Dispensing measurements to gaps

Abstract

An apparatus is configured to transmit an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the apparatus can measure at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication for at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration comprises at least an indication for measuring the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and measuring the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The example and non-limiting embodiments relate generally to radio resource management (RRM), and more particularly to scheduling of user equipment (UE) measurements with respect to measurement gaps. Background Art

[0002] In cellular communications, it is known to allow the network to use Network Controlled Small Gaps (NCSG). Summary of the invention

[0003] The following summary is intended to be illustrative only. The summary is not intended to limit the scope of the claims.

[0004] According to one aspect, an apparatus includes: at least one processor; and at least one non-transitory memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: send an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receive an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0005] According to one aspect, a method includes: sending, with a user equipment, an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0006] According to one aspect, an apparatus includes means for sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0007] According to one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes program instructions stored thereon for performing at least the following operations: causing sending of an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; causing receiving of an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0008] According to one aspect, an apparatus includes: at least one processor; and at least one non-transitory memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: receive an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determine whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, send an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and schedule at least one measurement gap.

[0009] According to one aspect, a method includes: receiving, with a network node, an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; in response to determining that the at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0010] According to one aspect, an apparatus includes means for: receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0011] According to one aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes program instructions stored thereon for performing at least the following operations: causing receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; causing sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0012] According to some aspects, the subject matter of the independent claims is provided. Some further aspects are defined in the dependent claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] The foregoing aspects and other features are explained in the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0014] Figure 1 is a block diagram of one possible and non-limiting example system in which example embodiments may be practiced;

[0015] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating features as described herein;

[0016] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating features as described herein;

[0017] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating features as described herein;

[0018] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating features as described herein;

[0019] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating features as described herein;

[0020] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating features as described herein;

[0021] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating features as described herein;

[0022] Fig. 9 is a flow chart showing the steps as described herein; and

[0023] Fig.10 is a flow chart showing the steps as described herein. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] The following abbreviations that may be found in the specification and / or drawings are defined as follows: 3GPP Third Generation Partnership Project 5G fifth generation 5GC 5G Core Network AMF access and mobility management functions CE control components cRAN Cloud Radio Access Network CSSF carrier specific scaling factor CU Central Unit DU Distributed Unit eNB (or eNodeB) Evolved Node B (e.g., LTE base station) EN-DC E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity The en-gNB or En-gNB provides the UE with the node where the NR user plane and control plane protocols terminate and acts as a secondary node in EN-DC E-UTRA Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access, i.e. LTE radio access technology FR frequency range gNB (or gNodeB) is a base station for 5G / NR, which provides NR user plane and control plane protocol termination to UE and is connected to 5GC via NG interface. IE Information Element I / F Interface L1 Layer 1 LTE Long Term Evolution MAC Media Access Control MME mobility management entity MO measurement object NCSG network controlled small gap ng or NG new generation ng-eNB or NG-eNB Next Generation eNB NR New Radio N / W or NW network O-RAN Open Radio Access Network PDCP Packet Data Convergence Protocol PHY physical layer RAN Radio Access Network RF RLC Radio Link Control RRC Radio Resource Control RRH RF Remote Head RRM Radio Resource Management RS reference signal RU Radio Unit Rx Receiver SDAP Business Data Adaptation Protocol SGW Service Gateway SMF session management function SMTC SSB measurement timing configuration SSB Synchronous Signal Block Tx Transmitter UE User Equipment (e.g., wireless, usually mobile device) UPF user plane function VNR Virtualized Network Functions

[0025] Steering Figure 1 , which shows a block diagram of one possible and non-limiting example in which these examples may be practiced. A user equipment (UE) 110, a radio access network (RAN) node 170, and (multiple) network elements 190 are shown. Figure 1 In the example of FIG. 1 , a user equipment (UE) 110 wirelessly communicates with a wireless network 100. A UE is a wireless device that can access the wireless network 100. The UE 110 includes one or more processors 120, one or more memories 125, and one or more transceivers 130 interconnected by one or more buses 127. Each of the one or more transceivers 130 includes a receiver Rx 132 and a transmitter Tx 133. The one or more buses 127 can be address, data, or control buses, and can include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of lines on a motherboard or integrated circuit, optical fiber or other optical communication devices, etc. A "circuit" can include dedicated hardware or hardware associated with software executable thereon. The one or more transceivers 130 are connected to one or more antennas 128. The one or more memories 125 include computer program code 123. The UE 110 includes a module 140, which includes one or both of the parts 140-1 and / or 140-2 that can be implemented in a variety of ways. The module 140 may be implemented in hardware as a module 140-1, such as being implemented as part of one or more processors 120. The module 140-1 may also be implemented as an integrated circuit or by other hardware such as a programmable gate array. In another example, the module 140 may be implemented as a module 140-2, which is implemented as a computer program code 123 and is executed by one or more processors 120. For example, one or more memories 125 and the computer program code 123 may be configured to perform one or more of the operations described herein with the user equipment 110 in conjunction with the one or more processors 120. The UE 110 communicates with the RAN node 170 via a wireless link 111.

[0026] In this example, the RAN node 170 is a base station that provides access to the wireless network 100 by a wireless device (e.g., UE 110). The RAN node 170 may be, for example, a base station for 5G, also known as New Radio (NR). In 5G, the RAN node 170 may be a NG-RAN node, which is defined as a gNB or ng-eNB. A gNB is a node that provides NR user plane and control plane protocol termination to the UE and is connected to the 5GC (such as, for example, (multiple) network elements 190) via an NG interface. An ng-eNB is a node that provides E-UTRA user plane and control plane protocol termination to the UE and is connected to the 5GC via an NG interface. An NG-RAN node may include multiple gNBs, which may also include a central unit (CU) (gNB-CU) 196 and a distributed unit (DU) (g NB-DU), of which DU 195 is shown. Note that the DU may include or be coupled to and control a radio unit (RU). The gNB-CU is a logical node that hosts the RRC, SDAP, and PDCP protocols of the gNB or the RRC and PDCP protocols of the en-gNB and controls the operation of one or more gNB-DUs. The gNB-CU terminates the F1 interface connected to the gNB-DU. The F1 interface is shown as reference 198, although reference 198 also shows links between remote elements of the RAN node 170 and centralized elements of the RAN node 170, such as the link between the gNB-CU 196 and the gNB-DU 195. The gNB-DU is a logical node that hosts the RLC, MAC, and PHY layers of the gNB or en-gNB, and its operation is partially controlled by the gNB-CU. One gNB-CU supports one or more cells. One cell is supported by only one gNB-DU. The gNB-DU terminates the F1 interface 198 connected to the gNB-CU. Note that DU 195 is shown as including transceiver 160, e.g., as part of a RU, but some such examples may have transceiver 160 as part of a separate RU, e.g., under the control of and connected to DU 195. RAN node 170 may also be an eNB (evolved Node B) base station for LTE (Long Term Evolution), or any other suitable base station, access point, access node, or node.

[0027] The RAN node 170 includes one or more processors 152, one or more memories 155, one or more network interfaces (N / WI / F) 161, and one or more transceivers 160 interconnected by one or more buses 157. Each of the one or more transceivers 160 includes a receiver Rx 162 and a transmitter Tx 163. The one or more transceivers 160 are connected to one or more antennas 158. The one or more memories 155 include computer program code 153. The CU 196 may include (multiple) processors 152, memories 155, and network interfaces 161. Note that the DU 195 may also contain its own memory / memories and (multiple) processors and / or other hardware, but these are not shown.

[0028] The RAN node 170 includes a module 150, which includes one or both of the parts 150-1 and / or 150-2 that can be implemented in a variety of ways. The module 150 can be implemented in hardware as the module 150-1, such as being implemented as part of one or more processors 152. The module 150-1 can also be implemented as an integrated circuit or by other hardware such as a programmable gate array. In another example, the module 150 can be implemented as a module 150-2, which is implemented as a computer program code 153 and is executed by one or more processors 152. For example, one or more memories 155 and the computer program code 153 are configured to, together with the one or more processors 152, cause the RAN node 170 to perform one or more of the operations described herein. Note that the functionality of the module 150 can be distributed, such as distributed between the DU 195 and the CU 196, or implemented only in the DU 195.

[0029] One or more network interfaces 161 communicate over a network, such as via links 176 and 131. Two or more gNBs 170 may communicate using, for example, link 176. Link 176 may be wired or wireless or both, and may implement, for example, an Xn interface for 5G, an X2 interface for LTE, or other suitable interfaces for other standards.

[0030] The one or more buses 157 may be address, data, or control buses, and may include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of wires on a motherboard or integrated circuit, optical fiber or other optical communication device, wireless channel, etc. For example, one or more transceivers 160 may be implemented as a remote radio head (RRH) 195 for LTE or a distributed unit (DU) 195 for a gNB implementation for 5G, where other elements of the RAN node 170 may be physically located in a different location from the RRH / DU, and the one or more buses 157 may be partially implemented as, for example, a fiber optic cable or other suitable network connection to connect other elements of the RAN node 170 (e.g., central unit (CU), gNB-CU) to the RRH / DU 195. Reference 198 also indicates those suitable network links.

[0031] Note that the descriptions herein indicate that a "cell" performs a function, but it should be clear that the equipment that forms the cell will perform the function. A cell constitutes part of a base station. That is, each base station can have multiple cells. For example, there may be three cells for a single carrier frequency and associated bandwidth, each covering one-third of a 360-degree area, so that a single base station covers an approximate ellipse or circle. In addition, each cell may correspond to a single carrier, and a base station may use multiple carriers. Thus, if there are three 120-degree cells and two carriers per carrier, the base station has a total of 6 cells.

[0032] The wireless network 100 may include one or more network elements 190, which may include core network functions and provide a connection to another network, such as a telephone network and / or a data communication network (e.g., the Internet), via one or more links 181. Such core network functions for 5G may include access and mobility management functions (AMFs) and / or user plane functions (UPFs) and / or session management functions (SMFs). Such core network functions for LTE may include MME (mobile management entity) / SGW (serving gateway) functions. These are merely illustrative functions that may be supported by (multiple) network elements 190, and note that 5G and LTE functions may be supported. The RAN node 170 is coupled to the network element 190 via a link 131. The link 131 may be implemented, for example, as an NG interface for 5G, or an S1 interface for LTE, or other suitable interfaces for other standards. The network element 190 includes one or more processors 175, one or more memories 171, and one or more network interfaces (N / WI / F) 180 interconnected by one or more buses 185. The one or more memories 171 include computer program code 173. The one or more memories 171 and the computer program code 173 are configured to work with the one or more processors 175 to cause the network element 190 to perform one or more operations.

[0033] The wireless network 100 can implement network virtualization, which is the process of combining hardware and software network resources and network functions into a single software-based management entity, a virtual network. Network virtualization involves platform virtualization, usually combined with resource virtualization. Network virtualization is classified as external, combining many networks or parts of networks into virtual units, or internal, providing network-like functions to software containers on a single system. For example, a network can be deployed in a cloud, where virtualized network functions (VNFs) run on, for example, data center servers. For example, network core functions and / or radio access networks (e.g., CloudRAN, O-RAN, edge cloud) can be virtualized. Note that the virtualized entities resulting from network virtualization are still implemented at some level using hardware such as processors 152 or 175 and memories 155 and 171, and such virtualized entities also produce technical effects.

[0034] It may also be noted that the operations of the example embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed by multiple cooperating devices (eg, cRAN).

[0035] Computer readable memories 125, 155, and 171 may be of any type suitable for the local technical environment and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. Computer readable memories 125, 155, and 171 may be means for performing storage functions. Processors 120, 152, and 175 may be of any type suitable for the local technical environment and may include, as non-limiting examples, one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Processors 120, 152, and 175 may be components for performing functions such as controlling UE 110, RAN node 170, and other functions described herein.

[0036] In general, various example embodiments of user device 110 may include, but are not limited to, a cellular telephone (such as a smart phone), a tablet computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA) with wireless communication capabilities, a portable computer with wireless communication capabilities, an image capture device with wireless communication capabilities (such as a digital camera), a gaming device with wireless communication capabilities, a music storage and playback device with wireless communication capabilities, an Internet device allowing wireless Internet access and browsing, a tablet computer with wireless communication capabilities, and a portable unit or terminal integrating a combination of these functions.

[0037] Having thus introduced a suitable but non-limiting technical background for the practice of example embodiments of the present disclosure, the example embodiments will now be described in more detail.

[0038] Features as described herein may generally relate to measurements, such as measurements performed for the purpose of radio resource management (RRM). In cellular networks, RRM measurements are typically used to ensure that the UE remains connected to the best cell. RRM measurements are applied to (multiple) serving cells and neighboring cells, but at least the UE will regularly measure the serving cell and also perform searches for neighboring cells on the serving carrier. However, in many cases, in addition to the (multiple) serving cell carriers, the UE must also search and measure cells on other carriers. This is accomplished by the network configuring which carriers the UE uses for measurements and when to report the acquired measurement results to the network. The UE will perform those measurements and reports according to the network configuration, and the UE should follow specific UE requirements, which determine the requirements regarding the frequency with which the UE should measure the serving cell on the serving carrier and / or neighboring cells in the serving or neighboring carriers.

[0039] In this disclosure, the terms "measurement gap" and "gap" may be used interchangeably.

[0040] For some carriers configured for measurement (which we will refer to as measured carriers), these measurements may not be possible without using measurement gaps, where the UE temporarily stops using the current serving carrier(s), tunes its receiver to the carrier to be measured, and performs measurements only on the measured carrier(s) (thus, the UE cannot receive data on some or all of the serving cells / carriers). On some other carriers, the UE may be able to perform measurements without gaps while continuing to use the current serving carrier(s). However, in some cases, performing such measurements without gaps may result in some interruption to some or all of the serving carrier(s).

[0041] For robust network operation, the network needs to know which carriers the UE can measure without gaps, and for which carriers the UE needs gaps to measure (because the network needs to allocate gaps to the UE). Additionally, the network needs to know whether the UE causes outages on the serving carrier(s) during measurements without gaps. These are discussed in 3GPP RAN Working Group 4 (RAN4) of Rel-18 work.

[0042] Network controlled small gaps (NCSG) are shorter than regular measurement gaps and were first defined in LTE Rel-14, and allow the network to specify when the UE is allowed to cause outages due to measurements: When a UE is configured with an NCSG, it is expected to perform RF retuning only due to measurements during the NCSG, which may allow the UE to perform some measurements without gaps. However, this still does not allow the network to verify that the UE will use these gaps for measurements (because the requirements specified in TS 36.133 do not consider those cases).

[0043] In NR systems, two basic types of measurement gaps were initially defined: per-FR and per-UE measurement gaps. Per-UE gaps are the same as before, where the UE only makes measurements during the gaps, but per-FR gaps allow the network to designate certain gaps to certain frequency ranges (FRs) if the UE supports (multiple) such features. This means that the UE stops receiving the serving cell using the corresponding frequency range only during the gap, for example, during the FR1 gap, the UE continues to use the FR2 serving cell, and during the FR2 gap, the UE continues to use the FR1 serving cell. Therefore, the network can designate certain inter-FR measurements as specific measurement gaps without affecting intra-FR measurements. However, intra-FR measurements may still cause interruptions or require per-FR gaps. Additionally, NCSG and concurrent measurement gaps have been defined. NCSG is the same as in LTE, while concurrent measurement gaps are defined to allow the UE to have, for example, two concurrent measurement gaps, so that each measurement is assigned to only one of the measurement gaps.

[0044] Features as described herein may generally relate to RAN4 requirements. RAN4 has defined extensive UE requirements related to measurements, both for UE measurements without using measurement gaps and for UE measurements using measurement gaps. Additionally, the UE requirements consider many different scenarios. For example: intra-frequency measurements without gaps; intra-frequency measurements with gaps; inter-frequency measurements with gaps; and inter-frequency measurements without gaps.

[0045] RAN4 also defines requirements for scenarios where the UE is configured with a mix of both gap-assisted and non-gap-assisted measurements. To this end, and because there are limited measurement opportunities, RAN4 has defined how / when the UE should measure certain carriers in and out of the gaps, based on UE capabilities and measurement gap allocations, when there is a synchronization signal block (SSB) measurement timing configuration (SMTC) for the carrier to be measured. Since the UE requires more time to receive energy from each carrier to obtain a measurement result, measurements using measurement gaps typically require more time as the number of measured carriers increases.

[0046] TS38.133 states that, relative to the scenario where the UE is not configured with concurrent measurement gaps, the UE may or may not support independent measurement gap patterns for different frequency ranges. In the former case, a single per-UE measurement gap pattern may be provided, while in the latter case, a per-FR measurement gap pattern or a single per-UE measurement gap pattern may be provided. In the former case, in order to enable the UE to perform measurements, a single per-UE measurement gap pattern may be provided, while in the latter case, the network must provide the gap pattern.

[0047] TS38.133 states that measurement gaps can be shared in some cases relative to scenarios where the UE needs gaps to identify and measure cells on the same frequency carrier, or when the SMTC configured for intra-frequency measurement completely overlaps with the per-UE measurement gap. The network can signal measurement gap sharing via the RRC parameter MeasGapSharingScheme (see, e.g., 9.1.2.1a SA: Measurement gap sharing; Table 9.1.2.1a-1: Values ​​of parameter X for NR standalone measurement gap sharing).

[0048] This takes into account when all intra-frequency SMTC measurements overlap with measurement gaps. The network can then configure how many gap occasions should be allocated for intra-frequency measurements.

[0049] If not all intra-frequency measurement opportunities overlap with measurement gaps, RAN4 has defined rules about which measurements will be measured within the measurement gaps, and which measurements will be measured outside the measurement gaps. Those rules also include a carrier-specific scaling factor (CSSF), which scales the measurement delay requirement when the UE is configured to monitor multiple measurement objects, and is described as follows: "9.1.5 Carrier-specific scaling factors This clause specifies the derivation of the Carrier Specific Scaling Factor (CSSF) value, which scales the measurement delay requirements given in clauses 9.2, 9.2A, 9.3, 9.3A, 9.4, as well as NRPRS-based positioning measurements in clause 9.9 and CSI-RS-based L3 measurements in clause 9.10, when the UE is configured to monitor multiple measurement objects. The CSSF values ​​are categorized as CSSF for measurements made outside and within measurement gaps, respectively. outside_gap，i and CSSF within_gap . … 9.1.5.1 Monitoring of multiple layers outside the gap Otherwise [when the UE is not configured with concurrent measurement gaps], the carrier specific scaling factor CSSF for measurement object i obtained in this section is outside_gap、i Applicable to the following measurement types: SSB-based intra-frequency measurements without measurement gaps in clauses 9.2.5 and 9.2A.5 when the SMTC occasions of the intra-frequency measurement object are not overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. SSB-based intra-frequency measurements without measurement gaps in clauses 9.2.5 and 9.2A.5 when part of the SMTC opportunities of the intra-frequency measurement object are overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. For UEs in E-UTRA-NR dual connectivity operation, NR SSB-based inter-RAT measurement objects configured by the E-UTRAN PCell on the NR serving carrier: The SSB is completely contained in the UE's active BWP, and None or part of the SMTC occasions of the inter-RAT measurement object are overlapped by the measured gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. Intra-frequency measurement based on CSI-RS in clause 9.10.2 when there is no measured gap or concurrent measurement gap overlap in the CSI-RS resources used for L3 measurement of the intra-frequency measurement object. CSI-RS based intra-frequency measurement in clause 9.10.2 when all CSI-RS resources used for L3 measurement of the intra-frequency measurement object are partially overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. SSB based inter-frequency measurement without measurement gaps in clause 9.3.9 if the UE supports interFrequencyMeas-NoGap-r16 and the flag interFrequencyConfig-NoGap-r16 is configured by the network when the SMTC opportunities of the inter-frequency measurement object are not overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. If the UE supports interFrequencyMeas-NoGap-r16 and the flag interFrequencyConfig-NoGap-r16 is configured by the network, SSB-based inter-frequency measurement without measurement gaps in clause 9.3.9 is performed when some SMTC opportunities of the inter-frequency measurement object are overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. For UEs in E-UTRA-NR dual connectivity operation, NR SSB-based inter-RAT measurement objects configured by the E-UTRAN PCell on the NR serving carrier: The SSB is completely contained in the UE's active BWP, and None or part of the SMTC occasions of the inter-RAT measurement object are overlapped by the measured gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. When SMTC and RMTC overlap and RMTC does not completely overlap with measurement gaps, there are same-frequency RSSI and channel occupancy measurements without measurement gaps on the carrier affected by CCA. It is expected that the UE only performs measurements of this measurement object i outside of measurement gaps. … 9.1.5.2 Monitoring of multiple layers within a gap Otherwise [for UEs supporting concurrent gaps and when concurrent gaps are configured], the carrier-specific scaling factor CSSF for measurement object i obtained in this section is within_gap，i Applicable to the following measurement types: SSB-based intra-frequency measurements without measurement gaps in clauses 9.2.5 and 9.2A.5 when all SMTC opportunities of the intra-frequency measurement object are overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. SSB-based co-frequency measurement objects with measurement gaps in clauses 9.2.6 and 9.2A.6. Inter-frequency measurement based on CSI-RS in clause 9.10.3 when the CSI-RS resources used for L3 measurement of the inter-frequency measurement object are overlapped by a measurement gap or a concurrent measurement gap. When the CSI-RS resources for L3 measurement of the inter-frequency measurement object are partially overlapped by a measurement gap or a concurrent measurement gap, in clause 9.10.3, inter-frequency measurement based on CSI-RS. Inter-frequency measurement objects based on SSB with measurement gaps in clause 9.3.4 In clause 9.3.9, for inter-frequency measurement objects based on SSB for UEs supporting interFrequencyMeas-NoGap, when All SMTC opportunities of the inter-frequency measurement object are overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps, or Some SMTC opportunities of inter-frequency measurement objects are overlapped by measurement gaps or concurrent measurement gaps. But the flag interFrequencyConfig-NoGap-r16 is not configured by the network. In-frequency RSSI / CO measurement with measurement gaps in clause 9.2A.7. When all RMTC opportunities for this intra-frequency RSSI / CO measurement are overlapped by measurement gap(s), there is no intra-frequency RSSI / CO measurement with measurement gaps in clause 9.2A.7. Inter-frequency RSSI / CO measurements in clauses 9.3A.8 and 9.3A9. E-UTRA inter-RAT measurement objects in clauses 9.4.2 and 9.4.3. NR PRS-based measurements for positioning in clause 9.9 E-UTRA inter-RAT RSTD and E-CID measurements in clauses 9.4.4 and 9.4.5. NRSSB-based inter-RAT measurement objects configured by the E-UTRAN PCell (TS 36.133

[15] clause 8.17.4) on the NR serving carrier for UEs in E-UTRA-NR dual connectivity operation: The SSB is not fully contained in the UE's active BWP, or, All SMTC opportunities of the inter-RAT measurement objects are overlapped by measurement gaps; NRSSB based inter-RAT measurement objects configured by E-UTRAN PCell (TS 36.133

[15] clause 8.17.4) on NR non-serving carrier. E-UTRAN inter-frequency measurement objects configured by the E-UTRAN PCell (TS 36.133

[15] clause 8.17.3) and the E-UTRAN PSCell (TS 36.133

[15] clause 8.19.3). E-UTRAN inter-frequency RSTD measurement configured by the E-UTRAN PCell (TS 36.133

[15] clause 8.17.15). Inter-UTRARAT measurement objects configured in the E-UTRAN PCell (TS 36.133

[15] clauses 8.17.5 to 8.17.12). Inter-GSMRAT measurements configured by the E-UTRAN PCell (TS 36.133

[15] clauses 8.17.13 and 8.17.14). The UE is expected to perform measurements of this measurement object i only in measurement gaps. If the UE is configured with concurrent measurement gaps and an association between measurement object i and certain measurement gaps is provided, a requirement is defined assuming that the UE shall perform measurements of this measurement object i at least in the associated measurement gaps. quantity…"

[0050] These rules are currently defined and state which measurements are to be performed within the gaps and which measurements are allowed to be performed outside the gaps. Whether the UE requires gaps for measurements on a certain carrier is a UE capability and is indicated to the network. The network has no influence on the UE capabilities indicated by the UE, so the network may not be able to control whether the UE performs measurements within or outside the measurement gaps (regardless of whether there is an interruption). These capabilities are typically indicated only once and stored in the network, and they do not change frequently, which can allow the UE to indicate a conservative measurement gap capability, since the gap usage does not depend on a specific configuration. For this reason, the feature NeedForGaps is defined to allow the network to additionally request the UE measurement gap capability based on the current network configuration and the frequency of desired measurements: the network requests to the UE to indicate whether gaps are required for measurements on a given set of carriers with the current configuration, and the UE indicates this in the response to the network. This allows a more dynamic use of measurement gaps, since the UE can be more responsive to the current configuration.

[0051] Features as described herein may generally relate to the need for interruption in Rel 18. In Rel 18, RAN4 is developing new features where a UE supporting gapless measurements may also cause interruption when performing such measurements. To do so, the framework of NeedForGaps is extended.

[0052] In a new signaling design developed by RAN2 (e.g., R2-2306804), a new signaling element (which we also abbreviate as "IE" in the context of this discussion) is included for the network to configure NeedForGap information related to an interruption called NeedForInterruptionConfigNR-r18 using signaling information defined in a signaling element called NeedForInterruptionInfoNR-r18, with which the UE replies information about whether measurements that do not require gaps also result in an interruption. The RAN2 design includes a single flag for requesting whether the UE needs an interruption when performing gapless measurements, which is complementary / associated with the UE response including a corresponding entry in the list interFreq-needForGap-r16.

[0053] Reference now Figure 2 , shows an example of signaling introduced by RAN2 for indicating the need for interruption. At 210, the network may send an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE including needForInterruptionConfigNR-r18, which may be enabled. At 220, the UE may send to the network interFreq-needForGap-r16, which may include an indication for no-gap; and needForInterruptionInfoNR-18, which may include an interruption indication-r18 with a value of no-gap-no-interruption.

[0054] The IE NeedForInterrupInfoNR indicates whether the UE needs an interruption to perform SSB-based measurements on the NR target band without measurement gaps. Figure 3, shows an example of the NeedForInterrupInfoNR IE from 38.331. The intraFreq-needForInterruption field (310) indicates the interruption capability information of the UE for NR intra-frequency measurements. Each entry in the list is associated with an entry in the intraFreq-needForGap-r16 list with the same index. The interFreq-needForInterruption field (320) indicates the interruption capability information of the UE for NR inter-frequency measurements. Each entry in the list is associated with an entry in the interFreq-needForGap-r16 list with the same index. The interruptionIndication field (330) indicates whether the UE requires an interruption to perform SSB-based measurements without measurement gaps. The value no-gap-with-interruption indicates that an interruption is required. The value no-gap-no-interruption indicates that no interruption is required.

[0055] Using the information of the NeedForInterruptionInfoNR IE, the network can know which frequency layers need to be interrupted in order to perform measurements without gaps.

[0056] Features as described herein may generally relate to RAN4 mapping of gaps to measurements. Once the NeedForGaps information is shared by the UE, the network will make a trained guess in which frequency layers are performing measurements with and without gaps. The RRM specification in RAN4 includes the following information on which measurements are made for co-frequency and inter-frequency layers with and without gaps: “…9.2NR Co-frequency Measurement 9.2.1 Introduction The measurement is defined as a co-frequency measurement based on SSB, provided that the center frequency of the SSB of the serving cell used for the measurement is the same as the center frequency of the SSB of the neighboring cell, and the subcarrier spacing of the two SSBs is also the same. If carrier frequency information is provided by the PCell or PSCell, the UE shall be able to identify new intra-frequency cells and perform SS-RSRP, SS-RSRQ and SS-SINR measurements of the identified intra-frequency cells even if no explicit neighbor list with physical layer cell identities is provided. The UE can perform intra-frequency SSB-based measurements without measurement gaps (legacy measurement gaps or NCSG) if The UE indicates no gap via intra-Freq-needForGap for intra-frequency measurement. gap)', or The SSB is completely contained in the UE's active BWP; or, The activated downstream BWP is the initial BWP[3]. For UEs that support NR-NeedForGapNSG-reportering-r17 and indicate NeedForGapNCSG-InfoNR for intra-frequency measurements, In-frequency SSB measurements are defined as measurements without gaps if The UE indicates 'nogap-noncsg' via NeedForGapNCSG-InfoNR for intra-frequency measurement, and The SSB is not fully contained in the UE's active BWP; The activated downlink BWP is not the initial BWP[3]. The delay requirements are specified in clause 9.2.5. A co-channel SSB measurement is defined as a measurement with NCSG if The UE indicates 'ncsg' via NeedForGapNCSG-InfoNR for intra-frequency measurements, and The SSB is not fully contained in the UE's active BWP; The activated downlink BWP is not the initial BWP[3]. When the network configures NCSG, the delay requirements are specified in clause 9.2.7. When the network configures measurement gaps, the delay requirements are specified in clause 9.2.6. In-frequency SSB measurements are defined as measurements with gaps if The UE indicates a 'gap' via the NeedForGapNCSG-InfoNR for intra-frequency measurements, and The SSB is not fully contained in the UE's active BWP; The activated downlink BWP is not the initial BWP[3]. When the network configures measurement gaps, the delay requirements are specified in clause 9.2.6. The UE may perform intra-frequency SSB based measurements corresponding to a deactivated SCell or a dormant SCell with NCSG. For intra-frequency SSB based measurements with NCSG, the UE may incur scheduling restrictions as specified in clause 9.2.7.3. … 9.3NR inter-frequency measurement 9.3.1 Introduction The measurement is defined as an inter-frequency measurement based on SSB if it is not defined as an intra-frequency measurement according to clause 9.2. If carrier frequency information is provided by the PCell or PSCell, the UE shall be able to identify new inter-frequency cells and perform SS-RSRP, SS-RSRQ and SS-SINR measurements of the identified inter-frequency cells even if no explicit neighbor list with physical layer cell identities is provided. The measurement is defined as an inter-frequency SSB based measurement without measurement gaps (legacy measurement gaps or NCSG) in the active BWP and its latency requirements are specified in clause 9.3.9 for UEs capable of interFrequencyMeas-NoGap, provided that The UE supports interFrequencyMeas-Nogap-r16

[15] , and The SSB is fully contained in the UE's active BWP. For UEs that support nr-NeedForGapNSG-reporting-r17 and indicate NeedForGapNCSG-InfoNR for inter-frequency measurement, Inter-frequency SSB measurements are defined as measurements without gaps if The UE indicates “nogap- noncsg", and The SSB is not fully contained in the UE's active BWP. The delay requirements are specified in clause 9.3.9. Inter-frequency SSB measurements are defined as measurements with NCSG if The UE indicates 'ncsg' via NeedForGapNCSG-InfoNR for inter-frequency measurement, and The SSB is not fully contained in the UE's active BWP. When the network configures NCSG, the delay requirements are specified in clause 9.3.10. When the network configures measurement gaps, the delay requirements are specified in clauses 9.3.4 and 9.3.5. Inter-frequency SSB measurements are defined as measurements with gaps if The UE indicates 'gap' via NeedForGapNCSG-InfoNR for inter-frequency measurement, and The SSB is not fully contained in the UE's active BWP. When the network configures measurement gaps, the delay requirements are specified in clauses 9.3.4 and 9.3.5. For inter-frequency SSB based measurements with NCSG, the UE may incur scheduling restrictions as specified in clause 9.3.10.3..."

[0057] Finally, as part of the RAN4 discussions, there were issues in maintaining the number of interruptions that were reduced for gapless measurements in Rel 18. For this reason, it was agreed that measurements with interruptions would use a lower limit of 80ms for the measurement period. This means that even if the network configures the SMTC to 20ms, the UE may perform measurements every 80ms, which would imply a longer measurement delay.

[0058] The problem for the network is that if the UE may perform measurements on one or more carriers without gaps, but cause outages on the serving carrier(s), it may not be possible to know when the UE caused those outages.

[0059] Additionally, there will also be challenges to control the number of interruptions and therefore support any mitigation or impact, since currently the UE is the entity that dictates whether it can perform measurements with or without gaps, and the RAN4 has defined rules as to whether the UE should measure certain carriers, depending on whether they can measure with gaps or not. Based on this, the UE will measure accordingly (see above, CSSF).

[0060] In NR Rel-17, so-called "network configured small gaps" or NCSGs were defined, where the network explicitly tells the UE that it may cause an outage. These "small gaps" are smaller in duration than traditional gaps, and allow the network to schedule UEs between "small gaps", making them more efficient.

[0061] However, in Rel-18 work, the focus has been on not wanting UEs to use even those NCSGs, but instead allowing UEs to cause interruptions more freely due to measurements without gaps; thus, the UE performs measurements whenever desired, while causing (random) interruption of reception on the (random) serving carrier.

[0062] The intention is to allow more UEs to avoid gaps (which typically degrade throughput performance), but still allow for practical implementation of RF re-tuning and / or RF switching on and off (which may result in reception disruptions).

[0063] This causes problems for the network as it may waste scheduling opportunities that are not used by the UE. Additionally, having an unpredictable and increasing number of outages will likely have a negative impact on the network scheduler, which may view packets dropped due to outages as link problems and try to actively mitigate the 'link problem'.

[0064] In more detail, after the UE sends the information of NeedForGas and NeedForInterruption, the network can map for each measurement object (MO) whether it should be performed within the gap or outside the gap. However, it is currently not possible for the network to force certain measurements to be performed within the gap.

[0065] The measurement object can be considered as a specific frequency (range) where SSB can be found.

[0066] Performing measurements within gaps sometimes has advantages because they provide shorter and predictable measurement delays, and no disruptions are expected for these measurement delays. In some cases, measurements without gaps may provide limited benefit because they also have scheduling restrictions and may cause disruptions that are unknown to the network.

[0067] Reference now Figure 4 , shows an example of a network configuration with four frequency layers and one measurement gap. In this example, there are two same-frequency layers (410) and two different-frequency layers (420), and a measurement gap (440) configured with a periodicity of 80ms. Figure 4 In the example where we consider that the UE reports that it supports no gaps for all frequency layers, there is still the following use case example where the network may need / want to control which frequency layers should be executed within the gaps.

[0068] Use case 1: Minimization of outages. Depending on the combination of frequency layers that require outages, the network can prioritize certain layers to be executed within the gaps in order to reduce outages caused by the measurements.

[0069] Use Case 2: Minimization of measurement delay for high priority layers. The network may need to assign higher priority to some frequency layers. In one example, Freq 3 may be the most likely target for switching, or may be configured for conditional switching. In this case, the network may want to minimize the switching delay for this layer.

[0070] Therefore, the network can be expected to have more control over the UE while still allowing efficient RRM measurements. This can help the network mitigate any negative impact caused by UE outages.

[0071] In an example embodiment, the network may indicate that the UE should use a gap or specific gaps to perform measurements for a given carrier, regardless of whether the UE actually needs the gaps to perform measurements on the carrier.

[0072] In one signaling example, the network may send a new message after receiving needForGapsInfo and optionally needForInterruptionInfo. In another signaling example, the network may send a new message after receiving needForGapsInfo. This may have the technical effect of allowing the network to bypass any interruption that the UE may need when making measurements without gaps. This may also have the technical effect of enabling the network to maintain control over which carriers are measured in SMTC opportunities outside of gaps. Therefore, those measurement opportunities can be used in a more controlled manner and can be targeted to certain carriers, for example, same-frequency carriers. This may have the technical effect of enabling the network to ensure that those measurements can be performed more quickly.

[0073] Reference now Figure 5 , shows an example of a network sending commands to a UE. At 510, the network may send a request for NFG information (i.e., needForGapsInfo) to the UE. At 520, the UE may send a report to the network of frequency bands that require gaps. At 530, the network may send commands to the UE regarding which frequencies or measurement objects (MOs) should be measured within the gaps.

[0074] In conventional operation, the UE is allowed to make measurements outside of gaps without gaps, and the UE only uses gaps for 1) measurements where the SMTC overlaps the gap and 2) measurement(s) that require gap(s).

[0075] In an example embodiment, an indication may be specified that indicates that measurement(s) should be performed within the gap(s). In an example embodiment, the indication may indicate that the UE should not perform measurements outside of the gaps, even if the UE has indicated that it is capable of performing such measurements without the gaps. In other words, the indication may be used to prevent the UE from performing one or more measurements outside of the measurement gaps, and / or to ensure that one or more measurements are performed within the measurement gaps.

[0076] Thus, even if the UE has indicated to the network that the UE can perform certain measurements of a particular carrier without gaps (but e.g. with interruptions), the network may indicate to the UE that these same measurements are to be performed within the gaps. If the UE has been instructed from the network to perform certain measurements (on a given carrier or carriers) with / with measurement gaps, the UE follows such network indication, even if the UE has indicated that the measurements may be performed without gaps (but potentially with interruptions).

[0077] Reference now Figure 6, shows an example of measurement configuration according to conventional operation and example embodiments of the present disclosure. In this example, the gNB also represents the serving carrier and the cell (thus, where the UE performs intra-frequency measurements). It is assumed in this example that the UE can perform intra-frequency measurements without measurement gaps (and without interruptions). It is assumed in this example that the UE needs measurement gaps to perform measurements on carrier 2. It is assumed in this example that the UE can perform measurements on carriers 1 and 3 without gaps, but at the same time causes interruptions on other serving carriers (in this example, the gNB). It is assumed in this example that the UE is configured with a measurement gap pattern by the network (e.g., gap pattern #0, 6 ms measurement gaps repeated every 40 ms).

[0078] In this example, carriers 1 and 3 are in band 1, and carrier 2 is in band 2. At 605, the UE is in connected mode with the gNB. At 610, the network requests the UE to inform the network of the need for gaps. At 615, the UE reports its need for gaps. Thus, the UE indicates to the network that the UE needs gaps to perform measurements on band 2. At 620, the network configures the UE with a measurement configuration requesting the UE to perform measurements on carriers 1, 2, and 3. Additionally, the network assigns a measurement gap pattern (e.g., #0) to the UE.

[0079] At 625, option 1, conventional operation, is shown. At 630, the UE may initiate measurements on the configured carriers (carriers 1, 2, and 3). These measurements may be performed for measurement occasions that are outside of the (multiple) allocated measurement gaps. At 635, for UE measurements performed on the serving cell carrier (gNB), the UE may perform measurements without interruption. At 640 and 645, for measurements performed by the UE on carriers 1 and 3, the UE may also perform measurements without measurement gaps, but for each measurement performed, the UE may cause an interruption on the serving carrier. The network does not know when the UE performs measurements that do not cause interruption and / or when it performs measurements that cause interruption, so the network must assume that there may be an interruption in all possible measurement occasions that the UE may use for measurements outside the gap. At 650, the UE may perform measurements on measurement occasions within the gap. For example, at 655, the UE may perform measurements on carrier 2 within the gap.

[0080] It can be noted that in Figure 6In 625, the UE may perform measurements on 3 carriers at measurement opportunities outside the measurement gap, and perform measurements on 1 carrier at measurement opportunities within the measurement gap. Since the measurement delay is proportional to the number of carriers to be measured at each measurement opportunity (i.e., more measurement objects require more time), it is clear that the measurement delay for measurements performed at measurement opportunities outside the gap will be longer than the measurement delay for measurements within the measurement gap (assuming a 50% distribution of measurement opportunities within and outside the gap).

[0081] Option 2 according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure is shown at 660. In this example, not all measurement opportunities may be located within a measurement gap (ie, the UE may be intended to perform measurements outside of a measurement gap).

[0082] Measurements performed without gaps may result in outages.A technical effect of example embodiments of the present disclosure may be to enable a network to mitigate the effects from outages.

[0083] In measurement situations outside of measurement gaps, there may be many carriers to measure. Because it is common to perform intra-frequency measurements (including measurements of the serving cell) without gaps (hence, outside of gaps), many carriers measured outside of gaps may have a negative impact on intra-frequency measurement performance.

[0084] Example embodiments of the present disclosure may address some of these issues.

[0085] Reference now Figure 6 , at 665, the network may explicitly indicate to the UE which carriers are to be measured within the measurement gap (or alternatively, which carriers are to be measured outside the gap, those carriers indicating that a measurement gap is not required). In this example, even though the UE has indicated to the network that it can measure carriers 1 and 3 without a gap (but potentially with an outage), the network may indicate to the UE that it should measure carriers 1 and 3 within the measurement gap.

[0086] In an example embodiment, the measurement configuration at 620 and the measurement configuration at 665 may be combined into a single measurement configuration. Alternatively, they may be separate messages sent by the network and received by the UE.

[0087] At 670, the UE may use measurement occasion(s) outside of the gap(s) for measurement. Due to the network indication, the UE may now measure the serving cell / carrier using only measurement(s) outside of the gap(s). These measurements may be performed without causing interruption. At 675, the UE may measure the serving cell without gaps and without interruption. In other words, the carrier may be measured on measurement occasions outside of the allocated measurement gaps.

[0088] At 680, the UE may use measurement opportunities within the measurement gaps for measurement. Due to the network indication, the UE should use measurement opportunities within the measurement gaps to measure carriers 1, 2, and 3. Note that compared to 625, gaps are also used to measure carriers 1 and 3. However, when measurements are performed using gaps, carriers 1 and 3 do not cause any interruption.

[0089] At 685, the UE measures carrier 1 within the measurement gap. At 690, the UE measures carrier 2 within the measurement gap. At 695, the UE measures carrier 3 within the measurement gap.

[0090] A technical effect of example embodiments of the present disclosure may be to enable a network to mitigate and eliminate outages, otherwise any measurement opportunities performed outside of a gap must assume that an outage may have occurred. A technical effect of example embodiments of the present disclosure may be to enable a network to reduce the number of carriers measured outside of a gap, and therefore reduce measurement delays.

[0091] exist Figure 6 In the example of , the UE indicates what measurements can be performed without gaps but with interruptions. However, this is not limiting; in another example, the UE may also indicate measurements without gaps and without interruptions. Therefore, the network may also indicate whether such measurements (without gaps and without interruptions) should be performed with measurement gaps (despite the UE indication).

[0092] In an example embodiment, the measurement configuration (665) may be configured to the UE via RRC and / or indicated to the UE using MAC CE signaling. The RRC configuration may provide a semi-static configuration, and the UE may indicate whether it is capable of such configuration. The MAC CE may then optionally be used to control the use of gaps / no gaps according to network policy, without relying on the RRC configuration.

[0093] In an example embodiment, the network may send a new message (eg, measurement configuration 665) after receiving needForGapsInfo and needForInterruptionInfo (eg, at 615).

[0094] In an example embodiment, the network can use the information provided in needforGapsInfoNR-r16 and needForInterruptionInfoNR-18 and decide which measurements will be performed in the gap or outside the gap. In order to do this, signaling support needs to be provided. This can be achieved using at least two methods: by including the information while updating the measurement object configuration (method 1), or by sending the information for each target band (method 2).

[0095] Reference now Figure 7 , shows an example timing diagram for method 1. In an example embodiment, method 1 may include an explicit configuration of which measurement object (MO) should be measured within a gap after receiving NeedForGaps and NeedForInterruption. In the figure, steps 1 and 2 (710, 720) follow the same flow as currently, where the network configures the UE to report NeedForGaps and NeedForInterruption in step 1 (710), and where in step 2 (710), the UE reports which frequency bands require gaps and in which the UE can perform measurements without gaps and with / without interruptions. In step 3 (730), the network sends a new RRCReconfiguration message including the measurement configuration, where each measurement object may include a new parameter NFGI_measurementType indicating the measurement type. In the case where the network decides that the MO should be measured within a gap, the parameter may contain the value 'gap', and in the case where the measurement can be measured without a gap, the parameter may contain 'no-gap'.

[0096] Reference now Figure 8 , shows an example timing diagram for Method 2. In an example embodiment, Method 2 may include explicit configuration of the measurement type for each band after receiving NeedForGaps and NeedForInterruption. In the figure, steps 1 and 2 (810, 820) follow the same process as currently, where the network configures the UE to report NeedForGaps and NeedForInterruption in step 1 (810), and where in step 2 (820), the UE reports which bands require gaps and in which the UE can perform measurements without gaps and with / without interruptions. In step 3 (830), a new IE may be included in the RRCReconfiguration, or a new message type may be used to configure which bands should have measurements performed within gaps or outside gaps. This may include an indication of what the measurement type is for each band configured in needForGapsConfigNR. In this example, NFGI_configuration may contain a field for intra-band, i.e., intraFreq-config, and another field for inter-band, i.e., interFreq-config. For each of the intra-band and inter-band, NFGI_type may be included. The value of NFGI_type may be configured by the network as 'gap' or 'no-gap'.

[0097] Method 1 can be performed in the following example. The network can configure the UE to measure FB1, FB2, FB3, and FB4. As shown in Table 1, the UE can send a report to the NW containing the following values ​​in needForGapsInfo and NeedForInterruptionInfo: frequency band NeedForGapInfo NeedForInterruptionInfo FB1 gap - FB2 no-gap no-gap-with-interruption FB3 no-gap no-gap-with-interruption FB4 no-gap no-gap-no-interruption Table 1

[0098] The network can configure the gaps and assign which frequency bands should be measured inside or outside the gaps. In this step, the network can know that at least a gap is needed for measuring FB1. In this example, the network can decide that the same measurement gap can be used to measure FB1 and FB2 in order to minimize the outage ratio caused by FR2. At the same time, the network can accept FB3 and FB4 to be measured outside the gaps because only FB3 causes an outage resulting in a small overall outage ratio.

[0099] If the network operates according to method 1, the network may send a new RRCReconfiguration including: For the measurement gap configuration of FB1 and FB2, For MOs related to FB1 and FB2 NFGI_measurementType=gap For MO related to FB3 and FB4 NFGI_measurementType=no-gap

[0100] If the network operates according to Method 2, the network may send a new RRCReconfiguration including NFGI_configuration according to Table 2: frequency band NFGI_type FB1 gap FB2 gap FB3 no-gap FB3 no-gap Table 2

[0101] Fig. 9Potential steps of an example method 900 are shown. The example method 900 may include: sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap, 910; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap, 920; and measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration, 930. The example method 900 may be performed, for example, by a UE. In an example embodiment, the indication of at least one measurement capability may include an indication that a carrier may be measured without a measurement gap, the carrier not indicated to be measured via at least one measurement configuration in the measurement gap, and thus may be measured without the measurement gap.

[0102] Fig.10 Potential steps of an example method 1000 are shown. The example method 1000 may include: receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap, 1010; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability, 1020; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap, 1030; and scheduling at least one measurement gap. The example method 1000 may be performed, for example, by a network node, a base station, a network entity, an eNB, a gNB, etc.

[0103] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include: at least one processor; and at least one non-transitory memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: send an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receive an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0104] The indication of at least one measurement capability may include at least one of the following: an indication of whether a first measurement gap is required for measurement of the first carrier, or an indication of whether a first interruption is required for measurement of the first carrier.

[0105] The indication for measuring at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication for at least one first measurement object to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication for at least one second measurement object to be measured outside the at least one measurement gap.

[0106] The indication to measure at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first frequency band to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication of at least one second frequency band to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0107] The at least one measurement configuration may also include an indication of a measurement gap pattern.

[0108] The example apparatus may also be configured to perform at least one of the following: in response to at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one first frequency band should be measured within at least one measurement gap, perform measurements on at least one first frequency band within at least one measurement gap; or in response to at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one second frequency band should be measured outside of at least one measurement gap, perform measurements on at least one second frequency band outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0109] The indication of at least one measurement capability may include an indication that at least one second frequency band may be measured outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0110] The at least one measurement configuration may be received via one of: radio resource control signaling, or medium access control signaling.

[0111] According to one aspect, an example method may be provided, including: sending, with a user equipment, an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0112] The indication of at least one measurement capability may include at least one of the following: an indication of whether a first measurement gap is required for measurement of the first carrier, or an indication of whether a first interruption is required for measurement of the first carrier.

[0113] The indication for measuring at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication for at least one first measurement object to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication for at least one second measurement object to be measured outside the at least one measurement gap.

[0114] The indication to measure at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first frequency band to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication of at least one second frequency band to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0115] The at least one measurement configuration may also include an indication of a measurement gap pattern.

[0116] The example method may also include at least one of: in response to at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one first frequency band should be measured within at least one measurement gap, performing measurements on at least one first frequency band within at least one measurement gap; or in response to at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one second frequency band should be measured outside of at least one measurement gap, performing measurements on at least one second frequency band outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0117] The indication of the at least one measurement capability may include an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring the at least one second frequency band outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0118] The at least one measurement configuration may be received via one of: radio resource control signaling, or medium access control signaling.

[0119] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include: a circuit configured to perform the following operations: the circuit configured to perform sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; the circuit configured to perform the following operations: receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and the circuit configured to perform the following operations: measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0120] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include: a processing circuit; a memory circuit including a computer program code, the memory circuit and the computer program code being configured to, with the processing circuit, enable the apparatus to: send an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receive an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0121] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one or more or all of the following: (a) hardware circuit implementations only (e.g., implementations only in analog and / or digital circuits), and (b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as (where applicable): (i) a combination of (multiple) analog and / or digital hardware circuits with software / firmware and (ii) (multiple) hardware processors with any portion of software (including (multiple) digital signal processors), software and (multiple) memories that work together to enable a device such as a mobile phone or server to perform different functions) and (c) (multiple) hardware circuits and / or (multiple) processors, such as (multiple) microprocessors or portions of (multiple) microprocessors that require software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when the software is not required for operation. This definition of "circuitry" applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or a processor (or multiple processors) or a portion of a hardware circuit or a processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. For example, and if applicable to the particular claim element, the term circuitry also covers a baseband integrated circuit or a processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0122] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include means for sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0123] The indication of at least one measurement capability may include at least one of the following: an indication of whether a first measurement gap is required for measurement of the first carrier, or an indication of whether a first interruption is required for measurement of the first carrier.

[0124] The indication for measuring at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication for at least one first measurement object to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication for at least one second measurement object to be measured outside the at least one measurement gap.

[0125] The indication to measure at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first frequency band to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication of at least one second frequency band to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0126] The at least one measurement configuration may also include an indication of a measurement gap pattern.

[0127] The component may also be configured for at least one of the following: in response to at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one first frequency band should be measured within at least one measurement gap, performing measurements on at least one first frequency band within at least one measurement gap; or in response to at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one second frequency band should be measured outside of at least one measurement gap, performing measurements on at least one second frequency band outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0128] The indication of at least one measurement capability may include an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one second frequency band outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0129] The at least one measurement configuration may be received via one of: radio resource control signaling, or medium access control signaling.

[0130] Processors, memory, and / or example algorithms (which may be encoded as instructions, programs, or codes) may be provided as example means for providing or causing operations to be performed.

[0131] According to an example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to: cause sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; cause receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication of measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0132] According to an example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes program instructions stored thereon for performing at least the following operations: causing sending of an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; causing receiving of an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0133] According to another example embodiment, a machine-readable, non-transitory program storage device tangibly embodying instructions executable by the machine to perform operations may be provided, the operations comprising: causing sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; causing receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0134] According to another example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes instructions, which when executed by an apparatus causes the apparatus to perform at least the following items: causing sending of an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; causing receiving of an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication of measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0135] A computer-implemented system comprises: at least one processor and at least one non-volatile memory, wherein the at least one non-volatile memory stores instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor cause the system to at least perform: causing sending of an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; causing receiving of an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication of measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0136] A computer-implemented system, comprising: means for causing sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; means for causing receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; and means for measuring at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

[0137] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include: at least one processor; and at least one non-transitory memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: receive an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determine whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, send an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and schedule at least one measurement gap.

[0138] The indication of at least one measurement capability may include at least one of the following: an indication of whether a first measurement gap is required for measurement of the first carrier, or an indication of whether a first interruption is required for measurement of the first carrier.

[0139] The indication for measuring at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication for at least one first measurement object to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication for at least one second measurement object to be measured outside the at least one measurement gap.

[0140] The indication to measure at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first frequency band to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication of at least one second frequency band to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0141] The at least one measurement configuration may also include an indication of a measurement gap pattern.

[0142] The at least one measurement configuration may include at least one of: an indication to measure at least one first frequency band within at least one measurement gap, or an indication to measure at least one second frequency band outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0143] The indication of the at least one measurement capability may include an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring the at least one second frequency band outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0144] The at least one measurement configuration may be sent via one of: radio resource control signaling, or medium access control signaling.

[0145] According to one aspect, an example method may be provided, including: receiving, with a network node, an indication of at least one measurement capability of a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least: receiving, with the network node, an indication of at least one measurement capability of the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining, based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability, whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0146] The indication of the at least one measurement capability may include at least one of: an indication of whether a first measurement gap is required for measurement of the first carrier, or an indication of whether a first interruption is required for measurement of the first carrier.

[0147] The indication for measuring at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication for at least one first measurement object to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication for at least one second measurement object to be measured outside the at least one measurement gap.

[0148] The indication to measure at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first frequency band to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication of at least one second frequency band to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0149] The at least one measurement configuration may also include an indication of a measurement gap pattern.

[0150] The at least one measurement configuration may include at least one of: an indication to measure at least one first frequency band within at least one measurement gap, or an indication to measure at least one second frequency band outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0151] The indication of the at least one measurement capability may include an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring the at least one second frequency band outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0152] The at least one measurement configuration may be sent via one of: radio resource control signaling, or medium access control signaling.

[0153] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include: a circuit configured to: receive an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; a circuit configured to: determine whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; a circuit configured to: in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, send an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and a circuit configured to: schedule at least one measurement gap.

[0154] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include: a processing circuit; a memory circuit including a computer program code, the memory circuit and the computer program code being configured to, with the processing circuit, enable the apparatus to: receive an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determine whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, send an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and schedule at least one measurement gap.

[0155] According to an example embodiment, an apparatus may include means for: receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability includes at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration includes at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0156] The indication of the at least one measurement capability may include at least one of: an indication of whether a first measurement gap is required for measurement of the first carrier, or an indication of whether a first interruption is required for measurement of the first carrier.

[0157] The indication for measuring at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication for at least one first measurement object to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication for at least one second measurement object to be measured outside the at least one measurement gap.

[0158] The indication to measure at least one carrier within the measurement gap may include at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first frequency band to be measured within the at least one measurement gap, or an indication of at least one second frequency band to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0159] The at least one measurement configuration may also include an indication of a measurement gap pattern.

[0160] The at least one measurement configuration may include at least one of: an indication to measure at least one first frequency band within at least one measurement gap, or an indication to measure at least one second frequency band outside of at least one measurement gap.

[0161] The indication of the at least one measurement capability may include an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring the at least one second frequency band outside of the at least one measurement gap.

[0162] The at least one measurement configuration may be sent via one of: radio resource control signaling, or medium access control signaling.

[0163] According to an example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to: cause receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determine whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; cause sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and schedule at least one measurement gap.

[0164] According to an example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes program instructions stored thereon for performing at least the following operations: causing receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; causing sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0165] According to another example embodiment, a machine-readable, non-transitory program storage device may be provided, tangibly embodying instructions executable by the machine to perform operations, the operations comprising: causing receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; causing sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0166] According to another example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes instructions, which when executed by an apparatus causes the apparatus to perform at least the following items: causing reception of an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; causing, in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0167] A computer-implemented system comprises: at least one processor and at least one non-volatile memory, wherein the at least one non-volatile memory stores instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor cause the system to perform at least: receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; determining whether to measure at least one carrier within at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; in response to determining that at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, causing an indication of at least one measurement configuration to be sent to the user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and scheduling at least one measurement gap.

[0168] A computer-implemented system, comprising: means for causing receiving an indication of at least one measurement capability for a user equipment, wherein the at least one measurement capability may include at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; means for determining whether to measure the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement capability; means for causing sending an indication of at least one measurement configuration to the user equipment in response to determining that the at least one carrier is to be measured within the measurement gap, wherein the at least one measurement configuration may include at least an indication to measure the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and means for scheduling the at least one measurement gap.

[0169] As used herein, the term "non-transitory" is a limitation of the medium itself (ie, tangible, non-signal), not a limitation on the persistence of data storage (eg, RAM versus ROM).

[0170] It should be understood that the foregoing description is merely illustrative. Various alternatives and modifications may be devised by those skilled in the art. For example, the features described in the various dependent claims may be combined with each other in any suitable combination. In addition, features from the different embodiments described above may be selectively combined into new embodiments. Therefore, this description is intended to include all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A device for communication, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one non-transitory memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability comprises at least an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration comprises at least an indication to measure the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and The at least one carrier is measured within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the indication of the at least one measurement capability comprises at least one of: an indication of whether a first measurement gap is required for measurement of the first carrier, or An indication of whether a first interruption is required for the measurement of the first carrier.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the indication for measuring the at least one carrier in the measurement gap comprises at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first measurement object to be measured in the at least one measurement gap, or An indication of at least one second measurement object to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the indication for measuring the at least one carrier in the measurement gap comprises at least one of the following: an indication of at least one first frequency band to be measured in the at least one measurement gap, or An indication of at least one second frequency band to be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least one measurement configuration further comprises an indication of a measurement gap pattern.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least one memory stores instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform at least one of the following: In response to the at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one first frequency band should be measured within the at least one measurement gap, performing measurement on the at least one first frequency band within the at least one measurement gap; or In response to the at least one measurement configuration indicating that at least one second frequency band should be measured outside of the at least one measurement gap, measurements are performed on the at least one second frequency band outside of the at least one measurement gap.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least one measurement configuration is received via one of: Radio Resource Control signalling, or Medium Access Control Signaling.

8. A method for communication, comprising: sending, with a user equipment, an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability comprises at least an indication that the user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration comprises at least an indication to measure the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and The at least one carrier is measured within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

9. An apparatus for communication, comprising means for: sending an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability comprises at least an indication that the apparatus is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; receiving an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration comprises at least an indication to measure the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and The at least one carrier is measured within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions stored thereon for performing at least the following operations: causing sending of an indication of at least one measurement capability, wherein the at least one measurement capability comprises at least an indication that a user equipment is capable of measuring at least one carrier without at least one measurement gap; causing receipt of an indication of at least one measurement configuration, wherein the at least one measurement configuration comprises at least an indication to measure the at least one carrier within the at least one measurement gap; and The at least one carrier is measured within the at least one measurement gap based at least in part on the at least one measurement configuration.

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