Terminal device, base station device and method

Abstract

A terminal device (10) includes a control unit, and a communication unit configured to perform wireless communication by being controlled by the control unit. A control unit of a terminal device (10) is configured so as to transmit, to a base station device via a communication unit, preference information indicating whether or not the terminal device uses one or more discontinuous reception arrangements among a plurality of discontinuous reception arrangements that can be arranged by the base station device (20).

Description

[0001] Cross-references to related applications

[0002] This application claims the benefit of priority based on Japanese patent application No. 2022-099925 filed on June 21, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates to a terminal device, a base station device and a method supporting multiple discontinuous reception configurations. Background Art

[0004] In recent years, the development of technologies related to extended reality (eXtended Reality, XR) is progressing. XR is a concept that includes multimedia integrated technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), and substitute reality (SR). In XR, three-dimensional time-series image data, multi-channel (stereo, 5.1ch, etc.) audio data, other data provided to users, and control data in real space and / or virtual space are sent and received in parallel. In order to maintain and improve the quality of user experience, XR requires low latency and high reliability.

[0005] In Non-Patent Document 1, realization of XR in 5G NR (Fifth Generation New Radio), which is a wireless specification defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP (registered trademark)), is studied.

[0006] Prior art literature

[0007] Non-patent literature

[0008] Non-patent document 1: 3GPP TR 38.838 V17.0.0 (2021-12)

[0009] Non-patent document 2: 3GPP TS 38.331 V17.0.0 (2022-03) Summary of the invention

[0010] In the above XR implementation research, the power consumption in the terminal device is proposed as a research project. In XR, it is assumed that multiple data streams with different periods are sent to the terminal device.

[0011] As a technology for reducing power consumption, discontinuous reception (DRX) is used, which discontinuously receives a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) indicating scheduling information, etc. Various parameters related to discontinuous reception and transmission and reception of control information are described in Non-Patent Document 2.

[0012] As a result of the inventor's detailed research, the following problem was discovered. That is, in the discontinuous reception technology described in non-patent document 2, the assumption of multiple data streams with different characteristics such as XR is not sufficient. Therefore, if the above discontinuous reception technology is directly applied to XR, there is a possibility of increased power consumption and the possibility of not being able to achieve appropriate discontinuous reception operation.

[0013] The present disclosure achieves both reduced power consumption and appropriate discontinuous reception operation.

[0014] A terminal device in one embodiment of the present disclosure is a terminal device including a control unit and a communication unit configured to perform wireless communication by being controlled by the control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to send preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses one or more non-continuous reception configurations of a plurality of non-continuous reception configurations that can be configured by the base station device to the base station device via the communication unit.

[0015] In addition, a base station device in one embodiment of the present disclosure is a base station device including a control unit and a communication unit configured to perform wireless communication by being controlled by the control unit, and the control unit is configured to receive preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses one or more non-continuous reception configurations among multiple non-continuous reception configurations that can be configured for the terminal device from the terminal device via the communication unit.

[0016] In addition, a method in one embodiment of the present disclosure includes, at a terminal device, for one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by a base station device, generating preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations; and sending the preference information to the base station device.

[0017] Through the above configuration, the terminal device sends preference information indicating whether to use more than one discontinuous reception configuration to the base station device. Therefore, it is possible to notify the base station device of the necessity of the discontinuous reception configuration in the terminal device for each discontinuous reception configuration. As a result, for example, since only unnecessary discontinuous reception configurations in multiple discontinuous reception configurations can be released, power consumption reduction and appropriate discontinuous reception operation are achieved at the same time. In addition, as a result, for example, since only necessary discontinuous reception configurations can be maintained or added, appropriate discontinuous reception operation can be performed while suppressing power consumption increase. In addition, through the above configuration, this effect can be replaced or other effects can be exerted together with this effect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The above-mentioned and other objects, features, advantages, etc. of the present disclosure will become more apparent through the following detailed description while referring to the accompanying drawings.

[0019] Figure 1 is a diagram showing a communication system S according to an embodiment;

[0020] Figure 2 is a diagram showing a protocol stack of a U plane according to an embodiment;

[0021] Figure 3 is a diagram showing a protocol stack of the C-plane involved in an embodiment;

[0022] Figure 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic hardware structure of a terminal device 10 according to an embodiment;

[0023] Figure 5 is a block diagram showing a schematic functional structure of a terminal device 10 according to an embodiment;

[0024] Figure 6 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic hardware structure of a base station device 20 according to the embodiment;

[0025] Figure 7 is a block diagram showing a schematic functional structure of a base station device 20 according to an embodiment;

[0026] Figure 8 is a diagram showing a wireless frame configuration according to an embodiment;

[0027] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a radio resource control (RRC) state according to an embodiment;

[0028] Fig.10 is a schematic diagram illustrating discontinuous reception (DRX) in an embodiment;

[0029] Fig.11is an explanatory diagram of various types of services in an embodiment;

[0030] Fig.12 is a sequence diagram showing the DRX configuration in an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, in the present specification and the accompanying drawings, for elements that can be described in the same manner, duplicate descriptions may be omitted by assigning the same reference numerals.

[0032] Each embodiment described below is only an example of a configuration that can implement the present disclosure. Each of the following embodiments can be appropriately modified or changed according to the structure of the device to which the present disclosure is applicable and various conditions. All of the combinations of elements included in each of the following embodiments are not necessarily necessary for implementing the present disclosure, and a part of the elements can be appropriately omitted. Therefore, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the structures described in the following embodiments. As long as there is no contradiction, a structure obtained by combining multiple structures described in the following embodiments can also be adopted.

[0033] 1. Implementation Method

[0034] 1.1. Communication system

[0035] like Figure 1 As shown, the communication system S of the embodiment includes one or more terminal devices

[0036] The communication system S is configured according to a preset technical specification (TS). For example, the communication system S may comply with the technical specifications (e.g., 5G, 5G Advanced, 6G, etc.) specified by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).

[0037] In the communication system S, a user plane (User Plane) for sending and receiving user data and a control plane (Control Plane) for sending and receiving control data are independently configured. That is, the communication system S supports C / U separation. The user plane is referred to as the U plane, and the control plane is referred to as the C plane.

[0038] The base station device 20 manages at least one cell. A cell constitutes the smallest unit of a communication area. For example, one cell belongs to one frequency (for example, a carrier frequency) and is composed of one component carrier. The term "cell" sometimes refers to wireless communication resources and sometimes refers to the communication object of the terminal device 10. The base station device 20 wirelessly communicates with the terminal device 10 located within the service range of the cell in the U plane and the C plane. In other words, the base station device 20 terminates the U plane protocol and the C plane protocol for the terminal device 10.

[0039] The base station device 20 communicates with the core network 30 in the U plane and the C plane. In more detail, the core network 30 includes a plurality of logical nodes, including an access and mobility management function (AMF) and a user plane function (UPF). The base station device 20 is connected to the AMF in the C plane and to the UPF in the U plane.

[0040] The base station device 20 may be, for example, a gNB that provides the U-plane and C-plane that comply with the 3GPP 5G NR (New Radio) specification to the terminal device 10 while being connected to the 3GPP 5GC (5G Core Network). In addition, the base station device 20 may be a device that complies with other earlier or newer 3GPP specifications.

[0041] The base station device 20 may include a plurality of unit devices. For example, the base station device 20 may include a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), and a radio unit (RU).

[0042] A radio access network (RAN) is formed by interconnecting multiple base station devices 20. The radio access network formed by the base station device 20 as a gNB can be called NG-RAN. The base station device 20 as a gNB can be called an NG-RAN node.

[0043] The multiple base station devices 20 are connected to each other through a preset interface (e.g., an Xn interface). In more detail, for example, the multiple base station devices 20 are connected to each other through an Xn-U interface in the U plane and are connected to each other through an Xn-C interface in the C plane. In addition, the multiple base station devices 20 may also be connected to each other through other interfaces with different functions and names.

[0044] Each base station device 20 is connected to the core network 30 through a preset interface (e.g., NG interface). In more detail, for example, each base station device 20 is connected to the UPF of the core network 30 through the NG-U interface in the U plane, and is connected to the AMF of the core network 30 through the NG-C interface in the C plane. In addition, each base station device 20 may also be connected to the core network 30 through other interfaces with different functions and names.

[0045] The terminal device 10 is a device that wirelessly communicates with the base station device 20 as described above, for example, it can be a user equipment (UE) operating according to the 5GNR specification of 3GPP. In addition, the terminal device 10 can also be a device that complies with other earlier or newer 3GPP specifications.

[0046] The terminal device 10 may be, for example, a mobile phone terminal such as a smart phone, a tablet terminal, a notebook PC, a communication module, a communication card, or an IoT device such as a monitoring camera or a robot. The terminal device 10 may be a vehicle (e.g., a car, a train, etc.) or a device set thereon. The terminal device 10 may also be a means of transport other than a vehicle (e.g., a ship, an airplane, etc.) or a device set thereon. The terminal device 10 may be a sensor or a device set thereon. In addition, the terminal device 10 may also be referred to as a terminal, a mobile station, a mobile terminal, a mobile device, a mobile unit, a subscriber station, a subscriber terminal, a subscriber device, a subscriber unit, a wireless station, a wireless terminal, a wireless device, a wireless unit, a remote station, a remote terminal, a remote device, a remote unit, or other names. The terminal device 10 may be a device adapted to one or more of enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC), and massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC).

[0047] Reference Figure 2 , the wireless protocol architecture between the terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 is described. Figure 3 , the wireless protocol architecture between the terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 and between the terminal device 10 and the core network 30 is explained.

[0048] like Figure 2As shown, in the protocol stack of the U plane, the physical (Physical, PHY) layer, the media access control (Media Access Control, MAC) layer, the radio link control (Radio Link Control, RLC) layer, the packet data convergence protocol (Packet Data Convergence Protocol, PDCP) layer and the service data adaptation protocol (Service Data Adaptation Protocol, SDAP) layer are arranged in sequence from the lowest layer. The above layers are terminated by the base station device 20 on the network side.

[0049] like Figure 3 As shown, in the protocol stack of the C plane, the physical (Physical, PHY) layer, the media access control (Media Access Control, MAC) layer, the radio link control (Radio Link Control, RLC) layer, the packet data convergence protocol (Packet Data Convergence Protocol, PDCP) layer, the radio resource control (Radio Resource Control, RRC) layer and the non-access stratum (Non-Access Stratum, NAS) are arranged in order from the lowest layer. The above layers except the non-access stratum are terminated by the base station device 20 on the network side. The non-access stratum is terminated by the AMF of the core network 30 on the network side.

[0050] like Figure 4 As shown, the terminal device 10 has a processor 101, a memory 102, an input / output interface 103, a wireless interface 104, and an antenna 105 as hardware components. The above components provided in the terminal device 10 are connected to each other via an internal bus. In addition, the terminal device 10 may also have Figure 4 Hardware components other than those shown.

[0051] The processor 101 is a computing unit that implements various functions of the terminal device 10. The processor 101 may be a SoC (System-on-a-Chip) including components such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and a memory controller.

[0052] The memory 102 includes at least one storage medium such as RAM (Random Access Memory), eMMC (embedded Multi Media Card), etc. The memory 102 is a component that temporarily or permanently stores programs and data used to perform various processes in the terminal device 10. The above-mentioned program includes one or more instructions for the operation of the terminal device 10. The processor 101 implements the functions of the terminal device 10 by expanding and executing the program stored in the memory 102 in the memory 102 and / or the system memory (not shown).

[0053] The input / output interface 103 is an interface that receives an operation on the terminal device 10 and supplies the operation to the processor 101 and provides various information to the user, and is, for example, a touch screen.

[0054] The wireless interface 104 is a circuit that performs various signal processing for realizing wireless communication, including a baseband processor and an RF circuit. The wireless interface 104 transmits and receives radio signals with the base station device 20 via the antenna 105 .

[0055] like Figure 5 As shown, the terminal device 10 includes a control unit 110 and a communication unit 120 as functional blocks. The communication unit 120 includes at least one transmission unit 121 and at least one reception unit 122 .

[0056] The control unit 110 may include at least one processor 101 and at least one memory 102. In other words, the control unit 110 may be implemented by the processor 101 and the memory 102. The control unit 110 performs various control processes in the terminal device 10. For example, the control unit 110 controls wireless communication with the base station device 20 via the communication unit 120.

[0057] The communication unit 120 includes a wireless interface 104 and an antenna 105. In other words, the communication unit 120 is implemented by the wireless interface 104 and the antenna 105. The communication unit 120 wirelessly communicates with the base station device 20 by transmitting and receiving radio signals with the base station device 20. The communication unit 120 may include a plurality of wireless interfaces 104 and antennas 105.

[0058] Various processes of the terminal device 10 of this embodiment are executed by the operation of the control unit 110 .

[0059] like Figure 6 As shown, the base station device 20 as a hardware component has a processor 201, a memory 202, a network interface 203, a wireless interface 204 and an antenna 205. The above components provided in the base station device 20 are connected to each other through an internal bus. In addition, the base station device 20 may also have Figure 6Hardware components other than those shown.

[0060] The processor 201 is a computing unit that implements various functions of the base station device 20. The processor 201 may be a CPU, or may also include other processors such as a GPU.

[0061] The memory 202 includes at least one storage medium such as ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM, HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), etc. The memory 202 is a component that temporarily or permanently stores programs and data used to perform various processes in the base station device 20. The above-mentioned program includes one or more instructions for the operation of the base station device. The processor 201 implements the functions of the base station device 20 by expanding and executing the program stored in the memory 202 in the memory 202 and / or the system memory (not shown).

[0062] The network interface 203 is an interface used to transmit and receive signals with other base station devices 20 and the core network 30 .

[0063] The wireless interface 204 is a circuit that performs various signal processing for realizing wireless communication, including a baseband processor and an RF circuit. The wireless interface 204 transmits and receives radio signals with the base station device 20 via the antenna 205 .

[0064] like Figure 7 As shown, the base station device 20 includes a control unit 210, a communication unit 220, and a network communication unit 230 as functional blocks. The communication unit 220 includes at least one transmission unit 221 and at least one reception unit 222.

[0065] The control unit 210 may include at least one processor 201 and at least one memory 202. In other words, the control unit 210 may be implemented by the processor 201 and the memory 202. The control unit 210 performs various control processes in the base station device 20. For example, the control unit 210 controls wireless communication with the terminal device 10 via the communication unit 220. In addition, for example, the control unit 210 controls communication with other nodes (e.g., other base station devices 20, nodes of the core network 30) via the network communication unit 230.

[0066] The communication unit 220 includes a wireless interface 204 and an antenna 205. In other words, the communication unit 220 is implemented by the wireless interface 204 and the antenna 205. The communication unit 220 wirelessly communicates with the terminal device 10 by transmitting and receiving radio signals with the terminal device 10. The communication unit 220 may include a plurality of wireless interfaces 204 and antennas 205.

[0067] The network communication unit 230 includes a network interface 203. In other words, the network communication unit 230 is implemented by the network interface 203. The network interface 203 transmits and receives signals with the network (and further with the above-mentioned other nodes).

[0068] The base station device 20 of the present embodiment is operated by the control unit 210 to execute various processes.

[0069] 1.2. Radio resources

[0070] The terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 perform wireless communication with each other using radio resources in the frequency domain and the time domain. The radio resources are explained below.

[0071] The transmission method of the downlink communication from the base station device 20 to the terminal device 10 is, for example, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) using a cyclic prefix (CP), that is, CP-OFDM. The transmission method of the uplink communication from the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20 is, for example, the above-mentioned CP-OFDM, or DFTS-OFDM that applies CP-OFDM after performing transform precoding (Transform Precoding) of discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) spreading.

[0072] The cyclic prefix is ​​a redundant signal used as a guard period to prevent inter-symbol interference and inter-carrier interference, and is inserted at the beginning of an OFDM symbol. There are two types of cyclic prefixes: a normal cyclic prefix and an extended cyclic prefix.

[0073] As radio resources in the frequency domain of OFDM, multiple mutually orthogonal subcarriers are used. Multiple subcarriers are configured in the frequency domain with a preset subcarrier spacing (SCS) Δf. In the communication system S, multiple subcarrier spacings Δf can be applied. The subcarrier spacing Δf is expressed, for example, by the following formula.

[0074] Δf=2 μ 15[kHz]

[0075] Here, μ is an integer greater than or equal to 0, and can take at least any of the values ​​of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. Therefore, the subcarrier spacing Δf [kHz] can take at least any of the values ​​of 15, 30, 60, 120, 240, 480, and 960. In addition, μ can also take a value greater than or equal to 7.

[0076] In the OFDM time domain, we use Figure 8 The hierarchical radio frame configuration shown. A radio frame includes 10 subframes. A radio frame is divided into two half flames. The time length of a radio frame is 10ms, the time length of a half flame is 5ms, and the time length of a subframe is 1ms. The above time lengths do not depend on the subcarrier spacing Δf.

[0077] One subframe includes more than one time slot (s). The number of time slots Ns included in one subframe depends on the value of μ mentioned above, and further depends on the subcarrier spacing Δf. The number of time slots Ns is expressed by the following formula, for example.

[0078] Ns=2 μ

[0079] A time slot includes multiple symbols. The number of symbols included in a time slot depends on the type of cyclic prefix. For example, when a normal cyclic prefix is ​​used, a time slot includes 14 symbols. For example, when an extended cyclic prefix is ​​used, a time slot includes 12 symbols.

[0080] As described above, the number of slots and the number of symbols included in each of the radio frame, half frame, and subframe having a fixed time length are variable. Therefore, the time length of the slot and the time length of the symbol are also variable.

[0081] A resource element (RE) is a radio resource unit in the time-frequency domain including one subcarrier and one symbol, and a resource block (RB) is a radio resource unit in the time-frequency domain including 12 subcarriers and a plurality of symbols.

[0082] Radio frames are assigned system frame numbers (SFN) that increase from 0 to 1023. The next radio frame of a radio frame assigned SFN 1023 is assigned SFN 0. Since the time length of a radio frame is 10 ms, one cycle of the system frame number is 10240 ms (= 10.24 seconds).

[0083] Furthermore, a hyper-system frame number (H-SFN) may be used. The hyper-system frame number is a number that increases one by one from 0 to 1023 for each cycle of the system frame number. Since one cycle of the system frame number is 10.24 seconds, one cycle of the hyper-system frame number is 10485.76 seconds (= about 2.91 hours).

[0084] Here, the base station device 20 can configure one or more serving cells for the terminal device 10. The serving cell may correspond to a component carrier in the downlink and / or a component carrier in the uplink. The technology in which one or more serving cells are configured and the base station device 20 and the terminal device 10 perform wireless communication may also be referred to as carrier aggregation.

[0085] In addition, the base station device 20 can configure one or more bandwidth parts (Bandwidth Part, BWP) for the terminal device 10 with respect to each of the one or more service cells. For example, in the downlink of a service cell, a downlink bandwidth part (DownLink Bandwidth Part, DL-BWP) can be configured. In addition, in the uplink of a service cell, an uplink bandwidth part (UpLink Bandwidth Part, UL-BWP) can be configured. Here, DL-BWP may include an initial DL-BWP and / or a dedicated DL-BWP. In addition, UL-BWP may include an initial UL-BWP and / or a dedicated UL-BWP. Below, BWP may also include DL-BWP and / or UL-BWP.

[0086] 1.3. Channel and control information

[0087] The terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 transmit and receive user data and control information to and from each other. Regarding the transmission and reception of control information in the downlink and uplink, an example is given below.

[0088] The terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 use a plurality of hierarchical channels to send and receive user data and control information. A physical channel is a channel used for physical communication between the terminal device 10 and the base station device 20. Examples of physical channels include a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), and a physical uplink control channel.

[0089] (Physical Uplink Control CHannel, PUCCH).

[0090] The transport channel is a channel located on the upper layer of the physical channel and is mapped to the physical channel in the PHY layer. Multiple transport channels can be mapped to one physical channel. Examples of transport channels include a downlink shared channel (DL-SCH) and an uplink shared channel (UL-SCH). For example, data in the downlink may also be referred to as DL-SCH data. In addition, for example, data in the uplink may also be referred to as UL-SCH data. Here, the DL-SCH data includes downlink user data. In addition, the UL-SCH data includes uplink user data.

[0091] A logical channel is a channel located above a transport channel and is mapped to a transport channel in the MAC layer. Multiple logical channels can be mapped to one transport channel, and one logical channel can also be mapped to multiple transport channels. Logical channels are classified according to the characteristics of the information transmitted. Examples of logical channels include a broadcast control channel (BCCH), a common control channel (CCCH), and a dedicated control channel (DCCH).

[0092] The base station device 20 uses the PDCCH as a physical channel to send downlink control information (DCI) to the terminal device 10. DCI includes information related to downlink and uplink resource allocation for the terminal device 10 and control information of other terminal devices 10. DCI is mapped to the PDCCH and is equivalent to layer 1 signaling.

[0093] Here, one or more formats may be specified for the transmission of DCI in the PDCCH. The format specified for the transmission of DCI in the PDCCH may be referred to as a DCI format. For example, the DCI format may include a DCI format used for scheduling of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) (e.g., a format referred to as DCI format 1_0, DCI format 1_1, and / or DCI format 1_2). In addition, for example, the DCI format may include a DCI format used for scheduling of a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) (e.g., a format referred to as DCI format 0_0, DCI format 0_1, and / or DCI format 0_2). In addition, the DCI format may also include a DCI format that is not used for scheduling of PDSCH and / or PUSCH. The DCI format used for scheduling of PDSCH and / or PUSCH may be referred to as a scheduling DCI format. The DCI format that is not used for scheduling of PDSCH and / or PUSCH may be referred to as a non-scheduled DCI format. In this embodiment, for convenience of explanation, “DCI format” may be simply expressed as “PDCCH”. Also, “DCI generated according to the DCI format” may be simply expressed as “DCI format”.

[0094] For example, the base station device 20 can configure the terminal device 10 to monitor (i.e., monitor) the frequency domain resources and / or time domain resources of the PDCCH candidate set. For example, the frequency domain resources of the PDCCH candidate set monitored by the terminal device 10 can be referred to as a control resource set (COntrol REsource SET, CORESET). In addition, the time domain resources of the PDCCH candidate set monitored by the terminal device 10 can be referred to as a search space set (Search Space Set, SSS). The terminal device 10 can monitor the candidate set of PDCCH in one or more CORESETs in the DL-BWP of the service cell configured for PDCCH monitoring according to the corresponding search space set. Here, monitoring can mean attempting to decode each of the PDCCH candidates according to the monitored DCI format. The above configuration may be referred to as blind decoding.

[0095] Here, for the DCI (or DCI format) sent on the PDCCH, a CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) scrambled by RNTI (Radio Network Temporary Identifier) ​​may be attached. CRC is also called CRC parity bit. Multiple types of RNTI are specified. For example, the base station device 20 can configure each RNTI by sending an RRC message, which includes information representing C-RNTI (Cell-RNTI: cell RNTI), information representing MCS-C-RNTI (Modulation and Coding Scheme Cell-RNTI: modulation and coding scheme cell RNTI) and information representing CS-RNTI (Configured Scheduling-RNTI: configured scheduling RNTI) at least any one of the information. That is, the DCI (or DCI format) sent on the PDCCH may be attached with a CRC scrambled by at least any one of C-RNTI, MCS-C-RNTI and CS-RNTI.

[0096] That is, the terminal device 10 may monitor (and / or receive) the PDCCH and detect (and / or receive) the DCI format. Here, as described later, the terminal device 10 may monitor (and / or receive) the PDCCH during the active time of the DRX operation.

[0097] The terminal device 10 uses the PUCCH as a physical channel to send uplink control information (UCI) to the base station device 20. UCI includes control information such as Scheduling Request (SR), Ack / Nack of Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ), and Channel State Information (CSI). UCI is mapped to PUCCH or PUSCH, which is equivalent to layer 1 signaling.

[0098] The base station device 20 uses the DL-SCH as a transmission channel to send the MAC layer control element (CE) to the terminal device 10. The downlink MAC CE includes control information such as DRX (described later) commands. The downlink MAC CE is mapped to the PDSCH via the DL-SCH, which is equivalent to layer 2 signaling.

[0099] The terminal device 10 uses the UL-SCH as a transmission channel to send the MAC layer control element (CE) to the base station device 20. The uplink MAC CE includes control information such as the buffer status report (BSR). The uplink MAC CE is mapped to the PUSCH via the UL-SCH, which is equivalent to layer 2 signaling.

[0100] The base station device 20 uses BCCH as a logical channel to send (or notify) system information (SI) to the terminal device 10. SI includes minimum system information (MSI) and other system information (OSI). MSI includes a master information block (MIB) and system information block 1 (SIB1). SIB1 can be called remaining minimum system information (RMSI). OSI includes system information blocks (SIB2~) other than SIB1. In BCCH, MIB is mapped to PBCH via BCH (Broadcast CHannel), and SIB is mapped to PDSCH via DL-SCH.

[0101] The base station device 20 uses the signaling radio bearer (SRB) established between the terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 in the RRC layer to send control information in the RRC layer to the terminal device 10. Hereinafter, the message exchanged between the base station device 20 and the terminal device 10 in the RRC layer may be referred to as an RRC message. There are a variety of SRBs (e.g., SRB0, SRB1, SRB2, SRB3, SRB4). SRBs are also used for sending and receiving NAS messages including control information in the NAS layer in addition to RRC messages. CCCH or DCCH is used to send RRC messages from the base station device 20 to the terminal device 10. CCCH and DCCH are mapped to PDSCH via DL-SCH, respectively. RRC messages are equivalent to layer 3 signaling.

[0102] As an example of a downlink RRC message, for RRC reconfiguration

[0103] The RRC reconfiguration message is an RRC message sent from the base station device 20 to the terminal device 10 using SRB1 or SRB3. The DCCH is used to send the RRC reconfiguration message. The RRC reconfiguration message is used to perform reconfiguration related to the connection between the base station device 20 and the terminal device 10.

[0104] (reconfiguration) or (modification)

[0105] The terminal device 10 uses the above SRB to send an RRC message to the base station device 20. The CCCH or DCCH is used to send an RRC message from the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20. The CCCH and DCCH are mapped to the PUSCH via the UL-SCH, respectively. The RRC message is equivalent to layer 3 signaling.

[0106] As an example of an uplink RRC message, the user equipment capability information

[0107] The UECapabilityInformation message is used to explain the UECapabilityInformation message. The UECapabilityInformation message is an RRC message sent from the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20 using SRB1. The DCCH is used to send the UECapabilityInformation message. The UECapabilityInformation message is used to notify the base station device 20 of information related to the radio access capability of the terminal device 10.

[0108] As an example of an uplink RRC message, the user equipment assistance information

[0109] The UE Assistance Information message is used to explain the UE Assistance Information message. The UE Assistance Information message is an RRC message sent from the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20 using SRB1 or SRB3. The DCCH is used to send the UE Assistance Information message. The UE Assistance Information message is used to notify the base station device 20 of various information related to the terminal device 10 (UE Assistance Information).

[0110] 1.4. Radio Resource Control (RRC) Status

[0111] like Fig. 9 As shown, the terminal device 10 can be in any one of the three radio resource control (RRC) states of RRC connection (RRC_CONNECTED), RRC inactivity (RRC_INACTIVE) and RRC idle (RRC_IDLE).

[0112] The RRC connected (RRC_CONNECTED) state is a state in which a connection (RRC context) between the terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 has been established, and the terminal device 10 sends and receives radio signals with the base station device 20. In the RRC inactive (RRC_INACTIVE) state, the connection (RRC context) between the terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 is maintained, but the terminal device 10 does not send and receive radio signals with the base station device 20. In the RRC idle (RRC_IDLE) state, the connection (RRC context) between the terminal device 10 and the base station device 20 is released.

[0113] The power consumption of the terminal device 10 increases in the order of the RRC idle (RRC_IDLE) state, the RRC inactive (RRC_INACTIVE) state, and the RRC connected (RRC_CONNECTED) state.

[0114] 1.5. Discontinuous Reception (DRX)

[0115] Discontinuous Reception (DRX) is used as a technology to reduce power consumption of the terminal device 10. DRX can be applied to the terminal device 10 in the RRC idle state and the RRC connected state. DRX in the RRC connected state is called CDRX (Connected mode Discontinuous Reception).

[0116] like Fig.10 As shown schematically, when DRX is configured (or set), the terminal device 10 does not continuously monitor the PDCCH, but only monitors the PDCCH during a preset on-duration. That is, the on-duration can be a period of waiting (waiting) for the terminal device 10 to receive one or more PDCCHs (i.e., PDCCH(s)). For example, after waking up, the terminal device 10 can wait for the reception of one or more PDCCHs during the on-duration. In addition, when the terminal device 10 successfully decodes the PDCCH, it can continue to monitor the PDCCH and start a timer (inactivity timer). Here, the repetition of the period (on-duration) (for example, periodic repetition) can be configured using a preset cycle (DRX cycle, DRX cycle).

[0117] In DRX in the RRC idle state, the terminal device 10, for example, non-continuously monitors the PDCCH and receives a paging message for calling the terminal device 10. In CDRX, the terminal device 10, for example, non-continuously monitors the PDCCH and receives resource allocation information (i.e., a DCI format used for scheduling of PDSCH and / or PUSCH). In DRX, a configuration may also be adopted in which a short DRX (Short DRX) with a short cycle is initially performed and then a long DRX (Long DRX) with a long cycle is performed.

[0118] A part or all of the DRX parameters used for configuring DRX for the terminal device 10 can be sent from the base station device 20 to the terminal device 10 using an RRC message. That is, the base station device 20 can send an RRC message including a part or all of the DRX parameters to the terminal device 10. Here, a part or all of the DRX parameters can be configured to a cell group including one or more service cells. That is, the base station device 20 can configure a cell group including one or more service cells, and configure a part or all of the DRX parameters for the configured cell group. For example, the base station device 20 can send an RRC message including information for configuring a cell group to the terminal device 10. Here, the cell group can also be a cell group for configuring MAC parameters. In addition, the cell group can be referred to as a primary cell group and / or a secondary cell group. In addition, the cell group can also be referred to as a DRX group.

[0119] The terminal device 10 receives an RRC message including a part or all of the DRX parameters, and controls the DRX operation based on a part or all of the DRX parameters. That is, the terminal device 10 can control the DRX operation for each cell group based on a part or all of the DRX parameters. In particular, the DRX-Config IE as an example of an RRC information element (IE) includes a part or all of the DRX parameters, and the RRCReconfiguration as an RRC message including the DRX-Config IE can be sent from the base station device 20 to the terminal device 10. A part or all of the DRX parameters may be included in other IEs.

[0120] Here, a part of the DRX parameters may be configured in common to the cell groups. That is, a part of the DRX parameters may not be configured for each of the cell groups, but may be configured as a parameter common to one or more cell groups.

[0121] The following examples are DRX parameters used to configure (or set) DRX for the terminal device 10. In addition, DRX parameters may be referred to as a set of DRX parameters or information related to DRX. The DRX configuration is configured (in other words, set, determine or identify) by the DRX parameters. For example, the DRX configuration may include at least one of an on-duration, a timer (inactivity timer) and / or a cycle (in other words, a DRX cycle or a DRX period).

[0122] - An on-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer) indicating the time length of the on-duration of the terminal device 10. This DRX parameter is used to configure the value of the on-duration. For example, the drx-onDurationTimer can be used to configure the duration at the start of the DRX cycle.

[0123] -Inactivity timer (drx-InactivityTimer) indicating the period during which the terminal device 10 maintains the on state from receiving the PDCCH (i.e., until it becomes off). The DRX parameter may correspond to the value of the timer (inactivitytimer). For example, the drx-InactivityTimer may be used to configure the period after the reception of the PDCCH indicating a new DL transmission and / or UL transmission (i.e., a PDCCH occasion).

[0124] - Cycle of the on period in Short DRX (eg, short cycle) (drx-ShortCycle) This DRX parameter may correspond to a cycle in Short DRX (DRX cycle, DRX cycle).

[0125] - A short cycle timer (drx-ShortCycleTimer) indicating the duration of the short DRX. For example, the drx-ShortCycleTimer can be used to configure the terminal device 10 to follow the short DRX cycle.

[0126] - A start offset (drx-LongCycleStartOffset) indicating a cycle (e.g., long cycle) of an on period in long DRX, and / or a start position (e.g., subframe and / or time slot) of DRX. This DRX parameter may correspond to a cycle (DRX cycle or DRX cycle) in long DRX. For example, drx-LongCycleStartOffset may be used to configure the position where a long DRX cycle and / or a short DRX cycle starts.

[0127] - A slot offset (drx-SlotOffset) indicating the delay until the on-duration starts. For example, drx-SlotOffset can be used to configure the delay before the on-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer) starts.

[0128] In common DRX (including CDRX), the time configuration of the on period is determined by the system frame number (SFN) and the subframe number. As mentioned above, one cycle of the system frame number is 10240ms (=10.24 seconds). When the above cycle ends, the SFN returns to 0.

[0129] In order to introduce a longer time range for DRX, extended Discontinuous Reception (eDRX) can be applied. In eDRX, in addition to the system frame number (SFN) and subframe number, the aforementioned super system frame number is also used to determine the time configuration of the on period. As mentioned above, one cycle of the super system frame number is 10485.76 seconds (about 2.91 hours), so a longer time range can be used in eDRX.

[0130] 1.6. eXtended Reality (XR)

[0131] The characteristics of the services that occur in XR are described. In XR, multiple types of data (video data, audio data, user data, control data, etc.) are sent and received in parallel. The multiple data streams corresponding to the above data have different service characteristics and service quality (QoS) requirements.

[0132] In the transmission and reception timing of the above data, time shifts such as jitter, variability, and fluctuation may occur due to video and audio encoding, network delay, and the like.

[0133] Video data is transmitted and received based on a frame rate represented by frames per second (FPS). For example, one frame of data is transmitted and received every 16.67 ms at 60 FPS and every 8.33 ms at 120 FPS.

[0134] 1.7.XR Service Characteristics and DRX

[0135] The terminal device 10 corresponding to XR receives a plurality of data streams having different service characteristics. In addition, "data stream(s)" can be represented by a word(s) indicating a series of signals sent and received in a time series, such as data flow(s), service(s), or service flow(s).

[0136] like Fig.11 As shown, for example, the terminal device 10 receives multiple types of services. The multiple types of services include data services arriving at a 10ms period, audio services arriving at a 20ms period, and video services arriving at a 16.67ms period. That is, each service has a service period different from other services.

[0137] The multiple types of services may include other various services. For example, the terminal device 10 may receive intra-coded frames that are key frames not based on prediction, and predicted frames that are predicted based on intra-coded frames.

[0138] As described above, in the case where multiple types of services arrive at the terminal device 10 in parallel, it is assumed that the terminal device 10 performs the above-mentioned DRX. The cycle associated with DRX is fixed. On the other hand, Fig.11 As shown, multiple services arrive at the terminal device 10 non-periodically. Therefore, in order to enable the terminal device 10 to fully receive multiple services with only a single DRX configuration (i.e., a set of DRX parameters), it is necessary to configure the turn-on period of the terminal device 10 to be longer. As a result, a technical problem of increasing the power consumption of the terminal device 10 is generated.

[0139] 1.8. Multiple Discontinuous Reception (DRX) Configurations

[0140] Due to the above reasons, multiple DRX configurations are configured for the terminal device 10. To identify multiple DRX configurations, a configuration identifier may be configured for each DRX configuration. A DRX configuration is, for example, equivalent to a DRX-Config IE including multiple DRX parameters shown in the aforementioned Chapter 1.5. As a DRX parameter, a configuration identifier identifying a DRX configuration may be included in the DRX configuration.

[0141] For example, DRX configuration 1 corresponding to data services arriving at a period of 10 ms, DRX configuration 2 corresponding to audio services arriving at a period of 20 ms, and DRX configuration 3 corresponding to video services arriving at a period of 16.67 ms may be configured to the terminal device 10. For example, the following configurations may be performed respectively, so that the period during the on-time in DRX configuration 1 is configured as 10 ms, the period during the on-time in DRX configuration 2 is configured as 20 ms, and the period during the on-time in DRX configuration 3 is configured as 16.67 ms.

[0142] In the case where multiple DRX configurations are configured for the terminal device 10, the terminal device 10 monitors the PDCCH during the on period determined by any one of the DRX configurations. Therefore, in the case where the above-mentioned DRX configurations 1 to 3 are configured for the terminal device 10, the terminal device 10 monitors the PDCCH during the on period determined by any one of the DRX configurations 1, DRX configuration 2, and DRX configuration 3. In addition, during the on period determined by multiple DRX configurations, the terminal device 10 can also perform a normal PDCCH monitoring operation.

[0143] In XR applications, it is assumed that the data stream or service to be received may change. For example, when the user of the terminal device 10 deactivates the video function, the terminal device 10 no longer needs to receive the video service. As a result, the DRX configuration corresponding to the video service becomes unnecessary.

[0144] In the case where each DRX configuration cannot be changed individually, the terminal device 10 performs reception operation (PDCCH monitoring) of unnecessary traffic based on the unnecessary DRX configuration. As a result, a technical problem of increasing power consumption of the terminal device 10 occurs.

[0145] Of course, it is understood that the above technical problems are not limited to XR, but also occur in other technologies that receive multiple data streams with different business characteristics.

[0146] 1.9. The terminal device 10 sends preference information related to DRX configuration

[0147] Therefore, the terminal device 10 of the present embodiment is configured to, for example, send preference information to the base station device 20 via the communication unit 120, the preference information being preference information related to each discontinuous reception configuration in one or more discontinuous reception configurations among the multiple discontinuous reception configurations configured by the base station device 20. For example, the terminal device 10 is configured to send preference information indicating whether the terminal device 10 uses one or more discontinuous reception configurations to the base station device 20 via the communication unit 120 for one or more discontinuous reception configurations among the multiple discontinuous reception configurations configured by the base station device 20. In addition, the processing of the processor 101 or the control unit 110 of the terminal device 10 can be simply described as the processing of the terminal device 10. In addition, the processing of the processor 201 or the control unit 210 of the base station device 20 can be simply described as the processing of the base station device 20.

[0148] The above-mentioned words “indicating whether to use” cover the concepts of “indicating use” and “indicating non-use” in the entire patent application. “Use” may mean continuing to use the current configuration, i.e., “maintaining”. “Use” may mean using other configurations in addition to the current configuration, i.e., “addition”. “Use” may mean stopping the current configuration and using other configurations, i.e., “modification”.

[0149] "Use" can mean to use a new configuration, ie, a "requirement".

[0150] "Not using" may mean stopping the use of the current configuration, i.e., "releasing" or "deleting". In addition, "using" and "not using" may mean other similar words or related words that are different from the above words. For example, the preference information may be information indicating a preference in the terminal device 10 related to "using", "maintaining", "adding", "changing", "needing", "releasing" and / or "deleting" for each discontinuous reception configuration in one or more discontinuous reception configurations. In addition, the preference information may be information indicating a preference in the terminal device 10 related to "using", "maintaining", "adding", "changing", "needing", "releasing" and / or "deleting" for each of the one or more DRX parameters included in each discontinuous reception configuration in one or more discontinuous reception configurations. Here, the one or more DRX parameters may be the values ​​of one or more DRX parameters.

[0151] The word “send” mentioned above covers similar concepts such as “notify”, “provide”, “transmit”, “carry”, etc. throughout the patent application.

[0152] The RRC message described below may be the RRC message described in Non-Patent Document 2, or a newly defined RRC message. The IE included in the RRC message described below may be the IE described in Non-Patent Document 2, or a newly defined IE.

[0153] like Fig.12 As shown, in step S1210, the terminal device 10 sends a user equipment capability information (UECapabilityInformation) message to the base station device 20, and the user equipment capability information includes information indicating that multiple DRX configurations can be configured for the terminal device 10. The user equipment capability information message is generated by the terminal device 10. The information included in the user equipment capability information message may indicate that the terminal device 10 corresponds to multiple DRX configurations (i.e., supports multiple DRX configurations), and may also indicate the number of DRX configurations supported by the terminal device 10 (e.g., the maximum number). Other RRC messages may be used instead of the user equipment capability information message. For example, the terminal device 10 may send a user equipment capability information message to the base station device 20, and the user equipment capability information message includes information indicating that a configuration of supporting multiple DRX configurations for a certain cell group is supported.

[0154] In addition, when the terminal device 10 included in the communication system S corresponds to multiple DRX configurations by default, step S1210 can be omitted.

[0155] In step S1212 , the base station device 20 configures the DRX configuration on the base station side corresponding to the multiple DRX configurations to be configured for the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20 based on the user equipment capability information message (or other RRC message) received from the terminal device 10 .

[0156] In step S1214, the base station device 20 sends an RRC reconfiguration (RRCReconfiguration) message including information indicating multiple DRX configurations to be configured for the terminal device 10 to the terminal device 10. For example, the base station device 20 may send an RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device 10, and the RRC reconfiguration message includes information indicating multiple DRX configurations for a certain cell group. That is, multiple DRX configurations can be configured for a certain cell group (i.e., each of the cell groups). The terminal device 10 may also identify multiple DRX configurations for a certain cell group (i.e., each of the cell groups). The RRC reconfiguration message is generated by the base station device 20. For multiple DRX configurations, configuration identifiers identifying the DRX configurations may be assigned respectively. Multiple configuration identifiers may be configured with priorities. Other RRC messages may be used instead of the RRC reconfiguration message.

[0157] Each of the multiple DRX configurations includes one or more DRX parameters. As the DRX parameters included in each DRX configuration, at least any one of the aforementioned on-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer), inactivity timer (drx-InactivityTimer), long cycle and start offset (drx-LongCycleStartOffset), and time slot offset (drx-SlotOffset) may be included. In addition, as the DRX parameters included in each DRX configuration, a configuration identifier identifying the aforementioned DRX configuration may also be included. The DRX parameters included in each DRX configuration are also referred to as independent DRX parameters. Here, the terminal device 10 may send preference information related to each of the more than one DRX parameters included in each of the multiple DRX configurations configured by the base station device 20 to the base station device 20.

[0158] As a replacement or supplement for the above-mentioned configuration identifier for each DRX configuration, a parameter identifier respectively identifying the DRX parameters included in each DRX configuration may be assigned to the DRX parameters.

[0159] There may be DRX parameters that are configured commonly for multiple DRX configurations. DRX parameters that are configured commonly for multiple DRX configurations are also referred to as common DRX parameters. For example, with respect to a certain DRX parameter, the parameters included in the DRX configuration that is assigned the highest priority configuration identifier may be used commonly among multiple DRX configurations. In addition, common DRX parameters may be overwritten by independent DRX parameters (in other words, common parameters may be applicable when no independent DRX parameters are configured). On the other hand, even if independent DRX parameters are determined, common DRX parameters may be prioritized. The priority of the DRX configuration may be explicitly configured as the priority of the configuration identifier, or may be implicitly configured based on at least any one DRX parameter included in the DRX configuration.

[0160] The multiple DRX configurations may correspond to the aforementioned multiple types of services, respectively. For example, as mentioned above, the multiple DRX configurations may include: DRX configuration 1 including parameters corresponding to the period of the on-time of the data service, DRX configuration 2 including parameters corresponding to the period of the on-time of the audio service, and DRX configuration 3 including parameters corresponding to the period of the on-time of the video service. The above-mentioned on-times may be different from each other.

[0161] The base station device 20 may send indication information to the terminal device 10 in step S1214 , where the indication information indicates sending preference information related to the DRX configuration. The indication information is generated by the base station device 20 .

[0162] Here, the base station device 20 may send indication information (hereinafter, first indication information) indicating the sending of preference information related to one DRX configuration to the terminal device 10. For example, the base station device 20 may send the first indication information to the terminal device 10, and the first indication information indicates the sending of a user equipment auxiliary information message about preference information related to one DRX configuration for a certain cell group. Based on the reception of the first indication information, the terminal device 10 may be considered to be configured to send preference information related to one DRX configuration for a certain cell group (that is, it may be expressed as the terminal device 10 being configured as described above).

[0163] In addition, the base station device 20 may send an instruction to send preference information related to multiple DRX configurations (hereinafter, the second indication information) to the terminal device 10. Here, the first indication information and the second indication information may be different information. For example, the base station device 20 may send the second indication information to the terminal device 10, and the second indication information indicates sending a user equipment auxiliary information message about preference information related to multiple DRX configurations (for example, each DRX configuration in a plurality of DRX configurations, each DRX parameter in a plurality of DRX parameters) for a certain cell group. Based on the reception of the second indication information, the terminal device 10 may be considered to be configured to send preference information related to multiple DRX configurations for a certain cell group (that is, it may be expressed as the terminal device 10 being configured as described above).

[0164] For example, the base station device 20 may send an RRC message including the first indication information and / or the second indication information to the terminal device 10. The terminal device 10 may send a user equipment auxiliary information message including preference information based on the first indication information, where the preference information is preference information related to a DRX configuration for a certain cell group. In addition, the terminal device 10 may send a user equipment auxiliary information message including preference information based on the second indication information, where the preference information is preference information related to multiple DRX configurations (e.g., each DRX configuration in a plurality of DRX configurations, each DRX parameter in a plurality of DRX parameters) for a certain cell group.

[0165] The base station device 20 may send a prohibit timer to the terminal device 10, which indicates a period during which the terminal device 10 is prohibited from (re)sending preference information. That is, the prohibit timer may be information related to a timer for sending a user equipment auxiliary information message, which includes preference information related to the DRX configuration. The prohibit timer is a timer that is triggered when the preference information is sent at the terminal device 10. For example, the terminal device 10 may start a timer (i.e., a timer of a value represented by the prohibit timer) when the preference information for a certain cell group is different from the last sent preference information and the prohibit timer is not operated. The above prohibit timers may be configured separately for multiple DRX configurations. For example, the base station device 20 may send an RRC message including a prohibit timer for each DRX configuration in a plurality of DRX configurations. In addition, the terminal device 10 may control the sending of a user equipment auxiliary information message including preference information related to each DRX configuration of a plurality of DRX configurations based on the prohibit timer configured for each DRX configuration of the plurality of DRX configurations. In addition, the prohibit timer may also be configured for multiple DRX configurations in common. For example, the base station device 20 may send an RRC message including a common prohibition timer for multiple DRX configurations (i.e., a common prohibition timer value). In addition, the terminal device 10 may control the sending of a user equipment auxiliary information message including preference information related to each of the multiple DRX configurations based on the prohibition timer configured commonly for the multiple DRX configurations.

[0166] The above indication information and / or prohibition timer may be included in the above RRC reconfiguration message (or other RRC message), and sent from the base station device 20 to the terminal device 10. In addition, the above indication information and / or prohibition timer may be sent independently and in parallel with the above RRC reconfiguration message (or other RRC message) by the base station device 20 to the terminal device 10. In the case of being sent independently, the indication information and / or prohibition timer may be sent through an RRC message, or may be sent through messages of other layers (such as MAC CE, DCI, etc.).

[0167] In step S1216, the terminal device 10 configures one or more DRX configurations for the terminal device 10 based on information indicating one or more DRX configurations included in the RRC reconfiguration message (or other RRC message) sent from the base station device 20. In addition, the terminal device 10 monitors the PDCCH (i.e., performs PDCCH monitoring in the DRX operation) based on the one or more DRX configurations. For example, the terminal device 10 may consider the time during which the on-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer) or the inactivity timer (drx-InactivityTimer) operates as the active time. In addition, the terminal device 10 may monitor the PDCCH during the active time. For example, the terminal device 10 may configure the on-duration timer (drx-onDurationTimer) or the inactivity timer (drx-InactivityTimer) for a certain cell group.

[0168] The time of the (drx-InactivityTimer) operation is considered as the activity time for the serving cell to which the certain cell group belongs. In addition, when a certain cell group is in the activity time, the terminal device 10 can monitor the PDCCH in the serving cell to which the certain cell group belongs.

[0169] Regarding this sequence diagram, as long as step S1220 is not reached, the terminal device 10 continues the PDCCH monitoring in the DRX operation of step S1216.

[0170] like Fig.12 As shown, in step S1220, the terminal device 10 determines that the condition for sending the preference information has been met. The following example shows the "condition for sending the preference information". The following condition can sometimes be expressed as "a condition that does not require DRX configuration" or "a condition that requires DRX configuration".

[0171] - In the terminal device 10, reception of a service (eg, a video service) corresponding to the DRX configuration is stopped / started.

[0172] - The power consumption per unit time of the terminal device 10 exceeds / is lower than a preset threshold.

[0173] -The remaining battery level of the terminal device 10 is lower than / exceeds a preset threshold.

[0174] - The user explicitly or implicitly instructs the terminal device 10 to send preference information.

[0175] The terminal device 10 has a preference on the DRX configuration. For example, the terminal device 10 has a preference on each of the one or more DRX parameters included in each of the multiple DRX configurations.

[0176] In step S1222, the terminal device 10 sends a user equipment assistance information (UEAssistanceInformation) message including preference information to the base station device 20 via the communication unit 120. The preference information may be information indicating whether the terminal device 10 uses one or more DRX configurations among the multiple DRX configurations configured by the base station device 20 for the terminal device 10. The preference information is generated by the terminal device 10. For example, when the terminal device 10 has a preference for one or more DRX parameters, the corresponding parameters may be included in the preference information, and the preferred value (preferred value) in the terminal device 10 may be set for the parameter. As described above, the one or more DRX parameters are included in each of the multiple DRX configurations, and may be configured for a certain cell group (i.e., each of the cell groups). If based on step S1220 and step S1222, it may be expressed as "the preference information indicates that the DRX configuration corresponding to the service determined to be unnecessary at the terminal device 10 is not used" or "the preference information indicates that the DRX configuration corresponding to the service determined to be necessary at the terminal device 10 is used".

[0177] Any information structure that can indicate whether to use more than one DRX configuration can be used as preference information. For example, a bit string or a configuration identifier and / or parameter identifier of a DRX configuration can be used as preference information.

[0178] In the case where the preference information is represented by a bit string, one bit may indicate whether to use a DRX configuration. For example, in the case where the bit string starts from the 0th and the configuration identifier of the DRX configuration starts from the 1st, the i-th bit may correspond to the i+1th DRX configuration. That is, the i-th bit in the preference information may indicate a preference for the DRX configuration assigned with the configuration identifier i+1. In the bit string, "0" may indicate "use the DRX configuration" and "1" may indicate "do not use the DRX configuration". The length of the bit string of the preference information (i.e., the number of bits of the preference information) may be a fixed length or a variable length. For example, the length of the bit string of the preference information may be determined based on the number of DRX configurations configured for the terminal device 10. In addition, for example, the length of the bit string of the preference information may be determined based on the configuration identifier of the DRX configuration configured for the terminal device 10 (e.g., the value of the configuration identifier). As an example, the fixed number of bits of the preference information may be greater than the maximum number of DRX configurations that can be configured for the terminal device 10, and more preferably equal to the maximum number. For example, the length of the bit string of the preference information may be equal to the number of DRX configurations configured for the terminal device 10.

[0179] In the case where the configuration identifier is used for the preference information, for example, the configuration identifier of the DRX configuration indicating that the terminal device 10 wishes to change the usage status and the information indicating the usage status (for example, maintain or release) required by the terminal device 10 may be included as a pair in the preference information. That is, the terminal device 10 may include the configuration identifier indicating the DRX configuration and the preference for each DRX parameter of the DRX configuration (and / or one or more DRX parameters included in the DRX configuration) in the preference information. Preferences corresponding to each DRX configuration in a plurality of DRX configurations may be included in the preference information. Furthermore, with respect to the addition of a DRX configuration, a configuration identifier indicating the DRX configuration to be added to the terminal device 10 (i.e., to be newly used) may be included in the preference information.

[0180] In the case where a parameter identifier is used for preference information, for example, a parameter identifier representing a DRX parameter in a DRX configuration that the terminal device 10 wishes to change and a parameter value required by the terminal device 10 may be included as a pair in the preference information. That is, the terminal device 10 may include a parameter identifier representing a DRX parameter and a preference for the DRX parameter in the preference information. Preferences corresponding to each of a plurality of DRX parameters may be included in the preference information. Furthermore, with respect to the addition of a DRX parameter, a parameter identifier representing a DRX parameter to be added to the terminal device 10 (i.e., to be newly used) may be included in the preference information.

[0181] The preference information can be sent from the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20 through various messages or signals. As described above, the user equipment assistance information message as an RRC message may include preference information corresponding to multiple DRX configurations, and the terminal device 10 may send the above user equipment assistance information message to the base station device 20. The preference information may be the DRX-Preference IE included in the UEAssistanceInformation, or a newly specified IE. In addition, the preference information may also be carried in other RRC messages and sent from the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20.

[0182] In addition, the preference information may be transmitted from the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20 via a layer other than the RRC layer. The preference information may be transmitted via the MAC CE of the uplink, or may be transmitted via the UCI.

[0183] In step S1224, the base station device 20 configures the DRX configuration on the base station side corresponding to the multiple DRX configurations to be configured for the terminal device 10 to the base station device 20 based on the preference information included in the user equipment auxiliary information message (or other RRC message) received from the terminal device 10. For example, the base station device 20 configures the base station device 20 in a manner of releasing the "unused" DRX configuration indicated by the received preference information.

[0184] In step S1226, the base station device 20 sends an RRC reconfiguration message (or other RRC message) including information indicating multiple DRX configurations to the terminal device 10. For example, the base station device 20 determines one or more DRX configurations based on the preference information received from the terminal device 10, and sends the RRC reconfiguration message including information indicating the determined one or more DRX configurations to the terminal device 10. For example, the base station device 20 includes information indicating the release of the "unused" DRX configuration indicated by the preference information received from the terminal device 10 in the RRC reconfiguration message to be sent to the terminal device 10.

[0185] In step S1228, the terminal device 10 configures multiple DRX configurations to the terminal device 10 based on the multiple DRX configurations included in the RRC reconfiguration message (or other RRC messages). Subsequently, the terminal device 10 monitors the PDCCH (i.e., performs PDCCH monitoring in the DRX operation) based on the configured multiple DRX configurations. That is, the terminal device 10 monitors the PDCCH in the active time.

[0186] Through the above configuration, the terminal device 10 sends preference information indicating whether to use more than one DRX configuration to the base station device 20. That is, the terminal device 10 sends preference information related to each of the more than one DRX configurations to the base station device 20. In addition, the terminal device 10 sends preference information related to each of the more than one DRX parameters included in each of the multiple DRX configurations to the base station device 20. Therefore, it is possible to notify the base station device 20 of the necessity of the DRX configuration in the terminal device 10 for each DRX configuration. As a result, for example, since only unnecessary DRX configurations among the multiple DRX configurations can be released, power consumption reduction and appropriate DRX operation are achieved at the same time. In addition, as a result, for example, since only necessary DRX configurations can be maintained or added, it is possible to perform appropriate DRX operation while controlling power consumption increase.

[0187] 2.1. Modifications

[0188] Although the present disclosure is described in accordance with the above-mentioned embodiments, it should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments and structures. The present disclosure also includes various modifications and variations within the equivalent scope. Other combinations including one or more elements included in the above-mentioned embodiments are also included in the scope and concept of the present disclosure.

[0189] The expressions of words, phrases, etc. used in the above embodiments are only examples and can be replaced by substantially the same or similar expressions. In particular, since the technologies involved in the above embodiments are related to technical specifications, the expressions in the above embodiments can be replaced by technical specifications.

[0190] (for example, technical specifications cited in the specification of this application) are replaced with substantially the same or similar expressions.

[0191] The information sent and received in the above-mentioned embodiments may be sent and received by being included in the same or different messages or the same or different elements already recorded in the technical specifications, or may be sent and received by being included in newly specified messages or elements. The information sent and received in the above-mentioned embodiments may be sent and received using a layer and / or a channel different from that in the above-mentioned embodiments.

[0192] The means and / or functions provided by the devices described in the above embodiments can be provided by software recorded in a physical storage device and a computer executing the software, software only, hardware only, or a combination thereof. For example, in the case where any of the above devices is provided by an electronic circuit as hardware, it can be provided by a digital circuit or an analog circuit including many logic circuits.

[0193] The device described in the above embodiment executes a program stored in a non-transitorytangible storage medium, and executes a method corresponding to the program by executing the program.

[0194] 2.2. Notes

[0195] Part or all of the above-mentioned embodiments and modifications may be recorded as the following supplementary notes, but are not limited to the contents of the following supplementary notes. Below, for a supplementary note that is subordinate to multiple supplementary notes, the association to which the supplementary notes that are subordinate to multiple supplementary notes are subordinate is described. All of the subordinate relationships of the supplementary notes described below are included in the above-mentioned embodiments.

[0196] (Note 1)

[0197] A terminal device, the terminal device (10) comprising:

[0198] a control unit (110); and

[0199] The communication unit (120) is configured to perform wireless communication by being controlled by the control unit.

[0200] The control unit is configured to send preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by the base station device (20) to the base station device via the communication unit.

[0201] (Note 2)

[0202] According to the terminal equipment recorded in Appendix 1,

[0203] Each of the aforementioned multiple discontinuous reception configurations configured for the aforementioned terminal device includes multiple discontinuous reception parameters.

[0204] (Note 3)

[0205] According to the terminal equipment recorded in Appendix 2,

[0206] A common discontinuous reception parameter is configured, where the common discontinuous reception parameter is the discontinuous reception parameter commonly used among the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations.

[0207] (Note 4)

[0208] According to the terminal equipment described in Appendix 2 or 3,

[0209] The aforementioned preference information includes one or more parameter identifiers identifying the aforementioned multiple discontinuous reception parameters.

[0210] (Note 5)

[0211] A terminal device according to any one of Annexes 1 to 4,

[0212] The aforementioned preference information includes one or more configuration identifiers identifying the aforementioned multiple discontinuous reception configurations.

[0213] (Note 6)

[0214] According to the terminal equipment recorded in Appendix 5,

[0215] The aforementioned preference information includes information indicating whether to use the discontinuous reception configuration corresponding to each of the aforementioned one or more configuration identifiers.

[0216] (Note 7)

[0217] A terminal device according to any one of Annexes 1 to 4,

[0218] The preference information is a bit string including a plurality of bits corresponding to the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations.

[0219] The aforementioned multiple bits respectively indicate whether to use the aforementioned multiple discontinuous reception configurations.

[0220] (Note 8)

[0221] A terminal device according to any one of Appendix 1 to 7,

[0222] A prohibition timer is configured respectively for the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations, and the prohibition timer indicates a period during which resending of the preference information is prohibited.

[0223] (Note 9)

[0224] A terminal device according to any one of Appendix 1 to 8,

[0225] The aforementioned communication unit is configured to send and receive various types of services,

[0226] The aforementioned multiple discontinuous reception configurations correspond to the aforementioned multiple types of services respectively.

[0227] (Note 10)

[0228] According to the terminal equipment recorded in Appendix 9,

[0229] The aforementioned multiple discontinuous reception configurations have mutually different on-period cycles corresponding to the aforementioned multiple types of services.

[0230] (Note 11)

[0231] According to the terminal equipment described in Appendix 9 or 10,

[0232] The control unit is configured to send the preference information to the base station device, wherein the preference information indicates not to use a discontinuous reception configuration corresponding to a service determined to be unnecessary at the terminal device.

[0233] (Note 12)

[0234] A terminal device according to any one of Annexes 1 to 11,

[0235] The control unit is configured to send capability information to the base station device via the communication unit, wherein the capability information indicates that the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations are configurable for the terminal device.

[0236] (Note 13)

[0237] According to the terminal equipment recorded in Appendix 12,

[0238] The aforementioned capability information indicates the maximum number of the aforementioned multiple discontinuous reception configurations supported by the aforementioned terminal device.

[0239] (Note 14)

[0240] A base station device, the base station device (20) comprising:

[0241] a control unit (210); and

[0242] The communication unit (220) is configured to perform wireless communication by being controlled by the control unit.

[0243] The control unit is configured to receive preference information from the terminal device via the communication unit for one or more discontinuous reception configurations among multiple discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured for the terminal device, wherein the preference information indicates whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations.

[0244] (Note 15)

[0245] A method comprising:

[0246] At the terminal device,

[0247] For one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by a base station device, generating preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations; and

[0248] The preference information is sent to the base station device.

[0249] (Note 16)

[0250] A communication system, the communication system (S) comprising a terminal device and a base station device for wireless communication with each other,

[0251] The communication device (10) sends preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses one or more discontinuous reception configurations among the multiple discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by the base station device (20) to the base station device via a communication unit.

[0252] (Note 17)

[0253] A program that enables a terminal device (10) to execute:

[0254] For one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by a base station device (20), generating preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations; and

[0255] The preference information is sent to the base station device.

[0256] (Note 18)

[0257] A non-volatile physical storage medium having a program recorded thereon,

[0258] The aforementioned program enables the terminal device (10) to execute:

[0259] For one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by a base station device (20), generating preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations; and

[0260] The preference information is sent to the base station device.

Claims

1. A terminal device, the terminal device (10) comprising: A control unit (110); as well as a communication unit (120) configured to perform wireless communication by being controlled by the control unit, The control unit is configured to send preference information to the base station device via the communication unit for one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by the base station device (20), wherein the preference information indicates whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations.

2. The terminal device according to claim 1, Each of the multiple discontinuous reception configurations configured for the terminal device includes multiple discontinuous reception parameters.

3. The terminal device according to claim 2, A common discontinuous reception parameter is configured, where the common discontinuous reception parameter is the discontinuous reception parameter commonly used among the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations.

4. The terminal device according to claim 2, The preference information includes one or more parameter identifiers identifying the plurality of discontinuous reception parameters.

5. The terminal device according to claim 1, The preference information includes one or more configuration identifiers identifying the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations.

6. The terminal device according to claim 5, The preference information includes information indicating whether to use a discontinuous reception configuration corresponding to each of the one or more configuration identifiers.

7. The terminal device according to claim 1, The preference information is a bit string including a plurality of bits corresponding to the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations, The plurality of bits respectively indicate whether the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations are used.

8. The terminal device according to claim 1, A prohibition timer is configured for each of the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations, and the prohibition timer indicates a period during which retransmission of the preference information is prohibited.

9. The terminal device according to claim 1, The communication unit is configured to send and receive various types of services. The multiple discontinuous reception configurations correspond to the multiple types of services respectively.

10. The terminal device according to claim 9, The plurality of discontinuous reception configurations have mutually different on-period cycles corresponding to the plurality of types of services.

11. The terminal device according to claim 9, The control unit is configured to send the preference information to the base station device, the preference information indicating not to use a discontinuous reception configuration corresponding to a service determined to be unnecessary at the terminal device.

12. The terminal device according to claim 1, The control unit is configured to send capability information to the base station device via the communication unit, wherein the capability information indicates that the plurality of discontinuous reception configurations are configurable for the terminal device.

13. The terminal device according to claim 12, The capability information indicates a maximum number of the multiple discontinuous reception configurations supported by the terminal device.

14. A base station device, the base station device (20) comprising: Control unit (210); as well as a communication unit (220) configured to perform wireless communication by being controlled by the control unit, The control unit is configured to receive preference information from the terminal device via the communication unit for one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured for the terminal device, the preference information indicating whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations.

15. A method comprising: At the terminal device, For one or more discontinuous reception configurations among a plurality of discontinuous reception configurations that can be configured by a base station device, generating preference information, wherein the preference information indicates whether the terminal device uses the one or more discontinuous reception configurations; as well as The preference information is sent to the base station device.

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