band combination, it supports access to or operation in a multi-carrier serving cell, or supports control and data communications with a multi-carrier serving cell as a UE capability. The network may use such reporting to configure the UE with parameters specific to multi-carrier serving cell operation. For example, these parameters may include whether the serving cell operates in UL carrier aggregation mode or in supplementary uplink mode, cross-carrier BWP, or cross-carrier transmit / receive beam configuration.

[0229] If the cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell with a given frequency band combination and the UE supports operation in a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for the given frequency band combination, the UE may perform initial access on a TN UL carrier (step 608) or an NTN UL carrier (step 610) using the first RACH configuration for a TN type carrier.

[0230] Consider a multi-carrier TN / NTN serving cell operating in UL carrier aggregation mode with a given frequency band combination, and a UE supporting operation in the multi-carrier TN / NTN serving cell for the given frequency band combination. The UE may detect (step 604) an SSB in a TN DL carrier. The UE may use the SSB as a reference signal. In practice, in addition to the PSS and SSS, the SSB includes a PBCH channel and an accompanying demodulation reference signal (DMRS). The DMRS may be used as a reference signal for which RSRP measurements are made when detecting the SSB. In response to the UE determining (step 606) that the RSRP associated with the SSB in the TN DL carrier exceeds the TN carrier-specific threshold received (step 602) in the system information, the UE may perform (step 608) initial access on the TN UL carrier using a first RACH configuration of a TN type carrier. In response to the UE determining (step 606) that the SSB in the TN DL carrier does not exceed the TN carrier-specific threshold, the UE may perform (step 610) initial access on the NTN UL carrier using a second RACH configuration of a NTN type carrier.

[0231] If the serving cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN serving cell operating in a supplementary UL mode with a given frequency band combination, and the UE supports operation in a multi-carrier TN / NTN serving cell with a given frequency band combination, the UE may determine the carrier to be used to perform initial access by comparing the measured RSRP of the detected SSB with a carrier selection threshold. The carrier selection threshold may be provided as part of the multi-carrier serving cell system information. As discussed above, the multi-carrier serving cell system information may be received (step 602) via common signaling (e.g., MIB / SIB1). The threshold may be common to the DL carriers, or may depend on the DL carrier on which the SSB is detected. That is, a different threshold may be set for each type of carrier. That is, for a TN type carrier, there may be a threshold Th TN For NTN type carriers, there may be another threshold Th NTN .

[0232] After determining (step 606) the measured RSRPSSB of the detected TN SSB TN The threshold Th of the TN type carrier is not exceeded TN When the UE selects the NTN UL carrier to perform (step 610) initial access, the UE can select the NTN UL carrier to perform (step 610) initial access. After determining (step 606) the measured RSRPSSB of the detected TN SSB TN Exceeding the threshold Th for TN type carriers TN When the UE selects the TN UL carrier to perform (step 608) initial access.

[0233] The above scenario can be switched so that the detected SSB is on a carrier of the NTN type. NTN The threshold Th for NTN type carriers is not exceeded NTN When the UE selects the TN carrier to perform (step 610) initial access, the UE can select the TN carrier to perform (step 610) initial access. NTN Exceeding the threshold Th for NTN type carriers NTN When the UE selects the NTN carrier to perform (step 608) initial access.

[0234] In the case of DL shared carrier, this threshold can be defined as a common threshold Th Common After determining (step 606) that the measured RSRP of the detected SSB is less than the common threshold Th Commin When the UE selects the TN carrier to perform (step 610) initial access, the UE may select the TN carrier to perform (step 610) initial access. Common When the UE selects the NTN carrier to perform (step 608) initial access, the UE may select the NTN carrier to perform (step 608) initial access as long as the measured RSRP is greater than another carrier-specific threshold for performing initial access on this carrier.

[0235] Performing (step 608 or 610) initial access may include sending a random access preamble (Message 1) or Message 3 on the selected UL carrier.

[0236] For a UE in an RRC connected state, the UL carrier selected to perform initial access may be explicitly configured for the UE via layer 3 RRC signaling.

[0237] Aspects of the present application relate to enabling a carrier-specific initial BWP after initial access to a multi-carrier cell.

[0238] For option 1-1 (two physical DL carriers), CD-SSB is sent in one or more DL carriers. Figure 7Exemplary steps in a method of determining configuration details for initial access performed at UE 110 are shown. Upon detecting (step 702) a CD-SSB in one of the TN DL carriers, the UE may extract (step 704) the configuration of CORSET#0 and the associated search space zero for its own carrier or for a specific beam of the TN DL carrier. Upon detecting (step 706) a PDCCH in search space zero of CORSET#0, UE 110 may decode (step 708) the PDCCH and decode (step 710) the associated PDSCH carrying an RMSI (SIB1) transmission. It may be desirable for the RMSI to include configuration details, such as an indication of an initial DL BWP and an initial UL BWP for the TN carrier. It may also be desirable for the RMSI to include configuration details, such as an indication of an initial DLBWP and an initial UL BWP for one or more of the beams of the NTN carrier.

[0239] Figure 8 Exemplary steps in a method of determining configuration details for initial access performed at a UE 110 are shown. Upon detecting (step 802) a CD-SSB in one of the NTN DL carriers, the UE may extract (step 804) the configuration of CORSET#0 and the associated search space zero for its own carrier or for a specific beam of the NTN DL carrier. Upon detecting (step 806) a PDCCH in search space zero of CORSET#0, the UE 110 may decode (step 808) the PDCCH and decode (step 810) the associated PDSCH carrying an RMSI (SIB1) transmission. It may be desirable for the RMSI to include configuration details, such as an indication of an initial DL BWP and an initial UL BWP for the NTN carrier or a specific NTN beam. It may also be desirable for the RMSI to include configuration details, such as an indication of an initial DL BWP and an initial UL BWP for one or more of the beams of the NTN carrier. It may also be desirable for the RMSI to include configuration details, such as an indication of an initial DL BWP and an initial UL BWP for a TN carrier.

[0240] For option 1-2 (shared carrier), one CD-SSB is sent on the shared DL carrier. Fig. 9Exemplary steps in a method of determining configuration details for initial access on a shared carrier performed at a UE 110 are shown. After detecting (step 902) a CD-SSB in a shared carrier, the UE may extract (step 904) the configuration of CORSET#0 and the associated search space zero for the shared carrier or a particular beam of the shared carrier. When a PDCCH is detected (step 906) in search space zero of CORSET#0, the UE 110 may decode (step 908) the PDCCH and decode (step 910) the associated PDSCH carrying an RMSI (SIB1) transmission. It may be desirable for the RMSI to include configuration details, such as an indication of an initial TN DL BWP and an initial TN UL BWP for the shared carrier. It may also be desirable for the RMSI to include configuration details, such as an indication of an initial NTN DL BWP and an initial NTN UL BWP for one or more of the NTN beams of the shared carrier.

[0241] Aspects of the present application are directed to sending PUCCH and sending PUSCH in a manner consistent with the various options presented above.

[0242] Consider a cell that is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell operating in a supplemental UL mode with a given band combination, and a UE 110 that supports operation in the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for the given band combination.

[0243] The UE 110 may be configured to send the PUCCH via RRC signaling or to indicate which UL carrier is used to send the PUCCH via a MAC control element (CE). The configuration may indicate to the UE 110 on which UL CC the PUCCH is to be sent. Sending the PUCCH may be understood to include sending ACK / NACK feedback. The ACK / NACK feedback may be a joint ACK / NACK feedback or a separate ACK / NACK feedback. For example, the separate ACK / NACK feedback may correspond to a separate DL carrier.

[0244] UE 110 may be configured to send PUSCH via RRC signaling. In one example, the configuration may instruct UE 110 to send PUSCH on the same UL CC as the UL CC used by UE 110 to send PUCCH. In another example, the configuration may instruct UE 110 to dynamically select the UL CC used to send PUSCH.

[0245] In contrast to RRC signaling, UE 110 may be configured to send a PUSCH via a UL grant, which UE 110 receives via a PDCCH. The UL grant may include an indication of the UL CC that UE 110 uses for the scheduled PUSCH.

[0246] UE 110 may be configured to identify that UE 110 will use a UL CC (e.g., a TN carrier or an NTN carrier) to send uplink control information (UCI) on the PUCCH during a time interval overlapping with a scheduled PUSCH transmission on the UL CC. In response to such identification, UE 110 may multiplex the UCI onto the PUSCH.

[0247] Aspects of the present application relate to carrier type / BWP operation using multi-carrier cells.

[0248] In a multi-carrier serving cell, UE 110 may be configured with multiple UL / DL bandwidth parts (BWPs) belonging to different carrier types, including TN carriers and NTN carriers. In one example, UE 110 may be configured with at least one active TN DL BWP and at least one active NTN DL BWP. UE 110 may be configured to dynamically switch from an active TN BWP to an active NTN BWP and vice versa. "Carrier type" may be established as a parameter in the BWP configuration. "Carrier type" may be associated with a certain BWP configuration.

[0249] If the carrier type is NTN, some BWP parameters may be used as default values. If the carrier type is NTN, some BWP parameters may include parameters that are different from those included when the carrier type is TN (e.g., timing offset). For the NTN carrier type, UE 110 may be configured with one beam-specific BWP or multiple beam-specific BWPs. A beam-specific BWP may be understood as a BWP associated with a specific beam direction.

[0250] The specific beam direction may be a receive beam direction associated with a specific DL or UL RS, a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) state, or a quasi-colocation (QCL) with a specific DL or UL RS. The specific beam direction may be a transmit beam direction or a transmit beam angle. The transmit beam direction may be specified according to the direction of the peak of the transmit beam. The direction may be expressed in terms of elevation and azimuth. The transmit beam direction may be specified according to a half-power beamwidth (HPBW). The transmit beam direction may be specified according to polarization, which includes right hand circular polarized (RHCP) and left hand circular polarized (LHCP).

[0251] Consider a cell that is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell with a given frequency band combination, and a UE 110 that supports operation in the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for the given frequency band combination. Within the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell, the UE 110 may be configured with a UE-specific DL BWP for receiving data on the TN carrier and a UE-specific UL BWP for sending data on the TN carrier. The UE 110 may also be configured with a beam-specific BWP for sending / receiving data on the NTN carrier while sending / receiving data on the TN carrier.

[0252] When UE 110 communicates with a multi-carrier cell in UL (e.g., via PUSCH) and / or DL ​​(e.g., via PDSCH), some resources from the BWP of the first type of carrier and some resources from the BWP of the second type of carrier may be used. These resources may be time resources or frequency resources or code resources or space / antenna port resources. Furthermore, these resources may overlap in time and / or overlap in frequency or space. One of the BWPs may be a beam-specific BWP.

[0253] PDSCH can be dynamically scheduled across carriers. That is, UE 110 can receive PDCCH in a DL carrier of one carrier type, and PDCCH can schedule PDSCH in a DL carrier of another carrier type. PDCCH can include a field that includes an indication of the carrier type. For example, a 2-bit field can be used to indicate the carrier type. The first 2-bit value can be mapped to an indication of the TN carrier type. The second 2-bit value can be mapped to an indication of the NTN carrier type. The third 2-bit value can be mapped to an indication of the shared carrier type. The mapping of the remaining 2-bit value can be retained. For another example, a single-bit field can be used to indicate the carrier type. The first 1-bit value can be mapped to an indication of the TN carrier type. The second 1-bit value can be mapped to an indication of the NTN carrier type. In addition to the carrier type, the cross-carrier scheduling DCI can indicate a specific timing offset of the carrier or BWP type used by the UE to receive the scheduled PDSCH or send the scheduled PUSCH, and will be applied on the basis of the conventional timing information provided by the time-domain resource allocation (TDRA) field in the DCI. For example, the carrier-specific timing offset can be a duration value K expressed in time units such as milliseconds or in an integer number of time slots in the system parameters of the BWP. For example, for a TN carrier / BWP, K may be 0 and for an NTN carrier-BWP, K may be non-0. The scheduling DCI may indicate the index of the value of K among a set of preconfigured values ​​mapped to K. The scheduled PDSCH will be received at the timeslot n+timing information indicated in TDRA+K.

[0254] UE 110 may also receive a dynamic indication for enabling a specific carrier or a specific BWP to send and / or receive data. The dynamic indication may specify an UL carrier of a specific carrier type via a DCI in a PDCCH or a MAC CE in a PDSCH. The dynamic indication may specify a DL carrier of a specific carrier type. The dynamic indication may specify a BWP on a carrier of a specific carrier type. Alternatively, the dynamic indication may disable a specific type of carrier. One advantage of disabling a specific type of carrier may be energy saving. The dynamic indication may be implemented in the downlink control information carried by the PDCCH or the MAC CE in the PDSCH. Specifically, the indication may be a 1-bit field or a 2-bit field.

[0255] In a multi-carrier cell, UE 110 may be configured with multiple UL BWPs and multiple DL BWPs belonging to different carrier types (e.g., TN carrier type and NTN carrier type). Then, UE 110 may be configured with at least one active TN DL BWP and one active NTN DL BWP. UE 110 may dynamically switch from an active TN DL BWP to an active NTN DL BWP and vice versa.

[0256] A dedicated, UE-specific BWP or beam-specific BWP may be indicated to a UE served by an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) TRP. A BWP may belong to a physical carrier (e.g., a TN carrier or an NTN carrier) or a virtual carrier.

[0257] Fig.10 The configuration information 1002 for the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell is shown. The configuration information 1002 for the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell includes configuration information 1004 for the NTN carrier and configuration information 1006 for the TN carrier. Fig.10 The configuration information 1004 of the NTN carrier is shown, including the configuration information of three BWPs: NTN BWP1; NTN BWP2 and NTN BWP3. The configuration information of NTNBWP1 includes: subcarrier spacing; symbol duration; cyclic prefix (CP) length; beam direction information. The beam direction information includes: peak direction / angle information; HPBW information; polarization indication (RHCP / LHCP). The peak direction / angle information includes: azimuth; azimuth range; zenith angle; zenith angle range.

[0258] Fig.10 1 shows the configuration information 1006 of the TN carrier, including the configuration information of three BWPs: TN BWP1, TNBWP2 and TN BWP3. The configuration information of TN BWP1 includes: subcarrier spacing; symbol duration; cyclic prefix (CP) length.

[0259] Aspects of the present application relate to BFR using multi-carrier cells.

[0260] It can be seen that the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell supports fast recovery of the UE after experiencing a radio link (RL) failure or detecting a beam failure (BF).

[0261] Consider that UE 110 detects BF on the BWP of a TN carrier provided by T-TRP 170. As is well known, in response to detecting BF, UE 110 may perform a cumbersome BFR procedure on the TN carrier. Instead of performing a cumbersome BFR procedure, UE 110 in a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell may select from multiple BFR options. In one BFR option, UE 110 may indicate the selected RS directly to T-TRP 170 via the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell. In another option, UE 110 may send feedback to T-TRP 170 via the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell. The feedback may include a measurement report including measurement information about a set of RSs. In response to receiving the feedback, T-TRP 170 may determine from the feedback a preferred new beam for replacing the failed beam. T-TRP 170 may then resume data transmission to UE 110 using the preferred new beam. It can be seen that when T-TRP 170 resumes data transmission to UE 110 using the preferred new beam, T-TRP 170 reduces BFR latency relative to the traditional, cumbersome BFR process. Conveniently, it can be seen that data interruption can be minimized or completely avoided.

[0262] Various aspects of the present application relate to the introduction of a cross-carrier or cross-link BFR process or a cross-BWP BFR process in a multi-link shared carrier TN / NTN cell or a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell. It should be noted that the current NR protocol does not support a cross-carrier BFR process or a cross-BWP BFR process. It can be seen that the current NR specification does not even support a cross-BWP BFR process in a single cell.

[0263] Implementing a BFR process across BWPs in a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell may involve configuring a candidate RS (i.e., q1). The configured candidate RS may include RSs located within multiple BWPs of the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell (e.g., TN BWP and NTN BWP). Including RSs located within multiple BWPs may involve defining measurement gaps for UE 110 to measure candidate RSs outside of an active BWP or an active carrier within the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell. The PRACH resources associated with the candidate RS (q1) may be defined outside of the active BWP, or may even be defined outside of the active carrier type. For example, when UE 110 operates in the context of a BWP of a TN carrier, PRACH resources associated with the candidate RS (q1) may be defined for a BWP of an NTN carrier. A BFR search space recoverySearchSpace may be defined.

[0264] Instructing T-TRP 170 on the requested recovery beam q new Thereafter, UE 110 may monitor the BFR search space recoverySearchSpace to use the requested recovery beam q new Receive the BFR response from T-TRP 170. It should be noted that the requested recovery beam q new It could be a beam defined outside of an active BWP, or it could even be a beam defined outside of an active carrier type.

[0265] Monitoring by UE 110 may be used to start from time slot n+4+K, where n is the time slot in which UE 110 has sent the BFR request and K is a timing interval that takes into account the propagation delay difference between TN and NTN.

[0266] Aspects of the present application relate to shared carrier operations.

[0267] In the case of shared carrier operation, the TN and NTN may operate in different frequency resources of the shared carrier. Operating in different frequency resources may come at the expense of some performance degradation. These costs may be latency and lack of flexibility in allocating resources to UE 110.

[0268] For example, operating in different frequency resources means that the TN and NTN are used to operate on non-overlapping UL BWP and non-overlapping DLBWP.

[0269] For TN and NTN operating on the same frequency resources (e.g., shared BWP), it is expected that UE 110 will receive an indication of whether a specific frequency band is shared between TN and NTN. UE 110 can receive the indication through dynamic signaling (MAC CE or DCI) or RRC signaling (common signaling or dedicated signaling).

[0270] For shared carrier operation, it is desirable for TN and NTN to use orthogonal pilot signals.

[0271] NTN can use common pilot signals.

[0272] The configuration of the common NTN pilot signal may be sent to all UEs in a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell using RRC broadcast signaling.

[0273] A given UE 100 may use a common pilot signal configuration to receive an NTN channel.

[0274] In the case where the NTN PDSCH overlaps with the TN PDSCH in frequency, the UE 110 may be configured to jointly decode the two PDSCHs. The UE 110 may use a common pilot configuration to cancel interference from the NTN PDSCH.

[0275] The PDSCH received on the TN DL and the PDSCH received on the NTN DL may overlap in time resources, overlap in frequency resources, or overlap in code resources. The UE 110 may still attempt to decode the two data sets using joint reception (especially interference cancellation) because the two PDSCHs can be received differentially with a high signal-to-noise ratio. In addition, the PDSCHs may be separated in space. For example, the UE 110 may use different antenna panels / beams to simultaneously receive the PDSCH on the TN DL and the NTN DL (here, the NT-TRP 172 may be implemented as a drone). A shared carrier or cell may also support the simultaneous use of shared carrier resources. For example, the UE 110 may be configured to rate match the TNPDSCH or PDCCH based on the resources used to send the SSB of the NTN or the common RS of the NTN (if configured), and vice versa. The UE is also able to rate match the scheduled TN PDSCH or detected PDCCH around any resources configured for the NTN on the shared carrier. These resources may include RS resources (e.g., CSI-RS, PT-RS, SRS) or control resource sets (CORESET). Rate matching may be performed at the resource-element (RE) level or at the resource block-symbol (RB-symbol) level. If rate matching is performed at the RE level, it means that when decoding the PDSCH / PDCCH, the UE will consider the RE subset corresponding to the configured or indicated resources to be unavailable for PDSCH / PDCCH transmission. This means that the UE will skip these resource elements when decoding the PDSCH / PDCCH. If rate matching is performed at the RB symbol level, it means that when decoding the PDSCH / PDCCH, the UE will consider the RB symbol resource subset corresponding to the configured or indicated resources to be unavailable for PDSCH / PDCCH transmission. This means that the UE will skip these RB symbol resources when decoding the PDSCH / PDCCH.

[0276] Compared to traditional cells where carrier resources are dedicated to terrestrial systems (where gNBs are fixed on the ground) or non-terrestrial systems (where gNBs are on NTN platforms, e.g., satellites / HAPS / drones), aspects of the present application introduce shared TN / NTN serving cells / carriers where carrier / spectrum resources are shared between TN and NTN links. The shared cell can be accessed by the UE during initial access, or can be configured for the UE as one of a group of aggregated cells in a carrier aggregation (CA) or dual-connectivity (DC) framework. Spectrum resources can be dynamically scheduled to the UE 110 by the TN or NTN. Then, when sending / receiving control, data, and reference signals (RS) on the shared serving cell, the UE 110 can follow specific behaviors. For example, downlink control or data channels (e.g., PDSCHs from a TN link and an NTN link) can overlap in time / frequency / code resources, and the UE can still attempt to decode both PDSCHs using joint reception, interference cancellation, or rate matching techniques.

[0277] A shared cell can be considered as a case of a multi-carrier cell, where two DL CCs partially or completely overlap. In a multi-link shared cell, the links may have one link type, one link type for a terrestrial network link type, and another link type for a non-terrestrial network link type. In this case, it is possible that the DL carriers completely overlap while the UL carriers do not overlap at all (see Fig.19 ), or both DL and UL carriers partially or completely overlap (see Fig. 20 ).

[0278] Aspects of the present application relate to initial and / or random access procedures for a UE attempting to establish a connection with a shared serving cell in an RRC idle / inactive state.

[0279] A UE 110 in an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state may use common signaling to receive an indication that a serving cell is a shared multi-link TN / NTN cell in an MIB that is part of a synchronization signal block (SSB) / PBCH block, or in a system information block 1 (SIB1) that is part of the remaining system information (RMSI). The indication may indicate that the serving cell is a serving cell for dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type. That is, it is generally understood that before UE 110 initiates random access to a given serving cell, UE 110 has information about whether a given serving cell is a shared TN / NTN cell. Subsequently, given that UE 110 has received a DL paging message on a TN link or an NTN link or UE 110 has UL data to be sent, UE 110 may decide to reside in a shared serving cell before initiating random access to the serving cell. UE 110 in RRC idle state or RRC inactive state may have completed the cell selection / reselection process and may have chosen to camp on the shared serving cell. UE 110 then monitors system information and (in most cases) paging information from the multi-link serving cell. It should be noted that the service may be limited and the PLMN may not be aware of the presence of UE 110 in the multi-link serving cell.

[0280] The TRP may send SSBs in different frequency positions or different bandwidth parts of a shared DL CC, wherein one or more of the SSBs are cell-defining SSBs (CD-SSBs). For a shared cell, a CD-SSB may be sent only on a TN link, only on an NTN link, or on both a TN link and an NTN link. The position of a CD-SSB within a shared DL CC may be cross-link indicated, i.e., a non-cell-defined SSB sent by T-TRP 170 on a TN link may indicate the position of a CD-SSB sent by NT-TRP 172 on an NTN link, and vice versa.

[0281] The multi-link TN / NTN cell system information sent via the MIB and SIB1 (e.g., RMSI) may provide separate RACH configurations for different TRP node types (i.e., link types). For example, one RACH configuration may be provided for T-TRP 170 (corresponding to the TN link type) and another RACH configuration may be provided for NT-TRP 172 (corresponding to the NTN link type). The multi-link TN / NTN cell system information may also provide information about whether the shared serving cell has overlapping UL carriers (see Fig.19 ) or non-overlapping UL carriers (see Fig. 20 ) instructions.

[0282] Consider that a given serving cell is a shared TN / NTN cell and UE 110 supports operation in a shared TN / NTN cell for a given frequency band combination. That is, UE 110 has indicated to TRP 170 / 172 the capability to operate in a shared serving cell for a given frequency band combination. UE 110 may perform initial access in a TN UL carrier, an NTN UL carrier, or a shared UL carrier using a TN RACH configuration or using an NTN RACH configuration.

[0283] Consider that a given serving cell is a shared TN / NTN cell operating in UL carrier aggregation mode, and UE 110 supports operation in the shared TN / NTN cell for a given frequency band combination. That is, UE 110 has indicated to TRP 170 / 172 the capability to operate in the shared serving cell for the given frequency band combination. In response to UE 110 detecting a TNSSB on a shared DL carrier, where the reference signal received power is greater than a certain threshold, UE 110 may perform initial access on the TN UL carrier or on the shared UL carrier using the corresponding RACH configuration (see Fig. 20 Alternatively, in response to UE 110 detecting an NTN SSB on a shared DL carrier, where the reference signal received power is greater than a certain threshold, UE 110 may perform initial access on the NTN UL carrier or on the shared UL carrier using a corresponding RACH configuration (see Fig. 20 ). The reference signal received power threshold may be a link-specific threshold or a carrier-specific threshold, or a common threshold across link types or carrier types.

[0284] Consider that a given serving cell is a shared TN / NTN cell operating in supplementary UL mode, and that UE 110 supports operation in a shared TN / NTN cell for a given frequency band combination. That is, UE 110 has indicated to TRP 170 / 172 the capability to operate in a shared serving cell for a given frequency band combination. UE 110 may determine the type of RACH configuration used for random access. UE 110 may perform the determination by comparing the measured RSRP of the detected SSB with a carrier selection threshold or a link selection threshold. It may be considered that the carrier selection threshold or the link selection threshold has been provided as part of the shared cell system information.

[0285] In this case, further determination by UE 110 of a UL carrier or link for performing initial access (e.g., sending a preamble) may be based on comparing the RSRP measurement of the selected SSB with a TN / NTN carrier selection threshold provided in the cell system information via public signaling. Examples of receiving information via public signaling include receiving information via MIB and receiving information via SIB1.

[0286] In the case of a shared DL carrier, the carrier selection threshold can be considered as a common threshold Th Common If the measured RSRP of the detected SSB is less than the common threshold Th Common , then UE 110 may select a TN carrier and / or use a TN RACH configuration to perform initial access. Otherwise, the UE may select an NTN carrier and / or use an NTN RACH configuration to perform initial access.

[0287] In case of non-overlapping UL carriers, a "random access message 3" may be sent by UE 110 on the same selected carrier (see Fig.19 ).

[0288] When UE 110 is in the RRC connected state, the UL carrier for performing random access may be explicitly configured to UE 110 through UE-specific layer 3 RRC signaling or dedicated layer 3 RRC signaling.

[0289] In the case of using a shared carrier, it can be seen that the TN and NTN can operate in different frequency resources of the shared carrier, which incurs some costs. These costs include some performance degradation in terms of latency and reduced flexibility when allocating resources to UEs.

[0290] In one example, TN and NTN can be used to operate on non-overlapping UL or DL ​​BWPs (see Fig.25A ).

[0291] In another example, a TN link and an NTN link are used to operate on the same frequency resource (e.g., in a shared TN / NTN BWP, see Fig.25B ), several adaptive changes can be achieved. In one adaptive change, an indication can be provided to the UE 110 about a specific frequency band or bandwidth part (BWP) to be shared between the TN and the NTN. The indication can be provided by dynamic signaling (MAC CE or DCI) or RRC signaling (public signaling or dedicated signaling). In another adaptive change, the TN and the NTN can be used to use orthogonal pilot signals. An exemplary pilot signal is a demodulation reference signal (DM-RS), which can be sent on a shared BWP. The orthogonal RS can correspond to DM-RS in the same or different code division multiplexing (CDM) groups. In one example, the configuration of the NTN DM-RS can be sent to all UEs 110 in a shared cell using RRC broadcast signaling. A given UE 110 can use a common RS configuration to decode and receive NTN channels, wherein the NTN channels include NTN PDCCH and NTN PDSCH.

[0292] In the case where the NTN PDSCH overlaps with the TN PDSCH in frequency and / or time (e.g., the NTN PDSCH and the TNPDSCH are transmitted on overlapping physical resource blocks or "PRBs" in the same time slot), the UE 110 may jointly receive the two PDSCHs using a joint reception technique. An exemplary joint reception technique includes successive interference cancellation (SIC). In SIC, the UE 110 may first decode the NTN PDSCH based on a signal received using the NTN DM-RS through the resource elements (REs) of the PRBs constituting the NTN PDSCH. The UE 110 may then subtract the contribution of the NTN PDSCH that overlaps with the TN PDSCH from the received signal. The UE 110 may then decode the TN PDSCH based on an updated signal received using the TN DM-RS through the REs of the PRBs constituting the TNPDSCH.

[0293] Overlapping TN / NTN PDSCHs may be spatially separated, for example, UE 110 may use different antenna panels / beams to simultaneously receive two PDSCHs from a TN link and an NTN link (here, NT-TRP 172 may be a drone). Similarly, UE 110 may send TN PUSCH and NTN PUSCH on the same shared UL carrier BWP using different transmit beams or using spatial filters of the same panel or different panels. TRP 170 / 172 may send an indication to UE 110 of which beam to use to send TN PUSCH and which beam to use to send NTN PUSCH simultaneously. Alternatively, TRP 170 / 172 may send an indication to UE 110 that overlapping TN PDSCH and NTN PDSCH are expected to be received on the same time / frequency resources. This transmission may be performed by UE-specific RRC signaling, MAC CE, DCI in PDCCH, or a combination thereof. The spatial indication of the TN beam may be represented in the form of a QCL of a DM-RS with another DL RS. Alternatively, the spatial indication of the TN beam may be in the form of an indication of a TCI state index in a preconfigured TCI state list. The spatial indication of the NTN beam may be in the form of a beam-specific BWP. The UE 110 may also estimate the NTN transmit beam direction or the NTN receive beam direction based on the location of the UE 110 in combination with information indicating the location of the NT-TRP 172 (e.g., a satellite or drone).

[0294] Aspects of the present application relate to shared carrier operations that support simultaneous use and dynamic sharing of shared carrier / BWP spectrum resources between TN and NTN.

[0295] UE 110 may be configured to rate match the TN PDSCH around resources used to transmit NTN signals and channels (eg, SSB, reference signals, or CORESET), and vice versa.

[0296] In various aspects of the present application, the UE 110 and / or T / NT-TRP 170 / 172 may perform rate matching or puncturing or shortening in a resource set of a shared DL / UL carrier / BWP, wherein a resource set is configured or dynamically allocated for a TN signal or channel to compensate for resources carrying NTN control, data or reference signals and channels. Rate matching may be performed by increasing the coding rate on the remaining resources to compensate for blanking by a subset of resources carrying NTN signaling, otherwise no TN signal is sent / received, and vice versa.

[0297] Fig.26Exemplary steps in a method for receiving a signal in a shared TN / NTN carrier performed at a UE 110 in an RRC connected state are shown. UE 110 may initially receive (step 2602) a control signal indicating NTN parameters. UE 110 may determine (step 2604) a subset of resources in a resource set in a shared carrier / BWP that carries one or more NTN signals based on the NTN parameters. Then, UE 110 may receive (step 2606) a TN downlink signal through one or more remaining resources in the resource set. In one example, the resource set includes resources allocated to UE 110 for TN PDSCH reception, or resources authorized to UE 110 for TN PUSCH transmission. In the same example, or in another example, the resource set may include an NTN control resource set (CORESET) configured for UE 110 via RRC signaling. In any of the above examples, or in another example, a TN downlink or uplink signal may be rate matched around the subset of resources carrying one or more NTN signals.

[0298] A TN signal or channel can be rate matched at the resource element (RE) level such that a resource subset (around which the NR downlink signal is rate matched) includes an integer number of REs. A NR signal or channel can be rate matched at the resource block (RB) symbol level, where the term "RB" can be understood to refer to any finite set of contiguous REs, typically 12 REs in LTE and NR, and the term "symbol" refers to an OFDM symbol such that a resource subset (around which the TN downlink signal can be rate matched) includes a set of RBs in multiple OFDM symbols in a time slot.

[0299] The control signal received in step 2602 may indicate an RS configuration and / or an antenna port. In this example, UE 110 may determine (step 2604) a subset of resources carrying one or more NTN signals by determining that the subset of resources includes resources carrying NTN reference signals based on the indicated RS pattern or based on the indicated antenna port.

[0300] The control signal received in step 2602 may indicate a frequency offset. In this example, UE 110 may determine (step 2604) a subset of resources carrying one or more NTN signals by determining that the subset of resources includes resources carrying one or more NTN reference signals based on the indicated frequency offset.

[0301] The control signal received in step 2602 may indicate a bitmap of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in a time slot. In this example, UE 110 may receive a TN signal through one or more remaining resources in a resource set by adjusting a start time of receiving a TN downlink signal for a time period corresponding to the number of OFDM symbols in a time slot (step 2606). Control signal 2602 may also indicate a bitmap of RB symbol resources in a given time-frequency region (e.g., a BWP in a given time slot or frame).

[0302] The control signal received in step 2602 may indicate an NTN CSI-RS or SRS configuration. In this example, UE 110 may determine (step 2604) a subset of resources carrying one or more NTN signals by determining that the subset of resources includes resources carrying one or more NTN CSI-RS signals based on the NTN CSI-RS configuration.

[0303] UE 110 may receive (step 2606) a TN signal by receiving one or more TN signals over one or more remaining resources, wherein the one or more TN signals have a zero power level on a subset of resources carrying one or more NTN downlink signals. In this example, the one or more NTN downlink signals may include an NTN signal sent over a PDSCH, an NTN control signal sent over a PDCCH, an NTN primary synchronization signal, an NTN secondary synchronization signal, an NTN broadcast signal sent over an NR PBCH, or a combination thereof.

[0304] UE 110 may receive (step 2602) a control signal via PDCCH. UE 110 may receive (step 2602) a control signal via PBCH. UE 110 may receive (step 2602) a control signal included in RMSI. UE 110 may receive (step 2602) a control signal transmitted by a higher layer UE-specific RRC signal or a dedicated RRC signal. UE 110 may receive (step 2602) a control signal transmitted by a media access control-control element (MAC-CE). UE 110 may receive (step 2602) a control signal transmitted by a combination of a higher layer RRC signal and a MAC-CE.

[0305] Fig. 27Exemplary steps in a method of transmitting a signal in a shared TN / NTN carrier performed at a UE 110 are shown. The UE 110 may initially receive (step 2702) a network control signal indicating an NTN parameter. The UE 110 may determine (step 2704) a subset of resources that carry an NTN signal (or are otherwise reserved for an NTN signal) based on the NTN parameter. The UE 110 may then transmit a TN uplink signal (step 2706) through one or more remaining resources in the resource set, without transmitting the NTN uplink signal through the subset of resources that carry an NTN signal (or are otherwise reserved for an NTN signal). In one example, a resource set is allocated to the UE 110. The resource set may include resources configured for an uplink control signal. The TN uplink signal transmitted in step 2706 may be rate matched around the subset of resources that carry an NTN signal (or are otherwise reserved for an NTN signal). The UE 110 may determine (step 2704) a resource subset that carries an NTN signal by determining that at least some of the resources in the resource subset are reserved for NTN RACH transmission based on the NTN network parameters in the control signal. The UE 110 may determine (step 2704) a resource subset that carries an NTN signal by determining that at least some of the resources in the resource subset carry NTN SRS symbols based on the NTN network parameters in the control signal. The UE 110 may determine (step 2704) a resource subset that carries one or more NTN signals by determining that at least some of the resources in the resource subset carry NTN data signals transmitted via PUSCH or control signals transmitted via PUCCH based on the NTN network parameters in the control signal.

[0306] UE communications scheduled to be performed in a shared cell may be performed in the UL direction (e.g., in the PUSCH) and / or may be performed in the DL direction (e.g., in the PDSCH). In addition, UE communications scheduled to be performed in a shared cell may be performed using time / frequency resources indicated to the UE 110 in the DCI carried by the PDCCH in the CORESET of the shared DL carrier. A 1-bit scheduling type indication in the DCI in the PDCCH carrying the DL allocation may indicate whether the PDSCH is a TN PDSCH or an NTN PDSCH. Similarly, a 1-bit scheduling type indication in the DCI carrying the UL grant may indicate whether the PUSCH is a TN PUSCH or an NTN PUSCH. The 1-bit scheduling type indication may implicitly indicate some NTN-specific scheduling parameters for the reception of the NTN PDSCH or the transmission of the NTN PUSCH. The NTN-specific scheduling parameters may include a timing interval of K time slots in the system parameters of the shared DL carrier or the shared UL carrier. In the case of non-overlapping UL carriers, the 1-bit scheduling type indication may implicitly indicate which UL carrier will be used for PUSCH transmission. The 1-bit scheduling type indication may also implicitly indicate to the UE 110 the QCL indication or the TCI state associated with the TN DL channel or the spatial filtering associated with the TN UL channel and the transmit / receive beam or the beam-specific BWP associated with the NTN channel.

[0307] UE communications performed in the UL direction may include a link type (TN / NTN) indicator. UE communications performed in the UL direction may include a channel quality indicator (CQI). UE communications performed in the UL direction may include a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ).

[0308] Cell (Definition 1): A wireless network object that a user equipment can uniquely identify based on a (cell) identity broadcasted over a geographical area from a UTRAN access point. A cell is in FDD mode or TDD mode.

[0309] Cell (Definition 2): A combination of downlink resources and optional uplink resources. The link between the carrier frequency of the downlink resources and the carrier frequency of the uplink resources is indicated in a system message sent on the downlink resources.

[0310] Serving cell: For a UE in RRC_CONNECTED without CA / DC, there is only one serving cell consisting of the primary cell. For a UE in RRC_CONNECTED with CA / DC, the term "serving cell" is used to refer to the set of cells consisting of one or more special cells and all secondary cells.

[0311] Master cell group (MCG): For UEs configured with dual connectivity, the serving cell group is associated with the master gNB (MgNB) and consists of a PCell and optionally one or more SCells.

[0312] Secondary cell (SCell): A cell that provides additional radio resources on the basis of a special cell for a UE configured with CA.

[0313] Primary cell (PCell): MCG cell, operating on the primary frequency, in which the UE can perform the initial connection establishment process and can also initiate the connection re-establishment process.

[0314] Secondary cell group (SGC): For a UE configured with dual connectivity, a serving cell subset consisting of a PSCell and zero or more secondary cells.

[0315] Special cell: For dual connectivity operation, the term special cell refers to the PCell of the MCG or the PSCell of the SCG, otherwise the term special cell refers to the PCell.

[0316] Carrier: The modulated waveform that carries the E-UTRA, UTRA or GSM / EDGE physical channel.

[0317] Carrier frequency: the center frequency of the cell.

[0318] UE camped in a cell: The UE is in idle mode, has completed the cell selection / reselection process, and has selected a cell. The UE monitors system information and (in most cases) paging information. It should be noted that the service may be limited and the PLMN may not be aware of the presence of the UE in the selected cell.

[0319] Radio Network Temporary Identifier: Radio Network Temporary Identifier is a generic term for the identifier of a UE when an RRC connection exists, and the following RNTI types are defined: cell RNTI (C-RNTI), serving RNC RNTI (S-RNTI), UTRAN RNTI (U-RNTI) and GERAN RNTI (G-RNTI).

[0320] Cell radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI): C-RNTI is a UE identifier assigned by the controlling RNC and is unique within a cell controlled by the assigned CRNC. When a UE accesses a new cell through the cell update process, the C-RNTI can be reallocated.

[0321] According to 3GPP, RP-193234 “Solutions for NR to support non-terrestrial networks (NTN)” (3GPP TSG RAN Meeting No. 86, December 2019, available at www.3gpp.org), non-terrestrial networks refer to networks or network segments that use airborne or satellite-based vehicles for transmission. Satellite-based vehicles include satellites (including low earth orbiting (LEO) satellites, medium earth orbiting (MEO) satellites, geostationary earth orbiting (GEO) satellites and highly elliptical orbiting (HEO) satellites). Airborne vehicles include high altitude platforms (HAP), HAP includes unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), UAS includes lighter than air UAS (LTA) and heavier than air UAS (HTA), which usually operate quasi-steadily at an altitude between 8km and 50km.

[0322] The terrestrial network (TN) includes traditional cellular networks such as NR and LTE, etc. Airborne TRPs (usually about 100m) can be deployed on airborne UAV / drone-type aircraft and can generally be considered part of the TN or NTN, depending on whether they are connected to the core network directly or through the NTN.

[0323] Many use case scenarios require multiple connections between TN and NTN. Examples include on-demand, large events, ad hoc facilities in underserved areas, urban areas and suburbs. Passengers riding public transportation (e.g. high-speed / ordinary trains, buses, boats) can benefit from both NTN broadband connectivity and TN cellular access.

[0324] In multi-carrier terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks, the service coverage of terrestrial cellular networks can be extended to improve user experience / service quality. For example, terrestrial nodes can provide primary services, while non-terrestrial nodes (e.g., HAPS / satellites) can provide global seamless coverage, and flying TRPs (e.g., drones) can achieve on-demand regional service enhancement. The joint operation of TN and NTN can provide a 3D wireless communication system experience for UEs served by multi-carrier, terrestrial, and non-terrestrial networks / systems.

[0325] Carrier aggregation (CA) improves user throughput by configuring a mobile terminal to simultaneously connect to multiple serving cells or component carriers (CCs) of a serving node (e.g., gNB), thereby enabling the UE to simultaneously send and receive data on multiple frequencies (e.g., cells or component carriers).

[0326] With dual connectivity (DC), the UE can be connected to two service nodes at the same time, such as a master node (MN) and a secondary node (SN). The service nodes can belong to the same RAT (such as LTE or NR) or to different RATs (LTE-NR DC or MRDC). DC and CA can be used in conjunction with each other, in which case the UE is connected to two service nodes and multiple cells (i.e., a master cell group (MCG) and a secondary cell group (SCG)) are configured in each of the two service nodes.

[0327] Characteristics of carrier aggregation (CA) – ideal backhaul, same RAT includes one MAC entity with multiple HARQ entities, each HARQ entity has multiple HARQ processes, more than one HARQ process is used for one / two TBs of UL and / or DL ​​channels associated with one RNTI at one time instance, only one primary cell for more than one serving cell and one C-RNTI and multiple cells. (See Fig.11 )

[0328] Characteristics of dual connectivity (DC) – non-ideal backhaul, same or different RAT including two MAC entities, each MAC entity has one or more HARQ entities, HARQ entities have multiple processes, at one time instance, more than one HARQ process is used for one / two TBs to one RNTI-related UL and / or DL ​​channels, two primary cells are used for more than one serving cell, two C-RNTIs. (See Fig.11 )

[0329] The current beam management process scheme in cellular systems is based on beam scanning for initial access, physical layer beam measurements (e.g., L1-RSRP and L1-SINR), beam failure detection, and beam failure recovery. All these processes are referred to as "intra-cell mobility" and therefore do not exceed the coverage area corresponding to the cell.

[0330] The beam failure detection (BFD) process in cellular systems is based on the UE monitoring the quality of the link to the serving cell. The UE detects and measures the BFD reference signal and based on these measurements compares the quality of the BFD-RS with the assumed PDCCH block error rate (BLER). If the measured quality of the BFD-RS is less than the assumed PDCCH BLER, a beam failure instance (BFI) is considered to have occurred. When several consecutive BFIs occur, a "beam failure" is considered to have been detected.

[0331] The beam failure recovery (BFR) procedure in cellular systems is based on the UE initiating a search for a new serving beam after detecting a beam failure on the serving beam. The UE is configured with "candidate beams" that the UE attempts to detect and measure as it searches for the best beam from these candidate beams. If the quality of the best beam is greater than a certain threshold, the UE then initiates a random access to complete the BFR procedure.

[0332] Various aspects of the present application focus on methods for shared / multi-carrier cell concepts in integrated terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks, which include terrestrial and non-terrestrial serving nodes (gNBs) and associated terrestrial and non-terrestrial TRPs.

[0333] Various aspects of the present application are directed to solutions for integrating terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks into a single wireless communication system / network. In this way, various aspects of the present application can solve many problems associated with the integration of TN and NTN.

[0334] It can be argued that DC / CA does not provide a suitable framework for integrated TN / NTN solutions because different carriers in DC / CA correspond to different cells, which leads to many unnecessary handovers and other disadvantages such as increased latency for activating and deactivating carriers.

[0335] Furthermore, the CA mechanism is only beneficial to UEs in a connected state (ie, UEs that have completed an RRC connection with the network), but not to UEs in an idle mode / inactive state (eg, UEs that have not yet performed an initial access procedure).

[0336] In the context of multi-carrier terrestrial and non-terrestrial systems, aggregating the throughput of multiple carriers may be more useful in the DL rather than the UL. In practice, due to the large distance between the satellite and the UE on the ground, the propagation delay is large, so generally the goal in the UL is to optimize coverage, save UE power consumption and reduce UE complexity. Therefore, flexibility between supporting UL carrier aggregation and supplementing UL operation may be beneficial. This requires UL and DL carrier decoupling and flexible linking between UL and DL carriers.

[0337] Fig.12 A representation of UL carriers and DL carriers in different cells is shown.

[0338] One issue is related to the inherent time-consuming aspect of the beam management process in 5G NR. Typically, beam management functions such as BFD and BFR are limited to the serving cell. The serving cell can be a terrestrial serving cell or a non-terrestrial serving cell. Even so, it takes a considerable amount of time for the UE to find an available candidate beam. In time-sensitive scenarios, this considerable amount of time may result in data sessions being dropped.

[0339] Another issue is related to the limited range of the current beam management process in 5G NR, which limits its efficiency. Since the beam management process is limited to the serving cell, the candidate beams are limited to the serving cell, so the UE does not look for beams from neighboring TRPs or even non-terrestrial TRPs. If no suitable candidate beam is found, the UE randomly selects a beam from the terrestrial beams of the serving cell if the serving cell is a terrestrial serving cell, and randomly selects a beam from the non-terrestrial beams of the serving cell if the serving cell is a non-terrestrial serving cell.

[0340] Another issue is related to the passive nature of the beam management process in 5G NR. When the last serving beam pair link fails, it is too late for the UE to recover from the impact, and the UE must spend time looking for a suitable candidate beam. In addition, when all beam pair links of the terrestrial / non-terrestrial serving cell fail, the serving cell cannot assist the UE in the beam management process.

[0341] In NR, synchronization signal blocks (SSB) / PBCH blocks are cell-specific, i.e., they carry the physical layer cell ID (PCID) of the cell. They are organized in burst sets, which are sent periodically. Different SSBs are beamformed, i.e., different SSBs are sent in different spatial directions across the area served by the TRP of the serving cell and across the coverage area of ​​the cell. Each SSB occupies 240 subcarriers (frequency domain) and 4 symbols (time domain), including primary and secondary synchronization signals (PSS and SSS) and physical broadcast channel (PBCH). PSS and SSS together carry the physical cell identity (PCID), and PBCH carries the master information block (MIB) and some other payload bits. Multiple SSBs at different frequency positions can be sent within the frequency range of the carrier, and these SSBs do not need to carry the same PCID. However, the cell-defining SSB (CD-SSB) has a unique position within the carrier, which intersects the SSB synchronization raster defined for the cell band. The CD-SSB carries the unique PCID of the cell and has an associated RMSI, i.e., it indicates the time-frequency position of the control resource set (CORESET#0), and the UE must monitor the control resource set (CORESET#0) to decode the PDCCH / PDSCH carrying the RMSI. SSBs other than CD-SSBs can indicate the frequency position of the CD-SSB on the same carrier.

[0342] A given UE may be configured with multiple RSs for different carriers (e.g., q 0,TN and q 0,NTN )

[0343] When the quality q0 of the beam in a given BWP measured by the corresponding BFD RS drops to a certain threshold Q out,LR When the following occurs, a beam failure is detected, in which case the UE continuously monitors / measures the quality of the current beam / RS (i.e., q0) and the new candidate beam (i.e., q1).

[0344] When certain conditions are met, the UE switches the beam from q1 / q to new One of the beams selected in .

[0345] When a UE detects a beam failure in a given BWP of a given carrier of a multi-carrier serving cell, the UE traverses the list of candidate beams belonging to the corresponding BWP and selects the beam whose L1-RSRP measurement is greater than the threshold Q in,LR RS, this threshold can also be called rsrp-ThresholdSSB.

[0346] After the UE finds a suitable RS, the UE performs contention-free / contention-based RACH to indicate the selected RS to the serving cell, and waits for a RACH response on the search space indicated by recoverySearchSpaceId.

[0347] If a RACH response is received before the ra-ResponseWindow times out, the BFR is considered successful.

[0348] Aspects of the present application relate to a multi-carrier service cell, which implements a flexible multi-connection framework between TN carriers and NTN carriers. In a multi-carrier service cell, UL carriers and DL carriers in paired spectrum (FDM) or damaged spectrum (TDM) are decoupled from each other. Multiple DL carriers can be configured in a single cell (i.e., a multi-carrier service cell), and each UL carrier can be associated with or linked to multiple DL carriers.

[0349] Fig.13 A representation of UL and DL carriers in a single multi-carrier serving cell is shown.

[0350] A multi-carrier serving cell may be associated with multiple contiguous / non-contiguous DL carriers, including: intra-band contiguous carriers; intra-band non-contiguous carriers; inter-band carriers; and a mixture of intra-band contiguous / non-contiguous carriers and inter-band carriers.

[0351] A multi-carrier cell may also have a single shared carrier between the TN and the NTN.

[0352] A UE in idle / inactive state can be connected to a multi-carrier serving cell via a TN carrier or an NTN carrier or a shared TN / NTN carrier.

[0353] Once the UE is connected to a multi-carrier serving cell, the UE can access all carrier types without small cell addition, release, activation, (mobility) measurements, etc. In addition, layer 1 / 2 beam-level mobility including signaling and measurement can be used to control UE mobility within a multi-carrier cell, instead of the layer 3 signaling and measurement filtering required for layer 3 handover.

[0354] For a multi-carrier serving cell, each UL carrier may be associated / linked to more than one physical DL carrier, i.e., a UL TN carrier may be linked to a DL TN carrier and a DL NTN carrier. The linkage between one or more carrier frequencies of downlink resources from a shared DL carrier or multiple DL carriers of a multi-carrier serving cell and one or more carrier frequencies of uplink resources of a shared UL carrier or multiple UL carriers of a multi-carrier serving cell may be indicated in system information, which is sent on the downlink resources of each DL carrier or one of the DL carriers of the multi-carrier serving cell.

[0355] Fig.14 A representation of the difference between cell level mobility and beam level mobility is shown.

[0356] The component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell may be TDD (unpaired carrier) or FDD (paired carrier). There may be different options for how the different component carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell are linked or associated.

[0357] In option 1-1 (see Fig.15 ), each UL component carrier (CC) is associated with a default DL CC and (at least) one non-overlapping supplementary DL CC.

[0358] In option 1-2 (sharing DL carrier, see Fig.16 ), the two DL CCs partially or completely overlap. In option 1-2, it is possible that the DL carriers completely overlap, while the UL carriers do not overlap at all.

[0359] In option 2-1 (see Fig.17 ), two DL CCs are aggregated into a single DL virtual carrier (VC), and each UL CC is associated with a single DL VC. For example, a TN UL carrier and an NTN UL carrier share the same DL virtual carrier.

[0360] In option 2-2 (see Fig.18 ), two DL CCs are aggregated into a single DL virtual carrier (virtual carrier, VC), and two UL CCs are aggregated into a single UL virtual carrier (virtual carrier, VC).

[0361] In each of the following embodiments, a network consisting of different wireless devices such as fixed TRPs, drones, and satellites is described, such as Fig.21 shown.

[0362] It is also assumed that the UE is used to perform measurements during the measurement interval. In each measurement interval within a BWP corresponding to one DL carrier, the UE may detect and measure a reference signal corresponding to one BPL, and may detect at most one BFI per measurement interval and per BPL.

[0363] In the following embodiments, examples of connection initialization and / or random access procedures in which a UE attempts to establish a connection with a multi-carrier serving cell in an RRC idle / inactive state are described.

[0364] For UEs in RRC idle or inactive state, common signaling can be used to broadcast whether the cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell in the MIB as part of the synchronization signal block (SSB) / PBCH block or in the system information block 1 (SIB1) as part of the remaining system information (RMSI), that is, the UE knows whether the cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell before initiating random access to the cell. Therefore, if the UE receives a DL paging message or has UL data to send, the UE can decide to stay in the cell before initiating random access to the multi-carrier serving cell. The UE is in idle or inactive mode, has completed the cell selection / reselection process, and has chosen to stay in the multi-carrier serving cell. The UE monitors system information and (in most cases) paging information from the multi-carrier serving cell. It should be noted that the service may be limited and the PLMN may not be aware of the presence of UEs in the multi-carrier cell.

[0365] Each CC of a multi-carrier cell may have several SSBs, which are allocated in different frequency positions or bandwidth parts, one or more of which are cell-defining SSBs (CD-SSBs). For a multi-carrier cell, a CD-SSB may be sent only from a TN carrier, only from an NTN carrier, or from both a TN and NTN carrier. The position of a CD-SSB within a multi-carrier cell may be cross-carrier indicated, i.e., a non-cell-defining SSB in a carrier (e.g., a TN carrier) may indicate the position of a CD-SSB in another carrier (e.g., an NTN carrier).

[0366] The multi-carrier TN / NTN cell system information sent via MIB and SIB1 (i.e., RMSI) may provide separate RACH configurations for different carriers (e.g., one RACH configuration for a TN carrier and another RACH configuration for an NTN carrier). It may also provide the following indication: if the cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell and the UE supports operation in a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for a given frequency band combination (i.e., the UE is capable of operation), the UE may perform initial access on a TN UL carrier or an NTN UL carrier using the corresponding RACH configuration.

[0367] In the case where the cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell operating in UL carrier aggregation mode and the UE supports operation in the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for a given frequency band combination, if the UE detects that the SSB in the TN DL carrier is greater than a certain threshold, the UE performs initial access on the TN UL carrier using the corresponding RACH configuration; or if the UE detects that the SSB in the NTN DL carrier is greater than a certain threshold, the UE performs initial access on the NTN UL carrier using the corresponding RACH configuration.

[0368] If the cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell operating in supplementary UL mode and the UE supports operation in multi-carrier TN / NTN cells for a given band combination, the UE determines which carrier to use for random access by comparing the measured RSRP of the detected SSB with the carrier selection threshold also provided as part of the multi-carrier cell system information.

[0369] In this case, the UE determines which UL carrier to use to perform initial access (e.g., send a preamble) based on comparing the RSRP measurement of the selected SSB with the TN / NTN carrier selection threshold provided by the cell system information through common signaling (e.g., MIB / SIB1). The threshold can be common across DL carriers, or depend on the DL carrier on which the selected SSB is detected, i.e., different thresholds can be set for each carrier (e.g., threshold Th for TN carriers TN , and another threshold Th for NTN carrier NTN ).

[0370] If the detected RSRP of SSB_TN is less than Th TN , the UE selects the NTN carrier to perform initial access, otherwise the UE selects the TN carrier to perform initial access.

[0371] If the detected RSRP of SSB_NTN is less than Th NTN , the UE selects the TN carrier to perform initial access, otherwise the UE selects the NTN carrier to perform initial access.

[0372] In the case of DL shared carrier, this threshold is a common threshold. If the RSRP of the SSB is detected to be less than Th common , the UE selects the TN carrier to perform initial access, otherwise the UE selects the NTN carrier to perform initial access.

[0373] The random access message 3 may be sent on the same selected carrier regardless of whether the multi-carrier cell operates in UL carrier aggregation mode or supplementary UL mode.

[0374] For a UE in RRC connected mode / state, the UL carrier used to perform random access may be explicitly configured for the UE via layer 3 RRC signaling.

[0375] The technical advantages of this embodiment are as follows: integrating different carrier types (eg, TN and NTN) into a single multi-carrier service cell; simplifying cell management; and reducing access delay.

[0376] In the following embodiments, an example of enabling a carrier-specific initial BWP after initial access to a multi-carrier cell is described.

[0377] For option 1-1 (two physical DL carriers, see Fig.15 ), CD-SSB is sent in one or more DL carriers. Fig.19 A and Fig.19 B shows the steps in a corresponding method of determining an initial bandwidth part (BWP) performed at the UE. When the UE detects a CD-SSB in one of the DL carriers, the UE extracts the configuration of CORSET#0 and the associated search space zero for its own carrier or a specific beam of a carrier. The UE then decodes the PDCCH and associated PDSCH carrying the RMSI (SIB1) transmission. The RMSI will include not only the corresponding carrier (e.g. Fig.22A The TN carrier in Fig. 22B The initial DLBWP and UL BWP of all beams and other carriers (e.g., Fig.22A NTN carrier in Fig. 22B The initial DL BWP and initial UL BWP of all NTN beams (TN carriers in the network).

[0378] For options 1-2 (shared carrier, see Fig.16 ), sending a CD-SSB on the shared carrier. Fig. 22CThe steps in a method of determining the initial bandwidth part (BWP) performed at the UE are shown. When the UE detects a CD-SSB, the UE extracts the configuration of CORSET#0 and the associated search space zero for the shared carrier or a specific beam of the shared carrier, and then decodes the PDCCH and associated PDSCH carrying the RMSI (SIB1) transmission. The RMSI will include the initial TN DL BWP and the initial TN ULBWP, as well as the initial NTN DL BWP and the initial NTN BWP for all NTN beams in the shared carrier.

[0379] The technical advantage of this embodiment is that the RMSI / SIB1 information in one carrier indicates the initial UL and DL BWP of another carrier of the multi-carrier cell, so that the UE can avoid the need to receive RMSI / SIB1 from another carrier / BWP / beam of the multi-carrier cell. This enables the UE to quickly and efficiently access all resources of the multi-carrier cell.

[0380] In the following embodiments, exemplary embodiments of PUSCH / PUCCH transmission using Option 1 or Option 2 are described.

[0381] If the serving cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell operating in supplementary UL mode, and the UE supports operation in a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for a given frequency band combination, the UE may be configured for PUCCH transmission through RRC signaling, on which the ULCC sends the PUCCH, the PUCCH including ACK / NACK feedback, which may be joint or individual ACK / NACK feedback corresponding to individual DL carriers.

[0382] If the serving cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell operating in supplementary UL mode and the UE supports operation in a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for a given band combination, then for PUSCH transmission, the UE may be configured by RRC signaling to send PUSCH on the same CC as the CC on which PUCCH is sent. The UE may also be configured by RRC signaling to dynamically select which UL CC to use for PUSCH. The UL grant (PDCCH) may include an indication of which CC to select for the scheduled PUSCH.

[0383] If the UE is to send UCI on PUCCH on a UL CC (eg, TN or NTN) during a time interval overlapping with a PUSCH transmission scheduled on any UL carrier, the UE multiplexes the UCI onto PUSCH.

[0384] A technical advantage of this embodiment is that the UE can dynamically switch between UL carriers used to send PUSCH, and also multiplex PUSCH and PUCCH if the transmissions happen to overlap in the time domain.

[0385] In the following embodiments, exemplary embodiments of carrier type / BWP operations using multi-carrier cells are described.

[0386] In a multi-carrier cell, a UE may be configured with multiple UL / DL bandwidth parts (BWPs) belonging to different carrier types (e.g., TN carrier type and NTN carrier type). For example, a UE may be configured with at least 1 active TN DL BWP and 1 active NTN DL BWP. A UE may dynamically switch from an active TN BWP to an active NTN BWP and vice versa.

[0387] The carrier type can be a parameter in the BWP configuration or can be associated with a certain BWP configuration. For example, if the carrier type is NTN, some BWP parameters can be used as default parameters, or the BWP can include different parameters (e.g., timing offset). For the NTN carrier type, the UE can be configured with one or more beam-specific BWPs. A beam-specific BWP is associated with a specific beam direction. The beam direction can be a receive beam direction associated with a certain TCI state. The beam direction can be a transmit beam direction / angle, for example, a direction / angle specified by a peak direction (e.g., elevation and azimuth) and a half-power beamwidth (HPBW) and a polarization indication (RHCP, LHCP).

[0388] If the cell is a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell and the UE supports operation in the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell for a given frequency band combination, then within the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell, the UE may be configured with a UE-specific / dedicated DL / UL BWP for receiving / sending data on the TN carrier and a beam-specific BWP for simultaneously sending / receiving data on the NTN carrier.

[0389] A dedicated, UE-specific BWP or beam-specific BWP can be configured for UEs served by an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) TRP. The BWP can belong to a physical carrier (TN or NTN) or a virtual carrier.

[0390] The technical advantage of this embodiment is that it can configure, operate simultaneously and dynamically switch between different BWPs belonging to different carrier types within a multi-carrier service cell.

[0391] In the following embodiments, two exemplary embodiments of BFR using multi-carrier cells are described.

[0392] Multi-carrier TN / NTN cells can support fast recovery after experiencing radio link (RL) or beam failure detection. For example (see Fig.21 ), assuming that BF is detected on the BWP in the TN carrier, the UE can directly indicate the selected RS to the network through the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell or feedback the measurement report on the RS set through the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell, without performing the cumbersome BFR process on the TN carrier. The TN TRP can then use the indicated preferred beam / RS to directly resume data transmission to the UE, thereby reducing latency and avoiding data interruption.

[0393] For example (see Fig.24 ), assuming that BF is detected on the BWP in the NTN carrier, the UE can directly indicate the selected RS to the network through the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell or feedback the measurement report on the RS set through the multi-carrier TN / NTN cell, without performing the cumbersome BFR process on the NTN carrier. Then, the NTN TRP can directly resume data transmission to the UE using the indicated preferred beam / RS, thereby reducing latency and avoiding data interruption.

[0394] Another embodiment is to introduce a cross-carrier or cross-BWP BFR process within a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell, which is not supported by the current NR specification. Even cross-BWP within a single cell is not supported by the current NR specification. The configuration of a candidate RS (i.e., q1) including RSs located within multiple BWPs (e.g., TN BWP and NTN BWP) of a multi-carrier cell may involve defining a measurement gap for the UE to measure the candidate RS outside the active BWP or the active carrier within the multi-carrier cell. The PRACH resources associated with the candidate RS (q1) may be defined outside the active BWP or outside the carrier (e.g., TN BWP / carrier → NTN BWP / carrier). The BFR search space recoverySearchSpace is monitored by the UE to use the requested recovery beam q outside the active BWP / carrier (e.g., TN BWP / carrier → NTNBWP / carrier) new Receive BFR response. Monitoring starts from time slot n+4 (+K), where n is the time slot when the BFR request is sent and K is the timing interval that takes into account the propagation delay difference between TN and NTN.

[0395] Since beam failure may not occur simultaneously in all BWPs / carriers belonging to a multi-carrier cell, a technical advantage of the present embodiment relates to fast BFR within a multi-carrier cell.

[0396] In the following embodiments, embodiments of shared carrier operation are described.

[0397] In the case of a shared carrier, the TN and NTN can operate in different frequency resources of the shared carrier (see Fig.25A ), at the expense of some performance degradation in terms of latency and lack of flexibility in allocating resources to UEs. For example, TN and NTN can be used to operate on non-overlapping UL or DL ​​BWPs.

[0398] For TN and NTN on the same frequency resource (e.g., sharing BWP, see Fig.25B ), and indicates to the UE whether a specific frequency band is shared between TN and NTN through dynamic signaling (MAC CE or DCI) or RRC signaling (common signaling or dedicated signaling). TN and NTN use orthogonal pilots. NTN uses a common pilot, and the configuration of the common pilot is sent to all UEs in a multi-carrier cell through RRC broadcast signaling. The UE can use the common pilot configuration to receive the NTN channel. In the case where the NTN PDSCH overlaps with the TN PDSCH in frequency, the UE can jointly decode the two PDSCHs while using the common pilot configuration to eliminate interference from the NTNPDSCH.

[0399] A technical advantage of the present embodiment relates to different types of carriers (eg, TN / NTN) sharing the same carrier bandwidth.

[0400] In summary, multi-carrier cells can support mitigation of latency issues associated with multi-cell CA / DC operations. After a UE accesses a multi-carrier cell, it is no longer necessary to add / release or activate component carriers as in the CA framework. This has the advantages of reduced latency and overhead.

[0401] Other advantages relate to efficient utilization of spectrum resources and dynamic allocation of large bandwidths to UEs from different carriers.

[0402] Other advantages relate to UE mobility within a multi-carrier TN / NTN cell, which relies on layer L1 / L2 beam management and signaling instead of layer 3 handover.

[0403] Other advantages relate to energy saving on the network side and achieving more efficient resource usage, since the network can decide to send SSB / system information (RMSI / SIB / OSI) over either the TN or the NTN carrier but not both.

[0404] When the integrated carrier includes an association between a TN carrier and an NTN carrier, if a beam or radio link failure occurs in the TN carrier, efficient and low-latency beam failure recovery can be performed through the TN carrier. If a beam or radio link failure occurs in the NTN carrier, efficient and low-latency beam failure recovery can be performed through the NTN carrier.

[0405] When a multi-carrier cell includes one TDD and one FDD carrier, the delay in the UL of the TDD carrier due to TDM between the UL timeslot and the DL timeslot in the TDD carrier can be alleviated because the uplink timeslot in the FDD carrier can be used instead, which is very important for URLLC scenarios.

[0406] It should be noted that in the CA / DC framework, the UE first connects to a single serving cell and is used to perform measurements on other cells / frequencies, report the measurements to the network, and then is used to operate in the CA / DC mode. This results in large delays, limiting the efficient use of spectrum resources and the dynamic allocation of large bandwidths to UEs from different carriers.

[0407] In RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state, the UE camps on a single cell, which is typically the cell where the UE is able to detect the maximum SSB RSRP, so neither the UE nor the network is aware of other potential cells / carriers that the UE can use for CA / DC operation.

[0408] As is known to all, usually, the UE needs to transition to the RRC_CONNECTED state before being used to measure and report measurements on other cells / carriers. Only in this way can the network configure the UE to operate in CA / DC mode, which will cause more delays and limit efficient spectrum utilization.

[0409] The multi-carrier cell proposed in this article can alleviate the delay problem mentioned above because the UE is directly connected to the multi-carrier cell with multiple frequency band configurations (eg, TN frequency band configuration and NTN frequency band configuration).

[0410] When a UE is connected to a multi-carrier cell, the UE can operate directly in the CA / DC framework, thereby alleviating all latency issues associated with multi-cell CA / DC operations.

[0411] It should be understood that one or more steps of the embodiment method provided herein can be performed by corresponding units or modules. For example, data can be sent by a sending unit or a sending module. Data can be received by a receiving unit or a receiving module. Data can be processed by a processing unit or a processing module. The corresponding unit / module can be hardware, software, or a combination thereof. For example, one or more of the above-mentioned units / modules can be integrated circuits, such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC). It should be understood that if these modules are software, these modules can be retrieved in whole or in part by the processor as needed, retrieved individually or collectively for processing, retrieved in one or more instances as needed, and these modules themselves can include instructions for further deployment and instantiation.

[0412] Although combinations of features are shown in the illustrated embodiments, not all features need to be combined to achieve the advantages of the various embodiments of the present invention. In other words, a system or method designed according to an embodiment of the present invention does not necessarily include all features shown in any of the drawings or all parts schematically shown in the drawings. In addition, selected features of an exemplary embodiment may be combined with selected features of other exemplary embodiments.

[0413] Although the present invention has been described with reference to illustrative embodiments, this description is not intended to be understood in a limiting sense. Various modifications and combinations of the illustrative embodiments and other embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art after reference to this specification. Therefore, the appended claims include any such modifications or embodiments.

Claims

1. A method for performing scheduled communication in a multi-link serving cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) connected state, characterized in that: The method comprises: receiving downlink control information (DCI) carrying an indication of resources on which the scheduled communication is to be performed; and receiving a scheduling type indication, the scheduling type indication being used to indicate whether the scheduled communication is to be performed on the following link: a link of a first link type; or A link of the second link type.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The DCI carrying the resource indication comprises a downlink allocation, wherein the scheduled communication is to be performed on the resources.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The downlink allocation schedules a physical downlink shared channel.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The DCI carrying the resource indication includes an uplink grant, and the scheduled communication is to be performed on the resources.

5. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The uplink grant schedules a physical uplink shared channel.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that The scheduling type indication implicitly indicates a link-specific scheduling parameter of the first link type or the second link type.

7. A device for performing scheduling communication in a multi-link serving cell, characterized in that: The device comprises: a memory storing instructions; and The processor is configured to perform the following operations by executing the instructions: receiving downlink control information (DCI) carrying an indication of resources on which the scheduled communication is to be performed; and receiving a scheduling type indication, the scheduling type indication being used to indicate whether the scheduled communication is to be performed on the following link: a link of a first link type; or A link of the second link type.

8. A computer-readable medium storing instructions, characterized in that: The instructions are executed by a processor in a device for performing scheduled communication in a multi-link serving cell, so that the processor: receiving downlink control information (DCI) carrying an indication of resources on which the scheduled communication is to be performed; and receiving a scheduling type indication, the scheduling type indication being used to indicate whether the scheduled communication is to be performed on the following link: a link of a first link type; or A link of the second link type.

9. A method for communicating with a shared service cell, characterized in that: The method comprises: receiving an indication that resources within the serving cell are shared between a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; receiving, by signaling, configuration of a first reference signal of the link of the first link type and a second reference signal of the link of the second link type; Receive a signal; decoding a physical channel associated with the link of the first link type according to the signal and based on detecting the first reference signal; eliminating the physical channel associated with the link of the first type based on the signal; and A physical channel associated with the link of the second type is decoded according to the signal and based on detecting the second reference signal.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The resource includes at least one of a frequency band and a bandwidth portion.

11. The method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that: The second reference signal is orthogonal to the first reference signal.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The first reference signal is in a first code division multiplexing group.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The second reference signal is in a second code division multiplexing group.

14. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The second code division multiplexing group is different from the first code division multiplexing group.

15. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 14, characterized in that Receiving the signal comprises: receiving the physical channel associated with the link of the first link type using a first spatial configuration; and The physical channel associated with the link of the second link type is received using a second spatial configuration.

16. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 14, characterized in that Also includes: transmitting a physical channel associated with the link of the first link type using a first spatial configuration; as well as Physical channels associated with the link of the second link type are transmitted using a second spatial configuration.

17. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 16, characterized in that The receiving the configuration through signaling comprises: receiving public signalling; or Receiving higher layer signaling; or Receive downlink control information.

18. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that The high-level signaling includes: UE-specific RRC signalling; or Media Access Control control element.

19. A device for communicating with a shared service cell, characterized in that: The device comprises: a memory storing instructions; and The processor is configured to perform the following operations by executing the instructions: receiving an indication that resources within the serving cell are shared between a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; receiving, by signaling, configuration of a first reference signal of the link of the first link type and a second reference signal of the link of the second link type; Receive a signal; decoding a physical channel associated with the link of the first link type according to the signal and based on detecting the first reference signal; eliminating the physical channel associated with the link of the first type based on the signal; and A physical channel associated with the link of the second type is decoded according to the signal and based on detecting the second reference signal.

20. A computer-readable medium storing instructions, characterized in that: The instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a shared serving cell, causing the processor to: receiving an indication that resources within the serving cell are shared between a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; receiving, by signaling, configuration of a first reference signal of the link of the first link type and a second reference signal of the link of the second link type; Receive a signal; decoding a physical channel associated with the link of the first link type according to the signal and based on detecting the first reference signal; eliminating the physical channel associated with the link of the first type based on the signal; as well as A physical channel associated with the link of the second type is decoded according to the signal and based on detecting the second reference signal.

21. A method for performing at a device, characterized in that The method comprises: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter associated with a link of a first link type; Based on the parameters, determining a subset of resources in a set of resources in a shared resource, the subset of resources being reserved for carrying physical signals or channels associated with the first link type and being declared unavailable for carrying physical signals or channels associated with a second link type; and A downlink signal associated with the link of the second link type is received through the resource set excluding the resource subset.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that The resource set includes: resources reserved for receiving a physical downlink shared channel associated with the second link type; or Resources reserved for sending a physical uplink shared channel associated with the second link type.

23. The method according to claim 21 or 22, characterized in that Also includes: The receiving device indicates that the resource set includes a configuration of a control resource set configured for the device for receiving a physical control channel associated with the first link type or the second link type.

24. The method according to claim 23, characterized in that Receiving the configuration includes receiving the configuration via UE-specific radio resource control signaling.

25. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 24, characterized in that Receiving the downlink signal includes performing rate matching around the subset of resources reserved for carrying physical signals or channels of the first network type.

26. The method according to claim 25, characterized in that The rate matching is performed at a resource element (RE) level or a resource block (RB) symbol level.

27. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 26, characterized in that The control signal indicates a reference signal configuration.

28. The method according to claim 27, characterized in that Also includes: The resource subset is determined based on the indicated reference signal configuration.

29. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 28, characterized in that The control signal indicates an antenna port.

30. The method according to claim 29, characterized in that Also includes: The resource subset is determined based on the indicated antenna port.

31. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 28, characterized in that The control signal indicates a frequency deviation.

32. The method according to claim 31, characterized in that Also includes: The subset of resources is determined based on the indicated frequency offset.

33. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 28, characterized in that The control signal indicates a two-dimensional time-frequency bitmap of an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbol in a time slot and a Resource Block (RB) set in the frequency domain.

34. The method according to claim 33, characterized in that Also included is receiving or sending the physical signal or channel by performing rate matching around the RBs and / or symbols indicated by the bitmap.

35. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 28, characterized in that The control signal indicates a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) configuration.

36. The method according to claim 35, characterized in that Also includes: Based on the CSI-RS configuration, the resource subset carrying a channel state information reference signal is determined, thereby determining the resource subset.

37. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 36, characterized in that Receiving the control signal includes: Receiving the control signal through a physical downlink control channel; receiving the control signal via a physical broadcast channel; receiving the control signal included in the remaining system information; The control signal transmitted by a higher-layer radio resource control (RRC) signal; The control signal transmitted by a Medium Access Control Element (MAC-CE); or The control signal is transmitted by a combination of a high-level RRC signal and a MAC-CE.

38. A device, characterized in that include: Memory, which stores instructions; as well as The processor is configured to perform the following operations by executing the instructions: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter associated with a link of a first link type; Based on the parameters, determining a subset of resources in a set of resources in a shared resource, the subset of resources being reserved for carrying physical signals or channels associated with the first link type and being declared unavailable for carrying physical signals or channels associated with a second link type; as well as A downlink signal associated with the link of the second link type is received through the resource set excluding the resource subset.

39. A computer readable medium storing instructions, characterized in that: The instructions are executed by a processor in the device so that the processor: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter associated with a link of a first link type; Based on the parameters, determining a subset of resources in a set of resources in a shared resource, the subset of resources being reserved for carrying physical signals or channels associated with the first link type and being declared unavailable for carrying physical signals or channels associated with a second link type; as well as A downlink signal associated with the link of the second link type is received through the resource set excluding the resource subset.

40. A method for performing at a device, characterized in that The method comprises: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter associated with a link of a first link type; Based on the parameters, determining a subset of resources in a set of resources in a shared resource, the subset of resources being reserved for carrying physical signals or channels associated with the first link type and being declared unavailable for carrying physical signals or channels associated with a second link type; and An uplink signal associated with the second link type is sent through the resource set excluding the resource subset.

41. A device, characterized in that include: Memory, which stores instructions; as well as The processor is configured to perform the following operations by executing the instructions: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter associated with a link of a first link type; Based on the parameters, determining a subset of resources in a set of resources in a shared resource, the subset of resources being reserved for carrying physical signals or channels associated with the first link type and being declared unavailable for carrying physical signals or channels associated with a second link type; as well as An uplink signal associated with the second link type is sent through the resource set excluding the resource subset.

42. A computer readable medium storing instructions, characterized in that: The instructions are executed by a processor in the device so that the processor: receiving a control signal indicating a parameter associated with a link of a first link type; Based on the parameters, determining a subset of resources in a set of resources in a shared resource, the subset of resources being reserved for carrying physical signals or channels associated with the first link type and being declared unavailable for carrying physical signals or channels associated with a second link type; as well as An uplink signal associated with the second link type is sent through the resource set excluding the resource subset.

43. A method for accessing a serving cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state, characterized in that: The method comprises: Receive system information in a broadcast signaling message from the serving cell, the system information comprising: The serving cell is an indication of a serving cell for dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; a first link type specific random access channel configuration and a first link type specific reference signal received power threshold associated with said link of said first type; and a second link type specific random access channel configuration and a second link type specific reference signal received power threshold associated with said link of said second type; Detecting, in the shared downlink carrier, a reference signal of a synchronization signal block associated with the first type of link or the second type of link, the reference signal having a received power; comparing the received power of the reference signal to a corresponding link type specific threshold; and In response to a result of the comparison, an initial access procedure is performed using a corresponding link type specific random access channel configuration.

44. The method according to claim 43, characterized in that Receiving the system information includes: receiving a master information block as part of a sync signal block; or The system information block is received as part of the Remaining Minimum System Information (RMSI) transmission.

45. The method according to claim 43 or 44, characterized in that The system information includes: an indication that an uplink carrier associated with the first link type overlaps an uplink carrier associated with the second link type; or An indication that an uplink carrier associated with the first link type and an uplink carrier associated with the second link type do not overlap.

46. ​​A device for accessing a serving cell, characterized in that: The device comprises: a memory storing instructions; and The processor is configured to perform the following operations by executing the instructions: Receive system information in a broadcast signaling message from the serving cell, the system information comprising: The serving cell is an indication of a serving cell for dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; a first link type specific random access channel configuration and a first link type specific reference signal received power threshold associated with said link of said first type; and a second link type specific random access channel configuration and a second link type specific reference signal received power threshold associated with the link of the second type; detecting a reference signal of a synchronization signal block associated with the link of the first type or the link of the second type in the shared downlink carrier, the reference signal having a received power; comparing the received power of the reference signal to a corresponding link type specific threshold; and In response to a result of the comparison, an initial access procedure is performed using a corresponding link type specific random access channel configuration.

47. A computer readable medium storing instructions, characterized in that: The instructions are executed by a processor in a device for accessing a serving cell, so that the processor: Receive system information in a broadcast signaling message from the serving cell, the system information comprising: The serving cell is an indication of a serving cell for dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; a first link type specific random access channel configuration and a first link type specific reference signal received power threshold associated with said link of said first type; and a second link type specific random access channel configuration and a second link type specific reference signal received power threshold associated with said link of said second type; Detecting, in the shared downlink carrier, a reference signal of a synchronization signal block associated with the first type of link or the second type of link, the reference signal having a received power; comparing the received power of the reference signal to a corresponding link type specific threshold; and In response to a result of the comparison, an initial access procedure is performed using a corresponding link type specific random access channel configuration.

48. A method for communicating with a serving cell performed at a device in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state, characterized in that: The method comprises: receiving, using common signaling, an indication that the cell is a shared cell, the shared cell being a serving cell providing dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; In response to a trigger, camping on the shared cell; and Initiate random access to the shared cell.

49. The method according to claim 48, characterized in that The trigger comprises receiving a downlink paging message associated with a link of the first link type or a link of the second link type.

50. The method according to claim 48, characterized in that The triggering includes determining that there is uplink data to be sent.

51. The method according to claim 48, characterized in that Receiving the indication includes receiving a master information block as part of a synchronization signal block.

52. The method of claim 48, wherein: Receiving the indication includes receiving the indication as part of a remaining minimum system information (RMSI) transmission in a system information block.

53. A device for communicating with a serving cell, characterized in that: The device comprises: a memory storing instructions; and The processor is configured to perform the following operations by executing the instructions: receiving, using common signaling, an indication that the cell is a shared cell, the shared cell being a serving cell providing dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; camping on the shared cell; and Initiate random access to the shared cell.

54. A computer-readable medium storing instructions, characterized in that: The instructions are executed by a processor in a device for communicating with a serving cell, so that the processor: receiving, using common signaling, an indication that the cell is a shared cell, the shared cell being a serving cell providing dynamic shared spectrum access via a link of a first link type and a link of a second link type; Residing in the shared cell; as well as Initiate random access to the shared cell.

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