Service continuity for multicast transmissions with state changes

Abstract

The present application relates to devices and components, including apparatuses, systems, and methods for addressing a state change of a user equipment in multicast reception.

Description

Background Art

[0001] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) network provides for multicast transmission between a base station and a user equipment (UE). Specifically, a base station can multicast transmissions to multiple UEs. A UE can be in a connected state with a base station to receive multicast transmissions from the base station. This allows a base station to transmit data to multiple UEs simultaneously. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0002] Figure 1 Example network arrangements according to some embodiments are illustrated.

[0003] Figure 2 Example network arrangements according to some embodiments are illustrated.

[0004] Figure 3 An example signaling diagram illustrating lossless reconfiguration according to some embodiments is illustrated.

[0005] Figure 4 An example signaling diagram for a connected state to an inactive state change according to some embodiments is illustrated.

[0006] Figure 5 An example signaling diagram for an inactive state to connected state change according to some embodiments is illustrated.

[0007] Figure 6 Example processes related to multicast data reception according to some embodiments are illustrated.

[0008] Figure 7 Example processes related to multicast data reception according to some embodiments are illustrated.

[0009] Figure 8 Example processes related to multicast data reception according to some embodiments are illustrated.

[0010] Fig. 9 An example user equipment (UE) is illustrated in accordance with some embodiments.

[0011] Fig.10 An example next generation Node B (gNB) according to some embodiments is illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] The following specific embodiments refer to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals may be used to identify the same or similar elements in different drawings. In the following description, specific details, such as specific structures, architectures, interfaces, technologies, etc., are described for the purpose of illustration and not limitation, so as to provide a thorough understanding of various aspects of various embodiments. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art who benefit from the present disclosure that various aspects of various embodiments may be practiced in other examples that deviate from these specific details. In some instances, descriptions of well-known devices, circuits, and methods are omitted so as not to obscure the description of various embodiments due to unnecessary details. For the purposes of this document, the phrase "A or B" refers to (A), (B), or (A and B).

[0013] The following is a glossary of terms that may be used in this disclosure.

[0014] As used herein, the term "circuit" refers to, is part of, or includes a hardware component such as an electronic circuit, a logic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group) or a memory (shared, dedicated, or group) configured to provide the described functionality, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable device (FPD) (e.g., a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a programmable logic device (PLD), a complex PLD (CPLD), a high capacity PLD (HCPLD), a structured ASIC, or a programmable system on chip (SoC)), a digital signal processor (DSP), etc. In some embodiments, the circuit may execute one or more software or firmware programs to provide at least some of the described functionality. The term "circuit" may also refer to a combination of one or more hardware elements and a program code for executing the functionality of the program code (or a combination of circuits used in an electrical or electronic system). In these embodiments, the combination of hardware elements and program code may be referred to as a specific type of circuit.

[0015] As used herein, the term "processor circuit" refers to, is part of, or includes a circuit capable of sequentially and automatically performing a series of arithmetic or logical operations or recording, storing, or transferring digital data. The term "processor circuit" may refer to an application processor, a baseband processor, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit, a single-core processor, a dual-core processor, a triple-core processor, a quad-core processor, or any other device capable of executing or otherwise operating computer-executable instructions (such as program code, software modules, and / or functional processes).

[0016] As used herein, the term "interface circuit" refers to a circuit that enables, is a part of, or includes information exchange between two or more components or devices. The term "interface circuit" may refer to one or more hardware interfaces, such as a bus, an I / O interface, a peripheral component interface, a network interface card, etc.

[0017] As used herein, the term "user equipment" or "UE" refers to a device that has radio communication capabilities and can describe a remote user of network resources in a communication network. In addition, the terms "user equipment" or "UE" may be considered synonymous and may be referred to as a client, mobile phone, mobile device, mobile terminal, user terminal, mobile unit, mobile station, mobile user, subscriber, user, remote station, access agent, user agent, receiver, radio equipment, reconfigurable radio equipment, reconfigurable mobile device, etc. In addition, the term "user equipment" or "UE" may include any type of wireless / wired device or any computing device that includes a wireless communication interface.

[0018] As used herein, the term "computer system" refers to any type of interconnected electronic devices, computer devices, or components thereof. Additionally, the term "computer system" or "system" may refer to various components of a computer that are communicatively coupled to one another. Furthermore, the term "computer system" or "system" may refer to multiple computer devices or multiple computing systems that are communicatively coupled to one another and configured to share computing resources or networked resources.

[0019] As used herein, the term "resource" refers to a physical or virtual device, a physical or virtual component within a computing environment, or a physical or virtual component within a specific device, such as a computer device, a mechanical device, a memory space, a processor / CPU time, a processor / CPU usage, a processor and accelerator load, a hardware time or usage, a power supply, an input / output operation, a port or a network socket, a channel / link allocation, throughput, memory usage, storage, a network, a database and an application, a unit of work, etc. "Hardware resources" may refer to computing, storage or network resources provided by physical hardware elements. "Virtualized resources" may refer to computing, storage or network resources provided by a virtualized infrastructure to an application, a device, a system, etc. The term "network resources" or "communication resources" may refer to resources that a computer device / system can access via a communication network. The term "system resources" may refer to any kind of shared entity that provides a service, and may include computing resources or network resources. System resources may be considered as a set of coherent functions, network data objects or services that can be accessed through a server, wherein such system resources reside on a single host or multiple hosts and can be clearly identified.

[0020] As used herein, the term "channel" refers to any tangible or intangible transmission medium for communicating data or data streams. The term "channel" may be synonymous or equivalent to "communication channel", "data communication channel", "transmission channel", "data transmission channel", "access channel", "data access channel", "link", "data link", "carrier", "radio frequency carrier" or any other similar term representing a path or medium through which data is communicated. In addition, as used herein, the term "link" refers to a connection made between two devices for sending and receiving information.

[0021] As used herein, the terms "instantiate," "instantiate," and the like refer to the creation of an instance. "Instance" also refers to a specific occurrence of an object, which may occur, for example, during the execution of program code.

[0022] The term "connected" may mean that two or more elements at a common communication protocol layer have an established signaling relationship with each other through a communication channel, link, interface, or reference point.

[0023] As used herein, the term "network element" refers to physical or virtualized equipment or infrastructure for providing wired or wireless communication network services. The term "network element" may be considered synonymous with or referred to as a networked computer, networking hardware, network equipment, network node, virtualized network function, etc.

[0024] The term "information element" refers to a structural element that contains one or more fields. The term "field" refers to the individual contents of an information element, or a data element that contains the contents. An information element may include one or more additional information elements.

[0025] The present disclosure relates to states of a "connected state" and an "inactive state". These states are well known in the art and should be interpreted as known in the art. For example, each of the "connected state" and the "inactive state" may each present at least some characteristics that are different from the other states and / or may present a different connection than the other states.

[0026] MBS Enhancement

[0027] Reasonable explanation

[0028] To enable resource efficient delivery of multicast / broadcast services, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has developed New Radio (NR) broadcast / multicast in Release 17 (Rel-17) according to the Work Item Description (WID) in RP-201038, aiming to enable general multicast / broadcast service (MBS) services over the fifth generation system (5GS). Identified use cases that can benefit from this feature include public safety and mission critical, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) applications, Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), live video, software delivery over wireless and Internet of Things (loT) applications, etc. Two delivery modes have been agreed for Rel-17 MBS, where delivery mode 1 (for multicast only) is able to address higher quality of service (QoS) services, while delivery mode 2 (for broadcast only) focuses on lower QoS services. Assuming that Rel-17 MBS already provides basic functions supporting MBS services, a general main goal for Release 18 (Rel-18) should be to enable better deployment of MBS, such as improvements in resource efficiency and capacity based on Rel-17 MBS.

[0029] In Rel-17, the radio access network (RAN) specifies multicast only for user equipment (UE) in RRC_CONNECTED state, which may not fully meet the requirements of, for example, mission-critical services, especially for cells with a large number of UEs according to TR 23.774. Moreover, it is not power efficient to always keep the UE in RRC_CONNECTED state. Therefore, it is important to support multicast for UEs in RRC_INACTIVE.

[0030] The Rel-17 New Radio (NR) MBS broadcast solution allows UEs to receive broadcast services in a downlink-only manner, i.e., broadcast reception is performed without the need to access the network in advance. However, in a typical use case for broadcasting, the UE may be required to receive broadcast services and unicast services from the same or another operator's network at the same time, and some UEs may share hardware resources between broadcast and unicast. Therefore, unicast connections may be affected by broadcast reception for this type of UE. Optimization for such cases is not specifically addressed in Rel-17, and should focus on the cases of unicast reception under RRC_CONNECTED and broadcast reception (including emergency and public safety broadcasts) from the same or different operators.

[0031] Network sharing is a common practice to reduce network capital expenditure (CAPEX). With RAN sharing deployment, if the same multicast / broadcast service is provided separately by two (or more) operators, the service will be identified as a separate temporary mobile group identity (TMGI), which results in duplicate point-to-multipoint (PTM) radio resource consumption for the transmission of the same content in the same cell. This reasonably explains the improved resource efficiency in RAN sharing scenarios.

[0032] Note that public safety services benefit from Rel-17 NR MBS capabilities as well as Rel-18 enhancements following the above rationale.

[0033] Target

[0034] System Information (SI) or core part work item (WI) or target of test part WI.

[0035] This work item will further enhance the NR multicast / broadcast functionality based on Rel-17 MBS. Objectives for Rel-18 include specifying support for multicast reception by UEs in RRC_INACTIVE state [Radio Access Network Group 2 (RAN2), Radio Access Network Group 3 (RAN3)], PTM configuration for UEs receiving multicast in RRC_INACTIVE state [RAN2], and studying the impact of mobility and state transitions for UEs receiving multicast in RRC_INACTIVE (without requiring seamless / lossless mobility) [RAN2, RAN3]. These objectives also include specifying Uu signaling enhancements to allow UEs to use shared processing for MBS broadcast and unicast reception, i.e., including UE capability and related assistance information reporting for simultaneous unicast reception in RRC_CONNECTED and MBS broadcast reception from the same or different operators [RAN2], and studying and, if necessary, specifying enhancements to improve resource efficiency for MBS reception in RAN sharing scenarios [RAN3]. NOTE: Collaboration with System Aspects Working Group 2 (SA2) is expected as appropriate for the above objectives.

[0036] Problem Statement

[0037] Multicast service continuity in Release 17 (R17). Multicast transmission is supported only for connected UEs. For handover between next-generation Node Bs (gNBs) that support multicast, service continuity and lossless handover of multicast MBS are supported during handover. For lossless handover, point-to-point (PTP) to PTP or PTP to PTP+point-to-multipoint (PTM) cases are supported. For service continuity, the network (NW) may provide MBS multicast service continuity during handover. For example, downlink (DL) packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) sequence number (SN) synchronization and continuity between the source cell and the target cell are supported. The source gNB may forward data from the source gNB to the target gNB for lossless handover or to minimize interruption. The UE may provide a PDCP status report for the MBS radio bearer (MRB) in the target cell, and the NW may retransmit lossless packets based on the report.

[0038] For handover between a gNB supporting multicast and a gNB not supporting multicast, the core network (CN) may switch the MRB to a dedicated radio bearer (DRB) and continuously provide MBS services over the radio bearer. In Release 18 (R18), service continuity will be supported for multicast MBS transmission in the inactive state, and some enhancements need to be considered.

[0039] Figure 1 An example network arrangement 100 is illustrated in accordance with some embodiments. The network arrangement 100 illustrates an example UE handover from a first cell 102 supporting MBS Data Resource Bearers (DRBs) to a second cell 104 supporting MBS DRBs.

[0040] The network arrangement 100 may include a UE 106. The UE 106 may have moved from a first location 108 within a first cell 102 (as indicated by a dashed version of the UE 106 shown at the first location 108) to a second location 110 within a second cell 104.

[0041] The network arrangement 100 may include a source base station 112 and a target base station 114 (both of which are illustrated as gNBs in the illustrated embodiment). The source base station 112 may serve a first cell 102, wherein the source base station 112 may provide services to UEs located within the first cell 102. The target base station 114 may serve a second cell 104, wherein the target base station 114 may provide services to UEs located within the second cell 104. When the UE 106 moves from a first location 108 within the first cell 102 to a second location 110 within the second cell 104, a handover may be performed to hand over the service of the UE 106 from the source base station 112 to the target base station 114.

[0042] The network arrangement 100 may include a CN 116. The CN 116 may be coupled to both the source base station 112 and the target base station 114. Both the source base station 112 and the target base station 114 may communicate with the CN 116 to provide services.

[0043] The network arrangement 100 may include an MBS server 118. The MBS server 118 may be coupled to the CN 116. The MBS server 118 may provide an MBS session to be distributed by the CN 116, the MBS session being represented by a first MBS packet 120 and a second MBS packet 122. The CN 116 may provide the first MBS packet 120 and the second MBS packet 122 to both the source base station 112 and the target base station 114. The first MBS packet 120 transmitted to both the source base station 112 and the target base station 114 may have the same SN. In addition, the second MBS packet 122 transmitted to both the source base station 112 and the target base station 114 may have the same SN.

[0044] Since the source base station 112 supports MBSDRB, the UE 106 can receive the multicast data via multicast transmission when located at the first location 108. Since the target base station 114 supports MBSDRB, the UE 106 can continue to receive the multicast data via multicast transmission when located at the second location 110. Therefore, the UE 106 can receive the multicast data from the source base station 112 via multicast transmission before the handover, and can receive the multicast data from the target base station 114 via multicast transmission after the handover. The handover between the source base station 112 and the target base station 114 can be supported for the UE 106 in the connected state, and the features for the handover between gNBs supporting multicast described above can be provided.

[0045] Figure 2 An example network arrangement 200 is illustrated in accordance with some embodiments. The network arrangement 200 illustrates an example UE handover from a first cell 202 supporting MBS Data Resource Bearers (DRBs) to a second cell 204 not supporting MBS DRBs.

[0046] The network arrangement 200 may include a UE 206. The UE 206 may have moved from a first location 208 within a first cell 202 (as indicated by a dashed version of the UE 206 shown at the first location 208) to a second location 210 within a second cell 204.

[0047] The network arrangement 200 may include a source base station 212 and a target base station 214 (both of which are illustrated as gNBs in the illustrated embodiment). The source base station 212 may provide service to a first cell 202, wherein the source base station 212 may provide service to UEs located within the first cell 202. The target base station 214 may provide service to a second cell 204, wherein the target base station 214 may provide service to UEs located within the second cell 204. When the UE 206 moves from a first location 208 within the first cell 202 to a second location 210 within the second cell 204, a handover may be performed to hand over service of the UE 206 from the source base station 212 to the target base station 214.

[0048] The network arrangement 200 may include a CN 216. The CN 216 may be coupled to both a source base station 212 and a target base station 214. Both the source base station 212 and the target base station 214 may communicate with the CN 216 to provide services.

[0049] The network arrangement 200 may include an MBS server 218. The MBS server 218 may be coupled to the CN 216. The MBS server 218 may provide an MBS session to be distributed by the CN 216. The CN 216 may provide the MBS session to the source base station 212, wherein the source base station 212 supports MBSDRB and may provide the MBS session via multicast transmission. In contrast, the target base station 214 may not support MBSDRB, but may support unicast DRB. Based on the target base station 214 supporting unicast DRB, the CN 216 may provide the target base station 214 with the MBS session received from the MBS as a unicast protocol data unit (PDU) session.

[0050] Since the source base station 212 supports MBSDRB, the UE 206 can receive multicast data via multicast transmission when located at the first location 208. Since the target base station 214 does not support MBSDRB but supports unicast DRB, the UE 206 can receive unicast PDU data via DRB when located at the second location 210. Therefore, the UE 206 can receive multicast data from the source base station 212 via multicast transmission before the handover, and can receive unicast PDU data from the target base station 214 via DRB after the handover. The handover between the source base station 212 and the target base station 214 can be supported for the UE 106 in the connected state, and features for the handover between a gNB supporting multicast and a gNB not supporting multicast as described above can be provided.

[0051] Figure 3 An example signaling diagram 300 illustrating lossless reconfiguration according to some embodiments is illustrated. For example, the signaling diagram 300 illustrates signals that may be exchanged to facilitate lossless reconfiguration.

[0052] The signaling diagram 300 may include a UE 302 and a network element 304. The UE 302 may include a UE 900 ( Fig. 9 ) one or more features. The network element 304 may include the gNB 1000 ( Fig.10 ) One or more features of ). Signaling diagram 300 illustrates signals that may be exchanged between UE 302 and network element 304 for lossless reconfiguration of UE 302.

[0053] Signaling diagram 300 may be initiated by RRC reconfiguration 306 of UE 302. Specifically, UE 302 and network element 304 may exchange one or more signals to reconfigure the RRC of UE 302. RRC reconfiguration 306 in the illustrated embodiment may reconfigure UE 302 for MRBs associated with PTP and PTM. Thus, in the illustrated embodiment, UE 302 may be reconfigured with configurations for MRB-associated PTP and PTM.

[0054] Once UE 302 has been configured by RRC reconfiguration 306, the network element may transmit one or more MBS transmissions 308 via the PTM channel and the PTP channel to UE 302. UE 302 may receive MBS transmission 308 and process MBS transmission 308 using the configuration indicated by RRC reconfiguration 306. In some cases, one or more PDCP PDUs and / or service data units (SDUs) provided within MBS transmission 308 may not be properly received and / or processed by UE 302.

[0055] Another RRC reconfiguration 310 may be performed between the UE 302 and the network element 304. For example, one or more signals may be exchanged between the UE 302 and the network element 304 for the RRC reconfiguration 310 to reconfigure the UE 302 with the new configuration. In the illustrated embodiment, the RRC reconfiguration 310 may indicate the configuration of the MRB with the PTP. The RRC reconfiguration 310 may also include an indication of a PDCP status report (SR) query for the UE 302. For example, the RRC reconfiguration 310 may request the UE to provide a PDCP status report.

[0056] UE 302 may transmit a PDCP status report 312 to network element 304. UE 302 may transmit the PDCP status report 312 in response to RRC reconfiguration 310. PDCP status report 312 may indicate SNs for PDUs and / or SDUs correctly received and processed by UE 302. PDCP status report 312 may be for MRBs. In the illustrated embodiment, PDCP may receive and correctly process PDUs and / or SDUs with SNs 6-9 and 11-19. The correctly processed PDUs and / or SDUs may be stored by UE 302. PDCP status report 312 may indicate SNs for PDUs and / or SDUs stored by UE 302 and / or SNs for PDUs and / or SDUs that UE 302 determines were not correctly received.

[0057] The network element 304 may transmit an additional MBS transmission 314 to the UE 302 via the PTP. The MBS transmission 314 may include PDUs and / or SDUs that were not previously correctly processed by the UE 302. For example, the network element 304 may determine based on the PDCP status report 312 that the UE 302 did not correctly process the PDUs or SDUs corresponding to SN 5 and the PDUs or SDUs corresponding to SN 10. The network element 304 may retransmit the PDUs or SDUs corresponding to SN 5 and the PDUs or SDUs corresponding to SN 10 in the MBS transmission 314. Specifically, the MBS transmission 314 may include PDUs and / or SDUs 316. As can be seen, the PDUs and / or SDUs 316 of the MBS transmission 314 include the PDUs or SDUs corresponding to SN 5 and the PDUs or SDUs corresponding to SN 10. Upon receiving SN 5 and SN 10, the UE may deliver all previously stored PDCP SDUs and / or PDUs to upper layers.

[0058] Method: Service continuity during RRC state transitions

[0059] Connected to Inactive: When switching to Inactive, the UE maintains MBS session reception according to the RRCReconfiguration received in the Connected state. For example, when the UE is in the Connected state, the UE may receive multicast data for the MBS session via the RRC configuration. The UE may transition from the Connected state to the Inactive state while continuing to receive multicast data. While the UE is in the Inactive state, the UE may continue to receive multicast data via the RRC configuration.

[0060] Configuration: The configuration should include at least PTM transmission. For example, the RRC configuration of the UE for receiving and processing multicast data may include at least the configuration for PTM transmission of multicast data.

[0061] If the configuration in the connected state includes a PTP link, the UE can autonomously remove / suspend the PTP configuration part (or optionally, the NW can explicitly remove the PTP configuration in advance) when switching to inactive. For example, the RRC configuration for the UE may include a configuration for the PTP link in the connected state that the UE can use to receive multicast data. When the UE transitions to the inactive state, the UE can remove and / or suspend the PTP link from the RRC configuration when the UE is in the inactive state. The removal and / or suspension of the PTP link can be performed autonomously by the UE, or the NW can indicate that the PTP configuration will be removed. In some embodiments, the NW can remove the PTP link before the UE transitions to the inactive state, such as indicated in an RRC release message, an RRC release message with a suspend configuration, another RRC configuration message, or another message provided before the UE transitions to the inactive state.

[0062] If the configuration in the connected state includes a HARQ feedback portion, the UE may autonomously switch it to a PTM without HARQ feedback mode (or optionally, the NW may explicitly reconfigure the PTM configuration in advance to change the feedback mode). For example, when the UE is in the connected state, the UE may provide HARQ feedback for multicast data received via the PTM link. When the UE transitions to the inactive state, the UE may switch to a PTM configuration that does not provide HARQ feedback when the UE is in the inactive state. The UE may autonomously switch to a PTM configuration that does not provide HARQ feedback, or the NW may indicate that HARQ feedback may be omitted before the UE transitions to the inactive state, such as in an RRC release message, an RRC release message with a suspended configuration, another RRC configuration message, or another message provided before the UE transitions to the inactive state.

[0063] Common frequency resources (CFR) for multicast reception may be restricted to the initial bandwidth part (BWP) of the primary cell (PCell) for use in the inactive state. For example, the CFR for frequency and timing resources at this location may be restricted to the initial BWP of the PCell for UEs in the inactive state. Optionally, the NW may indicate that the configuration is applicable to multiple cells (cell 1, 2, 3). For example, the network may indicate that the configuration is applicable to multiple cells.

[0064] UE operation: The UE maintains multicast data reception via the PTM link in the same manner as in the connected state, i.e., the PDCP SN is continuous. For example, when the UE is in the connected state, the UE may receive multicast data via the PTM link. The UE may be configured to have a configuration for receiving multicast data via the PTM link when the UE is in the connected state. When the UE transitions to the active state, the UE may continue to utilize the configuration for receiving multicast data via the PTM link when the UE is in the inactive state. The PDCP SN for multicast data may be continuous from the connected state of the UE to the inactive state of the UE.

[0065] When the NW notifies that the MBS session is deactivated or the UE performs a cell change, the UE may stop receiving multicast data. For example, in some cases, the network may indicate that the MBS session is being deactivated. The UE may stop receiving multicast data based on an indication from the network that the MBS session is being deactivated. In some cases, the UE may perform a cell change. The UE may stop receiving multicast data based on the execution of a cell change.

[0066] If the UE switches to another cell with the same configuration, the UE maintains data reception (no need to reset layer 2 (L2) variables to receive data in the new cell). For example, when the UE switches to another cell with the same configuration as the cell from which the UE is switching, the UE may continue data reception. It may not be necessary to reset the L2 variables to receive data in the cell to which the UE switches.

[0067] Figure 4 An example signaling diagram 400 for a connected state to an inactive state change according to some embodiments is illustrated. For example, the signaling diagram 400 illustrates an example of multicast data reception when the state of the UE changes from a connected state to an inactive state. In addition, the signaling diagram 400 illustrates an example of multicast data reception when the UE performs a cell reselection from a first cell to a second cell.

[0068] Signaling diagram 400 may include UE 402. UE 402 may include UE 900 ( Fig. 9 ) features. The signaling diagram 400 may also include a first cell 404 and a second cell 406. Each of the first cell 404 and the second cell 406 may be provided by a base station. For example, the first base station may provide the first cell 404, and the second base station may provide the second cell 406. The first base station and the second base station may include gNB 1000 ( Figure 1). A transmission described as being transmitted or received by the first cell 404 may be transmitted or received via a first base station providing the first cell 404. Additionally, a transmission described as being transmitted or received by the second cell 406 may be transmitted or received via a second base station providing the second cell 406. In other embodiments, a single base station may provide both the first cell 404 and the second cell 406, wherein the transmissions described for the first cell 404 and the second cell 406 may be transmitted or received by different hardware or software of the single base station.

[0069] At the beginning of the signaling diagram, UE 402 may be in a connected state, as indicated by connection 408. For example, UE 402 may be connected to a first cell 404, wherein UE 402 may maintain one or more connections with the first cell 404 while in the connected state.

[0070] When UE 402 is in a connected state with first cell 404, first cell 404 may transmit multicast data to UE 402. For example, UE 402 may be configured to have a configuration for receiving multicast data via both a PTP link and a PTM link when in a connected state. Based on the configuration, when UE 402 is in a connected state, first cell 404 may transmit first multicast data 410 to UE 402 via a PTM link and transmit second multicast data 412 to the UE via a PTP link.

[0071] When in the connected state, the UE 402 may utilize the configuration to receive and process the first multicast data 410 received via the PTM link and the second multicast data 412 received via the PTP link. In some implementations, when the UE 402 is in the connected state, the UE 402 may provide HARQ feedback for the first multicast data 410 received via the PTM link and the second multicast data 412 received via the PTP link.

[0072] The first cell 404 may transmit an RRC release message 414 with a suspension configuration to the UE 402 to cause the UE 402 to transition to the inactive state. For example, the first cell 404 may determine that the UE 402 will transition to the inactive state based on conditions being met, such as a lack of scheduled transmissions and / or direct transmissions between the UE 402 and the first cell 404.

[0073] Based on the determination that UE 402 will transition to an inactive state, first cell 404 may generate an RRC release message 414 with a suspended configuration. In some embodiments, RRC release message 414 with a suspended configuration may indicate that the PTP link will be removed when UE 402 is in the inactive state and / or HARQ feedback for multicast data received via the PTM link will be removed when UE 402 is in the inactive state. In some of these embodiments, RRC release message 414 with a suspended configuration may cause the PTM configuration of UE 402 to be reconfigured without HARQ feedback when UE 402 is in the inactive state. In addition, RRC release message 414 with a suspended configuration may indicate that the configuration for receiving multicast data is applicable to more than one cell, including first cell 404 and second cell 406 in the illustrated embodiment. First cell 404 may transmit the generated RRC release message 414 with a suspended configuration to UE 402.

[0074] UE 402 may receive and process RRC release message 414 with suspension configuration from first cell 404. Based on RRC release message 414 with suspension configuration, UE 402 may transition to an inactive state, as indicated by inactive 416.

[0075] When in an inactive state, UE 402 may remove or suspend the PTP link. For example, when UE 402 transitions to an inactive state, UE 402 may remove or suspend the PTP link for receiving the second multicast data 412. In some embodiments, when UE 402 transitions to an inactive state, UE 402 may autonomously remove or suspend the PTP link. In other embodiments, UE 402 may identify an indication from the first cell 404 that UE 402 will remove or suspend the PTP link when UE 402 is in an inactive state, and UE 402 may remove or suspend the PTP link based on the indication. When UE 402 removes or suspends the PTP link, UE 402 may stop receiving the second multicast data 412 via the PTP link.

[0076] In some embodiments in which HARQ feedback is provided by UE 402 for receiving multicast data when UE 402 is in a connected state, UE 402 may stop providing HARQ feedback for multicast data when UE 402 is in an inactive state. For example, when UE 402 is in a connected state, UE 402 may provide HARQ feedback for first multicast data 410 received via a PTM link and / or second multicast data 412 received via a PTP link. Although UE 402 may stop receiving second multicast data 412 via a PTP link when UE 402 transitions to an inactive state, UE 402 may continue to receive first multicast data 410 received via a PTM link when UE 402 is in an inactive state. When UE 402 is in an inactive state, UE 402 may stop providing HARQ feedback for first multicast data 410. For example, in some embodiments, when UE 402 transitions to an inactive state, UE 402 may autonomously switch to PTM without a HARQ feedback mode. In other embodiments, UE 402 may have a PTM configuration reconfigured by first cell 404 to stop providing HARQ feedback when UE 402 is in an inactive state, such as reconfiguring the PTM configuration of UE 402 via an RRC release message 414 with a suspend configuration to not provide HARQ feedback when UE 402 is in an inactive state.

[0077] UE 402 may continue to receive first multicast data 410 via the PTM link throughout the transition to the inactive state and while UE 402 is in the inactive state. For example, UE 402 may continue to receive first multicast data 410 using the same configured PTM link as utilized when UE 402 is in the connected state.

[0078] The PDCP SN for the multicast data received when the UE 402 is in the inactive state may be continuous with the PDCP SN for the multicast data received when the UE 402 is in the inactive state. For example, the first multicast data 410 received via the PTM link and the second multicast data 412 received via the PTP link when the UE 402 is in the connected state may have included continuous packets with PDCP SNs. When the UE 402 transitions to the inactive state, the first multicast data 410 received when the UE 402 is in the inactive state may include packets with PDCP SNs that are continuous with the packets received when the UE 402 is in the connected state.

[0079] In some embodiments, the CFR for multicast reception may be limited to the initial BWP of the PCell for use in an inactive state. For example, when the UE 402 is in an inactive state, the CFR for reception of the first multicast data 410 may be limited to the initial BWP of the first cell 404.

[0080] In the illustrated example, the UE 402 may perform a cell reselection procedure, as indicated by dashed line 418. The UE 402 may perform the cell reselection procedure based on satisfying a condition for cell reselection, such as a signal quality of the first cell 404 to the UE 402 falling below a threshold quality. In the illustrated example, based on the cell reselection procedure, the UE 402 may select to camp on the second cell 406. While the UE 402 performs cell reselection, the UE 402 may stop receiving multicast data. For example, while the UE 402 performs cell reselection, the UE 402 may stop receiving the first multicast data 410 via the PTM link, and may continue to receive the second multicast data 412 not via the PTP link.

[0081] Once the UE 402 completes the cell change to the second cell 406, the UE 402 may begin receiving multicast data from the second cell 406. For the illustrated example, the second cell 406 may have the same configuration for multicast data transmission as the first cell 404. In this case, the UE 402 may receive multicast data from the second cell 406 without having to reset the L2 variables set for the first cell 404.

[0082] When UE 402 is camping on second cell 406, second cell 406 may transmit third multicast data 420 to UE 402 on PTM link. When UE 402 remains in an inactive state, multicast data may be limited to PTM link transmission, and PTP link transmission may not occur. In some embodiments, third multicast data 420 may be continuous from first multicast data 410 and / or second multicast data 412. For example, PDCP SN of packets received in third multicast data 420 may be continuous with PDCP SN of packets received in first multicast data 410 and / or second multicast data 412. UE 402 may process third multicast data 420 received from second cell 406 via PTM link using the same configuration as used to process first multicast data 410 received from first cell 404 via PTM link.

[0083] The second cell 406 may transmit a multicast session deactivation message 422 to the UE 402. The multicast session deactivation message 422 may indicate that a multicast session (such as multicast session #X in the illustrated example) for the UE 402 is being deactivated. The UE 402 may identify the multicast session deactivation message 422 and determine to stop receiving multicast data based on the multicast session deactivation message 422. Therefore, the third multicast data 420 being received via the PTM link may be terminated based on the multicast session deactivation message 422.

[0084] Inactive to connected, the UE receiving multicast data may be notified of this situation via an RRC resume request message. For example, the UE may transition from an inactive state to a connected state. As part of the transition from an inactive state to a connected state, the UE may transmit an RRC resume request message to the NW. The RRC resume request message may include information for the UE to continue receiving multicast data.

[0085] If the UE is receiving multicast data in the current cell and initiates a RRCResumeRequest for some reason (e.g., unicast data arrives), the UE may notify the NW of the following information via the RRCResume process (i.e., together or in RRCResumeRequest or RRCResumeComplete): the MBS session identifier (ID) currently being received by the UE; the MBS session ID' that the UE is associated with but not activated; and / or the PDCP status report of the MRB. For example, the UE's transition from an inactive state to a connected state may include the execution of an RRC recovery process. The RRC recovery process may include the transmission of an RRC recovery request message and / or an RRC recovery complete message from the UE to the network. In some embodiments, the RRC recovery request message and / or the RRC recovery complete message may include the MBS session ID currently being received by the UE, the MBS session ID that the UE is associated with but not activated, and / or the PDCP status report of the MRB.

[0086] Based on the MBS session information, the NW may continue to provide the UE with an updated MBS multicast configuration for multicast transmission under connection. For example, the NW may provide the UE with an MBS multicast configuration, and when the UE is in a connected state, the UE may use the MBS multicast configuration to receive multicast data. The UE may maintain multicast service reception during the entire recovery process until a dedicated multicast configuration used in a connected state is received. For example, when the UE is in an inactive state, the UE may receive multicast data via a PTM link. During the RRC recovery process, the UE may continue to receive multicast data via a PTM link. Once the UE has transitioned to a connected state, the UE may receive multicast data via both a PTM link and a PTP link. The PTP link may be a dedicated multicast link, and a dedicated multicast configuration may be used to process multicast data received via the PTP link.

[0087] Based on the PDCP status report of the MRB, the NW may provide retransmission of lost MBS packets received in the inactive state, and optionally, the NW may continue to use the PDCP context (in the case of reset / initialization) for connected transmissions. For example, the PDCP status report may indicate any MBS packets that were lost, failed to be correctly received by the UE, and / or failed to be correctly processed by the UE. When the UE is in the inactive state, the NW may determine which MBS packets are lost. When the UE is in the connected state, the NW may retransmit the lost MBS packets to the UE. In some embodiments, the UE may continue to utilize the PDCP context (without reset and / or initialization) for multicast transmissions provided when the UE is in the connected state.

[0088] When the RRC connection is restored, the UE may restore the previous MRB configuration, such as establishing and resuming the previous PTP link. For example, the UE may have been previously provided with an MRB configuration for multicast data received via a PTP link. When the UE has transitioned to a connected state, the UE may utilize the MRB configuration to establish and / or resume a PTP link for receiving multicast data.

[0089] Figure 5 An example signaling diagram 500 for an inactive state to a connected state change according to some embodiments is illustrated. For example, the signaling diagram 500 illustrates an example of multicast data reception when the state of the UE changes from an inactive state to a connected state.

[0090] The signaling diagram 500 may include a UE 502. The UE 502 may include a UE 900 ( Fig. 9 ) features. The signaling diagram 500 may also include a cell 504. The cell 504 may be provided by a base station. The base station may include a gNB 1000 ( Fig.10 ) of the present invention. A transmission described as being transmitted or received by the cell 504 may be transmitted or received via a base station providing the cell 504.

[0091] At the beginning of the signaling diagram, UE 502 may be in an inactive state, as indicated by inactivity 506. For example, UE 502 may camp on cell 504 in an inactive state.

[0092] When UE 502 is in an inactive state, UE 502 may be able to receive multicast data via a PTM link, but may not receive data via a PTP link. In the illustrated example, when UE 502 is in an inactive state, cell 504 may receive first multicast data 508 via a PTM link to UE 502. UE 502 may be configured with a PTM configuration for processing the first multicast data via the PTM link.

[0093] An RRC recovery procedure 510 may be performed between the UE 502 and the cell 504 to transition the UE 502 to a connected state with the cell 504. The RRC recovery procedure 510 may include an RRC recovery request message 512 transmitted by the UE 502 to the cell 504, the RRC recovery request message 512 requesting to restore the RRC connection. The RRC recovery procedure 510 may also include an RRC recovery message 514 transmitted from the cell 504 to the UE 502. The cell 504 may transmit the RRC recovery message 514 in response to the RRC recovery request message 512. The RRC recovery procedure 510 may also include an RRC recovery complete message 516 transmitted from the UE 502 to the cell 504. In addition, the RRC recovery procedure 510 may include a PDCP status report 518 transmitted from the UE 502 to the cell 504. The PDCP status report 518 may be a PDCP status report of an MRB related to the first multicast data 508. While the RRC recovery procedure 510 is being performed, the UE 502 may continue to receive the first multicast data 508 via the PTM link.

[0094] During the RRC recovery process 510, while the UE 502 is in the inactive state, the UE 502 may provide information related to the multicast data being received by the UE 502. For example, the UE 502 may provide the cell 504 with information about the first multicast data 508 received while the UE 502 is in the inactive state during the RRC recovery process 510. In some embodiments, the UE 502 may provide the information in the RRC recovery request message 512 and / or the RRC recovery complete message 516. The information may include the MBS session ID of the first multicast data 508 being received at the time of the RRC recovery process 510 and / or the MBS session ID of the UE associated but not activated.

[0095] Based on the information related to the multicast data received from UE 502 during the RRC recovery process, cell 504 may provide UE 502 with an updated MBS multicast configuration for multicast transmission when UE 502 is in a connected state. For example, cell 504 may provide an MBS multicast configuration for multicast data received via a PTM link and / or multicast data received via a PTP link. UE 502 may be configured with an MBS multicast configuration, and may receive multicast data via a PTP link using the MBS multicast configuration when UE 502 is in a connected state. In some embodiments, the MBS multicast configuration may be provided in an RRC recovery message 514.

[0096] Based on the RRC recovery procedure 510, the UE 502 may transition to a connected state, as indicated by connected 520. Once the UE 502 is in the connected state, the cell 504 may transmit the lost MBS packets to the UE 502. For example, the cell 504 may determine, based on the PDCP status report 518, one or more MBS packets (including incorrectly received and / or incorrectly processed packets) lost by the UE 502 during reception of the first multicast data 508 when the UE 502 was in the inactive state. The cell 504 may retransmit the MBS packets determined to be lost to the UE 502 while the UE 502 is in the connected state.

[0097] Once the UE 502 has transitioned back to the connected state, the UE 502 may restore the previous MRB configuration. The previous MRB configuration may allow the UE 502 to establish and resume the previous PTP link when the UE 502 was in the connected state. In the illustrated example, the UE 502 may receive the second multicast data 522 via the PTP link, which was established and resumed when the UE 502 was in the connected state. Therefore, when the UE 502 is in the connected state, the UE 502 may receive the first multicast data 508 via the PTM link and receive the second multicast data 522 via the PTP link.

[0098] Figure 6 An example process 600 related to multicast data reception according to some embodiments is illustrated. Process 600 may be performed by a UE (such as UE 402 ( Figure 4 ), UE 502( Figure 5 ) and / or UE 900( Fig. 9 ))implement.

[0099] Process 600 may include, at 602, processing multicast data via a first set of transmission links when the UE is in a first state. For example, when the UE is in the first state, the UE may process multicast data via a first set of transmission links. In some cases, the first set of transmission links may include PTM links. In other cases, the first set of transmission links may include PTM links and PTP links. In some embodiments, the first state may be an inactive state. In other embodiments, the first state may be a connected state.

[0100] Process 600 may include transmitting HARQ feedback to a base station providing multicast data at 604. For example, when the UE is in the first state, the UE may transmit HARQ feedback to a base station providing multicast data to the UE. In some implementations, 604 may be omitted.

[0101] Process 600 may include identifying an RRC release message with a pending configuration at 606. For example, the UE may identify an RRC release message with a pending configuration received from a base station. In some embodiments, the RRC release message with a pending configuration may include an indication of a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station, wherein the base station from which the RRC release message with a pending configuration is received is the first base station. In some embodiments, 606 may be omitted.

[0102] Process 600 may include determining, at 606, to transition from a first state to a second state. For example, the UE may determine to transition from a first state to a second state. In some cases, such as when the first state is a connected state, the second state may be an inactive state. In some cases, such as when the first state is an inactive state, the second state may be a connected state. In an embodiment in which the first state is a connected state and the second state is an inactive state, determining to transition from the first state to the second state may include determining to transition from the first state to the second state based on an identification of an RRC release message with a suspend configuration.

[0103] Process 600 may include transitioning from a first state to a second state in 610. For example, the UE may transition from the first state to the second state. The UE may transition from a connected state to an inactive state, or from an inactive state to a connected state. In some embodiments, transitioning from the first state to the second state may include performing an RRC recovery process to transition from the first state to the second state. In some embodiments, performing the RRC recovery process may include transmitting an RRC recovery request message to a base station that transmits multicast data to the UE. In these embodiments, the RRC recovery request message may include an MBS session identifier corresponding to the multicast data being received by the UE when transitioning from the first state to the second state. In addition, in some embodiments, performing the RRC recovery process may include transmitting a PDCP status report of the MRB.

[0104] Process 600 may include suspending transmission of HARQ feedback at 612. For example, when the UE is in the second state, the UE may suspend transmission of HARQ feedback to the base station. In some implementations, 612 may be omitted.

[0105] Process 600 may include, at 614, processing multicast data via a second set of transmission links when the UE is in a second state. For example, when the UE is in the second state, the UE may process multicast data via a second set of transmission links. In an embodiment where the first state is an inactive state and the first set of transmission links includes PTM links, the second set of transmission links may include PTM links and PTP links. In an embodiment where the first state is a connected state and the first set of transmission links includes PTM links and PTP links, the second set of transmission links includes PTM links.

[0106] Although it can be Figure 6 The operation sequence of application process 600 is shown in Figure 601, but it should be understood that in other embodiments, the operation sequence may be different and / or one or more of these operations may be performed simultaneously. In addition, it should be understood that one or more of these operations may be omitted and / or one or more additional operations may be included in other embodiments.

[0107] Figure 7 An example process 700 related to multicast data reception according to some embodiments is illustrated. Process 700 may be performed by a UE (such as UE 402 ( Figure 4 ), UE 502( Figure 5 ) and / or UE 900( Fig. 9 ))implement.

[0108] Process 700 may include establishing a set of transmission links at 702. For example, a UE may establish a set of transmission links with a base station for receiving multicast data.

[0109] Process 700 may include identifying an RRC release message with a suspension configuration at 704. For example, the UE may identify an RRC release message with a suspension configuration received from a base station, where the base station may be the first base station. In some embodiments, 704 may be omitted.

[0110] Process 700 may include identifying a configuration for receiving multicast data from the second base station at 706. For example, the UE may identify a configuration for receiving multicast data from the second base station indicated within the RRC release with the suspended configuration identified at 704. In some embodiments, 706 may be omitted.

[0111] Process 700 may include transitioning from a first state to a second state at 708. For example, the UE may transition from the first state to the second state. In some cases, the first state may be a connected state and the second state may be an inactive state. In some other cases, the first state may be an inactive state and the second state may be a connected state. In some embodiments, transitioning from the first state to the second state may include transmitting an RRC recovery request message to a base station. The RRC recovery request message may include an MBS session identifier corresponding to the multicast data being received by the UE when transitioning from the first state to the second state.

[0112] Process 700 may include establishing an additional transmission link or terminating a transmission link in 710. For example, the UE may establish an additional transmission link or terminate a transmission link for receiving multicast data based on transitioning from the first state to the second state in 708. In some cases, establishing an additional transmission link or terminating a transmission link may include terminating a PTP link for receiving multicast data based on transitioning from the first state to the second state, such as when the first state is a connected state and the second state is an inactive state. In other cases, establishing an additional transmission link or terminating a transmission link may include establishing a PTP link for receiving multicast data based on transitioning from the first state to the second state, such as when the first state is an inactive state and the second state is a connected state.

[0113] Process 700 may include utilizing a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station at 712. For example, the UE may utilize the configuration identified at 706 to receive multicast data from the second base station.

[0114] Although it can be Figure 7 The operation sequence of application process 700 is shown in Figure 701, but it should be understood that in other embodiments, the operation sequence may be different and / or one or more of these operations may be performed simultaneously. In addition, it should be understood that one or more of these operations may be omitted and / or one or more additional operations may be included in other embodiments.

[0115] Figure 8 An example process 800 related to multicast data reception according to some embodiments is illustrated. The process 800 may be performed by a base station (such as a base station ( Figure 4 ), providing a base station for the second cell 406 ( Figure 4 ), providing a base station for cell 504 ( Figure 5 ) and / or gNB 1000( Fig.10 ))implement.

[0116] Process 800 may include providing multicast data to a UE operating in a first state at 802. For example, a base station may provide multicast data to a UE operating in the first state. In some embodiments, providing multicast data to a UE operating in the first state may include providing multicast data to the UE via a first set of links while the UE is operating in the first state.

[0117] Process 800 may include determining to transition the UE from the first state to the second state at 804. For example, the base station may determine to transition the UE from the first state to the second state when providing multicast data.

[0118] Process 800 may include identifying the MBS session information received from the UE at 806. For example, the base station may identify the MBS session information received from the UE. In some embodiments, 806 may be omitted.

[0119] Process 800 may include generating a message to facilitate the transition of the UE in 808. For example, the base station may generate a message to facilitate the transition of the UE from the first state to the second state. In some embodiments, the base station may be a first base station, and the message may include an RRC release message with a suspended configuration. The RRC release message with a suspended configuration may include an indication of a configuration for receiving multicast data from the second base station. In embodiments where MBS information is identified in 806, the message may include an indication of a multicast configuration to be used for receiving multicast data by the UE when the UE is operating in the second state.

[0120] Process 800 may include transmitting a message to a UE at 810. For example, a base station may transmit the message to the UE.

[0121] Process 800 may include providing multicast data to the UE via the second set of links at 812. For example, when the UE is operating in the second state, the base station may provide multicast data to the UE via the second set of links. In some implementations, 812 may be omitted.

[0122] Although it can be Figure 8 The operation sequence of application process 800 is shown in Figure 1, but it should be understood that in other embodiments, the operation sequence may be different and / or one or more of these operations may be performed simultaneously. In addition, it should be understood that one or more of these operations may be omitted and / or one or more additional operations may be included in other embodiments.

[0123] Fig. 9An example UE 900 according to some embodiments is illustrated. The UE 900 may be any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as, for example, a mobile phone, a computer, a tablet, an industrial wireless sensor (e.g., a microphone, a carbon dioxide sensor, a pressure sensor, a humidity sensor, a thermometer, a motion sensor, an accelerometer, a laser scanner, a fluid level sensor, an inventory sensor, a voltage / current meter, an actuator, etc.), a video surveillance / monitoring device (e.g., a camera, a video camera, etc.), a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch), a loose IoT device. In some embodiments, the UE 900 may be a RedCap UE or an NR-Light UE.

[0124] UE 900 may include a processor 904, RF interface circuitry 908, memory / storage 912, a user interface 916, a sensor 920, a driver circuit 922, a power management integrated circuit (PMIC) 924, antenna structures 926, and a battery 928. The components of UE 900 may be implemented as integrated circuits (ICs), portions of integrated circuits, discrete electronic devices or other modules, logical components, hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. Fig. 9 The block diagram of UE 900 is intended to show a high-level view of certain of the components of UE 900. However, some of the components shown may be omitted, additional components may be present, and different arrangements of the components shown may occur in other implementations.

[0125] Components of the UE 900 may be coupled to various other components via one or more interconnects 932, which may represent any type of interface, input / output, bus (local, system, or extension), transmission line, trace, optical connection, etc., that allows various circuit components (on a common or different chip or chipset) to interact with each other.

[0126] The processor 904 may include processor circuits such as, for example, a baseband processor circuit (BB) 904A, a central processor unit circuit (CPU) 904B, and a graphics processor unit circuit (GPU) 904C. The processor 904 may include any type of circuit or processor circuit that executes or otherwise operates computer-executable instructions (such as program codes, software modules, or functional processes from the memory / storage device 912) to cause the UE 900 to perform operations as described herein.

[0127] In some embodiments, the baseband processor circuit 904A can access the communication protocol stack 936 in the memory / storage device 912 to communicate through a 3GPP compatible network. Generally speaking, the baseband processor circuit 904A can access the communication protocol stack to: perform user plane functions at the PHY layer, MAC layer, RLC layer, PDCP layer, SDAP layer, and PDU layer; and perform control plane functions at the PHY layer, MAC layer, RLC layer, PDCP layer, RRC layer, and non-access layer. In some embodiments, the PHY layer operations can be additionally / alternatively performed by components of the RF interface circuit 908.

[0128] The baseband processor circuit 904A may generate or process baseband signals or waveforms that carry information in a 3GPP-compatible network. In some embodiments, the waveforms used for NR may be based on cyclic prefix OFDM (CP-OFDM) in the uplink or downlink, and discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) in the uplink.

[0129] The memory / storage 912 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media including instructions (e.g., a communication protocol stack 936) that may be executed by one or more processors in the processor 904 to cause the UE 900 to perform various operations described herein. The memory / storage 912 includes any type of volatile or non-volatile memory that may be distributed throughout the UE 900. In some embodiments, some of the memory / storage 912 may be located on the processor 904 itself (e.g., L1 cache and L2 cache), while other memory / storage 912 is located outside the processor 904, but the processor may be accessed via a memory interface. The memory / storage 912 may include any suitable volatile or non-volatile memory, such as, but not limited to, dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, solid-state memory, or any other type of memory device technology.

[0130] The RF interface circuit 908 may include a transceiver circuit and a radio frequency front end module (RFEM), which allows the UE 900 to communicate with other devices through a radio access network. The RF interface circuit 908 may include various elements arranged in a transmit path or a receive path. These elements may include, for example, switches, mixers, amplifiers, filters, synthesizer circuits, control circuits, etc.

[0131] In the receive path, the RFEM may receive the radiated signal from the air interface via the antenna structure 926 and continue to filter and amplify the signal (using a low noise amplifier). The signal may be provided to the transceiver's receiver, which down-converts the RF signal to a baseband signal that is provided to the baseband processor of the processor 904.

[0132] In the transmit path, the transmitter of the transceiver up-converts the baseband signal received from the baseband processor and provides the RF signal to the RFEM. The RFEM may amplify the RF signal through a power amplifier before the signal is radiated across the air interface via the antenna 926.

[0133] In various embodiments, the RF interface circuit 908 may be configured to send / receive signals in a manner compatible with NR access technology.

[0134] Antenna 926 may include antenna elements to convert electrical signals into radio waves to travel through the air and convert received radio waves into electrical signals. These antenna elements may be arranged into one or more antenna panels. Antenna 926 may have an antenna panel that is omnidirectional, directional, or a combination thereof to achieve beamforming and multiple input, multiple output communications. Antenna 926 may include a microstrip antenna, a printed antenna manufactured on the surface of one or more printed circuit boards, a patch antenna, a phased array antenna, etc. Antenna 926 may have one or more panels that are designed for a specific frequency band included in a band in FR1 or FR2.

[0135] The user interface circuit 916 includes various input / output (I / O) devices designed to enable a user to interact with the UE 900. The user interface 916 includes input device circuits and output device circuits. The input device circuit includes any physical or virtual components for accepting input, and in particular includes one or more physical or virtual buttons (e.g., reset button), physical keyboard, keypad, mouse, touch pad, touch screen, microphone, scanner, headset, etc. The output device circuit includes any physical or virtual components for displaying information or otherwise conveying information (such as sensor readings, actuator positions, or other similar information). The output device circuit may include any number or combination of audio or visual displays, in particular including one or more simple visual outputs / indicators (e.g., binary state indicators (such as light emitting diodes "LEDs") and multi-character visual outputs) or more complex outputs (such as display devices or touch screens (e.g., liquid crystal displays (LCDs), LED displays, quantum dot displays, projectors, etc.)), where the output of characters, graphics, multimedia objects, etc. is generated or produced by the operation of the UE 900.

[0136] Sensor 920 may include a device, module, or subsystem whose purpose is to detect events or changes in its environment and send information about the detected events (sensor data) to some other device, module, subsystem, etc. Examples of such sensors include, among others: an inertial measurement unit including an accelerometer, gyroscope, or magnetometer; a microelectromechanical system or nanoelectromechanical system including a three-axis accelerometer, a three-axis gyroscope, or a magnetometer; a level sensor; a flow sensor; a temperature sensor (e.g., a thermistor); a pressure sensor; a barometric pressure sensor; a gravity meter; an altimeter; an image capture device (e.g., a camera or a lensless aperture); a light detection and ranging sensor; a proximity sensor (e.g., an infrared radiation detector, etc.); a depth sensor; an ambient light sensor; an ultrasonic transceiver; a microphone or other similar audio capture device; and the like.

[0137] The driver circuit 922 may include software elements and hardware elements for controlling a specific device embedded in the UE 900, attached to the UE 900, or otherwise communicatively coupled to the UE 900. The driver circuit 922 may include various drivers, thereby allowing other components to interact with or control various input / output (I / O) devices that may be present in the UE 900 or connected to the UE. For example, the driver circuit 922 may include: a display driver for controlling and allowing access to a display device, a touch screen driver for controlling and allowing access to a touch screen interface, a sensor driver for obtaining sensor readings of the sensor circuit 920 and controlling and allowing access to the sensor circuit 920, a driver for obtaining an actuator position of an electromechanical component or controlling and allowing access to an electromechanical component, a camera driver for controlling and allowing access to an embedded image capture device, and an audio driver for controlling and allowing access to one or more audio devices.

[0138] The PMIC 924 may manage power provided to various components of the UE 900. Specifically, with respect to the processor 904, the PMIC 924 may control power source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-DC conversion.

[0139] In some embodiments, the PMIC 924 may control or otherwise be part of various power saving mechanisms of the UE 900. For example, if the platform UE is in the RRC_Connected state, in which the platform is still connected to the RAN node because it expects to receive traffic soon, then after a period of inactivity, the platform may enter a state known as discontinuous reception mode (DRX). During this state, the UE 900 may be powered off for short time intervals, thereby saving power. If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, the UE 900 may transition to the RRC_Idle state, in which the device is disconnected from the network and no operations such as channel quality feedback, handovers, etc. are performed. The UE 900 enters a very low power state and performs paging, in which the device wakes up again periodically to listen to the network and then powers off again. The UE 900 may not receive data in this state; in order to receive data, the platform must transition back to the RRC_Connected state. Additional power saving modes may prevent the device from using the network for a time exceeding the paging interval (from a few seconds to a few hours). During this time, the device is completely unable to connect to the network and can be completely powered off. Any data transmitted during this time will be significantly delayed, and it is assumed that the delay is acceptable.

[0140] The battery 928 can power the UE 900, but in some examples, the UE 900 can be installed in a fixed location and can have a power source coupled to the power grid. The battery 928 can be a lithium-ion battery, a metal-air battery such as a zinc-air battery, an aluminum-air battery, a lithium-air battery, etc. In some specific implementations, such as in vehicle-based applications, the battery 928 can be a typical lead-acid car battery.

[0141] Fig.10 An example gNB 1000 is illustrated in accordance with some embodiments. The gNB 1000 may include a processor 1004, an RF interface circuit 1008, a core network (CN) interface circuit 1012, a memory / storage circuit 1016, and an antenna structure 1026.

[0142] The components of gNB 1000 may be coupled to various other components via one or more interconnects 1028.

[0143] The processor 1004, RF interface circuit 1008, memory / storage circuit 1016 (including communication protocol stack 1010), antenna structure 1026 and interconnect 1028 may be similar to those described with reference to Fig. 9 Like named elements are shown and described.

[0144] The CN interface circuit 1012 may provide connectivity for a core network (e.g., a 5th Generation Core Network (5GC) using a 5th Generation Core Network (5GC) compatible network interface protocol such as a Carrier Ethernet protocol or some other suitable protocol). Network connectivity may be provided to / from the gNB 1000 via optical fiber or wireless backhaul. The CN interface circuit 1012 may include one or more dedicated processors or FPGAs for communicating using one or more of the aforementioned protocols. In some implementations, the CN interface circuit 1012 may include multiple controllers for providing connectivity to other networks using the same or different protocols.

[0145] It is understood that the use of personally identifiable information should be subject to privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized to meet or exceed industry or government requirements for maintaining user privacy. Specifically, personally identifiable information data should be managed and processed to minimize the risk of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of the authorized use should be clearly stated to users.

[0146] For one or more embodiments, at least one of the components shown in one or more of the foregoing figures may be configured to perform one or more operations, techniques, processes, or methods described in the following example section. For example, the baseband circuit described above in conjunction with one or more of the foregoing figures may be configured to operate according to one or more of the examples described below. For another example, the circuits associated with the UE, base station, network element, etc. described above in conjunction with one or more of the foregoing figures may be configured to operate according to one or more of the examples described below in the example section.

[0147] Example

[0148] In the following sections, additional exemplary embodiments are provided.

[0149] Embodiment 1 may include a method of operating a user equipment (UE), the method comprising processing multicast data via a first set of transmission links when the UE is in a first state, determining a transition from the first state to a second state, transitioning from the first state to the second state, and processing multicast data via a second set of transmission links when the UE is in the second state.

[0150] Embodiment 2 may include a method according to embodiment 1, wherein the first group of transmission links includes point-to-multipoint (PTM) links, and wherein the second group of transmission links includes the PTM links and point-to-point (PTP) links.

[0151] Embodiment 3 may include a method according to embodiment 1, wherein the first group of transmission links includes point-to-multipoint (PTM) links and point-to-point (PTP) links, and wherein the second group of transmission links includes the PTM links.

[0152] Embodiment 4 may include the method according to embodiment 1, the method further comprising transmitting hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback to a base station that provides multicast data to the UE when the UE is in the first state, and suspending transmission of the HARQ feedback to the base station when the UE is in the second state.

[0153] Embodiment 5 may include the method of Embodiment 1, wherein the first state is a connected state, and wherein the second state is an inactive state.

[0154] Embodiment 6 may include a method according to embodiment 5, the method further comprising identifying a radio resource control (RRC) release message with a suspension configuration received from a base station, wherein determining the transition from the first state to the second state comprises determining the transition from the first state to the second state based on the identification of the RRC release message with the suspension configuration.

[0155] Embodiment 7 may include the method of embodiment 6, wherein the base station is a first base station, and wherein the RRC release message with suspension configuration includes an indication of a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station.

[0156] Embodiment 8 may include the method of Embodiment 1, wherein the first state is an inactive state, and wherein the second state is a connected state.

[0157] Embodiment 9 may include the method of embodiment 8, wherein transitioning from the first state to the second state includes performing a radio resource control (RRC) recovery procedure to transition from the first state to the second state.

[0158] Embodiment 10 may include a method according to embodiment 9, wherein performing the RRC recovery process includes transmitting an RRC recovery request message to a base station that transmits multicast data to the UE, wherein the RRC recovery request message includes a multicast / broadcast service (MBS) session identifier corresponding to the multicast data being received by the UE when transitioning from the first state to the second state.

[0159] Embodiment 11 may include the method of embodiment 9, wherein performing the RRC recovery procedure includes transmitting a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) status report of a multicast / broadcast service radio bearer (MRB).

[0160] Embodiment 12 may include a method of operating a user equipment (UE), the method comprising establishing a set of transmission links for receiving multicast data with a base station, transitioning from a first state to a second state, and establishing an additional transmission link or terminating a transmission link for receiving multicast data based on the transition from the first state to the second state.

[0161] Embodiment 13 may include a method according to embodiment 12, wherein the first state is a connected state, wherein the second state is an inactive state, and wherein establishing the additional transmission link or terminating the transmission link includes terminating a point-to-point (PTP) link for receiving multicast data based on a transition from the first state to the second state.

[0162] Embodiment 14 may include a method according to embodiment 12, wherein the first state is an inactive state, wherein the second state is a connected state, and wherein establishing the additional transmission link or terminating the transmission link includes establishing a point-to-point (PTP) link for receiving multicast data based on a transition from the first state to the second state.

[0163] Embodiment 15 may include a method according to embodiment 12, wherein the base station is a first base station, and wherein the method further includes identifying a radio resource control (RRC) release message with a suspension configuration received from the first base station, identifying a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station indicated in the RRC release message with the suspension configuration, and utilizing the configuration for receiving multicast data from the second base station.

[0164] Embodiment 16 may include a method according to embodiment 12, wherein transitioning from the first state to the second state includes transmitting a radio resource control (RRC) recovery request message to the base station, wherein the RRC recovery request message includes a multicast / broadcast service (MBS) session identifier corresponding to multicast data being received by the UE when transitioning from the first state to the second state.

[0165] Embodiment 17 may include a method of operating a base station, the method comprising providing multicast data to a user equipment (UE) operating in a first state, determining to transition the UE from the first state to a second state when providing the multicast data, generating a message to facilitate the transition of the UE from the first state to the second state, and transmitting the message to the UE.

[0166] Embodiment 18 may include a method according to embodiment 17, wherein providing the multicast data to the UE operating in the first state includes providing the multicast data to the UE via a first set of links when the UE is operating in the first state, and wherein the method also includes providing the multicast data to the UE via a second set of links when the UE is operating in the second state.

[0167] Embodiment 19 may include a method according to embodiment 17, wherein the base station is a first base station, wherein the message includes a radio resource control (RRC) release message with a suspension configuration, and wherein the RRC release message with the suspension configuration includes an indication of a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station.

[0168] Embodiment 20 may include a method according to embodiment 17, the method further comprising identifying multicast / broadcast service (MBS) session information received from the UE, wherein the message includes an indication of a multicast configuration to be used for receiving multicast data by the UE when the UE is operating in the second state.

[0169] Embodiment 21 may include an apparatus comprising components for performing one or more elements of the method described in or related to any of Embodiments 1 to 20, or any other method or process described herein.

[0170] Embodiment 22 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media, which include instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of an electronic device, cause the electronic device to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any one of Embodiments 1 to 20 or any other method or process described herein.

[0171] Embodiment 23 may include an apparatus comprising logic components, modules, or circuits for performing one or more elements of the method described in or related to any of Embodiments 1 to 20, or any other method or process described herein.

[0172] Embodiment 24 may include methods, techniques or processes described or related to any one of Embodiments 1 to 20, or parts or components thereof.

[0173] Embodiment 25 may include a device comprising: one or more processors and one or more computer-readable media, wherein the one or more computer-readable media include instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform a method, technique, or process, or a portion thereof, as described in or related to any one of Embodiments 1 to 20.

[0174] Embodiment 26 may include a signal as described or related to any one of Embodiments 1 to 20, or a portion or component thereof.

[0175] Embodiment 27 may include a datagram, information element, packet, frame, segment, PDU or message, or a portion or component thereof, as described or related to any one of Embodiments 1 to 20, or otherwise described in the present disclosure.

[0176] Embodiment 28 may include a signal encoded with data as described or associated with any one of Embodiments 1 to 20, or a portion or component thereof, or otherwise described in this disclosure.

[0177] Embodiment 29 may include a signal encoded with a datagram, IE, packet, frame, segment, PDU or message as described or associated with any one of Embodiments 1 to 20, or a portion or component thereof, or otherwise described in the present disclosure.

[0178] Embodiment 30 may include an electromagnetic signal carrying computer-readable instructions, wherein execution of the computer-readable instructions by one or more processors will cause the one or more processors to perform a method, technique, or process, or a portion thereof, described in or related to any one of Embodiments 1 to 20.

[0179] Embodiment 31 may include a computer program comprising instructions, wherein execution of the program by a processing element causes the processing element to perform a method, technique, or process, or a portion thereof, described in or related to any one of Embodiments 1 to 20.

[0180] Embodiment 32 may include signals in a wireless network as shown and described herein.

[0181] Embodiment 33 may include a method of communicating in a wireless network as shown and described herein.

[0182] Embodiment 34 may include a system for providing wireless communications as shown and described herein.

[0183] Embodiment 35 may include an apparatus for providing wireless communications as shown and described herein.

[0184] Unless explicitly stated otherwise, any of the above embodiments may be combined with any other embodiment (or combination of embodiments). The foregoing description of one or more specific implementations provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the scope of the embodiments to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings or may be obtained from the practice of various embodiments.

[0185] Although the above embodiments have been described in considerable detail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to include all such variations and modifications.

Claims

1. One or more computer-readable media having instructions stored thereon, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause a user equipment (UE): processing multicast data via a first set of transmission links when the UE is in a first state; determining a transition from the first state to a second state; transitioning from the first state to the second state; as well as Processing multicast data via a second set of transmission links when the UE is in the second state.

2. One or more computer-readable media according to claim 1, wherein the first group of transmission links includes point-to-multipoint (PTM) links, and wherein the second group of transmission links includes the PTM links and point-to-point (PTP) links.

3. One or more computer-readable media according to claim 1, wherein the first group of transmission links includes point-to-multipoint (PTM) links and point-to-point (PTP) links, and wherein the second group of transmission links includes the PTM links.

4. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the UE to: transmitting hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback to a base station that provides multicast data to the UE when the UE is in the first state; and When the UE is in the second state, transmission of the HARQ feedback to the base station is suspended.

5. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the first state is a connected state, and wherein the second state is an inactive state.

6. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 5, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the UE to: Identify a radio resource control (RRC) release message with a suspension configuration received from a base station, wherein determining to transition from the first state to the second state includes determining to transition from the first state to the second state based on the identification of the RRC release message with the suspension configuration.

7. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 6, wherein the base station is a first base station, and wherein the RRC release message with suspension configuration includes an indication of a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station.

8. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 1, wherein the first state is an inactive state, and wherein the second state is a connected state.

9. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein transitioning from the first state to the second state comprises performing a radio resource control (RRC) recovery procedure to transition from the first state to the second state.

10. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 9, wherein performing the RRC recovery process comprises transmitting an RRC recovery request message to a base station that transmits multicast data to the UE, wherein the RRC recovery request message comprises a multicast / broadcast service (MBS) session identifier corresponding to the multicast data being received by the UE when transitioning from the first state to the second state.

11. The one or more computer-readable media of claim 9, wherein performing the RRC recovery procedure comprises transmitting a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) status report of a Multicast / Broadcast Service Radio Bearer (MRB).

12. A method of operating a user equipment (UE), comprising: establishing a set of transmission links with a base station for receiving multicast data; transitioning from a first state to a second state; as well as An additional transmission link is established or a transmission link for receiving multicast data is terminated based on the transition from the first state to the second state.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the first state is a connected state, wherein the second state is an inactive state, and wherein establishing the additional transmission link or terminating the transmission link comprises terminating a point-to-point (PTP) link for receiving multicast data based on a transition from the first state to the second state.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the first state is an inactive state, wherein the second state is a connected state, and wherein establishing the additional transmission link or terminating the transmission link comprises establishing a point-to-point (PTP) link for receiving multicast data based on a transition from the first state to the second state.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the base station is a first base station, and wherein the method further comprises: identifying a radio resource control (RRC) release message with a suspension configuration received from the first base station; identifying a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station indicated in the RRC release message with the suspended configuration; as well as The configuration for receiving multicast data from the second base station is utilized.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein transitioning from the first state to the second state comprises transmitting a radio resource control (RRC) resume request message to the base station, wherein the RRC resume request message comprises a multicast / broadcast service (MBS) session identifier corresponding to multicast data being received by the UE when transitioning from the first state to the second state.

17. A method of operating a base station, comprising: providing multicast data to a user equipment (UE) operating in a first state; determining to transition the UE from the first state to a second state when providing the multicast data; generating a message to facilitate transition of the UE from the first state to the second state; as well as The message is transmitted to the UE.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein providing the multicast data to the UE operating in the first state comprises providing the multicast data to the UE via a first set of links when the UE is operating in the first state, and wherein the method further comprises providing the multicast data to the UE via a second set of links when the UE is operating in the second state.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the base station is a first base station, wherein the message comprises a radio resource control (RRC) release message with a suspension configuration, and wherein the RRC release message with the suspension configuration comprises an indication of a configuration for receiving multicast data from a second base station.

20. The method of claim 17, further comprising: Multicast / broadcast service (MBS) session information received from the UE is identified, wherein the message includes an indication of a multicast configuration to be used for receiving multicast data by the UE when the UE is operating in the second state.

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